The Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women (GAATW) is a group made up of more than 80 organizations from around the world that are not part of the government. These groups work together to stop the illegal movement of people. GAATW aims to help change political, economic, social, and legal systems that allow trafficking in people and other human rights problems during migrations for different reasons, such as finding work or supporting families. The group was started in 1994 by several activists.

Method

GAATW uses a human rights approach to trafficking, which includes:

• Focusing on the rights of people who are trafficked and those in difficult situations in all efforts to stop trafficking;
• Recognizing that everyone has the right to use, protect, and support their basic human rights, which are the same for all people everywhere;
• Treating everyone fairly, without discrimination based on race, age, sexual orientation, religion, gender, nationality, job, or type of work (such as housework or other jobs not officially recognized);
• Making sure that fairness, participation, and including everyone are the most important parts of how work is done, how groups are organized, and how procedures are followed. People who are directly affected by trafficking are encouraged and helped to speak for themselves and lead their own efforts.

Activities

GAATW's work is organized into three main areas of focus:

• Accountability – This area ensures that all groups involved in efforts to stop trafficking are responsible for protecting the rights of people affected by trafficking.
• Access to justice – This area works to create more opportunities for trafficked people and migrant workers to claim their rights. It also fights against discrimination that prevents women from exercising their rights related to trafficking.
• Power in migration and work – This area studies how women's power in their jobs and when moving between countries affects policies related to migration and labor. It aims to improve these policies so they better meet the needs and abilities of migrants.

GAATW supports its members through international advocacy, research, and communication strategies.

GAATW has published the following works:

• Trafficking in Women, Forced Labour, and Slavery-like Practices (1997) – the first global study on human trafficking in the context of prostitution, marriage, and domestic work.
• Human Rights Standards for the Treatment of Trafficked Persons (1999) – a collection of guidelines to protect the rights of people affected by trafficking.
• Collateral Damage – The Impact of Anti-Trafficking Measures on Human Rights around the World (2007) – a study in eight countries showing how anti-trafficking policies sometimes harm the rights of groups like women, migrants, and sex workers.
• What's the Cost of a Rumour? A guide to sorting out the myths and the facts about sporting events and trafficking (2011) – a resource that challenges the false belief that large sporting events increase human trafficking.

Since 2015, GAATW has published the Anti-Trafficking Review – a free-to-read, expert-reviewed journal focused on human trafficking. The journal's editor is GAATW's advocacy officer, Borislav Gerasimov. In December 2019, GAATW partnered with the Royal Society of Edinburgh to release a special issue of the Anti-Trafficking Review titled Public Perceptions and Responses to Human Trafficking.