During this research, an analysis of transnational sex trafficking discovers the different perceptions and assumptions about the trade from the real experiences of victims. According to the findings, the subjects’ stories do not fit general knowledge and beliefs about women crossing national borders to sell sex and wives for sale. Results show that most subjects were willing to travel abroad as sex workers or obtain any employment.
Anti-trafficking prototypes argue that China’s widespread organized groups are responsible for networking and transporting sex workers forcefully. However, the researchers confirm that Chinese organizations are not involved in sex trafficking since there is no link between the organized groups and transmigration agencies for sex workers. Chinese gangs such as Triads do not engage in human trafficking to avoid bad reputations, which could ruin their establishments in China.
Individuals who traffic or assist in smuggling women through international borders for sex work are family men who consider the trade as a means of earning a living. Contrary to the belief that intermediaries initiate the process and transport the women forcefully, the men only help cross the borders safely. Their roles entail providing safety and transport across borders regardless of whether the women will find employment or not. In most instances, these middlemen only receive money for their services without knowing the women’s intentions or destinations once they cross the boundaries. Likewise, the agencies which receive immigrant sex workers are responsible for providing transportation services, housing, security, and documentation for citizenship.
Although anti-trafficking organizations believe that these agencies send victims to slavery and sexual malpractices for personal benefit, the subjects beg to contradict by stating that they help them settle down without force or coercion. The firms also argue that their work does not involve forceful measures or restricting immigrants from accessing their documents or moving freely. The findings show that most subjects like immigration agencies for sex workers because they give them the right to free will and only provide options regarding the available employment opportunities.
Findings also indicate that China’s Crackdown on sex workers and abolishing local prostitution contributes significantly to the massive movement of women overseas for commercial sex work. The women do not have alternative means of income and prefer moving their business abroad to avoid threats and arrests in China. According to the findings, China’s policies on prostitution favor local officials, not anti-trafficking organizations, through operating illegal brothels locally, which violate women sexually. Thus, sex workers avoid unfair punishments by moving abroad willingly, contrary to the belief that they are forced to leave their families and be enslaved to other countries.
The researchers conclude that existing literature relies on data from ethnographic studies and qualitative cases that interview law enforcement agencies and families of trafficked victims that may obstruct the correct information. The finding on the 149 subjects provides more insight into the trade, which involves willing participants from all parties. Among the 149, only 16% were victims of sex trafficking through fraudulent means rather than forceful labor. The perception of modern-day slavery, which argues that sex traffickers move women for their economic gain through fraud and coercion, may hinder the clear picture of sex trafficking because many of the women accept to travel abroad willingly after the oppression.