protection. This may be because of past discrimination or because members of the group share particular vulnerabilities. Note that the issue of vulnerability in the specific context of trafficking is addressed in more detail under Principle 5 and related guidelines. 1.4.1. HUMAN RIGHTS OF WOMEN While not minimizing the very real plight of trafficked men (and the gendered aspects of the trafficking response, referred to below, which can have a negative impact on men and boys), it is important to acknowledge that gender-based violations of human rights, particularly against women and girls, are one of the root causes of trafficking and a key feature of the trafficking process. As discussed under Principle 5 and related guidelines, gender-based violence and other forms of discrimination against women and girls can both create and aggravate vulnerability to trafficking and to trafficking-related harm. An understanding of this is essential to the development and implementation of an effective rights-based approach to trafficking. Women and girls are trafficked into genderspecific situations of exploitation (for example, exploitative prostitution and sex tourism, and forced labour in domestic and service industries). Women and girls also suffer gender-specific forms of harm and consequences of being trafficked (for example, rape, forced marriage, unwanted or forced pregnancy, forced termination of pregnancy, and sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS). The operation of certain laws may have a particularly detrimental impact on the situation of trafficked women and girls. One example is provided by nationality and citizenship laws that deny citizenship to children born abroad or that make women who migrate vulnerable to losing their citizenship.83 In terms of the responses to trafficking, perceptions of gender play an important and not always positive role. The commonly held notion that “men migrate, but women are trafficked” has meant that national criminal justice agencies often appear to be slower to investigate and prosecute trafficking cases involving men – a reflection of a general bias in attention and focus, away from trafficking for forced and exploitative labour and towards trafficking for sexual exploitation. The negative impact of this is felt across the gender spectrum: men are not protected under laws and policies designed for trafficked women and children, and the perception of trafficked women as weak and ignorant is reinforced. Anti-trafficking measures taken in the name of protecting victims and preventing trafficking can also operate in a discriminatory manner or otherwise result in further violations of the rights of women and girls. Examples considered in this Commentary include restrictions on the emigration of women and the detention of women and girl victims of trafficking, in violation of international human rights standards (see the discussion under Principle 3 and related guidelines). Apart from being a breach of fundamental rights, including the international prohibition against sex-based discrimination, such policies can actually make women more vulnerable – pushing them towards more expensive and riskier forms of migration. Most of the international instruments cited in this Commentary are gender-neutral, that is, they apply equally to both women and men. The Trafficking Principles and Guidelines themselves Both these situations have come before the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women. See Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, Concluding Comments: Indonesia (CEDAW/C/ IDN/CO/5, para. 28); and Viet Nam (CEDAW/C/VNM/ CO/6, para. 18). 83 COMMENTARY 61