PART 1 been concluded between regional groupings of States. One very significant example is the 2005 Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (European Trafficking Convention), which entered into force in February 2008 with the potential to bind more than 40 countries of Western, Central and Eastern Europe to a much higher level of obligation, particularly with regard to victim protection, than that laid down in the Trafficking Protocol. The European Trafficking Convention builds on previous legal instruments developed by European institutions including the EU Council Framework Decision of 19 July 20023 on combating trafficking in human beings. That framework Decision is expected to be repealed shortly and replaced with a stronger instrument that follows, much more closely, the letter and spirit of the European Trafficking Convention.4 Another, narrower, regional example is provided by the Convention on Preventing and Combating Trafficking in Women and Children for Prostitution (SAARC Convention) concluded in 2002 by the member countries of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation. As its title implies, the scope of this Convention is limited to the trafficking of women and children for prostitution. The first-ever regional treaty to deal with trafficking was the Inter- Council Framework Decision 2002/629/JHA of 19 July 2002 on Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, [2002] OJ L 203 [Hereinafter: EU Council Decision of 19 July 2002]. While not considered a “treaty” in the usual sense, the adoption of a framework decision imposes specific obligations on member States of the European Union, and also on applicant countries, to ensure that their laws and practices conform to its substantive provisions. Framework decisions enter into force quickly, without the requirement of formal ratification. They generally set a restricted period for implementation. 3 Commission of the European Communities, Proposal for a Framework Decision on preventing and combating trafficking in human beings, and protecting victims, repealing Framework Decision 2002/629/JHA, COM(2009) 136 final. 4 20 American Convention on International Traffic in Minors, developed under the auspices of the Organization of American States, which was adopted in 1994 and entered into force on 15 August 1997. It seeks to prevent and punish international trafficking in minors and to regulate its civil and penal aspects. While only those States located within a particular geographical region can generally become parties to regional treaties, these instruments can provide all countries with a useful insight into evolving standards. They can also contribute to the development of customary international law on a particular issue or in a particular area. 2.2.3. TREATIES PROHIBITING SLAVERY AND THE SLAVE TRADE The major slavery treaties are listed below and continue to be important, not least because they define key concepts that have been used in later instruments such as the Trafficking Protocol: • 1926 Convention on Slavery; • 1956 Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of Slavery, the Slave Trade and Institutions and Practices Similar to Slavery (Supplementary Convention on Slavery). Note that all major international and regional human rights treaties also prohibit slavery, servitude and a range of related practices. While trafficking is often referred to as a form of slavery, the precise contours of that relationship are far from settled. Certainly, “slavery” is one of the end purposes for which individuals are trafficked. However, the situation of many trafficked persons may not fall within the international legal definition of slavery or, therefore, within the scope of the international legal prohibition. This issue has recently been RECOMMENDED PRINCIPLES AND GUIDELINES ON HUMAN RIGHTS AND HUMAN TRAFFICKING