Human trafficking has become an international issue of significant importance; it is the largest and most profitable organised crime after drugs and arms trafficking. Particular concern has recently been raised due to the Brexit potential ramifications on Human trafficking. There is a risk that the EU directive 2011/36 will be repealed as a result of Brexit. Accordingly, it has been questioned whether the UK national efforts and legislation concerning human trafficking are comprehensive and sufficient enough without the strengthening support of the EU and especially the EU directive 2011/36. Thus, this thesis aimed to determine the impact Brexit will have on human trafficking in the UK by investigating if there will be "gaps" in the UK national legislation on human trafficking.  A comparative content analysis was conducted to analyse the UK national legislation on human trafficking, The Modern Slavery Act 2015 (MSA 2015). The Modern Slavery Act was compared with the EU directive 2011/36 to determine how the legislation differed. The method and analysis were conducted on both a latent and manifest level which means it both described the definitions and analysed how the definitions could be interpreted, hence how it affects reality. Based on what has commonly been argued the main reasons behind human trafficking in Europe, the content analysis focused on the definitions of human trafficking, prostitution and protection of migrant victims. Prostitution and migrations are frequently claimed to be the main reasons behind human trafficking in Europe.  Due to the risk of the EU directive 2011/36 being repealed, the result of the thesis exhibits the need for the UK to update their national legislation. The MSA 2015 needs to become coherent with international agreements and strengthen the protection of victims of human trafficking. Due to the gendered nature of human trafficking, this research addressed human trafficking from a feminist perspective by applying the "dominance theory" and the "sameness theory". The feminist theories helped analyse and investigate the issue of human trafficking and the potential ramifications of Brexit. Applying the ideas illustrated the patriarchal structures surrounding human trafficking and within the MSA 2015.

This thesis examines the desire and efforts to 'do something' about what is variously called 'modern slavery' or 'human trafficking'. Neoabolitionist efforts to fight such phenomena are typically wedded to a simplistic and essentialist ontology, unaware of or rejecting their own performativity. The thesis is not about slavery: it is about the ethico-political problem of responsibility and hospitality toward the other in the context of contemporary anti-slavery. What constitutes an ethical response to modern slavery? I explore the often violent effects of particular answers to this question but ultimately argue that the focus on doing something (and knowing it) threatens the very possibility of hospitality - of an ethical response. Through a conceptual vocabulary of 'scenes' I explore the performative interrelation of ontology and ethics. It is intended to help resist the metaphysical seductions of ontology and moral urgency. Scenes bundle specific ontologies, frames, conjured histories and futures, roles and narrative structures, distributions of concern, desire and enjoyment. Response begins with the discursive and affective co-constitution of the self, the one to whom we respond, and the scene in which it takes place. Scene-specific forms of responsibility can operate as a defence against the full force of responsibility to the other. Chapters 1 and 2 develop the notion of scenes and explore how neoabolitionism sets its scenes and locates favoured solutions. The remaining chapters explore those solution areas. Chapter 3 looks at how a US movement against 'sex trafficking' in internet advertising reproduces a Manichean world of simplicity by a game of Whac-A-Mole with websites, ritualistic repetition of baseless 'facts', silencing of sex workers, and aggressive demonization of those who disagree or argue for greater complexity; Chapters 4 and 5 draw on time I spent in San Francisco with two very different organisations. One, Not For Sale, makes a product of experiencing neoabolitionism, joining together charity, capitalism, consumer enjoyment, technology and the excitement of a movement of 'true believers', producing innovative approaches but in the process reinforcing problematic gendered and colonial stereotypes. The other, Anti-trafficking Collaborative of the Bay Area, works quietly and tactically in a messy immigration system, aware of the political and performative nature of their work. They actively take responsibility for their own preconceptions and desires to ground a profoundly hospitable client-centred approach avoiding many pitfalls identified in earlier chapters. The thesis has a performative element woven through it - the ethos of the work is one of unsettling both existing practices and literatures, and the writer and reader. The concluding chapter explores the impossibility of hospitality, its interrelation with juridical subjectivity and the ethics demanding and giving accounts in light of the preceding chapters, suggesting a performative approach toward the other is possible.

Inequality of power between the global North and the global South are negative aspects of globalisation, leading to increasing inequalities, disregard of human rights and impeding human development. Voluntary work is considered to play an important role in the local and global enforcement of human rights. This dissertation focuses on the importance of voluntary civic engagement in the social justice sector. An empirical study was carried out on the basis of qualitative research among German volunteers of the human rights NGO International Justic Mission (IJM) Deutschland in order to identify motivating factors that contribute to civic engagement. Social justice, the concept of IJM and faith were identified as most important motives. The opportunity of flexible, self-determined involvement and the provision of good support foster volunteer engagement. The study helps human rights NGOs to gain a deeper understanding of how volunteering for human rights can be encouraged. / Development Studies / M.A. (Development Studies)