TERM: FIRST TERM
SUBJECT: CIVIC EDUCATION
CLASS: SS 3
REFERENCES
1. Fundamentals of Civic Education for Senior Secondary Schools Book 3 by Sola
Akinyemi.
2. Civic Education for Senior Secondary Schools Book 3 by R.W. Okunloye et al.
3. Mind Exploit Civic Education for Senior Secondary Schools by B.S. Amao.
WEEK FOUR
HUMAN TRAFFICKING
Human trafficking is the recruiting, transporting, receiving and harboring of people in
exchange for money.
People who are most vulnerable to human trafficking are women and children and they are
subjected into forced labour, slavery, servitude and prostitution. The people who engaged
in human trafficking business are called human traffickers.
Human trafficking is a violation of human rights and the traffickers use their wealth and
power to deceive and force the poor, less privileged, ignorant and vulnerable people in the
society into all kinds of human exploitation that violates the fundamental human rights of
the people involved.
Human trafficking could be done domestically or at the international level. Most
international trafficking activities are targeted towards taking young ladies abroad through
illegal means for the purpose of forcing them into prostitution.
Domestic trafficking is targeted towards bringing young boys and girls into cities for force
labour as house helps. It is important to know that human trafficking is both a domestic
and international crime.
CAUSES OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING
• POVERTY: Poverty is a state of being poor or lack of basic necessities of live. Poverty
can make people vulnerable to human trafficking and child labour. Parents may give
up their children to be taken to cities and work as house helps. Some parents may even
sell their children totally into slavery while others go to cities or travel abroad to
engage in prostitution in order to make money.
• GREED: People who are not contented with what they have or those who want to
accumulate fast wealth may find themselves engaged in human trafficking.
• LOW SELF-ESTEEM: Some people due to low self-esteem or loss of sense of worth and
self confidence may fall victim of human traffickers who will promise to help them but
what they actually do is to exploit them.
• CORRUPTION: Human traffickers bribe government officials with money and material
things so that they can continue to carry out their business without being caught or
hindered by government agencies.
• IGNORANCE: Vulnerable members in the society can easily be deceived by human
traffickers who will promise them greener pastures and better lifestyles in the cities or
abroad and because everybody wants a better and improved life, they innocently
follow these traffickers only to discover that their intention was to exploit and use
them to make money. Some of these people may even be forced to take oaths not to
disclose their secret or try to escape.
• WAR: During prolonged war, children are forced to join the army and are trained to
carry guns and ammunitions. Although this may not be done for money, it is also a
form of human trafficking e.g during the second world war, some Africans were
trafficked to Europe so as to fight in the war.
EVALUATION
1. Define human trafficking.
2. State the causes of human trafficking.
EFFECTS AND CONSEQUENCES OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING
• PHYSICAL OR PSYCOLOGICAL ABUSE: People who are being trafficked are subjected
to all form of physical abuse such as rape, beating and torture. Children used as house
help are often time beaten and the female ones are raped and sometimes starved of
food and other basic needs of life. This affects the psychological growth of such
children.
• ABUSE OF FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN RIGHTS: Human trafficking leads to abuse of
fundamental human rights because they are often denied their right to free thought,
conscience and decision.
• DELAY IN THEIR EDUCATION AND HUMAN CAPACITY DEVELOPMENT: Children
who are trafficked and forced into child labour are usually denied their right to
education in order to become useful to themselves in the future.
• VULNERABILITY TO SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED DISEASES: Girls who engage in
prostitute are prone to being infected with sexually transmitted diseases such as
syphyilis, gonorrhea and HIV/AIDS. These diseases are capable of cutting their lives
short and can reduce their productive contribution to the society and increase medical
expenses.
• UNWANTED PREGNANCY: Victims of human trafficking are mostly faced with
unprotected sex which could result into unwanted pregnancies. Some of these girls
when they give birth will throw the child away or abandon the child with their parents
without adequate care.
• STIGMATIZATION: People who are trafficked are usually stigmatized especially when
they are deported back to the country from abroad.
• DEATH: Some children who are used as house helps are violently beaten to death
while some die of ill health because they are not properly taken care of.
EVALUATION
What are the effects of human trafficking?
GENERAL EVALUATION
1. What is human trafficking?
2. Explain the causes of human trafficking
3. State the effects of human trafficking.
4. What is rule of law?
5. Who propounded the principle of rule of law?
READING ASSIGNMENT
Fundamentals of Civic Education for Senior Secondary Schools Book 3, Sola Akinyemi. Pg
111.
WEEKEND ASSIGNMENT
1. A person who engages in trafficking business is called ______ (a) controller (b)
business expert (c) trafficker
2. The following except _______ are causes of human trafficking (a) poverty (b) greed (c)
high self- esteem
3. Which of these is not a challenge faced in Nigeria in an attempt to stop human
trafficking? (a) Increase in prostitution (b) Porosity of our national borders (c)
Adequate law on prohibition of human trafficking
4. All are consequences of human trafficking except (a) death (b) unsecured future (c)
improved health
5. Those who are mostly victims of human trafficking are_______ and ______
THEORY
1. Outline five causes of human trafficking.
2. Explain five ways of preventing human trafficking in Nigeria.
