War economies, post-conflict transition and human trafficking

Liberal peacebuilding interventions often do not translate in deep transformations of societies and in more equal and just relations between groups. Structural violence therefore persists in ‘peaceful’ societies and results, at the same time, in renewed patterns of direct violence that are unequally distributed around the world. A striking manifestation of these structures is the human trafficking phenomenon. This research is concerned with understanding the role played by war economies in producing patterns of vulnerability to human trafficking during post-war transition. A mixed method approach, combining a regression analysis with a country case study on Guatemala is adopted. This approach allows indeed to investigate both general patterns and specific mechanisms bringing about the emergence of violent manifestations at the local level. The study finds that different patterns of exploitation are indeed connected with the dynamics of armed conflicts and post-conflict transition. In the context of Guatemala, in particular, global, regional and local processes combine to create patterns of vulnerability for certain subjects. The criminalization of the economy, socio-political exclusion and a culture of continuing militarization are important factors shaping human trafficking in this scenario. These perspectives highlight the need to overcome fixed categorization of the human trafficking phenomenon toward a deeper consideration of the underlying processes of marginalization that make exploitation possible in the everyday.