States’ Obligations under Human Rights Law towards Victims of Trafficking in Human Beings: Positive Developments in Positive Obligations

A number of rulings by international human rights tribunals, made in the last few years, elucidate the nature of states’ obligations with regard to the prohibition on slavery, forced labour and servitude. In particular, these decisions help to clarify the extent to which trafficking in human beings is covered by the prohibition, as well as elaborating the scope of states’ positive obligations towards those who have been trafficked or are at risk of being trafficked. The author discusses the significance of these decisions and relates them to earlier rulings of the War Crimes Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia relating to enslavement.