The UN has issued a stark warning: Afghans returning from neighboring countries are increasingly vulnerable to human trafficking and exploitation as overlapping humanitarian and economic crises leave many struggling to survive. Because nothing says 'welcome home' like a side of debt bondage.
Agencies report that mass returns from Iran and Pakistan, combined with shrinking humanitarian assistance, the collapse of the rural opium-based economy, climate disasters, and ongoing restrictions on women's and girls' rights are all cranking up the vulnerability dial to 'critical.'
The UN migration agency's Returnee Resilience Overview paints a picture that's about as cheerful as a sandstorm in your tea. Only 11 per cent of Afghans surveyed by IOM were fully employed or owned a business, while 56 per cent of returnee households said they couldn't cover basic living expenses. Nearly half rely on loans or donations to survive, which is a bit like trying to fill a bathtub with a thimble while the drain is wide open.
Crime-fighting agency UNODC and IOM warn that victims continue to be subjected to forced labor, sexual exploitation, slavery-like practices, and in some cases, organ removal. Because apparently, when you're down, some people think you're an organ donor.
Women, children, returnees, and indebted households are among the most at risk. Many are exploited in domestic work, agriculture, mining, brickmaking, and carpet weaving, while others face forced begging, forced marriage, child recruitment, and sexual exploitation. The UN also highlights the growing global threat of trafficking for forced criminality, with victims coerced into online scams and fraud operations through deception, violence, and intimidation.
'Scamming operations defraud millions of people, generating vast illicit profits for transnational organized crime. Powerful new technologies, including artificial intelligence, are helping the fraudsters spread at an alarming speed,' said Secretary-General António Guterres, marking Thursday's World Day Against Trafficking in Persons. Because of course AI is now helping with human trafficking. What can't it do?
'The scale of returns currently taking place is greater than what Afghan communities can absorb without significant international support,' said IOM Afghanistan Chief of Mission Mihyung Park. Without access to livelihoods, housing, and basic services, many people may be forced to resort to dangerous migration routes, increasing their exposure to trafficking, exploitation, and abuse.
UNODC Country Representative Polleak Ok Serei warned that the convergence of mass returns, aid cuts, natural disasters, and loss of livelihoods highlights the urgent need to strengthen prevention efforts. The agencies called for stronger regional cooperation to dismantle trafficking networks, expanded support for survivors, greater access to civil documentation and livelihood opportunities, and safer migration pathways.
'Human trafficking in all its forms is a gross violation of human rights. By working together, we can end this exploitation once and for all,' Mr. Guterres said. We can only hope he's right, but until then, maybe we should start by turning off the AI-powered scam machines.