Justice Committee on May 29th, 2018

[The Chair, Liberal, Anthony Housefather]

Could you try to wrap up in the next 30 seconds to a minute, please?

[Frances Mahon]

In conclusion, Pivot is recommending the repeal of laws that criminalize adults' consensual sex work. I will refer you to the brief that we submitted to this committee, which also includes in it an earlier report done by Pivot, called “The Case for Repeal”. Decriminalizing consensual adult prostitution is not going to undermine the ability of law enforcement to respond to human trafficking. In fact, it may actually improve the relationship between sex workers and the police, encouraging the reporting of crimes and of trafficking itself.

Thank you very much.

[The Chair, Liberal, Anthony Housefather]

Thank you very much.

We'll now move to the Family Services of Peel.

[Charles MacLean, Executive Director, Peel Institute on Violence Prevention, Family Services of Peel]

I'm Charles MacLean, the Executive Director of Family Services of Peel, as well as the Peel Institute on Violence Prevention.

Peel is one of the most diverse communities across Canada. It has the highest incidence of human trafficking right across Canada because of its close proximity to both the 401 and the airport.

I'm here with my colleagues, Sandra Rupnarain and Monica Riutort, who is a manager of the institute.

At this point Sandra is going to read from a condensed version of the brief that has been presented.

[Sandra Rupnarain, Director of Client Services, Peel Institute on Violence Prevention, Family Services of Peel]

Human trafficking has many faces. A year-end report suggests that 80% of all human trafficking victims are subject to sexual exploitation. Therefore, our submission today will focus on the human trafficking and sexual exploitation of women and girls.

While we, ourselves, are not experts in human trafficking, we know that through knowledge-sharing and active participation we can create changes, and that through collaboration and perseverance we can also become a global success story of commitment to doing the right thing.

Our project was funded by MCSS in Ontario. We received a three-year grant with a goal to strengthen the capacity of service providers to serve survivors of human trafficking in the Region of Peel. We applied a theory of change that asserts that women's rights are human rights.

Our work is grounded in an equity, anti-racism, and anti-oppression framework. This framework introduces the determinants of health and well-being into the strategies of prevention, services, programs, research, and policies on human trafficking. The determinants of health according to the framework are divided into proximal, intermediate, and distant factors.

Our interviews and focus groups—which are we what we did, and we work with survivors as well—provided a first-hand account of the sex industry in Canada, namely in Peel because that's the area we live and work in. The interviews and focus groups presented two main themes: powerlessness and lack of support.

Here are some of our findings from the research that we have done to date, which is quite recent.

First is a population data analysis. While trafficking has become a worldwide concern, current data collection activities reveal that the data are limited in scope, incomparable, and insufficient to ascertain the true extent of the problem in Canada. That's the first challenge that we encounter.

The scantiness of human trafficking stats is noticeably linked to the fact that human trafficking is a hidden phenomenon. The Region of Peel has higher rates of actual incidents of human trafficking and total persons charged compared to the rest of Canada, especially during the years from 2009 to 2016. There is definitely a need for more comprehensive, unified, and national data collection.

With regard to the magnitude of the problem, human trafficking is a social issue of growing concern across the globe. As we have heard from many of our witnesses, the estimated number of individuals affected by human trafficking worldwide is 20.9 million. It is the fastest-growing area of organized crime and the third largest income-revenue stream for systemized crime after narcotics and arms sales. The global sex trade is worth about $32 billion annually. This is because women and girls in sex trafficking earn profits for their pimps and traffickers over a great number of years.

Who is being trafficked? We heard some of that earlier on, too. Human trafficking victims include men and women, with women representing the majority. They have diverse educational and economic backgrounds. They include runaway and homeless youth, as well as lesbian, gay, transgender, and bisexual individuals. However, an issue not generally discussed in sex trafficking literature is that many come from homes that lack positive masculine or male influences.

Those at most risk of being trafficked are those with low economic status, indigenous populations, and people with disabilities. They have the greater vulnerability of becoming victims of human trafficking.

We know that indigenous women—and I don't need to elaborate too much on that—are more likely to experience discrimination, poverty, poor living conditions, and violent crimes.

Few researchers have examined the sex trafficking of women with disabilities. Some specific vulnerabilities include the lack of awareness of exploitation on the part of the victims, the inability of victims to self-identify the exploitation, and the relative ease with which traffickers can manipulate these girls and women.

One of the greatest challenges in the battle against human trafficking is removing the veil of silence that allows this oppressive behaviour to flourish. Lack of understanding with regard to the scope and severity of the problem has also contributed to its dramatic rise, so there is also a need for research and data collection.

In terms of services for men, interestingly, we have that as part of talking about the human trafficking and sexual exploitation of women. There is a lack of services for men, and this is often because of the assumption that men do not seek psychological help because of the stigma of showing emotions. This represents a large area of unmet needs because men who have been trafficked have health problems, mental health issues, and needs similar to trafficked women. As their needs are similar, it is important that there are services available equally for them.

What are our recommendations after one year of research and with still two more years for the project? We have eight recommendations from the work we are doing.

Collaboration and communication are key. A national system should be created to lead collaboration and communication among all sectors.

All sectors need to be involved. Health, social services, police, and justice need to be involved in cross-communication.

Human trafficking has been defined as a process, not an event. If we're able to have a long-term impact on the problem, we must use research to identify the most cost-effective ways of intervention. The Government of Canada has developed and implemented its tools for the prosecution of traffickers, thereby responding to most of the prosecution recommendations of the UN protocol in 2000. However, the international data shows that legal and police prosecution have not reduced the aggregate amount of trafficking. The focus should be on prevention and support for survivors.

The more structural elements of prevention have yet to be adequately sourced. They have not happened as of yet, including awareness-raising campaigns, education campaigns, and training. It can only be achieved through research and, again, through victims' participation in the entire process so we are duly informed and we're not making our decisions in ivory towers and just through research alone.

We talk about training. Service providers need to be trained on how to work with the population. Training at all levels needs to be developed and implemented. The training that is available currently does not have a proper evaluation process. The training was developed with no evaluation process attached to it. There's no reiteration of what's working and what's not working. There's a great need to develop evaluations that measure impact and a need for a robust social and health care system response as well.

A workforce is needed that is aware of the health and social impacts of this issue. I do not think that people working in this area understand the impacts holistically on individuals who have been trafficked or caught in human trafficking. They need to be educated on how to identify and treat affected individuals in a compassionate, culturally aware, and trauma-informed manner, and trained on how to collaborate efficiently with law enforcement, case management, and advocacy partners.

Competent therapeutic supports that are person centred and survivor informed can successfully manage the psychological impacts of human trafficking. We know that the most prominent of these therapies include behavioural, cognitive, and psycho-dynamic. All services and programs should be mobile to reach a population that is transient and geographically close for them to access. This leaves room for further research as to how we're going to make that happen. Again, it should happen with survivors involved in the process.

One of the things that we found is about peer to peer. Every transformational journey is unique, but here our survivors have two things in common. First, they integrate the traumatic experience into their public identities and make their experience a defining part of their life stories. Second, they talk or write about it in a way that has an inspiring effect on others. Often victims are unwilling to acknowledge the trauma and exploitation that they have experienced. Many survivors are reluctant to seek treatment. However, in working with others who have had similar experiences, many individuals feel more at ease. Overall, the services found to be most effective regarding treatment of this population are peer-to-peer support, physical health support, reintegration services, and mobile clinic services to work with those leaving sex trafficking.

We need a trauma screening tool. Early identification of human trafficking survivors needs to happen. Development of a trauma screening tool should be of great assistance to all professionals who work in this area, whether they be police, health care, or social services.

On education and outreach, we should raise awareness and understanding of the needs of survivors of human trafficking amongst service providers and the general public. In 2017, Ontario declared February 22 a day of awareness of human trafficking. Edmonton has a week since 2004. I think a national day to raise national awareness on this issue will garner much momentum for us for education and awareness training for professionals as well as for the general public.

What is the role of government in civil society? It is to reduce or eliminate the expectation that government alone is responsible for eliminating social issues like human sex trafficking by developing meaningful, purposeful relationships, with knowledge of organizations that are currently working in the field, on the ground, and involved in the work. It is also collaborating to develop strategies to assist in extracting victims currently embedded in human trafficking. While we cannot legislate morality, we can certainly develop comprehensive legislation to facilitate a reduction of the profitability of human trafficking and to protect survivors.

Housing, as we know, is always an issue. How do we move people out from human trafficking into housing? There's a lot to be done in this area.

In conclusion, understanding the roots of vulnerability is invaluable, whether in safeguarding young people from exploitation or in helping them to escape. Billions of dollars are made by human trafficking. The victims may be enticed to work in the sex trade because perhaps they don't value themselves. The only value they have, and what they're aware of, is what money can buy, and that's why we find that the age is now increasing from 11 to 12 to 13 because of all the gadgets out there, and the need of the immigrant population, newcomer population, to feel they are part of society, to feel they fit in. Certainly this leads to that sense of where they can get this money as fast as possible.

They have learned that money is made by selling their bodies. What they need to learn is that they have value that is of far greater significance. They can't recognize that value because they have often been raised to believe they are worth less and have other issues to deal with around self-esteem and identity, so it's a deeper issue. To gain self-esteem they need a program that will help them identify the strengths they have within themselves, which is more preventative, and that the talents they were born with are talents that can help them to earn an honest living.

Our study has documented a lack of service in programs at all levels for survivors of human and sex trafficking. Even when there is good intention to assist, the deficiency of knowledge and of understanding the complexities of the issues, and the level of violence encountered by survivors impede proper interventions.

Finally, we understand today that just being here is a miracle, and we're in the business, as family services, of saving lives. To fight against human sex trafficking is an extraordinary cause, and it can be accomplished by extraordinary people, so let's join in building a better society, a better culture with better values, and a better Canada. Let's make sure that future generations and our grandchildren and their children can find their happiness, not through sex trafficking, but through understanding their worth.

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Anthony Housefather]

Thank you very much.

We're a little over the time that our meeting normally ends, so I'd like to ask the will of the committee in proceeding. Would everybody be agreeable to doing one round of questions?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Chair, Liberal, Anthony Housefather]

Okay, we'll do one round, which is 24 minutes, and then we'll be done.

We'll start with the Conservatives, Mr. Nicholson.

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Niagara Falls, ON]

Thank you very much.

Thank you to our witnesses here today. This is much appreciated by the committee in the work we are doing.

I'd like to start with Peter Warrack.

First of all, welcome to the committee. Thank you for your testimony, and congratulations on all the work you are doing in this area.

You started at the beginning of your testimony saying when you got involved with this and the whole question of human trafficking, the financial institutions were unaware of the transactions that were taking place to facilitate and fund human trafficking.

Toward the end of your testimony you made a very interesting comment, which was that many times police themselves are unaware of the financial aspect of human trafficking. One of the suggestions you made—I like that and hope we can pursue this—was that banks would be invited to the schools to help train our police officers.

Have you made any outreach, or do you know of any outreach that has been made? Has anybody accepted this or thought about this, or is this another brand new idea we have to pursue?

[Peter Warrack]

Certainly outreach has been made, and the Ontario Police College is keen to embrace it. It would be nice to see the Canadian Police College follow a similar route. The Canadian Police College does great work in education and has put on specialist courses for human trafficking, but that one financial piece is missing, in my opinion.

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Niagara Falls, ON]

Thank you, but you said it has been welcomed in the Ontario Police College, and is now a part of the program.

[Peter Warrack]

It's not part of the program; I think it's in the works.

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Niagara Falls, ON]

I hope you keep on with your efforts in that particular area because it makes sense to all of us in this industry that we have to have everybody be a part of this.

Thank you again for your testimony.

Ms. Mahon, thank you for your testimony as well. A lot of your testimony was directed at criticism of our police services, and one of the instances you talked about was particularly concerning to me. I'm a lawyer myself. You said that one of these victims was detained for two weeks and not allowed to call her solicitor, or call anybody for that matter. I wonder if you could give us the name or the time for that because it seems to me our committee would be very interested in that.

If somebody in this country is being detained without charges, and is not allowed to call a lawyer, that is a very serious accusation, and so I would very much appreciate getting that information. Our committee would look into this to see how and where and why this took place.

[Frances Mahon]

I can say that I believe it was about two and a half to three years ago, and if I recall correctly, it took place in Saskatchewan. I myself was contacted by Butterfly, when I was working as a lawyer in Toronto, to try to intervene. I'm afraid I don't have more details for you right now about that incident. I could reach out to my contacts at Butterfly and see if the victim there would be willing to provide more details, and I can pass them along to the committee.

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Niagara Falls, ON]

We'd very much appreciate that, because that's a huge violation of someone's rights.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Those are my comments and questions.

[The Chair, Liberal, Anthony Housefather]

Thank you very much, Mr. Nicholson.

We'll now go to Ms. Khalid.

[Iqra Khalid, Liberal, Mississauga—Erin Mills, ON]

Thank you, Chair.

Thank you to the witnesses for your very compelling testimony.

Ms. Mahon, you had spoken a little bit about the relationship between law enforcement and sex workers, and the need for improving that relationship. Can you please give a little bit more detail? First, why do we need to improve that bond and that relationship; and second, how can it be done? As we travelled across the country, meeting with law enforcement and meeting with sex workers, we felt the hostility between the two groups, but I understand that law enforcement is moving now toward building those relationships. How do you think we can create a more collaborative approach between those groups?

[Frances Mahon]

I would encourage law enforcement to work collaboratively with sex worker advocacy organizations. There are some examples around the country where that's occurring. The primary problem, as I understand it, is that the police enforcement tactics themselves are quite aggressive. There's a lot of targeting of indoor sex work locations, like micro-brothels, spas, and massage parlours. The police will arrange fake dates as a way to get in, knock on the door, and then come in with weapons drawn and doing an aggressive enforcement action. This is simply terrifying for the people who are there, who don't understand that the police may be acting with good intentions. I should add that police often bring CBSA agents with them to these enforcement actions, and people can be detained under immigration provisions and deported as a result. These stories get around to the community very, very quickly. Sex workers have fantastic networks of communication among them. Once they find out that this kind of thing is happening in their community, they think they shouldn't trust their local police department because they're aware that last week they went to so-and-so's place of business and acted in this way.

What I would suggest is that police spend more time simply listening to sex workers and to sex work advocacy organizations about how to improve the way they're actually investigating these offences. Specifically, the police themselves need to take a good look within their own departments to make sure they're acting with integrity. I gave the example of the detective here in Vancouver, Jim Fisher, who did plead guilty to the sexual exploitation of a victim of human trafficking. Stories like that are just horrific to imagine. I'm sure this committee can understand why such a story would erode, perhaps permanently, the trust between individual sex workers and local law enforcement.

[Iqra Khalid, Liberal, Mississauga—Erin Mills, ON]

Ms. Rupnarain, you had mentioned that you've been given a grant for three years to develop a program to help victims of sex trafficking within Peel Region. Thank you for all the hard work you do. My riding is in Peel Region, and I'm really appreciative of your organization and the work you're doing.

We met with a lot of civil society organizations across the country and realized that many of these projects happen in silos, without much collaboration with civil society. In what ways do you think organizations like yours can really work not only to collaborate with other organizations across the country but also to take the data that is collected from victims who use the services and give it upstream, so that at the federal or the national level we can have a better understanding of what sex trafficking, or human trafficking in general, looks like within the country?

[Sandra Rupnarain]

A part of what we do as the institute is that we try to organize activities around knowledge and dissemination, and when we do that through the forum of symposiums or conferences, we try to invite our community partners as much as we can. We had a symposium two years ago at the University of Toronto on the issue of interpersonal violence, and information was sent out internationally. That's one way we get our information out to the communities. We do publish other reports on our website, which is another way we also get our stuff out there. We have some publications out, some books that have had extracts of the work that the institute has done. The other way, if people request it, is we actually do get them out to people who need the information on the work that's being done.

In terms of collaborating and getting into the community, we try to be very intersectoral, and certainly we don't try to work just with social service providers, or providers. We're also working on the ground with those who have been in the sex trafficking industry who might have exited. Rising Angels, in the Region of Peel, is one of the organizations we're working with on that. They work with women who have left the sex trafficking trade. Through that we're disseminating some of the information we're gathering.

In terms of the trauma screening tool, we're meeting with organizations around training their service providers on how to use a trauma screening tool, so they can identify someone coming in who might be in the sex trade, but not disclosing that. A trauma screening tool can identify that very early so they can do some interventions without it getting more complicated down the road.

[Iqra Khalid, Liberal, Mississauga—Erin Mills, ON]

I just have one last question. What happens after three years?

[Sandra Rupnarain]

That's a good question. We're currently going to be having a presentation to the Region of Peel as well, because it is also following the Ontario mandate on human trafficking. We've been asked to do a presentation to council around the work being done, because the hope is that there can be allocation of dollars, especially for the Region of Peel, so that we can keep looking into this issue and not let it die.

[The Chair, Liberal, Anthony Housefather]

Thank you very much.

Mr. Rankin.

[Murray Rankin, NDP, Victoria, BC]

Thanks to all the witnesses. I'm going to start with Ms. Mahon from Pivot Legal Society.

Thank you for your remarks. You made a couple of key points at the start, one of which was the definition of “human trafficking” in Canadian law. I want to see if I have this right. It was too broad as compared to the UN protocol, which requires an element of coercion, whereas our system seems to require a element of exploitation, but no evidence of a state of mind. Do I have that right so far? Is that what you're saying?

[Frances Mahon]

Yes, that's pretty close. If coercion is present under Canadian law, certainly that could make...out to the crime of human trafficking, but it's not required. That's how it differs from the UN's own definition, which does require coercion, threats, or abuse of power in order to make out the crime.