Nations would be encouraged to combat human trafficking and the demand for commercial sex within their borders under bipartisan legislation reintroduced by U.S. Rep. Randy Hultgren (R-IL).
The Sex Trafficking Demand Reduction Act, H.R. 466, seeks to curb the practice of sex slavery by reducing demand for commercial sex.
“Human trafficking is nothing less than modern day slavery,” Hultgren said on the House floor. “It targets society’s most vulnerable, stealing their souls and depriving them of any hope to escape a downward spiral of despair. Nations must be held accountable for their efforts to eradicate human trafficking within their borders, which is why (on Thursday) I am reintroducing the sex Trafficking Demand Reduction Act.”
H.R. 466 would amend the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 to include a provision clarifying that it would be deemed a failure for a government not to act to restrict or prohibit the purchase of commercial sex when they have the authority to do so.
A U.S. Department of State report found that in areas where prostitution is tolerated, there is a greater demand for human trafficking victims and usually an increase in the number of women and children trafficked into commercial sex slavery.
“As a member of the Congressional Human Trafficking Task Force, I am pleased to see Congress taking a leadership role in the fight against human trafficking,” Hultgren said. “We are getting closer to the day when human trafficking will no longer represent a blight on humanity and we will see victims and survivors, created in God’s image, fully restored.”
Hultgren has made combating human trafficking a high priority as a member of the Congressional Human Trafficking Caucus, hosting a series of community events in his district and briefings on Capitol Hill to raise awareness on the issue.