TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS REPORT - Harvard Kennedy School

Trafficking in Persons ReportJune 2009

Dear Reader:Since President Clinton issued the first U.S. Government policy against humantrafficking in 1998, we have seen unprecedented forward movement around theworld in the fight to end human trafficking, a form of modern-day slavery. Amajority of the world’s countries now have criminal legislation prohibiting all formsof trafficking in persons, and global awareness has been immeasurably raised.Yet much remains to be done, particularly in identifying and addressing theroot causes of trafficking, including policies and practices that contribute to thetrafficking of vulnerable populations. From girls denied schooling or coerced into under-aged marriages, toethnic minorities without citizenship or birth registration, to migrant workers forced to work against theirwill by employers who abuse legal processes – the effectiveness of long-term prevention efforts will requireus to look carefully at causal factors and commit to relevant reforms.The ninth annual Trafficking in Persons Report sheds light on the faces of modern-day slavery and on newfacets of this global problem. The human trafficking phenomenon affects virtually every country, includingthe United States. In acknowledging America’s own struggle with modern-day slavery and slavery-relatedpractices, we offer partnership. We call on every government to join us in working to build consensus andleverage resources to eliminate all forms of human trafficking. This year, there is new urgency in this call.As the ongoing financial crisis takes an increasing toll on many of the world’s migrants – who often riskeverything for the slim hope of a better future for their families – too often they are ensnared by traffickerswho exploit their desperation. We recognize their immense suffering, and we commit to aiding their rescueand recovery.As we move forward to meet the challenges of today, I am committed to sharing the lessons learned fromour past efforts, and I offer our collective expertise to collaborate with you in bringing relief to victims,justice to perpetrators, and hope to future generations currently in peril.Bringing an end to the global trade in people is a priority for the United States in keeping with Americanvalues that place a premium on human rights, democracy, and the rule of law. I am confident that togetherwe can make a difference, all over the world, in the lives of people deprived of their freedom.Sincerely,Hillary Rodham Clinton

ContentsIntroduction 5-41The 2008 Trafficking in Persons Report 5-14Purpose 5Human Trafficking Defined 6The Scope and Nature of Modern-Day Slavery 7Focus of the 2009 TIP Report 9Methodology 9CONTENTSMajor Forms of Trafficking in Persons 14-25Forced Labor 14Bonded Labor 16Debt Bondage Among Migrant Laborers 17Involuntary Domestic Servitude 17Forced Child Labor 19Child Soldiers 20Sex Trafficking 21Child Sex Trafficking and Related Abuses 22The Three P’s: Punishment, Protection, Prevention 25-32Punishing Trafficking Offenders 27Protecting Victims Adequately 27Prevention: Spotlight on Addressing Demand 31Financial Crisis and Human Trafficking 32-40Topics of Special InterestThe Role of Parents in Child Trafficking 7Public-Private Sector Partnerships: A Powerful Tool 10Debunking Common Trafficking Myths 13What’s in a Name? Human Trafficking in Translation 15Human Trafficking for Organ Removal 17Victim Restitution: Key to Justice, Key to Rebuilding a Life 18Child Trafficking in Gold Mines 23Buying or Negotiating a Victim’s Freedom 24Strengthening Prohibitions Against Forced Laborand Fraudulent Recruitment of Foreign Workers 26Trafficking of Burmese Refugees in Southeast Asia 29Statelessness: A Key Vulnerability to Human Trafficking 31Detaining Adult Victims in Shelters: A Bad Practice 35Gender Imbalance in Human Trafficking 36International Woman of Courage 38Legal Assistance for Trafficking Victims 39Domestic Violence and Human Trafficking 41In Memoriam 43Forced Labor Costs Considerable: A View from the ILO 47This Report andsubsequent updatesare available atwww.state.gov/g/tipGlobal Law Enforcement Data 47Commendable Initiatives Around the World 42-432009 TIP Report Heroes 44-46Tier Placements/Maps 48-56U.S. Government Domestic Anti-Trafficking Efforts 57Country Narratives 58-3073

INTRODUCTIONVICTIMS’STORIESThe victims’ testimonies includedin this report are meant to berepresentative only and do notinclude all forms of traffickingthat occur. These stories couldtake place anywhere in the worldand illustrate the many forms oftrafficking and the wide varietyof places in which they occur. Nocountry is immune. Many of thevictims’ names have been changedin this report. Most uncaptionedphotographs are not images ofconfirmed trafficking victims, butthey show the myriad forms ofexploitation that define traffickingand the variety of cultures in whichtrafficking victims are found.4

INTRODUCTIONTHE 2009 TRAFFICKING INPERSONS (TIP) REPORTINTRODUCTIONPurposeThe Department of State is required by law tosubmit each year to the U.S. Congress a reporton foreign governments’ efforts to eliminatesevere forms of trafficking in persons. This isthe ninth annual TIP Report; it seeks to increaseglobal awareness of the human traffickingphenomenon by shedding new light on variousfacets of the problem and highlighting sharedand individual efforts of the internationalcommunity, and to encourage foreigngovernments to take effective action against allforms of trafficking in persons.The United States’ Trafficking VictimsProtection Act of 2000 (TVPA), as amended,guides efforts to combat human trafficking.The most recent amendments to the TVPA wereenacted in December 2008. The purpose of thelaw is to punish traffickers, protect victims,and prevent trafficking from occurring. Freeingvictims from this form of modern-day slavery isthe ultimate goal of this report—and of the U.S.Government’s anti-human trafficking policy.Human trafficking is a multi-dimensionalissue. It is a crime that deprives people oftheir human rights and freedoms, increasesglobal health risks, fuels growing networksof organized crime, and can sustain levels ofpoverty and impede development in certainareas.The impacts of human trafficking aredevastating. Victims may suffer physical andemotional abuse, rape, threats against self andfamily, and even death. But the devastationalso extends beyond individual victims; humantrafficking undermines the health, safety, andsecurity of all nations it touches.AzerbaijanAzade, 22, left rural Azerbaijan to work at amassage parlor in Baku. But the massage parlorwas a cover for a brothel. Soon after she arrived,a client who worked for the brothel owner forcedhimself on Azade and threatened to show avideotape of the assault to her father unless sheengaged in prostitution at the brothel. Fearingthe social stigma attached to rape and theconsequences of bringing shame to her family,Azade submitted to several months of forcedprostitution before she escaped with the help ofan anti-trafficking NGO.Women and girls on the street are highly vulnerable tocommercial sexual exploitation.5

INTRODUCTIONMigrant workers from Nepal and Bangladesh take a breakfrom laboring at a coal depot in northeast India. Morethan 90 percent of India’s workforce is in the informalsector and are thus more vulnerable to conditions of debtbondage or forced labor.Mali-Cote d’IvoireIbrahim, 11, dreamed of buying a bicycle. Whena man he had known for some time told himthat he could work on a cocoa farm and makeenough money for a bicycle, radio, clothes andmore, Ibrahim didn’t suspect the man to be atrafficker. The man took Ibrahim to Cote d’Ivoireand sold him to a cocoa farmer. Ibrahim andother trafficked boys worked long hours doingback-breaking and dangerous work farmingcocoa and bananas. The farmer gave themlittle to eat, beat them severely, and forbadethem from leaving the farm. Ibrahim suffered inforced labor for two years before he escapedand returned to Mali. He now works in a marketgarden but still doesn’t earn enough to buy abicycle.A growing community of nations is makingsignificant efforts to eliminate this atrociouscrime. The TVPA outlines minimum standardsfor the elimination of trafficking in persons.Countries that do not make significant efforts tocomply with the minimum standards receive aTier 3 ranking in this report. Such an assessmentcould prompt the United States to withholdnonhumanitarian, non-trade-related foreignassistance.In assessing foreign governments’ efforts,the TIP Report highlights the “three P’s”—prosecution, protection, and prevention. Buta victim-centered approach to trafficking alsorequires attention to the “three R’s”—rescue,rehabilitation, and reintegration. Sharing thebest practices in these areas will encouragegovernments to go beyond the initial rescue ofvictims and restore to them dignity and the hopeof productive lives.Human Trafficking DefinedThe TVPA defines “severe forms of trafficking”as:a. sex trafficking in which a commercial sex actis induced by force, fraud, or coercion, or inwhich the person induced to perform suchan act has not attained 18 years of age; orb. the recruitment, harboring, transportation,6

The Role of Parents in Child TraffickingWhen Maria was five, her father’s common-law wife started selling her for prostitution in Nicaragua. After a few years,NGO workers found Maria living in the city dump and took her to a home for little girls. She behaved in a sexuallyinappropriate manner with the other girls, as that was the only life she had ever known. She was asked to leave thatchildren’s home. Maria was taken to another children’s home for her protection while investigators documented herabuse and worked to terminate her father’s parental rights.Parents are often among the victims in child trafficking cases. Traffickers convince them to part with their children withfalse promises of schooling or prosperity. But in some cases parents may also play an active role in the trafficking ofchildren.INTRODUCTIONIn the last year, anti-trafficking police in Greece reported an increase in trafficking of children by their parents. AlbanianRoma parents bring their children to Greece, where they force them to beg or sell goods on the street. According tosome NGOs, Roma parents in Greece also rent or sell their children to third parties for forced labor.A 2007 study by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) found that some Cambodian parents sell theirchildren into prostitution or domestic servitude to repay debts. In Niger, boys trafficked for forced cattle herdingsometimes escape their employers and return to their parents. The boys arrive home with visible signs of physical andpsychological abuse. But many parents return their sons against their will to their employers, angry that the child hasleft an opportunity to learn a trade.To combat these types of child trafficking, law enforcement must send a strong message that these practices will notbe tolerated. Some countries have already started taking steps. In January 2008, Albania passed a law that specificallycriminalizes forced begging of children by parents. Laws in Niger, Senegal, and Togo also prohibit trafficking byparents.Despite the prevalence of the problem, police and judicial authorities often do not recognize it. In January 2008, aSouth African court dismissed a trafficking case after learning that the victims’ parents had allowed the trafficker totake the children to Cape Town, where the exploitation occurred. Courts should not withdraw cases on the basis ofparental consent.Social workers and investigators must be educated about the role parents may play in trafficking scenarios.Researchers investigating child trafficking on West African cocoa farms mistakenly determined, for example, that wherethe employer is a close relative of the child laborer, the child is less likely to be trafficked.provision, or obtaining of a person for laboror services, through the use of force, fraud,or coercion for the purpose of subjectionto involuntary servitude, peonage, debtbondage, or slavery.A victim need not be physically transportedfrom one location to another in order for thecrime to fall within these definitions.The Scope and Nature ofModern-Day SlaveryThe common denominator of traffickingscenarios is the use of force, fraud, or coercionto exploit a person for profit. Traffickers cansubject victims to labor exploitation, sexualexploitation, or both. Trafficking for laborexploitation, the form of trafficking claiming thegreatest number of victims, includes traditionalchattel slavery, forced labor, and debt bondage.Trafficking for sexual exploitation typicallyincludes abuse within the commercial sexindustry. In other cases, individuals exploit“The reality, sadly, comes not just closer to home but rightinto my home….Slavery globally touches not only my heart,but quite probably my table, my car, my clothing.”Julia Ormond, UN goodwill ambassador on human trafficking.victims in private homes, often demanding bothsex and work. The use of force or coercion can bedirect and violent or psychological.A wide range of estimates exists on the scope7

INTRODUCTIONIndiaJayati and her husband were bonded laborersat a rice mill in India for more than 30 years.From 2 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day, they separatedand boiled rice, often suffering burns, injuriesand illnesses. The owner of the mill threatenedto hurt them if they tried to leave. Their childrenwere forced to quit school and work alongsidethem in the mill. Their grandchildren were borninto bonded servitude. In 2005, Jayati and herfamily were finally freed with the help of NGOsand local authorities. “I never dreamt of a daylike this in my life,” she said after being freed.Indian children shout slogans during a protest against childtrafficking. Child trafficking is a crime under internationallaw, but India does not have a comprehensive law againstchild trafficking or against human trafficking.and magnitude of modern-day slavery. TheInternational Labor Organization (ILO)—theUnited Nations agency charged with addressinglabor standards, employment, and socialprotection issues—estimates that there are atleast 12.3 million adults and children in forcedlabor, bonded labor, and commercial sexualservitude at any given time.Of these victims, the ILO estimates that atleast 1.39 million are victims of commercialsexual servitude, both transnational and withincountries. According to the ILO, 56 percent of allforced labor victims are women and girls.Human traffickers prey on the weak. Targetingvulnerable men, women, and children, they usecreative and ruthless ploys designed to trick,coerce, and win the confidence of potentialvictims. Very often these ruses involve promisesof a better life through employment, educationalopportunities, or marriage.The nationalities of trafficked people areas diverse as the world’s cultures. Some leavedeveloping countries, seeking to improvetheir lives through low-skilled jobs in moreprosperous countries. Others fall victim toforced or bonded labor in their own countries.Women, eager for a better future, are susceptibleto promises of jobs abroad as babysitters,housekeepers, waitresses, or models—jobs thattraffickers turn into the nightmare of forced8

prostitution without exit. Some families givechildren to adults, often relatives, who promiseeducation and opportunity but instead sellthe children into exploitative situations formoney. But poverty alone does not explain thistragedy, which is driven by fraudulent recruiters,employers, and corrupt officials who seek to reapprofits from others’ desperation.Focus of the 2009 TIP ReportThe TIP Report is the most comprehensiveworldwide report on governments’ efforts tocombat severe forms of trafficking in persons.It includes countries of origin, transit, ordestination for trafficking victims. It representsan updated, global look at the nature and scopeof trafficking in persons and the broad range ofgovernment actions to confront and eliminate it.The 2009 TIP Report covers the period of April2008 through March 2009. During this time andsince the passage of the TVPA, the fight againsttrafficking passed an important milestone, asmore than half of the world’s countries haveenacted criminal legislation prohibiting allforms of trafficking in persons. Over the last yearalone, 26 countries enacted new anti-traffickinglegislation, some going beyond the minimumstandards of the TVPA and the 2000 UN TIPProtocol by offering the victims of traffickingrestitution through court proceedings and otherprotections.The last year was marked also by the onsetof a global financial crisis, which has raisedthe specter of increased human traffickingaround the world. As a result of the crisis, twoconcurrent trends—a shrinking global demandfor labor and a growing supply of workerswilling to take ever greater risks for economicopportunities—seem a recipe for increasedforced labor cases of migrant workers andwomen in prostitution.Because trafficking likely extends to everycountry in the world, the omission of a countryfrom the report may indicate only a lack ofadequate information. The country narrativesdescribe the scope and nature of the traffickingproblem, and the government’s efforts to combattrafficking. Each narrative also contains anassessment of the government’s compliance withthe minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking as laid out in the TVPA and includessuggestions for additional government actions.The remainder of the country narrative describeseach government’s efforts to enforce laws againsttrafficking, to protect victims, and to preventtrafficking. Each narrative explains the basis forranking a country as Tier 1, Tier 2, Tier 2 WatchList, or Tier 3. In particular, if a country has beenplaced on Tier 2 Watch List, the narrative willcontain a statement of explanation, using thespecial criteria found in the TVPA for the WatchList.MethodologyThe Department of State prepared this reportusing information from U.S. embassies, foreigngovernment officials, nongovernmental andinternational organizations, published reports,research trips to every region, and informationsubmitted to tipreport@state.gov. Thise-mail address allows NGOs and individualsto share information on government progressin addressing trafficking. U.S. diplomatic“If you give a maid a day off, she might use it in anegative way.”Saudi housewife explaining that laws granting additional rights to foreigndomestic servants could lead to more maids running away from employers.posts reported on the trafficking situation andgovernmental action based on thorough researchthat included meetings with a wide variety ofgovernment officials, local and internationalNGO representatives, officials of internationalorganizations, journalists, academics, andsurvivors.To compile this year’s report, the Departmentreviewed credible information sources on everycountry and assessed each government’s antitraffickingefforts. In prior years a “significantnumber” (defined to be 100 or more) oftrafficking victims had to be documentedfor a country to be ranked in the TIP Report.INTRODUCTION9

INTRODUCTIONPublic-Private Sector Partnerships:A Powerful ToolWith limited resources in great demand, government, corporate, and NGO leaders are coming together to find new waysto combat human trafficking. These partnerships have varied in size, scale, and duration, though they have one keycommon element: the desire to harness various competencies to tackle human trafficking.• In 2008, LexisNexis, an online database service, partnered with the U.S. National Human Trafficking Resource Center(NHTRC) to develop a national database of social service providers for the Center’s hotline. In Southeast Asia, LexisNexispartnered with a leading anti-trafficking NGO and taught technical skills to the shelter’s staff. The companyalso created an online resource center for attorneys who work with human trafficking victims; it collaborated with theAmerican Bar Association (ABA) to support a training institute on civil remedies for TIP victims, which trained lawyersfrom six countries and across the United States.• Wyndham Hotel Group partnered with the anti-trafficking NGO Polaris Project and made hundreds of free hotel roomsavailable for trafficking victims in emergency situations.• U.S. information technology company Microsoft has supported local NGO partners in Asia. By providing basic informationskills training, Microsoft has helped people in underserved communities find meaningful employment that lowertheir vulnerabilities to human trafficking. Microsoft has also partnered with the International Center for Missing andExploited Children, child protection NGOs, the ABA, and U.S. law enforcement to conduct law enforcement training oncomputer-related crimes involving the commercial sexual exploitation of children.• Travel corporation Carlson Companies partnered with NGOs to develop training materials for its hotel staff on how torecognize and report on child sex tourism. Carlson Companies also provided hotel conference facilities for training oflocal travel, tourism, and hospitality employees.• Media and film companies have been vehicles for raising awareness on human trafficking. The U.S. Governmentpartnered with Priority Films to make the film “Holly” about child sex trafficking and sponsor expert discussions; itpartnered with Lifetime Television to provide the television movie “Human Trafficking” to every U.S. Embassy for localscreenings; and it partnered with Worldwide Documentaries to disseminate a DVD on human trafficking in conjunctionwith the release of the 2008 Trafficking in Persons Report.Through partnerships like these, private sector companies gain trust and legitimacy from consumers and earn thesupport of socially conscious buyers and investors. For the anti-trafficking community, these partnerships extendexpertise, deepen resources, and stimulate creativity to fight human trafficking around the world.The William Wilberforce Trafficking VictimsProtection Reauthorization Act of 2008 (TVPRAof 2008) eliminated this requirement, therebyexpanding the scope of countries included inthis year’s report.Some countries have held conferences andestablished task forces or national action plansto create goals for anti-trafficking efforts.While such activities are useful and can serveas a catalyst toward concrete law enforcement,protection, and prevention activities in thefuture, these conferences, plans, and task forcesalone are not weighed heavily in assessingcountry efforts. Rather, the report focuseson governments’ concrete actions to fighttrafficking, especially prosecutions, convictions,and prison sentences for traffickers as well asvictim protection measures and preventionefforts.Although critical to increasing anti-traffickingefforts, the Report does not give great weightto laws in draft form or laws that have not yetbeen enacted. In general, the Report does notfocus on governmental efforts that have indirectimplications for trafficking, such as generalefforts to keep children in school or generaleconomic development programs, though theReport is making a stronger effort to identifytrafficking vulnerabilities and measures takenby governments to prevent trafficking that may10

INTRODUCTION12Shyima Hall, now 19, sits in the windowless garagewhere she was kept for two years. Shyima was 10 when awealthy Egyptian couple brought her from a poor villagein northern Egypt to work in their California home. Sheawoke before dawn and often worked past midnight toiron their clothes, mop the marble floors, and dust thefamily's crystal. She earned $45 a month, sometimesworking up to 20 hours a day. The trafficking of childrenfor domestic labor in the United States is an extension ofan illegal but common practice among the upper classesin some societies.AzerbaijanDilara’s sister had been tricked into anunregistered marriage to a trafficker who laterabandoned her when she got pregnant. WhenDilara confronted her sister’s traffickers, sheherself became a victim. She ended up in Turkey,where she and other abducted girls were torturedand forced to engage in prostitution. Dilaraescaped with the help of Turkish police, whopromptly arrested the nine men who traffickedDilara and her sister. She then approached alocal NGO for legal aid and counseling. The NGOalso helped Dilara learn computer programmingand find employment with a company in Baku.Tier 2 Watch ListThe TVPA requires that certain countries beplaced on a Special Watch List. This includescountries in which:a. The absolute number of victims of severeforms of trafficking is very significant or issignificantly increasing;b. There is a failure to provide evidence ofincreasing efforts to combat severe formsof trafficking in persons from the previousyear, including increased investigations,prosecutions, and convictions of traffickingcrimes; increased assistance to victims; anddecreasing evidence of complicity in severeforms of trafficking by government officials;orc. The determination that a country is makingsignificant efforts to bring itself intocompliance with the minimum standardswas based on commitments by the countryto take additional steps over the next year.Countries that meet one of these three criteriaare placed onto what the Department of State

has termed the “Tier 2 Watch List.” Therewere 40 countries on Tier 2 Watch List in theJune 2008 report. Two additional countrieswere reassessed as Tier 2 Watch List countriesin November 2008. The Department of Stateincluded these 42 countries in an “InterimAssessment” released on January 27, 2009.Of these 42 countries on Tier 2 Watch List atthe time of the Interim Assessment, 11 movedup to Tier 2 in this report, while four fell to Tier3 and 27 remain on Tier 2 Watch List. Countrieson Tier 2 Watch List in this report will bere-examined in the next Interim Assessment,which will be submitted to the U.S. Congress byFebruary 1, 2010.Amendments made by the TVPRA of 2008provide that any country that has been rankedTier 2 Watch List for two consecutive years(beginning with the 2009 Report) will beranked Tier 3, unless the President waivesapplication of this provision based on adetermination that, among other things, thegovernment has a written plan for meeting theTVPA’s minimum standards.Penalties for Tier 3 CountriesPursuant to the TVPA, governments of countrieson Tier 3 may be subject to certain sanctions,whereby the U.S. Government may withholdnonhumanitarian, non-trade-related foreignassistance. Countries that receive no suchassistance may not receive such assistance and, inaddition, may not receive funding for governmentemployees’ participation in educational andcultural exchange programs. Consistent withthe TVPA, governments subject to sanctionswould also face U.S. opposition to assistance(except for humanitarian, trade-related, andcertain development-related assistance) frominternational financial institutions such as theInternational Monetary Fund (IMF) and theWorld Bank.Imposed sanctions will take effect October 1,2009; however, all or part of the TVPA’s sanctionscan be waived if the President determines that theprovision of such assistance to the governmentwould promote the purposes of the statute or isotherwise in the national interest of the UnitedStates. The TVPA also provides that sanctions canDebunking CommonTrafficking MythsInitial Consent: A person may agree to migrate legallyor illegally or take a job willingly. But once that work orservice is no longer voluntary, that person becomes avictim of forced labor or forced prostitution and shouldaccordingly receive the protections contemplated bythe 2000 UN TIP Protocol. Once a person’s work isrecruited or compelled by the use or threat of physicalviolence or the abuse or threatened abuse of thelegal process, the person’s previous consent or effortto obtain employment with the trafficker becomesirrelevant.A person may agree to work for an employer initially butlater decide to stop working because the conditionsare not what they agreed to. If an employer then usesforce, fraud, or coercion to retain the person’s labor orservices, the employer becomes a trafficking offenderand the employee becomes a victim.In April 2008, this type of misplaced reliance on aworker’s initial consent led to the deportation ofthree Thai victims from a European country because,according to the head of the anti-trafficking policeunit in that country, the victims had consented to theemployment and had arrived voluntarily in that countryas guest workers. The victims in this case discoveredtheir employment conditions were vastly different fromwhat they expected when they initially accepted theirjobs and traveled to Europe; further, their employersretained their passports, forced them to sometimeswork without compensation, and threatened to turnthem over to police if they did not work as they weretold.Prior Work History: Previous employment choicesalso do not exclude the possibility that a person maybe a victim of trafficking. Some government officialsfail to identify victims of sex trafficking because theymay have willingly worked in the sex industry priorto being trafficked. Law enforcement may fail also toidentify victims of labor trafficking because they aremigrant workers and may have previously worked indifficult conditions, either legally or illegally. Whether aperson is a victim of labor trafficking turns on whetherthat person’s service or labor was induced by force,fraud, or coercion.Wage Payment: Case law from U.S. criminal cases hasestablished that payment of a wage or salary is not adefinitive indicator that the labor or service is voluntary.If a person is compelled to labor through the use offorce or coercion—including the use of nonphysicalforms of coercion such as financial harm—thenthat work or service is forced, even if he is paid orcompensated for the work.INTRODUCTION13

INTRODUCTIONThe BalkansWhen Julia was 8, a man took her and hersisters to a neighboring country and forcedthem to beg on the streets until their early teens,when he sold them into prostitution. Julia’straffickers expected her to bring in a certainamount of money each day or face beatings. At14, Julia ran away, eventually coming under thesupervision of local authorities. They placed herin an orphanage where she was not allowed togo to school due to her undocumented status.After a few months, Julia ran away from theorphanage and became involved with a pimpwho prostituted her to local men and tourists.Recently, Julia was arrested on narcoticscharges. She will likely spend the next two yearsin a juvenile prison, where she will finally learnto read and write.be waived if necessary to avoid significant adverseeffects on vulnerable populations, includingwomen and children. Sanctions would not apply ifthe President finds that, after this report is issuedbut before sanctions determinations are made,a government has come into compliance withthe minimum standards or is making significantefforts to bring itself into compliance.No tier ranking is permanent. Every countrycan do more, including the United States, whichhas a significant human trafficking problem. Allcountries must maintain and increase efforts tocombat trafficking.How the Report Is UsedThe TIP Report is a diplomatic tool for the U.S.Government to use to encourage continueddialogue and to help focus resources onprosecution, protection, and preventionprograms and policies. In the narrative of eachranked country, the Report provides specificrecommendations to facilitate future progress.The Department of State will continue to engagegovernments on the Report’s contents in orderto strengthen cooperative efforts to eradicatetrafficking.In the coming year, the Report will informprograms that will address all aspects oftrafficking, administered not only by the Officeto Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons,but also tapping the longstanding expertiseof others in the U.S. Government, such as theDepartment of State’s Bureau of Democracy,Human Rights, and Labor and the Departmentsof Labor, Justice, and Health and HumanServices. The Department hopes this reportwill be a catalyst for increased governmentand nongovernment efforts to combat humantrafficking around the world.14MAJOR Forms of Traffickingin PersonsForced LaborThe majority of human trafficking in theworld takes the form of forced labor, accordingto the ILO’s estimate on forced labor. Alsoknown as involuntary servitude, forced labormay result when unscrupulous employers

What’s in a Name?Human Tr afficking in Tr anslationThe British abolition movement in the late 18 th century achieved a ban on the trade or transportation of slaves through the BritishEmpire in 1807. That focus on the trade of slaves—as opposed to the servitude itself—continues to this day and is reflected interminology used around the globe.Finding the right words to describe the crime remains a persistent challenge in combating human trafficking. Most formulationsused to describe trafficking focus on the trade or buying and selling of people, or they mean something closer to “smuggling,”which relates specifically to movement over borders. These words, including the word trafficking in English, may not adequatelycapture the most important aspect of the practice: exploitation.In the Arabic phrase for human trafficking, al-ittijaar b’il-bashar, the word al-ittijaar derives from the root meaning “commerce”or “trade.” In the Russian phrase torgovlyei lyudmi, torgovlyei also translates to “trade.” And Germanic languages use the wordhandel or “trade” in their characterizations. The Mandarin Chinese phrase guӑi mài, which means “to trick someone and sellthem,” has an added element of trickery but is still focused on selling. Another less common Mandarin phrase, fàn mài rén kou, ˘translates to “the buying and selling of humans.”INTRODUCTIONThe French la traite des personnes and the Spanish la trata depersonas adopt the same terms used to discuss negotiations ortrade agreements. Officials in some French-speaking countrieshesitate to use la traite because of immediate association withla traite des noirs, describing the transatlantic slave trade fromAfrica. In many Spanish-speaking countries, la trata is quicklyassociated with la trata de blancas, an older legal term thatrefers specifically to the selling of white women into prostitution.Still, those phrases are preferred over le trafic des migrantsand el tráfico de personas, which imply something closer to“smuggling.” In Latin America, el tráfico also is easily associatedwith drug and arms trade.“Trafficking is a complex, diverse, and controversialphenomenon, which has made the search for a definition a‘terminological minefield’.”Cathy Zimmerman and Charlotte Watts, gender violence and public health experts,in their 2007 article “Documenting the Effects of Trafficking in Women.”The issue is more complicated when considering local languages, many of which do not have any words to describe humantrafficking, although the practice is widespread. In East Africa, the Swahili phrase usafirishaji haramu wa binadamu translatesto “illegal transportation of human beings.” But use of this phrase has caused further confusion with police and conflation with“smuggling.” Some officials use usafirishaji na biashara haramu ya watu, which means “illegal transportation and trade in people.”But these words, like those in English and other languages, still fail to invoke concepts such as unyonyaji (“exploitation”) orutumwa (“slavery”)—the key elements of the crime.These limited characterizations may lead to confusion in creating effective legislation or policies to prosecute offenders andprotect victims of human trafficking. A focus on movement would ignore those people who are trafficked within their owncountries, regions, or towns. A focus on trade or buying and selling does not highlight the fraud or coercion often involved inhuman trafficking. It excludes the many victims who are never “bought” or “sold” but rather “self-present” to exploiters who thentraffic them and victims who are otherwise deceived or defrauded into a form of servitude.Human trafficking, in essence, is a modern-day form of slavery. It involves exploitation and forced servitude. To recognize andaddress all forms of human trafficking, the language used to discuss it should focus on the harsh reality of victims’ suffering andthe horrific crimes of perpetrators.The language of human trafficking:Language Phrase Literal TranslationArabic Al-ittijaar b’il-bashar The commercial trade of peopleBurmese Lu kon ku de Trade in peopleFrench La traite des personnes The trade of peopleJapanese Jinshin bai bai The buying and selling of peopleMandarin Guӑi mài The cheating/tricking and selling of peopleMandarin Fan mai ren kou The buying and selling of peopleRussian Torgovlyei lyudmi The trade of peopleSpanish La trata de personas The trade of peopleSwahili Usafirishaji haramu wa binadamu The illegal transportation of human beingsThai Garn ka manut The act of trading persons15

INTRODUCTIONBrazilMatheus was born and raised in one of thepoorest backlands of Brazil. For the 39-year-oldfarmhand, the opportunity to work at a charcoalproduction site in the Amazon region was toogood to miss. But the reality he faced at the worksite was far from the opportunity he expected.The workers drank from the same river used bycattle. Smoke from the charcoal furnace stungtheir eyes all day and made it difficult to sleepat night. They knew the owners had weapons,and they feared the consequences of trying toescape. When anti-slavery activists arrived at thesite, they found Matheus and 10 other workersdisheveled, wearing torn trousers, filthy T-shirts,and rubber flip-flops.Sugar cane cutters in northeast Brazil are transported in acattle truck to a sugar-alcohol mill. Many of these workersare exploited through debt bondage.take advantage of gaps in law enforcement toexploit vulnerable workers. These workers aremade more vulnerable to forced labor practicesbecause of high rates of unemployment, poverty,crime, discrimination, corruption, politicalconflict, and cultural acceptance of the practice.Immigrants are particularly vulnerable, butindividuals are also forced into labor in theirown countries. Female victims of forced orbonded labor, especially women and girls indomestic servitude, are often sexually exploitedas well.Forced labor is a form of human traffickingthat is often harder to identify and estimatethan sex trafficking. It may not involve the samecriminal networks profiting from transnationalsex trafficking. Instead, it may involveindividuals who subject workers to involuntaryservitude, perhaps through forced or coercedhousehold or factory work.Bonded LaborOne form of force or coercion is the useof a bond, or debt, to keep a person undersubjugation. This is referred to in law andpolicy as “bonded labor” or “debt bondage.”U.S. law prohibits debt bondage, and the UNTIP Protocol includes it as a form of traffickingrelatedexploitation. Workers around the worldfall victim to debt bondage when traffickers16

Human Trafficking for Organ RemovalMohammad Salim Khan woke up in a strange house and felt an excruciating pain in his abdomen. Unsure where hewas, Khan asked a man wearing a surgical mask what had happened. “We have taken your kidney,” the stranger said,according to a January 2008 Associated Press report. “If you tell anyone, we’ll shoot you.”Six days earlier, Khan, a 33-year-old Indian day laborer from New Delhi, had been approached by a bearded manoffering a construction job. The man explained that the work would pay $4 a day – not unusual in India – and would lastthree months. Khan, a father of five, jumped at the chance for work.INTRODUCTIONHe traveled with the man to a small town several hours away. Once there, Khan was locked in a room and forced atgunpoint to give a blood sample and take drugs that made him unconscious. He didn’t wake up until after surgery.Police raided the illegal clinic afterward, rescuing Khan and two other men. Khan never received money for his kidney,and it took months to recover physically. Indian authorities pursued charges against the doctor involved.Khan was trafficked for the purpose of organ removal.The UN TIP Protocol prohibits the use of human trafficking for the purpose of organ removal. This may includesituations in which a trafficker causes the involuntary removal of another living person’s organ, either for profit or foranother benefit, such as to practice traditional medicine or witchcraft.A far greater number of organs are obtained from people in the developing world, sometimes through exploitativemeans, and sold in a highly lucrative international market. The UN TIP Protocol does not cover this voluntary sale oforgans for money, which is considered lawful in most countries.But the demand for organs is rising as the world’s rich are growing older. At the same time, the world’s poor aregrowing poorer, and the potential for more human trafficking cases like Khan’s is increasing. The World HealthOrganization (WHO) estimates that 10 percent of the 70,000 kidneys transplanted each year may originate on the blackmarket.or recruiters unlawfully exploit an initial debtthe worker assumed as part of the terms ofemployment.Workers may also inherit debt in moretraditional systems of bonded labor. Traditionalbonded labor in South Asia, for example,enslaves huge numbers of people fromgeneration to generation. A January 2009 reportby Anti-Slavery International, a London-basedNGO, concluded that this form of forced labor,traditionally more prevalent in villages, isexpanding into urban areas of the region, ratherthan diminishing on an aggregate level, as theresult of development and modernization.of migrant laborers; and (3) intentionalimposition of exploitative and often illegal costsand debts on these laborers in the source country,often with the support of labor agencies andemployers in the destination country.Abuses of contracts and hazardous conditions“We are blind to trafficking all around us, and we shouldbe more alert to the fact that trafficking is not a ‘remote’issue but rather something that is local to us and impactson our communities.”Nick Kinsella, Chief Executive Officer of the UK Human Trafficking Centre.Debt Bondage AmongMigrant LaborersThe vulnerability of migrant laborers totrafficking schemes is especially disturbingbecause the population is sizeable in someregions. There are three potential contributingfactors: (1) abuse of contracts; (2) inadequate locallaws governing the recruitment and employmentof employment do not in themselves constituteinvoluntary servitude. But the use or threatof physical force or restraint to keep a personworking may convert a situation into one offorced labor. Costs imposed on laborers for the“privilege” of working abroad can make laborers17

INTRODUCTIONVictim Restitution:Key to Justice, Keyto Rebuilding a LifeIn fiscal year 2008, U.S. courts ordered traffickers topay restitution awards totaling more than $4.2 million.Restitution: The process in which a court calculatesthe monetary loss of a trafficking victim or otherperson as a result of the crime and orders thetraffickers to pay that sum to the victim, usuallycarrying a punitive cost in excess of simplecompensation for a victim’s lost wages. This canbe the product of a successful criminal prosecutionof a trafficking offender or an entirely separate civilcomplaint filed by the victim. The United States is theonly country in which a compensation claim for thevictim is automatically part of the criminal proceedingsin trafficking cases.Forfeiture: The process in which the government takesphysical possession of the proceeds from, or materialpossessions involved in, the trafficking crime (cash,buildings, vehicles, etc.).These processes can be used to provide compensationto trafficking victims in the United States. The TVPAincludes provisions for mandatory restitution totrafficking victims and a provision allowing victimsto sue trafficking offenders for compensatory andpunitive damages. Many other countries have includedvictims’ rights to seek compensation through legalprocedures.Victim compensation meets the practical needsof survivors of human trafficking. It alleviates themonetary burden of the state and helps the victimpay for basic necessities, such as housing, food, andtransportation, which can prevent their re-trafficking.It also allows compensation to third parties, such asmedical and social service providers, who paid forservices required as a result of the crime. But beyondproviding for these immediate and critical needs,restitution has a restorative power. The philosophybehind restitution goes hand-in-hand with a victimcenteredapproach to trafficking. Providing the victimwith their traffickers’ ill-gotten gains is critical torestoring a victim’s dignity, helping them gain powerback from their exploiters who took advantage of theirhope for a better life. Restitution and compensationattack the greed of the trafficker and the idea of ahuman being as a commodity. It is a way to ensure thatvictims receive access to justice.vulnerable to debt bondage. While the costsalone do not constitute debt bondage, whenthey become excessive and involve exploitationby unscrupulous employers in the destinationcountry, they can lead to involuntary servitude.Involuntary Domestic ServitudeA unique form of forced labor is that ofinvoluntary domestic workers, whose workplaceis informal, connected to their off-duty livingquarters, and not often shared with otherworkers. Such an environment is conducive toexploitation since authorities cannot inspectprivate property as easily as they can inspectformal workplaces. In some countries, largenumbers of local children, often from lessdeveloped rural areas of the country, labor inurban households as domestic servants. Someof them may be vulnerable to conditions ofinvoluntary servitude.Foreign migrants, usually women, arerecruited from less developed countries in SouthAsia, Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin Americato work as domestic servants and caretakers inmore developed locations like the Gulf States,the Levant, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Europe,and the United States. But many of these placesdo not provide domestic servants the same legalprotections that they provide for foreign workersin other sectors.Without protections, foreign domestic workersmay have fewer options for seeking help whenfaced with their employer’s threat of or use offorce. If they are confined to a home, eitherthrough physical restraint or through theconfiscation of identity and travel documents,they may find it very difficult to reach out toNGOs or public authorities for assistance due tolack of awareness and fear of their employers.This high degree of vulnerability calls for avigorous law enforcement and victim protectionresponse when domestic servants are found inconditions of involuntary servitude in a home.Those domestic servants who choose to escapefrom abusive employers are sometimes termed“runaways” and seen as criminals, though theyshould be considered as possible victims oftrafficking.18

INTRODUCTIONForced Child LaborMost international organizations and nationallaws recognize that children may legally engagein light work. There is a growing concensus,however, that the worst forms of child laborshould be eradicated. The sale and trafficking ofchildren and their entrapment in bonded andforced labor are among the worst forms of childlabor. Any child who is subject to involuntaryservitude, debt bondage, peonage, or slaverythrough the use of force, fraud, or coercion,is a victim of human trafficking regardless ofthe location of that exploitation. Indicatorsof possible forced labor of a child includesituations in which the child appears to be inthe custody of a non-family member who hasthe child perform work that financially benefitssomeone outside the child’s family and does notoffer the child the option of leaving.A young boy works 12-hour days packing mud bricks inLiberia.DemocraticRepublic of THECongoLucien was studying at school when membersof a militia group abducted him and 11 otherboys from his secondary school. The soldiersdrove them to a training camp and put them ina pit in the ground. Those who resisted werebeaten. Lucien was stabbed in the stomachand tied up until he submitted to the training.Lucien endured difficult training with some 60other children, including a number of girls. Theywere fed one plate of maize meal a day to shareamong 12 people. Lucien watched people diefrom starvation and illness. When the soldierskilled those who tried to escape, they forcedLucien and other children to bury the bodies.Lucien later managed to escape and now liveswith a host family.19

INTRODUCTIONMore than 30,000 children have been kidnapped to serve assoldiers and slaves by the rebel Lord's Resistance Army inits 20-year war against the Ugandan government. Boys incaptivity are forced to loot and burn villages and torture andkill neighbors. Abducted girls are routinely raped and becomesex slaves or “wives” of rebel commanders. These drawingsexpress the traumas of war experienced by Ugandan childrenwho have returned home.“If you see a young person wearing military clothes,carrying a gun, these are children who have lost theirlives. Fighting is the last thing that a child should bedoing.”Ali, former child soldier who fought with rebels in Chad.Child SoldiersChild soldiering is a unique and severemanifestation of trafficking in persons thatinvolves the unlawful recruitment of children—often through force, fraud, or coercion—forlabor or sexual exploitation in conflict areas.Perpetrators may be government forces,paramilitary organizations, or rebel groups.While the majority of child soldiers are betweenthe ages of 15 and 18, some of whom mayhave been unlawfully recruited and used inhostilities, others are as young as 7 or 8, which isunlawful under international law.Although it is impossible to accuratelycalculate the number of children involved inarmed forces and groups, the Coalition to Stopthe Use of Child Soldiers estimates that there aremany tens of thousands of children exploited inconflict. Child soldiers exist in all regions of theworld. According to the UN, 57 armed groupsand forces were using children in 2007, up from40 in 2006.Many children are abducted to be used ascombatants. Others are made unlawfully to workas porters, cooks, guards, servants, messengers,or spies. Young girls are forced to marry or have20

sex with male combatants. Both male andfemale child soldiers are often sexually abusedand are at high risk of contracting sexuallytransmitted diseases.Some children have been forced tocommit atrocities against their families andcommunities. Child soldiers are often killed orwounded, and survivors suffer multiple traumasand psychological scarring. Their personaldevelopment is irreparably damaged, and theirhome communities often reject them when theyreturn.Child soldiering is a global phenomenon.The problem is most critical in Africa and Asia,but armed groups in conflict areas elsewherealso use children unlawfully. All nations mustwork together with international organizationsand NGOs to take urgent action to disarm,demobilize, and reintegrate unlawful childsoldiers.Sex TraffickingSex trafficking comprises a significant portionof overall human trafficking. When a person iscoerced, forced, or deceived into prostitution,or maintained in prostitution through coercion,that person is a victim of trafficking. All ofthose involved in recruiting, transporting,Morocco-CyprusRania signed a contract she couldn’t read andset off to earn money as a cleaner in Cyprus.But when she arrived, an agent told her shewas going to work in a cabaret, have drinkswith customers, and have sex with them if theywanted. She resisted and asked to be senthome but was told she had to repay her travelexpenses first. Rania was raped. It was her firstsexual experience. She knew if she returned toMorocco, her brother, a strict Muslim, wouldkill her for having sex before marriage and fordamaging the family’s reputation. When shefinally ran away, social workers took Rania toa government shelter for victims of sexualexploitation. While police investigated thecase, Rania stayed in Cyprus and worked as acleaner.Nikolai Rantchev’s daughter Oxana left Russia forCyprus duped into thinking she would work as atranslator. Days later, she was found dead in the street.Rantchev believes she was killed by human traffickerswho wanted to turn the honors student into a sex slavein a local cabaret.INTRODUCTION21

INTRODUCTIONharboring, receiving, or obtaining the personfor that purpose have committed a traffickingcrime. Sex trafficking can also occur alongsidedebt bondage, as women and girls are forcedto continue in prostitution through the use ofunlawful “debt” purportedly incurred throughtheir transportation or recruitment—or theircrude “sale”—which exploiters insist they mustpay off before they can be free.Child Sex Trafficking andRelated AbusesAnalysis of child trafficking often leads tothe consideration of other categories of childexploitation. The following guide attempts toclarify what is addressed in the TIP Report:A volunteer in Beijing, China created playing cards withdetails of missing children to hand out to residents andlaw enforcement in areas notorious for child trafficking.ChinaXiao Ping, 20, had spent most of her life inher small village in Sichuan Province. She wasthrilled when her new boyfriend offered to takeher on a weekend trip to his hometown. But herboyfriend and his friends took her instead to adesert village in the Inner Mongolia AutonomousRegion and sold her to a farmer to be his wife.The farmer imprisoned Xiao Ping, beat her, andraped her for 32 months. In that time Xiao Pinggrew depressed and homesick, and she becamepregnant and had a son. Xiao Ping’s familyborrowed a substantial sum to pay for her rescue,but the farmer’s family forced her to leave behindher 6-month-old baby. To cancel the debts, XiaoPing married the man who provided the loan. Buther husband regarded her as “stained goods,”and the marriage did not last.Child Sex Trafficking: According to UNICEF,as many as two million children are subjected toprostitution in the global commercial sex trade.International covenants and protocols obligatecriminalization of the commercial sexualexploitation of children. The use of children inthe commercial sex trade is prohibited underboth U.S. law and the UN TIP Protocol. Therecan be no exceptions and no cultural or socioeconomicrationalizations that prevent therescue of children from sexual servitude. Sextrafficking has devastating consequences forminors, including long-lasting physical andpsychological trauma, disease (including HIV/AIDS), drug addiction, unwanted pregnancy,malnutrition, social ostracism, and possibledeath.Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children(CSEC) is the sexual exploitation of children forthe commercial gain of some person(s). CSECincludes all child prostitution as well as childpornography. This is not human traffickingper se, as some forms of CSEC such as childpornography are not always a form of humantrafficking. Most forms of CSEC, however, areforms of human trafficking, such as child sextrafficking.Child Sex Tourism (CST) is one form of“demand” for victims of child sex trafficking.It involves people who travel from their owncountry—often a country where child sexual22

Child Trafficking in Gold MinesSome 20 to 30 percent of the world’s gold comes from artisanal mines throughout Africa, South America, and Asia.Artisanal mines are small-scale mines typically found in rural areas of developing countries. They offer communitiesand families a way to make a living in areas where few alternatives exist. But these mines are also the sites ofmodern-day slavery; of the two million children who work in goldmines worldwide, many are forced, often throughdebt bondage, to do back-breaking work in hazardous conditions.Child laborers in gold mines face a number of dangers:INTRODUCTION• Exposure to hazardous elements. Mercury is magnetically attracted to gold, making it a good tool for locatinggold and separating it from the soil. In West Africa, children rub mercury into their hands before sifting soil throughtheir fingers. In South America, children reportedly wash gold while standing in waist-deep water contaminatedby mercury. Prolonged mercury exposure causes retardation, blindness, kidney damage, and tremors. To a lesserextent, child mine laborers are also exposed to cyanide and sulfur. A 2006 Harvard Medical School study foundthat children in gold mining communities in Ecuador showed neurological abnormalities resulting from mercury andcyanide exposure.• Mine collapses, explosions. Artisanal mines frequently collapse, killing or injuring workers. Children are oftenlowered into narrow mine shafts as deep as 90 meters, sometimes for up to 18 hours. In Bolivia, trafficked boys asyoung as eight help detonate dynamite in theinterior of gold mines.• Long hours, back-breaking work. Traffickersin the Democratic Republic of the Congosubject children to debt bondage in goldmines, forcing them to work nine to ten hoursdaily digging tunnels and open-pit mines. Ingold mines in Ethiopia, children are forced towork an average of 14 hours a day, six days aweek. Children trafficked from Burkina Faso,Guinea, and Mali to gold mines in Côte d’Ivoireare held in slavery-like conditions and forced towork 10 hours a day, seven days a week. Theyreceive little food and meager pay. In 2008, aGuinean child told the Associated Press he waspromised $2 a day for his work in a gold minebut received only $40 after six months of backbreaking,coerced, and hazardous labor.Most of the gold mined by these children entersthe mainstream market. It is up to consumers toencourage the private sector and governmentsto take action against this exploitation. Whilesome jewelers and mining companies formedthe Council for Responsible Jewellery Practicesin 2005 and developed a Code of Practicesbanning child labor, this code has not beenenforced. The eradication of forced child laborin gold mines requires increased global activity,through implementation of corporate codes,enforcement of anti-trafficking and child laborlaws, and development of programs to rescuechildren.A 16-year-old boy descends into a 90-foot-deepshaft at a gold mine near the village of Tenkoto,Senegal.23

INTRODUCTIONChildren forced to work in Lake Volta’s fishing industry are sometimes freed as the result of negotiations for financial incentives offered totheir exploiters; no exploiters are prosecuted or punished.Buying or Negotiating a Victim’s FreedomAmong the repugnant aspects of human trafficking is the commodification of human lives: the assignment ofa monetary value to the life of a woman, man, or child. Whether in an Indian brothel or in the Lake Volta fishingindustry of Ghana, a price is placed on a victim’s freedom.Anti-slavery organizations and activists have sometimes opted to pay the price of victims’ freedom from theirexploiters. Negotiating a victim’s freedom or paying the ransom brings instant results. In the past year, a well-knowninternational organization in Ghana endorsed this approach by negotiating with and providing financial incentives toLake Volta fisherman who had enslaved boys in the fishing industry. While this releases victims from the bonds ofmodern-day slavery, the implications of this practice are more complicated.If trafficking victims are freed because of a payment or negotiation, the trafficker remains unpunished andunrepentant and is free to find new victims to perform the same service. By “purchasing” a victim’s freedom, wellintentionedindividuals or organizations may inadvertently provide traffickers with financial incentive to find newvictims. While the numbers of victims rescued from compensated or negotiated releases can seem impressive, itis difficult to determine whether they lead to a net reduction in the number of victims. Still, the enslavement maycontinue without any cost or punishment to the trafficker or exploiter.A more lasting and effective way to secure a victim’s freedom is through the application of law: holding traffickersand those who exploit trafficking victims accountable under criminal justice systems. The minimum standards ofthe TVPA call for the criminalization of all acts of trafficking, as does the 2000 UN TIP Protocol. Criminal provisionsassign a punitive cost to this trade in humans, a cost that the exploiters are likely to respect and fear. Applyingcriminal laws also provides society with a measure of justice and hope that the cycle of entrapping additionalvictims can be broken. Negotiating with traffickers provides none of this.24

exploitation is illegal or culturally abhorrent—to another country where they engage incommercial sex acts with children. CST is ashameful assault on the dignity of children anda form of violent child abuse. It often involvestrafficking, as a trafficking crime likely wascommitted in the provision of the child for thesex tourist’s exploitation.Addressing Child Sex Tourism in the TIPReport: Efforts by a government to prevent itsnationals from traveling abroad to engage in childsex tourism—including by prosecuting allegedchild sex tourists for conduct they committedoverseas—is cited in that country’s narrativeunder the Prevention section. Likewise, effortsby a “destination” government to punish foreignnationals for alleged child sex tourism offenses arecited in the Prevention section of that country’snarrative as an effort to “reduce demand forcommercial sex acts” in general. Efforts by thesame destination government to punish thetrafficking of children for commercial sexualexploitation by any persons – foreign sex touristor local resident – are credited in the Prosecutionsection of that country’s narrative.SoutheastEuropeA man trafficked for labor exploitation explains:“I once fainted and the owner took me to thehospital. There the doctor asked me why I didn’thave any registration. I told him that my ownerdidn’t let me leave the territory I worked. Heseemed to have understood the situation I gotinto… I felt safe at that moment. I thought Iwould stay there for a long time and I would beable to go home… I was there for three days.On the third day the doctor told me that thetreatment was over and the costs were coveredby a charity organization. When I went out of thehospital, I saw my owner waiting for me.”INTRODUCTIONTHE THREE P’S: PROSECUTION,PROTECTION, PREVENTIONThe 2009 TIP Report analyzes foreigngovernments’ anti-trafficking efforts by lookingat the punishment of trafficking offenders, theMigrant workers in Dubai, UAE, live and work withoutadequate rights in difficult conditions in labor camps.Up to 20 men often share small rooms. Employersoften withhold wages of these workers with the intentof preventing them from leaving. This amounts toforced labor.25

INTRODUCTIONStrengthening Prohibitions AgainstForced Labor and Fr audulentRecruitment of Foreign WorkersThe enactment of the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 (TVPRA of 2008) strengthenedthe U.S. Government’s criminal statute on forced labor. It clarified nonphysical forms of coercion, which arerecognized as potent tools used by traffickers. The act now explicitly provides a detailed explanation of “abuseor threatened abuse of law or legal process,” a prohibited means of coercion under both the forced labor and sextrafficking statutes. This is often seen practically in acts such as an employer threatening to have a migrant arrestedand deported as an undocumented alien if he or she refused to enter into or continue a form of labor or services.The statute also explains that “serious harm,” another form of coercion, includes harming or threatening to harmsomeone financially in such a significant way that it would compel that person to enter into or continue a form oflabor or services.The TVPRA of 2008 also created a new criminal statute prohibiting fraud in foreign labor contracting, which imposescriminal liability on those who, knowingly and with intent to defraud, recruit workers from outside the United Statesfor employment within the United States by means of materially false or fraudulent representations. While not atrafficking-in-persons offense per se, this crime may be closely linked to forced labor. The new statute prescribes apunishment of up to five years’ imprisonment.Title 18 U.S. Code Section 1589 – Forced Labor.(a) Whoever knowingly provides or obtains the labor or services of a person by any one of, or by any combination of,the following means:(1) by means of force, threats of force, physical restraint, or threats of physical restraint to that person oranother person;(2) by means of serious harm or threats of serious harm to that person or another person;(3) by means of the abuse or threatened abuse of law or legal process; or(4) by means of any scheme, plan, or pattern intended to cause the person to believe that, if that person did notperform such labor or services, that person or another person would suffer serious harm or physical restraint,shall be punished as provided under subsection (d).(b) Whoever knowingly benefits, financially or by receiving anything of value, from participation in a venture whichhas engaged in the providing or obtaining of labor or services by any of the means described in subsection (a),knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that the venture has engaged in the providing or obtaining of labor orservices by any of such means, shall be punished as provided in subsection (d).(c) In this section:(1) the term “abuse or threatened abuse of law or legal process” means the use or threatened use of a law orlegal process, whether administrative, civil, or criminal, in any manner or for any purpose for which the law wasnot designed, in order to exert pressure on another person to cause that person to take some action or refrainfrom taking some action.(2) the term “serious harm” means any harm, whether physical or non-physical, including psychological,financial, or reputational harm that is sufficiently serious, under all the surrounding circumstances, to compela reasonable person of the same background and in the same circumstances to perform or to continueperforming labor or services in order to avoid incurring that harm.(d) Whoever violates this section shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 20 years, or both. If deathresults from a violation of this section, or if the violation includes kidnapping, an attempt to kidnap, aggravatedsexual abuse, or an attempt to kill, the defendant shall be fined under this title, imprisoned for any term of years orlife, or both.”Title 18 U.S. Code, Section 1351 (new statute) – Fraud in Foreign Labor Contracting26“Whoever knowingly and with intent to defraud recruits, solicits, or hires a person outside the United Statesfor purposes of employment in the United States by means of materially false or fraudulent pretenses,representations, or promises regarding that employment, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned for notmore than 5 years, or both.”

INTRODUCTIONA Pakistani boy works in a brick kiln on the outskirts of Lahore in Pakistan. His parents owe the brick kiln owner 5,000 Pakistani rupees(less than US $100). Because of this debt, they work as bonded laborers.protection of victims, and prevention efforts.The analysis is based on the TVPA standards.Punishing Trafficking OffendersThe minimum standards in the TVPA callon foreign governments to prohibit all formsof trafficking, to prescribe penalties that aresufficiently stringent to deter the crime andthat adequately reflect the heinous nature ofthe crime, and to vigorously punish offendersconvicted of these crimes.Legally Prescribed Penalties: In assessingforeign governments’ anti-trafficking efforts forthe TIP Report, the Department of State holdsthat, consistent with the 2000 UN ConventionAgainst Transnational Organized Crime (whichis supplemented by the UN TIP Protocol),criminal penalties to meet this standard shouldinclude a maximum of at least four years’deprivation of liberty, or a more severe penalty.Imposed Penalties: The Department of Stateholds that imposed sentences should involvesignificant jail time, with a majority of casesresulting in sentences on the order of one yearof imprisonment or more. Sentences shouldtake into account the severity of an individual’sinvolvement in trafficking, imposed sentencesfor other grave crimes, and the judiciary’s rightto hand down punishments consistent withthat country’s laws. This principle of seekingadequate imposed prison sentences anddiscouraging suspended sentences for convictedtrafficking offenders was explicitly added to theTVPA’s minimum standards through the TVPRAof 2008. Convictions obtained under othercriminal laws and statutes can be counted asanti-trafficking if the government verifies that“My advice to parents is that they should beware of peoplewho come promising to do one thing or the other for theirchildren. They will only subject the children to hard labor,child labor and sometimes push them into brothels toprostitute. This is what we see everyday.”Carol Ndaguba, former executive secretary of the National Agency for theProhibition of Traffic in Persons and other Related Matters (NAPTIP), Nigeria.the offenses involve human trafficking.Protecting Victims AdequatelyThe TVPA minimum standards’ criterion onvictim protection reads:27

INTRODUCTIONBurmA-MALAYSIAWhen Mya, 59, and her husband feared for theirlives in Burma, they fled and took refuge inMalaysia. One night, when her husband was atwork, Malaysian officials raided Mya’s home andtook her to a local police station. For five days,groups of Chinese and Malay officers beat herviolently, deprived her of food, and demanded toknow where her husband was. A judge sentencedMya to five months in prison for entering Malaysiaillegally. Mya endured abusive conditions in bothprison and immigration detention camps beforeshe and other refugees were deported and soldto a Burmese man along the way. Those whocould not repay the trafficker were sold to fishtrawlers, into prostitution, or to be maids.Trafficking and Extortion ofBurmese Migrants in Malaysiaand Southern ThailandA report to theSenate Foreign RelationsCommittee“Whether the government of thecountry protects victims of severeforms of trafficking in persons andencourages their assistance in theinvestigation and prosecution of suchtrafficking, including provisions for legalalternatives to their removal to countriesin which they would face retributionor hardship, and ensures that victimsare not inappropriately incarcerated,fined, or otherwise penalized solelyfor unlawful acts as a direct resultof being trafficked, including byproviding training to law enforcementand immigration officials regardingthe identification and treatment oftrafficking victims using approaches thatfocus on the needs of the victims.”Every country narrative of the TIP Reportspecifically addresses these elements. Inaddition, the Department of State has decidedto implement this criterion with the followingguidelines:In evaluating whether a country fully satisfiesthis part of the minimum standards on victimprotection, the Department of State considersthe following to be critical factors:1) Proactive identification: Victims shouldnot be expected to identify themselves.They typically are afraid of coming forwardand fear authorities will consider themcriminals, irregular migrants, or disposablepeople. Formal screening procedures shouldgo beyond checking a person’s papers. Someform of systematic procedure should be inplace to guide law enforcement and otherNur Mohammed, a member of the Rohingya Muslim minoritygroup from Burma, said he was forced to work for the Burmesearmy, after being detained and tortured without charge. Whenhe fled the country, he said he was exploited by Bangladeshihuman traffickers, beaten by Thai officials, and then forced outto sea in an overcrowded boat that nearly sank off Indonesia’scoast. In January 2009, Thai authorities detained a boat filledwith Rohingya migrants, many of whom had lacerations andburns they said were inflicted by Burmese soldiers.28

Tr afficking of Burmese Refugees inSoutheast AsiaArun participated in the pro-democracy demonstrations 20 years ago in Burma as a university student. Identifiedand hunted by Burmese authorities, he fled to a neighboring country. There, the UN High Commissioner for Refugeesissued refugee identity cards to Arun and his wife. A group of government-organized anti-migrant volunteers foundthe couple during a search for illegal immigrants; they destroyed their identity cards and sent them to a detentioncenter. Several days later, in the early morning hours, immigration officials transported them by boat to the country’sinternational border. Without the money to buy their freedom, immigration officials sold them each for $200 totrafficking rings, which sent Arun to work on a fishing vessel and his wife to a brothel.INTRODUCTIONPersecution by the Burmese regime and bleak economic opportunities have led thousands of Burmese politicaldissidents and ethnic minorities to flee the country during the past 20 years with hopes of a better life elsewhere inAsia. In Burma, they face abuses including forced labor, forced relocations, restricted movement, denial of educationand economic opportunities, and religious persecution. Persecuted groups are often desperate enough to escape byany means possible, making them highly vulnerable to human trafficking. The risk of being trafficked is heightened bytheir marginalized political status, lack of economic or educational opportunities, and severe poverty.Even those who are able to reach another country remain vulnerable to exploitation. Many Burmese attempt to settlein Malaysia, where there are widespread reports that immigration authorities have been involved in the traffickingof Burmese refugees from immigration detention centers to the Thai-Malaysian border. Immigration officials havesold refugees to Thai traffickers, who demand a ransom in exchange for freedom. The traffickers sell those who areunable to pay to brothels, fishing vessels, and plantations. The situation for these Burmese refugees has becomeso desperate that many have begun pooling their money in informal “insurance” programs to pay for their freedomif deported by Malaysian authorities and sold to traffickers. Many Burmese refugees flee the country by boat oroverland to Thailand, often compelled to hire smugglers, who also engage in trafficking.The Rohingya are a stateless people (see page 31) who are denied citizenship and land ownership rights in Burma,where they face religious and ethnic persecution from the Burmese military regime. Lacking documents or citizenshipstatus, the Rohingya may be vulnerable to trafficking, including situations of forced labor.governmental or government-supportedfront-line responders in the process ofvictim identification.2) Shelter and temporary care: A governmentshould ensure that victims have accessto primary health care, counseling, andshelter. Such provisions should allowvictims to recount their traffickingexperiences to trained social counselorsand law enforcement at a pace withminimal pressure. Shelter and assistancecan be provided in cooperation with NGOs.Part of the host government’s responsibilityincludes funding and referral to anyNGOs that provide shelter and assistance.To the best extent possible, traffickingvictims should not be held in immigrationdetention centers or other detentionfacilities.The Department of State gives positive considerationto two additional victim protection factors:a. Victim/witness protection, rights andconfidentiality: Governments should ensure29

INTRODUCTIONUzbekistan-IndiaNila and Miram, ages 20 and 22, traveled fromrural Uzbekistan to India to work for a fashiondesign company after hearing a friend’s storiesof lavish parties and unending wealth. But oncethey arrived, their passports were taken and theywere told they would not be designing clothingbut instead servicing clients at various luxuryhotels. Indian authorities eventually discoveredthe sex trafficking ring. The women returned toUzbekistan and received necessary victim careand rehabilitative assistance from a shelter.that victims are provided with legal andother assistance and that, consistent with itsdomestic law, proceedings are not prejudicialto victims’ rights, dignity, or psychologicalwell-being. Confidentiality and privacyshould be respected and protected to theextent possible under domestic law. Victimsshould be provided with information in alanguage they understand.b. Repatriation: Source and destinationcountries share responsibility inensuring the safe, humane, and, to theextent possible, voluntary repatriation/reintegration of victims. At a minimum,destination countries should contact acompetent governmental body, NGO, orinternational organization in the relevantsource country to ensure that traffickedpersons who return to their country oforigin are provided with assistance andsupport necessary to their well-being.Trafficking victims should not be subjectedto deportations or forced returns without30

Statelessness:A Key Vulnerability to Human TraffickingStatelessness affects groups of people in all regions of the world. The most vulnerable groups include individuals from theformer Soviet bloc, the Rohingya in Burma and throughout Asia, the Bidun in the Middle East, many of Europe’s Roma, theBhutanese in Nepal, children of Haitian migrants in the Caribbean, denationalized Kurds, some Palestinians, some ethnicgroups in Thailand and the Horn of Africa, and many others around the world, according to the NGO Refugees International.A stateless person is someone who, under national laws, does not have nationality – the legal bond between a governmentand an individual – in any country. Citizenship gives a person a legal identity, a nationality, and the ability to participate insociety with dignity. A stateless person often can’t go to school; get health care; register a birth, marriage, or death; work ortravel legally; own property; or open a bank account wherever they live. Although the Universal Declaration of Human Rightsrecognizes that everyone has the right to a nationality, an estimated 12 million people around the world are legally or defacto stateless today.INTRODUCTIONStateless populations are easy targets for forced labor, land confiscation, displacement, and other forms of persecution andexploitation. Without a nationality or legal citizenship, they may lack protection from police or access to systems of justice.In their desperate struggle for survival, stateless people often turn to human smugglers and traffickers to help them escapediscrimination or government persecution. They become victims again and again as the problems of statelessness, refugeeissues, and trafficking intersect.Stateless people who are trafficked face particular vulnerabilities. They often lack identity or travel documents, puttingthem at risk of arrest when they travel—voluntarily or by force—outside of their communities. Without documents orcitizenship status, stateless trafficking victims have little protection from their country of habitual residence. They may findit impossible to return, while at the same time having no legal status in their new country. Repatriation is problematic forstateless people regardless of whether they were trafficked or not.Sometimes human trafficking results in statelessness, as in the case of Vietnamese women trafficked as “mail-order brides”to Korea, Taiwan, People’s Republic of China, and other places. Thousands of Vietnamese women marry foreigners eachyear, with 86 percent of such marriages contracted for economic reasons, according to the Viet Nam Women’s Unionof Ho Chi Minh City. The process of naturalizing in their husband’s country often requires the women to renounce theirVietnamese citizenship. For those who are trafficked under the false pretense of marriage, the naturalization process isnever completed and they become stateless, often passing their predicament on to their children. The Government ofVietnam is considering new nationality laws that would help prevent this problem by allowing dual citizenship.Other measures to prevent and resolve situations of statelessness include birth registration campaigns and more efficient,transparent, and accessible avenues for acquiring legal residency or citizenship. Organizations working with traffickingvictims can help by creating awareness, identifying stateless individuals, and assisting with procedures to acquirenationality. For countries or regions that share cross-border populations, harmonized approaches to documentation andcivil registration can be key efforts to preventing statelessness and human trafficking.safeguards or other measures to reducethe risk of hardship, retribution, or retrafficking.Prevention: Spotlight onAddressing DemandHuman trafficking is a dehumanizing crime thatreduces people to commodities. On the supplyside, criminal networks, corruption, lack ofeducation, poverty, and misinformation aboutemployment opportunities and the degradingnature of the promised work make peoplevulnerable to the lures of trafficking. This is trueof both sex trafficking and forced labor. Themovement to end human trafficking includessignificant efforts to address these factors that“push” victims into being trafficked, but it alsorecognizes a “pull” factor as part of the cause. Avoracious demand fuels the dark trade in humanbeings.Unscrupulous employers create demand forforced labor when they seek to increase profitsat the expense of vulnerable workers throughforce, fraud, or coercion. One key to addressing31

INTRODUCTIONsuch demand is raising awareness about theexistence of forced labor in the production ofgoods. Many consumers and businesses wouldbe troubled to know that their purchases—clothes, jewelry, and even food—are producedby individuals, including children, who areforced into slave-like conditions.In the global marketplace for goods, ensuringthat complex supply chains are untainted byforced labor is a challenge for both businessesand consumers. But denying access to foreignmarkets for products made with forced laborwill reduce the incentive to exploit forcedlabor and encourage ethical business behavior.“The severe downturn in the world economy will pushmore migrants into the hands of people traffickersas they seek better lives abroad. There has been asignificant shift since 2003 in the circumstances drivingpeople smuggling and trafficking within our region.”Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith at a gathering of ministers and highlevelofficials from more than 60 countries, mostly from the Asia-Pacific region.Increased information on export products andproduction chains—drawn from a variety ofsources, including other governments—makessuch efforts more effective.Any successful effort to combat humantrafficking must confront not only the supplyof trafficked humans, but also the demandfor forced labor and commercial sex that fuelsit. Partnerships between governments andprivate businesses that purchase products madewith low-skilled labor are one commendableway to address potential demand for forcedlabor. Efforts by some governments to arrest,prosecute, and punish adults who seek to exploitchildren in the commercial sexual trade is oneform of addressing demand for commercial sexacts.FINANCIAL CRISIS ANDHUMAN TRAFFICKINGRising Unemployment Leads toGreater Trafficking VulnerabilitiesNumerous international organizations havewarned of the trafficking consequences of theongoing global financial crisis. In its January2009 global employment report, the ILO saidthe economic crisis is causing dramatic increases32

in the numbers of unemployed, working poor,and those in vulnerable employment. If thecrisis continues, more than 200 million workers,mostly in developing economies, could bepushed into extreme poverty, according to thereport.In Asia alone, the ILO predicted a worst-casescenario of 113 million unemployed in 2009.And money sent home from abroad will alsodrop. Remittances from the region’s migrantworkers slowed in late 2008, and the WorldBank expects the decline to continue throughout2009. In a March 2009 report, the World Bankrevised its previous forecast on declining migrantworker remittance flows to a more negative 5 to8 percent decline for 2009; this follows an 8.8percent growth in remittances (to $305 billion)in 2008.The forced labor implications of the financialcrisis are particularly stark for Asia, a regionidentified with an existing high level of jobinsecurity. Seventy percent of unemploymentin South and Southeast Asia is in the informalsector, according to the Organization forEconomic Cooperation and Development(OECD). The region also has a high prevalence ofexisting forced labor; it is home to 77 percent ofthe world’s forced labor victims, according to theILO.The ILO’s May 2009 global report on forcedlabor found that migrant workers around theworld lose more than $20 billion through the“cost of coercion” (the Report’s title)—and thiscost of coercion could likely be exacerbatedas the crisis continues and traffickers andexploitative employers prey on an expandingpool of more vulnerable and unprotectedworkers in this region. Among the causes is therecession in the United States, which accounts forsignificant sums of workers’ money sent to EastAsia, the Pacific, and South Asia.Other regions are also feeling the hit.According to a Gallup report, remittancesrepresented more than 27 percent of KyrgyzRepublic’s gross domestic product in 2006. Buta sharp drop in those funds resulting from theeconomic slowdown, combined with a surge infood prices and a stressed agricultural sector,INTRODUCTIONMigrant workers flood Shanghai Train Station in China. The world’s third-largest economy is feeling the pressure of the global financialcrisis. Unemployment is soaring as are concerns of greater labor exploitation and forced labor of those still employed.33

INTRODUCTION“We need to find ways to attack the problem at its core—by eradicating demand. Yes, it’s crucial to help rescuevictims of trafficking. However, unless we deal with themarket, trafficking will continue to grow. It’s more likelythat we can curb the demand for commercial sex andlabor before we solve the social inequities that contributeto the supply.”Swanee Hunt, president of Hunt Alternatives Fund,which is focusing on fighting the demand for sex trafficking.led the UN World Food Program to provideemergency food aid in November for the firsttime in recent years.Telephone poles covered in advertisements for overseaswork are common in Chisinau, Moldova.Cambodia-ThailandIn Cambodia, Phirun worked in the fields growingrice and vegetables. Promised higher wages forfactory work in Thailand, Phirun and other menpaid a recruiter to smuggle them across theborder. But once in Thailand, the recruiter tooktheir passports and locked them in a room. Hethen sold them to the owner of a fishing boat,on which the men worked all day and nightslicing and gutting fish and repairing torn nets.They were given little food or fresh water, andthey rarely saw land. Phirun was beaten nearlyunconscious and watched the crew beat andshoot other workers and throw their bodies intothe sea. Phirun endured this life at sea for twoyears before he persuaded his traffickers torelease him.More Supply forHuman TraffickingThis growing poverty is making more peoplevulnerable to both labor and sex trafficking,boosting the supply side of human traffickingall over the world. For example, the currenteconomic crisis has led to revenue losses incountries like Mongolia due to crashing copperprices and high inflation and has reduced realincomes significantly, slowing investment,and most probably costing jobs. The resultingpressure on the public is likely to cause moreyoung women to seek work away from home orabroad and a corresponding increase in the riskof trafficking.In Eastern Europe, international organizationsand local authorities have already reporteda rise in victims of labor exploitation. Theglobal economic downturn is exacerbating thistrend. In Belarus, more than 800,000 citizensare believed to be “missing,” presumed to beworking—voluntarily or otherwise—in Russia.Workers earning low wages or losing theirjobs are succumbing to offers for illegal workabroad. In Moldova, Europe’s poorest country,one-quarter of the population has migrated. InUkraine, officials reported 53 criminal cases oflabor exploitation in 2008, up from 23 cases in2007 and just three in 2006—while the ILO’sMay 2009 report on global forced labor trends34

notes that the number of identified victims offorced labor in Ukraine now surpasses that ofsex trafficking victims.Warning of the dangers of the ongoingeconomic crisis, the head of the ILO’s programagainst forced labor in May 2009 noted that“vulnerable workers—particularly migrants,including young women and even children—aremore exposed to forced labour, because underconditions of hardship they will be taking morerisks than before.”While most of the world’s labor pool isalready feeling the ill effects of the crisis,there are a few notable exceptions in whichsuppliers of transnational labor are benefitingtemporarily from the crisis. Bangladesh andNepal, both low on the wage and protectionscale, appear to have benefited somewhat – atleast initially – from the readjustments to theglobal labor flows brought about by the crisis.In the first two months of 2009, both Nepaland Bangladesh reported significant increasesSchool children pick cotton in rural Uzbekistan. In Central Asia,evidence suggests that many school children are compelledby local authorities to pick cotton every fall in order to meetproduction quotas set by national governments.Detaining AdultVictims in Shelters:A Bad PracticeGovernments often first encounter a victim orconfirm the victim status of a person through theinitial detention or even formal arrest of that person.Whether through raids on a brothel suspected ofexploiting trafficking victims or through the detentionof undocumented aliens, law enforcement actions areoften the precursor to identifying trafficking victims.Once positively identified, however, law enforcementauthorities should remove victims as quickly aspossible from detention centers or jails and refer themto appropriate care facilities where they can receivecounseling, shelter, medical care, and legal aid. Thisshould apply to all victims, regardless of nationalityand regardless of immigration status.For adult victims, the government should obtain theirinformed consent before committing them to more thana temporary stay in a shelter facility. Victims shouldbe provided with available options. For child victimsof trafficking, the government should designate anappropriate authority with responsibility for the care,custody, and best interests of the child. The state maytake temporary or longer-term custody while the childis in a temporary shelter or with an appropriate careprovider.According to an August 2008 paper published by theAustralian Agency for International Development,governments often neglect to obtain the full andinformed consent of adult trafficking victims whenplacing them in a government-run or governmentfundedshelter. This detention can impede a victim’srehabilitation as the victim feels confined anddenied basic freedoms—the hallmark of traffickingexperiences. Lengthy detention without the ability towork and earn income can hurt a victim and a victim’sfamily economically. As noted in a path-breakingrecent report by the NEXUS Institute on victims oftrafficking who reject assistance, adult victims must begiven the option of receiving assistance on their ownterms—without physical restraint or confinement—or ofrejecting all assistance from the state or others. At thecore of human trafficking is the loss of basic freedoms;any effective remedy for victims must include arestoration of all such freedoms.INTRODUCTION35

INTRODUCTIONGender Imbalance in Human Trafficking“The root causes of migration and trafficking greatly overlap. The lack ofrights afforded to women serves as the primary causative factor at the root ofboth women’s migrations and trafficking in women...By failure to protect andpromote women’s civil, political, economic and social rights, governments createsituations in which trafficking flourishes.”Radhika Coomaraswamy, UN Special Rapporteur on Violence Against WomenAccording to the ILO, the majority of people trafficked for sexual exploitation or subjected to forced labor are female.According to researchers, both the supply and demand sides of the trade in human beings are fed by “gendered”vulnerabilities to trafficking. These vulnerabilities are the result of political, economic, and development processes thatmay leave some women socially and economically dependent on men. If that support from men becomes limited orwithdrawn, women become dangerously susceptible to abuse. They often have no individual protection or recognitionunder the law, inadequate access to healthcare and education, poor employment prospects, little opportunity to ownproperty, or high levels of social isolation. All this makes some women easy targets for harassment, violence, andhuman trafficking.Research links the disproportionate demand for female trafficking victims to the growth of certain “feminized”economic sectors (commercial sex, the “bride trade,” domestic service) and other sectors characterized by low wages,hazardous conditions, and an absence of collective bargaining mechanisms. Exploitative employers prefer to usetrafficked women—traditionally seen as submissive, cheap, and pliable—for simple and repetitive tasks in agriculture,food processing, labor-intensive manufacturing, and domestic servitude.In countries where women’s economic status has improved, significantly fewer local women participate in commercialsex. Traffickers bring in more female victims to address the demand and also take advantage of women who migratevoluntarily to work in any industry. As commercial sex is illegal in most countries, traffickers use the resulting illegalstatus of migrant women that have been trafficked into commercial sex to threaten or coerce them against leaving.Gendered vulnerabilities fostered by social and institutional weaknesses in some societies—discriminatory laws andpractices that tie a woman’s legal recognition, property rights, and economic opportunities to someone else—makewomen more likely than men to become trafficking victims. A woman who exists only through a male guardian whocontrols her income, identification, citizenship, and physical well-being is more susceptible to becoming a traffickingvictim.In many cultures, new widows must adhere to strict mourning practices, such as a month of isolation, or becomeoutcasts. Despite official inheritance laws, during her isolation the relatives of a deceased man may confiscate theman’s property from his widow and children. In many cases, without her husband’s permission the destitute widowmay not withdraw money from her bank account, register her husband’s death or their child’s birth, receive a passport,or take a job. Without a birth certificate, she cannot enroll her child in public school or see the doctor at the local clinic.Desperate to feed her child, the widow becomes easy prey for human traffickers.36

in the flows of workers leaving for work abroadand remittances coming back to bolster theirrespective economies; remittances in bothcountries account for more than 15 percent ofgross domestic product. The March 2009 WorldBank report acknowledged a surge in remittanceflows to South Asia in 2008, but estimates asharp slowdown in 2009.INTRODUCTIONMore Demand forHuman TraffickingThe global economic crisis is also boostingthe demand side of human trafficking. TheUN’s Office on Drugs and Crime published itssecond global trends in trafficking in persons inFebruary 2009. UN officials said the worldwiderise in this form of modern-day slavery is aresult of a growing demand for cheap goods andservices. They expect the impact of the crisisto push more business underground to avoidtaxes and unionized labor. And they anticipateincreasing use of forced, cheap, and childlabor by multinational companies strapped byfinancial struggles.A rise in protests among migrant workers is asign that the exploitation of workers is alreadyreaching new heights. Employers facing acredit crunch are ceasing payments or coercingworkers to accept less agreeable conditions.Chinese workers in some parts of Europehave experienced labor exploitation and maybe vulnerable to forced labor as the crisis isprolonged. This has prompted an unprecedentedofficial warning from the Chinese governmentin April 2009 that workers should avoidmigrating to Europe because of the increasingthreat of nonpayment or late payment andthe potential for severe exploitation in theeconomic downturn. And press in the UnitedArab Emirates reported a 111 percent rise incomplaints of nonpayment of wages amongforeign workers in late 2008, compared with thesame period in 2007.GuineaAfter her mother and brother died, Jeannette’sfather gave her away at age 8 to work as adomestic servant. Jeannette did housework for18 hours a day, but she was never paid. She slepton the verandah and ate leftovers. Sometimes,she was denied food altogether. Jeannette wasbeaten frequently, particularly when she triedto rest. When his wife left the house, the maleguardian raped Jeannette. She was not allowedto leave, but even if she was, she wouldn’t knowwhere to go. She didn’t know if her father wasstill alive. Jeannette later received assistance froma local NGO.A 40-year-old man sits with his 11-year-old child bride in Afghanistan.In March 2009, Afghanistan passed a controversial Shia family lawthat condones child marriage, which has been documented as asignificant contributing factor to sex trafficking in Afghanistan.37

INTRODUCTIONIndonesia-GULFKeni binti Carda, 28, left Indonesia to work asa domestic worker in a Gulf state. The womanwho employed Keni allegedly burned herrepeatedly with an iron, forced her to ingestfeces, abused her psychologically, and appliedhousehold cleaners to Keni’s open wounds. Shepoked Keni’s tongue with a knife, pried her teethloose and forced them down her throat, beather own children when they tried to protest, andthreatened to kill Keni if she tried to escape.Keni’s employer made her work extremely longhours every day, locked her inside the house,and sent Keni back to Indonesia before shecould seek help from the authorities. She hasimpaired vision in one eye, and her flesh is fusedtogether in some places where her employerallegedly burned her.International Womanof CourageHadizatou Mani, NigerHadizatou Mani was born into slavery. When she was 12, she was sold for$500. Her new owner, a man in his 60s, sent her to work long hours in thefield, beat her, raped her, and made her bear him three children.When Niger criminalized slavery in 2003, Ms. Mani’s owner kept thenews from her and tried to convince village authorities that she was nota slave but one of his wives. When Ms. Mani finally won her “certificateof liberation” in 2005 and married a man of her choice, her former mastercharged her with bigamy. Ms. Mani served two months of a six-monthprison sentence.“Slavery proved as injurious to [my mistress] as itdid to me. When I went there, she was a pious,warm, and tender-hearted woman. There wasno sorrow or suffering for which she had not atear. She had bread for the hungry, clothes for thenaked, and comfort for every mourner that camewithin her reach. Slavery soon proved its abilityto divest her of these heavenly qualities. Under itsinfluence, the tender heart became stone, and thelamblike disposition gave way to one of tiger-likefierceness.”Frederick Douglass, describing his experienceenslaved in a Baltimore household. From his autobiographyNarrative of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave (1845).Ms. Mani worked with the local NGO Timidria and the British NGOAnti-Slavery International to bring a case to the Court of Justice of theEconomic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), charging that theGovernment of Niger had not successfully protected her rights under itsanti-slavery laws.“It was very difficult to challenge my former master and to speak out whenpeople see you as nothing more than a slave,” Ms. Mani said in commentspublished by Anti-Slavery International. “But I knew that this was the onlyway to protect my child from suffering the same fate as myself. Nobodydeserves to be enslaved. We are all equal and deserve to be treated thesame…no woman should suffer the way I did.”Despite direct and indirect pressure to drop her suit, Ms. Mani pressedforward with her case. On October 27, 2008, ECOWAS condemned Ms.Mani’s enslavement, ruled that the Government of Niger had not protectedher rights, and ordered it to pay Ms. Mani the equivalent of $19,800. Toits credit, and as an indication of a desire to put slavery in the past, theGovernment of Niger accepted the verdict and paid the fine in March 2009.Human rights laws are useless if not enforced. Timidria and other NigerienNGOs had suggested before this verdict that Niger’s anti-slavery laws werea “charm offensive” and were “passed for Westerners.” Ms. Mani achieveda victory not only for herself, but for the people still enslaved in Niger andelsewhere in West Africa. Her bravery is a ray of hope to them. And theECOWAS court decision is a step forward for the region, sending a strongmessage to the governments of Niger and other countries that anti-slaverylaws must be more than words on paper.Ms. Mani was among the recipients of the U.S. Secretary of State’s 2009Award for International Women of Courage.38

Legal Assistance for Trafficking VictimsHelping trafficking victims access legal avenues to justice, restitution, and other compensation for their sufferingis a key element of any effective victim protection strategy. It is particularly crucial in addressing the needs offoreign victims who are not familiar with laws, customs, rights, and procedures in the country to which they weretrafficked.The laws and legal process in most countries are not easily accessed or understood by people who do not havelegal training. Rescued human trafficking victims may fear possible criminal charges or deportation, retaliationby traffickers if they give information to police, or attacks against family members. At the same time, they needservices such as medical care, food, clothing, and safe housing. Access to legal advice and information can helpthem through the stress and confusion in the weeks and months following their rescue.INTRODUCTIONLegal assistance helps trafficking victims know their rights, obtain key information, and understand the optionsthat are available to them.Legal systems vary throughout the world and the needs of trafficking victims must be considered individually.NGOs that assist and shelter trafficking victims should assist victims with the following legal issues:• Legal rights. Victims should know their legal rights, status, and the legal process in which proceedings will takeplace. They should know how to access services or benefits that may be available to them, such as interpretation,medical care, housing, education, etc.• Immigration law and immigration proceedings. Victims trafficked across a border may not have proper documentationand may need assistance in obtaining identity documents. Victims may need immigration relief, if available,after rescue or during an extended stay in the destination country.• Criminal law. Victims should not be punished for unlawful acts committed as a direct result of being trafficked.But they may need legal assistance if they are arrested or detained in the course of rescue. Victims should alsohave access to legal advice regarding criminal proceedings related to their case and available options regardinggiving evidence and testimony. If possible, an attorney should accompany a victim to legal proceedings related tothe victim’s case.• Civil law. Victims should know of available avenues for restitution or compensation through a civil claim for damagesagainst perpetrators or others responsible.• Child victims. Trafficking victims under 18 should have access to legal representation related to custody, care,and juvenile law.In these and other countries, foreign workersalso fear large-scale layoffs, which could increasethe number of illegal foreign workers in the hostcountries. And loss of legal status makes migrantworkers vulnerable to greater exploitation,including forced labor.Calling such exploitation “the anti-thesisof development,” UN Secretary-General BanKi-moon stated at a meeting in the Philippines:“Only by safeguarding the rights of migrants,and ensuring that migrants are treated withdignity and respect due any human being,can we create the conditions which migrationcan contribute to development. In this time offinancial hardships, we all need to be especiallyvigilant.”The crisis is also affecting internal labormarkets. In China, approximately 20 million ofthe 130 million migrant workers in the countryhad already returned home by February 2009due to lack of work, according to official statisticsbased on a survey conducted by the Ministry ofAgriculture. In addition, the ILO estimates 9,000factory closures before spring and thousands39

INTRODUCTIONSoutheastEuropeMany victims don’t know where to go for helpwhen they escape from their traffickers or afterthey return home. A male victim of forced laborexplains: “I knew nothing about the assistanceavailable for trafficking victims. I didn’t knowwho to address in the destination country incase I needed help. I thought I could go only tothe police. There I didn’t have enough courageto go to the police because the [traffickers]used to say that they bought the police. Theythreatened me with death in case I went to thepolice. I was afraid.”Afghan children, such as these two boys selling toilet paper at amarket in Kabul, are being recruited by extremist groups and sexuallyexploited, according to UNICEF officials.more after. In the Philippines, economists andlabor officials predict a loss of up to 800,000jobs in 2009.A Fraying NetAs more people become vulnerable totrafficking, fewer are likely to find local sourcesof assistance. Facing thin “safety nets” providedby their governments or the governments oflabor-demand countries even in the best oftimes, workers now seem less likely to findservices or legal recourse available to themwhen they face forced labor.The tough times are also affecting the workof anti-trafficking NGOs, which often providecrucial services in the absence of adequategovernment or private-sector programs. Donorsare tightening their belts, and organizations arefinding it difficult to continue their operations.40

Domestic Violence andHuman Trafficking“Women still comprise the majority of theworld’s poor, unfed, and unschooled. Theyare still subjected to rape as a tactic of warand exploited by traffickers globally in abillion dollar criminal business.”Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton, March 7, 2009The low status of women in some societies, insufficient access toeducation, limitations on legal rights, and other forms of discriminationare recognized as “push factors” that combine with other situationalproblems such as conflict, civil instability, or an economic crisis toprompt young women to leave their communities. In many communitiesand cultures, violence against women is all too common, and lawsintended to protect women are inadequate or not enforced. In additionto physical attacks and injuries, women who are victims of spouse orintimate partner abuse are often subjected by the abuser to constantberating, severe psychological abuse, and excessive levels of controlover nearly every aspect of daily life. A history of domestic violence(spouse or intimate partner abuse) represents an added risk factor thatmay cause a victim to feel an urgent need to escape and leave her homeand community to survive – and thus her vulnerability to exploitation isheightened.Research has shown a clear link between sex trafficking and bothpre-trafficking domestic violence and trafficking-related genderbasedviolence. Cathy Zimmerman, a noted authority on victim trauma,identified domestic and sexual violence as a key “push” factor thatmakes a woman vulnerable to trafficking. Almost 70 percent of adultfemale trafficking victims using services at an assistance program inLondon reported having experienced violence before being exploited inthe destination setting.Though the link between domestic violence and sex trafficking is welldocumented,the responses to each crime must be distinct. Victims ofdomestic violence and victims of sex trafficking suffer different traumasand require different therapies. Zimmerman’s research found that victimsof sex trafficking often suffer symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorderthat take up to 90 days to alleviate; this is not as prevalent in victimsof domestic violence. Sometimes there is an added cultural obstacleto caring for both types of victims in the same facility: in some sociallyconservative populations, victims of domestic violence resent theperceived stigma of prostitution attached to the victims of sex traffickingwith whom they are cohabitating.Like human trafficking, global recognition of domestic violence as a crimeis growing. Services for victims are insufficient but increasing in mostcountries. In countries where resources are limited programs establishedto assist victims of domestic violence have been tapped in emergenciesto shelter victims of human trafficking. But assisting victims of these twocrimes in one setting is very challenging. It should only be attemptedwhen the facility can provide a safe and supportive environment andwhen staff are properly trained to understand the safety, legal, medical,mental health, social, and cultural needs of the victims.Nigeria-Ghana-ItalyAnita was trafficked from Nigeria through Ghana toItaly, where she was forced to have sex with morethan 25 men a day. If she resisted, her “madam”would beat her with a belt, starve her, and threatento deport her. Anita would rotate through Turin,Rome, and Milan, enduring mental torture andphysical abuse at each base. Anita’s traffickersraped her several times, and she underwentseveral crude abortions. Anita survived, but someof her friends died in the ordeal.INTRODUCTION41

COMMENDABLE INITIATIVESCOMMENDABLE INITIATIVESAROUND THE WORLDUzbekistan: Bringing Victims HomeThe United Arab Emirates (UAE) is a keydestination for Uzbek women and girls traffickedfor sexual exploitation. Many victims violatevisa and immigration requirements and endup incarcerated and too afraid to acknowledgetheir nationality. Officials from the Uzbek NGOIstiqbolli Avlod (Future Generations) makemultiple trips to the UAE every year to work withlocal authorities and identify Uzbek victims indetention centers. They reach out to victims intheir native languages (Uzbek or Russian) and,with the support of the Uzbek government, helpthem return home quickly and without legalconsequences. While this has placed more of aburden on the only two shelters in Uzbekistan,it has also resulted in more victims receivingassistance. The innovative use of source countrycultural and language expertise to identify andreach out to victims in the destination country hasproven successful. In September 2008, IstiqbolliAvlod reported that there were 41 women, manyof whom were trafficking victims, incarceratedin Emerati jails. By February 2009, a majority ofthose women had been repatriated to Uzbekistan.Thailand: Coordinating Governmentand NGO Efforts Against TraffickingIn Northern Thailand, TRAFCORD, the Anti-Trafficking Coordination Center, facilitatescollaboration among government and nongovernmentagencies working to combat humantrafficking, particularly cases involving womenand children. TRAFCORD is an NGO that takes amultidisciplinary approach, in which employeeswork with police, social workers, prosecutors,and other government and NGO officials torescue, rehabilitate, and repatriate child victims ofsexual exploitation. By coordinating governmentand private agencies prior to, during, and afterraids on suspected brothels, TRAFCORD helpsensure that victims receive better treatment andaccess to services and that criminal cases have ahigher chance of being prosecuted. TRAFCORD’swork helped inform portions of Thailand’s new,comprehensive anti-trafficking law in June 2008,and the organization has been a catalyst in theimplementation of updated procedures for dealingwith human trafficking cases. Government andnon-government agencies throughout Thailandhave adopted TRAFCORD’s multidisciplinary teamapproach, and international agencies have praisedit as among the most effective ways to fight childprostitution and trafficking crimes.UK: A Symbol for InternationalAwarenessThe UK government’s Blue Blindfold campaign’smessage is that human trafficking can happen inany town, community, or workplace. Its materialsare free and available for use by any governmentor organization wanting to raise awareness.The campaign has four key audiences: victimsthemselves, law enforcement, the general public,and key professionals such as health and socialservice providers, who could help identify victimsat an earlier stage. The UK government realizesthat symbols are very powerful and are recognizedworldwide immediately without the need forwords. The goal of the campaign is to workmultilaterally with other countries to establishan international symbol for human traffickingand promote a unified campaign that reachesacross borders. The hope is that the blindfoldsymbol with a trusted phone number will becomeidentifiable in source, transit, and destinationcountries and will help break the controltraffickers have over victims.Jordan: Victim Assistance FundJordan’s Ministry of Labor has established theHumanitarian and Legal Assistance Fund to42

provide financial support to victims of traffickingin Qualifying Industrial Zone factories andforced labor. Employers have deposited some$336,000 into the fund, paying $60 peremployee to legalize workers with expiredresidency or work permits during a March toJuly 2008 amnesty period. The fund provideshumanitarian assistance such as food, housing,and repatriation tickets, as well as legal fees fortrafficking victims filing criminal or libel casesagainst their employers. In one example, when38 Bangladeshi migrant workers were strandedafter their factory closed, the fund paid for theirfood, accomodation, and repatriation. The fundis a creative way to register workers, punishemployers for not renewing residency permits,and establish an assistance mechanism fortrafficking victims and other workers in distress.Indonesia: Communities Take aStand Against TraffickingLocal task forces have had a tremendouseffect in combating trafficking of girls in oneof Indonesia’s most vulnerable communities.When legislation and government efforts tocombat human trafficking in the impoverishedNorth Sulawesi region were handicapped by alack of understanding among law enforcement,the province began training task forces at thedistrict level. In one district, the community wasvery concerned about the high number of girlsbeing trafficked, but there was no policy or planof action to combat the crime. The local taskforce mobilized, and by 2008 dozens of localagencies and NGOs were working together tohelp vulnerable families start businesses, informfarmers about trafficking, and assist in lawenforcement. Their efforts succeeded in drivingtraffickers away from their villages and protectedhundreds of girls from trafficking for sexualexploitation. Other districts in the region arefollowing the example. The local task force in theprovincial capital of Manado has created strongcooperation among government agencies, NGOs,community members, and law enforcement.As a result, traffickers largely avoid Manadoas a transit point. Working with families andlocal NGOs, Manado police travel frequently toPapua to bring back victims who continue to betrafficked to bars in the rich mining areas there.In Memoriam:Norma HotalingAfter overcoming sexual exploitation and drugaddictions, Norma Hotaling devoted her life to endingthe commercial sex trade in the United States. While sheleft behind a life of despair, homelessness, addiction,and prostitution, she used her experiences to educateothers about the harms of sex trade. She became apassionate leader and was often called on to speak atconferences, counsel public policy experts, and testifybefore the U.S. Congress and state legislatures. Shealso addressed foreign audiences as a Department ofState-funded speaker.Ms. Hotaling co-founded the NGO Standing AgainstGlobal Exploitation (SAGE) in 1992 to provide resources,advocacy, and counseling for sexually exploited menand women. Her work led to a 2004 California law thatallows prosecutors to charge pimps and johns with childabuse if they prostitute a minor.In 1996, Ms. Hotaling helped the San Francisco DistrictAttorney’s Office create the First Offender ProstitutionProgram, a unique class for men caught solicitingprostitutes. The initiative allows first offenders to havetheir charges dropped if they pay a $1,000 fine andparticipate in a six-hour course taught by sex traffickingexperts, neighborhood activists, and doctors whodiscuss the downsides of prostitution. A 2008 U.S.Department of Justice study lauded the program,concluding that participants were 30 percent less likelythan other men to be rearrested for soliciting prostitutes.The program is now replicated in 40 cities.Ms. Hotaling was committed to demystifying anddebunking the romantic notion of prostitution andgetting people to understand that the practice treatswomen and girls as commodities. She worked to reframeprostitution as form of violence against women ratherthan a job. In 2008, while battling pancreatic cancer, Ms.Hotaling led a successful opposition to legislation thatwould have decriminalized prostitution in San Francisco.In a 1997 interview, Ms. Hotaling described her life’swork for The San Francisco Chronicle:“It’s like caring for orchids. They die so easily. But youtake the dead-looking stem to someone who knowsorchids and that person can look at the root and say,‘Look! There’s still a little bit of life here.’”Ms. Hotaling died in her San Francisco home inDecember. She was 57.IN MEMORIAM43

HEROES ACTING TO END MODERN-DAY SLAVERY2009 TIP REPORT HEROESAlbaniaVera Lesko was oneof the first people inAlbania to recognizethe problem of humantrafficking. Since 1997,she has risked danger toherself and her familyto protect trafficking victims and prevent youngwomen from falling prey to traffickers. In 2001,Ms. Lesko’s organization, The Hearth Psycho-Social Center, opened the first shelter in thecountry for trafficked Albanian women and girls.Along with a safe place to stay, the shelter offersreturned victims legal and medical counseling,educational training, employment assistance,and family mediation services. As a result ofher work, Ms. Lesko has been beaten in publicseveral times and felt it necessary to send herdaughter to live with relatives in Italy becauseof threats to her safety. Despite these regularattacks and her recent battle with breast cancer,Ms. Lesko continues her commitment to protectwomen and combat human trafficking.CanadaBenjamin Perrin is aleading anti-traffickingactivist in Canadaand founder of TheFuture Group, an NGOdedicated to combatinghuman trafficking andthe child sex trade around the world. Mr. Perrinhas advocated for the adoption of a Canadiannational action plan and has pushed forstronger enforcement and more effective victimservices. His 2006 report on Canada’s treatmentof victims led to the provision of temporaryresidence permits and medical assistance totrafficking victims. Mr. Perrin is the chair ofthe University of British Columbia’s humantrafficking working group. He has testified beforeParliament on trafficking issues and consultedon the development of the 2008 Rio de JaneiroPact against sexual exploitation of children. Hisinvestigations have identified a nationwide sextrafficking ring and dozens of cases in whichCanada has been a transit and destinationcountry. Mr. Perrin has several ongoingresearch projects that will provide Canada’s firstcomprehensive account of human traffickingand propose concrete policy recommendationsto increase the prosecution of traffickers and theprotection of victims.Costa RicaMariliana MoralesBerríos became apioneer in Costa Ricawhen she created theRahab Foundation in1997 to help traffickingvictims find a newlife with their families. She has succeeded inkeeping her programs running and expandingdespite limited resources. Ms. Morales, her staff,and their families have been threatened andattacked for trying to help women and childrenescape from their exploiters. But they continueundeterred, providing victims with spiritualattention, education, nutrition, psychologicalassistance, and vocational training. Rahab hasnow helped more than 3,000 people in theSan Jose area and many more in other areas.From 2006 to 2008, Ms. Morales and Rahabran a program focused on the tourist areain and around the resort town of Jaco. Thepioneer project directly served 347 nationaland foreign victims of trafficking for labor andsexual exploitation and their families. It alsotrained more than 5,000 government leaders,police, tourism workers, and youth in humantrafficking issues.44

GreeceMajor George Vanikiotis,a commander inthe Anti-TraffickingUnit of the AtticaPolice’s OrganizedCrime Division, isone of Greece’s mostknowledgeable anti-trafficking proponents.Major Vanikiotis provides training to policecadets, prosecutors, health professionals, laborinspectors, and NGOs throughout the country.He also leads anti-trafficking seminars at highschools and universities. Major Vanikiotis directsoperations for the Anti-Trafficking Unit, whichconcentrated on tackling several major urbantrafficking rings in 2008 and will focus on laborexploitation and international law enforcementcooperation in 2009.IndiaDr. Sunitha Krishnanestablished the NGOPrajwala in 1996after the evacuationof one of the oldestred-light districtsin Hyderabad. Dr.Krishnan, who survived sexual violence as ateenager, has rescued thousands of childrenfrom severely abusive conditions and restoredtheir childhoods. Prajwala now runs a successfulsecond-generation prevention program in 17transition centers for children of prostitutedwomen. The NGO’s strategy is to removewomen from brothels by giving their childreneducational and career opportunities. Dr.Krishnan and her staff train survivors incarpentry, welding, printing, masonry, andhousekeeping. Prajwala has used videos of victimstatements to advocate for better legal protectionof trafficking survivors, and it has created analliance of 30 citizen groups to replicate theorganization’s work in other Indian states.IndonesiaElly Anita is a victimturned-advocatewhofights for the freedomof Indonesian workerstrapped in the MiddleEast. In 2006, Ms. Anitaaccepted an offer towork as a secretary in Dubai. But she ended upin Kurdistan, Iraq, where she was expected towork as a waitress or hotel receptionist. Whenshe refused, the employment agent put a gunto her head, beat her, starved her, and kept herconfined to the employment agency. Near death,she still refused to be forced into a job otherthan secretary. When the office was empty, Ms.Anita used the Internet to contact a friend. Thefriend directed her to the Indonesian Embassy inAmman and Indonesian NGO Migrant Care. Shemanaged to escape Kurdistan at great risk withIOM assistance. Since returning to Indonesia,she has worked for Migrant Care and has helpedrescue six other women who were trafficked toIraq.JordanAida Abu Ras created in2003 the first NGO inJordan to tackle humantrafficking while workingfull time for the Swissorganization 1,000 PeaceWomen for the NobelPrize. Her NGO, Friends of Women Workers,provides legal counseling for migrant womenand develops radio and print media campaignsto raise awareness of conditions faced by manyforeign domestic workers. In one campaign,the organization sent more than 120,000 SMSmessages and 2 million e-mails to Jordanians onthe appropriate treatment of their workers. Ms.Abu Ras is now developing a training programfor foreign domestic workers and is working withthe Jordanian government to build capacity forenforcing regulations and assisting domesticHEROES ACTING TO END MODERN-DAY SLAVERY45

HEROES ACTING TO END MODERN-DAY SLAVERYworkers. While running her NGO, Ms. AbuRas has also worked full time since 2006 as aprogram manager at the Jordanian NationalCommission for Women, continuing heradvocacy for the rights of women and foreigndomestic workers.MalaysiaAlice Nah is a foundingmember of theMigration WorkingGroup, a network oflawyers, academics, andvolunteers focused oncaring for, protecting,and defending therights of refugees and migrant workers whoare especially vulnerable to becoming victimsof forced labor. Through the network, Ms.Nah urges law enforcement agencies toidentify and protect refugees and migrantworkers who become trafficking victims.She raises government and public awarenessthrough online articles describing the plightof trafficking victims, refugees, and migrantworkers. In January 2009, Ms. Nah wrote aboutthe trafficking of Burmese refugees along theMalaysia-Thailand border. Her article increasedlocal and international attention to the issue andraised public awareness within Malaysia.MozambiqueInacio SebastiaoMussanhane, aMozambican lawyer,was studying in SouthAfrica when he heardthat Mozambican girlswere being kept as sexslaves at an upscale brothel in Pretoria. In 2008,he met three girls who had fallen victim to apowerful organized network that lures younggirls from Mozambique for sexual exploitation.Pretending to be a client, Mr. Mussanhane wentto the brothel and gained the confidence of thegirls. Despite attempts by the criminal gang tobribe him, threaten his life, and kidnap him,Mr. Mussanhane began to work closely withthe South African police, a local traffickingshelter, the Mozambican embassy, and theSouth African Ministry of Justice. Police freedthe girls and arrested the network’s organizer.The case went to court in October 2008 and isongoing. Throughout the case, Mr. Mussanhanehas been educating the Mozambican and SouthAfrican governments, police, and courts on thenature of human trafficking. He continues torisk his life to protect the Mozambican girls,ensure the prosecution of the perpetrators, bringinternational attention to the issue, and disrupta profitable multinational criminal organization.Children wait in a police station after a raid by anti-child labor activists in New Delhi, India. More than 60 children were rescued fromseveral embroidery units forcing children to work long hours for paltry wages.46

GLOBAL LAW ENFORCEMENT DATAThe Trafficking Victims Reauthorization Act (TVPRA) of 2003 added to the original law a new requirement that foreigngovernments provide the Department of State with data on trafficking investigations, prosecutions, convictions, andsentences in order to be considered in full compliance with the TVPA’s minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking (Tier 1). The 2004 TIP Report collected this data for the first time. The 2007 TIP Report data showed forthe first time a breakout of the number of total prosecutions and convictions that related to labor trafficking, placedin parentheses.YEAR PROSECUTIONS CONVICTIONS NEW OR AMENDED LEGISLATION2003 7,992 2,815 242004 6,885 3,025 392005 6,178 4,379 402006 5,808 3,160 212007 5,682 (490) 3,427 (326) 282008 5,212 (312) 2,983 (104) 26The numbers in parentheses are those of labor trafficking prosecutions and convictions.GLOBAL LAW ENFORCEMENT DATAForced Labor Costs Consider able:A View from the ILOThe Trafficking in Persons Report in recent years has focused increased attention on labor forms of human trafficking. A newly releasedILO report on forced labor in the world – The Cost of Coercion (May 2009) – breaks new ground in assessing the economic impact offorced labor, including the impact of fraudulent recruitment of migrant workers. The report’s release is prescient, coming amidst aglobal financial crisis that affects a significant share of the world’s migrant work force and underscores the need for much strongergovernmental and business community responses to forced labor.Among the key conclusions of Cost of Coercion:• Key manifestations of the global forced labor problem continue to be: slavery and abduction for labor; agriculture-based forced laborin rural areas; compulsory work on public projects; bonded labor in South Asia; forced labor exacted by the military – with a specialemphasis on “Myanmar” (Burma); and forced labor related to labor migration – the “underside of globalization.”• Forced labor represents a challenge for virtually every country in the world and is increasingly penetrating supply chains of mainstreamcompanies in the formal economy.• Forced labor can be induced by a number of means, including psychological (non-physical) coercion; abuse of legal processes – suchas the threat of having a migrant detained and deported as an undocumented alien; threats of financial penalties, such as those linkedwith debts; and the confiscation of identity or travel documents.• An estimated 8.1 million victims of forced labor in the world today are denied more than $20 billion due to the perpetrators of forcedlabor. These opportunity costs, or “stolen” wages, are incurred largely in the developing world and most significantly in Asia and thePacific, which accounts for $8.9 billion, or almost half of forced labor’s costs in the world. As wages denied and not remitted to workers’home countries, these costs can be viewed as an impediment to economic development.• Little progress has been made since 2001 in improving data collection on forced labor; the process of estimating the problem “hashardly begun in most countries.” While victimizing far more people than sex trafficking, forced labor is also underrepresented by governments’law enforcement efforts against human trafficking.• ILO research has shown a clear relationship between amounts spent by migrant workers during their recruitment and the probabilityof their becoming victims of forced labor; the higher the cost, the greater the likelihood of forced labor. Excessive and often unlawfulrecruitment fees are often a key contributing factor to forced labor. Particular attention should be paid to private employment agencies,given their documented role in trafficking for labor exploitation.• Migrants in the fishing industry or serving as domestic workers are particularly vulnerable to forced labor.47

TIER PLACEMENT48

The TiersTIER PLACEMENTTIER 1Countries whose governments fully complywith the Trafficking Victims Protection Act’s(TVPA) minimum standardsTIER 2Countries whose governments do not fullycomply with the TVPA’s minimum standards,but are making significant efforts to bringthemselves into compliance with thosestandardsTIER 2 WATCH LISTCountries whose governments do not fullycomply with the TVPA’s minimum standards,but are making significant efforts to bringthemselves into compliance with thosestandards AND:a) The absolute number of victims of severeforms of trafficking is very significant or issignificantly increasing; orb) There is a failure to provide evidence ofincreasing efforts to combat severe formsof trafficking in persons from the previousyear; orc) The determination that a country is makingsignificant efforts to bring themselves intocompliance with minimum standards wasbased on commitments by the country totake additional future steps over the nextyearTIER 3Countries whose governments do not fullycomply with the minimum standards and arenot making significant efforts to do so49

TIER PLACEMENTTIER PLACEMENTSTier 1AUSTRALIADENMARKAUSTRIAFINLANDBELGIUMFRANCECANADAGEORGIACOLOMBIAGERMANYCROATIAITALYCZECH REPUBLICKOREA, REP. OFLITHUANIALUXEMBOURGMACEDONIAMauritiusTHE NETHERLANDSNEW ZEALANDNigeriaNORWAYPOLANDSLOVENIASpainSWEDENSWITZERLANDUNITED KINGDOMTier 2AfghanistanAlbaniaAntigua & BarbudaArmeniaTHE BahamasBarbadosBelarusBeninBoliviaBosnia & HerzegovinaBotswanaBrazilBruneiBulgariaBurkina FasoChileCosta RicaCyprusEcuadorEl SalvadorEstoniaEthiopiaThe GambiaGreeceHondurasHong KongHungaryIcelandIndonesiaIrelandIsraelJamaicaJapanJordanKazakhstanKenyaKosovoKyrgyz RepublicLaosLiberiaMacauMadagascarMalawiTHE MaldivesMaltaMexicoMongoliaMoroccoMozambiqueNamibiaNepalOMANPalauPanamaParaguayPeruPortugalRomaniaRwandaSerbiaSierra LeoneSingaporeSlovak RepublicSouth AfricaSurinameTaiwanTanzaniaThailandTimor-LesteTogoTrinidad & TobagoTurkeyUgandaUruguayVietnamZambiaTier 2 Watch ListAlgeriaAngolaArgentinaAzerbaijanBahrainBangladeshBelizeBurundiCambodiaCameroonCentral African Rep.China (PRC)Congo (DRC)Congo, Rep. ofCote D’ivoireDjiboutiDominican RepublicEgyptEquatorial GuineaGabonGhanaGuatemalaGuineaGuinea-BissauGuyanaIndiaIraqLatviaLebanonLesothoLibyaMaliMicronesiaMoldovaMONTENEGROThe Neth. Antilles*NicaraguaPakistanPhilippinesQatarRussiaSt. Vincent & the Gren.SenegalSri LankaTajikistanTunisiaTurkmenistanUkraineUnited Arab EmiratesUzbekistanVenezuelaYemenTier 3BurmaChadCubaEritreaFijiIranKuwaitMalaysiaMauritaniaNigerNorth KoreaPapua New GuineaSaudi ArabiaSudanSwazilandSyriaZimbabwe* See page 220.50

COUNTRY MAPSSENEGALTHE GAMBIASIERRA LEONEMAURITANIAGUINEA-BISSAU GUINEALIBERIACOTED’IVOIREMALIBURKINAFASOBENINGHANATOGONIGERNIGERIACAMEROONCHADCENTRALAFRICANREPUBLICSUDANERITREAETHIOPIADJIBOUTISOMALIAEQUATORIAL GUINEAGABONREP.OFCONGODEM.REP.OF THECONGORWANDABURUNDIUGANDATANZANIAKENYAANGOLAZAMBIANAMIBIAZIMBABWEMALAWIMOZAMBIQUEMADAGASCARMAURITIUSBOTSWANAAfricaSOUTH AFRICASWAZILANDLESOTHOYEAR PROSECUTIONS CONVICTIONS NEW OR AMENDED LEGISLATION2003 50 10 32004 134 29 72005 194 58 122006 170 51 32007 123 (28) 63 (26) 52008 109 (18) 90 (20) 10Tier PlacementsTier 1 Tier 2 Tier 2 Watch List Tier 3 Special CasesThe numbers in parentheses are those of labor trafficking prosecutions and convictions.51

MONGOLIACOUNTRY MAPSCHINABURMAMacauTaiwanHong KongNORTH KOREASOUTH KOREAJAPANLAOSTHAILANDVIETNAMCAMBODIAPHILIPPINESBRUNEIPALAUMALAYSIAMICRONESIASINGAPOREI N D O N E S I APAPUA NEW GUINEATIMOR LESTEFIJIAUSTRALIAEAST ASIA& PacificNEW ZEALANDYEAR PROSECUTIONS CONVICTIONS NEW OR AMENDED LEGISLATION2003 1,727 583 12004 438 348 32005 2,580 2,347 52006 1,321 763 32007 1,047 (7) 651 (7) 42008 1,083 (106) 643 (35) 2Tier Placements52Tier 1 Tier 2 Tier 2 Watch List Tier 3The numbers in parentheses are those of labor trafficking prosecutions and convictions.

ICELANDNORWAYSWEDENFINLANDESTONIACOUNTRY MAPSDENMARKLATVIALITHUANIAR U S S I AIRELANDUNITEDKINGDOMNETHERLANDSGERMANYPOLANDBELARUSBELGIUMLUX.CZECHREPUBLICSLOVAKREPUBLICUKRAINEPORTUGALSPAINFRANCESWITZERLANDAUSTRIASLOVENIACROATIAITALYHUNGARYBOS.& SERBIAHER.MONTENEGROALBANIAROMANIAMACEDONIAMOLDOVAKOSOVO BULGARIAGREECETURKEYGEORGIAARMENIAAZERBAIJANMALTACYPRUSEuropeTheNetherlandsAntilles*(The Netherlands)ST. MAARTENSABAST. EUSTATIUSCURACAOBONAIREYEAR PROSECUTIONS CONVICTIONS NEW OR AMENDED LEGISLATION2003 2,231 1,469 142004 3,270 993 202005 2,521 1,792 122006 2,950 1,821 72007 2,820 (111) 1,941 (80) 72008 2,808 (83) 1,721 (16) 1* See page 220.Tier PlacementsTier 1 Tier 2 Tier 2 Watch List Tier 3The numbers in parentheses are those of labor trafficking prosecutions and convictions.53

COUNTRY MAPSTUNISIASYRIAMOROCCOLEBANONISRAELIRAQIRANJORDANALGERIALIBYAEGYPTKUWAITSAUDI ARABIABAHRAINQATARU A EOMANYEMENNEAR EASTYEAR PROSECUTIONS CONVICTIONS NEW OR AMENDED LEGISLATION2003 1,004 279 42004 134 59 12005 112 104 32006 295 187 22007 415 (181) 361 (179) 12008 120 (56) 26 (2) 6Tier Placements54Tier 1 Tier 2 Tier 2 Watch List Tier 3The numbers in parentheses are those of labor trafficking prosecutions and convictions.

KAZAKHSTANTURKMENISTANUZBEKISTANTAJIKISTANKYRGYZREPUBLICCOUNTRY MAPSAFGHANISTANPAKISTANNEPALINDIABANGLADESHSRI LANKASOUTH &THE MALDIVESCENTRAL ASIAYEAR PROSECUTIONS CONVICTIONS NEW OR AMENDED LEGISLATION2003 2,805 447 02004 2,764 1,541 12005 1,041 406 02006 629 275 02007 824 (162) 298 (33) 42008 644 (7) 342 (7) 2SWAZILANDSOTHOTier PlacementsTier 1 Tier 2 Tier 2 Watch List Tier 3The numbers in parentheses are those of labor trafficking prosecutions and convictions.55

CANADACOUNTRY MAPSMEXICOUNITED STATESTHE BAHAMASCUBADOMINICANREPUBLICGUATEMALAEL SALVADORJAMAICABELIZEHONDURASNICARAGUAHAITIANTIGUA AND BARBUDABARBADOSST. VINCENT AND GRENADINESCOSTA RICAPANAMAVENEZUELATRINIDAD AND TOBAGOGUYANASURINAMECOLOMBIAECUADORPERUBRAZILBOLIVIAPARAGUAYWESTERNHEMISPHERE*CHILEARGENTINAURUGUAYYEAR PROSECUTIONS CONVICTIONS NEW OR AMENDED LEGISLATION2003 175 27 22004 145 56 72005 170 59 92006 443 63 62007 426 (1) 113 (1) 72008 448 (42) 161 (24) 5* Does not include the United StatesTier Placements56Tier 1 Tier 2 Tier 2 Watch List Tier 3 Special CasesThe numbers in parentheses are those of labor trafficking prosecutions and convictions.

United States GovernmentDomestic Anti-Trafficking inPersons EffortsThe United States is a destination country for thousands ofmen, women, and children trafficked largely from Mexicoand East Asia, as well as countries in South Asia, CentralAmerica, Africa, and Europe, for the purposes of sexual andlabor exploitation. Three-quarters of all foreign adult victimsidentified during the Fiscal Year (FY) 2008 were victimsof trafficking for forced labor. Some trafficking victims,responding to fraudulent offers of employment in theUnited States, migrate willingly—legally and illegally—andare subsequently subjected to conditions of involuntaryservitude or debt bondage at work sites or in commercialsex. An unknown number of American citizens and legalresidents are trafficked within the country, primarily forsexual servitude.The U.S. Government (USG) in 2008 continued to advancethe goal of eradicating human trafficking in the UnitedStates. This coordinated effort includes several federalagencies and approximately $23 million in FY 2008 fordomestic programs to boost anti-trafficking law enforcementefforts, identify and protect victims of trafficking, andraise awareness of trafficking as a means of preventing newincidents.RecommendationsThe USG annually assesses its efforts in a separatereport compiled by the Department of Justice (DOJ)[see www.usdoj.gov/olp/human_trafficking.htm]. As perrecommendations from the May 2008 assessment, the USG isworking to ensure that law enforcement agents and serviceprovidinggrantees, subcontractors, and partners collaborateexpeditiously to identify U.S. and foreign victims, providecare, and secure immigration relief, if needed.ProsecutionThe USG sustained anti-trafficking law enforcement effortsthrough the reporting period. The United States prohibitsall forms of trafficking in persons through criminal statutescreated or strengthened by the 2000 Trafficking VictimsProtection Act (TVPA), as amended. Congress most recentlyreauthorized the TVPA in December 2008 and madenumerous statutory improvements. In FY 2008, the DOJ’sCivil Rights Division and U.S. Attorneys’ Offices initiated183 investigations, charged 82 individuals, and obtained77 convictions in 40 human trafficking cases (13 labortrafficking, 27 sex trafficking). Under the TVPA, traffickerscan be sentenced to up to 20 years’ imprisonment per victim,and up to life imprisonment for aggravated circumstances.The average prison sentence imposed for trafficking crimesunder the TVPA in FY 2008 was 112 months (9.3 years).The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the DOJ’s CriminalDivision continued to combat the exploitation of childrenin prostitution in the United States through the InnocenceLost National Initiative. In FY 2008, this initiative led to 486arrests, 148 convictions at state and federal levels, and therecovery of 245 children. Along with the federal government,state governments play an important role in identifying andprosecuting trafficking cases. As of April 2009, 42 states hadpassed criminal anti-trafficking legislation.ProtectionThe USG continued to provide strong victim protectionservices through the year. In December 2008, the USG issuedthe interim final rule that will allow T-visa recipients toadjust their status and become lawful permanent residents.The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)certified 286 foreign adult victims in FY 2008, and issuedeligibility letters to 31 foreign minors. Forty-five percentof the 286 certified adult trafficking victims were male, anotable increase from the 30 percent adult male traffickingvictims certified in FY 2007 and the six percent adult maletrafficking victims certified in FY 2006. Certified victimscame from 40 countries. Primary countries of origin wereMexico (66), Thailand (56), Philippines (46), Korea (12),and China (8). Certification and Eligibility Letters allowhuman trafficking survivors to access services and benefits,comparable to assistance provided by the United States torefugees. The HHS Per-Capita Services contract implementedby civil society partners currently covers 93 sites across thecountry providing “anytime, anywhere” services to foreignhuman trafficking victims.The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) providestwo principal types of immigration relief authorized by theTVPA: (1) continued presence (CP) to human traffickingvictims who are potential witnesses during investigation orprosecution, and (2) T non-immigrant status or “T-visas,” aspecial self-petitioned visa category for trafficking victims.In FY 2008, DHS/ICE’s Law Enforcement Parole Branchapproved 225 requests for CP and 101 requests for extensionsof existing CPs. DHS U.S. Citizenship and ImmigrationServices (USCIS) issued 247 T-visas to foreign survivors ofhuman trafficking identified in the United States and 171T-visas to their immediate family members.As part of the assistance provided under the TVPA, theDepartment of State’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, andMigration funds the Return, Reintegration, and FamilyReunification Program for Victims of Trafficking. In calendaryear 2008, the program assisted 105 cases. Of these cases,two trafficking victims elected to return to their countryof origin, and 103 family members were reunited withtrafficking survivors in the United States. Since its inceptionin 2005, the program has assisted around 250 people from 35countries.PreventionPrevention efforts increased over the year. In FY 2008, DHS/ICE launched a human trafficking billboard campaignfocused on raising public awareness and preventionand expanded the human trafficking public serviceannouncement into several languages beyond Englishand Spanish, including Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian,Finnish, and Korean. HHS continued to fund the Rescue& Restore Victims of Human Trafficking public awarenesscampaign. HHS’ National Human Trafficking ResourceCenter (NHTRC) provided national training and technicalassistance and operated a national hotline (1-888-3737-888). From December 2007 through the end of FY 2008, theNHTRC received a total of 4,147 calls, including more than550 tips on possible human trafficking cases and nearly 400requests for victim care referrals. In FY 2008, HHS increasedstaff to oversee and promote child welfare best practices inthe Office of Refugee Resettlement’s child-serving programs,particularly in the Division of Unaccompanied Children’sServices. HHS also hired a Child Protection Specialist toprovide specialized training for identification and care ofchild trafficking victims.DOMESTIC ANTI-TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS EFFORTS57

COUNTRY NARRATIVESCountryNarratives58

AFGHANISTAN (Tier 2)Afghanistan is a source, transit, and destination countryfor men, women, and children trafficked for the purposesof forced labor and commercial sexual exploitation.Afghan boys and girls are trafficked within the country forcommercial sexual exploitation, forced marriage to settledebts or disputes, forced begging, as well as forced laboror debt bondage in brick kilns, carpet-making factories,and domestic service. Afghan children are also traffickedto Iran and Pakistan for forced labor, particularly inPakistan’s carpet factories, and forced marriage. Boysare promised enrollment in Islamic schools in Pakistan,but instead are trafficked to camps for paramilitarytraining by extremist groups. Afghan women and girls aretrafficked within the country and to Pakistan and Iran forcommercial sexual exploitation and temporary marriages.Some Afghan men force their wives or daughters intoprostitution. Afghan men are trafficked to Iran andPakistan for forced labor and debt bondage, as well as toGreece for forced labor in the agriculture or constructionsectors. Afghanistan is also a destination for women andgirls from Iran, Tajikistan, and possibly China traffickedfor commercial sexual exploitation. Tajik women are alsobelieved to be trafficked through Afghanistan to Pakistanand Iran for commercial sexual exploitation. TraffickedIranian women transit Afghanistan en route to Pakistan.The Government of Afghanistan does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to doso. Government actors continue to conflate the crimes ofkidnapping and trafficking; this poor understanding oftrafficking poses an impediment to targeted intervention.An undeveloped judicial and prosecutorial system,judicial delays, corruption, and weak coordinationremain obstacles to effectively punishing traffickingoffenses. In addition, Afghanistan punishes some victimsof sex trafficking with imprisonment for adultery orprostitution, acts committed as a direct result of beingtrafficked. Although the government lacks resources toprovide comprehensive victim protection services and didnot adequately punish all identified acts of trafficking,its newly instituted victim referral process, launching ofvictim referral centers, and passage of anti-traffickinglegislation demonstrate progress in providing increasedprotective services for trafficking victims and punishmentof their exploiters.Recommendations for Afghanistan: Increase lawenforcement activities against trafficking, includingprosecutions, convictions, and imprisonment for acts oftrafficking for commercial sexual exploitation and forcedlabor, including debt bondage; ensure that victims oftrafficking are not punished for acts committed as a directresult of being trafficked, such as prostitution or adultery;collaborate with NGOs to ensure that all children,including boys, victimized by sex and labor traffickingreceive protective services; and undertake initiatives toprevent trafficking, such as instituting a public awarenesscampaign to warn at-risk populations of the dangers oftrafficking.ProsecutionDespite the enactment of anti-trafficking legislation,it is not clear whether the Government of Afghanistanadequately prosecuted or punished trafficking offendersover the reporting period. In July 2008, the governmentenacted an anti-trafficking law, the Law CounteringAbduction and Human Trafficking, through presidentialdecree; the law prescribes penalties of life imprisonmentfor sex trafficking and “maximum term” imprisonmentfor labor trafficking, which, in practice, is between eightand 15 years. These penalties are sufficiently stringentand exceed those prescribed for other grave crimes, suchas rape. According to government records, there were noprosecutions under the new anti-trafficking legislation.The government, however, reported the convictions of62 trafficking offenders under statutes criminalizingkidnapping and rape; sentences reportedly ranged fromfive to 18 years’ imprisonment. It is unknown howmany cases may have been prosecuted that resulted inacquittals. As the government was unable to providedisaggregated data or specific case information, it isunclear if these offenses meet the definition of traffickingor whether they address labor trafficking offenses.The Ministry of Interior’s (MOI) six-person countertraffickingunit made some initial arrests and investigatedan unknown number of these cases. The governmentreported difficulty engaging Pakistani authorities forjoint investigation of transnational trafficking cases.In 2008, the MOI stationed personnel at airports andborder crossings to detect trafficking cases. There wasno evidence that the government made any efforts toinvestigate, arrest, or prosecute government officialsfacilitating trafficking offenses despite reports ofwidespread complicity among national and border police.ProtectionThe government’s protection of trafficking victimsremained poor, but showed improvements during thereporting period. The government lacked resourcesto provide victims with protective services directly;NGOs operated the country’s 18 shelters and providedthe vast majority of victim assistance, but some facedhardships due to threats from the local community,particularly when assisting in cases that involved socalled“honor” crimes. Serious concerns remain regardingthe government’s punishment of victims of traffickingfor acts committed as a direct result of being trafficked.Female trafficking victims continued to be arrestedand imprisoned or otherwise punished for prostitutionand fleeing forced marriages. However, NGOs noted aAFGHANISTAN59

ALBANIAdecrease in arbitrary detentions after the late 2007 signingof a formalized referral agreement among the MOI,the Ministry of Woman’s Affairs (MOWA), and variousshelters, and the opening of two government-run referralcenters. Under this new procedure, police refer womenvictimized by violence to MOWA which, in turn, refersthe women, including trafficking victims, to appropriateNGO facilities. The MOI’s referral center inJalalabad assisted female victims of traffickingand other crimes with support from MOWAand UNIFEM. Its four MOI officers investigatedcases and four MOWA paralegals providedsupport and legal advice to the women. Asecond referral center opened in April 2008in Parwan. The government referred andtransported victims to IOM and NGOs duringthe reporting period, but did not provideinformation on the number of victims assistedin this manner. An NGO reported that thepolice referred 23 victims and the MOWA referred four toits shelter in Kabul. The MOI referred the majority of the40 victims assisted by IOM in 2008. There are no facilitiesin Afghanistan to provide shelter or specific protectiveservices to male trafficking victims; during the reportingperiod, some trafficked boys were placed in governmentrunorphanages and a facility for juvenile criminalswhile their cases were being investigated. MOWA staffreportedly visited prisons during the reporting periodto ensure women and girls in custody are not victims ofsex crimes or sex trafficking; concrete results from theseprison visits are unknown. There is no evidence that thegovernment encouraged victims to assist in investigationsof their traffickers during the reporting period. The newanti-trafficking law permits foreign victims to remain inAfghanistan for at least six months.PreventionDuring the reporting period, the Afghanistan governmentmade negligible efforts to prevent human trafficking.The government did not carry out any public awarenesscampaigns to warn at-risk populations of the dangers oftrafficking or potential traffickers of the consequencesof trafficking. Ministry of Justice officials participatedin a televised roundtable discussing the July 2008 antitraffickinglaw. The government did not take steps toreduce the demand for commercial sex acts or forced laborduring the reporting period. Afghanistan has not ratifiedthe 2000 UN TIP Protocol.ALBANIA (Tier 2)Albania is a source country for men, women, and childrentrafficked for the purposes of sexual exploitation andforced labor, including forced begging. Albanian victimsare trafficked primarily to Greece, and also to Italy,Macedonia, Kosovo, Spain, France, the UK, and otherWestern European countries, as well as within Albania.Available data indicate that more than half the victims oftrafficking are under the age of 18. Most sex traffickingvictims are women and girls between the ages of 15 and25, and 90 percent are ethnic Albanian. Ethnic Romachildren are most at risk for forced begging. There isevidence that Albanian men have been trafficked forforced labor to the agricultural sector of Greece and otherneighboring countries.The Government of Albania does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Thegovernment demonstrated increased political will tocombat human trafficking over the last year, particularlythrough progress made in its efforts to identify victimsof trafficking. Concerns remained regarding whetherthe government vigorously prosecuted labor traffickingoffenders and public officials who participated in orfacilitated human trafficking.Recommendations for Albania: Vigorously investigateand prosecute law enforcement officials’ complicityin trafficking; vigorously prosecute labor traffickingoffenders; continue to work with NGOs and civil societyto ensure full implementation of the national mechanismfor referring victims to service providers; continuefunding victim assistance and protection services,including shelters; and improve existing preventionprograms in collaboration with NGOs, including jointactivities targeted at reducing the demand for humantrafficking.ProsecutionThe Government of Albania made some progress in itsanti-trafficking law enforcement efforts during 2008.Albania criminally prohibits sex and labor traffickingthrough its penal code, which prescribes penalties of fiveto 15 years’ imprisonment. These penalties are sufficientlystringent and exceed those prescribed for rape. In 2008,Albania prosecuted 22 trafficking cases, compared with49 in 2007, and convicted 26 trafficking offenders,compared with seven in 2007. All of the prosecutions andconvictions involved sex trafficking of women or children.In 2008, sentences for convicted trafficking offendersranged from two to 25 years’ imprisonment. Thegovernment instituted routine anti-trafficking training forpolice recruits and current police officers, and organizedadditional training for judges and social service providers.In an outreach effort to potential female victims, in 2008the government assigned approximately 20 female anti-60

trafficking police officers to organized crime police unitsthroughout the country. Pervasive corruption at all levelsand sectors of Albanian society remained an obstacle toreducing human trafficking in Albania. The governmentreported that the cases of official complicity referencedin the 2008 Report were determined to have involvedsmuggling, not human trafficking.ProtectionThe Government of Albania boosted efforts to providevictims of trafficking with protection and assistance in2008. Officials improved the functioning of the nationalvictim referral mechanism and, as a result, identified 108victims of trafficking in 2008, a five-fold increase from theprevious year. The government provided approximately$262,000 in funding to the government-operated victimcare shelter, an increase of 16 percent over the previousyear; it also provided occasional in-kind assistance,such as use of government buildings and land, to fouradditional NGO-managed shelters. The governmentencouraged victims to participate in investigations andprosecutions of trafficking offenders; however, victimsoften refused to testify, or they changed their testimonyas a result of intimidation from traffickers or fear ofintimidation. Victims were not penalized in Albania forunlawful acts committed as a direct result of their beingtrafficked. Albanian law provides for legal alternatives tothe removal of foreign victims to countries where theymay face hardship or retribution.of them become victims of trafficking; men are forcedinto unskilled labor and women into prostitutionto pay smuggling debts. Criminal networks of sub-Saharan nationals in southern Algeria facilitate transitby arranging transportation, forged documents,and promises of employment. Among an estimatedpopulation of 5,000 to 9,000 illegal migrants, some 4,000to 6,000 are believed to be victims of trafficking, of whomapproximately 1,000 are women.The Government of Algeria does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. InJanuary 2009, the government approved new legislationthat criminalizes trafficking in persons for the purposesof labor and sexual exploitation. The law will enterinto force when published in the government’s OfficialJournal. The new law represents an important steptoward complying with international standards, thoughits implementation is as yet untested. Despite theseefforts, the government did not show overall progress inpunishing trafficking crimes and protecting traffickingvictims and continued to lack adequate measures toprotect victims and prevent trafficking; therefore, Algeriais placed on Tier 2 Watch List.ALGERIAPreventionThe Government of Albania implemented several antitraffickingprevention activities during the reportingperiod. International organizations fund the majority ofprevention campaigns, but the Ministry of Interior hasfunded the national toll-free, 24-hour hotline for victimsand potential victims of trafficking since November2007. The Ministry of Education includes in its highschool curriculum awareness-raising of the dangersof trafficking. Senior government officials spoke outagainst human trafficking, and the government providedtax breaks to businesses that employ people at-risk fortrafficking. In 2008, the government approved a newnational action plan on combating trafficking, whichspecifically addressed issues related to child trafficking.The Ministry of Tourism took the lead in monitoring acode of conduct for the prevention of child sex tourismthat 24 tourist agencies and hotels signed. There wasno evidence that the government undertook preventionactivities specifically targeted at reducing the demand forcommercial sex acts or forced labor.ALGERIA (Tier 2 Watch List)Algeria is a transit country for men and women traffickedfrom sub-Saharan Africa to Europe for the purposesof commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor.These men and women enter Algeria, voluntarily butillegally, often with the assistance of smugglers. SomeRecommendations for Algeria: Proactively implementthe new anti-trafficking law by training law enforcementand judicial officials, investigating potential offenses,and prosecuting offenders; strengthen the institutionalcapacity to identify victims of trafficking among illegalmigrants; improve services available to traffickingvictims, such as shelter, medical, psychological, andlegal aid; ensure victims are not punished for unlawfulacts committed as a direct result of being trafficked; andundertake a campaign to increase public awareness oftrafficking.ProsecutionThe Algerian government showed minimal progress inaddressing human trafficking through law enforcementmeans during the reporting period. In January 2009, thegovernment approved legislation that criminalizes allforms of human trafficking and prescribes penalties ofthree to 10 years’ imprisonment for base offenses. Thesepenalties are sufficiently stringent and commensuratewith penalties prescribed for other serious offenses, suchas rape. As of this report’s writing, the government hadnot used the new law to prosecute, convict, or punish61

ANGOLAany trafficking offenders. Algerian law enforcementauthorities could have investigated and prosecutedsuspected trafficking crimes using trafficking-relatedstatutes existing before the new law’s enactment; however,no such law enforcement efforts were reported during thereporting period.ProtectionThe Government of Algeria did not improve servicesor protections for victims during the reporting period.It did not employ any systematic procedures for theidentification of trafficking victims among vulnerablepopulations, such as foreign women arrestedfor prostitution or illegal migrants. Becausethere were no procedures to identify victims,they remained at risk of detention forunlawful acts committed as a result of beingtrafficked. The government did not provideforeign victims with legal alternatives totheir removal to countries where they facedhardship or retribution. According to localNGOs, the government does not providespecialized training to government officialsto detect trafficking or assist victims. Thegovernment does not provide medical, counseling, orlegal services to victims, nor is there any referral serviceto other providers. However, government-operated healthclinics that provide emergency care to crime victims areavailable for foreign and Algerian victims of trafficking. Aprogram run by an NGO to assist women who are victimsof violence is available to women victims of trafficking.There is no formal program to encourage traffickingvictims to assist with the investigation and prosecution ofoffenders.PreventionDuring the past year, the Algerian government did notconduct campaigns to raise public awareness of traffickingin persons. To date, the government has not developeda formal anti-trafficking policy or national plan ofaction that would complement its new law, nor has thegovernment published a record or assessment of its antitraffickingactivities.ANGOLA (Tier 2 Watch List)Angola is a country of origin for women and childrentrafficked internally for the purpose of domestic servitudeand young men trafficked for the purpose of forcedagricultural labor. Women and children, primarily, aretrafficked to South Africa, the Democratic Republic of theCongo, Namibia, and Portugal. Young boys are traffickedto Namibia to herd cattle. Children are also forced to actas couriers in cross-border trade between Namibia andAngola as part of a scheme to skirt import fees. Traffickerssuccessfully targeted children and adults, usually women,from poorer families, who enter into work agreementswith relatives or contacts in other cities or provincesthat subsequently prove to be coerced and exploitive.Unaccompanied migrant children are highly vulnerable totrafficking.The Government of Angola does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Despitethese overall significant efforts, the Government ofAngola has not investigated, prosecuted, or convicted anytrafficking offenders; therefore, Angola is placed on Tier 2Watch List. Interagency cooperation on trafficking issuesincreased, however, as have the government’s efforts toraise the public’s awareness of the dangers of trafficking.Recommendations for Angola: Enact laws to prohibitand punish all forms of trafficking in persons; increasethe capacity of law enforcement officials to identify andprotect victims; systematically collect data on offenses,victims, and prosecutions; and report on these activities.ProsecutionThe Government of Angola made inadequate efforts toaddress human trafficking through law enforcementmeans over the last year. Official data on criminalprosecutions and convictions during the last year wasnot made available, although information from othersources indicates that law enforcement agents arrestedsix people for suspected trafficking-related activity nearthe border. Angola does not have a comprehensive lawthat specifically prohibits trafficking in persons, whichconstrained its anti-trafficking efforts. Draft revisionsto the Penal Code, which would criminalize traffickingof children for commercial sex or forced labor, werenot finalized. No draft amendments would specificallyprohibit trafficking adults. Provisions in the constitutionand other laws prohibiting forced and bonded labor,rape, prostitution, pornography, kidnapping, and illegalentry could be used to prosecute trafficking cases.Penalties of up to eight years’ imprisonment for suchcrimes are sufficiently stringent and commensurate withthose prescribed for other serious crimes. In December2008, the Ministry of Interior, in partnership withIOM, conducted several training seminars for countertraffickinginvestigators and agents from the Directorateof National Criminal Investigations, the Frontier Guard,and the Migration and Immigrant Service. In consultationwith NGOs, the government continued to work on ananti-trafficking National Action Plan.62

ProtectionThe Angolan government continued to rely heavily uponreligious, civil society, and international organizations toprotect and assist victims of trafficking over the past year.The government’s National Children’s Council workedwith UNICEF to develop Child Protection Networks(CPNs), which serve as “SOS Centers” for traffickingvictims between the ages of 9 and 16. The CPNs offeredrescue services, health, legal and social assistance, andfamily reunification. No information was available aboutthe number of victims assisted at the CPNs. Governmentpersonnel refer victims over the age of 16 to shelters andservices provided by the Angolan Association for Women,an NGO that receives government support. There is noformal system to identify victims of trafficking amonghigh-risk populations. Past campaigns to raise awarenessand periodic training by IOM improved officials’ capacityto identify victims but was not effectively put intopractice. Under Angolan law, victims of sex traffickingmay bring criminal charges against their traffickersbut may not seek compensation. The law did, however,provide for compensation to victims of forced or bondedlabor. Current laws did not provide legal alternatives tothe removal of foreign victims to countries where theymay face hardship or retribution. Current laws alsopenalized victims for offenses committed as a direct resultof being trafficked.PreventionThe Angolan government made modest efforts to preventtrafficking during the past year. The government did notrecord data on trafficking, nor did it systemically monitorits anti-trafficking efforts. The government strengthenedimmigration controls at border posts, although restrictedresources did not allow full implementation of plannedborder security improvements. To prevent childtrafficking, the Immigration Service operated selectedborder and internal checkpoints to screen children forproper documentation. Six mobile provincial teams fromthe National Children’s Council continued to conductspot checks of suspected child trafficking routes bystopping vehicles transporting children to check identitycards, determine the adults’ relationship to the children,and ascertain whether parents had given permissionfor the children to travel. Trafficking awareness washighlighted as part of a broad campaign to protectchildren. As part of this program, government statementsagainst child prostitution and abuse of children’s rightsappeared frequently in national media. In partnershipwith IOM, the Ministry of the Interior organized aseries of counter-trafficking training seminars thatgained significant attention throughout the country. Thegovernment made no visible effort to reduce the demandfor commercial sex acts. Angola has not ratified the 2000UN TIP Protocol.ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA(Tier 2)Antigua and Barbuda is a destination country forwomen trafficked from Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, andthe Dominican Republic for the purposes of sexualexploitation; it may also be a destination country forwomen trafficked for the purposes of forced domesticservitude. Well-financed businessmen from theDominican Republic and Antiguan citizens acting aspimps and brothel owners traffic women into the fourmain, illegal brothels that operate in Antigua, as well asto private residences that operate as brothels. Womenvoluntarily come to Antigua to engage in prostitution;brothel managers later confiscate their passports andthreaten the women with deportation until they repaythe brothel owner for travel and other expenses. Somevictims trafficked for the purpose of sexual exploitationhad been given work permits as “entertainers” to legallyenter the country. Information on the full extent of thehuman trafficking problem in Antigua and Barbuda is notavailable; anecdotal reporting suggests, however, that noAntiguan citizens have been trafficked and the currentnumber of foreign victims is comparatively small.The Government of Antigua and Barbuda does not fullycomply with the minimum standards for the eliminationof trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts todo so. Despite limited resources, competing priorities,and a relatively small number of victims, the governmentinvestigated identified incidences of trafficking,cooperated with other Caribbean governments ontrafficking issues, ensured victims’ access to socialservices, and conducted bilingual public awarenesscampaigns. No trafficking offenders, however, have beenarrested or prosecuted, and law enforcement agenciescontinue to treat victims as criminals.ANTIGUA & BARBUDA TIER RANKING BY YEARRecommendationsTHE BAHAMAS TIERforRANKINGAntiguaBYandYEARBarbuda:Developand implement a comprehensive anti-human traffickinglaw; arrest, prosecute, and punish trafficking offenders;proactively identify trafficking victims among vulnerablepopulations, such as foreign women in prostitution andas domestic servants; and provide foreign victims legalalternatives to removal to countries where they may facehardship and retribution.ANTIGUA AND BARBUDABARBADOS TIER RANKING BY YEAR63

ARGENTINAProsecutionThe Government of Antigua and Barbuda did notmake adequate progress in anti-trafficking lawenforcement efforts over the last year. It has no specificor comprehensive laws prohibiting trafficking in persons.Trafficking offenders could be prosecuted under relevantprovisions in immigration, prostitution, or labor laws,though there were no such reported efforts over thereporting period. Penalties prescribed for traffickingoffenses of five years’ imprisonment are sufficientlystringent and commensurate with penalties for otherserious crimes, such as rape. Officials from the Ministryof Labor periodically inspect workplaces, and havereported no instances of forced labor of children or adults.Government agencies received two reports of victimstrafficked for commercial sexual exploitation, yet made noefforts to proactively identify victims of trafficking amongvulnerable populations, such as women in prostitution. Inthe two cases reported to the Gender Affairs Directorate,two women were granted work permits as “entertainers”and legally entered the country. They were later forcedinto prostitution by their employers. The Gender AffairsDirectorate has requested a review of the immigrationdepartment to ascertain why officials issued work-permitsto foreigners who were almost certain to engage in anillegal activity such as prostitution, whether forced orvoluntary. Antigua and Barbuda contributes staff andother resources to the Regional Security Service (RSS),a coalition of top-level police, customs, immigration,military, and Coast Guard representatives from acrossthe Caribbean addressing transnational crime, includinghuman trafficking.ProtectionThe Government of Antigua and Barbuda has made strongefforts to offer victims medical, psychological, legal,and social services, although law enforcement agentsfrequently treat unidentified victims as criminals. TheDirectorate of Gender Affairs receives funds to coordinatethe work of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Coalitionand to provide legal, health, advocacy, and crisis serviceswhich all victims of trafficking, foreign or local, canaccess. The Directorate established “Emergency SafeHavens,” where the location of any victims of violencecan be hidden from their victimizers, and recruitedSpanish-speaking volunteers to assist with several casesof suspected abuse of foreign nationals. Other NGOsprovide services such as health screening and assistancein repatriation. Some foreigners detained for immigrationviolations are likely trafficking victims. There are no legalalternatives to the removal of foreign victims to countrieswhere they would face hardship or retribution. Thegovernment does not encourage victims to assist in theinvestigation and prosecution of trafficking crimes.PreventionDespite limited resources and competing priorities, theGovernment of Antigua and Barbuda has demonstratedstrong efforts to prevent trafficking and increase thepublic’s awareness of trafficking. The government ranawareness campaigns, many in English and Spanish, inthe form of anti-trafficking brochures and radio spots.The National Coalition Against Trafficking in Personsis made up of the Ministries of Social Welfare, SocialTransformation, Health, Labor and Gender Affairs,Immigration, and the Royal Antigua and Barbuda PoliceForce, as well as various civil society groups, NGOs,and community activists and advocates. The Coalition,coordinated by the Directorate of Gender Affairs, meetsat the end of every month to discuss suspected cases,formulate strategies to address them, and follow upwith law enforcement to conduct investigations. TheCoalition’s national action plan focuses on educatingimmigrants, the general public, and front-line workerson human trafficking; establishes a spokespersonto represent the Coalition; combines outreach andprotection efforts with the Gender Affairs crisis hotline;and creates a legislative review of anti-trafficking lawsand statutory instruments in Antigua and Barbuda. Therehave been no government programs to reduce demandfor commercial sex during the reporting period. Thegovernment cooperates with other Caribbean countriesvia the Gender Affairs Unit at the CARICOM Secretariatin Guyana, and contributes funds and personnel tothe Advanced Passenger Information System, whichallows law enforcement agencies to share information sosuspected criminals, including human traffickers, will beinvestigated and detained at ports of entry. Antigua andBarbuda has not ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.ARGENTINA (Tier 2 Watch List)Argentina is a source, transit, and destination country formen, women, and children trafficked for the purposes ofcommercial sexual exploitation and forced labor. Manyvictims are trafficked within the country, from rural areasto urban centers, for forced prostitution. Some Argentinewomen and girls are trafficked to neighboring countries,Mexico, and Western Europe for commercial sexualexploitation. Foreign women and children, primarilyfrom Paraguay, Brazil, Peru, and the Dominican Republic,are trafficked to Argentina for the same purpose. Asignificant number of Bolivians, Paraguayans, andPeruvians are trafficked into the country for forced laborin sweatshops and agriculture. Some reporting suggeststhat Chinese migrants are trafficked for forced labor intoChinese-owned supermarkets. Child sex tourism is aproblem, particularly in the tri-border area and in BuenosAires. Argentina is a transit point for foreign women andgirls trafficked into commercial sexual exploitation inChile, Brazil, Mexico, and Western Europe. Argentina’slong borders make the country an easy transit area fortraffickers and their victims.The Government of Argentina does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to doso. During the past year, the Government of Argentinaapproved national legislation to prohibit and punish all64

forms of human trafficking, increased law enforcementefforts to arrest trafficking suspects and rescue victims,and improved government mechanisms for directingtrafficking victims to shelter care and services. Despitesuch efforts, the government did not show evidenceof progress in convicting and sentencing traffickingoffenders and ensuring adequate victim assistance acrossthe country; therefore, Argentina remains on Tier 2 WatchList.Recommendations for Argentina: Continue toimplement the new anti-trafficking law vigorously;intensify law enforcement efforts to dismantle traffickingnetworks; increase judicial and prosecutorial efforts toinvestigate, prosecute, convict, and punish traffickingoffenders, including corrupt public officials who mayfacilitate or be involved with trafficking activity; increaseinvestigations of forced labor and domestic servitudecrimes; dedicate more resources for victim assistance;sustain anti-trafficking training for law enforcement,judges, and other public officials, including laborinspectors; and improve data collection.some elements of the country’s security forces arecomplicit with human trafficking activity. Most of theseallegations are directed against provincial and localofficials, though allegations relating to federal forces cameto light during the past year. Senior Argentine officialshave acknowledged these problems and are working tocurb them by investigating allegations lodged againstthese officials. In addition, some local police officersand other public officials reportedly own brothels wheretrafficking is suspected to occur, or provide traffickerswith protection in exchange for bribes, sexual services,food, and alcohol. Other police officers turn a blind eyeto trafficking activity or tip off brothel owners aboutimpending raids. In December 2008, a federal judgesummoned police officials for deposition as part of aninvestigation into alleged police protection of a ring ofbrothels suspected of human trafficking in the city ofBuenos Aires. No other government investigations orprosecutions of corrupt officials were reported last year.ARGENTINAProsecutionThe government demonstrated some progress in antitraffickinglaw enforcement efforts last year. Argentinaprohibits all forms of trafficking pursuant to Law 26,364,enacted in April 2008, which prescribes penalties ofthree to 15 years’ imprisonment. Such penalties aresufficiently stringent and commensurate with thoseprescribed for other serious crimes, such as rape. Duringthe reporting period, the government conducted 169raids on suspected commercial sex sites and sweatshops,rescued 181 trafficking victims, and arrested 196suspects. Two-thirds of victims rescued by federal lawenforcement agencies were adults. The ProsecutorGeneral’s specialized Unit to Assist Investigations intoKidnapping, Extortion Crimes, and Trafficking in Persons(UFASE) also conducted 35 trafficking investigations, andforwarded 10 trafficking cases to the courts for formalinvestigation. No anti-trafficking convictions or sentenceswere reported for 2008; provincial governments securedat least 10 trafficking-related convictions, with sentencesranging from four to 17 years’ imprisonment, in 2007. ABuenos Aires city court began trial proceedings againsta suspect accused of forcing eight Dominican womeninto prostitution in a private apartment after beingpromised jobs as waitresses. Since the case predates thenew trafficking law, the suspect was indicted on forcedservitude charges. In August 2008, a Chubut provincialjudge set for trial a case against a suspected humantrafficker in the province. Seven co-defendants wereacquitted for lack of evidence, following a ruling thatwiretap evidence had been gathered illegally. Last year,the government established a first-responder office tocoordinate criminal investigations and direct assistanceto trafficking victims, and sponsored basic anti-traffickingtraining for law enforcement personnel.According to NGOs and international organizations,ProtectionThe government made efforts to assist trafficking victimsduring the reporting period, though internationalorganizations and NGOs provided most specializedassistance for trafficking victims. At the federal level, theMinistry of Justice’s first-responder office coordinatedvictim assistance, offering access to medical andpsychological treatment, as well as legal counseling.It also offered protection to victims who cooperatedas witnesses with law enforcement investigators andprosecutors. Argentine authorities encouraged victimsto assist with the investigation and prosecution of theirtraffickers. While the government did not operate sheltersdedicated to trafficking victims, it referred traffickingvictims to other public shelters operated by provincialgovernments or local NGOs. In some cases, they providedvictims with housing subsidies. Most government-fundedshelters, however, were oversubscribed and could notaccommodate trafficking victims. The quality and levelof victim care varied widely by province. The governmentdid not employ formal procedures for identifyingtrafficking victims among vulnerable populations, suchas prostituted women. There were no specific reportsof victims being jailed or penalized for unlawful actscommitted as a direct result of being trafficked. Althoughthe government does not offer formal immigrationstatus for foreign trafficking victims, they are nottypically deported. Trafficking victims who are citizens65

ARMENIAof Mercosur member or associate states, however, canobtain temporary residency in Argentina under Argentineimmigration law. During the reporting period, thefederal government continued modest funding for ananti-trafficking NGO providing shelter and assistance tovictims.PreventionThe government sustained prevention activities, andhosted two large anti-trafficking conferences with OASand Mercosur member states. The government alsofunded anti-trafficking media campaigns, particularly inMisiones province. The federal government worked withinternational organizations and NGOs on additionalprevention efforts. The city of Buenos Aires continueda prevention campaign against labor exploitation,which features a website and hotline through whichcitizens can report information on suspected sites offorced labor. The government provided anti-traffickingtraining to Argentine troops prior to their deployment oninternational peacekeeping operations. The governmentsupported an anti-trafficking campaign – “WithoutClients, There is No Trafficking” – and the presidentpublicly called on regional governments to work to reducedemand for commercial sex acts.ARMENIA (Tier 2)Armenia is primarily a source country for women andgirls trafficked to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) andTurkey for the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation.Armenian men and women are trafficked to Russia for thepurpose of forced labor. NGOs reported that Armenianwomen were also trafficked to Turkey for the purposeof forced labor. Women from Ukraine and Russia aretrafficked to Armenia for the purpose of forced labor.Victims trafficked to the UAE usually fly to Dubai fromYerevan or via cities in Russia; the trafficking route toTurkey is generally via bus through Georgia. A smallnumber of Armenian girls and boys are traffickedinternally for purposes of commercial sexual exploitationand forced begging.The Government of Armenia does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts todo so. In December 2008, the government reopenedits investigation into a well-documented 2006 case inwhich a convicted trafficker was released from prisonand escaped the country allegedly with the assistance ofvarious government officials; this was an important stepforward and results of this investigation warrant futuremonitoring. The government also allocated $55,000 topartially fund an NGO-run trafficking shelter in 2009. InNovember 2008, the government began implementingits national referral mechanism for victims. Althoughthese efforts demonstrated genuine progress over thereporting period, victim assistance remained a challenge– especially in the provision of long-term assistanceand social reintegration – and the number of traffickersconvicted decreased.Recommendations for Armenia: Continue to addresstrafficking-related corruption through the vigorousinvestigation, prosecution, and conviction of complicitofficials; improve the new national victim-referralmechanism, ensuring that victims are provided withlegally mandated assistance (medical, legal, primaryneeds, and shelter) at all three stages of the victimassistance process that is not conditioned on victims’cooperation with law enforcement investigations; ensurethat police and law enforcement receive traffickingspecificinvestigative training to increase the number oftraffickers who are prosecuted and successfully convicted;continue to ensure a majority of convicted traffickersserve time in prison; ensure that all funding allocated foranti-trafficking programs and victim assistance is spenton designated programs; increase the number of victimsidentified and referred for assistance; and continue effortsto raise awareness about both sex and labor trafficking.ProsecutionThe Armenian government continued its law enforcementefforts during the reporting period. Armenia prohibitstrafficking in persons for both labor and sexualexploitation through Article 132 of its penal code, whichprescribes penalties of three to 15 years’ imprisonment –penalties that are sufficiently stringent and commensuratewith those prescribed for other grave crimes. Thegovernment investigated 13 cases of trafficking, comparedto 14 investigations in 2007. Armenia prosecuted eightindividuals for trafficking, the same number as in 2007.Authorities convicted only four traffickers in 2008, adecrease from 11 convictions in 2007. All traffickersconvicted in 2008 were given prison sentences rangingfrom 2 to 7.5 years; no traffickers received suspendedsentences. In addition to reopening the investigation intoa well-documented 2006 corruption case, Armenia alsoinvestigated the deputy principal of a public school whoforced two special needs students to beg on the streetduring the reporting period. The government did notreport additional efforts to prosecute, convict, or sentencegovernment officials complicit in trafficking.A lack of diplomatic relations between Armenia andTurkey hampered Armenia’s ability to investigate thetrafficking of Armenian nationals to Turkey; however,police were in contact with Turkish law enforcement66

through Interpol in an attempt to investigate traffickingfrom Armenia. During the reporting period, Armeniawaited for Turkey to respond to a repatriation request foran identified Armenian trafficking victim in the Turkishregion of Antalia.ProtectionThe Government of Armenia demonstrated modestprogress to protect and assist victims of traffickingduring the reporting period. The government allocated$55,000 to support an NGO-run trafficking shelter and$7,000 to fund medical care for trafficking victims. InNovember 2008, the government began implementingits national referral mechanism; however, the fact that allintermediate and long-term assistance provided by thegovernment is conditioned upon victims’ cooperationwith law enforcement investigations is an issue of concernthat should be revisited. The government identified34 victims in 2008 and police referred 20 victims forassistance, an increase from 17 victims referred in2007. Foreign-funded NGOs assisted 24 victims in2008. Victims were encouraged to cooperate with lawenforcement bodies; in 2008, all 34 victims assisted policewith trafficking investigations. The government did notpenalize victims for unlawful acts committed as a directresult of being trafficked. The lack of appropriate victimwitness protection continued to be an issue of concern;this may have hampered Armenia’s prosecution efforts.to debt bondage or involuntary servitude. Althoughmost operate through a network of informal contactsin their native countries, experienced and increasinglysophisticated traffickers are adjusting their methods totry to sidestep provisions of anti-trafficking laws. Thereare traffickers who file asylum claims in the false namesvictims use to enter the country; victims who later goto the police for help appear unreliable and are at riskof deportation because of their false asylum claim.Unscrupulous recruiters entice undocumented foreignwomen into prostitution, coaching them to apply forstudent visas in real or false names, as students maylegally work 20 hours a week. Men with legal residencein Australia marry foreign women whom they coerce intoprostitution or force into domestic servitude. Some ofthe civil complaints to authorities about labor violationswere noted to contain elements indicative of the crime oftrafficking.AUSTRALIAPreventionArmenia demonstrated improved efforts to raiseawareness about trafficking during the reporting period.The government conducted an awareness campaigntargeted at adolescents, helping to encourage discussionamong peers about the dangers of trafficking. Thegovernment allocated $53,000 for trafficking preventionefforts, compared to $33,000 allocated in 2007. Borderofficials did not specifically monitor emigration andimmigration patterns for evidence of trafficking, andthe government made no discernable efforts to reducedemand for commercial sex acts.AUSTRALIA (Tier 1)Australia is a destination country for women fromSoutheast Asia, South Korea, Taiwan, the People’sRepublic of China (PRC), and reportedly EasternEurope trafficked for the purpose of commercial sexualexploitation. Some men and women from several Pacificislands, India, the PRC, South Korea, the Philippines,and Ireland are fraudulently recruited to worktemporarily in Australia, but subsequently are subjectedto conditions of forced labor, including confiscation oftravel documents, confinement, and threats of seriousharm. Some indigenous teenage girls are subjected toforced prostitution at rural truck stops. Some womenwho migrated to Australia voluntarily to work illegally inlicensed or illegal brothels were subsequently subjectedThe Government of Australia fully complies with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.During the year, three offenders were convictedspecifically for slavery and trafficking offenses. Thecourts set out the elements of the crimes and a roadmapfor the successful prosecution of the crimes of slavery,sexual servitude, debt bondage, and trafficking. A courtalso established that a woman who agreed to work eitherlegally or illegally in prostitution had in no way alsoagreed to her enslavement or to working in conditionsof slavery. A government study recommended changesto the 457 temporary worker visa program to halt theexploitation of foreign workers.Recommendations for Australia: Continue to conductsystematic efforts to proactively identify traffickingvictims in the legalized sex trade; criminally prosecuteemployers who subject migrant workers to debt bondageand involuntary servitude; implement recommendedchanges to the 457 temporary employment visa program;and continue to implement or support a visible antitraffickingawareness campaign directed at clients of thesex trade.ProsecutionThe Government of Australia demonstrated increasinganti-trafficking law enforcement efforts over the lastyear. Australia prohibits sex and labor traffickingand trafficking-related offenses in Divisions 270 and271 of the Commonwealth Criminal Code, which67

AUSTRIAprescribe maximum penalties from 12 to 25 years’imprisonment and/or fines of up to $140,000. Thesepenalties are sufficiently stringent and commensuratewith those prescribed for other grave crimes. In 2008, thegovernment obtained significant convictions for sexualslavery and trafficking under its most recent laws. Thetwo defendants in R vs Wei Tang, a trial that began in2005, were convicted of slavery in 2007; after a retrialand conviction in 2008, they await sentencing. KeithWilliam Dobie was convicted of trafficking in personsoffenses pursuant to section 271.2(2B) of the CriminalCode and sentenced in December 2008 to five years’imprisonment. In March 2009, five more prosecutionswere before the courts, involving 11 defendants. TheAustralian Federal Police (AFP) established an additionalTrafficking and Sexual Exploitation Task Team (TSETT)in Brisbane in November 2008. The AFP, as of September2008, had trained 132 specialist investigators on relevantlegislation, investigative methodologies, traffickingtrends, intelligence targeting, and victim liaison. TheCommonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions (CDPP)trained prosecutors on cross-cultural issues in traffickingcases, child eyewitness testimony, and interviewing. Aspart of its pilot Witness Assistance Service, the CDPPdeveloped materials explaining the criminal justicesystem to trafficking victims and witnesses. SinceNovember 2008, a Witness Assistance Officer workedwith prosecutors on trafficking cases. There were noreports of official involvement in trafficking. There wereno cases of sexual exploitation involving Australiantroops or peacekeeping officers deployed abroad.ProtectionThe Government of Australia continued to providecomprehensive assistance for victims of traffickingwilling to aid in criminal prosecutions and their familymembers. The government encouraged victims andwitnesses to participate in trafficking investigations, anddirectly linked continued assistance to victims’ role ina viable prosecution. Those victims who do not receivea trafficking visa generally qualify for a protection visaas a refugee, which they can apply for independently.Victims are not inappropriately incarcerated, fined, orpenalized for unlawful acts committed as a direct result ofbeing trafficked. The government is considering reformsrecommended by officials and NGOs who reviewed thetrafficking visa system. In collaboration with NGOs, thegovernment developed detailed guidelines for assistingtrafficking victims, which were published on its websitein December 2008. The Office of Women managed theSupport for Victims of People Trafficking Program. As ofJanuary 22, 2009, their program supported 44 victims.The average length of time spent in the Victim SupportProgram was 12.5 months.PreventionThe Government of Australia demonstrated effortsto prevent trafficking in persons during the year.The Australian Government published the “TravelSmart: Hints for Australian Travellers,” brochure,which highlights Australian trafficking and child sexcrime laws, noting they “also prohibit the incitement,encouragement of, or gaining benefit from suchactivities.” It provides details for reporting a possibleviolation of Australia’s child sex laws to the AFP. FromJuly to December 2008, the Australian Passports Officedistributed over 700,000 Travel Smart brochures, onewith every passport renewal. In March 2008, a two-yearinternational investigation led by Queensland PoliceTask Force “Argos” dismantled a criminal ring whicharranged and provided live video feeds of the sexual andphysical abuse of children to paying customers aroundthe world via the Internet. Australian courts convictedtwo men of commercial sexual exploitation of a child,including the man responsible for the website’s security.Australia’s extra-territorial law on child sex tourismprovides penalties of up to 17 years’ imprisonment forAustralians convicted of sexually exploiting childrenunder the age of 16. Two prosecutions under this law werebegun in 2008. The Australian government bolstered itscommunications strategy to increase awareness abouttrafficking within the sex industry in October 2008 whenit announced $680,000 in funding for four AustralianNGO’s efforts to provide outreach for trafficking victimsand conduct education and awareness initiatives onhuman trafficking. There were no other visible measuresto reduce the demand for forced labor or commercialsex acts in Australia during the reporting period. Thegovernment released a report of an experts’ review onthe 457 temporary worker visa program, which proposed66 changes to protect migrants from exploitation byemployers, such as more closely screening and monitoringemployers. Changes to the scheme are scheduled to beincluded in the next budget. Twenty-eight specialistoverseas immigration officers and 18 overseas AirportLiaison Officers are working to stop trafficking at itssource. In addition, the government provides substantialfunding for law enforcement training, victim assistanceprograms, and prevention activities throughout SoutheastAsia. The Australian government ensured that troops andpolice officers preparing to deploy with UN peacekeepingmissions were made aware of trafficking issues andinstructed as to the legal ramifications in Australia ofengaging in or facilitating trafficking, or exploitingtrafficking victims while deployed.AUSTRIA (Tier 1)Austria is a transit and destination country for womenand children trafficked from Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary,Moldova, Belarus, Ukraine, Slovakia, Nigeria, and sub-Saharan Africa for the purposes of commercial sexualexploitation and forced labor. Some of these women aretrafficked through Austria to Italy, France, and Spain.Women from Africa are trafficked through Spain and Italyto Austria for the purpose of sexual exploitation. Thereare reports of some trafficking of foreign women and68

AZERBAIJANcontinued to be largely directed at victims of traffickingrather than “clients” of Austria’s legal and regulatedsex trade. There were approximately 2,800 legal andillegal brothels operating in Austria during the reportingperiod. The government published a brochure on childtrafficking in 2008 to raise awareness and provide adviceon assisting this population of victims. The governmentfunded an NGO-provided course to sensitize Austriantroops on human trafficking before they were deployedon international peacekeeping missions. The Austriangovernment reportedly monitored its borders for signsof trafficking and border officials screened travelers toidentify potential trafficking victims. Austrian law allowsthe extraterritorial prosecution of Austrian nationalswho travel abroad to engage in child commercial sexualexploitation. In 2008, it continued a campaign toencourage tourists and travel agencies to report cases ofchild sex tourism. It did not report any investigations orprosecutions of such activity.AZERBAIJAN (Tier 2 Watch List)Azerbaijan is a source, transit, and limited destinationcountry for men, women, and children trafficked for thepurposes of commercial sexual exploitation and forcedlabor. Women and children from Azerbaijan are traffickedto Turkey and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for thepurpose of commercial sexual exploitation. Men and boysare trafficked to Russia for the purpose of forced labor.Men and women are also trafficked to Iran, Pakistan, andthe UAE for purposes of sexual exploitation and forcedlabor. Some men are trafficked within Azerbaijan forthe purpose of forced labor and women and children aretrafficked internally for forced prostitution and forcedlabor, including forced begging. Azerbaijan serves asa transit country for victims trafficked from Moldova,Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan to Turkey and the UAE forcommercial sexual exploitation. The Azerbaijani exclaveof Nakhchivan serves as a transit point for womentrafficked to Turkey. A small number of men and womenfrom Ukraine, Moldova, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, andRussia were trafficked to Azerbaijan for the purpose ofcommercial sexual exploitation.The Government of Azerbaijan does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to doso. Despite these overall efforts, the government did notshow evidence of progress in investigating, prosecuting,convicting, and punishing trafficking offenders, includingcomplicit officials; therefore, Azerbaijan is placed on Tier2 Watch List. Although the government made modestimprovements, victim identification and access to victimassistance remained limited during the reporting period.The government adopted a new national action plan ontrafficking in February 2009; however, it did not allocatefunding to implement the programs and policies in theplan, and funding for anti-trafficking efforts remainedlow and inconsistent throughout the reporting period.The new action plan included a draft national victimreferral mechanism, though the mechanism was notformally adopted or implemented during the reportingperiod. Azerbaijan demonstrated improved awarenessefforts.Recommendations for Azerbaijan: Increase lawenforcement efforts to prosecute and convict traffickers,including government officials complicit in trafficking,and ensure that a majority of convicted traffickers servesome time in prison; vet members of the anti-traffickingunit for human rights abuses; implement the nationalvictim referral mechanism; increase inter-agencycoordination of anti-trafficking efforts; improve victimassistance and protection for child victims of trafficking;provide initial assistance to domestic victims withoutrequiring them to file a formal complaint with police; andconduct awareness and victim treatment training for lawenforcement and judges.ProsecutionThe Government of Azerbaijan conducted fewertrafficking investigations and prosecutions and convictedfewer traffickers than in 2007. Azerbaijan’s 2005 Lawon the Fight Against Trafficking in Persons prohibitstrafficking for both sexual exploitation and forced labor,and prescribes from five to 15 years’ imprisonment,punishments which are sufficiently stringent andcommensurate with those prescribed for other gravecrimes, such as rape. In 2008, the government reportedconducting 66 trafficking investigations and prosecuted61 trafficking cases, down from 75 cases in 2007. Thegovernment secured the convictions of 61 traffickers,down from 85 convictions in 2007. Some convictedtraffickers received sentences of from one to eight years’imprisonment. According to most civil society groups inAzerbaijan, corruption and lack of training among lowlevellaw enforcement impeded overall anti-traffickingefforts. There were unconfirmed reports that convictedtraffickers bribed some judges to grant suspendedsentences. There were also unconfirmed reports thatpolice officers controlled saunas, motels, and massageparlors where forced prostitution occurred. Duringthe reporting period, some victims claimed they werekidnapped by police and forced into prostitution and werelater threatened by police not to file charges against theofficials responsible for trafficking them. The governmentfailed to vigorously investigate trafficking-related70

corruption during the reporting period. The governmenthas yet to vet members of its anti-trafficking unit forhuman rights abuses, a recommendation since the 2005Trafficking in Persons Report.ProtectionThe Government of Azerbaijan demonstrated mixedprogress in assisting victims during the reporting period.It did not employ a system to proactively identifyvictims of trafficking among vulnerable populations,including labor migrants; some NGOs suspect that labortrafficking may be more significant that sex trafficking.Coordination among the government agencies assignedto combat trafficking and assist victims was infrequent;most agencies did not have a dedicated office or point ofcontact responsible for coordinating with other agenciesto effectively combat trafficking. In 2008, NGOs andlaw enforcement identified 121 victims; the governmentfundedshelter assisted 55 of these victims, up from 29 in2007. Victims were only eligible for government-fundedassistance, however, if they were an adult, female, andparticipated in a formal criminal case. Law enforcementreferred 52 victims to the government-funded shelter in2008. The government encouraged victims to participatein investigations and prosecutions of traffickingoffenders; however, victims reported that some corruptpolice officers discouraged them from filing criminalcomplaints through threats of physical violence. Therewere no reports that victims were penalized for unlawfulacts committed as a direct result of being trafficked.Generally, identified foreign victims of trafficking whocooperate with law enforcement were permitted toremain in Azerbaijan until the completion of their courtcase; however, six foreign victims were deported prior tothe completion of their court case during the reportingperiod. There were no child trafficking shelters operatingduring the reporting period. Some child victims receivedshelter at a government-run child homeless center fora maximum of 30 days and then were returned to thestreets.PreventionThe government improved its prevention efforts duringthe reporting period. The government conducted ageneral trafficking-awareness campaign, advertising inboth newspapers and on television. The government alsofunded and produced a documentary, in part, about sextrafficking called “Protect Me,” which aired on severaltelevision stations during the reporting period. Thegovernment-funded trafficking hotline appeared moreeffective and identified at least eight trafficking victimsduring the reporting period. Although the governmentappointed a national anti-trafficking coordinator in2004, the individual is a known human rights violator,a problematic obstacle to it achieving a truly victimcenteredapproach to its anti-trafficking efforts. Thegovernment made no effort to reduce demand forcommercial sex acts.THE BAHAMAS (Tier 2)The Bahamas is a destination country for men andwomen trafficked from Haiti and other Caribbeancountries primarily for the purpose of forced labor, andwomen from Jamaica and other countries traffickedfor the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation. Insituations that, for some workers, may constitute forcedlabor, employers coerce migrant or temporary workers– legal and illegal – to work longer hours, at lowerpay, and in conditions not permitted under local laborANTIGUA & BARBUDA TIER RANKING BY YEARlaw by changing the terms of contracts, withholdingtravel documents, refusing transportation back home,threatening to withdraw the employer-specific andemployer-held permits, or to turn the employee over toimmigration. For the past three years, The Bahamas wasincluded in the Report as a Special Case due to limiteddata.THE BAHAMAS TIER RANKING BY YEARThe Government BARBADOS TIER of The RANKING Bahamas BY YEARdoes not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts todo so. During the reporting period, the governmentenacted comprehensive anti-trafficking legislation, addedskilled personnel to anti-trafficking agencies and offices,consulted with other governments about traffickingissues and assistance, and continued to train governmentpersonnel on trafficking issues. The government did not,however, make noticeable efforts to proactively identifyBOTSWANA TIER RANKING BY YEARvictims among vulnerable populations, such as foreignwomen and girls engaged in illegal prostitution or womenand girls intercepted at its borders who may be attemptingto enter The Bahamas to engage in illegal prostitution.Recommendations for The Bahamas: Take steps toidentify trafficking victims among migrants attemptingto enter The Bahamas illegally; investigate, prosecute, andpunish suspected human trafficking offenders; create andimplement a national trafficking public awareness andBRUNEI TIER RANKING BY YEARprevention program; and allocate resources for the victimassistance measures mandated by the new anti-traffickinglaw.ProsecutionWhile the Government of The Bahamas made minimalefforts to prosecute trafficking offenders, it lacked acomprehensive anti-trafficking law for most of thereporting period, faced relevant resource and capacityconstraints, and confronted multiple competing lawTHE BAHAMAS71

BAHRAINenforcement priorities. The Government of The Bahamasprohibited all forms of trafficking through its Traffickingin Persons Prevention and Suppression Act of 2008.Although previously enacted laws prohibit traffickingrelatedoffenses, the government did not arrest orprosecute any trafficking offenders during the reportingperiod. The penalties for trafficking in persons in the2008 Act, ranging from three years’ to life imprisonment,are sufficiently stringent and commensurate withpenalties prescribed for other serious crimes, such as rape.The Bahamian government provided law enforcementpersonnel with anti-trafficking training, and somepersonnel participated in training with NGOs andinternational organizations. Historically, governmentpersonnel have conflated human trafficking and humansmuggling.ProtectionThe Bahamian government showed minimal effortsto protect victims of trafficking over the last year. Thegovernment continued to rely on NGOs and internationalorganizations for the provision of services to victims.The Bahamas operates no specialized trafficking shelters,although services to victims of domestic violence wouldbe offered to women and child trafficking victims. Noorganizations currently provide protective servicesfor men. Agencies and officials followed no formalprocedures for screening or referring victims to NGOs;potential victims are referred as they are identified. Thenew anti-trafficking law requires ministers responsiblefor national security and social services to implementa plan to provide appropriate services to victims, incooperation with NGOs. Bahamian authorities encouragevictims to participate in investigations and prosecutionsof trafficking offenders. The newly enacted law requiresconvicted traffickers to financially compensate theirvictims. Although the government ensured that victims,once identified, were not inappropriately penalized solelyfor unlawful acts committed as a direct result of beingtrafficked, some victims were not properly identified.Law enforcement personnel generally deported foreignwomen found working in the Bahamian sex industrywithout first attempting to determine if any were victimsof trafficking. The Bahamas’ new law includes provisionsfor victims’ immunity from prosecution, the protection ofvictims and witnesses with special considerations for theage and extent of trauma suffered by the victim, and relieffrom the removal of foreign victims to countries wherethey may face hardship or retribution regardless of theirparticipation in the investigation or prosecution of theirtraffickers.PreventionThe government demonstrated limited efforts to preventtrafficking over the reporting period. It strongly promotedofficial awareness of, and coordination on, traffickingissues within the country through mechanisms such asthe multi-agency Trafficking in Persons Working Group.The government made no visible effort to reduce thedemand for commercial sex acts, and it did not engage inany other awareness-raising efforts directed at Bahamiancitizens.BAHRAIN (Tier 2 Watch List)Bahrain is a destination country for men and womentrafficked for the purposes of forced labor and commercialsexual exploitation. Men and women from India,Pakistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Indonesia,Thailand, the Philippines, Ethiopia, and Eritrea migratevoluntarily to Bahrain to work as formal sector laborersor domestic workers. Some, however, face conditionsof involuntary servitude after arriving in Bahrain, suchas unlawful withholding of passports, restrictions onmovement, non-payment of wages, threats, and physicalor sexual abuse. In addition, women from Thailand, thePhilippines, China, Vietnam, Russia, Ukraine, Morocco,Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon are trafficked to Bahrain forthe purpose of commercial sexual exploitation.The Government of Bahrain does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Thegovernment achieved its first trafficking conviction in late2008 – a conviction for sex trafficking – and instituted anew visa regime in July 2008 allowing migrant workersto change employers. Despite these significant overallefforts, the government did not show evidence of progressin providing protective services to victims or prosecutingoffenses relating to labor trafficking – the most prevalentform of trafficking in Bahrain; therefore, Bahrain is placedon Tier 2 Watch List.Recommendations for Bahrain: Significantly increasethe investigation and prosecution of trafficking offenses –particularly those involving forced labor – and convictionand punishment of trafficking offenders; institute andapply formal procedures to identify victims of traffickingamong vulnerable groups, such as domestic workers whohave fled from abusive employers and prostituted women,and refer identified victims to protective services; andensure that victims of trafficking are not punished for actscommitted as a direct result of being trafficked, such asillegal migration or prostitution.ProsecutionThe Government of Bahrain made modest progress inconducting anti-trafficking law enforcement effortsduring the year, prosecuting its first case under itsJanuary 2008 anti-trafficking statute. The Law to CombatTrafficking in Persons prohibits all forms of trafficking inpersons and prescribes penalties ranging from three to15 years’ imprisonment, which are sufficiently stringentand commensurate with those prescribed for othergrave crimes, such as rape. The Ministry of Interior’s 10-person specialized unit investigated trafficking crimes,particularly those involving sex trafficking. It claimedto have disbanded a prostitution ring and rescued 43Chinese women believed to be trafficking victims, but72

prosecutors reportedly viewed the evidence as insufficientto pursue legal action. In December 2008, the PublicProsecutor obtained the conviction of a Thai woman whowas sentenced to three and a half years’ imprisonmentand a $13,250 fine for trafficking three other Thai womeninto commercial sexual exploitation in Bahrain. Duringthe reporting period, the government reportedly closedseveral manpower agencies alleged to have confiscatedworkers’ passports, switched contracts, or withheldpayment of salaries. The government also ordered 12employers to pay back and release their workers. It didnot criminally prosecute any employers or labor agentsfor forced labor of migrant laborers, including domesticworkers, under its new anti-trafficking law. The lawagainst withholding workers’ passports – a commonpractice that restricts the mobility of migrant workers andcontributes to forced labor – was not enforced effectively,and the practice remained widespread. The Royal PoliceAcademy provided new police recruits with specificinstruction on identifying trafficking victims during thereporting period.among vulnerable groups, such as domestic workerswho have left their employers or women arrested forprostitution. As a result, potential trafficking victims mayhave been charged with employment or immigrationviolations, detained, and deported without adequateprotection. Most migrant workers who were able toflee their abusive employers were frequently chargedas “runaways,” sentenced to two weeks’ detention,and deported. Employers also sometimes filed policereports against their runaway workers. The governmentencouraged victims to assist in the investigation andprosecution of their traffickers; however, long andindefinite delays in legal cases, as well as a perceivedbias against foreign workers by judges and prosecutors,discouraged workers from such involvement in criminalproceedings against their traffickers.BAHRAINProtectionThe Government of Bahrain did little to improveprotective services available to trafficking victims overthe last year, though it issued new policy guidance onthe employment conditions of migrant workers. Thegovernment maintains one floor of its shelter for femalemigrant workers, but did not provide informationregarding the number of foreign workers assisted or thetypes of care the shelter provided to trafficking victims.The majority of victims continued to seek shelter at theirembassies or through the Migrant Workers ProtectionSociety, which in April and July 2008 received a projectgrant of $15,900 from the Bahraini government to operateits shelter. The government did not have a referral processto transfer trafficking victims detained, arrested, orplaced in protective custody to institutions that provideshort- and long-term care. There are no shelter facilities orprotective services for male trafficking victims in Bahrain.In August 2008, the Ministry of Social Developmentestablished a committee to protect trafficking victims aspart of its obligation under the anti-Trafficking in Personslaw. One of the responsibilities of this committee, as partof the new law, is its approval for trafficking victims toremain in Bahrain pending their traffickers’ prosecution;in the aforementioned case, the Thai victims were offeredthe option of remaining in Bahrain to work, but allthree chose to repatriate to Thailand instead. To addressvulnerabilities to trafficking arising from the migrantlabor sponsorship system, the government launched anew migrant labor visa regime in July 2008 that allows forworkers to change employers and criminalizes the use of“free visas” that often leave workers stranded in Bahrainwithout a job. These regulations do not, however, applyto domestic workers, which are the migrant workers mostvulnerable to forced labor in Bahrain. The governmentcontinued to lack a formal procedure to identify victimsPreventionThe government’s efforts to prevent trafficking increasedduring the reporting period. The Ministry of Interior’sHuman Trafficking Unit produced a brochure describingBahrain’s anti-trafficking law and soliciting complaints toits hotline for investigations; it distributed this brochureto at-risk groups upon arrival in the country. The LaborMarket Regulatory Authority (LMRA) collaborated withIOM to produce a pamphlet explaining how to legallyobtain a work visa, workers’ rights, and how to reportsuspected violations. Throughout 2008, the CEO of LMRAand the Minister of Labor conducted press conferencesto highlight illegal practices, particularly withholdingof passports, relating to human trafficking. Despite theincreased level of awareness fostered by these campaigns,understanding of what constitutes trafficking remainedlow. Many people, including courthouse clerks, continuedto believe that it is legal to confiscate workers’ passports,despite several instances over the course of the reportingperiod in which the Minister of Labor explicitly statedthat withholding passports is illegal. In March 2009, thegovernment hosted a two-day international conferenceon combating trafficking in persons. In April, June,and July 2008, the government provided services andsupport valued at more than $60,000 that enabled IOMto train 315 civil society volunteers, journalists, foreigndiplomats, and government officials in the LMRA andMinistries of Interior, Social Development, Culture andInformation Affairs, Foreign Affairs, Labor, and Justice.In July, the government requested and supported atraining and awareness program for its anti-trafficking73

BANGLADESHunit. Nonetheless, the government did not take any stepsto reduce the demand for forced labor or the demand forcommercial sex acts within the country.BANGLADESH(Tier 2 Watch List)Bangladesh is a source and transit country for men,women, and children trafficked for the purposes of forcedlabor and commercial sexual exploitation. A significantshare of Bangladesh’s trafficking victims are menrecruited for work overseas with fraudulent employmentoffers who are subsequently exploited under conditions offorced labor or debt bondage. Children – both boys andgirls – are trafficked within Bangladesh for commercialsexual exploitation, bonded labor, and forced labor.Some children are sold into bondage by their parents,while others are induced into labor or commercial sexualexploitation through fraud and physical coercion. Womenand children from Bangladesh are also trafficked to Indiaand Pakistan for sexual exploitation.exploitation, domestic servitude, and bonded labor.Bangladesh does not fully comply with the minimumstandards for the elimination of trafficking; however,it is making significant efforts to do so. Despite thesesignificant efforts, including some progress in addressingsex trafficking, the government did not demonstratesufficient progress in criminally prosecuting andconvicting labor trafficking offenders, particularly thoseresponsible for the recruitment of Bangladeshi workersfor the purpose of labor trafficking; therefore, Bangladeshis placed on Tier 2 Watch List. The practice of allowinglabor recruiters to charge outbound migrants up to$1,235, the equivalent of ten months’ salary in some Gulfstate destinations, may contribute to forced labor anddebt bondage, as the ILO has concluded that such highrecruitment costs increase workers’ vulnerability to forcedlabor.Recommendations for Bangladesh: Integrate antilabortrafficking objectives into national anti-traffickingpolicies and programs; significantly increase criminalprosecutions and punishments for all forms of labortrafficking, including those involving fraudulent laborrecruitment and forced child labor; continue to investigateand prosecute government officials who may be suspectedof complicity in trafficking; greatly improve oversightof Bangladesh’s 700 international recruiting agencies toensure they are not promoting practices that contribute tolabor trafficking; and provide protection services for adultmale trafficking victims and victims of forced labor.Bangladeshi men and women migrate willingly to SaudiArabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates (UAE),Qatar, Iraq, Lebanon, and Malaysia for work, usuallyunder legal and contractual terms. Most Bangladeshisseeking overseas employment through legal channelsrely on the 700 recruiting agencies belonging to theBangladesh Association of International RecruitingAgencies (BAIRA) which are legally permitted tocharge workers up to $1,235 – and often charge moreunlawfully – for placing workers in low-skilled jobs thatusually pay between $100 and $150 per month. Suchfees have been reported by the ILO to contribute to theplacement of some of these workers in debt bondageor forced labor once overseas. NGOs report that manyBangladeshi migrant laborers are victims of recruitmentfraud, including fraudulent representation of the termsof employment; such victimization often results insituations of labor trafficking. Women typically work asdomestic servants; some find themselves in situationsof forced labor or debt bondage when faced withrestrictions on their movements, non-payment of wages,threats, and physical or sexual abuse. Some Bangladeshiwomen working abroad are subsequently trafficked intocommercial sexual exploitation. Bangladeshi adultsare also trafficked internally for commercial sexualProsecutionThe Government of Bangladesh made inadequateoverall anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts overthe last year. Bangladesh prohibits the trafficking ofwomen and children for the purpose of commercialsexual exploitation or involuntary servitude under theRepression of Women and Children Act of 2000 (amendedin 2003), and prohibits the selling and buying of a childunder the age of 18 for prostitution in Articles 372 and373 of its penal code. Prescribed penalties under these sextrafficking statutes range from 10 years’ imprisonment tothe death sentence; the most common sentence imposedon convicted sex traffickers is life imprisonment. Thesepenalties are very stringent and commensurate with thoseprescribed for other grave crimes, such as rape. Article 374of Bangladesh’s penal code prohibits forced labor, but theprescribed penalties of imprisonment for up to one yearor a fine are not sufficiently stringent to deter the offense.During the reporting period, the government obtainedthe convictions of 37 sex trafficking offenders, with 26of them sentenced to life imprisonment and 11 to lesserprison terms. This is an increase from the 20 convictionsobtained in 2007. It also initiated 134 sex traffickinginvestigations and prosecuted 90 suspected sex traffickingcases. The Bangladeshi judicial system’s handling ofsex trafficking cases continued to be plagued by a largebacklog and delays caused by procedural loopholes. Mostsex trafficking cases are prosecuted by the 42 special74

courts for the prosecution of crimes of violence againstwomen and children spread throughout 32 districts of thecountry, which are generally more efficient than regulartrial courts. During the reporting period, the Bureau ofManpower Employment and Training (BMET) reportedlyshut down nine recruiting agencies, cancelled the licensesof 25 agencies, suspended seven agencies, fined six others,and initiated three new cases for their involvementin fraudulent recruitment practices that potentiallyfacilitated human trafficking. Despite these administrativeactions taken against labor recruitment agencies involvedin fraudulent recruitment and possible human trafficking,the government did not report any criminal prosecutionsor convictions for labor trafficking offenses. There wereno reported prosecutions or convictions for forced childlabor offenses. In mid-2008, the government createda 12-member police anti-trafficking investigative unitthat complements an existing police anti-traffickingmonitoring cell. The country’s National Police Academyprovided anti-trafficking training to 2,827 police officersduring the year.ProtectionThe Government of Bangladesh made limited efforts,within the scope of its resources, to protect victims oftrafficking over the last year. While the governmentdid not provide shelter or other services dedicatedto trafficking victims, it continued to run six homesfor women and child victims of violence, includingtrafficking, as well as a “one-stop crisis center” for womenand children in the Dhaka general hospital. Duringthe last year, Bangladeshi law enforcement officialsidentified 251 trafficking victims – believed to be victimsof trafficking for commercial sexual exploitation – andreferred 204 trafficking victims to care facilities run bythe government or NGOs. The Ministry of ExpatriateWelfare and Overseas Employments continued to operateshelters for female Bangladeshi victims of traffickingand exploitation in Riyadh, Jeddah, Abu Dhabi, andDubai. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs produced anddisseminated among Bangladeshi diplomatic missionsabroad a new circular entitled “Guidelines for BangladeshMissions Abroad to Combat Trafficking in Persons.” Lawenforcement personnel encouraged victims of trafficking,when identified, to participate in investigations andprosecutions of their traffickers and generally did notpenalize victims for unlawful acts committed as a directresult of their being trafficked. The government’s lack ofefforts to protect victims of forced labor – who constitutea large share of victims in the country – as well as adultmale victims of trafficking is a continuing concern.government disseminated anti-trafficking messages invarious forms, including public service announcements,dramas, public discussions, and songs, on thegovernment-run television channel and radio network.The government failed, however, to take measures toprevent fraudulent recruitment that could lead to debtbondage. The government has allowed BAIRA to setfees, license individual agencies, and certify workers foroverseas labor, while not exercising adequate oversightover this consortium of labor recruiters to ensurethat their practices do not facilitate debt bondage offoreign workers. During the year, the government didnot demonstrate measures to reduce the demand forforced labor or for commercial sex acts. The Bangladeshigovernment provided anti-trafficking training to itstroops being deployed for peacekeeping missions abroad.Bangladesh has not ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.BARBADOS (Tier 2)Barbados is a destination country for women from theDominican Republic, Guyana, and Jamaica trafficked forthe purpose of sexual exploitation; it is also a destinationfor men from China, India, and Guyana trafficked forANTIGUA & BARBUDA TIER RANKING BY YEARthe purpose of labor exploitation in construction andother sectors. Reports from 2005 indicated that girlsand women within Barbados and from other Caribbeancountries were trafficked for the purpose of domesticservitude. Sex traffickers, primarily pimps and brothelowners from Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, and Barbados,lure women through newspaper ads for legitimate workin Barbados. Trafficked women tend to enter the countrythrough legal means, usually by air; traffickers later forcevictims THE to work BAHAMAS in strip TIER RANKING clubs, massage BY YEAR parlors, someprivate residences, and “entertainment clubs” that operateas brothels. Traffickers use threats of physical harm ordeportation, debt bondage, false contracts, psychologicalabuse, and confinement to force men, women, andreportedly some girls to also work in construction, thegarment industry, agriculture, or private households.BARBADOS TIER RANKING BY YEARBARBADOSPreventionThe Bangladeshi government made modest efforts toprevent human trafficking over the reporting period. Thegovernment’s inter-ministerial committee on humantrafficking, chaired by the Home Minister, continuedto meet monthly, though its work was largely confinedto addressing sex trafficking. Throughout the year, theBOTSWANA TIER RANKING BY YEARThe Government of Barbados does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Duringthe reporting period, the government drafted a protocolfor anti-trafficking actions, increased public awarenessof trafficking, and cooperated with other CaribbeanBRUNEI TIER RANKING BY YEAR75

BELARUSgovernments on trafficking issues. The government,however, did not report any investigations of suspectedcases of sex or labor trafficking, nor did it prosecute anytrafficking cases during the year.Recommendations for Barbados: Develop, enact,and implement a comprehensive anti-trafficking law;proactively investigate suspected human trafficking cases;prosecute and punish trafficking offenders, includingthose who subject workers to conditions of forced labor;implement procedures for law enforcement officers toproactively identify trafficking victims among vulnerablepopulations; develop a national plan to identify, combat,and prevent trafficking; and create and implement anational trafficking public awareness and preventionprogram.ProsecutionThe Barbados government made weak efforts toprosecute trafficking offenders during the year,while facing resource constraints and competinglaw enforcement priorities. Barbados has no specificlaw prohibiting human trafficking, but slavery andforced labor are constitutionally prohibited. Existingstatutes against sexual offenses and forced laborcould be used to prosecute some trafficking crimes.Penalties for these offenses, which range from five to15 years’ imprisonment, are sufficiently stringent andcommensurate with penalties prescribed for otherserious crimes, such as rape. No trafficking offenderswere prosecuted during the year. Most law enforcementand immigration officials do not have the appropriatetraining, funding, and other necessary mechanisms tomonitor and investigate suspected cases of trafficking.ProtectionThe Government of Barbados made moderate effortsto ensure victims’ access to protective services over thelast year. It funded several existing programs to assistvictims of other crimes which could be used to supporttrafficking victims, such as shelters run by a local NGOand the Salvation Army, and public counseling servicesfor victims of rape and child abuse. The governmentexpressed its readiness to refer victims of trafficking,once identified, to the Bureau of Gender Affairs forsupport services, although no victims were formallyidentified during the year. The government’s Bureauof Gender Affairs collaborated with a local NGO tosensitize government agencies on the difference betweensmuggling and trafficking, the importance of referringvictims to services provided in collaboration with NGOs,and the importance of implementing a traffickingspecificprotocol and legislation to better target theirefforts. Victims of trafficking (like victims of othercrimes) are not, in general, encouraged to participate ininvestigations or prosecutions of trafficking offenders.Trafficking victims could be prosecuted for unlawful actscommitted as a direct result of their being trafficked, asno existing legislation offers legal protection specificallyto victims of trafficking. Police claim to have no optionunder current, relevant laws but to treat foreign traffickingvictims without valid legal documentation as criminalsand summarily deport them. UNHCR provided suspectedtrafficking victims with medical assistance and helpwith repatriation. There have been no reported cases ofBarbadians trafficked to foreign countries, although theBureau of Gender Affairs has specialized services in placeshould such a case arise.PreventionThe government made moderate efforts to raise thepublic’s awareness of the risks and dangers of humantrafficking in Barbados. During the year the governmenthosted educational workshops and ran press releaseson human trafficking. Although there is no formalmechanism for coordinating government and NGO actionon trafficking issues, the Bureau of Gender Affairs workedwith regional and local NGOs, religious organizations,and community advocates to better organize theiranti-trafficking efforts and outreach. The Bureau ofGender Affairs also disseminated the government’s draftprotocol for anti-trafficking action to various officialagencies. Expansion of the tourism industry is fueling anincreased demand for commercial sex in Barbados, butthe government made no noticeable efforts to reduce thedemand for commercial sex acts. Barbados has not ratifiedthe 2000 UN TIP Protocol.BELARUS (Tier 2)Belarus is a source and transit country for women, men,and children trafficked from Belarus and neighboringcountries to Russia, Germany, Poland, the CzechRepublic, Lithuania, Latvia, Austria, the Netherlands,Israel, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Turkey, Egypt,Ukraine, and the Republic of Togo for the purposesof commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor.Authorities registered 591 trafficking victims of whom458 were trafficked for sexual exploitation (including96 minors) and 133 for forced labor; 366 were female(including 42 minors) and 225 were male (including 61minors). Authorities identified 246 victims traffickedwithin Belarus. A 2008 IOM study on the traffickingof men found that more than 60 percent of assistedBelarusian trafficked men from 2004 to 2006 had somejob training or college education. There was one ongoingcase against residents of Belarus for trafficking Russianhomeless persons into servitude in Belarus.The Government of Belarus does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Thegovernment demonstrated sustained efforts to prosecuteand punish trafficking offenders, though support forvictim assistance programs remained lacking, and thegovernment did not refer the majority of identifiedtrafficking victims to service providers for assistance.76

Recommendations for Belarus: Increase resourcesdevoted to victim assistance and protection withinBelarus; ensure male and child victims’ access toappropriate assistance and protection; continuestreamlining administrative processes related to all victimprotections; encourage public reporting of allegationsof law enforcement officials’ complicity in trafficking;continue to improve relations with and cultivate aclimate of encouragement for NGO partners providingvictim services; and take steps to reduce the demand forcommercial sex acts and forced labor.ProsecutionThe government sustained its significant law enforcementefforts in 2008. Belarusian law prohibits trafficking inpersons for the purposes of both sexual exploitationand forced labor through Article 181 of its criminalcode, which prescribes penalties ranging of five to 15years’ imprisonment, in addition to the forfeiture ofassets. These penalties are sufficiently stringent and arecommensurate with penalties prescribed for other gravecrimes. Belarusian authorities registered 333 humantrafficking investigations in 2008. The governmentprosecuted 69 cases under article 181 and reportedan additional 160 trafficking offenses prosecutedunder other statutes such as pimping, kidnapping,and involving minors in antisocial behavior. Thegovernment reported 17 convictions under article 181and 112 additional convictions of trafficking offenderson related offenses in 2008. The majority of convictedtrafficking offenders were sentenced to jail for overeight years with property confiscation. There were noinvestigations, prosecutions, or convictions of officialscomplicit in human trafficking. There were no reportsof government complicity in trafficking, although suchinformation may have been limited because of lack ofpress freedom and imprisonment of citizens for criticizinggovernment officials in Belarus. During the reportingperiod, the government continued specialized training invictim identification and protection to members of lawenforcement, courts, and the Prosecutor General’s Officethrough its government anti-trafficking training centerin the Ministry of Interior. The high turnover rate for lawenforcement officials, interagency coordination problems,and other bureaucratic obstacles hampered overall lawenforcement effectiveness in combating trafficking.ProtectionThe government demonstrated mixed efforts toprotect and assist victims during the reporting period.The government again failed to provide funding forspecialized victim assistance programs pledged in a 2005presidential decree. The government reported referringonly 125 out of 591 victims to service providers in 2008using the national referral mechanism. Law enforcementofficials generally refer trafficking victims to IOM orNGO shelters – which rely on donor funding – to provideshort and longer term protection and rehabilitation.The government operated 156 governmental socialcenters, which in theory can provide services to returnedtrafficking victims, but only 17 have specializedtrafficking-related services. Officials refer child traffickingvictims to one of the 146 government social care andeducation centers under the Ministry of Education.Under Belarus’ state health care system, victims mayseek medical assistance free of charge, but most victimsdecline medical assistance from government facilitiesdue to their reluctance to divulge information to clinicstaff or because of the poor quality of services provided.While government coercion of victims to cooperate withinvestigations still occurs, law enforcement agenciespermitted NGO specialists to attend police interviewsand closed court hearings upon victims’ requests.Belarusian law allows for authorities to grant temporaryresidency status to foreign victims. The 2005 presidentialdecree stipulates that trafficking victims should not bedeported or penalized for unlawful acts committed as adirect result of their being trafficked. Belarusian courtsawarded $79,000 in compensation to trafficking victimsfrom 2002 to 2008. While NGOs in Belarus are oftensubjected to government intimidation and strict control,anti-trafficking NGOs in general reported that thegovernment decreased some delays related to red tape andburdensome project registration procedures during thereporting period.PreventionThe Government of Belarus demonstrated sustainedpublic awareness and trafficking prevention activitiesin 2008. The government continued to fund its antitraffickingtraining academy. The government alsofunded and aired a series of anti-trafficking public serviceannouncements on state owned television channels.Officials continued to conduct press conferences andbriefings on the anti-trafficking situation in Belarusduring the reporting period. The education ministrydistributed a manual for teachers on activities aimed atpreventing human trafficking. The Ministry of Interiorcontinued to operate a hotline regarding the licensingstatus and legitimacy of employment agencies involvedin work and study abroad but referred callers to NGO runand funded hotlines for other services. NGOs reportedclose cooperation from authorities in distributingNGO-funded public awareness materials. There werereports that some policies described by the Belarusiangovernment as anti-trafficking measures, such as theenforcement of foreign travel controls on students andBELARUS77

BELGIUMothers groups, were unduly restricting Belarusian citizens’ability to travel abroad for legitimate purposes.BELGIUM (Tier 1)Belgium is a destination and transit country for men,women, and girls trafficked for the purposes of forcedlabor and commercial sexual exploitation. Women andgirls are trafficked to Belgium for sexual exploitationprimarily from Nigeria, Russia, Albania, Bulgaria,Romania, the People’s Republic of China (PRC), andthrough Belgium to other European countries, such as theUnited Kingdom. Male victims are trafficked to Belgiumfor labor exploitation in restaurants, bars, sweatshops,horticulture, fruit farms, and construction sites.According to Belgian immigration, the number of foreignunaccompanied minors entering the country increased by14 percent in 2007 compared to 2006. The governmentdetermined that nine of these minors were victims oftrafficking, compared to 14 of 1752 unaccompaniedminors who entered in 2006. The government andNGOs reported two new trends in 2008: an increase inthe number of forced labor cases, and sex traffickingincreasingly disguised by businesses including massageparlors, escort services and the Internet. The traffickingof workers for domestic servitude and traffickingfor sexual exploitation continued to be committedby some members of the international diplomaticcommunity posted in Belgium. The Belgian governmenthas conducted campaigns to reduce this problem andinvestigates such cases.and consider training for officials who may encountertrafficking victims that focuses on the needs of victims.ProsecutionBelgium prohibits all forms of trafficking through a2005 amendment to its 1995 Act Containing Measuresto Repress Trafficking in Persons. As amended, the law’smaximum prescribed sentence for all forms of trafficking– 30 years’ imprisonment – is sufficiently stringent andcommensurate with penalties prescribed for rape. In 2007,the most recent year for which data were available, thegovernment reported 1,204 trafficking investigations.Authorities reported prosecuting and obtaining theconvictions of 223 trafficking offenders, comparedto 238 prosecuted and convicted in 2006. In 2007,the government reported that 70 percent of convictedtraffickers received prison sentences ranging from oneyear to more than 10 year’s jail time. It is unclear howmany of these cases involved forced labor and how manyinvolved trafficking for commercial sexual exploitation.In July 2008, Belgian authorities opened investigations ofseven members of the royal family of Abu Dhabi (UAE)for trafficking 17 girls reportedly from Indonesia, Turkey,Egypt, Syria, India, Iraq, Morocco and the Philippinesfor domestic servitude while staying at a Brussels hotel;eleven of these victims were subsequently granted victimstatus by Belgian authorities. However, the implicatedsheikha and seven other family members have sinceleft the country. The investigation remains ongoing. InJanuary 2009, Belgian authorities arrested and chargednine suspects involved in the trafficking of 17 Thaiwomen in massage parlors; one of the arrestees was anemployee of the Ministry of Justice. NGOs reportedblatant exploitation of undocumented Bulgarian womenby human trafficking networks in Brussels and alsoclaimed that some officials abused their positions toobtain sexual services from possible victims. One NGOindicated that judges and other officials could benefitfrom increased anti-trafficking trafficking training.The Government of Belgium fully complies with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.The government developed a directive to improvethe identification and referral of trafficking victimsand financed NGOs to provide comprehensive victimassistance. The government financed victim sheltersproviding the full spectrum of services and protectionsto victims. The government and royal foundation fundedseveral NGOs that conducted prevention campaigns.Recommendations for Belgium: Improve the collectionof comprehensive anti-trafficking law enforcement data,including numbers of prosecutions and convictionsfor forced labor and trafficking for commercial sexualexploitation, along with corresponding sentencing data,and numbers of government-assisted repatriations;ProtectionThe government improved its capacity to identify andprotect trafficking victims during the reporting period. InSeptember 2008, the government issued an interagencydirective on coordination and assistance to traffickingvictims, which included procedures on identification ofvictims and their referral to shelters. The governmentcontinued to fund three NGOs that sheltered andprovided comprehensive assistance to trafficking victimsin 2008. During the reporting period, 495 adults werereferred to the three specialized shelter centers, comparedto a total of 619 persons registered the previous year.Of those 495 people, 202 were identified as potentialtrafficking victims. Forty-seven victims qualified forfull victim status in 2008, compared to 62 qualifyingin 2007. In 2008, an additional 122 victims receivedpermanent residency permits, even though they didnot receive final victim status. Belgian law allows the78

provision of extendable temporary residence status andpermanent residence status to victims who participatedin trafficking investigations and prosecutions. Residencecan be granted before an investigation is completed atjudicial discretion; residency can also be granted evenwithout a successful prosecution. Children who werevictims of trafficking reportedly were granted threemonths in which to decide whether to testify againsttheir traffickers. If they did not qualify for victim status,they may still have qualified for protection under thegovernment’s rules for unaccompanied minors. Victimswho served as witnesses in court were entitled to seeklegal employment during the trial process. Identifiedvictims were not inappropriately incarcerated, fined, orpenalized for unlawful acts committed as a direct result ofbeing trafficked.passports. Some Central American men, women, andchildren, particularly from Guatemala, Honduras, and ElSalvador, migrate voluntarily to Belize in search of workbut are subsequently subjected to conditions of forcedlabor or forced prostitution.The Government of Belize does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Despitethese overall significant efforts, the government did notshow evidence of progress in convicting and sentencingtrafficking offenders last year, and therefore Belize isplaced on Tier 2 Watch List.BELIZEPreventionIn 2008, the Belgian government demonstrated progressin its anti-trafficking prevention efforts. The Belgiangovernment funds all domestic NGOs involved incombating human trafficking in Belgium. Demandreduction and prevention are two main objectives of the2008-2011 Belgian National Anti-Trafficking Plan. Thegovernment funds websites and conducts campaignsto reduce demand. “Stop Child Prostitution” is aparticularly noteworthy ongoing campaign sponsoredby the government-funded NGOs Child Focus, ECPAT,FIT, the Federal Police, and the Ministries of Defense andForeign Affairs. The Royal King Baudouin Foundation hasfunded campaigns aimed at the situation of diplomatichousehold personnel. The Center to Combat Racismand Discrimination and the three trafficking victimshelters participated in the European Anti-TraffickingDay awareness campaign. Belgian law allows for theprosecution of Belgian nationals for child abuse crimescommitted abroad. The government provided specificanti-trafficking training to Belgian troops before theywere deployed on international peacekeeping missions.BELIZE (Tier 2 Watch List)Belize is a source, transit, and destination country formen, women, and children trafficked for the purposesof commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor. Themost common form of trafficking in Belize is the internalsex trafficking of minors, particularly situations wherepoor families push their school-aged daughters to providesexual favors to wealthy older men in exchange for schoolfees, money, and gifts. This “sugar daddy” phenomenonoccurs in Belize and other Caribbean countries, butoften it is not recognized as a form of human traffickingby local communities or law enforcement personnel.In two recent cases, more than 70 workers from Nepaland India were trafficked to Belize for forced labor. Afterbeing deceived as to the true nature of employment, thesevictims encountered forced working conditions uponarrival in Belize, in addition to the confiscation of theirRecommendations for Belize: Increase efforts toinvestigate and prosecute trafficking offenses and convictand punish trafficking offenders, including any allegedlycomplicit public officials; increase law enforcement effortsagainst forced labor; continue to improve victim servicesand assistance; and increase penalties for sex traffickingcrimes so they are commensurate with penalties for othergrave crimes.ProsecutionThe Government of Belize made inadequate progress inapplying law enforcement measures against traffickingoffenders during the past year. The Government of Belizeprohibits all forms of trafficking through its Traffickingin Persons Prohibition Act of 2003, which prescribespunishment between one and five years’ imprisonmentand a $5,000 fine. These penalties are sufficientlystringent but are not commensurate with penaltiesprescribed for other serious crimes such as rape, whichcarries a penalty of eight years to life imprisonment.There were no trafficking convictions during the reportingperiod: one prosecution was dismissed, two prosecutionsremain pending, and one is pending appeal. In onecase, the government charged a Chinese companywith five counts of withholding travel documents – anoffense less severe than trafficking – after reviewingallegations that the company had trafficked 70 Nepaleseand Indian workers to Belize to work on a hydrodamproject. In September 2008, a court dismissed the caseon procedural grounds; the government is in the processof filing an appeal. A separate complaint of an Indianshop owner mistreating and coercing Indian migrantsinto labor exploitation after confiscating their passportsremains pending in Belize City magistrate’s court. In2007, police raided a brothel and rescued a 16-year-old79

BENINsex trafficking victim; charges against the brothel ownerremain pending. Some international organizationsdescribe Belize’s judicial system as dysfunctional. Humantrafficking cases are typically handled in lower courtsand often dismissed. An anti-trafficking committeeleads the government’s efforts, including coordination ofinvestigations and prosecutions of trafficking offenders;however, the committee discontinued brothel raids toidentify trafficking victims last year. The governmentincreased anti-trafficking training for police, immigrationofficials, and social workers during the reporting period,though anti-trafficking training for labor inspectorsremained lacking. The Government of Belize cooperatedwith foreign governments on trafficking investigations.Complicity with trafficking by police officials appeared tobe an impediment to some prosecutions.ProtectionThe Government of Belize maintained solid protectionservices for trafficking victims last year. Child victimsof trafficking are placed in government institutions forminors. The government operated two shelters for adulttrafficking victims, and provided access to medical care,counseling, and integration assistance. Eleven foreignlabor trafficking victims received shelter assistance, victimservices, and work permits last year. An additional 60victims from the hydrodam labor trafficking case wereassisted by the government and repatriated to Nepal andIndia; transportation costs were paid by the companythat had contracted the workers. Authorities in Belizeencouraged victims to assist with the investigationand prosecution of their traffickers. Prosecutors noteddifficulty with the willingness of some victim witnesses,particularly child sex trafficking victims, to assist withprosecutions; some victims feared further mistreatment,others did not view themselves as victims, and otherswere discouraged from testifying by family members.There were no reports of victims being jailed or penalizedfor crimes committed as a direct result of being trafficked.Belize also provided temporary residency for foreigntrafficking victims, and other temporary legal alternativesto the removal of victims to countries in which theywould face hardship or retribution.PreventionThe government maintained efforts to raise publicawareness of human trafficking during the reportingperiod. The government developed public serviceannouncements in multiple languages, and redistributedposters and anti-trafficking materials. The governmentsupported local NGOs, and provided annual funding fortheir anti-trafficking efforts. In particular, the governmentassisted an NGO in Belize City to educate children andparents about the dangers of sexual exploitation andthe “sugar daddy” phenomenon. The government alsocontinued to work with Belize’s tourism industry topromote a code of conduct to prevent child sex tourism.No specific efforts to reduce demand for forced labor werereported.BENIN (Tier 2)Benin is a source, transit and, to a lesser extent, adestination country for children trafficked for thepurposes of forced labor and commercial sexualexploitation. A UNICEF study found that in 2006 morethan 40,000 children were trafficked to, from, or throughBenin. Ninety-three percent of victims were Beninese and92 percent were trafficked within the country. Fortythreepercent of children trafficked were subjected todomestic servitude. Of those trafficked internally, 86percent were underage girls. A 2006 NGO study revealedthat more than half of internally trafficked children aretaken to Cotonou. Within the country, girls are traffickedprimarily for domestic servitude and sexual exploitation,while boys are subjected to forced agricultural andconstruction work, street hawking, and handicraftactivities. There is anecdotal evidence that child sextourism may be developing in northern Benin. Childrenare trafficked from Benin to other African countries forthe aforementioned purposes as well as for forced laborin mines and stone quarries. A 2005 ILO study found thatthe majority of victims trafficked transnationally fromBenin are taken to Nigeria and Gabon, though some arealso trafficked to Cameroon, Togo, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana,Niger, Republic of Congo, Guinea-Bissau, the CentralAfrican Republic, and possibly to Equatorial Guinea. Asmall number of children are trafficked to Benin fromother African countries, primarily Togo, Niger andBurkina Faso.The Government of Benin does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so, despitelimited resources. During the year, Benin continued itsstrong anti-trafficking victim protection and preventionefforts. Despite these overall significant efforts, thegovernment did not show great progress in prosecuting,convicting, and punishing trafficking offenders.Recommendations for Benin: Increase efforts toprosecute and convict trafficking offenders and collectdata on such efforts; develop formal procedures foridentifying trafficking victims among women andchildren in prostitution and children laboring in theinformal sector and private residences; develop andenact legislation prohibiting trafficking of adults; finalizeand issue draft decrees regulating the movement ofchildren into and out of Benin; and begin the delayedimplementation of the 2007 National Action Plan toCombat Trafficking and the National Policy and Strategyfor Child Protection.ProsecutionThe Government of Benin demonstrated decreasedlaw enforcement efforts to combat trafficking offensesduring the past year. Benin does not prohibit all formsof trafficking, though its 2006 Act Relating to theTransportation of Minors and the Suppression of ChildTrafficking criminalizes all forms of child trafficking,80

prescribing penalties of up to 20 years’ imprisonment –penalties that are sufficiently stringent and exceed thoseprescribed penalties for rape. The government was unableto provide comprehensive data on its anti-traffickinglaw enforcement activities in the last year. Five courtsoutside the capital, however, reported that together theyhandled a total 20 trafficking cases during the year. Nofurther information was available related to the status ofthese cases within the court system. The Police MinorsProtection Brigade (MPB) reported that in 2008 it arrested58 suspected child traffickers and brought them to aCotonou court. The government did not, however, reportany prosecutions or convictions of traffickers during theyear, largely due to seven months of strikes at the Ministryof Justice that weakened its capacity to record and collecttrafficking crime data. This is in contrast to the precedingtwo years, during which the government demonstratedprogressively increasing law enforcement efforts,reporting over 30 prosecutions of trafficking offendersannually and a significant numbers of convictions.The police academy curriculum continued to includeinstruction on law enforcement approaches to combatchild trafficking. The MPB monitored Benin’s borders toidentify traffickers and victims.ProtectionThe Beninese government strengthened efforts to protecttrafficking victims during the last year. The MPB, workingin collaboration with foreign government officials,reportedly rescued 222 victims, an increase over the190 victims identified and assisted during the previousreporting period. These victims, who were traffickedbetween Benin and either Nigeria, Gabon, Cote d’Ivoire,Cameroon, Mali, or the Republic of the Congo, receivedassistance at the government’s transit facility, wherevictims were placed temporarily before being referredto NGOs for care. While the government provides thetransit center with electricity, water, and food, an NGOprovided salaries for seven personnel who operatedit. The government also reported that it collaboratedwith UNICEF and international NGOs to repatriate172 foreign child trafficking victims and assist withtheir reintegration. Between February and September2008, Beninese authorities collaborated with Nigeriancounterparts to repatriate 55 Beninese children who hadbeen trafficked to Nigeria’s stone quarries. In November2008, Beninese officials worked with Cameroonianauthorities to repatriate to Benin nine suspected childtrafficking victims rescued from a disabled ship off thecoast of Cameroon.The Ministry of the Family and National Solidaritycontinued to work with UNICEF and schools to placerescued child victims in vocational and educationalprograms. Benin continued to use its Social PromotionCenters in each of Benin’s 77 municipalities to providebasic social services to children, including traffickingvictims. The government did not repatriate victimsunless a safe reinsertion program, such as schooling,vocational training, or an apprenticeship, had beenarranged for each child in advance. Government officialsdid not follow procedures for identifying traffickingvictims among women and children in prostitution. Thegovernment interviewed victims to gather evidence toprosecute traffickers, but did not encourage child victimsto participate in trials to protect them from trauma,unless a judge ordered them to do so. Victims were notinappropriately incarcerated or fined for unlawful actscommitted as a direct result of being trafficked.PreventionThe Government of Benin sustained its traffickingprevention efforts through awareness-raising campaignsduring the reporting period. In December 2008,the government finalized a two-year, donor-fundedsensitization project it conducted in collaboration witha foreign government donor and UNICEF. Governmentofficials made anti-trafficking presentations to educatecommunities in the northern part of the country. Theproject educated 177,850 people about trafficking.The Joint Nigeria-Benin Committee to Combat ChildTrafficking met in November 2008 and drafted a 2008-2009 Joint Action Plan. While in 2007 the governmentcompleted a UNICEF-sponsored National Policy andStrategy for Child Protection that addresses childtrafficking, and an ILO-funded five year national actionplan to combat trafficking, neither plan has beenimplemented. Draft 2007 decrees to enact provisions ofthe 2006 child trafficking law regulating the movement ofchildren remained stalled in a government review process.The government provided anti-trafficking awarenesstraining to Beninese troops prior to their deploymentabroad as part of international peacekeeping missions.The Government of Benin did not take steps to reduce thedemand for commercial sex acts within Benin.BOLIVIA (Tier 2)Bolivia is principally a source country for men, women,and children trafficked for the purposes of commercialsexual exploitation and forced labor. A large numberof Bolivians are trafficked to Argentina, Brazil, Chile,Peru, Spain, and the United States for forced labor insweatshops, factories, and agriculture. In a case discoveredin May 2008, more than 200 Bolivian workers weretrafficked to Russia for forced labor in the constructionindustry. Within the country, young Bolivian womenBOLIVIA81

BOLIVIAand girls are trafficked from rural to urban areas forcommercial sexual exploitation. Members of indigenouscommunities are particularly at risk of forced laborwithin the country, especially on ranches, sugar cane, andBrazilian nut plantations. Bolivian children are traffickedinternally for forced labor in mining, agriculture, andas domestic servants. Some reports indicate that parentshave sold or hired out their children into farm laborexploitation near border areas with Peru. Weak controlsalong Bolivia’s extensive borders make the country aneasy transit point for undocumented migrants, some ofwhom may be trafficked.The Government of Bolivia does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Thegovernment demonstrated significant anti-traffickingprogress last year by increasing law enforcement actionsagainst trafficking offenders and maintaining preventioncampaigns. The government continues to lag, however, inensuring that victims have access to adequate protectiveservices.Recommendations for Bolivia: Continue to intensifyanti-trafficking law enforcement efforts, particularlyrelating to allegations of forced labor of adults andchildren; increase victim services across the country;amend anti-trafficking laws to provide greater legalprotections for victims; develop formal proceduresfor identifying victims among potential traffickingpopulations; and increase public awareness about thedangers of human trafficking, particularly among youngBolivians seeking work abroad.ProsecutionThe Government of Bolivia made strong efforts toinvestigate and prosecute trafficking crimes last year.The government prohibits all forms of human traffickingthrough Law 3325, an anti-trafficking law enacted in2006, which prescribes penalties of eight to 12 years’imprisonment. The law contains aggravated penaltiesfor trafficking offenses involving minors; organizedcriminal groups; and public employees responsible forprotecting children. The law’s prescribed penalties aresufficiently stringent and commensurate with thoseprescribed for other serious crimes such as rape. TheBolivian national police investigated 229 cases involvinghuman trafficking in 2008, which is a 49 percent increaseover the preceding year. Of these, 178 were forwarded forcriminal prosecution; 114 remain in investigative statusat the prosecutor’s office; 47 are in different stages withinthe criminal courts; 10 have gone to trial and are pendingfinal court adjudication; and seven have resulted in guiltyverdicts, with two defendants being sentenced to threeand seven years respectively. Such results demonstrateincreased efforts from 2007, when the governmentsecured five convictions against trafficking offenders.The majority of the government’s anti-trafficking lawenforcement efforts focused on the commercial sexualexploitation of children, though several cases dealtwith allegations of forced labor. In a noteworthy caseinvolving the trafficking of 255 Bolivian workers toRussia, eight officials of a Bolivian company involved intheir recruitment, along with three Russian nationals,have been charged with trafficking for labor exploitation.The government operated four specialized antitraffickingpolice units in La Paz, El Alto, Santa Cruz, andCochabamba. Bolivian police stepped up brothel raidswhich resulted in the rescue of 215 children exploited inprostitution. This represents an increase in the number ofvictims rescued when compared to 2007 and a threefoldincrease since 2006. In September 2008, the governmentpassed legislation to create a national database on humantrafficking crime statistics, as well as a clearinghousefor information on missing children, some of whommay be trafficked. The new law also directs the nationalpolice to form specialized anti-trafficking units in eachdepartment of the country. No criminal investigations orprosecutions of public officials allegedly involved withtrafficking-related activity were initiated last year, thoughsome officials reportedly took bribes to facilitate theillegal movement of persons, including suspected humantrafficking.ProtectionThe Bolivian government sustained modest efforts toprotect trafficking victims over the last year. Temporaryand long-term services for victims remain unavailable,however, in many parts of the country, especially outsidelarger cities such as La Paz and Santa Cruz, which havesmall municipal shelters capable of caring for traffickingvictims on a short-term basis. The government hasno dedicated programs to assist the large numbers ofBolivians trafficked abroad and later repatriated to thecountry. The government generally encourages victimsto assist with the investigation and prosecution of theirtraffickers. However, some trafficking victims reportedlyhave been jailed or otherwise penalized for unlawfulacts committed as a direct result of being trafficked. Thegovernment lacks effective procedures for identifyingtrafficking victims among vulnerable populations suchas prostituted women in brothels, and does not provideforeign trafficking victims with legal alternatives todeportation to countries where they may face hardship orretribution.82

PreventionThe government sustained prevention and publicawareness efforts by conducting anti-trafficking educationcampaigns directed primarily at school children, reachingapproximately 3,000 students. The government alsoworked closely with NGOs, international organizations,and other governments, including the United States,on prevention activities. No efforts to reduce demandfor commercial sex acts were reported during the year.Bolivian troops deployed with peacekeeping operationsabroad receive human rights training, includinginformation relating to the unlawful commercial sexualexploitation of minors.BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA(Tier 2)Bosnia and Herzegovina is primarily a source for womenand girls trafficked within the country for commercialsexual exploitation, though it is also a destinationand transit country for women and girls trafficked toWestern Europe for the same purpose. Some victims fromSerbia, Ukraine, Moldova, Romania, Iraq, and Russiaare trafficked into Bosnia and Herzegovina via Serbia orMontenegro for commercial sexual exploitation. Internaltrafficking continued to increase in 2008, as the majorityof identified victims were Bosnian, and more than halfof them were children. There were reports that somegirls, particularly Roma, were trafficked for the purposeof forced marriage. Reports of Roma children traffickedfor forced labor continued. Traffickers continued to forcesome victims to apply for asylum in order to keep theirvictims in the country legally.The Government of Bosnia and Herzegovina doesnot fully comply with the minimum standards forthe elimination of trafficking; however, it is makingsignificant efforts to do so. The government continued toprovide funding to NGOs to protect and assist identifiedtrafficking victims. However, some convicted traffickingoffenders received suspended sentences. Moreover, thegovernment failed to follow through on investigations oftrafficking-related complicity initiated in 2006 and 2007.Recommendations for Bosnia and Herzegovina:Vigorously investigate and prosecute all suspected actsof trafficking-related complicity; take steps to reducethe number of suspended sentences given to convictedtraffickers; increase law enforcement training toensure that standard operating procedures regardingtrafficked children and victim referrals are implementedconsistently throughout Bosnia; and train local officials touse available anti-trafficking legislation.ProsecutionThe Government of Bosnia and Herzegovina sustainedmoderate anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts in2008. However, the government failed to vigorouslyaddress trafficking-related complicity, and some convictedtrafficking offenders continued to receive suspendedsentences. The Government of Bosnia prohibits traffickingfor sexual and labor exploitation through Article 186of its criminal code, which prescribes penalties of up to10 years’ imprisonment. These penalties are sufficientlystringent and commensurate with those prescribed forother grave crimes, such as rape. Local level entitiesin Bosnia often use “Enticement to Prostitution” lawsto prosecute trafficking, which carry lesser penalties.In 2008, state and local level entities investigated atotal of 94 suspected trafficking cases, 26 of which hadbeen initiated during the preceding year. Out of the 34traffickers prosecuted to conviction, state and locallevelcourts imposed prison sentences on 20 traffickingoffenders. Sentences ranged from three months tosix years’ imprisonment. The remaining 14 convictedtraffickers received suspended sentences.There were continued reports of police and other officials’involvement in trafficking, including by willfully ignoringor actively protecting traffickers or exploiters of traffickingvictims in return for payoffs. The government failedto adequately follow up on two previously reportedinvestigations of official complicity in trafficking. AFebruary 2006 investigation involving two State BorderPolice employees has not been completed. Similarly,a December 2007 case of the alleged involvement ofthree local officials in the forced prostitution of threechildren continues to be under investigation by the StateProsecutor’s office. Although two of the nine officialsaccused of involvement in this case are in police custody,no official indictments have been made.ProtectionThe government of Bosnia sustained its efforts to protectidentified victims of trafficking in 2008. The governmentcontinued to delegate victim assistance services tosix local NGOs that provided shelter and medicaland psychological assistance to foreign and domesticvictims. During the reporting period, the governmentcommitted $22,400 for the care of domestic victims andallocated $133,333 for assistance to foreign victims oftrafficking. NGOs were required to apply for funding ona victim per capita basis. The government ensures thatvictims have access to shelter and services provided byNGOs, and it employed procedures for identifying andreferring both foreign and domestic victims. Twenty-ninetrafficking victims were identified in 2009, a declinefrom 50 identified in 2007 and 71 identified in 2006.BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA83

BOTSWANATwenty-two victims received assistance in Bosnian NGOshelters in 2008. Throughout the reporting period,the State Coordinator’s Office organized training forprosecutors, social workers, and other ministries onstandard operating procedures for children who arevictims of trafficking; however, more training is neededto ensure these procedures are consistently implemented.The government encouraged victims to assist in theprosecution of traffickers. In 2008, approximately ninevictims actually testified against their traffickers. Thegovernment provided legal alternatives to the removalof foreign trafficking victims to countries where theyface hardship or retribution through the provision ofshort- and long-term humanitarian visas. In 2008,two trafficking victims received residence permits onhumanitarian grounds. Police and border officers usea screening questionnaire to evaluate potential victimsamong vulnerable populations. Identified victims werenot penalized for unlawful acts committed as a directresult of their being trafficked.PreventionThe Government of Bosnia funded an NGO’s operationof an anti-trafficking hotline throughout the reportingperiod, and the Office of the State Coordinatorcontinued to coordinate and supervise an NGO-fundedcomprehensive campaign targeted at young peopleseeking employment abroad that included TV spots,billboards, and pamphlets. The government did notconduct any awareness campaigns specifically aimed atreducing demand for commercial sex acts or forced labor.The government continued to give specialized traffickingawareness training to Bosnian troops participating ininternational peacekeeping missions before deployment.ANTIGUA & BARBUDA TIER RANKING BY YEARTHE BAHAMAS TIER RANKING BY YEARBOTSWANA (Tier 2)Botswana is a source, transit, and, to a lesser extent,destination country for men, women, and childrentrafficked for the purpose of forced labor and sexualexploitation. Children are trafficked internally fordomestic servitude and cattle herding, while womenreport being forced into commercial sexual exploitationat safari lodges. Botswana is a staging area for both thesmuggling and trafficking of third-country nationals,primarily from Namibia and Zimbabwe, to South Africa.Zimbabweans are also trafficked into Botswana forforced labor as domestic servants. Residents in BotswanaBARBADOS TIER RANKING BY YEARBOTSWANA TIER RANKING BY YEARmost susceptible to trafficking are illegal immigrantsfrom Zimbabwe, unemployed men and women, thoseliving in rural poverty, agricultural workers, andchildren orphaned by HIV/AIDS. Parents in poor ruralcommunities sometimes send their children to work forwealthier families as domestics in cities or as herders atremote cattle posts, where some of these children becomevictims of forced labor. Some women from Zimbabwewho voluntarily migrate to Botswana to work illegallyare subsequently exploited by their employers for forcedlabor. Batswana families which employ Zimbabweanwomen as domestic workers at times do so without properwork permits, do not pay adequate wages, and restrict orcontrol the movement of their employees by holding theirpassports or threatening to have them deported back toZimbabwe.The Government of Botswana does not fully comply withminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. As thisis Botswana’s first year ranked in the Report and availableinformation suggests that Botswana’s trafficking problemis modest, Botswana is placedICELANDon TierTIER2.RANKINGThe government,BY YEARhowever, should address several serious deficienciesover the coming year. Although it began useful actionsto prevent trafficking, the government did not makesignificant or sustained efforts to proactively identifyvictims or prosecute trafficking offenders.Recommendations for Botswana: Draft and enactcomprehensive legislation that specifically criminalizesthe full range of trafficking offenses; train lawenforcement and immigrationKOSOVOofficersTIERtoRANKINGidentifyBY YEARtrafficking victims, especially among vulnerablepopulations such as women and children engaging inprostitution; institute and carry out formal procedures forproactively identifying victims; expand public awarenesscampaigns to educate residents on the nature and dangersof human trafficking; and keep detailed records of antitraffickingefforts undertaken and their results.ProsecutionMALDIVES TIER RANKING BY YEARThe Government of Botswana made inadequate efforts toinvestigate and punish trafficking offenses over the lastyear. Botswana did not prosecute, convict, or punish anytrafficking offenses during the past year. Although it doesnot have a comprehensive law prohibiting trafficking inpersons, the Penal Code, through its sections 155-158covering procurement for prostitution and sections 260-262 covering slavery, prohibits some forms of humantrafficking. The sufficiently stringent penalties prescribedfor offenses under these various NAMIBIA laws TIER range RANKING from BY seven YEARto 10 years’ imprisonment, and are commensurate withthose prescribed for other serious crimes, such as rape.Evidence presented in three criminal cases currentlybeing prosecuted suggests that the defendants may haveengaged in trafficking. The defendants were originallyinvestigated, arrested and charged for kidnapping,immigration, and fraudulent document offenses.Botswana shares its long and porous borders with fiveBRUNEI TIER RANKING BY YEARPALAU TIER RANKING BY YEAR84

countries experiencing serious trafficking problems, yetonly 10 investigators from the Immigration Departmentcovered transnational trafficking and all other migrationrelatedcrimes. Immigration and law enforcement officialsdid not consistently differentiate between smugglingand trafficking, which continued to obscure the natureand extent of the trafficking situation in Botswana. TheNational Central Bureau of Interpol created a full timeposition for a desk officer who works exclusively ontrafficking issues and education.ProtectionThe government showed evidence of minimal butincreasing efforts to protect victims of trafficking. Lawenforcement and social services personnel have notestablished formal procedures to proactively identifyvictims or to refer victims for protective services.The Ministry of Labor is responsible for conductinginspections and monitoring for exploitative child labor,yet the Ministry did not conduct any such inspectionsor monitoring visits in the past year despite a nationalcampaign to end child labor. The government funded andsupported NGO programs that provided assistance andservices to victims of general crimes which were accessibleto any potential victims of trafficking. Botswanaauthorities, in partnership with another government inthe region, assisted the safe repatriation of a traffickingvictim to the victim’s country of origin. Botswana’s lawsdo not specifically protect victims of trafficking fromprosecution for offenses committed as a direct result ofbeing trafficked, but the government did not generallyprosecute persons it believed to be victims of any crime.PreventionThe government made moderate efforts to preventtrafficking in and through Botswana. It placed antitraffickingeducation posters at all of its border postsand included trafficking awareness segments in someof its law enforcement training sessions. In 2008, thegovernment approved a detailed national plan of actionfor the elimination of child labor, which is in its finalstages of implementation. Two campaigns promoting anend to child labor, as mentioned above, raised awarenessand educated both the public and relevant governmentagencies. Government representatives attended sessionswith NGOs and religious organizations on the traffickingsituations they had seen within the country, but thegovernment took no action on the information. Thegovernment made only limited and indirect efforts toreduce the demand for commercial sex acts, largelythrough a broad HIV/AIDS awareness campaign.BRAZIL (Tier 2)Brazil is a source country for men, women, girls, andboys trafficked within the country and transnationallyfor the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation, aswell as a source country for men and boys traffickedinternally for forced labor. The Brazilian Federal Policeestimate that 250,000 to 400,000 children are exploitedin domestic prostitution, in resort and tourist areas, alonghighways, and in Amazonian mining brothels. Accordingto UNODC, sex trafficking of Brazilian women occursin every Brazilian state and the federal district. A largenumber of Brazilian women and children, many fromthe state of Goias, are trafficked abroad for commercialsexual exploitation, typically to Spain, Italy, Portugal,and The Netherlands. Brazilian women and childrenalso are trafficked for commercial sexual exploitationto neighboring countries such as Suriname, Guyana,French Guiana, Venezuela, and Paraguay. More than25,000 Brazilian men are subjected to slave labor withinthe country, typically on cattle ranches, sugar-caneplantations, logging and mining camps, and large farmsproducing corn, cotton, soy, and charcoal for pig iron.Some boys have been identified as slave laborers in cattleranching, mining, and the production of charcoal forpig iron. Slave labor victims are commonly lured withpromises of good pay by local recruiters – known asgatos – in rural northeastern states to interior locations.A growing trend documented in an extensive NGO studyreleased in early 2009 shows that approximately halfof the more than 5,000 men freed from slave labor lastyear were found exploited on plantations growing sugarcane for the production of ethanol, electricity, and food.Moreover, slave laborers are increasingly being rescuedfrom sugar-alcohol plantations, cattle ranches, and othersectors in states where agricultural borders are expandinginto the Amazon forest and other new areas such as theCerrado, the Atlantic Forest, and Pantanal. Domesticchild servitude, particularly involving teenage girls, alsowas a problem in the country. To a lesser extent, Brazilis a destination for the trafficking of men, women, andchildren from Bolivia and Paraguay for forced labor ingarment factories and textile sweatshops in metropolitancenters such as Sao Paulo. Child sex tourism remains aserious problem, particularly in resort and coastal areasin Brazil’s northeast. Child sex tourists typically arrivefrom Europe and, to a lesser extent, the United States.In a newer trend, some arranged fishing expeditions tothe Amazon were organized for the purpose of child sextourism for European and American exploiters.The Government of Brazil does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Last yearthe government sustained strong efforts to rescue victimsof slave labor through mobile inspection operations inthe Amazon and other remote locations, and improvedcoordination of law enforcement efforts to prosecute andpunish traffickers for forced labor and sex traffickingcrimes. However, government-provided shelter servicesand protections for some trafficking victims, particularlyadult males and undocumented foreign victims,remained inadequate. Brazilian officials recognizehuman trafficking as a serious problem; the government’sresponse has been strong but insufficient to eradicate theBRAZIL85

BRAZILphenomenon, especially in light of the large number ofvictims present in the country, in addition to the manyBrazilians trafficked overseas.Recommendations for Brazil: Increase efforts toinvestigate and prosecute trafficking offenses, andconvict and sentence trafficking offenders, includingpublic officials alleged to facilitate trafficking activity;continue to improve coordination on criminal slave laborcases between labor officials and federal prosecutors tohold exploiters accountable; continue to improve victimassistance and protection, especially for victims of slavelabor who are vulnerable to being re-trafficked; considerincreasing penalties for fraudulent recruiting crimesto more effectively target and punish unscrupulousrecruiters of forced labor; and improve data collection.ProsecutionThe Brazilian government improved law enforcementefforts to confront human trafficking crimes during thepast year. Brazilian laws prohibit most forms of traffickingin persons. Sections 231 and 231-A of the Brazilian penalcode prohibit promoting or facilitating prostitution insideor outside of the country, prescribing penalties of threeto eight years’ imprisonment; sentences may be increasedup to 12 years when violence, threats, or fraud areused. The above penalties are sufficiently stringent andcommensurate with those prescribed for other seriouscrimes, such as rape. Labor trafficking is criminalizedpursuant to Section 149 of the penal code, whichprohibits trabalho escravo (“slave labor”) – or reducing aperson to a condition analogous to slavery – includingby means of debt bondage, prescribing a sufficientlystringent penalty of two to eight years’ imprisonment.However, Brazilian law may not adequately criminalizeother means of non-physical coercion or fraud usedto subject workers to forced labor, such as threateningforeign migrants with deportation unless they continuedto work. Articles 206 and 207 prohibit the fraudulentrecruitment or enticement of workers, internally orinternationally, prescribing penalties of one to threeyears’ imprisonment. A 2006 presidential decree includeda stated goal to amend Brazilian anti-trafficking laws toachieve parity between penalties applied to sex traffickingand forced labor crimes; such amendments remainunrealized.Comprehensive nationwide data on anti-traffickinginvestigations, prosecutions, convictions, and sentencesare difficult to obtain. However, partial-year statistics for2008 reported by the Federal Police indicate authoritiesopened 55 international sex trafficking investigations,filed 21 indictments and arrested 50 suspects. Anadditional two investigations and indictments were filedfor internal sex trafficking crimes. Transnational casesinvestigated last year include trafficking of Brazilianwomen to Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Switzerland, inaddition to trafficking of Paraguayan women to Brazil.Since March 2008, 22 defendants were convicted onsex trafficking charges, with sentences ranging from 14months’ to more than 13 years’ imprisonment. Suchresults represent an increase when compared to seven sextrafficking convictions and two sentences achieved in2007.The government improved efforts to prosecute forcedlabor crimes last year, opening 64 federal investigationsunder Article 149. In March 2009, a federal judge inPará state convicted and sentenced 22 defendants onslave labor charges, imposing sentences ranging fromthree to 10 years’ imprisonment, in addition to fines.The court dismissed charges against 19 defendants,acquitted six defendants, and convicted an additionalsix defendants of lesser crimes. In a separate case inMay 2008, a federal court in Maranhao sentenced adefendant to 11 years’ imprisonment for reducing victimsto slavery-like conditions; the defendant also was orderedto pay substantial amounts in owed wages to workers.These cases appear to be the first applications of a 2006Supreme Court ruling, which required that all slave-laborcomplaints be heard in federal courts only, instead of inboth federal and state courts as was the case previously.The Ministry of Labor’s anti-slave labor mobile unitsincreased the number of rescue operations conductedlast year; the unit’s labor inspectors continued to freevictims, and require those responsible to pay fines andrestitution to victims. In the past, mobile unit inspectorsdid not typically seize physical evidence or attemptto interview witnesses with the goal of developing acriminal investigation or prosecution; labor inspectorsand labor prosecutors only have civil jurisdiction, andtheir anti-trafficking efforts were not coordinated withPublic Ministry prosecutors, who initiate criminal casesin federal court. Federal interagency coordination andinformation exchange on anti-trafficking cases remainedweak last year; achieving effective coordination amongdiffering federal, state, and municipal authorities wasconsidered more challenging.The Ministry of Labor’s “dirty list,” which publiclyidentifies individuals and corporate entities thegovernment has determined to have been responsiblefor slave labor, continued to provide civil punishmentto those engaged in this serious crime, with the amountof monetary fines increasing along with violators beingdenied access to publicly funded credit sources. Duringthe year, however, a number of individuals and corporateentities were able to avoid opprobrium by suing to removetheir names from the “dirty list” or reincorporating under86

a different name. Although the government openedno formal investigations or prosecutions of traffickingrelatedcomplicity during the past year, credible NGOreporting indicated serious official involvement withsuch activity at the local level, alleging that policeturned a blind eye to child prostitution and potentialhuman trafficking activity in commercial sex sites. Pastallegations have involved elected officials, as was the casewith two aldermen from Pará alleged to be involved witha child prostitution network. Other reporting indicatesthat state police officials were involved in the killing orintimidation of witnesses involved in testifying againstpolice officials in labor exploitation or forced laborhearings. Killings and intimidation of rural labor activistsand labor union organizers continued, some of whomwere active in fighting forced labor practices; some ofthese killings reportedly occurred with the participationor knowledge of state law enforcement officials. In oneincident in February 2008, farmers in Mato Grosso,supported by local military police, fired shots on ananti-slave labor mobile inspection team. A few Brazilianlegislators have sought to interfere with the operation ofthe labor inspection teams in the past.ProtectionThe Brazilian government sustained efforts to providetrafficking victims with services during the year. TheMinistry of Social Development provided generalizedshelter, counseling, and medical aid to adult and childvictims of sex trafficking, along with other victims ofsexual violence and exploitation. The government alsoprovided some funding to NGOs to furnish additionalvictim services. The federal Ministry of Justice, withassistance from UNODC, funded victim assistancecenters in conjunction with state governments in SaoPaulo, Rio de Janeiro, Goias, and Cearas. In 2008, anassistance center was opened in Belem, capital of Parástate, to provide care and services to victims traffickedto and from Suriname. A national hotline for reportingincidents of child sexual abuse and exploitation, whichincludes reports of child sex trafficking and commercialsex exploitation, continued to register calls in 2008.Brazilian police continued to refer child sex traffickingvictims to government-run shelters for care, though theydid not utilize formal procedures to identify traffickingvictims among other vulnerable populations, such asprostituted adult women in brothels. Labor inspectorsand police officers who were members of the Ministryof Labor’s anti-slave labor mobile units employedprocedures to identify victims of forced labor. However,slave labor victims, typically adult Brazilian men, werenot eligible for government-provided shelter assistance,though unemployment benefits, job training, andtravel assistance were available. Short- or long-termgovernment-provided shelter assistance was providedto women and children victims of trafficking, domesticviolence, and other crimes, though some NGOs providedsuch aid to male victims. During the year, the Ministryof Labor’s mobile units identified and freed 5,016 victimsof slave labor through 154 operations targeting 290properties. Such results compare with 5,963 victims offorced labor freed through 114 operations targeting 203properties in 2007. In a continuing and growing trenddocumented by an extensive NGO study released inJanuary 2009, approximately half of the victims freed in2008 were found on plantations growing sugar cane forBrazil’s expanding production and export of ethanol, abiofuel, in addition to production of sugar cane for fooduse and electricity. In just 19 operations, mobile laborunits rescued 2,553 victims from forced labor on sugarplantations, where workers can be subjected to high dailyproduction and cutting quotas. However, governmentofficials and researchers also found that while sugarcane production involves large numbers of workers,slave labor on Brazilian cattle ranches involves a higherdegree of human exploitation, particularly in land- andforest-clearing activities. Last year, mobile inspectionteams freed 1,026 slave workers from cattle ranches in85 operations, marking it as the sector with the secondhighest number of victims freed from slave labor in Brazil.The Ministry of Labor awarded all slave labor victims atotal of $3.6 million in compensation as a result of these2008 operations, funds which were derived from fineslevied against the landowners or employers identifiedduring the operations. However, due to lack of effectiveprosecutions of recruiters of slave labor, some rescuedvictims have been re-trafficked, according to NGOs.The government encouraged sex trafficking victimsto participate in investigations and prosecutions oftrafficking, though victims often were reluctant to testifydue to fear of reprisals from traffickers and corrupt lawenforcement officials. The government did not generallyencourage victims of forced labor to participate incriminal investigations or prosecutions. Some victimsof sex trafficking were offered short-term protectionunder a witness protection program, which was generallyregarded as lacking resources. The government did notdetain, fine, or otherwise penalize identified victims oftrafficking for unlawful acts committed as a direct resultof being trafficked. However, the government does notprovide foreign trafficking victims with legal alternativesto removal to countries where they may face hardshipor retribution. Law enforcement personnel noted thatundocumented foreign victims were often deportedbefore they could assist with prosecutions against theirtraffickers.PreventionThe Brazilian government increased efforts to preventhuman trafficking last year. A national plan of action onhuman trafficking, which was released in early 2008,continued to be implemented. In particular, the Ministryof Justice named the first six winners of an annual cashprize for best anti-trafficking essays written by collegeand graduate students. Federal authorities generallymaintained good cooperation with internationalorganizations and NGOs on anti-trafficking activities.BRAZIL87

ANTIGUA & BARBUDA TIER RANKING BY YEARICELAND TIER RANKING BY YEARBRUNEIThe Ministry of Tourism continued its public radioand television campaign of “Quem ama, protege” (hewho loves, protects) aimed at addressing child sexualexploitation in the tourism sector, and producedbroadcast versions in several languages. The governmenttook measures to reduce demand for commercial sex actsby conducting campaigns against the commercial sexualexploitation of minors along highways and during the2009 Carnival holiday period. The Brazilian military usesthe UN Peacekeeping Office’s anti-trafficking and forcedlabor training modules to train its troops for deploymentto international peacekeeping missions.THE BAHAMAS TIER RANKING BY YEARBRUNEI (Tier 2)BARBADOS TIER RANKING BY YEARBrunei is a destination country for men and womentrafficked for the purpose of forced labor and commercialsexual exploitation. Brunei is mainly a destinationcountry for men and women recruited from Indonesia,Malaysia, the Philippines, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh,the People’s Republic of China (PRC), and Thailandfor domestic or low-skilled labor. A limited number ofthe 88,000 foreign workers in Brunei face poor laborconditions that amount to involuntary servitude. Therewere credible reports of a limited number of nationalsfrom Asian countries working for little or no pay forup to two years to pay back foreign recruitment agents.Many of the 25,000 female domestic workers in Bruneiwere required to work exceptionally long hours withoutbeing granted a day for rest, creating an environmenthighly conducive to involuntary servitude. There wereBOTSWANA TIER RANKING BY YEARBRUNEI TIER RANKING BY YEARisolated instances of women forced into prostitution inBrunei, and there were also isolated reports that womenarrested for prostitution attested to having been victims oftrafficking.The Government of Brunei does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Whilethe government has laws to prosecute trafficking, it didnot investigate, prosecute, or convict any offenders oftrafficking during the reporting period. The governmentdid not identify any victims of trafficking in 2008.Recommendations for Brunei: Enforce the 2004anti-trafficking in persons law by investigating andprosecuting sex trafficking and labor trafficking offensesand convicting and punishing trafficking offenders; adopta proactive, comprehensive system to formally identifyvictims of trafficking among vulnerable groups suchas foreign workers and foreign women and children inprostitution; train law enforcement, immigration, andprosecutors on the use of the anti-trafficking law; andimplement a visible anti-trafficking awareness campaigndirected at employers of foreign workers.KOSOVO TIER RANKING BY YEARProsecutionThe government did not demonstrate significant antitraffickinglaw enforcement efforts during the reportingperiod. The Government of Brunei prohibits sex andlabor trafficking in its Trafficking and Smuggling PersonsOrder of 2004, which prescribes penalties of up to 30years’ imprisonment – penalties that are sufficientlystringent and commensurate with penalties prescribedMALDIVES TIER RANKING BY YEARfor other serious offenses; however, there have neverbeen any prosecutions under this order. There were notrafficking cases investigated by Brunei authorities duringthe reporting period, and there were no complaintsor allegations of trafficking filed. Foreign workers’complaints of exploitation, such as contract switchingand non-payment of salaries, are usually tried underthe Labor Act, which carries administrative penalties.The Department of Labor regularly investigates foreignworkers’ labor complaints such NAMIBIA as job TIER switching,RANKING BY YEARsalary deductions for recruitment fees, salary based onfalse promises, and high recruitment fees paid by theprospective employee – though it did not identify anycases of trafficking among them.ProtectionBrunei did not demonstrate significant efforts to protectand assist trafficking victims this year. While the BruneiImmigration Department questions foreign workersPALAU TIER RANKING BY YEARduring immigration raids to identify possible traffickingvictims, Brunei does not have a proactive, comprehensivesystem to formally identify victims of traffickingamong vulnerable groups, such as foreign workers andforeign women and children in prostitution. Althoughimmigration authorities actively identified violators ofimmigration law, the government did not identify anytrafficking victims during the reporting period. Althoughit is illegal for employers in Brunei to withhold wagesof their domestic servants for more than 10 days, a fewfamilies are known to withhold wages to compensate forrecruitment fees they are charged by overseas recruitmentagencies. Most labor laws apply only to citizens of Brunei,and currently fail to protect skilled and unskilled foreignworkers from exploitation. While there are no foreignNGOs or international organizations in Brunei to providevictim support, the embassies of several source countriesprovide shelter, mediation, and immigration supportservices to their nationals, in coordination with theBrunei government.PreventionBrunei demonstrated limited prevention efforts duringthe reporting period. In 2008, the Brunei police ran aninternal workshop for members of the anti-vice unit on88

how to identify trafficking victims. Law enforcementofficials participate in several regional training programson trafficking. The government provides arrival briefingsfor foreign workers, inspects worker facilities, and runs atelephone hotline for worker complaints. It is an offenseunder the Labor Act for any local agency to charge foreignworkers recruitment fees or to withhold a salary to recoupforeign worker processing fees. Although the governmentforbade wage deductions to agencies or sponsors andmandated that employees receive their full salaries,foreign workers continued to pay high fees to overseasrecruitment agents to obtain work in Brunei. During thereporting period, there were 135 complaints by foreignworkers against employers who failed to pay salaries.Seventeen of the complaints by domestic workers and 73of the complaints by workers in other fields were resolved,largely through mediation; the remaining complaintsare still under investigation. The Government of Bruneihas not conducted public awareness campaign programson trafficking. Brunei has not ratified the 2000 UN TIPProtocol.BULGARIA (Tier 2)Bulgaria is a source, transit, and, to a lesser extent, adestination country for men, women, and childrenfrom Ukraine, Moldova, and Romania trafficked to andthrough Bulgaria to Germany, Belgium, France, Italy,Spain, Austria, Norway, the Czech Republic, Poland,Greece, Turkey, and Macedonia for the purposes ofcommercial sexual exploitation and forced labor. EthnicRoma women and children remain highly vulnerable totrafficking. Children are trafficked within Bulgaria andto Greece and the United Kingdom for the purposes offorced begging and forced petty theft. Around 15 percentof identified trafficking victims in Bulgaria are children.Bulgarian women and some men are trafficked internally,primarily to resort areas along the Black Sea coast and inborder towns with Greece, for the purposes of commercialsexual exploitation and forced labor.The Government of Bulgaria does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to doso. In 2008, the government maintained strong efforts toinvestigate, prosecute, and convict trafficking offenders,targeting some of the leaders of trafficking networks. Thegovernment also doubled the number of government-runcenters available to assist child trafficking victims andopened a new adult shelter in April 2009. The governmentgenerally maintained the number of traffickers sentencedto time in prison, but it did not prosecute public officialscomplicit in trafficking over the last year.Recommendations for Bulgaria: Vigorously investigate,prosecute, convict, and punish government officialscomplicit in trafficking; continue efforts to investigate,prosecute, and convict trafficking offenders and ensurethat a majority of convicted traffickers serve some timein prison; continue to increase the number of victimsreferred by government officials for assistance; andcontinue to improve data collection and methods forassessing trafficking law enforcement statistics.ProsecutionThe Bulgarian government demonstrated strong antitraffickinglaw enforcement efforts over the reportingperiod; however, it slightly decreased the numberof traffickers sentenced to time in prison and it didnot apply vigorously law enforcement measures togovernment officials complicit in trafficking. Bulgariaprohibits trafficking for both sexual exploitation andforced labor through Section 159 of its criminal code,which prescribes penalties of between one and 15 years’imprisonment. These penalties are sufficiently stringentand commensurate with those prescribed for other gravecrimes, such as rape. In 2008, police conducted 187sex trafficking and 25 labor trafficking investigations,compared to 179 sex trafficking and 22 labor traffickinginvestigations conducted in 2007. In 2008, authoritiesprosecuted 79 individuals for sex trafficking and eight forforced labor compared to 78 persons prosecuted in 2007.In 2008, a total of 69 trafficking offenders were convicted– 66 for sex trafficking and three for labor traffickingoffenses – compared to 71 sex trafficking offenders andtwo labor trafficking offenders convicted in 2007. Twentyfiveof the 69 traffickers convicted in 2008 served timein prison. Of those 25, twelve trafficking offenders weresentenced to up to three years’ imprisonment, six weresentenced to three to five years’ imprisonment, and sevenwere sentenced to five to 15 years’ imprisonment.There were continued reports of trafficking-relatedcorruption during the reporting period. In autumn 2008,police arrested three municipal councilors in Varna forallegedly leading an organized human trafficking andmoney laundering group; the investigation was ongoingat the time of this report. In 2008, the governmentalso investigated one police officer for complicity intrafficking. During the reporting period, the governmentclosed its investigation launched in 2007 against alow-level border police officer allegedly involved inhuman trafficking. The Government of Bulgaria did notprosecute, convict, or sentence any government officialsfor trafficking during the reporting period.ProtectionThe Government of Bulgaria increased its victimassistance and protection efforts during the reportingBULGARIA89

BURKINA FASOperiod. The government increased available assistancefor child victims of trafficking by boosting funding forthe number of government-run child-crisis centers fromthree to six in 2008; these centers provided rehabilitative,psychological, and medical assistance to identifiedchild victims of trafficking. Approximately 25 childtrafficking victims were assisted in government sheltersin 2008. The majority of adult victims were assistedby privately funded NGOs, although the governmentdid provide limited in-kind assistance to some antitraffickingNGOs. In 2008, the Varna local governmentprovided facility space and the National Commissionfor Combating Trafficking in Persons (the Commission)allocated $13,000 to renovate and establish an adulttrafficking shelter in that city; the shelter was openedin April 2009. In 2008, the government identified 250victims of trafficking, including 38 minors, and referredall of them for assistance, compared to 288 victims oftrafficking identified in 2007. Approximately 80 victimswere assisted by NGOs during the reporting period. Allvictims in Bulgaria were eligible for free medical andpsychological care provided through public hospitals andNGOs. Victims were encouraged to assist in traffickinginvestigations and prosecutions; victims who choseto cooperate with law enforcement investigators wereprovided with full residency and employment rights forthe duration of the criminal proceedings, although novictims requested temporary residency permits duringthe reporting period. Foreign victims who chose not tocooperate with trafficking investigations were permittedto stay in Bulgaria for one month and 10 days before theyfaced mandatory repatriation. In 2008, seven victimsparticipated in the police witness protection program.Victims were generally not detained, fined, or otherwisepenalized for unlawful acts committed as a direct result oftheir being trafficked.PreventionThe Bulgarian government maintained its strong effortsto prevent trafficking during the reporting period. InJune 2008, the commission organized a campaign thateducated 1,385 students through movie viewings andbrochures about the danger of trafficking while lookingfor summer employment and travel. In September 2008,the commission also produced and distributed 20,000informational leaflets with movie tickets for a film abouthuman trafficking. In October 2008, the governmentlaunched an awareness campaign in more than 3,000schools across the country and distributed 125,000information cards to students to raise awareness about thedangers of trafficking. A local anti-trafficking commissionorganized an exhibition of paintings produced by childvictims of trafficking. In April 2009, Parliament amendedBulgaria’s criminal code to punish clients of children inprostitution with up to three years’ imprisonment.BURKINA FASO (Tier 2)Burkina Faso is a source, transit, and destination countryfor children and women trafficked for the purposesof forced labor and commercial sexual exploitation.Most victims are children trafficked within the countryfrom rural areas to urban centers such as Ouagadougouand Bobo-Dioulasso for domestic servitude, sexualexploitation, and forced labor in gold mines and stonequarries, and the agriculture sector. Burkinabè childrenare also trafficked for the same purposes to other WestAfrican countries, most notably to Côte d’Ivoire, wheremany are subjected to forced agricultural labor, includingon cocoa farms. Children are also trafficked from BurkinaFaso to Mali, Benin, Nigeria, Niger and Togo, and Ghana.Burkinabè children are also trafficked to Mali for forcedbegging by religious teachers. In the past year, childrenwere also trafficked from Burkina Faso to Sudan. Childrenfrom these West African countries are trafficked toBurkina Faso for the same purposes listed above. To alesser extent, Burkina Faso is a source country for womenlured to Europe with promises of jobs as maids, but whoare forced into prostitution after arrival. Women fromNigeria, Togo, Benin, Ghana, and Niger reportedly aretrafficked to Burkina Faso for forced labor in bars or forcommercial sexual exploitation.The Government of Burkina Faso does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant effortsto do so, despite limited resources. Burkina Faso’slaw enforcement efforts improved with the passageof legislation prohibiting all forms of trafficking thatsupersedes a prior law that criminalized only childtrafficking. The government also investigated andprosecuted an increased number of trafficking offenders,though sentences imposed on convicted traffickersremained low. Protection efforts remained solid.Recommendations for Burkina Faso: Increase penaltiesimposed on convicted trafficking offenders; train policeand government social workers to identify traffickingvictims among women in prostitution; ensure thatsex trafficking victims are not penalized under antiprostitutionlaws; and increase efforts to raise awarenessabout trafficking.ProsecutionThe Government of Burkina Faso increased its lawenforcement efforts to combat trafficking over the lastyear. In May 2008, the government passed Law 029-2008 on Combating Trafficking in Persons and RelatedPractices that prohibits all forms of trafficking andprescribes sentences of five years’ to life imprisonmentfor those convicted of trafficking offenses. Thesepenalties are sufficiently stringent and commensuratewith those prescribed for rape. This law supersedesthe nation’s 2003 Law No. 038-2003 concerning theDefinition of Child Trafficking which criminalized childtrafficking and prescribed a maximum penalty of 1090

years’ imprisonment. Burkina Faso’s Penal Affairs Officerreported that in 2008, the government arrested 40 childtrafficking suspects, 16 of whom were cleared of allcharges and released, and 11 of whom were prosecuted,convicted, and given sentences of one to 12 months’imprisonment. Five of these traffickers were givensentences of far less than one years’ imprisonment. Fourtraffickers received sentences of six months which thecourt considered completed at the time of sentencing dueto lengthy pre-trial detention since 2007. An additional 13suspects are awaiting trial. The government collaboratedwith international donors and NGOs to conduct antitraffickingtraining for 165 lawyers, magistrates, securitypersonnel, social workers, civil society activists, and localvigilance committee members throughout the country.ProtectionThe Government of Burkina Faso demonstrated solidefforts to protect trafficking victims over the last year.Due to limited resources, the government did not provideservices directly to victims. When government authoritiesidentified victims, however, they ensured that theyreceived access to necessary services by referring them toNGOs and international organizations. The Burkinabègovernment reported that between January and December2008, its security forces and regional anti-traffickingsurveillance committees intercepted approximately 691Burkinabè and foreign child trafficking victims, 438of whom were boys and 153 of whom were girls. Twohundred forty-five of these children were being traffickedfrom Burkina Faso to neighboring West African countries,while three of these were being trafficked to Sudan. Theremaining children were victims of internal traffickingwithin Burkina Faso. All of these children received care atone of 23 transit centers jointly funded by the governmentand UNICEF. In 2008, the government contributedover $54,000 to these centers. Assisted by donorfunding,government personnel helped to supervise therehabilitation of 190 trafficking victims and helped toprovide their families with micro-credit programs. Aftervictims receive care at transit centers, the governmentcoordinates the repatriation of foreign nationals withcounterparts in the victims’ countries of origin, processesthese victims’ travel documents, and collaborates withdonors to ensure a safe return. Burkina Faso is a partyto the ECOWAS-ECCAS 2006 anti-trafficking agreementand plan of action, through which officials in BurkinaFaso in 2008 cooperated with counterparts in nearbycountries to intercept and repatriate 248 West Africanchild trafficking victims, including 51 girls. Police do notexhibit any systematic effort to identify trafficking victimsamong women and girls in prostitution. The governmentdoes not provide legal alternatives to the removal offoreign victims to countries where they face hardshipor retribution. Nationals of ECOWAS states, includingtrafficking victims, however, may legally reside and workin Burkina Faso. Government officials encourage victimsto assist in trafficking investigations or prosecutions.PreventionThe Government of Burkina Faso continued traffickingprevention efforts over the last year. Governmentoperatedmedia broadcast anti-trafficking and childlabor radio and television programs, films, theater,and debates, often in collaboration with NGOs andreportedly targeting over 300,000 people during theyear. In collaboration with NGOs and internationalorganizations, the government held workshops andseminars for civil society groups and government officialson child trafficking, primarily on prevention, protection,rehabilitation, and reintegration. The government madea financial contribution to these workshops. The nationalaction plan against trafficking, which the governmentadopted in 2007, has yet to be implemented due to lackof funding. In the last year, the National Anti-TraffickingCommittee met twice. The government made nodiscernable efforts to reduce demand for forced and childlabor in the country. The government took some steps toreduce demand for commercial sex acts in Burkina Fasoby closing a number of brothels in Ouagadougou in July2008.BURMA (Tier 3)Burma is a source country for women, children, andmen trafficked for the purpose of forced labor andcommercial sexual exploitation. Burmese women andchildren are trafficked to Thailand, the People’s Republicof China (PRC), Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Malaysia,and South Korea for commercial sexual exploitation,domestic servitude, and forced labor. Some Burmesemigrating abroad for better economic opportunitieswind up in situations of forced or bonded labor or forcedprostitution. Burmese children in Thailand are subjectedto conditions of forced labor as hawkers, beggars, and forwork in shops, agriculture, fish processing, or other smallscaleindustries. Women are trafficked to China for forcedmarriage and to Malaysia and China for commercialsexual exploitation. Men and women are trafficked toThailand and Malaysia for forced labor. Some traffickingvictims transit Burma from Bangladesh to Malaysia, andfrom the PRC to Thailand and beyond.Trafficking within Burma is a significant phenomenon.Villagers from rural areas move to urban centers andeconomic hubs along the borders with Thailand andChina for labor in industrial zones and agriculturalBURMA91

BURMAestates, and are trafficked into conditions of forcedlabor and commercial sexual exploitation. Traffickingin girls for the purpose of prostitution persisted as amajor problem, particularly in urban areas. Burma is adestination country for child sex tourism. Governmentand military use of forced labor remained widespread,reportedly targeting members of ethnic minority groups.Urban poor and street children in Rangoon and Mandalayare at risk of involuntary conscription as child soldiers bythe Burmese junta. Thousands of children are forced toserve in Burma’s national army as desertions of men inthe army rise. Some children were threatened with jail ifthey did not agree to join the army. Poor villagers in ruralregions must provide corvee labor on demand as a taximposed by authorities. Ethnic insurgent groups also usedcompulsory labor of adults and engaged in the unlawfulrecruitment of child soldiers. After Cyclone Nargisdevastated Burma in May 2008, there were anecdotalreports of trafficking of cyclone victims to other partsof Burma and to neighboring countries. There was alsoa dramatic increase in the number of unverified reportsof forced labor, including of children, and traffickingin persons after the cyclone. The military junta’s grosseconomic mismanagement, human rights abuses, andits continued widespread use of forced labor are amongthe top causal factors for Burma’s significant traffickingproblem.In some areas, including in particular the internationaltrafficking of women and children for commercialsexual exploitation, the Government of Burma is makingsignificant efforts. Available data indicated an increase inlaw enforcement efforts in 2008, a considerable increasein budget allocation for anti-trafficking activities, andthe establishment of three anti-trafficking police units.Overall, however, serious problems remain, and insome areas, most notably in the area of forced labor, theGovernment of Burma is not making significant efforts tocomply with the minimum standards for the eliminationof trafficking, warranting a ranking of Tier 3. Specifically,military and civilian officials remain directly involvedin forced labor and the unlawful conscription of childsoldiers, with reported cases of child soldiers increasingannually. Furthermore, the regime has not yet adequatelyaddressed the phenomena of trafficking for commercialsexual exploitation and labor exploitation within thecountry.Recommendations for Burma: Criminally prosecutemilitary and civilian officials responsible for forced laborand the conscription of child soldiers; improve effortsto cease the practice of forced labor of Burmese citizensby civilian and military entities; continue to increaseprosecutions and convictions for internal trafficking;continue collaboration in addressing forced labor and sextrafficking with international NGOs and internationalorganizations in a transparent and accountable manner;complete development and implementation of formalvictim identification and referral procedures to identifyvictims of trafficking; undertake additional initiatives toprevent trafficking, such as instituting a public awarenesscampaign to warn at-risk populations of the dangersof trafficking; and focus more attention on internaltrafficking of females for commercial sexual exploitation.ProsecutionThe Burmese junta demonstrated a degree of progressto combat transnational trafficking throughout thepast year. There were limited efforts to investigateor prosecute cases of internal trafficking. While thegovernment administratively punished perpetrators ofsome trafficking crimes, criminal punishment remainedweak. Burma prohibits sex and labor trafficking throughits 2005 Anti-Trafficking in Persons Law, which prescribescriminal penalties that are sufficiently stringent andcommensurate with those prescribed for rape. Militaryrecruitment of children under 18 is prohibited by ArmedForces Notification number 13/73 from 1974, but themilitary has not criminally prosecuted under the PenalCode those who recruit child soldiers, instead reportedlysanctioning them with administrative penalties. Thegovernment also failed to criminally punish civilian ormilitary perpetrators of forced labor. Laws prohibitingchild prostitution were also not enforced effectively. TheBurmese junta rules arbitrarily through its unilaterallyimposed laws, but rule of law is absent, as is anindependent judiciary that would respect traffickingvictims’ rights and provide fair justice. The Burmeseregime reported that it investigated and prosecuted127 cases of trafficking, identifying and convicting 342suspected traffickers in 2008. However, court proceedingsare not open and lack due process for defendants. In thepast, data claimed to represent trafficking in personsissues has often included individuals caught trying toleave Burma without permission. While the Burmeseregime has been known to conflate irregular migrationwith trafficking, leading to the punishment of consensualemigrants and those who assist them to emigrate, duringthe reporting period, the police made some efforts toexclude smuggling cases from human trafficking figures.If persons are internally trafficked for labor by a highlevelofficial or well-connected individual, the police canbe expected to self-limit their investigations, even if nopolitical pressure has been overtly employed. Burmeselaw enforcement officers joined PRC counterparts tojointly investigate 11 cross-border trafficking cases. The92

Ministry of Home Affairs continued to maintain thatthere was no complicity of regime officials in trafficking;however, corruption among local government officialswas widespread, and officials frequently engage incorrupt practices with impunity. During the year, theregime reported two officials were prosecuted for theirinvolvement in trafficking cases, and sentenced to threeyears in prison. The Ministry of Labor in 2008 issuedlicenses to 108 companies to recruit workers for overseasjobs. Since 2008, the Ministry of Labor cancelled thelicenses of 14 companies for legal violations. In 2008,the ILO Liaison Officer accepted 64 formal complaintsand submitted all of them to the Burmese governmentfor action. In 2008, the government did not criminallyprosecute any cases of forced labor; instead, it dismissedone civilian administrative official who subjectedothers to forced labor, reprimanded seven others, andreprimanded 21 military officials for subjecting others toforced labor. Three of the 64 cases referred by the ILO arestill pending.ProtectionThe Burmese regime made some efforts to protectrepatriated victims of cross-border sex trafficking, butexhibited limited efforts to protect victims of forced laborand internal sex trafficking exploited within Burma’sborders. Over the past year, the Burmese governmentreportedly assisted 232 victims, 133 of whom wereidentified and repatriated by the Thai government, 98 ofwhom were identified and repatriated by PRC authorities,and one who was identified by Jamaican authorities. Thegovernment reportedly identified 14 Chinese womenand girls who were being trafficked into Thailand forsexual exploitation. The Burmese regime does not havein place formal victim identification procedures toidentify victims of trafficking among vulnerable groups.In forced labor cases, victims were sometimes harassed,detained, or otherwise penalized for making accusationsagainst the officials who subjected them into forcedlabor. In the past, the junta has filed charges againstthose who assist claimants of forced labor, includingtheir legal counsel and witnesses, though no such caseswere reported during the year. Such harassment andpunishment discourages others from coming forward toreport abuses. Burmese and foreign trafficking victimsstayed in government-run shelter facilities for up to onemonth before being returned to their home communities.The regime does not provide legal assistance to victims.The government encourages internationally traffickedvictims to assist in investigations and prosecutions. Thegovernment extended for an additional year the 2007Supplementary Understanding on Forced Labor, whichestablishes a mechanism for forced labor complaints andprovides protections for those who reported cases to theILO. In 2008, the junta showed some cooperation withinternational organizations on the issue of the military’sconscription of children, resulting in the return of 21children to their families. However, the regime did notpermit UNICEF access to children who were released forfollow-up purposes. Although the recruiting officers weresanctioned with administrative punishments, the militaryhas not criminally prosecuted the perpetrators of childsoldier recruitment under applicable Burmese law.PreventionThe government increased efforts to prevent internationaltrafficking in persons, but made only limited efforts toaddress the trafficking that occurs within the country’sborders. The National Police conducted 238 awarenesscampaigns reaching over 25,000 people. The Burmesejunta reported that it significantly increased spending in2008 on anti-trafficking efforts, including prevention,educational awareness, funding of additional antitraffickingpolice, and protection efforts. Police officialsestablished three new anti-trafficking units, includingtwo in the Irrawaddy Delta in an attempt to detertrafficking cases. The government also established ananti-trafficking office within the Border Liaison Officealong the Burma-China border in Kachin State. Duringthe year, the government worked with an NGO and theUN to train officials on differences between smugglingand trafficking, and about Burma’s trafficking lawand its enforcement. The Ministry of Home Affairsin collaboration with an international organizationconducted awareness raising campaigns at bus terminals,targeting drivers, merchants, ticket sellers, and localpolice. The government posted billboards and notices athotels aimed at tourists to warn about trafficking.BURUNDI (Tier 2 Watch List)Burundi is a source country for children trafficked forthe purposes of child soldiering, domestic servitude,and commercial sexual exploitation. The rebel factionNational Liberation Force (FNL) remained the onlyarmed group not to have fully implemented a ceasefireagreement with the government, and it continued tounlawfully recruit and exploit children as fighters,manual laborers, and logistical support throughoutthe majority of the reporting period; the FNL appearedto cease child recruitment in early 2009 after thecommencement of the formal demobilization process.Generally, child soldiers and other children wereidentified, separated from the adults at the demobilizationcamps and pre-assembly areas, and returned to theirhomes early to mid-2009. FNL rebels reportedly forcedBURUNDI93

BURUNDIrural populations to perform uncompensated labor,such as transporting supplies or weapons, during thereporting period. Some Burundian children are alsotrafficked within the country for domestic servitudeand commercial sexual exploitation. While there is littleevidence of large-scale child prostitution, “benevolent”older females offer vulnerable younger girls room andboard within their homes, and eventually push them intoprostitution to pay for living expenses; extended familymembers reportedly also financially profit from thecommercial sexual exploitation of young relatives residingwith them. Male tourists from Oman and the UnitedArab Emirates exploit Burundian girls in prostitution;parents reported six cases of such liaisons to the policeduring the reporting period. Burundian girls are alsotrafficked to Kenya, Malawi, and Uganda for commercialsexual exploitation. Human trafficking of Burundianadults and children with albinism to Tanzania for theforcible removal of body parts may occur; so-calledTanzanian traditional healers seek various body parts ofpersons with albinism for traditional medical concoctionscommonly purchased to heal illness, foster economicadvancement, or hurt enemies.The Government of Burundi does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Despitethese overall significant efforts, the government didnot show evidence of progress in prosecuting humantrafficking offenses and punishing trafficking offendersover the last year; therefore, Burundi is placed on Tier 2Watch List.Recommendations for Burundi: Utilize the antitraffickingprovisions of the newly passed criminalcode amendments to prosecute and convict traffickingoffenders; establish an official process for lawenforcement and social welfare officials to interviewpotential trafficking victims and refer them for assistance;take steps to remove children trafficked into prostitutionand domestic servitude and provide them with protectiveservices; launch a nationwide anti-trafficking publicawareness campaign; and provide training on humantrafficking to new police and border guards.ProsecutionThe government’s anti-trafficking law enforcementefforts were limited during the reporting period.Article 241 of the Burundian Constitution prohibitsslavery and its criminal code outlaws forced labor andkidnapping. During the November 2008 legislativesession, the National Assembly approved amendmentsto the criminal code that, among other things, prohibithuman trafficking and prescribe sentences of five to tenyears’ imprisonment; the amendments do not, however,provide a clear definition of human trafficking. The draftamendments were subsequently considered by Burundi’sSenate, and signed into law by the president in April2009. The revised criminal code, however, prescribes noexplicit penalties for forced labor or slavery, and penaltiesof five to 10 years’ imprisonment for kidnapping. Sextrafficking crimes can be punished using statutes onbrothel-keeping and pimping, which prescribe penaltiesof one to five years’ imprisonment. The existing penaltiesare sufficiently stringent but not commensurate withthose prescribed for other serious offenses. Nevertheless,there were no investigations, prosecutions, or convictionsfor trafficking under these statutes during the reportingperiod. The National Police’s Brigade for the Protectionof Women and Children provided counseling for girlsdetained for engaging in prostitution before releasingthem to their parents. Additionally, after receiving citizencomplaints, it investigated house-based brothels wherechildren were allegedly exploited; there was no knownpunishment of brothel operators during the reportingperiod. Victims’ families lodged three cases of forcedprostitution with police in 2008; the investigations arepending.ProtectionThe government provided minimal assistance totrafficking victims during the reporting period. Fightingbetween the government and the FNL intensified in April2008, making negotiations for the release of child soldiersincreasingly urgent yet difficult. The Executive Secretaryof the National Commission for Demobilization,Reinsertion and Reintegration played a prominent rolein the negotiations. As a result, 220 child soldiers wereidentified at the Randa “dissident” camp in May 2008and released to officials from the United Nations, theAfrican Union, and the Government of Burundi. WithUNICEF funding, the Commission’s staff providedmedical check-ups for children suffering from physicaland psychological trauma and conducted searches fortheir families; the former child soldiers were reunitedwith their families in June and July after parents signed adischarge form. The government attempted to follow upon the status of demobilized children, but was hinderedby a lack of resources to operate outside of Bujumbura,where the majority of these demobilized child soldiersnow reside. The government did not, however, undertakeprogramming to care for or rehabilitate female childrenassociated with the FNL. There are currently no childrenat Randa or Buramata “dissident” camps for rebelelements seeking demobilization, but the existence ofchildren in Rubira, the FNL assembly area, was reportedduring 2008.The government did not, however, provide protectiveservices to victims of any other category of humantrafficking during the reporting period, or show evidenceof implementing procedures to identify such victims oftrafficking or refer them to organizations that provideprotective services. The government did not encouragevictims to participate in investigations or prosecutions oftrafficking offenders, nor did it ensure that victims werenot inappropriately incarcerated or otherwise penalizedsolely for unlawful acts committed as a direct result ofbeing trafficked.94

PreventionThe government’s efforts to prevent trafficking remainedlackluster. A poor understanding of human traffickingamong government officials, particularly the police,continued to be an impediment to effective intervention.In June 2008, the government sent officials from theMinistry of Justice, the Supreme Court and the NationalCrime Bureau to Dar es Salaam for a meeting of regionalsecurity and judicial officials to draft a Regional ActionPlan to Prevent and Combat Human Trafficking inEastern Africa. The Ministry of Labor conducted nochild labor inspections or investigations in 2008.During the year, the Ministry of National Security andHuman Rights, in conjunction with the National DDRCommission and with production assistance from aninternational NGO, sponsored radio spots that aired fourtimes each week to educate citizens about topics suchas human trafficking and violence against women. Thegovernment did not undertake efforts to reduce demandfor commercial sex acts during the reporting period. Thepre-deployment training for four battalions of Burundianpeacekeepers participating in the African Union’s Missionto Somalia, provided by two foreign governments,included a curriculum that created awareness anddiscouraged acts of trafficking and sexual exploitation.Burundi has not ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.CAMBODIA (Tier 2 Watch List)Cambodia is a source, transit, and destination countryfor men, women, and children trafficked for the purposeof commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor.Women and girls are trafficked to Thailand and Malaysiafor exploitative labor as domestic workers and forcedprostitution. Some Cambodian men migrate willinglyto Thailand and Malaysia for work and are subsequentlysubjected to conditions of forced labor in the fishing,construction, and agricultural industries. Cambodianmen and women repatriated from Malaysia reportexperiencing conditions of forced labor after migratingthere for work with the assistance of Cambodian laborrecruitment companies. Cambodian children aretrafficked to Thailand and Vietnam to beg, sell candyor flowers, or shine shoes. Parents sometimes sell theirchildren into involuntary servitude to serve as beggars,into brothels for commercial sexual exploitation, orinto domestic servitude. Within Cambodia, childrenare trafficked for forced begging, waste scavenging, saltproduction, brick making, and quarrying.In Cambodia, a significant proportion of female victimsof trafficking for prostitution are ethnic Vietnamese,some of whom were born in Vietnam. Some Cambodianand ethnic Vietnamese women and girls are traffickedinternally to areas in Phnom Penh, Siem Reap, andSihanoukville for forced prostitution in brothelsand karaoke bars. NGO and media reports indicatedthat internal sex trafficking of women and girls fromethnic minority groups and of ethnic Vietnamese is anincreasing problem. The sale of virgin girls continuesto be problematic in the country, with foreign (mostlyAsian) and Cambodian men paying $800 to $4,000 tohave sex with virgins. Cambodia is a destination countryfor foreign child sex tourists, with increasing reports ofAsian men traveling to Cambodia in order to have sexwith underage virgin girls. Some Cambodian women whomigrated to Taiwan as a result of brokered internationalmarriages may have been subsequently subjected toconditions of forced prostitution or forced labor.The Government of Cambodia does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to doso. Despite these overall efforts, the government did notshow evidence of progress in convicting and punishinghuman trafficking offenders – including complicit publicofficials – and protecting trafficking victims; therefore,Cambodia is placed on Tier 2 Watch List. After enactmentof a law that included anti-trafficking provisions inFebruary 2008, the government obtained the convictionsof 12 trafficking offenders and initiated 71 traffickingprosecutions over the last year, a significant decreasefrom 52 convictions obtained during the previousreporting period. The government also failed to prosecuteand convict officials involved in trafficking-relatedcomplicity, despite a high prevalence of trafficking-relatedcorruption in Cambodia. Efforts to protect and assistvictims did not improve during the reporting period, andvictims continued to be detained and punished for actscommitted as a direct result of being trafficked, includingfor prostitution. During 2008, there were reports ofprostituted women being detained and physically abusedby police and Ministry of Social Affairs Veterans andYouth Rehabilitation (MOSAVY) officials.Recommendations for Cambodia: Train law enforcementand other government officials to place greater emphasison enforcing the human trafficking provisions in theFebruary 2008 law; significantly improve the numberof prosecutions, convictions, and punishments oftrafficking offenders; substantially improve efforts toprosecute, convict, and criminally punish public officialscomplicit in trafficking; hold labor recruiting agenciescriminally responsible for labor trafficking induced byfraudulent recruitment; improve interagency cooperationand collaboration, particularly between governmentofficials and law enforcement officers working ontrafficking; increase efforts to proactively identify victimsCAMBODIA95

CAMBODIAof trafficking among vulnerable groups such as foreignwomen and children arrested for prostitution; instituteprocedures to ensure that victims are not arrested,incarcerated, or otherwise punished for acts committedas a direct result of being trafficked; and conduct a publicawareness campaign aimed at reducing demand by thelocal population and Asian visitors for commercial sexacts.ProsecutionThe Government of Cambodia demonstrated unevenlaw enforcement efforts to combat trafficking during thelast year. The February 2008 law on the Suppression ofHuman Trafficking and Commercial Sexual Exploitationcovers a wide variety of offenses with 12 out of its 30criminal articles explicitly addressing human traffickingoffenses. Cambodian law prohibits all forms of traffickingand prescribes penalties that are sufficiently stringent andcommensurate with penalties for other grave crimes, suchas rape. Under the new law, the government initiated 71prosecutions of human trafficking offenders during thereporting period. Because the new law covers a wide rangeof offenses, not all government officials have appearedto distinguish between the law’s articles on traffickingoffenses and non-trafficking crimes such as prostitution,pornography, and child sex abuse. As a result, lawenforcement has focused on prostitution-related crimes,and many police, courts, and other government officialsappear to believe that enforcing all prostitution articlesof the law contributes to efforts to combat trafficking.Following the passage of the law, Cambodian policeconducted numerous raids on brothels, and detaineda large number of women in prostitution, while failingto arrest, investigate or charge any large number ofpersons for human trafficking offenses. Moreover, thedetained females in prostitution may have includedsome trafficking victims, though police made fewattempts to identify, assist, or protect them. The PhnomPenh Municipal Court handed down convictions of 11trafficking offenders and initiated prosecutions of 22offenders in 2008, compared to 52 convictions in 2007.During the reporting period, some Cambodian courtscharged trafficking offenders with less serious offensesthat carry shorter punishments. The Cambodian policereported that they arrested 41 trafficking perpetratorsduring the reporting period. However, police did notalways follow through on NGO investigations intoentertainment establishments in Phnom Penh, SiemReap, and Sihanoukville allegedly involved in trafficking.Some observers continued to report the general inabilityof law enforcement and other government officialsto act on trafficking leads. The Ministry of Interiorprovided training to some police officers on the new Lawon the Suppression of Human Trafficking and SexualExploitation. There were reports of Cambodian migrantworkers falling victim to trafficking due to the exploitativeconditions in destination countries, such as Malaysia.The government did not report any prosecutions orconvictions of labor recruitment companies that wereallegedly involved in labor trafficking. From April 2008to November 2008, the government banned all marriagesof Cambodians to foreigners out of concern that someCambodian women were vulnerable to trafficking, andsubsequently implemented new regulations in an attemptto prevent trafficking through international marriages.Corruption is pervasive in Cambodia and it is widelybelieved that many individuals, including police andjudicial officials, are both directly and indirectly involvedin trafficking. Some local police and government officialsare known to extort money or accept bribes from brothelowners, sometimes on a daily basis, in order to allow thebrothels to continue operating. Citing a lack of evidence,the Phnom Penh Municipal Court in September 2008dismissed the case of the former President of Cambodia’sAppeals Court, who had been removed from her positionin 2007 for reportedly accepting $30,000 for the releaseof two brothel owners who had been previously convictedfor trafficking offenses. The brothel owners were laterre-arrested and remain in jail. The former AppealsCourt President has since been appointed to a staff-levelgovernment position and remains under investigation.During the reporting period, two immigration policeofficers were removed from their positions for corruptionand it remains unclear if they were allowed to assumeother positions. There were no officials prosecuted orconvicted for trafficking-related complicity.ProtectionThe Government of Cambodia did not improve efforts toprotect victims of trafficking during the reporting period.The government did not operate trafficking sheltersor provide any specialized assistance to traffickingvictims. The government continued to refer victims toNGO shelters, but did not itself offer further assistance.Vietnamese victims are the only known foreign victimsin Cambodia, and they are provided temporary residencein NGO shelters with legal, educational, and counselingservices while awaiting repatriation, although thereare a limited number of NGO shelters with the abilityto provide proper care for Vietnamese victims, due toa lack of foreign language capabilities. While some ofthe detained females in prostitution were assisted byNGOs, others were reportedly turned over by police tobrothel owners or parents, and subsequently returnedto brothels. There were also reports that some policeofficers and guards working at the two Ministry of SocialAffairs Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation (MOSAVY)rehabilitation centers raped, beat, and extorted womenrescued in the raids. The Law on the Suppression ofHuman Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation containsno provisions to protect trafficking victims in general.Victims were encouraged by police to participate ininvestigations and prosecutions of traffickers, thoughconditioning by brothel owners and pimps, as well ascredible fears of retaliation from traffickers, and policecorruption in some cases continue to hinder victimtestimony. Police, court officials, and judges often failed96

to separate victims from perpetrators during raids,detention, and trials. Foreign pedophiles sometimessucceeded in paying off victims or their families tocease cooperation with law enforcement or NGOs. Thegovernment did not provide witness protection to victims,including those participating in the prosecution of theirtraffickers. In a Sihanoukville trafficking case, a suspectedpedophile and his girlfriend – a suspected trafficker –were released from prison on bail, and subsequentlythreatened the families of the victims and demanded thevictims be returned to them. Although victims had theopportunity to file civil suits and seek legal action againsttheir traffickers, most did not have the resources to doso. In 2008, MOSAVY placed 101 Cambodian victimswho reportedly had been trafficked to Thailand at ajointly-operated MOSAVY-IOM Transit Center in Poipet.MOSAVY reported that a total of 505 victims of sextrafficking were referred to them by local police; accordingto UNIAP sources, many of these 505 individuals werewomen voluntarily in prostitution, and not traffickingvictims.PreventionThe Government of Cambodia demonstrated limitedefforts to prevent trafficking over the last year. Thegovernment conducted some public awarenesscampaigns aimed at reducing the significant demandfor child prostitution generated by Cambodian andother Asian pedophiles. In March 2008, the NationalTask Force on trafficking launched a nationwide antitraffickingcampaign and a national dialogue ontrafficking via public forums in five provinces acrossCambodia that continued into July 2008. The forumsalso served to inform communities of the new Law onthe Suppression of Human Trafficking and CommercialSexual Exploitation, forms of trafficking, and newtrafficking trends. The Ministry of Tourism continuedcollaboration with an NGO on advertisements in touristbrochures warning of the penalties for engaging in childsex tourism, and also continued to hold workshops forhospitality industry owners and staff on how to identifyand intervene in cases of trafficking and commercialsexual exploitation of children by tourists. Thegovernment secured the convictions of six foreigners whosexually abused Cambodian children, though during theyear, there were two reported cases of prison sentencesof foreign pedophiles being suspended, includingone Russian pedophile who fled the country while onbail after spending six months in pre-trail detention.Cambodian forces participating in peacekeepinginitiatives abroad received training on trafficking inpersons prior to deployment.CAMEROON(Tier 2 Watch List)Cameroon is a source, transit, and destination countryfor women and children trafficked for the purposes offorced labor and commercial sexual exploitation. Mostvictims are children trafficked within the country, withgirls primarily trafficked for domestic servitude andsexual exploitation. Both boys and girls are also traffickedwithin Cameroon for forced labor in sweatshops, bars,restaurants, on tea and cocoa plantations, in mines,and for street vending and possibly for forced begging.Authorities report that within the country some parentsloan their child for monetary compensation for forcedlabor in domestic service, street vending, or prostitution.Children are trafficked to Cameroon from Nigeria, Chad,the Central African Republic, Congo, Benin, and Nigerfor forced labor in agriculture, fishing, street vending,and spare-parts shops. Children from Mali are traffickedto Cameroon by religious instructors for forced begging.Cameroon is a transit country for children traffickedbetween Gabon and Nigeria, and from Nigeria to SaudiArabia. It is a source country for women transportedby sex trafficking rings to Europe, primarily France,Germany, and Switzerland. Reports indicate thattraditional religious leaders may subject individuals tohereditary slavery practices rooted in ancestral masterslaverelationships in some northern chiefdoms.The Government of Cameroon does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts todo so. Despite these overall efforts, the governmentdid not show evidence of progress in prosecuting andpunishing trafficking offenders or protecting victims;therefore, Cameroon is placed on Tier 2 Watch List. WhileCameroon pursued some trafficking investigations, thegovernment reported no prosecutions or convictions andvictim protection efforts remained weak.Recommendations for Cameroon: Increase efforts toprosecute and convict trafficking offenders; educatepolice, judges, lawyers, and social workers about thelaw against child trafficking; finalize and enact the draftlaw criminalizing the trafficking of adults; investigatereports of hereditary slavery in the Northern Province;and develop and implement formal procedures throughwhich law enforcement and victim protection officialsmay systematically identify trafficking victims amongvulnerable populations and refer them for care.ProsecutionThe Government of Cameroon demonstrated minimalefforts to combat trafficking through law enforcementCAMEROON97

CANADAmeans during the last year. Cameroon does not prohibitall forms of trafficking, though it criminalizes childtrafficking and slavery through its 2005 Law CombatingChild Trafficking and Slavery, which prescribes apenalty of 20 years’ imprisonment – a punishmentthat is sufficiently stringent. Article 2(3) of Cameroon’sLabor Code prohibits forced labor, prescribing aninadequate penalty of $100 to $3,000 in fines. Thegovernment’s 2006 draft law prohibiting trafficking hasyet to be finalized and approved. Penal Code Article 346criminalizes procuring, aiding, facilitating, or profitingfrom the prostitution of a child less than 16 years ofage. This article prescribes a punishment of one to tenyears’ imprisonment and a fine, which is sufficientlystringent and commensurate with penalties for rape.The government did not report any prosecutions orconvictions of trafficking offenders during the year,though it reported that it investigated three traffickingcases, one of which was conducted jointly with Benineseauthorities, and arrested one suspect in September 2008.Three suspects arrested in January 2008 for allegedlytrafficking seven children have not yet been prosecuted. Asuspect arrested in December 2007 for trafficking a childwho died in his custody remains out on bail. A Yaoundecourt in 2008 held hearings on six additional traffickingcases derived from arrests made in 2007; the cases remainpending in the court system. The government did notinvestigate traditional leaders in the Northern Provincessuspected of keeping hereditary servants in conditionsof involuntary servitude. The Ministry of Justice inNovember 2008 opened a pilot data center as part of itseffort to develop a computerized system for the collectionof trafficking crime data. The database is expected tobe operational by 2012. In October 2008, the NationalCommission on Human Rights and Freedoms jointlyfunded with the UN an anti-trafficking seminar for lawenforcement officers and magistrates on strategies forinvestigating and prosecuting trafficking offenses.ProtectionThe Government of Cameroon demonstrated weakefforts to protect trafficking victims over the last year.The government did not operate trafficking victimshelters, but rather referred victims to NGOs providingshelter and other victim services. The governmentreported that its nine centers for vulnerable children andadditional centers for street children were accessible totrafficking victims. Authorities did not follow systematicprocedures for identifying trafficking victims amongvulnerable populations, such as street children, womenin prostitution, and illegal immigrants. As a result, somevictims may have been inappropriately incarceratedor fined for unlawful acts committed as a direct resultof being trafficked. Officials identified 18 suspectedtrafficking victims during the year and provided care to15 of them at a government center for abandoned andorphaned children until Beninese officials repatriatedthem to Benin. The government referred one traffickingvictim to his country’s consulate in Cameroon andanother to an NGO for care. In September 2008,Cameroonian officials cooperated with Nigeriancounterparts to repatriate a 12-year-old Nigerian girl whohad been trafficked to Cameroon for forced domesticlabor. The government encouraged victims to assist intrafficking investigations and prosecutions, though asnoted earlier, there were no reported prosecutions duringthe year. The government provided foreign victims withtemporary residency status until they were repatriated. Itdid not, however, provide legal alternatives to the removalof foreign victims to countries where they face hardship orretribution.PreventionThe Government of Cameroon continued its efforts toprevent trafficking during the year. To commemoratethe Day of the African Child in June 2008, Cameroonorganized a children’s National Assembly session atwhich child Parliamentarians passed a resolution callingfor the creation of structures to care for traffickingvictims. Government radio and television broadcastanti-trafficking messages. The Cameroonian governmentbriefed troops on anti-trafficking issues and related normsof behavior before they were deployed on internationalpeacekeeping missions. In collaboration with the ICRC,the government also organized seminars for militaryand police leadership to keep them updated on theseinternational anti-trafficking norms. Cameroon has notfinalized or adopted its draft national plan of actionagainst trafficking. An existing inter-ministerial antitraffickingcommittee did not meet during the past year.The government made no discernable efforts to reducedemand for forced labor or demand for commercial sexacts during the year.CANADA (Tier 1)Canada is a source, transit, and destination countryfor men, women, and children trafficked for thepurposes of commercial sexual exploitation and forcedlabor. Canadian women and girls, many of whom areaboriginal, are trafficked internally for commercial sexualexploitation. Foreign women and children, primarilyfrom Asia and Eastern Europe, are trafficked to Canadafor commercial sexual exploitation, but victims fromAfrica, Latin America, and the Caribbean also have beenidentified. Many trafficking victims are from Thailand,Cambodia, Malaysia, Vietnam, China, South Korea,the Philippines, Russia, and Ukraine. Asian victimstend to be trafficked more frequently to Vancouver andWestern Canada, while Eastern European and LatinAmerican victims are trafficked to Toronto, Montreal,and Eastern Canada. NGOs report that Canada is adestination country for foreign victims trafficked for laborexploitation; some labor victims enter Canada legallybut then are subjected to forced labor in agriculture,sweatshops, or as domestic servants. A significant numberof victims, particularly South Korean females, transit98

Canada en route to the United States. Canada also is asource country for child sex tourists, who travel abroad toengage in sex acts with minors. Canada is reported to be adestination country for sex tourists, particularly from theUnited States.The Government of Canada fully complies with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.During the past year, the Canadian governmentmaintained strong victim protection and preventionefforts, and demonstrated modest progress in prosecutingand punishing trafficking offenders, securing fivetrafficking-specific convictions during the past year. Lawenforcement personnel, however, reported difficultieswith securing adequate punishments against offenders.Recommendations for Canada: Intensify efforts toinvestigate and prosecute trafficking offenses, andconvict and sentence trafficking offenders; increase useof proactive law enforcement techniques to investigatetrafficking cases, including allegations of labor trafficking;increase efforts to investigate and prosecute Canadianssuspected of committing child sex tourism crimesabroad; provide greater protection and services for foreigntrafficking victims; improve coordination among nationaland provincial governments on law enforcement andvictim services; and improve data collection.15 accused offenders. This compares to 2007, whenprovincial governments obtained the convictions ofthree defendants for trafficking-related crimes underother laws; and 2006, when provincial governmentsachieved five trafficking-related convictions. While themajority of cases prosecuted in 2008 involved domesticsex trafficking, the government reported ongoinginvestigations of cases involving forced labor crimes andsex trafficking crimes involving foreign victims. NGOscriticize the government’s law enforcement investigationefforts for not being proactive, particularly in terms ofsearching for victims and trafficking activity, especially inthe labor exploitation context, since many foreign victimsappear to enter Canada legally and are seldom identifiedwhen passing through immigration. Moreover, Canada’slaw enforcement efforts reportedly suffer from a lackof coordination between the national government, andprovincial and local authorities, which prosecuted mosthuman trafficking cases. Last year the Royal CanadianMounted Police (RCMP) maintained anti-traffickingtraining efforts, and there were no reports of traffickingrelatedcomplicity by Canadian officials.CANADAProsecutionThe Government of Canada demonstrated progress inlaw enforcement actions against human traffickers lastyear, securing the convictions of five offenders underspecific human trafficking provisions of the CriminalCode passed in 2005, marking the first convictionsunder these newer sections of the law. Section 279.01of the Canadian Criminal Code prohibits most formsof human trafficking, prescribing a penalty of up to 14years’ imprisonment. Such penalties are sufficientlystringent and commensurate with those for other seriouscrimes, such as sexual assault. Section 118 of Canada’sImmigration and Refugee Protection Act, enactedin 2002, prohibits transnational human trafficking,prescribing a maximum penalty of life imprisonmentand a $1 million fine. Section 279.02 of the CriminalCode additionally prohibits a defendant from receivinga financial or material benefit from trafficking,prescribing up to 10 years’ imprisonment. Withholdingor destroying a victim’s identification or travel documentsto facilitate human trafficking is prohibited by Section279.03, punishable by up to five years in prison. Section279.04(a) defines “exploitation” for purposes of thetrafficking offenses as conduct which reasonably causesa victim to provide a labor or service because theybelieve their safety, or the safety of a person known tothem, is threatened. Provincial governments secured theconvictions of five offenders under trafficking-specificlaws during the reporting period, obtaining sentencesranging from two to eight years’ imprisonment. Anadditional 12 anti-trafficking prosecutions were pendingbefore provincial courts as of late April 2009, involvingProtectionThe government maintained protections for traffickingvictims during the reporting period. Victim supportservices in Canada are generally administered at theprovincial level. While each province or territory providesservices for crime victims, including trafficking victims,they follow different models, sometimes leading to anuneven provision of services. However, most jurisdictionsprovided access to shelter services, short-term counseling,court assistance, and specialized services, such as childvictim witness assistance and rape counseling. Canadafunded domestic NGOs, in addition to a national Victim’sFund, which made money available to NGOs to fill ingaps in services for crime victims, including traffickingvictims. Some NGOs and faith-based organizations haveurged greater government support for trafficking victims,arguing that they have provided most victims, especiallyforeign trafficking victims, with shelter and serviceswithout government assistance. Undocumented foreigntrafficking victims in Canada may apply for a temporaryresident permit (TRP) to remain in the country. Fifteentrafficking victims received TRPs last year. During a 180-day reflection period, immigration officials determinewhether a longer residency period of up to three years99

THE CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLICshould be granted. Victims also may apply for fee-exemptwork permits. TRP holders have access to essentialand emergency medical care, dental care, and traumacounseling. However, some NGOs report difficulties withforeign trafficking victims securing TRPs and gainingaccess to services; some foreign trafficking victimsreportedly elected to apply for refugee status instead of aTRP, claiming more secure benefits and an immigrationstatus with which immigration officials appeared morefamiliar. Victims’ rights are generally respected in Canada,and victims are not penalized for crimes committed asa direct result of being trafficked, though some NGOshave reported that some foreign trafficking victimshave been arrested and deported without first beingidentified as victims. Canadian authorities encouragebut do not require trafficking victims to participate ininvestigations and prosecutions of trafficking offenders.The government provided formal court assistance, inaddition to the use of closed circuit television testimonyand other victim-sensitive approaches to facilitate victimsfurnishing evidence. The provinces of Quebec, Ontario,British Columbia, and Manitoba have established witnessprotection programs, but data is not available on thenumber of trafficking victims who have utilized thisservice. Law enforcement, immigration, and consularofficials receive specialized training to identify traffickingvictims.PreventionThe government maintained strong anti-traffickingprevention efforts last year. The RCMP continuedto conduct widespread awareness-raising activities,reaching approximately 4,000 civil society members, inaddition to distributing anti-trafficking materials to lawenforcement. The federal government partnered withthe Canadian Crime Stoppers Association to launch anational awareness campaign encouraging the public toreport suspected cases of human trafficking to a nationaltoll-free hotline. The government funded a nationalcharitable organization to pursue leads about suspectedchild predators on the Internet. The federal governmentprovided a grant to the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs tocombat trafficking of aboriginal women and children. TheCanadian immigration agency provided pamphlets andinformation to temporary foreign workers, including liveincaregivers, to let them know where to seek assistancein case of exploitation or abuse, as well as to recipients of“exotic dancer” visas — which have been used to facilitatetrafficking in the past — to inform them of their rights.Last year Canadian officials issued 14 exotic dancerpermits, down from 15 in 2007 and 22 in 2006.Canada is a source country for child sex tourists, andthe country prohibits its nationals from engaging inchild sex tourism through Section 7(4.1) of its CriminalCode. This law has extraterritorial application, andcarries penalties up to 14 years in prison. Since 1997,approximately 110 formal charges have been filed againstCanadians suspected of sexually exploiting children inforeign countries. Last year the Canadian governmentobtained the convictions of two offenders for sexuallyabusing young orphans in Haiti; the defendants weresentenced to two and three years’ imprisonment. Canada’sDepartment of Foreign Affairs distributes a publicationentitled “Bon Voyage, But…” to warn Canadians travelingabroad about penalties under Canada’s child sex tourismlaw. The federal Interdepartmental Working Groupon Trafficking in Persons is coordinating with BritishColumbia’s Office to Combat Trafficking In Persons,the Vancouver Police, and the Vancouver OlympicCommittee to incorporate anti-trafficking measures intothe Olympics’ broader security plan. The RCMP has sixregional human trafficking awareness coordinators acrossthe country including one based in Vancouver responsiblefor maintaining relationships with law enforcement andother partners. The RCMP recently updated its outreachand awareness materials, and is providing a humantrafficking tool-kit to law enforcement officers acrossthe country. Canada’s Department of National Defensefollows NATO policy on combating trafficking in persons,and provides anti-trafficking information to Canadianmilitary forces prior to their deployment on internationalpeacekeeping missions.THE CENTRAL AFRICANREPUBLIC (Tier 2 Watch List)The Central African Republic (CAR) is a source, transit,and destination country for men, women, and childrentrafficked for the purposes of forced labor and sexualexploitation. The majority of victims are childrentrafficked within the country for sexual exploitation,domestic servitude, forced ambulant vending, andforced agricultural, mine, market, and restaurant labor.To a lesser extent, children are trafficked from the CARto Cameroon, Nigeria, and the Democratic Republicof Congo (DRC), for the same purposes listed above.Children may also be trafficked from Rwanda to the CAR.In addition, rebels conscript children into armed forces inthe northwestern and northeastern regions of the country.Unable to survive as hunters and gatherers becauseof depleted forests, Pygmies are subjected to forcedagricultural labor by Central African villagers. Authoritiesin the CAR have a limited awareness of trafficking,and none of the nation’s young, but developing, civilsociety organizations has an anti-trafficking focus. Nocomprehensive trafficking analysis has been conductedand little concrete data exists. A study released in 2008by UNICEF and the Government of the CAR on violencelinked to child labor, however, reveals that forced childlabor is widespread. In addition, a 2005 UNICEF studyon child sexual exploitation found over 40 sex traffickingcases in Bangui and four of the country’s provinces.UN reports in the last year indicate that self-defensemilitias, some of which are supported by the government,recruited child soldiers.The Government of the Central African Republic doesnot fully comply with the minimum standards for100

the elimination of trafficking; however, it is makingsignificant efforts to do so, despite extremely limitedresources, internal conflict, and instability caused byunrest in neighboring Sudan, Chad, and the DRC. Thegovernment demonstrated its nascent commitment tocombating trafficking through law enforcement meansby securing the convictions of three men for traffickinga three-year-old girl. In collaboration with UNICEF, thegovernment collected data on violence linked to childlabor and released a study in 2008 indicating a significantincidence of forced child labor in the country. Despitethese overall significant efforts, the government did notshow evidence of progress in enacting its 2006 draftlaw against trafficking – which has yet to be presentedto the National Assembly – or in protecting victims oftrafficking; therefore, the CAR is placed on Tier 2 WatchList.Recommendations for the CAR: Pass and enact the2006 anti-trafficking law; develop procedures throughwhich police and social workers may identify traffickingvictims among vulnerable populations – such asfemales in prostitution, abandoned and street children,and Pygmies – and train police and social workers toimplement these procedures; end the practice of jailingchildren who are victims of sex trafficking; provide careto children in commercial sexual exploitation and forcedlabor, in collaboration with NGOs and the internationalcommunity as appropriate; and increase overall efforts toeducate the public about the dangers of trafficking.ProsecutionThe Government of the CAR demonstrated someincreased law enforcement efforts to combat traffickingduring the last year. Central African law does notprohibit all forms of trafficking in persons. A 2006draft comprehensive anti-trafficking law awaits Cabinetapproval before being sent to the National Assembly forvote. In January 2009, the government enacted LaborCode Articles seven and eight which prohibit forced laborand bonded labor, prescribing a sufficiently stringentpenalty of five to 10 years’ imprisonment. The CentralAfrican Penal Code criminalizes the procurement ofindividuals less than 15 years old for prostitution,prescribing penalties of one to five years’ imprisonmentand/or a fine. These penalties are sufficiently stringentand commensurate with those prescribed for rape,although a fine alone would not be. In 2008, usingkidnapping laws, the government convicted a Nigerianman to two years’ imprisonment for attempting to sella three-year old Guinean girl in 2007. The perpetrator’stwo accomplices were sentenced to one year and sixmonths’ imprisonment, respectively. Due to budgetlimitations, the government does not provide specializedanti-trafficking training to government officials on howto investigate and prosecute trafficking cases. Laborinspectors and other law enforcement officials report thatthey lack the resources to address trafficking crimes.ProtectionThe Government of the CAR continued weak efforts toprotect trafficking victims over the last year. Governmentofficials continued to travel with UNICEF into theinterior of the country to identify, rescue, and demobilizechild soldiers conscripted by rebels. Due to a paucity ofresources, the government does not operate a traffickingvictim shelter. The government refers destitute childrenolder than four to local NGOs for care; some of thesechildren could be trafficking victims. Otherwise, thegovernment did not report referring any traffickingvictims to NGOs for care. Two NGOs reported that theMinistry of Social Affairs sometimes provided trainingon general youth issues, but could not confirm that thisincluded trafficking. In December 2008, the Ministerof Defense assisted UNICEF’s efforts to release childrenfrom a self-defense militia conscripting child soldiers.The Ministry put UNICEF in contact with the militialeader, who agreed to cooperate with UNICEF to releasechildren. The Central African government did not providelegal alternatives to the removal of foreign victims tocountries where they face hardship or retribution. Thegovernment does not implement formal procedures toidentify trafficking victims among vulnerable populationssuch as abandoned children, street children, or femalesin prostitution. In some cases, police jail children foundin prostitution for up to a month and then releasedthem, rather than providing them with rehabilitationand reintegration care. The government does notencourage victims to assist in trafficking investigations orprosecutions.PreventionThe Government of the CAR continued modest effortsto prevent trafficking during the reporting period. Thegovernment released the results of a joint government-UNICEF study on violence associated with child labor inthe CAR. The Ministry of Statistics assisted in analyzingthe data collected. The government established an Inter-Ministerial Committee to Combat Child Exploitationduring the last year. In June 2008, as part of its AfricanChildren’s Day celebration, the government conductedawareness-raising activities about trafficking throughtelevision and radio broadcasts. In October 2008, the CARgovernment participated in a three-day seminar hostedby with the Central African Human Rights Observatoryand a foreign donor entitled “Raising Awareness of theNew Forms of Slavery in the CAR.” The event producedTHE CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC101

CHADthe “Bangui Declaration” of recommendations to thegovernment and other stakeholders for the eradicating oftrafficking in the country. The government lacked fundingto implement a national action plan to prevent childsexual abuse, including trafficking, that it had adoptedin 2006. A second anti-trafficking action plan adoptedin 2007 also remains unimplemented. The governmentdid not take any measures to reduce the demand forcommercial sex acts.CHAD (Tier 3)Chad is a source, transit, and destination country forchildren trafficked for the purposes of forced labor andcommercial sexual exploitation. Most trafficked childrenare subjected to domestic servitude, forced begging, forcedlabor in cattle herding, fishing, and street vending, andfor commercial sexual exploitation. A 2005 UNICEF studyon child domestic workers, including those in domesticservitude, in Ndjamena found that 62 percent were boys.Young girls sold or forced into marriage are forced by theirhusbands into domestic servitude and agricultural labor.Chadian children are also trafficked to Cameroon, theCentral African Republic, and Nigeria for cattle herding.Children may also be trafficked from Cameroon and theCentral African Republic to Chad’s oil producing regionsfor sexual exploitation. The Chadian National Army,Chadian rebel groups, and village self-defense forcesconscript Chadian child soldiers. Sudanese children inrefugee camps in eastern Chad are forcibly recruited intoarmed forces by Sudanese rebel groups, some of which arebacked by the Chadian government.The Government of Chad does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking andis not making significant efforts to do so. Although theChadian government faces resource constraints, it has thecapacity to conduct basic anti-trafficking law enforcementefforts, yet did not do so during the last year. It showedno results in enforcing government policy prohibitingrecruitment of child soldiers. Civil conflict and aheavy influx of Sudanese and Central African refugeescontinued to destabilize the country.Recommendations for Chad: Pass and enact its draftlaw prohibiting child trafficking and criminalize thetrafficking of adults; increase efforts to prosecuteand punish trafficking offenders under related laws;fulfill June 2008 promises to the UN to release childsoldiers and allow inspections of Chadian army camps;collaborate with NGOs and international organizationsto care for trafficking victims; and increase efforts to raiseawareness about trafficking.ProsecutionThe Government of Chad demonstrated insufficientefforts to combat trafficking through law enforcementmeans during the reporting period. While Chadian lawdoes not prohibit all forms of trafficking in persons, Title5 of the Labor Code prohibits forced and bonded labor.While the prescribed penalty for this crime, a find ofapproximately $325-$665, is considered significant byChadian standards, it fails to prescribe a sufficient penaltyof incarceration. The 1991 Chadian National Army Lawalso prohibits the Army’s recruitment of individualsbelow the age of 18. A joint government-UNICEF planto develop by 2007 a Child Code of laws that includesanti-trafficking provisions has proceeded slowly since2004. The government did not report any prosecutionsor convictions for trafficking offenses during the year.In June 2008, nine suspected traffickers were arrested,all of whom were later released. In June 2008, and thedeputy prefect of Goundi arrested an additional six villagechiefs suspected of selling children as cattle herders.The suspects were released after paying a fine. In 2008,a UNICEF study on children trafficked for cattle herdingreported that the government had not taken legal actionagainst an employer of a child cattle herder who diedas a result of the employer’s abuse. A local newspaperreported that two children were rescued after beingfound in chains and forced to beg by a religious leaderin Massaguet. The government has taken no legal actionagainst the teacher. Media sources, however, indicatedthat in 2008, the government arrested a mother and fatherfor selling their six-year girl into domestic servitude. Todate, the parents have not been prosecuted. The judiciaryremained crippled by the small number of judges in thecountry – only 150 – and their lack of basic technologyto record and process cases through the criminal justicesystem. Law enforcement officials and labor inspectorsalso reported that they lack the basic means, such astransportation, to investigate trafficking cases. Somelocal authorities in Mandoul use intermediaries to recruitchild herders, some of whom are trafficking victims.Although officials have raised the problem with theMinistry of Justice, the government has not initiated anyinvestigations into this alleged complicity.ProtectionThe Government of Chad demonstrated weak effortsto protect trafficking victims during the last year. Thegovernment did not operate shelters for trafficking victimsdue to limited resources. Although the government hasa formal system in place through which governmentofficials may refer victims to NGOs or internationalorganizations for care, it provided no information on thenumber of victims it referred to such organizations lastyear. The government provided some of the materials102

for specific vocational training projects, such as toolsfor carpentry, as part of a UNICEF trafficking victimvocational training program. In response to a June 2008visit from the UN Special Representative for Childrenin Armed Conflict, the Chadian government pledged torelease more than 60 children who had been unlawfullyconscripted for service in armed groups and who werein detention and agreed to inspections of its Army’scamps to ensure that children were not being exploited.UNICEF access to Chadian Army camps and detentioncenters has been limited, however, and no children havebeen demobilized since November 2008. However,UNICEF reported that in 2008, prior to November, itdemobilized 56 children. The government contributedsome funding to a safe house used in UNICEF’s childsoldier demobilization effort. The government did notprovide legal alternatives to the removal of foreign victimsto countries where they faced hardship or retribution.Rescued victims were not inappropriately incarceratedor fined for unlawful acts committed as a direct result ofbeing trafficked.and subsequently coerced into prostitution or domesticservitude. Foreign victims of labor trafficking, primarilyfrom Bolivia, Peru, Colombia, Ecuador, and China, havebeen identified in Chile’s mining and agricultural sectors.Trafficking victims, including children, are lured to Chilewith false promises of pay and benefits. Some Chinesenationals are consensually smuggled through Chile enroute to Mexico, Brazil, and the United States; some fallvictim to human trafficking.The Government of Chile does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Last year,the government maintained law enforcement, protection,and prevention efforts to combat human trafficking.Chilean authorities, however, reported difficulties withprosecuting certain trafficking crimes – particularlyallegations of labor trafficking and the internal traffickingof adults – due to statutory gaps in Chile’s anti-traffickinglaws, in addition to overcoming challenges with securingstringent punishments against trafficking offenders.CHILEPreventionThe Government of Chad took some steps efforts to raiseawareness of trafficking during the last year. In June2008, on the Day of the African Child, the governmentcollaborated with NGOs and international organizationsby contributing some funding to raise awareness aboutchildren trafficked for forced cattle herding. During thelast year, the government radio broadcast campaigns toeducate parents about religious teachers who exploit theirstudents for their labor. The Ministry of Social Actionannually updates its action plan with recommendedactivities to combat trafficking. The government andUNICEF co-released a report in 2008 on the worstforms on child labor, including trafficking, in Chad.A 2005 Ministry of Justice order to bring Chadian lawinto conformance with international child labor normshas not progressed to the Presidency for signature. TheChadian government did not take steps to reduce thedemand for forced labor, including the demand forconscripted child soldiers, or the demand for commercialsex acts. Chad has not ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.CHILE (Tier 2)Chile is a source, transit, and destination country formen, women, and children trafficked for the purposesof commercial sexual exploitation and labor trafficking.Within the country, many victims are Chilean womenand girls who respond to false job offers and subsequentlyare subjected to forced prostitution. Chilean womenand girls also are trafficked for involuntary prostitutionand labor exploitation to neighboring countries such asArgentina, Peru, and Bolivia, as well as Western Europe.Foreign women from Argentina, Bolivia, Peru, Colombia,and Paraguay, in addition to Asian countries such asChina, are lured to Chile with fraudulent job offersRecommendations for Chile: Enact anti-traffickinglegislation to prohibit all forms of human trafficking;intensify law enforcement efforts against traffickingoffenders, especially labor trafficking offenders; andcontinue to strengthen victim protection efforts,particularly for foreign trafficking victims.ProsecutionThe Government of Chile maintained law enforcementefforts against traffickers during the reporting period.Chilean law does not prohibit all forms of humantrafficking, though it criminalizes transnationalmovement of persons for commercial sexual exploitationthrough Article 367 of its penal code. Penalties prescribedunder this statute range from three to 20 years ofimprisonment, depending on whether aggravatedcircumstances exist. Such penalties are sufficientlystringent and are commensurate with those for othergrave crimes, such as rape. In practice, however, becausesentences of less than five years are often suspended inChile, and the minimum penalty for rape is five yearsand a day, individuals convicted of rape typically receivejail time whereas trafficking offenders often do not. Thegovernment’s anti-trafficking statutory framework doesnot criminalize labor trafficking or the internal traffickingof adults; law enforcement officials report difficulties withinvestigating and prosecuting these allegations. Anti-103

CHINAtrafficking legislation, originally proposed in 2002, passedthe Senate in June 2008, and is now being reviewed by theSenate’s Human Rights and Constitutional Commissions.Between April and December 2008, the governmentopened 104 trafficking-related investigations, andobtained 10 convictions with sentences ranging from finesto 30 months’ imprisonment. Two convictions involvedthe fraudulent recruitment of Chilean women intoprostitution in Spain. In 2008, the government increasedanti-trafficking training, and the public prosecutor’soffice held an international summit in Santiago topromote international cooperation on anti-traffickinglaw enforcement. There were no reports of governmentcomplicity with trafficking activity.ProtectionThe Government of Chile maintained efforts to assisttrafficking victims over the last year. The governmentprovides child victims of sex trafficking with specializedservices, and furnished nearly $2 million in suchassistance at 14 centers nationwide last year. These nonresidentialcenters had capacity to assist 684 childrenand adolescents, and they referred victims to NGOshelters when necessary. For adults, the governmentoperated a witness protection program which assistedsex trafficking victims, in addition to victims of otherabuses and violent crime. Adult trafficking victims arereferred to NGOs and shelters, where they can receivemedical care, psychological counseling, and support.Police are trained to utilize victim-sensitive interviewingtechniques such as two-way mirrors so victims canidentify a suspected exploiter without fear of retribution,and video-recording equipment to minimize multiplevictim interviews. Chilean authorities encouraged victimsto assist in the investigation and prosecution of theirtraffickers. Foreign sex trafficking victims may remain inChile during legal proceedings against their exploiters,and can later apply for residency status. These victims maystill face deportation to their country of origin once legalproceedings are finished, if they are not granted residencystatus. The government does not have a formal systemof identifying trafficking victims among vulnerablepopulations, such as prostituted women. Foreign labortrafficking victims usually are not identified as traffickingvictims or provided with assistance before being deported.The government provides funding to anti-traffickingNGOs, and works with foreign governments and IOM toensure the safe repatriation of victims.PreventionThe government increased prevention efforts duringthe reporting period by conducting anti-traffickingeducation and outreach campaigns through a variety ofmedia. The government also continued awareness-raisingprojects with NGOs and international organizations.Through law enforcement efforts targeting “clients”of child prostitution, the government endeavored toreduce demand for commercial sex acts, convicting andsentencing five defendants for purchasing sex with aminor. The government also conducted a public awarenesscampaign, called “There is No Excuse,” warning howcommercial sex with a minor is a crime in Chile. Chileantroops departing for international peacekeeping dutiesattended mandatory pre-deployment training ontrafficking in persons and human rights. The governmentmade no discernable efforts, however, to prevent labortrafficking.CHINA (Tier 2 Watch List)The People’s Republic of China (PRC) is a source, transit,and destination country for men, women, and childrentrafficked for the purposes of forced labor and sexualexploitation. Although the majority of trafficking inthe PRC occurs within the country’s borders, there isalso considerable trafficking of PRC citizens to Africa,other parts of Asia, Europe, Latin America, the MiddleEast, and North America. Women are lured throughfalse promises of legitimate employment and forcedinto commercial sexual exploitation largely in Taiwan,Thailand, Malaysia, and Japan. PRC women and men aresmuggled throughout the world at great personal financialcost and then forced into commercial sexual exploitationor exploitative labor to repay debts to traffickers. Womenand children are trafficked to China from such countriesas Mongolia, Burma, North Korea, Russia, Vietnam, andRomania for purposes of forced labor, marriage, andsexual slavery. There were new reports that Vietnamesemen are trafficked to China for forced labor and ethnicHmong girls and women from Vietnam trafficked forforced marriages in China. Some women from Tibetwere trafficked to Indonesia for forced prostitution.Some North Koreans seeking to leave their country enternortheastern China and are subsequently subjected tosexual servitude or forced labor. North Korean womenare often sold into forced marriages with Chinesenationals, or forced to work in internet sex businesses.Some experts and NGOs suggested trafficking in personshas been fueled by economic disparity and the effectsof population planning policies, and that a shortage ofmarriageable women fuels the demand for abductedwomen, especially in rural areas. While it is difficult todetermine if the PRC’s male-female birth ratio imbalance,with more males than females, is currently affectingtrafficking of women for brides, some experts believe thatit has already or may become a contributing factor.Forced labor remained a serious problem in penalinstitutions. This was mainly the product ofadministrative decisions, rather than the result of dueprocess and conviction. Many prisoners and detaineesin reeducation through labor facilities were required towork, often with no remuneration. Some children areabducted for forced begging and thievery in large cities.There were numerous confirmed reports of involuntaryservitude of children, migrant workers, and abductees inChina. In April 2008, a Chinese newspaper uncoveredan extensive child forced labor network in Guangdong104

province that reportedly took thousands of children asyoung as seven years old from poor rural areas of Sichuanprovince, populated largely by the Yi minority, to work infactories in southeastern China. According to the report,the children were sold in labor markets to factory owners,and forced to work 10 hours a day, seven days a week,for as little as 30 cents per hour. These children werefound near Dongguan, where in total over 500 childrenfrom Sichuan were discovered working in a factory inJune 2007. In October 2008, a Chinese blogger exposedpublicly several cases of child labor in Wuhan factories,and reported that the factories had evaded detection byreceiving advance warning of pending labor inspections.Under the government-sanctioned work-study programs,elementary schools supplied factories and farms withforced child labor under the pretext of vocational training.Students had no say in the terms and conditions of theiremployment, and little to no protection from abusivework practices. Conditions in this program includedexcessive hours with mandatory overtime, dangerousconditions, low pay, and involuntary pay deductions.The Xinjiang provincial government forced thousands oflocal students to labor through “work-study” programs inorder to meet yearly harvesting quotas. Overseas humanrights organizations alleged that government-sponsoredlabor programs forced Uighur girls and young women towork in factories in eastern China on false pretenses andwithout regular wages. During the year, internationalmedia reported over 300 children, many of them fromXinjiang, were laboring in a shoe factory in easternChina as a part of a government labor transfer program.The group included many Uighur girls, whose familieswere reportedly coerced and in some cases threatenedby government officials to participate in the programusing fake or swapped identification cards provided bythe government. Additionally, authorities in Xinjiangreportedly continued to impose forced labor on areafarmers in predominantly ethnic minority regions. Inrecent years, organized criminal networks have becomemore sophisticated at cheating and abducting migrantworkers, including abduction by anesthetizing the oftenunsupervised children of migrant worker parents.Experts believe that the number of Chinese traffickingvictims in Europe is growing dramatically, where largeinformal economies create a “pull” for exploitablelabor. While some Chinese enter Europe legally andoverstay their visas, others are smuggled in and workas domestic servants, and in underground sweatshops.Some trafficking victims are exploited in the sex trade.Teenage girls from China are trafficked into the UKfor prostitution, and Chinese children are reportedlytrafficked into Sweden by organized criminal networksfor forced begging elsewhere in Europe. In February 2009,seven Chinese sex trafficking victims were rescued inGhana, having been forced into prostitution by Chinesetraffickers who had promised them jobs as waitresses.The Chinese government does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however it is making significant efforts todo so. Despite these efforts, the Chinese governmentdidi not demonstrate progress in combating humantrafficking from the previous year, particularly in termsof punishment of trafficking crimes and the protectionof Chinese and foreign victims of trafficking; thereforeChina is placed on Tier 2 Watch List. Forced labor,especially forced child labor, remains a serious problemin the country. Despite substantial resources, during thereporting period, the government did not make effortsto improve victim assistance programs. Protection ofdomestic and foreign victims of trafficking remainsinsufficient. Victims are sometimes punished for unlawfulacts that were a direct result of their being trafficked– such as violations of prostitution or immigration/emigration controls. The Chinese government continuedto treat North Korean trafficking victims as unlawfuleconomic migrants, and routinely deported them backto horrendous conditions in North Korea. Additionalchallenges facing the Chinese government include theenormous size of its trafficking problem and corruptionand complicity in trafficking by some local governmentofficials. Factors that continue to impede progress in antitraffickingefforts include tight controls over civil societyorganizations, restricted access of foreign anti-traffickingorganizations, and the government’s systemic lack oftransparency.Recommendations for China: Revise anti-traffickinglaws and the National Plan of Action to criminalize andaddress all forms of labor and sex trafficking in a mannerconsistent with international standards; significantlyimprove efforts to investigate and prosecute traffickingoffenses and convict and punish trafficking offenders,including public officials complicit in trafficking; increaseefforts to address labor trafficking, including prosecutingand punishing recruiters and employers who facilitateforced labor and debt bondage, and provide protectionservices to victims of forced labor; continue to increasecooperation with foreign governments on cross-bordertrafficking cases; adopt proactive procedures to identifyvictims of trafficking among vulnerable groups, such asmigrant workers and foreign women and children arrestedfor prostitution; increase efforts to protect and rehabilitateboth sex and labor trafficking victims; provide foreignvictims with legal alternatives to removal to countriesin which they may face hardship or retribution; conducta campaign to reduce the demand for forced labor andCHINA105

CHINAcommercial sex acts; and adhere to its obligations as partyto the 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol,including by not expelling North Koreans protected underthose treaties and by cooperating with UNHCR in theexercise of its functions.ProsecutionChina’s domestic laws do not conform to internationalstandards on trafficking; China’s definition of traffickingdoes not prohibit non-physical forms of coercion, fraud,debt bondage, involuntary servitude, forced labor, oroffenses committed against male victims, althoughsome aspects of these crimes are addressed in otherarticles of China’s criminal law. China’s legal definitionof trafficking also does not automatically regard minorsover the age of 14 who are subjected to the commercialsex trade as victims. While Article 244 of China’sCriminal Code bans forced labor by employers, theprescribed penalties of up to three years’ imprisonmentor a fine under this law are not sufficiently stringent.Additionally, Chinese law does not recognize forms ofcoercion other than abduction as constituting a meansof trafficking. Based on China’s limited definition of“trafficking,” and the government’s conflation of humansmuggling and trafficking offenses, the Ministry of PublicSecurity (MPS) reported investigating 2,566 potentialtrafficking cases in 2008. Law enforcement authoritiesarrested and punished some traffickers, but a lack oftransparency and due process, as well as a paucity oftrafficking-specific law enforcement data inhibits anaccurate assessment of these efforts. Several foreigngovernments reported a lack of cooperation by Chineseauthorities in transnational trafficking cases involvingforeign trafficking victims in China. During the year,the government did not provide the United Nationswith data on prosecutions, convictions, or sentences oftraffickers. Consequently, China was not among the 155countries covered by the UN’s Global Report on HumanTrafficking released in February 2009. Governmentefforts described as addressing human trafficking wereaimed at sex trafficking during the reporting period. InNovember 2008, police in Fujian province reportedlydiscovered a trafficking case involving 18 Vietnamesewomen who had been trafficked to Yunnan, Guangxi andother provinces in China for marriage. Also in Fujian,in December 2008, police arrested 10 members of acriminal gang accused of having trafficked 10 female sexworkers to men in isolated villages for approximately$800 to $1,200 each. In Guizhou Province, official mediareported that 29 defendants were convicted for traffickingmore than 80 female victims for forced marriage, andthe main defendant was sentenced to death. Accordingto official media, police in Xinjiang Uighur AutonomousRegion rescued 746 children from trafficking gangs whichhad kidnapped and forced them into pick-pocketing.The Xinjiang Public Security Bureau reported that 177suspects were arrested.Reported incidents in 2008 involving forced andchild labor reflect continuing legal and administrativeweaknesses in China’s anti-trafficking enforcement.Subsequent to the April 2008 discovery of a massive childlabor market in Southeast China, the Dongguan localgovernment claimed that it found no evidence of largescalechild labor during its raids on over 3,600 work sitesin two days. Nonetheless, raids led to the rescue of at least167 children, according to local police sources. Despitethe discovery of child laborers and reports that someminors were raped by factory operators, the governmentdid not criminally or administratively prosecute orconvict any employers for any labor offenses. TheGuangdong provincial government subsequently deniedearlier reports and retracted police statements, claimingthat police had found only six underage workers, none ofwhom had been raped or abducted. In a child labor casein Wuhan, authorities announced a crackdown on childlabor in small-scale workshops in Wuhan, but there wasno further reporting on the story. There were continuedreports of local officials’ complicity in trafficking,including by providing advance warning of pending laborinspections and brothel raids. The Chinese governmenthas not demonstrated concerted efforts to investigate,prosecute, and punish government officials for complicityin human trafficking.ProtectionChina continued to lack adequate victim protectionservices throughout most the country. There continuedto be no dedicated government assistance programs forvictims of trafficking. China has an inadequate numberof shelters to assist trafficking victims, and regularlyreturns trafficking victims to their homes without accessto counseling or psychological care. Most of the existingshelters are temporary, not exclusive to trafficking victims,and provide little or no care to repatriated victims.Provincial women’s federation offices provide counselingon legal rights, rehabilitation, and other assistance totrafficking victims. Local governments continue to rely onNGOs and international organizations for technical andmaterial support to identify victims and provide victimprotection services. The government continues to obstructthe independent operation of NGOs and internationalorganizations that provide assistance on traffickingissues. Trafficking victims were generally repatriatedinvoluntarily without any rehabilitation assistance. Therewas no reported protection or rehabilitation provided tothe 167 children rescued from factories near Dongguan.The government has not provided any assistance to theChinese sex trafficking victims identified in Ghana, whoface threats and retaliation from their traffickers if theyreturn to China. The Chinese government continuesto lack systematic procedures to identify traffickingvictims, including victims of sex trafficking, amongthose it arrests for prostitution, in order to refer themto organizations providing services and to ensure thatthey are not inappropriately penalized for unlawful actscommitted as a result of being trafficked. The All-ChinaWomen’s Federation (ACWF), a quasi-government entity,106

eported that ongoing problems required interventionto protect trafficking victims from unjust punishment.MPS officials stated that repatriated victims of traffickingno longer faced fines or other punishment upon theirreturn, but authorities acknowledged that Chineseand foreign victims sometimes are sentenced or finedbecause of police corruption, the lack of capacity toidentify trafficking victims, or provisions allowing for theimposition of fines on persons traveling without properdocumentation. Some border officials are trained by MPSto identify potential victims of trafficking. In October2008, 200 Burmese women were arrested and jailed inChina for immigration violations; they had allegedly beensmuggled into the country under the pretext of findingwork and were reportedly sold and forced to marryChinese men. Reports suggest that many of the womenwere deported to Burma, while others were expected toserve three-month prison sentences for violating Chineseimmigration laws. The Ministry of Civil Affairs beganworking with IOM on an IOM-funded training modulefor the identification, protection, and reintegration oftrafficking victims. The government does not provideforeign victims with legal alternatives to removal tocountries in which they may face hardship or retribution.Some trafficking victims have faced punishments inthe form of fines for leaving China without properauthorization.In the year leading up to the 2008 Beijing SummerOlympic Games, Chinese authorities stepped up effortsto locate and forcibly repatriate North Korean refugeesin China – including trafficking victims – in violation oftheir commitments to the humane treatment of refugeesunder international law. China continues to treat NorthKorean trafficking victims solely as illegal economicmigrants and reportedly deports a few hundred of themeach month to North Korea, where they may face severepunishment. Chinese authorities continue to limitUNHCR’s access to North Korean refugees in China. Thelack of access to UNHCR assistance and constant fear offorced repatriation by Chinese authorities leaves NorthKorean refugees more vulnerable to human traffickers.PreventionChina made some effort to prevent trafficking in personsduring the reporting period. In light of the size ofChina’s trafficking problem, however, more needs tobe done. Targeted public awareness campaigns, run bythe All-China Women’s Federation (ACWF), continuedto disseminate information on trafficking preventionand focused on reaching young female migrant workers.ACWF also continued to identify model communitiesthat protected women’s rights, offered legal andpsychological assistance for victims of domestic violenceand trafficking, and made available shelters for vulnerablewomen. Government agencies, associations, and youthorganizations continued to run hotlines for victims oftrafficking-related crimes, including forced child labor.Hotlines for migrant workers whose rights had beenviolated were also continued in 15 provinces. Provincialgovernments in Yunnan, Sichuan, and Guangxi continuedtheir own prevention campaigns, including radiobroadcasts, brochures, performances, poster shows, andtargeted campaigns to spread the word among Chinesewomen of the dangers of trafficking and how to avoidbecoming a victim. In Beijing, the government held ananti-trafficking publicity campaign on InternationalWomen’s Day to raise public awareness of humantrafficking and to publicize prevention measures. Thenational government has not addressed two policiesthat may create vulnerabilities to trafficking: the birthlimitation policy that contributes to a gender imbalancethat some believe has led to bride trafficking in theChinese population, and the unevenly implementedhukou (household registration) system that controls themovements of internal migrants. During the reportingperiod, China issued implementation guidelines forits 2008 National Plan of Action to define roles andresponsibilities of relevant agencies, and provincialaction plans were developed in four provinces. TheMinistry of Public Security (MPS) held training coursesfor approximately 2,000 police officers in 10 provinceson anti-trafficking measures, as well as training oncombating cross-border trafficking. Police officersresponsible for anti-trafficking measures participated inanti-trafficking and victim protection training coursesoverseas, and MPS co-hosted training sessions withcounterparts in Vietnam and Burma. The governmentdid not take any noticeable measures during thereporting period to reduce the demand for forced labor,commercial sex acts, or child sex tourism. Chinese forcesparticipating in peacekeeping initiatives abroad have notbeen implicated in trafficking while overseas, but did notreceive specific training on trafficking in persons priorto deployment. China has not ratified the 2000 UN TIPProtocol.COLOMBIA (Tier 1)Colombia is a major source country for women and girlstrafficked to Latin America, the Caribbean, WesternEurope, Asia, and North America, including the UnitedStates, for purposes of commercial sexual exploitationand involuntary servitude. Within Colombia, some menare trafficked for forced labor, but trafficking of womenand children from rural to urban areas for commercialsexual exploitation remains a larger problem. Individualcases of forced marriage, domestic servitude, and forcedbegging have been reported. Groups at high risk forinternal trafficking include displaced persons, poorwomen in rural areas, and relatives of members ofcriminal organizations. Continued armed violence inColombia has displaced many communities, makingthem vulnerable to human trafficking. Guerillasand paramilitary groups forcibly recruit children ascombatants; the government estimates that nearly6,000 children may be exploited under such conditions.COLOMBIA107

COLOMBIAMembers of gangs and organized criminal networksforce their relatives and acquaintances, and displacedpersons – typically women and children – into conditionsof forced prostitution and forced labor, including workin the illegal drug trade. Colombia also is a destinationfor foreign child sex tourists, particularly coastal citiessuch as Cartagena and Barranquilla. Migrants fromSouth America and the PRC transit Colombia en route tothe United States and Europe; some may be traffickingvictims.The Government of Colombia fully complies with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking inpersons. During the reporting period, the governmentincreased law enforcement actions against traffickingoffenders, and improved coordination of anti-traffickingcases by launching an anti-trafficking operations centerto direct assistance to victims and follow through withinvestigation of their cases.Recommendations for Colombia: Dedicate moreresources for victim services; increase efforts to encouragevictims to assist with the prosecution their traffickers;expand efforts to assist and repatriate the large numberof Colombians trafficked overseas; institute formalmeasures to identify trafficking victims among vulnerablepopulations; and continue to raise public awareness aboutthe dangers of human trafficking, particularly amongyoung women seeking jobs abroad.ProsecutionThe Government of Colombia increased law enforcementefforts against trafficking offenders during the reportingperiod. Colombia prohibits all forms of traffickingthrough its anti-trafficking statute, Law 985, whichprescribes minimum punishments of 13 to 23 years’imprisonment. Such punishments are sufficientlystringent and commensurate with other serious crimes,such as rape. In 2008, Colombian authorities initiated159 anti-trafficking investigations, 20 prosecutions,and achieved 16 convictions, sentencing traffickingoffenders to periods of imprisonment ranging from 4.5to 14 years. Such results compare to 182 investigations,44 prosecutions, and six convictions reported for 2007.The government cooperated with foreign governments torepatriate trafficking victims and investigate traffickingcases in Argentina, Bolivia, Ecuador, El Salvador,Guatemala, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Venezuela,Trinidad and Tobago, Japan, Singapore, the Philippines,and the United States. The government received noconfirmed reports of trafficking-related corruption duringthe reporting period.ProtectionThe government improved victim protection efforts bylaunching an interagency anti-trafficking operationscenter to direct assistance to victims, coordinate andtrack criminal investigation and prosecution of theircases, and collect nationwide information and statisticsabout trafficking crimes. The government appropriated$150,000 to open the operations center in June 2008,and it assisted 58 victims between June and December2008. However, most victims were reluctant to assist inthe prosecution of their traffickers due to fear of reprisalsor lack of awareness of their status as victims of a seriouscrime. Government-funded services for adult traffickingvictims remained limited during the reporting period;NGOs and international organizations provided thebulk of victim assistance, particularly shelter services.The government did not appear to employ a formalmechanism for identifying trafficking victims amongvulnerable populations within the country, such asdisplaced persons or prostituted women. In conjunctionwith IOM, UNODC, and the anti-trafficking operationscenter, the government trained consular officials torecognize and assist potential Colombian traffickingvictims abroad. Consular officials assisted 22 Colombianstrafficked overseas during the reporting period. However,victim services overseas are limited to consular districtswith at least 10,000 Colombian residents, and are notlikely to be available to victims trafficked to isolatedlocations, such as in the Caribbean, Asia, and Europe. Athome, Colombian law enforcement authorities encouragevictims to assist with the investigation and prosecutionof their traffickers. There were no reports of victims beingjailed or otherwise penalized for unlawful acts committedas a direct result of being trafficked. According to IOM,while there is no specialized legal mechanism wherebythe Colombian government offers a visa or temporaryresidence status to foreign trafficking victims, the Ministryof Interior and Justice can provide assistance to vulnerableor threatened individuals on a case-by-case basis.PreventionThe government improved prevention efforts againsthuman trafficking by launching a widespread educationcampaign entitled “The Next Victim Could Be You” inOctober 2008. The campaign included TV commercials,radio spots, and print advertising featuring a popularColombian television personality. In conjunction withthe anti-trafficking operations center, the governmentoperated a national call center, which received 645 callsduring the reporting period. Most calls were citizenrequests for information relating to job offers overseas,though 38 suspected trafficking cases from the call centerwere referred to police for investigation. In an effort toreduce demand for commercial sex acts, the governmentin 2008 targeted and provided information to tourism108

industries in 23 Colombian cities to prevent commercialsexual exploitation. No other government campaignsto reduce demand for commercial sex acts were visibleduring the reporting period, nor were there anydiscernable efforts to reduce demand for forced labor.CONGO, DEMOCRATICREPUBLIC OF THE(Tier 2 Watch List)The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is asource and destination country for men, women, andchildren trafficked for the purposes of forced labor andsexual exploitation. Much of this trafficking occurswithin the country’s unstable eastern provinces and isperpetrated by armed groups outside government control.Indigenous and foreign armed militia groups, notably, theDemocratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR),the National Congress for the Defense of the People(CNDP), various local militia (Mai-Mai), and the Lord’sResistance Army (LRA), continued to abduct and forciblyrecruit Congolese men, women, and children to serve aslaborers, porters, domestics, combatants, and in sexualservitude. CNDP recruiters, fraudulently promising highpayingemployment, enlisted Congolese men and boysfrom Rwanda-based refugee camps, as well as Rwandanadults and children from towns in western Rwanda, forforced labor and forced soldiering in the DRC.An unspecified number of children remain with the81 st and 85 th non-integrated Congolese national army(FARDC) brigades under the control of Colonel PhilemonYav and Colonel Samy Matumo, respectively. FARDCelements frequently force men in North Kivu province tocarry looted goods or to participate in the construction ofmilitary facilities; those who resist are sometimes killed.During the past year, a number of children in Ituri wereforced to abandon their studies to work for the army. Anumber of policemen in eastern DRC reportedly arrestedpeople arbitrarily in order to extort money from them;those who could not pay were forced to work until theyhad “earned” their freedom.During the year, the Ugandan terrorist rebel organization,Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), intensified its operations inareas in and near the DRC’s Orientale Province, abductingat least 750 people, mostly children, between September2008 and January 2009 in the DRC, Central AfricanRepublic, and southern Sudan to serve as domestics,porters, soldiers, and in sexual servitude. An estimated300 women and children remain captive with the LRA inDRC’s Garamba National Park; some Congolese captiveswere taken into southern Sudan.A significant number of unlicensed Congolese artisanalminers – men and boys – are exploited in situations ofdebt bondage by businessmen and supply dealers fromwhom they acquire cash advances, tools, food, and otherprovisions at inflated prices, and to whom they must sellthe mined minerals at prices below the market value. Theminers are forced to continue to work to repay constantlyaccumulating debts that are virtually impossible to repay.In North and South Kivu Provinces, armed groups andFARDC troops reportedly use threats and coercion toforce men and children to mine for minerals. Congolesegirls are forcibly prostituted in brothels or informalcamps – including in markets and mining areas – byloosely organized networks, gangs, and madams.Congolese women and children are trafficked internallyfor domestic servitude and, in smaller numbers, to SouthAfrica, Republic of the Congo, and European nations,such as Norway, for sexual exploitation. Some membersof Batwa, or pygmy groups, are subjected to conditionsof involuntary servitude in agriculture, mining, anddomestic work in eastern DRC.The Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congodoes not fully comply with the minimum standards forthe elimination of trafficking; however, it is makingsignificant efforts to do so. Some advances were notedduring the reporting period, particularly the enactmentof the Child Protection Code, the conviction of an armymajor – among others – for illegally recruiting children,and the launch of a public awareness campaign againstthe illegal recruitment of child soldiers. Despite thesesignificant efforts, the government did not show evidenceof progress in prosecuting and punishing sex traffickingand labor trafficking offenders, demobilizing conscriptedchild soldiers from its army, or providing protectiveservices for the vast majority of trafficking victims;therefore, the Democratic Republic of the Congo is placedon Tier 2 Watch List. The government continued to lacksufficient financial, technical, and human resources toeffectively address trafficking crimes and provide basiclevels of security and social services in most parts of thecountry. The military lacked the capacity to demobilizearmed groups or adequately prevent the traffickingviolations committed by members of its own forces.The country’s criminal and military justice systems,including the police, courts, and prisons, were practicallynonexistent after years of war; there were few functioningcourts or secure prisons in the country.CONGO (DRC) TIER RANKING BY YEARRecommendations for the Democratic Republic ofthe Congo: Increase efforts to prosecute and punishtrafficking offenders, particularly those who conscriptchild soldiers, utilize forced labor, or control children inprostitution; punish military and other law enforcement2008CONGO, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE2008109

CONGO, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THEpersonnel found unlawfully using local populations toperform forced labor or mine for minerals; in partnershipwith NGOs or religious entities, ensure the provisionof short-term protective services to children who aretrafficking victims; and work with concession holders toeducate mine operators and workers about the illegality ofutilizing forced labor.ProsecutionThe Congolese government made concerted efforts toaddress the illegal conscription and use of child soldiersby armed groups and government forces throughprosecutions and convictions during the reporting period.It demonstrated, however, minimal efforts to bring tojustice those committing other types of trafficking crimes.The government lacked judicial presence in many areasof the country where human trafficking occurs, andremained hamstrung by a critical shortage of magistrates,clerks, and lawyers. Existing laws do not prohibit allforms of labor trafficking; however, the July 2006 sexualviolence statute, Law 6/018, specifically prohibits andprescribes penalties of 10 to 20 years’ imprisonmentfor sex trafficking, child and forced prostitution, andpimping. The Child Protection Code, Law 09/001,enacted in January 2009, criminalizes and prescribespenalties of five to 20 years’ imprisonment for childtrafficking and commercial sexual exploitation. It alsospecifically prohibits the recruitment and use of childrenby the armed forces, armed groups, and the police. Theaforementioned penalties prescribed by both laws aresufficiently stringent and commensurate with penaltiesprescribed for other serious crimes.In March 2009, Bukavu police arrested a nightclub ownerfor allegedly prostituting 10 girls and seven boys inhis facility; he was remanded to prison to await formalcharges. In April 2008, the Bukavu Military Courtsentenced FARDC Major Bwasolo Misaba to five years inprison for conscripting children between the ages of 10to 14 and illegally using them in military ranks. This isthe DRC’s second conviction of a national army officerfor illegally recruiting children to be in the armed forces.In March 2009, the Kipushi Military Tribunal sentencedKynugu Mutanga (a.k.a. Gédéon) to death for crimesagainst humanity, including illegal child conscription.Seven of his co-defendants received sentences rangingfrom seven to 10 years’ imprisonment for their complicityin these crimes, 11 received lesser sentences, and five wereacquitted. In July 2008, Congolese military magistratesand the UN Mission to the DRC (MONUC) staff traveledto Orientale Province on a third joint investigativemission to record testimonies of atrocities committedby local Mai-Mai militias; substantial evidence of forcedlabor of local populations was collected. Kisanganimilitary authorities apprehended five Mai-Mai membersfor their alleged involvement, but have not set a trialdate. Bedi Mubuli Engangela (a.k.a. Colonel 106), a formerMai-Mai commander suspected of insurrection and warcrimes, including the illegal conscription of children,remains in detention at Malaka Prison in Kinshasa; atrial date for commencement of his prosecution hasnot been set. These notable efforts notwithstanding,the government’s capacity to apprehend, convict, orimprison traffickers remained weak. Commander Jean-Pierre Biyoyo, formerly of the Mudundu-40 armed groupand the first person convicted by Congolese courts ofconscripting children, has not been re-apprehended sincehis escape from prison in June 2006. “Captain Gaston,”an armed group commander allegedly responsible for themid-2006 murder of an NGO child protection advocate,remained at large during the reporting period; his January2007 arrest warrant has not been executed. Corruptofficials siphoned meager financial resources available togovernment agencies responsible for combating humantrafficking, further disabling the government frompursuing training, capacity building, or victim assistance.ProtectionThe government offered minimal protection totrafficking victims during the reporting period. NGOsprovide nearly all of the shelter, legal, medical, andpsychological services available to trafficking victims.Under the National Disarmament, Demobilization,and Reintegration Plan (PNDDR), all ex-combatants,including child soldiers, pass through a common processduring which they disarm and receive information aboutmilitary and civilian reintegration options. During thisprocess, the National Demobilization Agency (UEPN-DDR), in cooperation with MONUC, identifies, separatesout, and transports any identified children to NGO-runcenters for temporary housing and vocational training;between 2,200 and 3,000 children were demobilizedfrom armed groups through this process in 2008. A sharpincrease in child soldier demobilization took place afterthe signing of a January 2009 agreement between theFARDC and the CNDP, resulting in the demobilizationof 223 child soldiers during the first week of theagreement’s implementation. Some FARDC elementsessentially outside government control continued duringthe reporting period to harass, arrest, and physicallymistreat children formerly associated with armed groups,including potential trafficking victims; minors detainedfor child soldiering were generally released quickly ifdiscovered by the MONUC or NGOs. The FARDC lackedsufficient command and control to compel many FARDCcommanders, much less militia commanders, with childsoldiers serving under them to comply with standingorders to release them.In December 2008, the Governments of the DRC,Uganda, and Southern Sudan launched a joint militaryoperation against the LRA in the DRC’s territory. Theoperation is ongoing, but as of this Report’s writing, it hadrescued 346 people, including 127 Congolese, Ugandan,and Sudanese children.Although the national government did not addressforced labor in the mining sector, provincial Ministry ofEducation offices in Mbuji Mayi, Bunia, and Lubumbashi110

coordinated with NGOs to reintegrate children workingin mines into the formal education system. In April2008, Katanga’s provincial Ministries of Interior andLabor opened the Kasapa residential “welcome center”in Lubumbashi to provide street children, includingtrafficking victims, with protective services andeducational programming; the center is fully funded bythe provincial government. Although the Ministry ofLabor is responsible for investigating forced child laborand it employs 10 inspectors in Katanga’s mining region,the ministry did not conduct any forced child laborinvestigations in 2008. Government officials recognizethe growing problem of child prostitution in the DRC,though authorities have yet to take concrete action againstit. In September 2008, Bukavu child protection policetrained 12 brothel and nightclub owners regarding theprohibition against utilizing minors to perform sexualservices. The government did not employ proceduresfor proactively identifying victims of trafficking amongvulnerable groups, and it lacked formal procedures forreferring victims to protective services. The government isnot known to encourage victims to assist in investigationsagainst their traffickers. It offered no legal alternatives tothe removal of foreign victims to countries in which theymay face hardship or retribution.PreventionWhile the government initiated awareness raising effortsagainst the conscription of child soldiers during the year,it made no significant efforts to prevent other forms oftrafficking. To raise the awareness of child soldieringissues among Congolese military and political leaders, theUEPN-DDR held events in Kinshasa, Goma, and Bukavuin June 2008 as part of a campaign of zero tolerance forthe use of child soldiers. For the general public residingin these same locations, UEPN-DDR produced sketches,public service announcements, and debates broadcastedby six radio and television stations in July and August.The agency also sent field teams on awareness-raisingmissions to 23 sites throughout South Kivu, North Kivu,Katanga, and Equateur Provinces. The government did nottake any known measures during the reporting period toreduce the demand for commercial sex acts.CONGO, REPUBLIC OF THE(Tier 2 Watch List)The Republic of the Congo (ROC) is a source country forchildren trafficked within its borders for the purposes offorced labor and commercial sexual exploitation, as wellas a destination country for children trafficked from otherAfrican countries for the same purposes. Within the ROC,boys and girls are trafficked from rural areas, primarilyfrom the Pool Region, to Point Noire and Brazzaville forforced street vending and domestic servitude. Girls aretrafficked from rural areas primarily to Brazzaville, butalso to Pointe Noire, for commercial sexual exploitation.Transnationally, children are trafficked from other Africancountries to Pointe Noire for domestic servitude, forcedmarket vending, and forced labor in the fishing industry.The majority of these victims are girls and most are fromBenin, ERITREA although TIER some RANKING are BY also YEAR trafficked from Mali,Guinea, Togo, Senegal, and Cameroon. The BenineseConsulate in Brazzaville has estimated that 1,800Beninese children may be subjected to domestic servitudein the ROC. UNICEF reported that young girls, luredby promises of jobs in the ROC or onward voyages toFrance, Canada, and South Africa, are trafficked from theDemocratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to Brazzavillefor organized prostitution. Children may be trafficked tothe ROC from the DRC for forced commercial activities,PAPUA NEW GUINEA TIER RANKING BY YEARsuch as street vending, domestic servitude, tailoring,hairdressing, and food service.The Government of the ROC does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so, despitelimited resources. Despite these efforts, the governmentdid not show evidence of progress in anti-trafficking lawenforcement efforts and in the protection of traffickingvictims; therefore, the Republic of the Congo is placedSWAZILAND TIER RANKING BY YEARon Tier 2 Watch List. In late April 2009, the governmentenacted the Child Protection Code, which containsprovisions prohibiting child trafficking. Since 2003,the ROC has struggled to recover from six years of civilconflict that crippled its institutions, ravaged its economy,and rendered its children more vulnerable to beingtrafficked.CONGO (ROC) TIER RANKING BY YEARRecommendations ? TIER RANKING for BY YEAR the ROC: Train law enforcementofficials to identify traffickers and arrest them underrelevant laws; and train social workers and lawenforcement officials to identify trafficking victims amongvulnerable populations and to refer them to foreigngovernment consulates, foster families, internationalorganizations, faith-based groups, or NGOs for care.ProsecutionThe Government of the ROC demonstrated weaklaw enforcement efforts to combat trafficking duringthe last year. The ROC does not prohibit all forms oftrafficking. Penal Code Article 344 criminalizes thepimping of children, however, prescribing penaltiesof from six months’ to two years’ imprisonment and afine, punishments that are neither sufficiently stringentnor commensurate with those prescribed for rape.The government reported no trafficking prosecutionsCONGO, REPUBLIC OF THE111

COSTA RICAor convictions under related laws in the last year. InJanuary 2009, two girls from the ROC, ages six and 16,arrived with fraudulent travel documents into Paris ona flight from Brazzaville. The girls were accompaniedby two other young girls from Kinshasa, but no parentor guardian accompanied the four children. TheGovernment of the ROC is neither investigating on itsown nor collaborating with French officials to determinewhether this case involved child trafficking. On April 30,2009, a Child Protection Code that includes provisionsagainst child trafficking was passed by Parliament.Between April and August 2008, the governmentcollaborated with UNICEF to conduct several trainingworkshops about this law for Central African governmentofficials and representatives from the Consulates ofBenin, Togo, and the DRC. The government contributedthe training sites and personnel to assist with logistics.ProtectionThe ROC government continued poor efforts to protecttrafficking victims over the last year. The governmentneither operates a trafficking victim shelter norcollaborates with NGOs to provide rescued victims withfood, shelter, or other assistance. The government has notyet developed formal procedures through which policeand government social workers may identify traffickingvictims among vulnerable populations, such as streetchildren, child laborers, illegal immigrants and women inprostitution. As a result, victims may be inappropriatelyincarcerated or otherwise penalized for unlawful actscommitted as a direct result of being trafficked. The ROCgovernment reported rescuing an unknown number oftrafficking victims during the year. Government staffworked with UNICEF, the NGO Action Against Traffickingof West African Children, and other civil society groups,to help repatriate victims back to their African homecountries, particularly Benin. The government did notprovide legal alternatives to the removal of foreign victimsto countries where they face hardship or retribution.The government did not encourage victims to assist intrafficking investigations or prosecutions.PreventionThe Government of the ROC made limited efforts toprevent incidents of trafficking during the reportingperiod. A plan of action against trafficking in Point Noir,which the government developed with UNICEF over thepast three years, was finalized in 2008. With fundingfrom UNICEF, the government helped implement theplan in May 2008 in Point Noire by providing sites forUNICEF-conducted trafficking awareness training. Oneworkshop, hosted by the Ministry of Health, educatedlocal NGOs about trafficking. Additional workshopsraised awareness among Central African and foreigngovernment representatives and resulted in the creation ofan anti-trafficking working group headed by the Ministryof Health and consisting of law enforcement officials,local community leaders, and representatives from theConsulates of Benin, Togo, and the DRC. The governmenthas not taken measures to reduce the demand for forcedlabor or commercial sex acts in the ROC. The ROC hasnot ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.COSTA RICA (Tier 2)Costa Rica is a source, transit, and destination countryfor women and children trafficked for the purpose ofcommercial sexual exploitation. To a lesser but increasingextent, Costa Rica is a source, transit, and destinationcountry for men, women, and children trafficked intoforced labor, particularly in agriculture, construction,restaurant work, the fishing industry, and as domesticservants. Costa Rican women and children are traffickedwithin the country and to neighboring Central Americancountries, Mexico, and Japan for commercial sexualexploitation. Foreign women and girls from Nicaragua,the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Colombia, Russia,and Eastern Europe have been identified in Costa Rica asvictims of forced prostitution. The government recognizeschild sex tourism as a serious problem, particularly inthe provinces of Guanacaste, Limon, Puntarenas, andSan Jose. Child sex tourists arrive mostly from the UnitedStates, Germany, Sweden, and Italy. Young men fromNicaragua, as well as Chinese nationals, are traffickedto Costa Rica for forced labor. According to anecdotalreports, young indigenous Panamanians may be traffickedto Costa Rica for forced panhandling. Costa Rica serves asa transit point for foreign nationals trafficked to Mexico,Canada, the United States, and Europe.The Government of Costa Rica does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Duringthe past year, the Government of Costa Rica approvednational legislation to prohibit and punish all forms ofhuman trafficking, and improved victim assistance andprevention efforts. However, effective law enforcementefforts to ensure that trafficking offenders are heldaccountable for their crimes remained lacking.Recommendations for Costa Rica: Implement andenforce the new anti-trafficking law; intensify effortsto investigate and prosecute trafficking offenses, andconvict and punish trafficking offenders; provide greaterassistance for victims; increase efforts to reduce consumerdemand for commercial sex acts; and improve datacollection for trafficking crimes.ProsecutionThe Government of Costa Rica improved law enforcementefforts against human trafficking during the reportingperiod. In February 2009, the Costa Rican LegislativeAssembly approved legislation to amend Article 172 ofthe penal code to criminalize all forms of trafficking inpersons. The new law establishes a penalty of six to 10years’ imprisonment for the movement of persons forthe purposes of prostitution, sexual or labor servitude,slavery, forced work or services, servile marriage,begging, or other prohibited purposes; sentences maybe increased to eight to 16 years’ imprisonment under112

aggravated circumstances, such as when the victim is aminor or a trafficker uses means of deception, violence,intimidation, or coercion. The new legislation came intoforce in April 2009, and closed a statutory gap relatingto the internal trafficking of adults. The penalties setforth in amended Article 172 are sufficiently stringentand commensurate with those prescribed for otherserious crimes, such as rape. Articles 376 and 377 of thepenal code additionally prohibit child sex trafficking,prescribing penalties of two to four years’ imprisonment.During 2007, the latest period for which official statisticsare available, the government opened nine investigationsinto suspected transnational human trafficking, andsecured two convictions against offenders. However, thegovernment continued to suffer a low conviction rate ontrafficking cases, as seven of the nine trafficking suspectswere acquitted. In May 2008, the national judicialpolice formed a four-person smuggling and traffickingunit, which opened two investigations of internationaltrafficking organizations; however, the unit’s effectivenessappeared hampered by unclear reporting lines toprosecutorial counterparts and lack of a dedicated budget.Moreover, it remained unclear which law enforcemententities had the lead in investigating and prosecutinginternal human trafficking cases. The governmentsignificantly increased anti-trafficking training for lawenforcement and public officials in 2008, training nearly1,000 police, immigration agents, and health workers. Thegovernment increased regional cooperation by assistingneighboring countries on anti-trafficking investigationsand hosting a large regional conference to share “bestpractices.” No confirmed allegations of trafficking-relatedcorruption were investigated or prosecuted, though NGOsreported instances of street-level police collusion withtraffickers.trafficking victims, though foreign nationals were eligiblefor work permits or refugee status; the governmentgranted refugee status to a trafficking victim for the firsttime last year. The government also can issue a specialvisa to foreign trafficking victims who assist with theinvestigation and prosecution of their traffickers, effortswhich Costa Rican authorities encouraged.PreventionThe government increased prevention efforts during thereporting year, launching an awareness-raising campaignentitled “Don’t Let Them Lie to You” in October 2008,directed at families and young people across the country.The government dedicated $25,000 in funding for thewidespread media effort, supplementing the assistanceof UNICEF and other international organizations. Thegovernment’s anti-trafficking coordinating committeesignificantly stepped up activities last year, hiring anattorney to assist with drafting anti-trafficking legislationconsistent with international standards. The governmentsponsored campaigns to reduce demand for commercialsex acts with minors by warning potential foreign“clients” of child prostitution that they will be prosecutedin Costa Rica. In 2007, the latest period for whichofficial statistics are available, the government opened99 investigations of suspects paying for commercialsex acts with minors, achieving three convictions ofCONGO (DRC) TIER RANKING BY YEARexploiters. By the end of 2008, approximately 240 tourcompanies in Costa Rica had signed a conduct codeagainst the commercial sexual exploitation of children.Public awareness of human trafficking crimes appearedto be growing in Costa Rica, though some officialstended to view it as a transnational, and not a domestic,phenomenon.2008COTE D’IVOIREProtectionThe Costa Rican government improved victim assistanceduring the reporting period, though the overallavailability of services remained limited. Traffickingvictims can access basic care at government shelters forwomen and children. Shelter care is not available formen. The government relied on NGOs and internationalorganizations to provide specialized care for traffickingvictims, though the government provided limited fundingfor an NGO providing care for sex trafficking victims. InJune 2008, the government’s anti-trafficking committeeestablished an “immediate attention” protocol to identifyand refer trafficking victims, on an emergency basisif necessary, to NGOs and other sources of assistance.The government generally did not penalize victimsfor unlawful acts committed as a direct result of beingtrafficked. Officials treated some foreign adults as illegalmigrants, however, and deported them without takingadequate measures to determine if they were traffickingvictims. The government employed no formal proceduresfor identifying trafficking victims among vulnerablepopulations, such as prostituted women. Costa Rican lawdid not provide temporary residency status for foreignCOTE D’IVOIRE(Tier 2 Watch List)Cote d’Ivoire is a source, transit, and destinationcountry for women and children trafficked for forcedlabor and commercial sexual exploitation. Traffickingwithin the country is more prevalent than transnationaltrafficking, and the majority of victims are children.Within Cote d’Ivoire, women and girls are traffickedprimarily for domestic servitude, restaurant labor, andsexual exploitation. A 2007 study by the Governmentof Germany’s foreign aid organization found that 85percent of females in prostitution in two Ivoirian districts200820082008113

COTE D’IVOIREwere children. Boys are trafficked within the country foragricultural and service labor. They are also traffickedfrom Ghana, Mali, Burkina Faso, Benin, Togo, and Ghanato Cote d’Ivoire for forced agricultural labor, includingwork in the cocoa sector. Boys from Guinea are traffickedto Cote d’Ivoire for forced mining, from Togo for forcedconstruction labor, from Benin for forced carpentry work,and from Ghana and Togo for forced labor in the fishingindustry. Women and girls are trafficked to and fromother West and Central African countries for domesticservitude and forced street vending. Women and girlsare trafficked from other West African countries, mostnotably from Ghana, Nigeria, and Burkina Faso, to Coted’Ivoire for commercial sexual exploitation. Women aretrafficked from and through Cote d’Ivoire to Europe forsexual exploitation.2008The Government of Cote d’Ivoire does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant effortsto do so. The government’s law enforcement efforts toaddress trafficking increased with the conviction of sextraffickers over the last year. Despite these efforts, thegovernment did not demonstrate progress over the lastyear in prosecuting traffickers of children for prostitutionor forced labor; therefore, Cote d’Ivoire is placed on Tier 22008Watch List.CONGO (DRC) TIER RANKING BY YEAR2008a sufficiently stringent punishment of five to 10 years’imprisonment and a fine. Penal Code Articles 335 to 337prohibit recruiting or offering children for prostitution,prescribing penalties of one to 10 years’ imprisonmentand a fine, which are sufficiently stringent andcommensurate with penalties prescribed for rape. Ivoirianlaw does not criminalize the trafficking of adults forcommercial sexual exploitation. Conscription of childrenfor armed conflict is prohibited by Article 2 of the militarycode. The government’s 2007 draft law prohibitingchild trafficking and child labor awaits approval by theNational Assembly, but the Assembly’s mandate ended inDecember 2005 and new legislative elections have not yetbeen held.From April to July 2008, Ivoirian police investigated threetrafficking cases and sent one suspected trafficker to atribunal for prosecution. The suspect was released withoutbeing charged. A different suspect arrested in April 2008for trafficking two Beninese children for constructionlabor in the housing industry was also released withoutbeing formally charged. In October 2008, the UNOperation in Cote d’Ivoire reported that a Beninese manallegedly forced five children from Benin to work longhours on cocoa plantations and in restaurants in Vavoua.Officials from the Forces Nouvelles (FN), which carriedout the 2002 rebellion and remain in control of someareas of the country, arrested and placed him in prison.When the man agreed to pay the equivalent of $1,600to house and eventually repatriate the victims, the FNreleased him. The government reported that in 2008,it obtained the convictions of four Nigerien nationalswho had trafficked women from Niger and Nigeria toCote d’Ivoire for sexual exploitation. The court imposedpenalties of 12 to 36 months’ imprisonment and fines onthe convicted traffickers. The government did not reportany prosecutions of individuals subjecting children totrafficking in prostitution or in the cocoa sector.Police reported quarterly raids on brothels. Officialsreported that in two cases during the year, policequestioned women in prostitution to identify whetherthey were trafficking victims. NGOs reported that lawenforcement officials continued to exploit women inprostitution, sometimes threatening to arrest foreignwomen without documentation if they refused to engagein sex. During the year, Ivoirian police conducted a jointinvestigation with Ghanaian authorities to pursue aGhanaian trafficker who had taken two Togolese childreninto Cote d’Ivoire. The government also paid to lodgejudges who attended a donor-funded anti-traffickingtraining course.200820082008Recommendations for Cote d’Ivoire: Increase efforts toinvestigate, prosecute, and convict traffickers; developsystematic procedures for identifying trafficking victimsamong women and girls in prostitution; step up effortsto educate government officials about trafficking,particularly child sex trafficking; intensify efforts toprovide care to trafficking victims by making 2008 availablefunds allocated for construction of victim shelters;ensure that trafficking victims are not penalized for actscommitted as a direct result of being trafficked.ProsecutionThe Government of Cote d’Ivoire demonstratedincreased efforts to address trafficking though lawenforcement during the reporting period. Ivoirian lawdoes not prohibit all forms of trafficking. However, Penal2008Code Article 378 prohibits forced labor, prescribinga sufficiently stringent penalty of one to five years’imprisonment and a fine of approximately $800 to$2,200. Penal Code Article 376 criminalizes entering intocontracts that deny freedom to a third person, prescribingProtectionThe Ivoirian government did not fully protect victims oftrafficking during the last year. There are no governmentshelters for victims. Victims are referred to NGOsand international organizations for care. While thegovernment allocated $600,000 to build centers in its2007 – 2009 national action plan against the worst forms20082008114

of child labor and child trafficking, it has not yet madefunds available to begin construction.The government continued to operate communityeducation centers and mobile schools for victims ofchild trafficking and the worst forms of child labor. TheNational Committee Against Trafficking also repatriated25 child victims of trafficking to their home countriesduring the reporting period. The committee referredan additional 21 children to the NGO BICE (BureauInternational Catholique de l’Enfance) for repatriation.There is currently no formal government program forIvoirian nationals repatriated to Cote d’Ivoire, althoughthe Ministry of Family (MOF) is occasionally called onto provide assistance. In September 2008, the MOF, incollaboration with UNICEF, published a manual detailinggovernment procedures for providing care to child laborand trafficking victims.The MOF is responsible for all aspects of foreign victimrepatriation, including notifying the victims’ consularoffices or embassies, informing officials in the victims’home countries, contacting NGOs with the means toassist with shelter and repatriation, and organizingtransportation expenses for victims and their escortsduring the repatriation process. Once victims reach theircountry of origin, MOF representatives entrust them togovernment authorities.Both the MOF and the National Police employedsocial workers to assist victims immediately upontheir identification. During the year, however, policedid not identify any children being prostituted in abrothel as trafficking victims, instead characterizingthem as consensually in prostitution. The governmentsystematically encouraged victims to assist in traffickinginvestigations and prosecutions. The governmentprovided temporary residence permits to foreign victimsfrom countries where they might face hardship orretribution. ECOWAS nationals, including traffickingvictims, may legally reside and work in Cote d’Ivoire.cases to identify trafficking victims among females inprostitution. Cote d’Ivoire’s 2008 budget allocated $4.3million toward implementing all aspects of the nationalaction plan against child trafficking and the worst formsof child labor; however, no funds were disbursed duringthe reporting period. The government did not takemeasuresCONGOto insure(DRC) TIERthatRANKINGits nationalsBY YEARdeployedabroadas part of peacekeeping missions do not engage in orfacilitate trafficking. Cote d’Ivoire has not ratified the2000 UN TIP Protocol.CROATIA (Tier 1)Croatia is a source, transit, and destination country formen, women and children trafficked across nationalborders for the purpose of sexual exploitation andforced labor. Croatian females are also trafficked withinthe country, and women and girls from Serbia, Bosniaand Herzegovina, and other parts of Eastern Europeare trafficked to and through Croatia for the purposeof sexual exploitation. Two other notable trends wereseen in Croatia in 2008: an increase in the traffickingof men for the purpose of forced labor; and, for the firsttime, Croatia serving primarily as a destination, notlargely as a transit country, for victims of trafficking forthe purpose of sexual exploitation and forced labor. Theseasonal migration of foreign women in prostitution toand from the Dalmatian coast during high tourist seasonscontinued to raise concerns about sex trafficking. In thepast, cases were reported of children, including Roma,trafficked for purposes of sexual exploitation; however,no cases were reported in 2008.200820082008CROATIAPreventionThe Government of Cote d’Ivoire demonstrated efforts toprevent trafficking during the reporting period. The MOFconducted awareness-raising campaigns to educate localgovernment officials, community leaders, and membersof anti-trafficking village committees about the problem.In June 2008, the MOF launched a donor-funded nationalawareness campaign against trafficking and child labor.The Ministry organized UNICEF and ILO-sponsoredevents, such as public conferences and a film for children.The government also published a study conducted jointlywith private cocoa companies on the incidence of childlabor and forced adult labor in its cocoa sector in June2008. The study found the incidence of child laborexploitation to be significant.During the year, the police reported that they took stepsto reduce demand for commercial sex acts by raidingbrothels, but did not follow systematic procedures in allThe Government of Croatia fully complies with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking. In2008, the government continued to increase punishmentof convicted trafficking offenders. It generously fundedNGOs providing assistance and shelter to traffickingvictims, continued its comprehensive and proactivetraining efforts, and initiated new trafficking preventionand awareness raising projects.Recommendations for Croatia: Expand efforts to detecttrafficking victims among vulnerable populations such aswomen in prostitution and men in the agricultural sector;enhance prosecution efforts to increase convictions andcontinue to toughen sentences imposed on convictedtraffickers; ensure the responsible repatriation of foreignvictims; vigorously investigate possible trafficking within20082008115

CUBAhigh tourism sectors along the Croatian coastline;expand awareness efforts to educate clients about thedemand for commercial sex acts and forced labor; anddevelop a unified database to increase coordinationand information sharing among government bodiescombating trafficking.ProsecutionThe Government of Croatia continued to makeappreciable progress in prosecuting and punishingconvicted trafficking offenders under its traffickinglaw in 2008. During the reporting period, there wereno suspended sentences, and the harshest penalty todate – eight years’ imprisonment – was imposed ona convicted trafficker. Croatia criminally prohibitstrafficking offenses for sexual and labor exploitationthrough Criminal Provision 175 of its penal code.Prescribed penalties for all forms of trafficking are oneto 10 years’ imprisonment; penalties that are sufficientlystringent and are commensurate with those for rape.In 2008, the government investigated 15 suspectedtrafficking offenders – a decrease from 20 investigated in2007 – and prosecuted 12 during the reporting period.Nine trafficking offenders were convicted and givensentences ranging from one to eight years, compared to 10convictions obtained in 2007. In 2008, the governmentprovided general anti-trafficking training to 2,372 policeofficers, and continued its “train-the-trainer” programinvolving 26 police officers training counterparts on waysto recognize and assist trafficking victims. In coordinationwith IOM and the British government, the governmentdelivered training to an additional 27 border police. InDecember 2008, the government amended its criminalcode to include a minimum mandatory sentence of fiveyears for any state official’s involvement in trafficking.However, there were no specific reports of traffickingrelatedcomplicity during the reporting period.ProtectionThe Government of Croatia sustained generousfunding to NGOs and its two anti-trafficking sheltersfor the protection and assistance of trafficking victims,totaling $161,912 in 2008. The government continuedto emphasize a victim-centered approach in its officialresponse to victim identification and protection; howeverin practice, it identified only seven victims during thereporting period, a decline from 15 in 2007. According toone Croatian NGO, some victims of forced prostitutionare not recognized as victims of trafficking, andsubsequently face punishment for prostitution-relatedoffenses. The government made efforts to ensure thatrecognized trafficking victims were not penalized forunlawful acts committed as a direct result of their beingtrafficked. The government provides foreign victims withlegal alternatives to their removal to countries where theymay face hardship or retribution. In December 2008, theparliament amended the Criminal Procedure Act to giveadditional rights to victims of grave crimes, includingvictims of trafficking. In June 2008, the Ministry ofHealth and Social Welfare signed a cooperation agreementwith two NGOs to delineate the responsibilities of eachsignatory in providing victim assistance. In some initialcases in 2008, the government repatriated victims byreturning them to the border in a police vehicle, puttingthese victims at risk of re-trafficking; the governmentreported it has since remedied the problem. Croatiacontinued to implement, through the use of mobileteams, its national mechanism to proactively identifypotential trafficking victims and refer them to serviceproviders. Reportedly, border and immigration policeroutinely utilize instructions on interviewing illegalmigrants who are suspected trafficking victims. Thegovernment actively encourages victim participation intrafficking cases; assistance was not conditional uponvictim cooperation with law enforcement investigators.PreventionThe Government of Croatia continued to show strongleadership and initiative in its trafficking preventionefforts during the reporting period. To address concernsabout prostitution and sex trafficking during thetourist season along the Adriatic coast, the governmenttrained 130 government and nongovernmental actorson assisting trafficking victims in Rijeka and Splitin 2008. Recognizing the need for awareness raisingwithin the tourist industry, the government organized aseminar for 40 tourism sector employees on identifyingvictims of trafficking. It conducted outreach activitieswith approximately 500 students and 40 children inorphanages to prevent their possible trafficking. Croatiaproduced and aired a nationwide television campaignin preparation for the June 2008 Soccer Cup alerting thepublic that individuals they see in prostitution and childlabor may be victims of trafficking. The campaign’s sloganwas “Open your eyes, you can help, and possibly save alife,” and was aimed at potential clients. In Novemberand December 2008, the government conducted antitraffickingtraining for 60 of its soldiers prior to theirdeployment to Afghanistan.CUBA (Tier 3)Cuba is principally a source of women and childrentrafficked within the country for the purpose ofcommercial sexual exploitation. Some Cuban childrenare reportedly pushed into prostitution by their families,exchanging sex for money, food, or gifts. Cuban nationalsvoluntarily migrate illegally to the United States, andthere have been reports that some are subjected to forcedlabor or forced prostitution by their smugglers. The fullscope of trafficking within Cuba is difficult to gauge dueto the closed nature of the government and sparse nongovernmentalor independent reporting. State-run hotelworkers, travel employees, cab drivers, and police steersome tourists to women and children in prostitution –including trafficking victims – though this appears to beon the decline.116

The Government of Cuba does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking,and is not making significant efforts to do so. It isdifficult to assess the true extent of trafficking in Cuba.Observation and independent reports suggest that theCuban government is taking steps to address the problemof child sex tourism, though this information cannot beverified. The government will not release informationabout anti-trafficking activities it may have engaged induring the past year, viewing U.S. attempts to engageofficials on trafficking issues as politically motivated.Recommendations for Cuba: Acknowledge that childsex trafficking in Cuba is a problem; provide greaterlegal protections and assistance for victims; developprocedures to identify possible trafficking victims amongvulnerable populations; increase anti-trafficking trainingfor law enforcement; and take greater steps to prevent thetrafficking of children in prostitution.ProsecutionCuba prohibits most forms of trafficking activity throughvarious provisions of its penal code. While prostitutionfor persons over the age of 16 is legal, Title III, FirstSection, Article 310, provides that using children under16 in prostitution, corruption, pornographic acts or otherillegal conduct may be punishable by from seven to 30years’ imprisonment or death. Article 316, on the sellingof minors, bans internal and transnational trafficking inchildren under the age of 16 for forced labor, prostitution,trade in organs, and pornography, and prescribespenalties of four to 20 years’ imprisonment. Articles302 and 87 prohibit inducing an adult into prostitutionand prescribe penalties of up to 20 years’ imprisonment.All of these penalties are sufficiently stringent, andcommensurate with those prescribed for other gravecrimes, such as rape. Trafficking of adults for forced labor,however, is not prohibited under Cuban law. No officialdata relating to Cuban investigations, prosecutions, andconvictions of trafficking offenders in 2008 or any otheryear has been made public. An NGO in Cuba reports thata number of Cubans were convicted for human traffickingin the past year, but the majority of the crimes appear tobe alien smuggling without an element of exploitation.The government continued to assist the U.S. CoastGuard with investigating potential human traffickingcases within alien smuggling groups, particularly casesof illegal migrants forced to work for smugglers or druggangs. Corruption remained a problem throughoutthe government. Reports continued of individualpolice officers accepting bribes and profiting from thecommercial sex trade. No investigations or prosecutionsof public officials have been confirmed.ProtectionEfforts by the Government of Cuba to aid traffickingvictims were not officially reported over the last year,but appeared weak. Evidence suggests that victims arepunished for unlawful acts committed as a direct resultof their being trafficked. Although adult prostitution isCONGO (DRC) TIER RANKING BY YEARlegal in Cuba, police occasionally rounded up women andchildren in Cuba’s sex trade and charged them with vaguecrimes such as “dangerousness” without attempting toidentify trafficking victims among the detained persons.Adolescents found in prostitution were sent to eitherjuvenile detention facilities or work camps emphasizingpoliticized rehabilitation. Personnel in most detentionand rehabilitation centers which may house traffickingvictims cannot provide adequate care, and conditionsat some of these detention centers appear to be harsh.Trafficking victims who are not detained may accessthe limited services available through Cuba’s healthsystem. Two sexual abuse treatment centers run by thegovernment with assistance from an NGO which provideadvanced care and counseling to child sexual abusevictims and child witnesses are available to traffickingvictims. Trained law enforcement and court personnelrecord videos of interviews and testimony, practices whichcould reduce children’s court appearances in traffickingcases if they were to be so used. The centers’ staff alsoprovided specialized victim protection training totreatment professionals, police, prosecutors, and judges.The government did not show evidence of employingformal procedures to identify trafficking victims amongvulnerable populations, such as people exploited inprostitution. Cuba claims to have a policy of encouragingvictims of any crimes to participate in investigations andprosecutions, though there were no victims of traffickingknown to be so encouraged during the reporting period.Cuba did not provide legal alternatives to the removal offoreign victims to countries where they face hardship orretribution. NGOs report that Cuban missions in foreigncountries routinely refuse assistance to Cuban womenwho state they were forced to travel overseas and coercedinto prostitution.PreventionThe government does not acknowledge or condemnhuman trafficking as a problem in Cuba. No knowninformation campaigns to prevent sex or labor traffickingtook place during the reporting period. The governmenthas taken steps to reduce demand for commercial sexacts by prosecuting child sex offenders. U.S. citizens andother foreign nationals are currently serving lengthysentences in Cuba for sexual exploitation of a minor;in the one new case this year, a Cuban-American wasarrested in March 2008 and charged with corruption of20082008200820082008CUBA117

CYPRUSminors, an offense usually involving sexual exploitationof children under 14. This case has not yet gone to trial.The government collects information on identified childsexual predators; immigration officials at ports of entryuse this information to deny them entry to Cuba. Cubahas not ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.CYPRUS (Tier 2)Cyprus is a destination country for a large number ofwomen from Eastern Europe, the former Soviet Union,Russia, Latin America, and the Philippines traffickedfor the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation.Recent trends indicate an increasing number of womentrafficked to Cyprus from Latin America, Morocco, andSyria. Source countries for identified victims in 2008include the Dominican Republic, Romania, Moldova,the Philippines, Uzbekistan, Syria, Russia, and Ukraine.Some trafficking for the purpose of labor exploitation alsooccurs. In 2008, most identified victims of sex traffickingwere fraudulently recruited to Cyprus on three-month“artiste” work permits to work in the cabaret industry, on“barmaid work permits” to work in pubs, or on touristvisas to work in massage parlors disguised as privateapartments. Some victims are trafficked through the areaadministered by the Turkish Cypriots into the Republic ofCyprus-controlled areas.2008The Government of Cyprus does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Duringthe reporting period, the government undertook effortsto prevent trafficking by abolishing its “artiste” categorywork permit, launching a country-wide general awarenesscampaign, and dedicating significant resources 2008to theprotection and assistance of trafficking victims. Althoughthese steps mark important progress, future assessmentsof the Cypriot government’s anti-trafficking efforts willconsider whether the government has demonstrated morevigorous prosecution efforts and convictions againsttraffickers to sufficiently punish and deter traffickingin Cyprus. Moreover, future assessments will look towhether the government has taken measures to preventsex trafficking through misuse of the new “creative artist”and “performance artist” work permits or through 2008 anupsurge in issuances of “barmaid” work permits. Thegovernment should also implement public awarenesscampaigns specifically targeting “clients” that comprisethe demand for sex trafficking victims.Recommendations for Cyprus: Ensure safeguards aredeveloped and enforced to restrict potential conduitsfor trafficking into Cyprus such as the “barmaid” workpermits and the new “performing artist” and “creativeartist” work permits; vigorously prosecute and seekconvictions of trafficking offenders and officials complicitin trafficking; implement new training programsfor prosecutors and judges to enhance the quality oftrafficking prosecutions to ensure sufficient criminalpunishments for traffickers; develop and launch acomprehensive demand reduction campaign specificallyaimed at Cypriot clients of prostitution to educate themabout the link between prostitution and trafficking;adopt, disseminate, and implement a practical guideoutlining the identification and referral and protection ofpotential trafficking victims to all front-line responders;and demonstrate more consistency in providing financialsupport to victims.ProsecutionThe Government of Cyprus demonstrated moderateefforts to prosecute and punish trafficking offenders in2008. The Government of Cyprus prohibits traffickingfor the purpose of sexual exploitation and forcedlabor through Law 87 (I)/2007, which also containsprotection measures for victims. Although the penaltiesprescribed for sex trafficking range up to 20 years’imprisonment, these penalties are not commensuratewith those prescribed for other grave crimes, such asrape, for which the maximum sentence is life in prison.During the reporting period, police investigated and filedcharges against 70 persons in 29 suspected traffickingcases, compared to 45 persons charged in 27 suspectedtrafficking cases filed in 2007. The government initiatedprosecution in 21 of these cases in 2008, a slight increasefrom 17 cases initiated in 2007. However, only two ofthese 2008 cases were prosecuted to completion; bothresulting in acquittals. Of the 31 cases of trafficking forsexual exploitation pending at the end of the previousreporting period, 11 remained in the prosecution phase,10 resulted in acquittals, five were dismissed, one wassuspended, and three remain under investigation. Thegovernment obtained only one conviction in 2008,resulting in a two-year sentence. This is a significantdecline from eight convictions obtained during theprevious reporting period. The Cypriot government in2008 added an additional member to its three-personpolice anti-trafficking unit. A court acquitted threeofficers suspected of trafficking-related complicity in2008; another case involving four officers remainspending.ProtectionThe Government of Cyprus undertook significant effortsto protect trafficking victims in 2008. It continued tooperate a shelter dedicated for trafficking victims and itprovided victims with a minimum one-month reflectionperiod to decide whether or not they want to cooperate1182008

in criminal investigations. During the reporting period,the government allocated $132,000 in funding for victimassistance; it also dedicated $249,000 for the governmentshelter’s operation, as well as $21,873 for an NGO-runshelter in Limassol. All victims are placed under the careof the Department of Social Welfare Services, whichprovided shelter and assistance to a total of 59 victimsduring the reporting period; six were victims of labortrafficking, two of whom were men. In 2008, policeidentified 41 new victims of trafficking. The governmentshelter housed 28 of these victims; the remaining victimswere referred to the NGO shelter or stayed in privateapartments. Victims who choose not to stay at the shelterare entitled to a rent subsidy and monthly allowance.The government encouraged victims to participate ininvestigations of trafficking offenders; 37 out of 41victims identified agreed to assist law enforcement in2008. The government did not penalize identified victimsfor unlawful acts committed as a direct result of theirbeing trafficked. It provided legal alternatives to theremoval of foreign victims to countries where they mayface hardship or retribution, as the law provides for thegranting of asylum or refugee status to anyone, includingtrafficking victims, when their lives or freedom wouldbe threatened; however, during the reporting period notrafficking victims applied for such status.PreventionThe Government of Cyprus significantly improved itsefforts to prevent trafficking in 2008. In November 2008,the Council of Ministers took the decision to abolishthe “artiste” work permit, a well-known conduit fortrafficking, and this decision took effect in February 2009.During the reporting period, the government issued 1,906“artiste” work permits, some of which were re-issuances.However, it issued 526 “barmaid” work permits in 2008,compared to 416 issued in 2007, raising the concernthat the barmaid work permit has taken the place of the“artiste” work permit in facilitating sex trafficking toCyprus. In December 2008, the government launcheda public awareness campaign that included pamphletsand posters in government offices, colleges, airports, andsupermarkets; billboards were placed on main streets andhighways. This campaign, however, did not specificallyaddress demand within the context of Cyprus, a measureurgently needed in the country. During the reportingperiod, the head of the police anti-trafficking unit gaveregular lectures to educate new police recruits abouttrafficking.Area Administered by Turkish CypriotsThe northern area of Cyprus is administered by TurkishCypriots; the area has declared itself the “TurkishRepublic of Northern Cyprus” (“TRNC”). The UnitedStates does not recognize the “TRNC,” nor does anyother country except Turkey. The area administered byTurkish Cypriots is a destination for women primarilytrafficked from countries in Eastern Europe for thepurpose of commercial sexual exploitation. During thereporting period, the majority of the women who received“artiste” work permits in the “TRNC” were from Moldovaand Ukraine. A smaller number included women fromKyrgyzstan, Georgia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, thePhilippines, Kenya, Romania, and Nigeria.Authorities in the “TRNC” overwhelmingly deny thattrafficking is a significant problem in the area, posinga significant challenge to assuring any protection forwomen from trafficking or the prosecution of theirtraffickers. “TRNC” authorities identified no traffickingvictims during the reporting period.Although the area administered by Turkish Cypriotsdrafted an anti-trafficking “bill” in 2007, it has yet tomake any progress on this “legislation.” Awareness oftrafficking somewhat increased, although the “TRNC”authorities provide no specialized training on trafficking;and authorities continued to confuse trafficking withprostitution and smuggling. Trafficking crimes canpotentially be prosecuted on charges of “living off theearnings of prostitution” or “encouraging prostitution.”Persons convicted under these “laws” can receive upto two years’ imprisonment. These penalties are notcommensurate with those prescribed for other gravecrimes in the area administered by Turkish Cypriots,such as rape. “TRNC” authorities reportedly prosecutednightclub owners and pimps on prostitution-relatedcharges, but provided no statistics on these efforts.Although there are no specific reports of local authorities’complicity in trafficking, authorities likely tolerate suchcorruption due to a lack of anti-trafficking “legislation.”Authorities reportedly hold the travel documents forforeign women in the cabaret industry in the “TRNC.”The “government” does not have specialized proceduresin place to identify and refer trafficking victims or allocateany funding to anti-trafficking efforts, nor does it provideany specialized care or shelter for victims. Althoughprostitution is illegal in the “TRNC,” nightclub employeesare required to submit to weekly health checks for STDscreening, suggesting tacit “government” condoning of itsprostitution industry. If arrested on prostitution charges,a victim is most likely deported within 24 hours. “TRNC”authorities did not conduct any anti-trafficking awarenesscampaigns during the reporting period.The “TRNC” does not fully comply with the minimumstandards for the elimination of trafficking, and does notappear to be making significant efforts to do so. If the“TRNC” was assigned a formal ranking in this report, itwould likely be Tier 3.Recommendations for Turkish Cypriot authorities:Pass the draft “legislation” that specifically prohibitsall severe forms of trafficking; provide training for “lawenforcement” and other front-line responders on victimidentification techniques; establish specialized protectionand assistance services and shelter; and educate clientsand the larger public about trafficking occurring withinthe cabaret industry.CYPRUS119

CZECH REPUBLICCZECH REPUBLIC (Tier 1)The Czech Republic is a source, transit, and destinationcountry for women from Slovak Republic, Ukraine,Russia, Romania, Belarus, Moldova, Bulgaria, Mongolia,and Brazil trafficked to the Netherlands, Denmark,the United Kingdom, Switzerland, and Germany forthe purpose of commercial sexual exploitation. TheCzech Republic is a destination for men and womentrafficked from Ukraine, Russia, Moldova, Belarus, China,Vietnam, Mongolia, and Brazil for the purpose of laborexploitation. Roma women are trafficked within thecountry and abroad for forced prostitution.The Government of the Czech Republic fully complieswith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking. In 2008, the government provided $450,000in funding for its domestic anti-trafficking programs,including more than $280,000 for victim assistance. Thegovernment also maintained strong victim assistanceand protection efforts, including the funding of saferepatriations for 10 trafficking victims during thereporting period.20082008Recommendations for the Czech Republic: Demonstrateincreased efforts to prosecute, convict, and punish labortrafficking offenders with imprisonment; increase the useof Section 232a of the criminal code to ensure convictedtraffickers receive higher penalties for both sex and labortrafficking offenses; increase the number of victimsreferred for assistance by law enforcement personnel; 2008and continue strong prevention and awareness efforts toreduce the demand for commercial sex acts.ProsecutionThe government sustained its solid law enforcementefforts over the previous year. The Czech Republicprohibits trafficking for the purposes of commercialsexual exploitation and forced labor through Sections232a, 216, and 204 of its criminal code, and punishments2008prescribed under these statutes range from two to 15years’ imprisonment. These punishments are sufficientlystringent and commensurate with those prescribed forother grave crimes, such as rape. Prosecutors often usesection 204 of the criminal code to prosecute traffickers.In 2008, police conducted 81 investigations – including10 labor trafficking investigations – and prosecuted110 persons for trafficking offenses, compared to 11investigations and 121 individuals prosecuted in 2007.2008The government convicted 64 trafficking offenders duringthe reporting period, down from 78 convicted offendersin 2007. Only 28 percent – 18 out of 64 traffickersconvicted in 2008 – served time in prison, comparedto 23 out of 78 traffickers convicted in 2007 whosubsequently served time in prison. In 2008, 16 traffickerswere sentenced to one to five years’ imprisonment,and two traffickers were sentenced to five to 12 years’imprisonment.ProtectionThe government continued its impressive efforts toprotect and assist victims over the reporting period. Thegovernment provided $283,000 to NGOs to providevictim care in 2008; as a result, NGOs were able toprovide approximately 76 victims with governmentfundedcomprehensive assistance and shelter, comparedto 75 victims assisted in 2007. The government alsofunded the repatriation of nine foreign victims andone Czech national during the reporting period.Foreign victims were granted an automatic 60-dayperiod of reflection, during which time they receivedassistance while they decided whether to participatein criminal investigations. Victims were encouraged toassist in investigations and prosecutions; victims whocooperated with investigators were granted temporaryresidence and work visas for the duration of the relevantlegal proceedings; 19 victims were granted temporaryresidency permits in 2008. Upon conclusion of the courtproceedings, qualifying victims had the opportunity toapply for permanent residency; one victim was grantedpermanent residency in 2008, compared to three victimsgranted permanent residency in 2007. The governmenthas a formal victim and identification mechanism;authorities referred 13 victims to NGOs for assistanceduring the reporting period. Victims were not fined orotherwise penalized for unlawful acts committed as adirect result of their being trafficked.PreventionThe government sustained its trafficking preventionefforts during the reporting period. In 2008, the Ministryof Labor and Social Affairs worked with the Romaniangovernment to help raise awareness about the dangersof trafficking among Romanians working in the CzechRepublic; similar bilateral efforts were conducted withthe governments of Moldova, Mongolia, Slovak Republic,Sweden, and Poland. The government continued fundinga campaign aimed at reducing the demand for commercialsex acts among foreign tourists visiting the CzechRepublic. The Czech Republic has not ratified the 2000UN TIP Protocol.DENMARK (Tier 1)Denmark is primarily a transit and destination countryfor women and girls trafficked from Bulgaria, Romania,Latvia, the Czech Republic, Thailand, Brazil, Nigeria,120

and other West African countries for the purpose ofcommercial sexual exploitation. Victims from Africa aretrafficked to Denmark primarily through Italy and Spain.In 2008, authorities noted an increase in the numberof potential child trafficking victims from Romania,Bulgaria, Lithuania, Guinea, Hungary, Algeria, and Chinato Denmark for the purpose of forced petty theft.The Government of Denmark fully complies with theminimum standards for the elimination of 2008 trafficking. In2008, the Ministry of Immigration started a pilot programwith IOM to fund the safe repatriation of victims to theircountry of origin; three victims of trafficking participatedin the program.Recommendations for Denmark: Offer long-term legalalternatives to foreign victims’ removal to countries wherethey face retribution or hardship to a greater number ofidentified trafficking victims; and conduct an awarenessand prevention campaign focused on both 2008 sex and labortrafficking.CONGO (DRC) TIER RANKING BY YEARduration of the criminal proceedings, compared to threevictims in 2007. One trafficking victim applied for andreceived asylum to remain in Denmark on the groundsthat the victim faced hardship or retribution if returned toher country of origin.PreventionDenmark continued its trafficking prevention effortsduring the reporting period. In August 2008, thegovernment launched a campaign in schools called “Whois Paying the Price?” which is aimed at reducing thedemand for commercial sex among young men. In 2008,the government partially funded an NGO to conduct ananti-trafficking awareness campaign in cinemas and inthe media. In January 2008, the government funded apublic service campaign alerting Danish nationals aboutthe new law prohibiting sexual abuse of children overseas.The government continued to adequately monitorimmigration patterns for evidence of trafficking.20082008DJIBOUTIProsecutionThe Government of Denmark sustained its stronglaw enforcement efforts over the reporting period.Denmark prohibits trafficking for both sexualexploitation and forced labor through Section 262 ofits criminal code, although prosecutors often use aprostitution procurement law to prosecute sex 2008traffickers.Punishments prescribed for trafficking under section 262extend up to eight years’ imprisonment, are sufficientlystringent, and are commensurate with penaltiesprescribed for other grave crimes, such as rape. Policeconducted a total of 34 trafficking investigations duringthe reporting period, the same number conducted in2007. Authorities prosecuted 81 individuals for traffickingoffenses, an increase from 52 trafficking cases prosecutedin 2007. In 2008, 19 trafficking offenders were convicted,2008including seven under the anti-trafficking statute and 12under the procurement law; 31 trafficking offenders wereconvicted in 2007, including 10 under the anti-traffickingstatute and 21 under the procurement law. All 19trafficking offenders convicted in 2008 served some timein prison; none received suspended sentences. Sentencesfor convicted traffickers ranged from 12 to 42 months’imprisonment. In 2008, the National Police provided anupdated trafficking reference manual to local districts.2008ProtectionDenmark sustained its victim assistance and protectionefforts. Over the year, 72 victims received social, medical,and rehabilitative assistance. The government providedapproximately $1.7 million in funding for NGOsproviding victims with medical assistance, shelter, legalassistance, and rehabilitative counseling. All foreignvictims were offered a reflection period of 30 to 90 days;12 victims used the reflection period in 2008. Althoughpolice encouraged victims to participate in traffickinginvestigations, only one victim assisted authorities in2008 and was permitted to stay in Denmark for theDJIBOUTI (Tier 2 Watch List)Djibouti is a source, transit, and destination countryfor women and children trafficked for the purposes ofcommercial sexual exploitation and domestic servitude.Large numbers of voluntary economic migrants fromEthiopia and Somalia pass illegally through Djibouti enroute to Yemen and other locations in the Middle East;among this group, a small number of women and girlsmay fall victim to involuntary domestic servitude orcommercial sexual exploitation after reaching DjiboutiCity or the Ethiopia-Djibouti trucking corridor. Othersfall victim to human trafficking after reaching theirdestinations in the Middle East. Djibouti’s large refugeepopulation – comprised of Somalis, Ethiopians, andEritreans – remains vulnerable to various forms ofexploitation, including human trafficking. A smallnumber of girls from impoverished Djiboutian familiesmay engage in prostitution with the encouragement offamily members or other persons engaged in prostitution.Prostitution in Djibouti occurs in apartments, brothels,and on the streets; members of foreign militariesstationed in Djibouti reportedly contribute to the demandfor women and girls in prostitution, including traffickingvictims. Polish authorities identified one femaleDjiboutian trafficking victim in 2008.The Government of Djibouti does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;200820082008121

DJIBOUTIhowever, it is making significant efforts to do so.Despite these significant overall efforts, the governmentshowed only limited evidence of progress in prosecuting2008specific human trafficking offenses and in raising publicawareness of the crime; therefore, Djibouti is placed onTier 2 Watch List.Recommendations for Djibouti: Continue to enforce theanti-trafficking statute through the successful prosecutionof trafficking offenders; launch a nationwide campaignto educate all levels of government officials and thegeneral public on the issue of human trafficking; developa plan for providing training on the anti-trafficking law2008and its provisions to law enforcement and social welfareofficials, including judges, lawyers, police, immigrationofficers, and social workers; establish formal policies andprocedures for government officials to proactively identifyand interview potential trafficking victims and transferthem to the care, when appropriate, of local NGOs orinternational organizations; and establish mechanismsfor providing increased protective services to traffickingvictims, possibly through the forging of partnerships withNGOs or civil society organizations. 20082008ProsecutionThe Government of Djibouti made nascent effortsto bring trafficking offenders and migrant smugglersto justice during the reporting period. Law 210,“Regarding the Fight Against Human Trafficking,”enacted in December 2007, covers both internal andtransnational trafficking and prohibits all forms 2008 oftrafficking in persons. It provides for the protection ofvictims regardless of ethnicity, gender, or nationality,and prescribes penalties of up to 30 years’ imprisonmentfor trafficking offenders. These penalties are sufficientlystringent and commensurate with those prescribed forother grave crimes, such as rape. The Ministry of Justicereported its use of Law 210 during the reporting period toprosecute and convict illegal migrant smugglers and theiraccomplices, but it did not provide further informationon such cases; it is unclear whether any of them involvehuman trafficking. Throughout the year, Djibouti’s Brigadedes Moeurs (Vice Police) conducted regular nighttimesweeps of the capital’s bars and streets and preventativelydetained an unknown number of Ethiopian and Somaliminors suspected to be engaged in prostitution. Thebrigade reportedly detained their exploiters as well;specific information regarding the punishment of pimpswas not provided.ProtectionWith few resources itself and a very small pool of localNGOs, the government had few options for meeting theneeds of children exploited in prostitution during theyear. One NGO, in consultation with the Ministry ofWomen, continued to operate a drop-in day center forstreet children at risk of becoming victims of trafficking,prostitution, or other forms of exploitation. TheCouncil of Ministers took no action in 2008 to ensurecomprehensive care for victims as mandated under Article18 of Law 210. After detaining children on suspicionof engaging in prostitution, police attempted to locateand meet with parents or other family members todiscuss appropriate child protection; children were thenreleased to the care of family members. As a last resort,Ethiopian and Somali children detained by police onsuspicion of involvement in prostitution were housed inquarters at the Police Academy before deportation. In2008, renovation began on several rooms at the academyto improve accommodations for these children. Policeworked with the Ministry of Health’s clinic and hospitals,as well as NGOs, to provide medical care to victims ofchild prostitution. No charges were filed against minorsdetained on suspicion of engaging in prostitution in2008. The police began a study of the family situations ofprostituted minors in 2008.The government accommodated a growing number ofasylum-seeking defectors from the Eritrean militaryduring the reporting period. As of March 2009, thegovernment and UNHCR registered 129 Eritrean militarydefectors – some of whom may be trafficking victims– as asylum-seekers after conducting joint interviews.The government has not yet developed a formal referralprocess to transfer trafficking victims to the care ofNGOs, or a system for proactively identifying victims oftrafficking among vulnerable populations. Authorities didnot encourage victims to participate in investigations orprosecutions of traffickers.PreventionDuring the reporting period, the government did notlaunch an information campaign specifically targetedat raising public awareness of human trafficking. In aneffort to prevent the forced labor and commercial sexualexploitation of Ethiopian and Somali illegal migrants inYemen and Saudi Arabia, however, the state-run mediapublished numerous stories on the dangers of illegalmigration. In addition, the military regularly detainedboats suspected to be smuggling African migrants toYemen and imprisoned their operators. Article 16 ofLaw 210 requires the government to establish or supportpolicies or programs to prevent human traffickingthrough awareness campaigns, training programs, andsocial and economic initiatives; no discernable progresswas made in any of these areas during the reportingperiod. During the reporting period, the governmentinvited IOM to open an office in Djibouti, and providedoffice space within the Ministry of Labor. In March 2009,122

government officials began collaborating with IOMfor an awareness campaign on the dangers of irregularmigration, including the risk of becoming a traffickingvictim. The government worked to reduce the demandfor commercial sex acts by continuing to investigate childsexual exploitation cases and deploying a regular policevice squad. The government did not take any knownmeasures in 2008 to reduce the demand for forced labor.CONGO (DRC) TIER RANKING BY YEARDOMINICAN REPUBLIC(Tier 2 Watch List)The Dominican Republic is a source, transit, anddestination country for men, women, and children 2008trafficked for the purposes of commercial sexualexploitation and forced labor. Dominican womenare trafficked for commercial sexual exploitation toArgentina, Australia, Brazil, Costa Rica, Cyprus, Haiti,Jamaica, the Netherlands, Panama, Slovenia, Suriname,Switzerland, Turkey, and Venezuela. A significant numberof women, boys, and girls are trafficked within thecountry for forced prostitution and domestic servitude.In some cases, parents push children into prostitution 2008 tohelp support the family. Child sex tourism is a problem,particularly in coastal resort areas, with child sex touristsarriving year-round from various countries, particularlySpain, Italy, Germany, Canada, and the United Statesand reportedly numbering in the thousands. Haitiannationals, including children, who voluntarily migrateillegally to the Dominican Republic may subsequently besubjected to forced labor in the service, construction, andagriculture sectors.2008The Government of the Dominican Republic doesnot fully comply with the minimum standards forthe elimination of trafficking; however, it is makingsignificant efforts to do so. Despite these overallsignificant efforts, the government did not show evidenceof progress in prosecuting and punishing traffickingoffenders including complicit officials; therefore, theDominican Republic is placed on Tier 2 Watch List. TheDominican government increased its efforts to educate2008the public about the dangers of trafficking, improvedits assistance to victims, announced a national plan tocombat trafficking, and took some disciplinary actionagainst lower-level officials suspected of complicity intrafficking activity.Recommendations for the Dominican Republic:Intensify efforts to prosecute and punish traffickingoffenders, especially public officials complicit in orfacilitating human trafficking; increase investigationsinto potential labor trafficking situations; continue 2008 toincrease victim assistance and shelter services; providegreater legal protections for undocumented and foreigntrafficking victims; increase prevention and demandreductionefforts; intensify efforts to identify and care forall trafficking victims; and continue to increase antitraffickingtraining for government and judicial officials.ProsecutionThe government modestly increased law-enforcementefforts against some trafficking offenders, and beganto investigate and punish lower-level public officialsfor complicity in trafficking activity over the lastyear. Dominican law prohibits all forms of traffickingthrough its comprehensive anti-trafficking Law 137-03, which prescribes penalties of up to 20 years’imprisonment. Such penalties are sufficiently stringentand commensurate with those prescribed for othergrave offenses, such as rape. In 2008, the governmentcontinued several trafficking investigations. Since 2007,there have been no convictions on trafficking chargesunder Law 137-03, but the government made a greatereffort during the year to differentiate between aliensmuggling and human trafficking crimes, which areprohibited under the same law and are often confused.Although the Government initiated an investigation intopress reports from 2007 that high-level officials weredirectly involved in the smuggling and trafficking ofChinese nationals, it demonstrated no progress on thisinvestigation during 2008. Lack of resources, corruption,and generally weak rule of law limit the government’sability to address trafficking issues, and allegations ofofficial complicity in trafficking continued. No seniorofficials were investigated or prosecuted; since August2008, however, 45 inspectors from the MigrationDirectorate were removed from their positions forpossible involvement in trafficking. Five of these formerinspectors are under active investigation and two are inpreventative detention. Other lower-level officials havebeen suspended or disciplined. During the reportingperiod, the government cooperated with U.S. lawenforcement agencies and contributed to an internationalcase involving the trafficking of Dominican women toSwitzerland. As many trafficking victims enter the islandwith legitimate documents through regular ports of entry,IOM and the Office of the Undersecretary for Consularand Migratory Affairs trained migration inspectors ondetecting false and altered documents, inspection oftravel documents and visas, detecting imposters, anddifferentiating between smuggling clients and traffickingvictims.2008200820082008DOMINICAN REPUBLICProtectionThe government improved its efforts to protect traffickingvictims, although it continued to rely heavily on NGOsand international organizations for the bulk of shelter2008123

ECUADORand protection services offered to victims. The ComiteInter-institucional de Proteccion a la Mujer Migrante, incooperation with the Ministry for Women and an NGO,offered victims legal and psychological assistance. Thegovernment contributed funds to a religious orderwhich assisted trafficking victims at its refugee centersaround the country. IOM also used these facilities toassist victims. An NGO operated El Centro de Acogida,a center for repatriated Dominican trafficked women,which provided medical and legal services, employmentassistance, and continued education. Shelters for childtrafficking victims were run by the Consejo Nacionalpara la Ninez y la Adolescencia, a government agency.The Dominican Criminal Procedure Code containsmechanisms for the protection of witnesses and victims,though these protections were largely limited to victimswho were willing to testify in court proceedings. Victims’rights were generally respected once they were recognizedas victims, and they were not typically jailed or penalizedfor unlawful acts committed as a direct result of beingtrafficked. Dominican authorities encouraged victimsto assist with the investigation and prosecution of theirtraffickers. Victims without identity documents or inillegal status generally had difficulty accessing protectiveservices. Out of a group of 14 trafficked Ecuadorianwomen, one remained in the Dominican Republic tohelp police with the investigation and prosecution oftheir traffickers. Victims and traffickers sometimesstruck deals, usually via their attorneys, wherebyvictims received compensation from their traffickersin lieu of pursuing a criminal case. The governmenttrained consular officials posted abroad to recognizeand assist Dominican nationals trafficked overseas. Thegovernment did not provide foreign victims with clearlegal alternatives to their removal, but even so it did notremove them to countries where they face retribution. Inone case it provided long-term residency.PreventionThe government continued to increase its preventionefforts during the year. The inter-agency NationalCommission Against Trafficking announced its nationalaction plan in December 2008. The Prevention Unitof the Department of Alien Smuggling and Traffickingin Persons, working with the Ministries of Labor andEducation, warned children at schools around the countryof the dangers of alien smuggling, commercial sexualexploitation, and trafficking. The Attorney General,Migration Directorate, Navy, Secretary of State forWomen, and Programa Radial also ran anti-traffickinginformation campaigns. Notices now posted in SantoDomingo’s international airport list the penalties underDominican law for the criminal offense of commercialsexual exploitation of children. Prostitution of adultsis legal, though police raided brothels as a means toaddress demand for commercial sex acts with childrenand to look for underage girls engaging in prostitution.The government also made efforts to reduce demand forcommercial sexual acts by prosecuting foreign pedophilesfor sexually exploiting minors.ECUADOR (Tier 2)Ecuador is a source, transit, and destination country formen, women, and children trafficked for the purposesof commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor. Themajority of trafficking victims are believed to be childrentrafficked within the country from border and centralhighland areas to urban centers for commercial sexualexploitation, as well as for domestic servitude, forcedbegging, and forced labor in mines and other hazardouswork. According to a recent government study, the maindestination provinces for human trafficking includePichincha, Guayas, Esmeraldas, and Manabi. Ecuadorianchildren are trafficked to Colombia, Venezuela, Chile,and the Dominican Republic for forced labor, particularlystreet begging, forced vending, and as domestic servants.Ecuadorian women are trafficked to Colombia, Peru,Venezuela, and Western Europe for commercial sexualexploitation. To a lesser extent, Ecuador is a destinationcountry for the trafficking of Colombian and Peruvianwomen and girls for commercial sexual exploitation,particularly in border areas, the Amazon region, andcities such as Quito, Santo Domingo, and Esmeraldas.Ecuador is a transit country for Asian nationals to theWestern Hemisphere; while some migrants consent tobeing smuggled through Ecuador, others fall victim tohuman traffickers along the way.The Government of Ecuador does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to doso. The government sustained strong law enforcementmeasures against sex trafficking offenders, in additionto victim assistance. However, the government’s lawenforcement efforts did not sufficiently address forcedlabor, sex trafficking crimes involving adults, or evidenceof trafficking-related complicity of some local governmentofficials. Moreover, the government’s recent decision tolift its tourist visa requirement has resulted in a heavyinflux of migrants into the country, some of whom maybe trafficked.Recommendations for Ecuador: Continue vigorousefforts to investigate and prosecute trafficking offenses– including forced labor – and convict and punishtrafficking offenders, including public officials complicitin trafficking activities, particularly at the local level;increase anti-trafficking training for law enforcement andother government officials; increase raids on brothels thatexploit underage children; and develop formal proceduresfor identifying trafficking victims among vulnerablepopulations, particularly adult women in prostitution andforeign migrants subject to high smuggling debts.ProsecutionThe government demonstrated strong but incompletelaw enforcement efforts against trafficking in personscrimes last year. Ecuador prohibits all forms ofhuman trafficking pursuant to a 2005 amendmentto its penal code; trafficking for the purpose of laborexploitation carries a punishment of six to nine years’124

imprisonment, and trafficking for sexual exploitationcarries a penalty of eight to 12 years’ imprisonment.Penalties for human trafficking may be increased, byaggravating circumstances, to a maximum of 35 years’imprisonment. Such penalties are sufficiently stringentand commensurate with those prescribed for otherserious crimes. During the reporting period, Ecuadorianauthorities opened 85 trafficking cases across the country,and achieved convictions in 38 trafficking cases fromprevious years, securing sentences ranging from four to12 years’ imprisonment against offenders. Such resultsrepresent a substantial increase in efforts when comparedto 2007, when the government opened 76 prosecutionsand convicted five trafficking offenders.Most cases during the current reporting periodinvolved the inducement of children into prostitutionor commercial sexual exploitation. A small number ofprosecutions are related to labor exploitation, but donot appear commensurate to the incidence of forcedlabor in the country, particularly the large number ofchildren exploited for forced begging and forced domesticwork. Despite reports of trafficking-related corruption,particularly related to civil registry officials issuingfalse identity documents to Colombian minors, noinvestigations, prosecutions, or convictions of potentiallycomplicit officials took place last year. According toEcuadorian police, brothel owners commonly usefalse identity documents to exploit foreign childrenin prostitution, and to avoid criminal liability forimmigration and trafficking violations in the event ofa police raid. The government continued to train lawenforcement personnel on anti-trafficking skills, andorganized an international conference with neighboringcountries on forced begging.ProtectionThe Ecuadorian government committed additionalresources to assist trafficking victims last year. Thegovernment ensured trafficking victims’ access to legal,medical, and psychological services in victim carefacilities, though available shelters for trafficking victimsremained lacking in many parts of the country. Thegovernment funded NGOs to provide additional victimservices, allotting $423,467 in resources for such effortslast year. Through its Victim and Witness ProtectionProgram, the Public Ministry operated specializedanti-trafficking police units in the cities of Guayaquil,Machala, Portoviejo, Cuenca, and Quito. These unitsaccompanied other police authorities on brothel raids tocoordinate immediate protective services for identifiedtrafficking victims, and assistance for victim witnessesduring court proceedings. Last year the governmentidentified and assisted approximately 56 victims oftrafficking; 12 victims accepted services from the Victimand Witness Protection Program. The governmentencouraged victims to assist with the investigation andprosecution of their traffickers. Law enforcement andsocial services personnel employed formal procedures toidentify child victims of commercial sexual exploitation,but did not demonstrate adequate efforts for identifyingadult trafficking victims among women exploited inbrothels and other vulnerable populations. Authoritiesdid not penalize trafficking victims for unlawful actscommitted as a direct result of their being trafficked. TheEcuadorian government did not provide legal alternativesto the removal of foreign victims to countries where theyfaced hardship or retribution, though foreign victims werenot typically deported from the country.PreventionThe Government of Ecuador sustained anti-traffickingprevention efforts last year. Senior government officials,including the president, condemned human traffickingin public speeches. The government continued antitraffickingcampaigns against forced child begging andchild sex tourism, in addition to a media campaignwarning “clients” that purchasing child prostitution isa punishable crime. The government, however, did notreport other steps to reduce demand for commercialsex acts purchased from adults or forced labor of adultsduring the reporting period.EGYPT (TIER 2 Watch List)Egypt is a source, transit, and destination country forwomen and children trafficked for the purposes of forcedlabor and sexual exploitation. Some of Egypt’s estimatedone million street children – both boys and girls – areexploited in prostitution and forced begging. Local gangsare, at times, involved in this exploitation. Egyptianchildren are recruited for domestic and agricultural labor;some of these children face conditions indicative ofinvoluntary servitude, such as restrictions on movement,non-payment of wages, threats, and physical or sexualabuse. In addition, wealthy men from the Gulf reportedlytravel to Egypt to purchase “temporary marriages” withEgyptian females, including girls who are under the ageof 18; these arrangements are often facilitated by thefemales’ parents and marriage brokers. Child sex tourismis increasingly reported in Cairo, Alexandria, and Luxor.Young female Sudanese refugees, including those under18, may be coerced into prostitution in Cairo’s nightclubsby family or Sudanese gang members. Egypt is a transitcountry for women trafficked from Uzbekistan, Moldova,Ukraine, Russia, and other Eastern European countries toIsrael for sexual exploitation; organized crime groups areinvolved in these movements.EGYPT125

EGYPTThe Government of Egypt does not fully comply withminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Thegovernment enacted amendments to the Child Lawprohibiting child trafficking, provided training forgovernment officials on the use of these amendments,and began the prosecution of several alleged sextrafficking offenders. Despite these overall efforts, thegovernment did not show adequate progress in advancinganti-trafficking law enforcement efforts over the lastyear; therefore Egypt is placed on Tier 2 Watch List. Thegovernment continues to lack formal victim identificationprocedures and protection services, and some victims oftrafficking are punished for acts committed as a directresult of being trafficked. The government took minimalsteps to combat the serious issues of child sex tourism andthe involuntary domestic servitude of children or to raiseawareness of trafficking among the general public.Recommendations for Egypt: Substantially increaselaw enforcement activity against trafficking, includingthe growing problems of the involuntary domesticservitude of children and child sex trafficking; draftand enact legislation criminalizing all forms ofhuman trafficking; institute and apply a formal victimidentification procedure to ensure that trafficking victimsare not punished or otherwise treated as criminals foracts committed as a direct result of being trafficked;provide in-kind or financial support to NGOs providingprotection services to victims; and implement acomprehensive public information campaign to educatethe public on the definition and dangers of trafficking.ProsecutionEgypt made progress in punishing trafficking crimesduring this reporting period. The Egyptian penal codedoes not prohibit all forms of trafficking; the UnifiedLabor Law does not define forced labor and there areno provisions against it. In June 2008, however, thegovernment enacted amendments to the Child Law (No.126 of 2008), which include provisions prohibiting thetrafficking of children for commercial sexual exploitationand forced labor. These amendments prescribe sentencesof at least five years’ imprisonment, which are sufficientlystringent and commensurate with penalties prescribedfor other grave crimes. The National Council onChildhood and Motherhood (NCCM) began draftingby-laws to guide enforcement of the amendments tothe child protection law. The Anti-Prostitution Law of1961 prohibits the use of coercion, threats, or abuse toinduce a person into prostitution and the commercialsexual exploitation of those under 21 years old. Penaltiesprescribed for the above crimes range from one to sevenyears’ imprisonment; these are also sufficiently stringentand commensurate with those prescribed for other gravecrimes. Unlike other child laborers, however, childdomestic workers are not protected under existing laborlaws. In September 2008, the National CoordinatingCommittee to Combat and Prevent Trafficking in Personsbegan drafting a comprehensive anti-trafficking law.Under the Child Law and the Anti-Prostitution Law,the Alexandria Public Prosecutor’s Office commencedin March 2009 with the prosecution of two defendantssuspected of kidnapping eight street children and forcingthem to engage in prostitution with wealthy Egyptiansand tourists from the Gulf States in exchange for money.Also in March, the South Giza Prosecutors Office initiatedthe prosecution of a man and his wife on charges ofselling their three daughters into prostitution to touristsfrom the Gulf for $550 a week per child. The Egyptiangovernment did not, however, report efforts to investigateor prosecute cases of the involuntary domestic servitudeof children. The Public Prosecutor’s office created anddistributed a booklet on investigating and prosecutingtrafficking cases to prosecutors working with children,and trained 125 prosecutors working on children’s cases.In 2008, the NCCM trained 45 prosecutors and judges onhuman trafficking.ProtectionEgypt made minimal progress in protecting victims oftrafficking during the reporting period. The Ministry ofSocial Solidarity continued to operate 19 drop-in centersfor street children, women, and the disabled that mayhave provided care to trafficking victims in 2008; thesecenters, however, are only open during the day anddo not provide comprehensive services for traffickingvictims. In January 2009, the NCCM, in partnershipwith an international NGO, launched a day center inCairo to rehabilitate abused street boys involved inforced begging or petty crime; to date, NCCM provided25 boys with counseling, medical care, and literacy andcomputer classes, while the NGO operated the facility.In March 2009, the Alexandria Public Prosecutor’s officetransferred eight boys victimized by sex trafficking to theNCCM and the Ministries of Health and Social Solidarityfor medical, psychological, and rehabilitation services.The NCCM operated a 24-hour hotline to respond tocomplaints of child abuse, though it lacks the capabilityto retain information on whether any of the calls receivedconcerned trafficking. Specialized care for adults orforeign victims, including Sudanese women in forcedprostitution, was not provided. Despite receiving trainingin victim identification, the government did not employformal procedures to identify victims of trafficking andrefer them to providers of care; as a result, traffickingvictims, including street children and women arrested for126

prostitution, were often treated as criminals rather thanvictims. In prisons or detention centers, law enforcementofficers may have further mistreated these victimsthrough verbal, physical, and sexual abuse. Foreignvictims are not offered legal alternatives to removal tocountries in which they may face hardship or retribution.The government does not actively encourage victims toassist in investigations against their traffickers.PreventionEgypt made minimal efforts to prevent trafficking inpersons during the reporting period. The National Centerfor Criminological and Social Research officially began acomprehensive study on the scope of trafficking in Egypt.In November 2008, the National Council for HumanRights held a seminar and a roundtable discussion onhuman trafficking. During the second half of 2008,NCCM trained 107 social workers, 35 health inspectors,and 191 officials from various ministries on the ChildLaw’s amendments and the UN TIP Protocol. The firstlady’s anti-trafficking advocacy during the reportingperiod led to a substantial increase in press coverage onthe subject. Nonetheless, the government did not instituteany public campaigns to raise awareness on trafficking.The government similarly made no discernible effortsto reduce the demand for commercial sex acts or to raiseawareness of sex tourism. In March 2009, Giza Securityarrested and criminally charged three men from theGulf who had paid the parents of three young girls inorder to sexually exploit the girls. There were no reportsof the Egyptian government’s efforts to provide antitraffickingtraining for its troops before they deployed oninternational peacekeeping missions.EL SALVADOR (Tier 2)El Salvador is a source, transit, and destination countryfor women and children trafficked for the purposes ofcommercial sexual exploitation and forced labor. Mostvictims are Salvadoran women and girls trafficked withinthe country from rural to urban areas for commercialsexual exploitation, although some adults and childrenare trafficked internally for forced agricultural labor. Themajority of foreign victims are women and children fromNicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, Mexico, and Colombiawho travel to El Salvador in response to job offers, butare subsequently forced into prostitution or domesticservitude. Some adults and children from neighboringcountries are subject to forced labor in agriculture andapparel assembly. Salvadorans have been trafficked toGuatemala, Mexico, Belize, the United States, Spain, andItaly, for commercial sexual exploitation.The Government of El Salvador does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts todo so. During the reporting period, the governmentsustained strong anti-trafficking prosecution, protection,and prevention activities, though it neglected to takeadequate measures to protect adult trafficking victims andto confront trafficking-related corruption.Recommendations for El Salvador: Continue tostrengthen law enforcement efforts against traffickingoffenders; investigate and prosecute, as appropriate,reports of forced labor and domestic servitude, as wellas allegations relating to public officials who may beinvolved with trafficking activity; increase use of proactivelaw enforcement techniques such as brothel raidsto rescue victims; increase victim services and assistance,particularly for adults; and strengthen statutory penaltiesfor trafficking-in-persons crimes.ProsecutionThe Government of El Salvador sustained solid lawenforcement efforts against trafficking offenders duringthe reporting period. Article 367B of the SalvadoranPenal Code prohibits all forms of human trafficking andprescribes penalties of four to eight years’ imprisonment.Sentences may be increased by one-third when the offenseis accompanied by aggravated circumstances, such aswhen the victim is a child or the defendant is a publicofficial. Such penalties are sufficiently stringent but donot appear commensurate with penalties prescribed forserious offenses such as rape, which carries a punishmentof six to 20 years’ imprisonment. Since passage ofEl Salvador’s anti-trafficking statute in 2004, someprosecutors have elected to charge trafficking-relatedcrimes under the country’s rape statute in order to secureheavier mandatory sentences against offenders. In 2008,the government’s dedicated anti-trafficking police andprosecutorial units brought charges in 15 cases of humantrafficking, obtaining eight convictions with sentencesranging from four to 10 years’ imprisonment. Such resultscompare with 46 prosecutions and five convictionssecured in 2007. The majority of the government’slaw enforcement efforts focused on trafficking for thepurpose of commercial sexual exploitation, though asmaller number of cases related to forced labor. Duringthe reporting period, police conducted undercovertrafficking investigations and acted on trafficking-relatedtips to execute raids on brothels and commercial sexsites. The government also cooperated with neighboringforeign governments on anti-trafficking investigations.Despite credible reports of public officials involved withtrafficking activity, particularly in the Department ofChalatenango, no investigations or prosecutions of suchofficials were opened during the reporting period.EL SALVADOR127

EQUATORIAL GUINEAProtectionThe Salvadoran government increased victim assistancelast year. With international assistance, the governmentre-opened a dedicated shelter for trafficking victimsin January 2008. The shelter houses approximately 20child trafficking victims. The country’s federal agency forchildren and adolescents, ISNA, also operated a nationalnetwork of 11 shelters to provide secure housing, 24-hour medical attention, psychological counseling, andvocational workshops to victims of abuse, includingtrafficking victims. However, most governmentassistance and services were directed to child traffickingvictims, and were not readily accessible to adult ormale trafficking victims. NGOs noted that governmentsupport services typically cease once a victim leavesshelter care, and that trafficking victims could benefitfrom greater reintegration assistance. The governmenttrained personnel, including consular officers, onidentifying trafficking victims abroad; consular officialsidentified four trafficking victims during the reportingperiod. Domestically, Salvadoran authorities encouragedvictims to assist with law enforcement efforts; 57 victimsparticipated in the investigation and prosecution of theirtraffickers during the reporting period, though others didnot do so due to social stigma or fear of reprisals fromtheir traffickers. Victims generally are not charged, jailed,or penalized for unlawful acts committed as a direct resultof being trafficked. The government does not provide aformal legal alternative to deportation to a country wherea trafficking victim may face hardship or retribution,though law enforcement and social service officials mayrequest residency status for a victim on a case-by-casebasis.PreventionThe Salvadoran government sustained anti-traffickingprevention efforts during the reporting period. Thegovernment ran information and education campaigns,and operated an anti-trafficking hotline. During thereporting period, the government trained more than5,000 officials across the country on preventing humantrafficking. Border agents received training to detecttrafficking activity and irregular migration patterns, andreferred identified trafficking cases for further policeinvestigation. Salvadoran troops assigned to peacekeepingoperations receive anti-trafficking training beforedeployment. No specific government efforts to reducedemand for commercial sex acts or forced labor werereported over the last year.EQUATORIAL GUINEA(Tier 2 Watch List)Equatorial Guinea has been primarily a destination forchildren trafficked for the purposes of forced labor andpossibly for the purpose of sexual exploitation. Childrenare believed to be trafficked from nearby countries,primarily Nigeria, Benin, Cameroon, and Gabon fordomestic servitude, market labor, ambulant vending,and other forms of forced labor, such as carrying waterand washing laundry. Most victims are believed to betrafficked to Malabo and Bata, where a burgeoning oilindustry created demand for labor and commercialexploitation. Women may also have been traffickedto Equatorial Guinea from Cameroon, Benin, otherneighboring countries, and China for labor or sexualexploitation. In the last year, there was a report thatwomen of Equatoguinean extraction were also traffickedto Iceland for commercial sexual exploitation.The Government of Equatorial Guinea does not fullycomply with the minimum standards for the eliminationof trafficking; however it is making significant effortsto do so. The government continued to provide antitraffickingtraining to law enforcement officials and tomaintain police stations in open air markets to monitorsituations of child labor exploitation. The governmenthas also publicly denounced human trafficking. Despitethese efforts, the government did not show evidence ofprogress in prosecuting trafficking offenders or providingprotection to victims; therefore, Equatorial Guinea isplaced on Tier 2 Watch List. While the government hasthe financial resources to address trafficking, its efforts tocombat trafficking remained weak, in part because of itscrippled judiciary.Recommendations for Equatorial Guinea: Make greateruse of the country’s 2005 anti-trafficking law and lawenforcement and judicial personnel to investigate,prosecute, and convict trafficking offenders; trainadditional law enforcement officials and ConciliationDelegates to follow formal procedures to identifytrafficking victims among child laborers, illegalimmigrants, and women and girls in prostitution;establish a formal system for providing traffickingvictims with assistance; cease deportation of any foreigntrafficking victims from Equatoguinean territory withoutproviding them with care and safe and voluntaryrepatriation; and increase efforts to raise public awarenessabout trafficking.ProsecutionThe Government of Equatorial Guinea demonstratedlaw enforcement efforts to combat trafficking duringthe reporting period. The government prohibits allforms of trafficking through its 2004 Law on theSmuggling of Migrants and Trafficking in Persons, whichcarries adequate prescribed penalties of 10 to 15 years’imprisonment. However, no human trafficking caseshave yet been prosecuted under the relevant portionof this law. Police stationed at posts within open-airmarkets continued to monitor vendor activity for childlabor explotiation, though during the reporting period,the government did not report any investigations orarrests of suspected trafficking violators. The governmentcontinued to fund anti-trafficking training seminars forpolice and navy officers provided by a foreign contractor.In the last year, the contractor has trained 590 additional128

officers in specific anti-trafficking sessions included in abroader training program. The government distributedto law enforcement officials a wallet-sized checklist ofsteps to take when presented with any potential crime;the guidance is not specific to human trafficking crimesbut was triggered by related concerns. The steps includeidentifying and investigating the crime, detaining thesuspect, notifying appropriate officials, assisting thevictims, and launching judicial action. In the last year, thegovernment has instituted photograph and fingerprintingprocedures at airports in Malabo and Bata, in order toaid identification and possible prosecutions in suspectedtrafficking cases.two public announcements recognizing the need forincreased counter-trafficking activity. The governmenttook steps to reduce the demand for commercial sexacts, with law enforcement officials regularly visitingnight clubs, hotels, and restaurants to monitor for illegalcommercial sex activities.ERITREAProtectionThe Government of Equatorial Guinea demonstratedinadequate efforts to protect trafficking victims in the lastyear. The government has not yet implemented victimcare shelters or other organized victim care mechanisms.Two proposed women’s shelters, which the governmenthas indicated will double as trafficking victimsshelters, have not been constructed. The governmentdid not employ formal procedures for identifying andproviding care to trafficking victims. During the year,the government reported no cases in which it providedvictims with care or collaborated with NGOs to providevictim assistance. Authorities reported that victims ofcross-border trafficking are sometimes removed fromEquatoguinean territory without being provided withany assistance. Along with posters for police stations andsecurity checkpoints, the government distributed to lawenforcement officials a wallet-sized checklist specificallyaddressing the needs of trafficking victims, includingshelter, medical attention, clothing, food, translationsservices, a consular visit, and legal assistance. No systemshave yet been put into place to provide victims withthese services. During the year, the government reachedout to a foreign donor to request technical assistance indeveloping a system for providing victim care.The Ministry of Social Affairs has primary responsibilityfor providing care to destitute children in the country,but it did not have staff trained to care for traffickingvictims during the last year. The ministry employs over100 Conciliation Delegates, community workers whoassist victims of abuse. In the course of their duties, theseworkers sometimes educate families about the dangersof child labor, but they did not employ proceduresto identify trafficking victims among vulnerablepopulations. The government did not encourage victimsto assist in trafficking investigations or prosecutions, nor,in the absence of cases, did it provide legal alternativesto the removal of foreign victims to countries where theymay have faced hardship or retribution.PreventionThe Government of Equatorial Guinea demonstratedsome progress in raising awareness about trafficking.During the year, the president of Equatorial Guinea madeERITREA (Tier 3)Eritrea is a source country for men, women, andchildren trafficked for the purposes of forced labor andcommercial sexual exploitation. In connection with anational service program in which men aged 18 to 54and women aged 18 to 47 provide military and nonmilitaryservice, there have been repeated reports thatsome Eritreans in military service are used as laborers onsome commanding officers’ personal properties, as wellas in the construction and agricultural sectors, functionsoutside the scope of the Proclamation of National Service(No. 82/1995). There are also reports that some nationalservice workers are required to continue their serviceindefinitely, beyond the 18 months specified by law,with many required to serve in their positions for over10 years. In 2007, approximately 40 national serviceworkers were sent to hotels in the United Arab Emirates.Similar reports in 2008 maintained that the governmentsent national service employees to work in hotels insouthern Sudan. The conditions of such service, includingrequirements that the workers migrate to other countriesfor work, go beyond those required of national serviceparticipants as outlined in Proclamation No. 82/1995.Reports concerning these workers also noted that, withthe exception of a small stipend, pay for their workwas remitted directly to the Eritrean government. Thegovernment remains complicit in conscripting childreninto military service.Each year, large numbers of migrant workers departEritrea in search of work, particularly in the Gulf States,where some likely become victims of forced labor,including in domestic servitude, or commercial sexualexploitation. In 2008, six Eritrean women and twoEritrean girls were identified as victims of sex traffickingin Norway. In addition, thousands of Eritreans flee thecountry illegally, mostly to Sudan, Ethiopia, and Kenyawhere their illegal status makes them vulnerable tosituations of human trafficking.The Government of Eritrea does not fully comply with129

ESTONIAthe minimum standards for the elimination of traffickingand is not making significant efforts to do so. The Eritreangovernment does not operate with transparency andpublished neither data nor statistics regarding its efforts tocombat human trafficking; it did not respond to requeststo provide information for this report.Recommendations for Eritrea: Take steps to curb abusesof Eritrean citizens in the national service program; passand enforce a comprehensive anti-trafficking statute;provide education to all levels of government and thegeneral public on the issue of human trafficking; andcease the unlawful conscription of children into militaryservice.ProsecutionThe Government of Eritrea made no known progress inprosecuting and punishing trafficking crimes over thereporting period. Articles 605 and 607 of the EritreanCriminal Code prohibit trafficking in women and youngpersons for sexual exploitation; procuring women andchildren to engage in prostitution is punishable by upto five years’ imprisonment, which is not commensuratewith punishments prescribed for other grave crimes.Forced labor and slavery are prohibited, except whenauthorized by law, under Article 16 of the ratified butsuspended Eritrean Constitution, but there are no knownlaws or enabling proclamations specific to traffickingfor labor exploitation. Proclamation 11/199 prohibitsthe recruitment of children under 18 years of age intothe armed forces. The government did not publishinformation on investigations or prosecutions, if any, ofhuman trafficking offenses during the reporting period.ERITREA TIER RANKING BY YEARProtectionThe government did not appear to provide any significantassistance to victims of trafficking during the reportingperiod. The Ministry of Labor and Human Welfareoversees the government’s trafficking portfolio, butindividual cases of transnational human traffickingare reportedly handled by the Eritrean embassy in thecountry of destination; information regarding embassyefforts to assist trafficking victims was not provided.The government has no known facilities dedicated totrafficking victims and does not provide funding or otherforms of support to NGOs for services to traffickingvictims. The government severely limited the numberof foreign NGOs permitted to operate in the country; ofthe few remaining NGOs, none operated anti-traffickingprograms. During the reporting period, the governmentPAPUA NEW GUINEA TIER RANKING BY YEARSWAZILAND TIER RANKING BY YEARoperated a program to identify children involved incommercial sexual exploitation and reintegrate themwith their families. Nearly 300 children engaged inprostitution received support through this program in2007; the government did not make available similarinformation on the programs’ accomplishments in 2008.It is not known whether the government encouragedvictims’ assistance in the investigation and prosecution oftrafficking crimes or whether it provided legal alternativesto the removal of foreign victims to countries where theywould face hardship or retribution. The governmentdid not ensure that victims are not inappropriatelyincarcerated, fined, or otherwise penalized solely forunlawful acts committed as a direct result of beingtrafficked.PreventionThe government made no known efforts to prevent futureincidences of trafficking during the reporting period.Eritrean media, all state-owned, made neither publicannouncements nor media presentations regardinghuman trafficking during the reporting period. Therewere no anti-trafficking education campaigns. However,the National Union of Eritrean Youth and Studentsactively warned the populace of the dangers of leaving thecountry, including the prospects of being sold into slavelabor or sexual servitude. The National Confederation ofEritrean Workers carried out similar campaigns to alertworkers of the dangers of entering a country illegally.Although the government does not publicly acknowledgehuman trafficking as a problem, an office exists withinthe Ministry of Labor to handle labor cases, includinghuman trafficking; the accomplishments of this officeduring 2008 are unknown. Limited resources and a smallnumber of inspectors impeded the ministry’s ability to? TIER RANKING BY YEARconduct investigations; the government did not provideinformation on the number of child labor inspectionsit carried out in 2008. The government is implementinga national plan of action on child labor that primarilyfocuses on integrating or reintegrating children withfamilies, communities, and schools as a means ofpreventing child labor, or rehabilitating children engagedin child labor. The Ministry of Labor reportedly reviewedall applications for permits to grant passports and exitvisas to legal migrant workers, ? TIER and RANKING immigration BY YEAR agentsclosely monitored anyone entering or leaving the country.Eritrea has not ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.ESTONIA (Tier 2)Estonia is a source country for the trafficking of womento Norway, the United Kingdom, and Finland for thepurpose of forced prostitution. Estonian men weretrafficked within the country ? for TIER forced RANKING labor, BY YEAR specificallyforced criminal acts and to Ukraine for forced labor in theconstruction industry.The Government of Estonia does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. During130CONGO (ROC) TIER RANKING BY YEAR? TIER RANKING BY YEAR

the reporting period, Estonia took steps to improve victimassistance by approving a new victim identification modelin January 2009 and demonstrated good coordinationwith regional counterparts on victim identification andrepatriation. The government again increased its antitraffickingbudget – from $181,000 to $200,000 – andfocused 75 percent of this funding on victim assistance.Although the Ministry of Justice reviewed the presentcriminal code and trafficking definition, the governmentdid not amend the present criminal code to prohibit allforms of trafficking.Recommendations for Estonia: Draft a traffickingspecificcriminal statute that incorporates a definitionof trafficking in persons in conformity with the UNTIP Protocol; implement the approved plan to establishformal procedures for identifying victims amongvulnerable populations; and maintain efforts to trainpolice to identify potential victims and refer them forassistance.available to victims of trafficking within Estonia. TheMinistry of Social Affairs contributed $5,000 to IOMfor a victim assistance handbook for medical workersand others responsible for victim care. Foreign victimsare eligible to apply for temporary residency for theduration of criminal investigations and legal proceedings;no victims applied for residency in 2008. Estonianauthorities did not penalize victims for unlawful actscommitted as a direct result of their being trafficked.Estonia encourages trafficking victims to participate intrafficking investigations and prosecutions. In January2009, Estonian authorities approved a plan to establishformal procedures for identifying victims amongvulnerable populations, such as women arrested forprostitution violations; however, the plan had not yetbeen implemented at the time of this report.ETHIOPIAProsecutionThe Government of Estonia demonstrated adequatelaw enforcement efforts during the reporting period.Estonian law does not prohibit all forms of trafficking,though the criminal code does prohibit enslavement,abduction, procurement for prostitution, labor fraud,and a number of other trafficking-related crimes. Thepenalties prescribed for such acts range from five to 15years’ imprisonment, which are sufficiently stringentand commensurate with penalties prescribed forother grave crimes, such as sexual assault. During thereporting period, authorities conducted two traffickinginvestigations, compared to two investigations in 2007.Both traffickers convicted in 2008 were sentenced to timein prison; one for 18 months and one for 12 months,compared to sentences ranging from one to three years’imprisonment for the traffickers convicted in 2007.Over the year, the government extradited three Estoniannationals charged with human trafficking to Finlandand law enforcement officials regularly exchangedinformation with counterparts from Sweden, Denmark,Norway, Finland, the United Kingdom, and Poland. In2008, Estonian law enforcement officials also formed aninformation and best practice exchange network withBulgaria, Sweden, and Romania.ProtectionEstonia continued to improve its victim assistance effortsduring the reporting period. In 2008, the governmentprovided approximately $150,000 in funding fortrafficking victim assistance – an increase from $135,750allocated in 2007 – including some funding for threetrafficking-specific NGO-run shelters that providedassistance to 55 victims of trafficking in 2008. Threevictims were repatriated during the reporting period,compared to six in 2007; the Ministry of Foreign Affairs(MFA) paid for the repatriation cost for one victim in2008 and provided all three victims of trafficking inEstonia with information about services and assistancePreventionThe Government of Estonia sustained traffickingprevention efforts in 2008. At least 21 police officersreceived trafficking prevention and victim assistancetraining provided by several government ministriesand NGOs; however, no border guard officials receivedtrafficking training in 2008. The government fundedtrafficking awareness seminars for approximately 441schoolchildren from 39 schools and 129 adults andchildren from 10 orphanages. The MFA disseminatedtrafficking-related materials to participants atEstonia’s annual tourism fair, attended by more than23,000 people. The government did not conduct apublic awareness campaign to reduce the demand forcommercial sex acts.ETHIOPIA (Tier 2)Ethiopia is a source country for men, women, andchildren trafficked primarily for the purposes of forcedlabor and, to a lesser extent, for commercial sexualexploitation. Rural Ethiopian children are trafficked fordomestic servitude and, less frequently, for commercialsexual exploitation and forced labor in agriculture,traditional weaving, gold mining, street vending, andbegging. Young women from all parts of Ethiopia aretrafficked for domestic servitude, primarily to Lebanon,Saudi Arabia, and the UAE, but also to Bahrain,Djibouti, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen. Djibouti, Egypt, andSomaliland are reportedly the main transit routes fortrafficked Ethiopians. Some women are trafficked intothe sex trade after arriving at their destinations. Small131

ETHIOPIAnumbers of men are trafficked to Saudi Arabia and theGulf States for low-skilled forced labor. While the numberof registered labor migration employment agencies rosefrom 36 to 90 between 2005 and 2008, the governmentsignificantly tightened its implementation of regulationsgoverning these agencies over the same period. Thisresulted in an increase in trafficked Ethiopians transitingneighboring countries rather than traveling directly toMiddle Eastern destinations.The Government of Ethiopia does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Whilethe Ethiopian government’s ongoing efforts to providepre-departure orientation to Ethiopian migrant workersand partner with a local NGO to detect cases of childtrafficking within the country are notable, its limitedcapacity to prosecute trafficking crimes is a continuedcause for concern. Police investigators remain unable toproperly distinguish trafficking cases from those of othercrimes or to conduct thorough investigations, and thejudicial system routinely is unable to track the status oftrafficking cases moving through the courts.Recommendations for Ethiopia: Improve theinvestigative capacity of police and enhance judicialunderstanding of trafficking to allow for moreprosecutions of trafficking offenders, particularlyperpetrators of internal child trafficking; institutetrafficking awareness training for diplomats postedoverseas; engage Middle Eastern governments onimproving protections for Ethiopian workers anddeveloping a mechanism to refer trafficking victims forassistance; partner with local NGOs to increase the levelof services available to trafficking victims returning fromoverseas; and launch a campaign to increase awareness ofinternal trafficking at the local and regional levels.ProsecutionWhile the government sustained its efforts to prosecuteand punish international trafficking offenders andinitiated investigations of internal child trafficking duringthe reporting period, prosecution of internal traffickingcases remained nonexistent. In addition, law enforcemententities continued to exhibit an inability to distinguishhuman trafficking from smuggling, rape, abduction, andunfair labor practices. Articles 596 through 600 and 635of Ethiopia’s Penal Code prohibit all forms of traffickingfor labor and sexual exploitation.The Federal High Court’s 11 th Criminal Bench wasestablished in late 2007 to hear cases of transnationaltrafficking, as well as any trafficking cases discovered inthe jurisdiction of Addis Ababa. In June 2008, the courtsentenced a man under Proclamation 104/1998 to 15years’ imprisonment and fined him $1,357 for illegallysending an Ethiopian woman to Lebanon where she wasforced to work as a domestic servant and later thrownfrom a building by her employer. A second defendantreceived five years’ imprisonment and a $452 fine forfacilitating the same woman’s trafficking for domesticservitude. In 2008, police at Addis Ababa’s central busterminal received 899 reports of internal child trafficking,an increase over the previous year. However, unlike priorreporting periods, the unit did not provide statistics onthe number of cases referred to the prosecutor’s office in2008 or the status of cases referred to the prosecutor’soffice in the preceding year. Some local police and bordercontrol agents are believed to have accepted bribes tooverlook trafficking.ProtectionAlthough the government lacks the resources to providedirect assistance to trafficking victims or to fundNGOs that provide victim care, police employ victimidentification and referral procedures in the capital,regularly referring identified internal trafficking victimsto NGOs for care. During the year, the Child ProtectionUnits (CPUs) – joint police-NGO identification andreferral units operating in each Addis Ababa police station– rescued and referred children to the CPU in the centralbus terminal, which is dedicated exclusively to identifyingand obtaining care for trafficked children. In 2008, thisunit identified 899 trafficked children, 75 percent ofwhom were girls. It referred 93 trafficked children to NGOshelters for care and family tracing and reunified 720children with parents or relatives in Addis Ababa and inoutlying regions. Local police and officials in the regionaladministrations assisted in the return of the children totheir home areas. The Addis Ababa city government’sSocial and Civil Affairs Department reunified anadditional 46 children with their families in the capitaland placed 40 children in foster care in 2008. During theyear, police in Dessie Town, Amhara region replicated theCPU’s social programs without international assistance.In July 2008, the government assisted IOM with therepatriation of Ethiopian trafficking victims from Dares Salaam to their home regions. Ethiopian missionsin Jeddah, Riyadh, and Beirut have offices that providegeneral services to the local Ethiopian community,including limited referrals for labor-related assistance.The Ethiopian government showed no sign of engagingthe governments of these destination countries in aneffort to improve protections for Ethiopian workers andobtain protective services for those who are trafficked.The government made no effort to interview returnedvictims about their experiences in the Middle East.Returned women rely heavily on the few NGOs that workwith adult victims and psychological services provided by132

the government’s Emmanuel Mental Health Hospital. In2008, there were no reports of trafficking victims beingdetained, jailed, or prosecuted for violations of laws, suchas those governing immigration. While police encouragetrafficking victims’ participation in investigations andprosecutions, resource constraints prevent police fromproviding economic incentives to victims. In January2009, the government passed the Charities and SocietiesProclamation, which, among other things, prohibitsforeign-funded NGOs from informing victims of theirrights under Ethiopian law or advocating on behalf ofvictims; this proclamation may have a negative impact onEthiopia’s protection of trafficking victims.PreventionEthiopia’s efforts to prevent international traffickingincreased, while measures to heighten awareness ofinternal trafficking remained limited. In May 2008, aftera series of deaths of Ethiopian maids in Lebanon, thegovernment officially banned its citizens from travelingto the country; the ban remains in effect. During thereporting period, the Ministry of Labor and SocialAffairs (MOLSA), employing two full-time counselors,provided 18,259 migrating workers with three-hourpre-departure orientation sessions on the risks of labormigration and the conditions in receiving countries.While these pre-departure preventative measures arecommendable, they need to be matched by meaningfulvictim protection measures provided by the Ethiopiangovernment in the countries to which the workers weredestined. In addition, Private Employment AgencyProclamation 104/1998 governs the work of internationalemployment agencies and protects Ethiopian migrantworkers from fraudulent recruitment or excessive debtsituations that could contribute to forced labor. Thesestatutes prescribe punishments of five to 20 years’imprisonment, which are sufficiently stringent and exceedthose prescribed for other grave crimes, such as rape. In2009, an amendment to Proclamation 104/98 outlawingextraneous commission fees and requiring employmentagencies to open branch offices in countries to whichthey send migrant workers was submitted to parliamentfor review. In January 2008, the Ministry of ForeignAffairs established a Women’s and Children’s TraffickingControlling Department to collect data from Ethiopiandiplomatic missions, NGOs, and police sub-stations onthe status of migrant workers. Though this office has notyet issued its first report, in December it hosted an interministerialdiscussion on child trafficking and labor abusefor mid-level government officials from the Ministriesof Labor, Justice, and Women and Children’s Affairs.During the year, state-controlled Ethiopian Radio airedIOM’s public service announcements in four languages,as well as a program for listeners in Addis Ababa on therisk of trafficking through visa fraud. The Ministry ofEducation, in partnership with an NGO, revised primaryschool textbooks to include instruction on child laborand trafficking in the curriculum. Four teachers’ trainingcolleges in Southern Nations Nationalities Peoples’Regional State incorporated these topics in their teachingmaterials in 2008. The government did not undertakeefforts to reduce demand for commercial sex acts duringthe reporting period. Before deploying Ethiopian soldierson international peacekeeping missions, the governmenttrained them on human rights issues, including humantrafficking. Ethiopia has not ratified the 2000 UN TIPProtocol.FIJI (Tier 3)Fiji is a source country for children trafficked for thepurposes of labor and commercial sexual exploitation,and a destination country for women from the People’sRepublic of China, Thailand, and India trafficked forthe purposes of commercial sexual exploitation. Somewomen from the PRC and India who migrate voluntarilyto Fiji for work have been in the past and may still becoerced into forced labor in sweatshops. Fijian boys andgirls are subjected to commercial sexual exploitation byfamily members, other Fijian citizens, foreign tourists,and sailors on foreign fishing vessels. Staff at local hotelsprocure underage girls for commercial sexual exploitationby guests, while taxi drivers, nightclub staff, and relativesfrequently act as facilitators. Some Fijian children areinformally adopted - sent to live with and work forrelatives or families living in or near schools – a traditionof child placement that sometimes leaves the child in aninternal labor or sex trafficking situation.The Government of Fiji does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking,and it is not making significant efforts to do so. Despiteconsistent and reliable reports from NGOs, internationalorganizations, foreign governments, and individualsabout trafficking in Fiji, especially the wide-spreadexploitation of children in the commercial sex trade, thegovernment has demonstrated no action to investigateor prosecute traffickers, assist victims, or participate inpublic awareness campaigns to prevent trafficking.Recommendations for Fiji: Develop a national actionplan for combating trafficking in persons; collaborate withcivil society and international organizations to combatthe sex trafficking of children and train law enforcementofficers on victim identification and protection;significantly improve the record of prosecutions,convictions, and sentencing of trafficking offenders;develop and institute a formal procedure to proactivelyFIJI133

FINLANDidentify victims of trafficking, especially amongvulnerable groups such as homeless children and womenor children found in prostitution; implement and supporta visible anti-trafficking awareness campaign directed atclients of children in commercial sexual exploitation; andexpand cooperation with international law enforcemententities to identify and prosecute Fijian residents, foreignvisitors, and travel service providers involved in child sextrafficking and tourism.ProsecutionThe Government of Fiji demonstrated no significantefforts to combat trafficking in persons during the year.The government is limited in its ability to focus oncombating trafficking in persons by an ongoing politicaland economic crisis; funding for police, immigration, andother institutions is generally inadequate. Fiji prohibitstransnational sex and labor trafficking through itsImmigration Act of 2003, which prescribes punishmentsthat are sufficiently stringent and commensurate withthose prescribed for other grave crimes, such as rape. TheGovernment of Fiji reported no arrests, prosecutions, orconvictions of trafficking offenders during the reportingperiod. The Immigration Directorate handed a fullyinvestigatedcase with elements of trafficking to the policefor prosecution early in 2008. The police, however, didnot advance the case to the prosecutor, and Immigrationeventually deported the two suspected traffickersinvolved due to lack of detention funding. A CombinedLaw Agencies Group (CLAG) meets monthly to addresslaw enforcement issues, including trafficking in persons.There is no evidence of government officials’ complicity intrafficking.ProtectionThe Government of Fiji did not demonstrate anysignificant efforts to protect victims of trafficking overthe last year. The Government of Fiji’s law enforcement,immigration, and social service personnel had no formalsystem to proactively identify victims of trafficking amonghigh-risk persons with whom they come in contact, andthe government did not identify any trafficking victimsduring the year. The government has not developedor implemented a process to refer identified victims toinstitutions that could provide short- or long-term care.Due to severe resource constraints, the governmentrelied on NGOs or international organizations toprovide protective services to victims. One NGOsheltered a number of female trafficking victims andtheir children throughout the year. The Government ofFiji did not actively encourage victim participation inthe investigation of traffickers or sex tourists. The Fijiananti-trafficking law includes provisions to ensure thatvictims of trafficking are not penalized for unlawful actscommitted as a direct result of their being trafficked.PreventionThe Government of Fiji demonstrated no meaningfulefforts to raise awareness about trafficking during theyear. There were no visible measures undertaken by thegovernment to reduce the demand for commercial sex actsand the government did not support any anti-traffickinginformation or education campaigns during the reportingperiod. Fijian laws, including those pertaining totrafficking in persons and sexual assault, apply to Fijiansdeployed abroad as part of peacekeeping missions. TheRepublic of Fiji Military Forces provided anti-traffickingtraining for soldiers in advance of their being deployedabroad on international peacekeeping missions. Fiji hasnot ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.FINLAND (Tier 1)Finland is a transit and destination country for womenand girls trafficked from Russia, Estonia, Lithuania,Latvia, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, the Caucasus, China,and Thailand to and through Finland to France, Sweden,Italy, Canada, Spain, and the United States for thepurpose of commercial sexual exploitation. Finland is adestination country for men and women trafficked fromChina, Pakistan, and Bangladesh for the purpose of forcedlabor; victims are exploited in the construction industry,restaurants, and as domestic servants.The Government of Finland fully complies with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.In June 2008, the government formally updated its 2005National Action Plan to Combat Trafficking in HumanBeings; the new plan outlined various goals includingdeveloping support programs for repatriated victims andenhancing victim identification and referral training forlaw enforcement personnel, teachers, social workers,medical personnel, and others who may have contact withvictims of trafficking. In January 2009, the governmentdesignated Finland’s Ombudsman for Minorities to serveas the national coordinator on trafficking in persons inorder to better gauge the scope of the trafficking problemwithin Finland and to assess the government’s antitraffickingprogress.Recommendations for Finland: Continue trainingsessions for prosecutors and judges on traffickingcases; improve the collection of anti-trafficking lawenforcement data, including the number of investigations,prosecutions, convictions, and sentences given toconvicted traffickers; and continue vigorously identifyingand referring victims of trafficking for assistance.ProsecutionFinland sustained its solid law enforcement effortsduring the reporting period. Law 1889-39 of the Finnishpenal code prohibits all severe forms of traffickingand prescribes six years’ imprisonment for convictedoffenders, a penalty that is sufficiently stringent andcommensurate with penalties prescribed for othergrave crimes, such as rape. Related criminal statutes,such as kidnapping, procuring for prostitution, andchild rape may also be used to prosecute traffickers.During the reporting period, police conducted nine134

trafficking investigations, compared to 10 in 2007. In2008, authorities prosecuted at least seven individualsfor sex trafficking offenses and two for labor traffickingcompared to 10 prosecutions for sex trafficking in 2007.In 2008, nine individuals were convicted for traffickingoffenses– including two for labor trafficking – up fromthree in 2007. Seven convicted traffickers served timein prison; trafficking sentences ranged from nine to66 months’ imprisonment. Law enforcement officialsworked with counterparts from Estonia, Sweden, andRussia on approximately 10 trafficking cases in 2008.The government extradited one non-Finnish citizen toanother EU country on trafficking charges.ProtectionThe Finnish government maintained its significantvictim assistance efforts during the reporting period.It continued to provide direct shelter, rehabilitativeassistance, and medical care to victims in addition to itsprovision of funding for NGO-run shelters. In 2008, lawenforcement officials referred 13 victims to NGOs andgovernment-run assistance centers; this is an increasefrom nine victims assisted in 2007. The governmentencouraged victims to assist in the investigation andprosecution of trafficking offenders and allowed victimsto apply for temporary residency. The government did notpenalize victims for unlawful acts committed as a directresult of being trafficked. Police and border guard officialsuse a series of written guidelines on victim treatment andreferral developed by the Finnish Immigration Service.PreventionThe government continued its trafficking awarenessefforts in 2008. The government continued its demandreduction campaign targeted at Finns who travel abroadfor sex tourism; the government again distributedbrochures to thousands of visitors at a major annualtravel fair warning that sex tourism is a crime. Authoritiesmonitored immigration patterns and screened fortrafficked applicants at ports of entry. Finnish troopsdeployed on international peacekeeping missions receivedintensive anti-trafficking training aimed at providingdeployed forces with the ability to identify potentialtrafficking victims; there were no trafficking-relatedcases involving Finnish troops or government personneldeployed overseas in 2008.FRANCE (Tier 1)France is a destination country for women and girlstrafficked for the purposes of sexual exploitation fromRomania, Bulgaria, Albania, Nigeria, Sierra Leone,Cameroon, Malaysia, and other Asian countries. Men,women, and children continued to be trafficked for thepurpose of forced labor, including domestic servitude,many from Africa. Often their “employers” are diplomatswho enjoy diplomatic immunity, including thosefrom Saudi Arabia. The government estimates that ofthe 15,000 to 18,000 women in France’s commercialsex trade, the majority – possibly 10,000 to 12,000 –are likely victims of sex trafficking. The governmentidentified 1,002 trafficking victims in 2007, of which 76percent were foreigners. There is a significant numberof Romanian minors in France, many of whom arevulnerable to trafficking. Many traffickers evade lawenforcement detection by acquiring fake Sudanesepassports to claim asylum or acquire fake Romanianpassports to avoid visa requirements. The CommitteeAgainst Modern Slavery reported that there were 164 casesof forced labor in France in 2008.Reports continued of trafficking from Brazil to the Frenchoverseas territory of French Guiana. There are also anumber of young women in prostitution from Haitiand the Dominican Republic in French Guiana, some ofwhom may be vulnerable to trafficking. There is evidencethat some Chinese laborers in French Guiana may bein conditions of forced labor. French authorities therereported that they regularly investigate sex workcases to identify potential trafficking victims,though none have been identified.The Government of France fully complies withthe minimum standards for the eliminationof trafficking. The French government tooksteps to improve its overall coordination ontrafficking and provided training to improveidentification and protection of traffickingvictims.Recommendations for France: Increaseefforts to put to use France’s anti-trafficking statute;enhance collection and compilation of law enforcementdata on trafficking; ensure trafficking victims arenot inappropriately penalized solely for unlawfulacts as a result of being trafficked; establish a formalnational referral mechanism and procedures for victimidentification among vulnerable populations, such asthose in prostitution, domestic and other labor sectors;follow through on plans to create a more victim-centeredapproach to trafficking in France, including measuresto ensure victims who denounce their traffickers areprovided with adequate safety and support; and intensifyinvestigations of potential trafficking cases in FrenchGuiana and report on assistance provided to identifiedvictims.FRANCE135

FRANCEProsecutionThe Government of France demonstrated progress in itsefforts to investigate, prosecute, convict, and sentencetrafficking offenders. France prohibits trafficking forboth sexual and labor exploitation through Article 225of its penal code, which prescribes penalties that aresufficiently stringent and commensurate with thoseprescribed for rape. The Ministry of Interior dismantled30 trafficking networks in France in 2008. The Ministryof Justice reported that 19 individuals were convicted inFrance under anti-trafficking laws in 2007, the latest yearfor which official prosecution data is available. All 19were serving jail time of up to seven years. French officialscontinued to rely almost exclusively on anti-pimpingprovisions of the country’s penal code to investigateand prosecute suspected sex trafficking offenses. Theyalso prosecuted labor trafficking offenders under otherstatutes. During the reporting period, the governmenttrained some 200 prosecutors to make better use ofFrance’s anti-trafficking law instead of relying primarilyon anti-pimping laws to address sex trafficking offenses.In October 2008, the French government created ajoint anti-trafficking unit with Belgian law enforcementcounterparts, reportedly the first of its kind within theEU.Officials in French Guiana reported two traffickinginvestigations in the territory during the reportingperiod, one involving the possible forced labor of Chinesevictims and the other a sex trafficking case involving aBrazilian minor. There were no reported prosecutionsor convictions of trafficking offenders in French Guianaduring the reporting period.ProtectionThe Government of France demonstrated progressin the protection of trafficking victims during thereporting period. In November, the Minister of Justiceannounced an additional $14.7 million in support forvictim protection for 2009. The government providedtraining to law enforcement personnel to increase theiridentification of potential trafficking victims and createdand distributed pocket-sized cards containing victimidentification guidelines to border police and NGOsin 2008. In 2008, the French government continuedimplementation of its 2003 Domestic Security law thatallowed for arrest and fining of potential sex traffickingvictims for “passive solicitation.” Out of 1,072 women inprostitution arrested for soliciting, 881 were foreignersand identified by the government as likely traffickingvictims. The Government of France reported they werenot charged or imprisoned; it is unknown whether or notthe government referred them to service providers forassistance. NGOs and international experts continued tocriticize the government’s lack of a proactive approachto identifying trafficking victims. According to NGOs,including Amnesty International, trafficking victimsare treated as offenders, arrested, and charged forsoliciting prostitution, and foreign victims are likelydeported. According to an Amnesty Internationalreport, some victims of trafficking have been accused of‘living off immoral earnings’ alongside their traffickers.The government has challenged the report’s findings.NGOs complained that the government did not employsystematic efforts to ensure victims access to shelter andservices provided by NGOs through a formal referralprocess.The national government and city of Paris continued tofund NGOs providing a network of services and shelterfor trafficking victims. In cases in which victims wererepatriated to their home country, the governmentworked with the relevant government to ensure safety andmedical care. The French government provided witnessprotection services and issued one-year residency cards,which can be renewed every subsequent six months, tovictims of trafficking who cooperated with authoritiesin the investigation and prosecution of traffickers. Thenational government did not provide data on the totalnumber of victims given shelter and assistance or thenumber that received residence cards in 2008. NGOsclaim that some trafficking victims who denouncedtheir traffickers were never granted residency papers, orreceived very provisional residency permits and wereoffered no protection from retaliation. In 2008, Parispolice reported issuance of 92 residency permits toundocumented migrants believed to have been victims oftrafficking. The government provided funding to victims,including a monthly stipend of $464, as well as medicalcare, legal counsel, shelter, and psychological counseling.The Government of France formally assists traffickingvictims seeking return to their countries of origin, thoughonly five percent usually decide to do so.The government made some progress on renewinga bilateral agreement with Romania to continuecooperation on the protection, return, and reintegrationof Romanian unaccompanied minors, but has not yetratified this 2007 agreement.National and local authorities in French Guiana indicateda sensitivity to allegations that individuals have beenforced into prostitution or in labor sectors, includingillegal mining, but to date have identified only twopossible cases of trafficking.PreventionThe Government of France continued to fund traffickingprevention campaigns in association with NGOs duringthe reporting period, including an NGO awarenesscampaign aimed at reducing the demand for commercial136

sex acts. In 2008, the government sponsored a nationwideconference to bring together law enforcement officialsand NGOs to improve cooperation and communicationin protecting victims and preventing trafficking. InDecember 2008, the government established a multidisciplinaryworking group to create a national actionplan on the protection of trafficking victims. The CentralOffice for the Repression of Trafficking in Personscontinued to serve as the government’s operational andpolitical focal point on trafficking. The governmentprovided all French military personnel with generaltraining on trafficking during their basic training. Therewas also a three-week general training given to Frenchmilitary personnel before their deployment abroad forinternational peacekeeping missions.The government provided funding for an NGO to placeseveral advertisements in French weekly and travelmagazines warning possible sex tourists against engagingin sex with minors. In August 2008, authorities arrestedand indicted a high school professor on charges related tochild sex tourism committed in Burma and Thailand. InMarch 2009, two men were convicted in a French courton child sex tourism charges stemming from their actsin Cambodia and Thailand; the court handed them themaximum penalty of seven years in prison. Sex tourismfrom French Guiana to Oiapoque and other destinationsin Brazil has been reported.GABON (Tier 2 Watch List)Gabon is a destination country for children and youngadults trafficked for the purposes of forced labor andcommercial sexual exploitation. Children are traffickedprimarily by boat to Gabon from Benin, Nigeria, Togo,Guinea, and Mali, with smaller numbers coming fromSierra Leone, Burkina Faso, and Cameroon. Girls areprimarily trafficked for domestic servitude, forced marketvending, forced restaurant labor, and commercial sexualexploitation, while boys are trafficked for forced streethawking and forced labor in small workshops. Childrenreportedly are also trafficked to Gabon from otherAfrican countries for forced labor in agriculture, animalhusbandry, fishing, and mining. Increasingly, youngmen and women are also trafficked from other Africancountries, primarily for domestic servitude, though alsofor sexual exploitation. Most victims arrive by boat andare trafficked to Libreville and Port Gentil, though victimsare found in smaller towns as well. Reports also indicatethat some indigenous Pygmies are subjected to slaverylikeconditions, without effective recourse in the judicialsystem.The Government of Gabon does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Gaboncontinued its efforts to intercept and assist traffickingvictims. Despite these overall efforts, the governmentdid not show progress in convicting trafficking offenders;therefore, Gabon is placed on Tier 2 Watch List.Recommendations for Gabon: Increase efforts toinvestigate and prosecute trafficking offenses, andconvict and punish trafficking offenders; draft and enactlegislation prohibiting the trafficking of adults; investigatereports of government complicity in trafficking; developformal procedures to identify trafficking victims amongfemales in prostitution; end the practice of placing victimsin jail, even temporarily; and take steps to combat theforced labor of Pygmies.ProsecutionThe Government of Gabon continued minimal antitraffickinglaw enforcement efforts over the last year,despite ample resources. Gabon does not prohibit allforms of human trafficking. It prohibits child labortrafficking through its 2004 Law 09/04 Preventing andCombating Child Trafficking, which prescribes penaltiesof five to 15 years’ imprisonment and a $20,000 to$40,000 fine. Article 4, Title 1 of Law Number 3/94criminalizes forced labor prescribing inadequate penaltiesof one to six months’ imprisonment and a possiblefine of $700 to $1,400. The procurement of a minor forthe purpose of prostitution is prohibited under PenalCode Article 261, which prescribes two to five years’imprisonment and a fine, a penalty that is sufficientlystringent, though not commensurate with punishmentsprescribed for rape. Forced prostitution is prohibited byLaw Number 21/63-94, which prescribes two to 10 years’imprisonment, a penalty that is sufficiently stringentand commensurate with those prescribed for rape. Thegovernment reported that, during the year, it arrested atleast 12 suspected traffickers and induced 18 to pay thefinancial cost of repatriating victims. The government didnot report any prosecutions or convictions of traffickersin the last year. Approximately 30 detained suspectedtraffickers arrested between 2005 and 2008 are slatedto go before the next criminal tribunal, which onlyconvenes three times annually. Police and gendarmerieanecdotally reported additional arrests for possibletrafficking offenses, but because there is no centralizedcrime database, these reports could not be corroborated.In November 2008, the national police, the gendarmerie,and customs agents in Libreville collaborated in ajoint operation to combat, among other crimes, childexploitation and child trafficking; data on the resultsof these efforts has yet to be released. Gabon’s lawenforcement efforts to combat trafficking continued tobe crippled by inefficient trial proceedings and lengthypre-trial detention. Officials report that cases remainGABON137

THE GAMBIAstalled because victims, whose testimony is requiredfor trafficking prosecutions, were repatriated to theircountries prior to trial. Although there were reportsduring the year that some government officials employedtrafficked foreign children as domestic servants and thatpolice and immigration officers facilitated trafficking, thegovernment failed to investigate these allegations. Duringthe year, the government contributed meeting sites andprepared presentations for a trafficking training for lawenforcement officials funded by a foreign donor.collaborated with other government ministries to ensurethat victims could remain in Gabon until the prosecutioncould make its case. The government provides a limitedlegal alternative – de facto temporary residency status– to the removal of foreign victims to countries wherethey face hardship or retribution, and does not deporttrafficked children. During the year, Gabonese authoritiesidentified and paid for the training of 45 new socialworkers in a UNICEF course covering victim rescue, care,and repatriation.ProtectionThe Government of Gabon continued to protect sometrafficking victims in the last year. Gabon operatesthree reception centers for destitute children, includingtrafficking victims – two in Libreville and one in PortGentil – which provide shelter, medical care, andrehabilitation and reintegration services. The center inLibreville has a 24-hour nurse on staff, contracts a doctor,and provides psychosocial services. This is fully funded bythe government, while the other two are financed jointlyby the government and private donors. Child victimsresided in these centers until arrangements were madefor their repatriation, which the government requiredbe funded by the victims’ employers or guardians. Staffat the centers worked with foreign diplomatic missionsto repatriate victims. Some victims were also placedin temporary foster care. When security forces foundtrafficking victims, they placed those under 16 years ofage in government-operated shelters or temporary fostercare, while older victims were referred to a CatholicNGO. Pursuant to an arrangement between Gabon andNigeria, security officials referred Nigerian victims tothe Nigerian Embassy in Libreville. The governmentreported assisting 92 child and 10 adult traffickingvictims within the last year. Forty-two victims wererepatriated with some assistance from UNICEF; four wereplaced in foster families in Gabon; and 10 were offeredapprenticeships or internships and aid in finding lodging.Six child victims from Niger rescued in a March 2009raid remain in a government shelter. Statistics on theremaining 40 victims are unavailable. Because securityforces did not employ procedures to identify traffickingvictims among individuals in prostitution, sex traffickingvictims may have been inappropriately incarcerated orfined for unlawful acts committed as a direct result ofbeing trafficked. The rights of labor trafficking victims aregenerally respected; on occasion they have been housedin jails overnight, in separate quarters from criminaldetainees and not confined to cells. Gabon continued tooperate its toll-free victim hotline in collaboration withUNICEF. The call center received an average of one tothree calls daily and handled a total of 24 trafficking casesin the last year. The government covered the hotline’sexpenses, staffed it with government personnel, andhoused it in a government-owned building. While inprior years, law enforcement officials did not interviewvictims for evidence at trial, authorities now solicitedvictims’ testimony. The Justice Ministry reported that itPreventionThe Government of Gabon demonstrated modestefforts to raise awareness of trafficking during the lastyear. The government launched trafficking awarenessraisingcampaigns targeting communities in cities,towns, and villages outside the capital. The campaigns,which consisted of community meetings, took place infive of the country’s nine provinces. In collaborationwith UNICEF, UNESCO, and a private corporation, theGabonese government broadcast radio programs in oneof the country’s more remote areas to raise awareness inall sectors of the population, including law enforcement,on trafficking in persons and related issues such as sexualexploitation and child labor. The government’s initialcontribution to this ongoing effort was $40,000. WithUNICEF assistance, Gabonese officials worked withtheir Beninese counterparts to develop a bilateral accordto cooperate in the repatriation of trafficking victims,though the agreement has not yet been finalized. In 2008,Gabon’s Inter-ministerial Committee to Combat ChildTrafficking collaborated with NGOs and internationalorganizations to develop an anti-trafficking strategy.The committee was unable to implement the strategy,however, because of resource constraints and lack ofcoordination. The Committee, established in 2004,continues to lack offices and a clearly defined budget.The government did not take steps to reduce demandfor commercial sex acts during the year. Gabon has notratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.THE GAMBIA (Tier 2)The Gambia is a source, transit, and destination countryfor children and women trafficked for the purposes offorced labor and commercial sexual exploitation. WithinThe Gambia, women and girls and, to a lesser extent,boys are trafficked for commercial sexual exploitation,in particular to meet the demand of European childsex tourists, as well as for domestic servitude. Antitraffickingactivists report that in the last few yearscommercial sexual exploitation of children has movedfrom large hotels to small guest houses and private homesas a result of large hotels’ enforcement of a voluntarycode of conduct against child sex tourism. Boys aretrafficked within the country for forced begging byreligious teachers and for street vending. Transnationally,women, girls, and boys from neighboring countries are138

trafficked to The Gambia for the same purposes listedabove. Primary source countries for this trafficking areSenegal, Mali, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ghana, Nigeria,Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, and Benin. The trafficking of boysbetween The Gambia and Senegal by religious teachers forforced begging is particularly prevalent. Gambian womenand girls are trafficked to Senegal for domestic servitude,and possibly for commercial sexual exploitation.The Government of The Gambia does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts todo so, despite limited resources. The government’s lawenforcement efforts to address trafficking increased withthe prosecution of two trafficking offenders and theconviction of one of them. The government also madeslightly increased victim protection efforts by providinglimited services to children trafficked for forced begging.The government did not show progress, however, inidentifying and assisting trafficking victims amongwomen and girls in prostitution.Recommendations for The Gambia: Increase effortsto investigate and prosecute trafficking offenses, andconvict and punish trafficking offenders; develop formalprocedures for identifying trafficking victims amongwomen and girls in prostitution; incorporate traffickingtraining into the standard police curriculum; educateall government officials on the distinction betweensmuggling and trafficking; identify an increased numberof trafficking victims and provide them with care; andend the practice of placing child sex trafficking victims inprisons.ProsecutionThe Government of The Gambia demonstrated someincreased efforts to combat trafficking through lawenforcement actions during the last year. The Gambiaprohibits all forms of trafficking through its October2007 Trafficking in Persons Act, which prescribes apenalty of 15 years’ to life imprisonment for all formsof trafficking. This penalty is sufficiently stringent andcommensurate with those of other grave crimes, such asrape. The Gambia’s 2005 Children’s Act also prohibitsall forms of child trafficking, prescribing a maximumpenalty of life imprisonment. The government reportedthat it investigated four trafficking cases and prosecutedtwo trafficking offenders. One of these defendants,a Senegalese national, was sentenced to two years’imprisonment with hard labor for trafficking Gambianchildren to Senegal. In November 2008, police arrested aGambian national for trafficking a child for the purposeof commercial sexual exploitation by a New Zealandnational in Banjul. The Gambian was prosecuted under aprocurement statute and subsequently acquitted. Duringthe year, authorities demonstrated a weak understandingof trafficking by conflating it with smuggling. TheSecretary of State for Justice gave a one-time lecture toprosecutors and a prosecutor traveled with UNICEFat UNICEF’s expense to border posts to distribute thelaw. Four individuals were prosecuted under the antitraffickinglaw for actions that appear to be smugglingrather than trafficking. The government did not institutesystematic trafficking training for law enforcementofficials, though they did take part in donor-fundedtrafficking trainings. Officials monitored The Gambia’sborders to ensure that children crossing them aretraveling with a parent or a legal guardian, but reportssuggested that traffickers’ use of false travel documentshindered these efforts.ProtectionThe Gambian government demonstrated minimal victimprotection efforts during the last year. The police referredfour victims to the Department of Social Welfare, whichreunited three of them with their parents. The fourthvictim was a Nigerian girl placed temporarily in thehome of a Gambian female police officer after beingtrafficked to The Gambia for forced labor; she ran away. Ina joint project with UNICEF and an international NGO,the government operated a drop-in center for destitutechildren, the majority of whom were boys forced to begby religious instructors and street children vulnerableto being trafficked. The center provided non-formaleducation, medical and hygiene services, and counseling.The government provided salaries for two socialworkers at the center and some additional funding. Thegovernment-operated and funded its own 24-hour shelterfor destitute children, some of whom may be traffickingvictims. No specialized facilities existed for traffickingvictims, however, and the majority of children referreddid not appear to be trafficking victims. The Gambia hasnot yet developed a system for collecting victim care data.Although the government established a toll-free victimhotline in 2005, it no longer functions. Although the2007 Trafficking in Persons Act encourages victims toassist in investigations and prosecutions by offeringthem temporary visas pending criminal or civil actions,this provision has not yet been applied. During the year,authorities encouraged three trafficking victims to assistin the investigation and prosecution of their traffickers.The government did not provide legal alternatives tothe removal of foreign victims to countries where theymight face hardship or retribution. While labor traffickingvictims were not inappropriately incarcerated or finedfor unlawful acts as a direct result of being trafficked,authorities detained children found in prostitutionTHE GAMBIA139

GEORGIAin the juvenile wing of the Jeshwang prison pendinginvestigation of their cases. The government did notfollow procedures to identify trafficking victims amongwomen arrested for prostitution.PreventionThe Government of The Gambia demonstrated moderateefforts to prevent trafficking through awarenessraisingduring the reporting period. In June 2008, thegovernment hosted an ECOWAS workshop on traffickingin which members of the National TIP Taskforceparticipated; the government contributed $4,000 towardsthe funding of the seminar. In December 2008, TheGambia’s anti-trafficking task force finalized the nationalaction plan to combat trafficking. The government hastaken steps to reduce the demand for commercial sexacts by raiding brothels and prosecuting a foreign sextourist. In the aforementioned case, the New Zealandnational arrested in connection with the sex traffickingof a Gambian child was convicted and sentenced to oneyear of imprisonment under the Tourism Offenses Act.Gambian troops deployed abroad as part of peacekeepingmissions received some human trafficking awarenesstraining prior to their deployment.GEORGIA (Tier 1)Georgia is a source and transit country for women andgirls trafficked within the country and to Turkey, the UAE,Greece, Russia, Germany, and Austria for the purpose ofcommercial sexual exploitation. Women and girls fromUkraine, Moldova, Russia, and other former Soviet statesare trafficked through Georgia to Turkey, the UAE, andWestern Europe. Men and women are trafficked withinGeorgia for the purpose of forced labor. Men and womenin the breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia,which were outside of the government’s control, aretrafficked for the purpose of forced labor.The Government of Georgia fully complies with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.The government significantly increased its victimassistance funding to $250,000 and modestly increasedthe number of victims assisted by government-fundedprograms. Moreover, all convicted trafficking offenderswere given adequate prison sentences.Recommendation for Georgia: Sustain funding forvictim assistance programs; increase the number ofvictims identified and assisted; ensure that victims arenot fined or otherwise penalized for unlawful acts theymay have committed as a direct result of being trafficked;and continue strong efforts to investigate, prosecute, andconvict both labor and sex trafficking offenders.ProsecutionThe Government of Georgia demonstrated adequate lawenforcement efforts during the reporting period. Georgiaprohibits all forms of trafficking in persons through itsLaw on the Fight Against Trafficking in Persons, adoptedin April 2006, which prescribes penalties rangingfrom 7 to 20 years’ imprisonment. These penaltiesare sufficiently stringent and are commensurate withthose for other grave crimes, such as rape. In 2008, thegovernment investigated 14 trafficking cases, comparedto 37 investigations in 2007. Authorities prosecuted10 individuals for sex trafficking, compared to a totalof 18 individuals prosecuted in 2007. All 10 convictedtrafficking offenders were sentenced to time in prison;none received a suspended sentence. The average sentencewas 14 to 15 years’ imprisonment; two convictedtraffickers were sentenced to 30 years’ imprisonmentin 2008. There were no reports of trafficking-relatedcomplicity of law enforcement personnel from eitherNGOs or the government.ProtectionGeorgia maintained its adequate victim assistanceefforts over the reporting period. The governmentprovided $150,000 in funding for the support of twotrafficking shelters that provided full victim assistance,including medical aid, psychological counseling, andlegal assistance; victim assistance was not conditionalupon cooperating with law enforcement. The governmentcontinued to implement a formal mechanism for itsofficials to identify and refer victims for assistance.The government and IOM identified 21 victims in2008, a significant drop from 48 trafficking victimsidentified in 2007. The government provided shelter andcomprehensive assistance to 10 victims, compared to 12victims in 2007. The government also provided onetimecompensation payments of $600 to five traffickingvictims in 2008. Georgia provided legal alternatives to theremoval of foreign victims to countries where they wouldface hardship or retribution. Victims were encouragedto assist law enforcement with trafficking investigationsand prosecutions; 15 victims assisted law enforcementduring the reporting period. Generally victims were notpenalized for unlawful acts committed as a direct result ofbeing traffickedPreventionGeorgia maintained efforts to prevent trafficking throughpublic awareness campaigns and outreach activities,including meetings with university students, journalists,and ethnic minority representatives. The governmentdistributed approximately 300,000 trafficking-awarenesspamphlets at border crossings over the reporting period.The government continued efforts to reduce the demand140

for commercial sex acts through awareness campaignsthat highlighted Georgia’s law that punishes “clients” whobenefit from the services of trafficking victims.GERMANY (Tier 1)Germany is a transit and destination country for menand women trafficked for the purposes of commercialsexual exploitation and forced labor. Victims weretrafficked to Germany from other parts of Europe, Africa(primarily Nigeria), Asia, and the Western Hemisphere.Approximately one-quarter of sex trafficking victimswere German nationals trafficked within the country.In 2007, the latest year for available trafficking statistics,declines in the number of Czech, Romanian, and Polishvictims were observed as well as increases in the numberof Bulgarian, Hungarian, and Nigerian victims. Twelvepercent of trafficking victims were younger than 18 yearsold. The majority of identified sex trafficking victims wereexploited in bars and brothels. Reported incidents offorced labor occurred mainly in restaurants, catering, andthe domestic work and agriculture sectors.The Government of Germany fully complies with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.Germany increased identification of forced laborvictims and labor trafficking investigations during thereporting period. Sex trafficking investigations alsoincreased, but available statistics indicate that just 30percent of trafficking offenders sentenced to prisondid not receive suspended sentences. Statistics indicatethat, in 2007, three labor trafficking offenders receivedsuspended prison sentences, and five others convicted forlabor trafficking received fines or other administrativepunishments. However, in cases where perpetrators wereconvicted on multiple charges, statistics only includeconvictions under the charge which has the highestpossible maximum sentence. Therefore, available statisticsdo not capture the full extent of trafficking convictionsand sentences in Germany.Recommendations for Germany: Explore ways, withinthe parameters of the German judicial system, to increasethe number of convicted traffickers who are requiredto serve time in prison; continue to improve efforts toidentify and combat labor trafficking; ensure forced laborand child victims’ access to appropriate assistance andprotection; standardize victim assistance measures andgovernment-civil society cooperation across the 16 federalstates; and strengthen awareness campaigns targetingbeneficiaries of forced labor and clients of the sex trade,particularly in the most frequented red light districts.ProsecutionThe German government demonstrated adequate lawenforcement efforts during the reporting period. Germanyprohibits all forms of trafficking; trafficking for sexualexploitation is criminalized in Section 232 of its PenalCode, and forced labor is criminalized under Section233. Prescribed punishments range from six months’ to10 years’ imprisonment and are sufficiently stringent andcommensurate with penalties prescribed for other gravecrimes. It is common practice for judges to suspend prisonsentences of two years or less for all crimes, includingtrafficking. Judges often give suspended sentences to firsttimetrafficking offenders. German authorities completed454 sex trafficking investigations in 2007, a 29 percentincrease from 2006, and initiated 92 labor traffickinginvestigations, an 18 percent increase from 2006.In 2007, the most recent year for which data wereavailable, authorities prosecuted 155 persons underSection 232 and 13 under Section 233 – for a total of168, compared to a total of 193 prosecutions in 2006.The government reported 133 trafficking convictions, aslight decrease from 150 in 2006. In those cases wheretrafficking offenses carried the most severe sentences,only 30 percent of those sentenced to prison did notreceive a suspended sentence, compared with 38 percentin 2006. None of the eight trafficking offenders convictedunder the labor trafficking statute in 2007 was requiredto serve jail time—five received fines or administrativepunishments, and three received suspended prisonsentences.In 2008, two German men were convicted in a LowerSaxony court of kidnapping, hostage taking, rape, andtrafficking and sentenced to 12.5 and 14 years in prison,respectively, for crimes committed against two Germanwomen and a Bulgarian student. Separately, a Polishcouple was convicted of and sentenced to five and a halfyears and three years and three months’ imprisonment,respectively, for persuading, under false pretenses,young Polish women to travel to Germany where theywere forced into prostitution. Police and NGOs jointlyorganized specialized seminars for investigating officers,victim protection officials, and prosecutors as well asworkshops in source and transit countries during thereporting period.ProtectionThe German government sustained its victim assistanceefforts over the last year. State governments fundeddozens of NGOs that provided shelter, assistance,and facilitated protection for victims of trafficking.The Federal Family Ministry fully funds the umbrellaorganization representing 36 NGOs and counselingcenters that assist trafficking victims. The vast majorityof these NGOs focused on adult female victims. Formalvictim referral mechanisms existed in 12 out of 16GERMANY141

GHANAGerman states. Authorities identified 689 sex traffickingvictims in 2007, compared with 775 in 2006, and 101victims of forced labor in 2007, an increase from 83 in2006. Despite government encouragement of victims tocooperate in anti-trafficking investigations, many victimsstated that their willingness to cooperate with authoritieswas negatively impacted due to threats or influence fromtraffickers. Victims are given a 30-day reflection period.The government provided legal alternatives to victims’removal to countries where they may face hardshipor retribution. These measures included temporaryresidence permits for the duration of trial proceedingsas well as long-term residence permits to victims incertain circumstances, such as when the victim facedsevere threats in the country of origin. Prosecutors havethe right to order protective measures, such as policeprotection, for the duration of trials. State governmentsalso provided additional assistance to victims; forexample, the Baden-Wurttemberg government providedapproximately $126,000 in 2008 to victims of forcedprostitution. In early 2009, the federal police publisheda guidance brochure for police, judges, prosecutors, andother officials on providing professional assistance for sextrafficking victims.PreventionThe government continued efforts to prevent humantrafficking during the year. The government sustainedfunding for NGO-produced public awareness campaignsin Germany and abroad including websites, postcards,telephone hotlines, pamphlets, and flyers. A BerlinNGO, funded largely by the Berlin Senate, operatedawareness websites directed at clients of the sex trade.There were no known public awareness campaignsspecifically targeting the potential clients in some ofGermany’s best known red light districts, such as the onein Hamburg. In 2008, the Ministry of Labor and SocialAffairs began development of a pilot project to trainprofessional groups to help combat forced labor. TheGerman government produced a public report on humantrafficking in Germany including detailed statistics from2007 on victims and investigations. A Kiel court in July2008 sentenced a German citizen arrested in Cambodiaon charges of sexual abuse of children to six and a halfyears’ imprisonment. Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, andthe Philippines are the primary destinations for Germanchild sex tourists. The government provided traffickingawareness training to commanders of German militaryunits deployed to international peacekeeping missions onhow to sensitize subordinates to human trafficking.GHANA (Tier 2 Watch List)Ghana is a source, transit, and destination country forchildren and women trafficked for the purposes of forcedlabor and commercial sexual exploitation. Traffickingwithin the country is more prevalent than transnationaltrafficking and the majority of victims are children. Bothboys and girls are trafficked within Ghana for forced laborin agriculture and the fishing industry, for street hawking,forced begging by religious instructors, as porters, andpossibly for forced kente weaving. Over 30,000 childrenare believed to be working as porters, or Kayaye, in Accraalone. Annually, IOM reports numerous deaths of boystrafficked for hazardous forced labor in the Lake Voltafishing industry. Girls are trafficked within the countryfor domestic servitude and sexual exploitation. To alesser extent, boys are also trafficked internally for sexualexploitation, primarily for sex tourism.Transnationally, children are trafficked between Ghanaand other West African countries, primarily Cote d’Ivoire,Togo, Nigeria, The Gambia, Burkina Faso, and Gabon forthe same purposes listed above. Children are traffickedthrough Ghana for forced labor in agriculture in Coted’Ivoire, including on cocoa farms. Women and girls aretrafficked for sexual exploitation from Ghana to WesternEurope, from Nigeria through Ghana to Western Europe,and from Burkina Faso through Ghana to Cote d’Ivoire.During the year, Chinese women were trafficked to Ghanafor sexual exploitation and a Ghanaian woman was alsotrafficked to Kuwait for forced labor. In 2008, the UNreported that a form of ritual servitude called Trokosi, inwhich young girls are subjected to forced labor and sexualservitude, continues in at least 23 fetish shrines.The Government of Ghana does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so, despitelimited resources. During the year, Ghanaian policeintercepted a greater number of trafficking victims thanthe prior year. Despite these efforts, the governmentdemonstrated weak efforts in prosecuting and punishingtrafficking offenders or ensuring that victims receiveadequate care; therefore, Ghana is placed on Tier 2 WatchList.Recommendations for Ghana: Increase efforts toprosecute and convict trafficking offenders, includingthose who subject children to forced labor in the LakeVolta fishing industry and those who force Ghanaianchildren and foreign women into prostitution; establishadditional victim shelters, particularly for sex traffickingvictims; continue to apply Trafficking Victim Fund moniesto victim care; and train officials to identify traffickingvictims among women in prostitution and to respectvictims’ rights.ProsecutionThe Government of Ghana demonstrated minimalefforts to combat trafficking through law enforcementefforts during the last year. Ghana prohibits all formsof trafficking through its 2005 Human Trafficking Act,which prescribes a minimum penalty of five years’imprisonment for all forms of trafficking. This penalty issufficiently stringent and commensurate with penaltiesprescribed for rape. The government reported arresting 16suspected traffickers during the year, five of whom wereprosecuted. In March 2009, the government obtainedthe conviction of a woman for trafficking a Togolese girl142

for forced labor, and she was sentenced to eight years’imprisonment. Eleven suspected traffickers remainunder investigation. There were no reported criminalinvestigations or prosecutions of acts relating to theforced labor of children in the Lake Volta fishing industry.Although four Chinese nationals arrested in February2009 were prosecuted for trafficking seven Chinesewomen to Accra for sexual exploitation, a verdict has notyet been delivered. A religious instructor arrested in July2008 for subjecting 15 children to forced labor and onechild to sexual servitude has not yet been prosecuted.Rather than being charged with the offense of trafficking,he was charged under the more lenient Children’s Actand remains free on bail. During the year, the publicprosecutor dropped a case against suspected traffickersarrested in November 2007 for forcing 17 women intoprostitution, despite significant evidence against them,such as video recordings of them bribing immigrationofficials. The case was dropped when the victims, allof whom have returned to Nigeria, would not agree totestify. The government also failed to prosecute traffickersarrested in January 2008 for sexual exploitation ofchildren, despite videotaped evidence of this exploitationat an Accra brothel, which remains open for business.In 2008 the Public Prosecutor’s Office opened an antitraffickingdesk staffed with three prosecutors trainedabout trafficking.government allocated $75,000 to the Human TraffickingFund it established in 2007 to provide victim care. InApril 2009, the government provided a portion of thesefunds to a local NGO to help care for sex traffickingvictims the NGO has sheltered at a hotel since their rescuein February 2009. Police provided limited security at thehotel.While authorities increasingly employ proceduresto identify forced labor trafficking victims amongimmigrants at border posts, they do not follow proceduresto identify trafficking victims among females found inprostitution. The government encouraged victims to assistin investigation and prosecution of traffickers, thoughmany victims were children afraid to provide testimony.During the year, police interviewed seven Chinese sextrafficking victims to assist with prosecution. During thetrial, however, officials forced these women to testify incourt against their will, causing them emotional trauma.The government provided limited and temporary legalalternatives to the removal of foreign victims to countrieswhere they face hardship or retribution; generallyvictims may remain in Ghana only during the period ofinvestigation and prosecution. With the Interior Minister’sapproval, however, a trafficking victim may remainpermanently in Ghana if it is deemed to be in the victim’sbest interest.GHANAProtectionThe Ghanaian government demonstrated increasedefforts to identify trafficking victims, but took inadequatesteps to provide them with care during the year. Thegovernment contributed personnel to its Madina shelter,which is funded primarily by IOM to provide care tochild victims of trafficking in the fishing industry. Atthe shelter, staff from the Department of Social Welfare(DSW) provided rehabilitation assistance to childvictims rescued and referred by IOM. DSW staff providedrehabilitation assistance to victims in their communitiesof origin as well once the children were reunited withtheir families. The government continued to lack sheltersfor sex trafficking victims. Police rescued 221 child labortrafficking victims, and seven adult Chinese womenforced into prostitution. The government was unable toprovide comprehensive information about how many ofthese victims it provided with care. Fifteen child victimswere provided with care in a DSW shelter in northernGhana by a government-salaried social worker, whilean NGO and private donor provided food, clothing, andeducation for the children. The government returnedthree of the child victims to the suspected trafficker, whoremains out on bail. Two of the victims were repatriatedto Togo by an NGO, while the remaining victims werereturned to their families in Ghana. The governmentreleased ten girl victims of forced child labor identifiedin August 2008 into the custody of a man claiming tobe from the children’s village. He housed them at abus station until NGOs requested that the governmentmove them to an NGO shelter. In December 2008, thePreventionThe Government of Ghana demonstrated weakefforts to prevent trafficking over the last year. Thegovernment conducted anti-trafficking informationand education campaigns during the reporting period.Counter-trafficking officials appeared regularly withanti-trafficking messages on radio talk shows andon television. The police held anti-trafficking publicawareness meetings in areas of the country with a highincidence of trafficking and provided anti-traffickingeducational materials to rural officials and localmagistrates. The government also reached out to Nigerianofficials through video conferences to request guidancein forming a national anti-trafficking agency. In June2008, in collaboration with private cocoa companies,the government released a report on the incidence ofchild labor and adult forced labor in its cocoa sector. TheHuman Trafficking Board established in July 2007 meteight times in 2008. The government provided Ghanaiantroops with anti-trafficking awareness training througha donor-funded program before being deployed abroad143

GREECEas part of international peacekeeping missions. Ghanatook minimal measures to reduce demand for commercialsex acts by conducting a raid on a brothel exploitingtrafficking victims, and prosecuting the suspectedtraffickers. The government failed to close down a brothelprostituting children, however. It took no discernablesteps to address the demand for forced labor. Ghana hasnot ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.GREECE (Tier 2)Greece is a destination and transit country for women andchildren trafficked for the purpose of sexual exploitationand for men and children trafficked for the purpose forforced labor. Women and teenage girls were traffickedfrom Bulgaria, Romania, Albania, other parts of EasternEurope and the Balkans, Nigeria, and Brazil into forcedprostitution and forced labor. One NGO reported thatthere were many teenage male sex trafficking victimsfrom Afghanistan and sub-Saharan Africa in Greece.Victims of trafficking for labor exploitation originatedprimarily from Albania, Romania, Moldova, Afghanistan,Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh and most were forcedto work in the agriculture or construction sectors. Childlabor trafficking victims were subjected to forced beggingand forced to engage in petty crimes. Some victims arefound among the approximately 1,000 unaccompaniedminors who enter Greece yearly. Several NGOs reportedanecdotal evidence that Roma women and childrenwere trafficked within Greece. There was also anecdotalevidence of trafficking in the domestic service sector.The Government of Greece does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Thegovernment increased overall funding toward victimprotection, and specialized anti-trafficking policedemonstrated strong law enforcement efforts, but thegovernment lacked sufficient progress in punishingtrafficking offenders, proactively identifying victims,providing reliable shelter facilities for trafficking victims,and specifically targeting domestic audiences withprevention campaigns.served; continue victim identification and assistancetraining for officials most likely to encounter labor andsex trafficking victims; encourage the sustainability offunding for anti-trafficking NGOs; ensure specializedprotection for potential child victims; ensure potentialvictims are offered options for care and immigrationrelief available under Greek law; and strengthen publicawareness campaigns targeted to a Greek audience,including potential clients of the sex trade andbeneficiaries of forced labor.ProsecutionGreece’s specialized anti-trafficking police officersdemonstrated strong law enforcement efforts, butconcerns over inadequate punishment of traffickingoffenders, including officials complicit in trafficking,remained. Greek law 3064, adopted in 2002, prohibitstrafficking for both sexual exploitation and forced labor,and prescribes imprisonment of up to 10 years and a fineof $14,000 to $70,000. These penalties are sufficientlystringent and commensurate with those prescribed forother grave crimes. Many trafficking-related statistics,such as the total number of trafficking prosecutionsand suspended sentences of convicted traffickingoffenders, were unavailable. According to availabledata, law enforcement arrests of suspected traffickingoffenders increased from 121 in 2007 to 162 in 2008.Police conducted 37 sex trafficking investigations, twolabor trafficking investigations and one investigationof trafficking for the removal of human organs. Thegovernment reported 21 convictions of traffickingoffenders, 17 acquittals, and 41 ongoing prosecutionsduring 2008. Sentences for the 21 convicted offendersranged from one year to almost 17 years’ imprisonment,and many sentences also included fines, though manyconvicted trafficking offenders continued to be releasedpending lengthy appeals processes. Greek courts,especially at the appeals level, often give convictedtrafficking offenders suspended sentences. Severalformer government officials, including an ex-mayorcharged with trafficking complicity in 2005, were givensuspended sentences during the year. Three police officersallegedly involved in the rape of a victim while she was inpolice custody in 2006 remained on bail while awaitingprosecution on charges of breach of duty, abuse ofauthority, repeated rape, and complicity in rape. Duringthe last year, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs completedinvestigations of several officials suspected of involvementin a trafficking network but found no evidence oftrafficking complicity.144Recommendations for Greece: Ensure that convictedtrafficking offenders receive adequate punishmentsthat deter exploitation of additional victims; vigorouslyinvestigate and prosecute offenses of officials complicitin trafficking; improve tracking of anti-trafficking lawenforcement data to include information on sentencesProtectionThe government demonstrated uneven efforts toimprove victim protection during the reporting period.Inadequate measures to identify trafficking victimsand provide appropriate shelter were the government’sgreatest limitations in combating human trafficking,according to local observers. The government traffickingshelter in Athens closed for several months and laterre-opened during the reporting period. The government

increased funding specifically directed toward assistancefor trafficking victims by 32 percent, but delays ingovernment funding of anti-trafficking NGOs hinderedtheir effectiveness and as a result two NGO traffickingshelters closed down. The government encouragedtrafficking victims to participate in investigations orprosecutions of trafficking offenders through a law thatprovides for a 30-day reflection period, but according toNGOs, authorities did not always provide the reflectionperiod in practice. The government provided traffickingvictims who assisted the government in prosecutionswith temporary, renewable residence permits and accessto social services and healthcare after the governmentcertified victim status. It provided inconsistent accessto longer term shelter options for victims throughintermittent funding to NGOs. Health officials providingcare to people in Greece’s regulated sex trade lackedsufficient training on victim identification and protectionof trafficking victims. In 2008, Human Rights Watch,UNHCR, the Council of Europe’s Commissioner forHuman Rights, and multiple domestic NGOs criticizedGreece for failing to ensure that victim identificationprocedures were used by border police, the coastguard, and the vice squad. Greece’s specialized antitraffickingpolice exhibited adequate victim identificationprocedures, though NGOs noted that trafficking victimswere far more likely to be first encountered by personnelof other Greek law enforcement agencies that did nothave the same skill in identifying victims. Anti-traffickingpolice made efforts to address this problem throughtraining and dissemination of awareness materials forborder and vice squad authorities. Officials identified 78trafficking victims in 2008, compared to 100 identifiedin 2007. NGOs and international organizations reportedassisting at least 657 victims in 2008. NGOs reportedexcellent cooperation with the specialized anti-traffickingpolice unit and lauded a memorandum of cooperationbetween the government and NGOs, but potentialvictims remained vulnerable to arrest for unlawful actscommitted as a direct result of being trafficked. TheGreek government in 2008 ratified a child repatriationagreement with Albania that had been drafted in 2004,but implementation has been slow. The governmenthas few special protections in place for child victims oftrafficking; when identified, they were often shelteredin orphanages or detention centers that did not havespecialized facilities for trafficking victims.PreventionThe government conducted general anti-traffickingawareness campaigns during the reporting period butinsufficiently targeted potential clients of the sex tradeor beneficiaries of forced labor in Greece. The Ministryof Foreign Affairs (MFA) funded several preventioninitiatives, including a hotline for potential victims andan extensive joint campaign with UNICEF focused onglobal child trafficking. The government also funded theproduction of public awareness posters and informationcards printed in multiple languages alerting potentialvictims to government resources. In 2008, the MFAcreated a new working-level task force on combatingtrafficking to complement the high-level Inter-ministerialTask Force on Human Trafficking. The government fundedtraining and seminars on trafficking awareness for variousgovernment officials. Greek law has extraterritorialcoverage for child sex tourism. The Greek governmentgave its peacekeeping troops explicit anti-traffickingtraining before deploying them abroad. Greece has notratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.GUATEMALA (Tier 2 Watch List)Guatemala is a source, transit, and destination countryfor Guatemalans and Central Americans trafficked for thepurposes of commercial sexual exploitation and forcedlabor. Human trafficking is a significant and growingproblem in the country, particularly the exploitationof children in prostitution. Guatemalan women andchildren are trafficked within the country, and to Mexicoand the United States, for commercial sexual exploitation.NGOs report nascent child sex tourism in certain touristareas such as Antigua and Guatemala City. YoungGuatemalan girls are also subject to forced labor withinthe country as domestic servants. Guatemalan men,women, and children are trafficked within the country, aswell as to Mexico and the United States, for forced labor,particularly in agriculture. In the Mexican border area,Guatemalan children are exploited for forced begging onstreets and forced labor in municipal dumps; Guatemalanmen, women, and children are trafficked for forcedagricultural work, particularly on coffee plantations.Guatemala is a destination country for victims from ElSalvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua, trafficked for thepurpose of commercial sexual exploitation. Border areaswith Mexico and Belize remain a top concern due to theheavy flow of undocumented migrants, many of whomfall victim to traffickers.The Government of Guatemala does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts todo so. During the past year, the Guatemalan Congressunanimously approved a bill to strengthen Guatemalanlaws against human trafficking and other forms of sexualexploitation and violence. In addition, the governmentstrengthened its investigative efforts during the first yearof operation of a prosecutorial unit dedicated to fightinghuman trafficking and illegal adoptions. Despite suchoverall significant efforts, Guatemala is placed on Tier 2Watch List for failing to show increasing efforts to combathuman trafficking, particularly in terms of providingadequate assistance to victims and ensuring thattrafficking offenders, including corrupt public officials,are appropriately prosecuted, convicted, and sentenced fortheir crimes.Recommendations for Guatemala: Implement andenforce the new anti-trafficking law; increase efforts toinvestigate and prosecute trafficking offenses, and convictand punish trafficking offenders, including public officialscomplicit with trafficking activity; pursue suspected casesGUATEMALA145

GUATEMALAof forced labor and domestic servitude crimes, in additionto suspected cases of adult sex trafficking; improve victimservices and assistance; increase anti-trafficking trainingfor judges and police; and increase funding for antitraffickingefforts, particularly for the country’s dedicatedprosecutorial and police units.ProsecutionThe government made limited efforts against traffickingoffenders last year. While prosecutors initiated sometrafficking prosecutions, they continued to face problemsin court with application of Guatemala’s earlier antitraffickinglaw, Article 194 of the Penal Code, whichprohibited all forms of trafficking in persons, prescribingpenalties of six to 12 years’ imprisonment. During thereporting period, judges continued to dismiss chargesunder Article 194 in favor of more familiar but lessserious offenses, such as pandering or procuring, whichprescribe inadequate penalties – only fines – to detercommission of trafficking crimes. The GuatemalanCongress, however, strengthened the country’s antitraffickinglegal framework by enacting a law, which cameinto force in April 2009, to clarify the statutory definitionof trafficking in persons, in addition to increasingpenalties for trafficking, trafficking-related crimes, andother forms of sexual violence and exploitation. Article202 of the new law prohibits the transport, transfer,retention, harboring, or reception of persons for thepurposes of prostitution, sexual exploitation, forcedlabor or services, begging, slavery, illegal adoptions, orforced marriage, in addition to other prohibited purposes.Penalties established under the new law are from eight to18 years’ imprisonment; under aggravated circumstances,such as when the crime involves kidnapping, threats,violence, weapons, or a public official, penalties increaseby one-third. Such penalties are sufficiently stringentand commensurate with penalties prescribed for otherserious crimes such as rape. During the reporting period,the government maintained small dedicated police andprosecutorial units to investigate and prosecute humantrafficking cases. In 2008, the government initiatedcriminal proceedings under existing laws against 55suspected trafficking offenders; seven of these 55proceedings involved allegations of commercial sexualexploitation of children, which is even with resultsfrom 2007, when the government prosecuted eighttrafficking-related cases. During the reporting period,the government focused most of its limited resourceson prosecuting illegal adoptions, which are defined as aform of trafficking in persons under Guatemalan law andhave a high incidence in the country. No prosecutionsfor forced labor crimes or sex trafficking crimes involvingadult victims were reported, nor prosecutions ofgovernment officials complicit with trafficking activity.No trafficking convictions or sentences were obtainedunder Article 194 in Guatemala City, though prosecutorsin Jalapa reported one trafficking conviction in an illegaladoption case, securing a sentence of six years in prison.Overall, anti-trafficking police and prosecutors remainedplagued by a severe lack of funding and resources; forexample, Guatemala’s five-person anti-trafficking policeunit had only one vehicle to investigate trafficking casesthroughout the country. Police also remained crippledby high staff turnover and a lack of specialized training.Credible reports from international organizations andNGOs indicated that corrupt public officials continuedto impede anti-trafficking law enforcement andfacilitate trafficking activity by accepting or extortingbribes, sexually exploiting children, falsifying identitydocuments, leaking information about impending policeraids to suspected traffickers, and ignoring traffickingactivity in brothels and commercial sex sites. While thegovernment made efforts to dismiss some public officialsfrom their positions, it did not attempt to criminallyinvestigate or prosecute any of them.ProtectionThe government made insufficient efforts to protecttrafficking victims during the reporting period, relyinglargely on NGOs and international organizations toprovide the bulk of victim services. Child victims areeligible for basic care at seven government-run sheltersupon judicial order, but were typically referred to NGOssuch as Casa Alianza for assistance. However, CasaAlianza announced closure of its Guatemala facilitiesin January 2009; the government referred an average of300 sexually exploited youth, including child traffickingvictims, to Casa Alianza each year. In December 2008,the government approved a budget increase for theSecretariat of Social Welfare to expand generalized childvictim services, which should become available in 2009.Government-run services dedicated to adult traffickingvictims remained virtually non-existent. AlthoughGuatemalan authorities encouraged victims to assist withthe investigation and prosecution of their traffickers, mostvictims did not file complaints due to fear of violence orreprisals, and lack of confidence in the country’s criminaljustice system and limited witness protection program.The government did not detain, fine, or otherwisepenalize victims for unlawful acts committed as a directresult of being trafficked. The government continuedto operate a migrants’ shelter in Guatemala City withseparate space for foreign trafficking victims, though someforeign trafficking victims appear to have been deported.The new anti-trafficking law established procedures forrepatriation of trafficked victims without detention.Guatemalan law does not, however, provide foreign146

victims with temporary or permanent residency status, ora legal alternative to removal to countries where they mayface hardship or retribution. The government continuedanti-trafficking training for consular officials postedabroad, and police conducted brothel raids throughoutthe year to rescue children from sex trafficking situations,rescuing 45 children during the reporting period. Thegovernment endeavored to apply procedures to identifytrafficking victims among vulnerable populations, suchas prostituted women in brothels, but did not have anestimate of the number of victims identified through thismechanism.PreventionThe government sustained efforts to prevent traffickingduring the reporting period. The government continuedanti-trafficking media campaigns and workshops, andoperated a call center to provide information to citizensabout the dangers of human trafficking and to refervictims for assistance. In July 2008, the governmentapproved a 10-year national action plan to combat humantrafficking, and the government’s interagency committeemet throughout the year. The government made nodiscernable efforts to reduce demand for commercialsex acts or forced labor. The government providedhuman rights training – including human trafficking– to Guatemalan troops deployed for internationalpeacekeeping operations.The Government of Guinea does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to doso, despite limited resources. Despite these overall efforts,the government did not show evidence of progress inprosecuting trafficking offenders or protecting victims;therefore, Guinea is placed on Tier 2 Watch List. Ensnaredby internal instability that culminated in a December2008 coup, Guinea’s efforts to combat traffickingremained weak. While Guinea has an adequate antitraffickinglegal framework, which it strengthened byenacting the Child Code, the government did not reportany trafficking convictions for the fifth year in a row, andprotection and prevention efforts remained weak.Recommendations for Guinea: Increase efforts toinvestigate, prosecute, and convict traffickers; finalizeand adopt the implementing text for the new Child Code;increase prescribed penalties for the sex trafficking ofadults and children; develop stronger partnerships withNGOs and international organizations to care for victims;and increase efforts to raise awareness about trafficking.GUINEAGUINEA (Tier 2 Watch List)Guinea is a source, transit and, to a lesser extent, adestination country for men, women, and childrentrafficked for the purposes of forced labor and commercialsexual exploitation. The majority of victims arechildren, and internal trafficking is more prevalent thantransnational trafficking. Within the country, girls aretrafficked primarily for domestic servitude and sexualexploitation, while boys are trafficked as forced beggars,street vendors, shoe shiners, and laborers in gold anddiamond mines as well as for forced agricultural labor.Some Guinean men are also trafficked for agriculturallabor within Guinea. Smaller numbers of girls from Mali,Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia, Senegal, BurkinaFaso, and Guinea-Bissau are trafficked transnationally toGuinea for domestic servitude and likely also for sexualexploitation. Guinean boys and girls are trafficked toSenegal, Mali, and possibly other African countries,for labor in gold mines. Guinean women and girls aretrafficked to Nigeria, Cote d’Ivoire, Benin, Senegal,Greece, and Spain for domestic servitude and sexualexploitation. Chinese women are trafficked to Guinea forcommercial sexual exploitation by Chinese traffickers.Networks also traffic women from Nigeria, India, andGreece through Guinea to the Maghreb countries toEurope, notably Italy, Ukraine, Switzerland, and Francefor commercial sexual exploitation and domesticservitude.ProsecutionThe Government of Guinea demonstrated minimallaw enforcement efforts to combat trafficking duringthe last year. Guinea prohibits all forms of traffickingin persons through separate statutes. In August 2008,Guinea enacted the Child Code, which includesprovisions prohibiting all forms of child trafficking,specifically criminalizes child domestic servitude,and allows NGOs to bring cases to court on behalf ofvictims. The government, in collaboration with NGOsand international organizations, is still drafting theimplementing text for this law, which will prescribepenalties that allow the law to be enforced. Article 337of the 1998 Penal Code prohibits individuals fromentering into agreements that deprive third partiesof their liberty, prescribing penalties of five to 10years’ imprisonment and confiscation of any resultingprofits. Forced prostitution and child prostitution arecriminalized by Article 329 of Guinea’s Penal Code,which prescribes six months’ to two years’ imprisonmentif the trafficked victim is an adult, and two to five years’imprisonment if the victim is a child. These penalties forsex trafficking of adults are neither sufficiently stringentnor commensurate with penalties prescribed for othergrave crimes, such as rape. The government reported that17 trafficking cases are awaiting prosecution, though it147

GUINEA-BISSAUobtained no convictions of trafficking offenders duringthe year. The Government of Guinea created a newMinistry of High Crimes and Anti-Drug Enforcement thatwill be responsible for anti-trafficking law enforcementefforts. While the Police Mondaine, which is responsiblefor addressing trafficking cases, did not investigatethe problem of the involuntary domestic servitude ofchildren in the past, it has added this form of traffickingto its mandate. On February 3, the head of the militarygovernment issued a declaration giving security personnelblanket authority to shoot anyone caught committingchild trafficking, raising significant human rightsconcerns. During the year, Guinean officials participatedin joint trainings with Malian authorities at posts on thetwo countries’ borders to review a proposed agreement onprotection of trafficking victims, which was later signedby both countries.ProtectionThe Government of Guinea demonstrated weak effortsto protect trafficking victims over the last year. Thegovernment lacks shelters for trafficking victims dueto limited resources. While Guinea lacks a formalprocedure through which officials refer victims to NGOsand international organizations for care, authoritiesreported referring victims on an ad hoc basis. Thegovernment also reported providing limited assistanceto victims in collaboration with NGOs and internationalorganizations, but due to the lack of a database, thegovernment could not provide the number of victimsassisted. Through foster care services, the Ministry ofSocial Affairs provides care to destitute children, some ofwhom may be trafficking victims. The government did notfollow procedures to identify trafficking victims amongvulnerable populations, such as abandoned children,child victims of violence, and children in prostitution.Government officials from key ministries responsible foranti-trafficking initiatives held monthly meetings duringthe year to discuss multilateral and bilateral cooperationto reintegrate and rehabilitate victims. In collaborationwith NGOs, the Guinean government continued tooperate its free hotline for public reporting of traffickingcases or victims, but was unable to provide informationregarding the number of calls received. The governmentdoes not encourage victims to assist in traffickinginvestigations or prosecutions. Guinea does not providelegal alternatives to the removal of foreign victims tocountries where they face hardship or retribution.PreventionThe Government of Guinea demonstrated diminishedefforts to raise awareness about trafficking during thereporting period. Guinea did not conduct any antitraffickingawareness efforts during the year. TheNational Committee to Combat Trafficking met quarterlythroughout the year. The Committee failed to submitrequired quarterly reports on the implementation of theNational Action Plan. At a meeting in February 2009,however, the Committee evaluated the existing actionplan and began developing a version for 2009-2010. Thegovernment did not take measures to reduce demand forforced labor and child labor in violation of internationalstandards, as well as demand for commercial sex acts.GUINEA-BISSAU(Tier 2 Watch List)Guinea-Bissau is a source country for children traffickedto other West African countries and within the countryfor forced begging, forced agricultural labor, andcommercial sexual exploitation. The majority of victimsare boys who are religious students, called talibe, whoare trafficked by religious instructors, called marabouts,to other West African countries, primarily Senegal, forforced begging. The eastern cities of Bafata and Gabu arekey source areas for talibe, and the most frequented routeto Senegal is overland via the porous border, especiallynear the town of Pirada. A 2008 study by the AfricanCenter for the Advanced Studies in Management foundthat 30 percent of children forced to beg in Dakar werefrom Guinea-Bissau. Deceived into believing that theirchildren will receive a religious education, parents oftenagree to send their child away with marabouts. Instead,the instructors force the children to beg daily for up to 12hours in urban centers and physically abuse them if theyfail to collect a certain quota of money. Bissau-Guineanboys are also trafficked to Senegal for forced labor incotton fields. NGOs report that Bissau-Guinean girls whoperform domestic work within the country and in Senegalmay be victims of trafficking, while girls reportedly aretrafficked to Senegal for forced domestic labor. WithinGuinea-Bissau, girls are trafficked for commercial sexualexploitation in small bars and restaurants. UNICEFestimates that 200 Bissau-Guinean children are traffickedeach month. NGOs report that the large population ofchildren from Guinea-Conakry engaged in street vendingand shoe shining in Guinea-Bissau may indicate thatGuinea-Bissau is a destination country for traffickingvictims from Guinea.The Government of Guinea-Bissau does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to doso, despite limited resources. The government continuedto help to protect victims and prevent trafficking throughmonthly $1,000 contributions to a local NGO thatoperates a shelter and raises public awareness abouttrafficking. Bissau-Guinean authorities also continuedto intercept victims and refer victims to two NGOs forassistance. Despite these overall significant efforts, thegovernment did not demonstrate progress in its antitraffickinglaw enforcement efforts; therefore, Guinea-Bissau is placed on Tier 2 Watch List. Destabilized byinternal conflict during the year, Guinea-Bissau’s antitraffickinglaw enforcement efforts remained poor.Recommendations for Guinea-Bissau: Enact the draftlaw prohibiting trafficking in persons; increase efforts148

to prosecute and punish trafficking offenders underforced labor and trafficking-related laws; investigateestablishments where children are subjected tocommercial sexual exploitation in order to rescue childvictims and arrest trafficking offenders; investigatewhether girls are trafficked internally and to Senegal fordomestic servitude; and finalize and enact the draft antitraffickingnational action plan.ProsecutionThe Government of Guinea-Bissau demonstrated weakanti-trafficking law enforcement efforts during the lastyear. Bissau-Guinean law does not prohibit all forms oftrafficking. However, forced labor is criminalized underarticle 37 of the country’s penal code, which prescribesa penalty of life imprisonment. During the year, thegovernment collaborated with UNICEF to develop draftlegislation prohibiting child trafficking. The NationalAssembly was dissolved in August 2008, however, beforethe law could be passed. Police did not actively investigatetrafficking cases, in part because they lack basic resources,such as vehicles, electricity, and jails. Police continuedto detain suspected traffickers they encountered andarranged for their transport to the police headquartersin Gabu. Rather than charging and prosecuting suspects,however, police released them. During the year, thegovernment reported that it arrested nine suspectedtraffickers, though it reported no trafficking prosecutionsor convictions. The government continued requiringparents to sign a contract that held them criminally liableif their children were re-trafficked after having beenrescued and returned home. NGOs reported that suchcontracts have been effective in reducing the rate of retrafficking.members provide lead information. While authoritiesemployed procedures to identify labor trafficking victimsamong vulnerable populations, no procedures wereemployed for identifying sex trafficking victims amongwomen and children in prostitution. Victims were notpenalized for unlawful acts committed as a direct result ofbeing trafficked.PreventionThe Government of Guinea-Bissau made modest effortsto raise awareness about trafficking during the reportingperiod. Government funds to AMIC contributed to theNGO’s October 2008 training of religious teachers abouttrafficking. The government also helped finance AMIC’santi-trafficking radio broadcasts and visits to villages insource areas to raise awareness about trafficking. Guinea-Bissau’s Ambassador to Senegal continued to contributeto anti-trafficking radio broadcasts to educate parentsin Muslim communities about trafficking. High-levelgovernment coordination to address trafficking remainedweak. In 2008, the Ministry of Solidarity (MOS) formedan anti-trafficking inter-ministerial committee that metweekly. A separate anti-trafficking committee formed bythe Ministry of Labor reportedly also met during the year;however, it did not coordinate with the MOS’s committee.In collaboration with the ILO, the government draftedan anti-trafficking action plan. The government did nottake measures to reduce demand for commercial sexualexploitation or forced labor during the year. Guinea-Bissau has not ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.GUYANAProtectionThe Government of Guinea-Bissau continued solid effortsto help NGOs provide care for trafficking victims duringthe year. While the government did not operate victimshelters, it contributed funding to an NGO’s victim shelterin Gabo. Police continued to refer victims to that NGO– AMIC – and another NGO – SOS Child Talibe – thatoperated a small shelter in Bafata. Police assisted bothNGOs in locating victims’ families. During the year, thegovernment donated to SOS Child Talibe an abandonedbuilding for use as a new victim shelter. The Bissau-Guinean Embassy in Senegal continued to provide careto trafficking victims by assisting NGOs and governmentofficials in Senegal to identify and repatriate victims. TheEmbassy used its operating budget to assist traffickingvictims and was later reimbursed by its Ministry ofForeign Affairs. During the year, the governmentcooperated with NGOs and IOM to repatriate 63 childrenfrom Senegal. A total of 168 victims received assistancefrom NGOs during the year, of which approximately 160were referred by government authorities. The governmentdid not encourage victims, all of whom were children, toparticipate in trafficking investigations and prosecutions,but sometimes requested that parents and familyGUYANA (Tier 2 Watch List)Guyana is a source country for men, women, andchildren trafficked for the purposes of commercial sexualexploitation and forced labor. Guyanese traffickingvictims have been identified within the country, aswell as in Barbados, Brazil, Trinidad and Tobago, andSuriname. The majority of victims are trafficked internallyfor sexual and labor exploitation in the more heavilypopulated coastal areas and in the remote areas of thecountry’s interior. Women and girls are lured with offersof well-paying jobs, and are subsequently exploitedand controlled through threats, withholding of payor insufficient pay, and physical violence. In coastalareas, traffickers promise rural women and girls jobsas domestic servants, then coerce them into workingin shops or homes for little or no pay, or sell them to149

GUYANAbrothels. Many trafficking victims along the coast areAmerindian teenagers, targeted by traffickers because ofpoor education and job prospects in their home regions.Indo-Guyanese and Afro-Guyanese girls, however,have also been trafficked for commercial sex and labor.Guyanese men are trafficked transnationally for forcedlabor in construction and other sectors in Trinidad andTobago and Barbados.The Government of Guyana does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Despitethese overall efforts, the government did not showevidence of progress in prosecuting and punishing acts oftrafficking; therefore, Guyana is placed on Tier 2 WatchList. Although the government enhanced its assistance tovictims, augmented training for law enforcement officials,and initiated a nationwide network of communityfocal points for victim identification and criminalinvestigations, the government has not yet convicted andpunished any trafficking offenders under its 2005 antitraffickinglaw.Recommendations for Guyana: Vigorously investigateand prosecute trafficking offenses, and seek convictionsand punishment of trafficking offenders; proactivelyidentify trafficking victims among vulnerable populationssuch as women and children in prostitution; protecttrafficking victims throughout the process of criminalinvestigations and prosecutions; assign more judgesand court personnel to handle trafficking cases in thecountry’s interior regions; and expand anti-traffickingtraining for police and magistrates.ProsecutionThe government made negligible law-enforcementprogress against human trafficking over the last year. TheCombating Trafficking of Persons Act of 2005 prohibits allforms of trafficking and prescribes sufficiently stringentpenalties, ranging from three years’ to life imprisonment,commensurate with those for rape and other grave crimes.In the past year, trafficking investigations increasedfrom six in 2007 to eight. One prosecution was initiatedlast year, and the one case opened in 2007 continuedthroughout 2008. Police investigated reports of girls andwomen exploited in prostitution in cities. Legal casesagainst alleged trafficking offenders usually did notprogress through the trial phase, as charges against mostsuspects are dropped prior to or during prosecution.In 2008, magistrates continued to dismiss charges intrafficking cases, usually citing a lack of evidence orfailure of the witness to appear for testimony. In October2008, a judge dismissed the charges against a womanarrested in September 2006 for subjecting a 15-yearold girl to commercial sexual exploitation, claimingthe police “had not done proper investigations” in theintervening two years. Judicial proceedings are regularlydelayed by shortages of trained court personnel andmagistrates, postponements, and the slowness of theGuyanese police in preparing cases for trial. The Guyanesepolice in 2008 instituted a mandatory full-day trainingsession on human trafficking for senior and mid-levelinvestigative officers.ProtectionThe Government of Guyana made significant effortsto assist victims during the reporting period. Thegovernment did not operate shelters for traffickingvictims, but doubled its funding to an NGO that providedshelter, counseling, and medical assistance to victimsof domestic violence; the shelter was also accessible tovictims of trafficking, though no trafficking victimssought assistance from the shelter in 2008. NGOs workingdirectly with trafficking victims report that although thegovernment offers a number of useful services to victims,the system by which it provides these services does notfunction as effectively as it should. The governmentprovided travel funds to facilitate the return to Guyanaof Guyanese trafficking victims from other countries; italso provided vocational training, financial assistance,and medical attention to these victims to assist with theirreintegration. The government did not support victimservices outside the capital, and those services remainedinadequate. Guyana’s laws generally respected the rightsof trafficking victims, and although the law did notprovide legal alternatives to the removal of foreign victimsto countries where they face hardship or retribution,no cases of such removals were reported in 2008. Therewere no reports of victims being penalized for crimescommitted as a direct result of being trafficked during theyear. Guyanese authorities encouraged victims to assist inthe investigation and prosecution of their traffickers, andpaid for all costs associated with travel from a victim’shome to the location of a hearing or trial, includingtransportation, meals, and lodging. Nonetheless, somevictims chose not to testify due to the travel distance andtime involved, long delays in the judicial system, or theirfear of reprisal from traffickers. In June 2008, the multiagencytask force on trafficking in persons established“focal points” in communities around the country to helpidentify and refer possible trafficking victims to assistanceorganizations, as well as to help with investigations andraise public awareness.PreventionThe government undertook some prevention effortsduring the reporting period. The government continuedsome educational and awareness-raising activitieson trafficking. The government trained 100 peopledesignated as community “focal points” on identifyingand reporting potential trafficking cases in eight of the150

country’s 10 administrative regions. It also continuedto implement IOM’s trafficking information campaign,which includes posters, brochures, public serviceannouncements, and a hotline. Within the context of itspromotion of HIV/AIDS awareness, the government madeefforts to reduce consumer demand for commercial sexacts.HONDURAS (Tier 2)Honduras is principally a source and transit countryfor women and children trafficked for the purpose ofcommercial sexual exploitation. Honduran victims aretypically lured by false job offers from rural areas tourban and tourist centers, such as Tegucigalpa, San PedroSula, and the Bay Islands. Honduran women and childrenare trafficked to Guatemala, El Salvador, Mexico, Belize,and the United States for commercial sexual exploitation.Most foreign victims of commercial sexual exploitationin Honduras are from neighboring countries; some areeconomic migrants victimized en route to the UnitedStates. Additional trafficking concerns include reports ofchild sex tourism in the Bay Islands, and some criminalgangs’ forcing children to conduct street crime.The Government of Honduras does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Duringthe reporting period, the government increased lawenforcement actions against trafficking offenders andworked closely with NGOs on training and preventionefforts. However, government services for traffickingvictims, particularly adults, remained inadequate.Recommendations for Honduras: Amend anti-traffickinglaws to prohibit labor trafficking; increase efforts toinvestigate and prosecute trafficking offenses, and convictand sentence trafficking offenders, including corruptofficials who may facilitate trafficking activity; increaseshelter aid and victim services; develop formal proceduresfor identifying victims among potential traffickingpopulations; and continue efforts to increase publicawareness.ProsecutionThe Honduran government increased efforts to investigateand punish human trafficking crimes last year. Hondurasprohibits trafficking for the purpose of commercialsexual exploitation through aggravated circumstancescontained in Article 149 of its penal code, enacted in2006, but does not prohibit trafficking for the purpose oflabor exploitation. Article 149 carries penalties of eightto 13 years’ imprisonment, which increases by one-halfunder aggravated circumstances. Such punishmentsare sufficiently stringent and commensurate with thoseprescribed for other serious crimes, such as rape. Duringthe reporting period, the government opened 82 antitraffickinginvestigations and 18 prosecutions, andobtained 11 convictions. This represents an increasein anti-trafficking efforts when compared to resultsachieved during the previous year: 74 investigations, 13prosecutions, and eight convictions. In one noteworthycase last year, Honduran prosecutors indicted twoparents for selling their nine-year-old daughter toan attorney for sexual exploitation; the attorney wasimprisoned on charges of commercial sexual exploitation,sexual relations with a minor, and production of childpornography. The government increased anti-traffickingtraining for public officials last year, and Honduran lawenforcement authorities assisted neighboring countriesand the United States on anti-trafficking cases, as wellas with investigations of child sex tourism. However,defendants over the age of 60 are subject to house arrestin Honduras while awaiting trial; many of these accusedoffenders, including American citizens, flee or bribe theirway out of the country and avoid prosecution. No specificcomplaints relating to trafficking-related corruptionwere received last year, though witnesses reportedlywere reluctant to cooperate with law enforcement oncorruption investigations.ProtectionThe Honduran government made limited progress inits efforts to assist trafficking victims last year. Thegovernment operated no dedicated shelters or servicesfor trafficking victims, though it referred child traffickingvictims to NGOs, which could only serve a smallpercentage of those in need. Honduran NGOs continuedto shoulder a heavy burden to provide victim care,and received no direct funding from the government.While the government increased training for police onidentifying victims and referring them for care, NGOsreport that referrals in practice are unorganized anduneven. Moreover, few resources, public or private, areavailable for adult trafficking victims. Victims wereencouraged to assist in the investigation and prosecutionof their traffickers, and the government collaborated withNGOs to identify and assist victims who chose to serve aswitnesses. However, many trafficking victims decline tocooperate due to fear of retribution from their traffickersor mistrust of police. There were no reports of victimsbeing penalized for unlawful acts committed as a resultof their being trafficked. Honduras did not provide legalalternatives to the removal of foreign victims to countrieswhere they may face hardship or retribution. During thepast year, the government received training on identifyingtrafficking victims among vulnerable populations suchas women in prostitution. In collaboration with an NGO,law enforcement officials in Tegucigalpa conducted raidsto rescue children from commercial sex sites, thoughHONDURAS151

HONG KONGprostituted adult women were not screened for signs ofhuman trafficking.PreventionThe government sustained efforts to prevent humantrafficking during the reporting period, particularlythrough conducting awareness campaigns, forums,and workshops across the country. The government’sinter-institutional committee met regularly to organizeadditional anti-trafficking efforts, and collaborated withNGOs and international organizations on activities.During the reporting period, the government made effortsto reduce demand for commercial sex acts by training 500tourism sector workers to prevent the commercial sexualexploitation of girls, boys, and adolescents in the tourismsector.HONG KONG (Tier 2)The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR)of the People’s Republic of China is a destination andtransit territory for men and women from mainlandChina, Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia, andelsewhere in Southeast Asia trafficked for the purposes offorced labor and commercial sexual exploitation. HongKong is primarily a transit point for illegal migrants, someof whom are subject to conditions of debt bondage, forcedcommercial sexual exploitation, and forced labor. HongKong is also a destination for women from the Chinesemainland and Southeast Asia who travel to Hong Kongvoluntarily for legal employment in restaurants, bars,and hotels, but upon arrival are coerced into prostitutionunder conditions of debt bondage. Some of the womenin Hong Kong’s commercial sex trade are believed tobe trafficking victims. Some were lured by criminalsyndicates or acquaintances with promises of financialrewards, and deceived about the nature of their futurejobs, but faced conditions of debt bondage and had theirpassports and travel documents confiscated upon theirarrival in Hong Kong.recruitment agency as much as $2,700 within their firstseven months of employment, amounting to roughly 90percent of a worker’s monthly salary if they are makingminimum wage; though these fees are lawful, reportsindicate they may make some workers more vulnerableto labor trafficking. While these fees are imposed byIndonesia-based recruitment agencies, some Hong Konglicensedrecruitment agencies reportedly are involved.Some Hong Kong agencies reportedly confiscate passports,employment contracts, and ATM cards of domesticworkers upon arrival and withhold them until the debthas been completely repaid; factors which also mayfacilitate labor trafficking. Additionally, the confiscationof passports by some Hong Kong employment agenciesrestricts the ability of migrant workers to leave theiremployer in cases of abuse, and places them underfurther control of their employment agency, leaving themvulnerable to trafficking. Some Indonesian domesticworkers are confined to the residence and not giventhe opportunity to leave for non-work-related reasons,preventing them from complaining about possibleexploitation to authorities.The Government of Hong Kong does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to doso. The government makes efforts to prevent traffickingamong domestic workers and inform them of theirrights. However, during the reporting period, Hong Kongauthorities did not investigate, prosecute, or convict anytrafficking offenders as defined in U.S. law, nor did itidentify any trafficking victims.Recommendations for Hong Kong: Increase efforts toinvestigate, prosecute, and convict traffickers, includingany cases involving the involuntary servitude ofIndonesian domestic workers; enforce existing Hong Konglaws on holding travel documents and other identificationas collateral on debts; create and implement formalprocedures to proactively identify trafficking victimsamong vulnerable groups, such as women and girls inthe commercial sex industry and persons arrested forimmigration violations; and conduct a public awarenesscampaign aimed at reducing demand for commercial sexacts.Some foreign domestic workers in the territory,particularly those from Indonesia and the Philippines,face high levels of indebtedness assumed as part of theterms of employment, which can in some cases leadto situations of debt bondage if unlawfully exploitedby recruiters or employers. Many Indonesian domesticworkers earning the minimum wage or less enterinto contracts requiring them to pay their IndonesianProsecutionThe Government of Hong Kong did not make progressin its anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts during thereporting period. Hong Kong does not have specific antitraffickinglaws, but its Immigration Ordinance, CrimesOrdinance, and other relevant laws adequately prohibittrafficking offenses. Labor trafficking is criminalizedthrough the Employment Ordinance. Penalties fortrafficking for commercial sexual exploitation arecommensurate with those for rape, and penalties for allforms of trafficking are sufficiently stringent. While HongKong authorities pursued charges against a criminalsyndicate that sent women abroad for prostitution,authorities did not investigate, prosecute, or convict anytrafficking offenders as defined in U.S. law during the152

eporting period; the case against the syndicate lacked thenecessary element of force, fraud, or coercion. Hong Kongpolice reportedly assisted some foreign domestic workersin retrieving their passports from recruitment agencies.There were no reports of trafficking complicity by HongKong officials during the reporting period.ProtectionThe Hong Kong government did not demonstratesufficient tangible progress in protecting and assistingtrafficking victims during the reporting period. Thegovernment did not identify any victims of trafficking in2008. One foreign consulate reported identifying seventrafficking victims during the reporting period who wererecruited to work as waitresses in Hong Kong, but weresubsequently forced into prostitution. When victimsare identified by the government, they are providedwith government-sponsored assistance includingshelter, financial and legal assistance, counseling, andpsychological support. Authorities encourage victimparticipation in the investigation of traffickers, althoughin practice many are reluctant to do so because of thelikelihood of a long trial with no ability to work or earnmoney. The Hong Kong government does not ensure thatvictims are not penalized for unlawful acts committedas a direct result of their being trafficked. Authoritiesgrant immunity to female victims who agree to act as awitness for the prosecution. Hong Kong law requires thedeportation of foreign trafficking victims, and does notautomatically provide foreign victims of trafficking withlegal alternatives to their removal to a country where theymay face hardship or retribution. Victims can lodge anappeal, and the Department of Justice will make a finaldecision on a case-by-case basis, though this has neverbeen done in the case of a trafficking victim. Hong Kongauthorities can refer victims of trafficking to existingsocial service programs at government-subsidized NGOshelters or Social Welfare Department shelters.PreventionHong Kong continued to demonstrate efforts to preventtrafficking in persons during the reporting period. Thegovernment continued to fund a local NGO to meet andprovide information kits to incoming foreign domesticworkers and potential sex trafficking victims whoarrive from Indonesia and the Philippines. To preventtrafficking among foreign domestic workers, the LaborDepartment continued to publish “guidebooks” inseveral languages that explain workers’ rights, the roleof employment agencies, and services provided by thegovernment. Although these guidebooks are distributedto foreign domestic workers upon arrival at Hong KongInternational Airport, a labor NGO reported that theguidebooks were sometimes taken away by Hong Kongemployment agencies shortly after workers receivedthem. Information kiosks and exhibitions were set upat locations frequented by foreign domestic workers,and advertisements about rights guaranteed by theEmployment Ordinance were placed in local newspapers.The Hong Kong government did not take any measuresto reduce the demand for commercial sex acts during thereporting period.HUNGARY (Tier 2)Hungary is a source, transit, and destination countryfor women trafficked from Romania and Ukraine toand through Hungary to the Netherlands, the UnitedKingdom, Denmark, Germany, Austria, Italy, Switzerland,France, and the United Arab Emirates for the purposeof commercial sexual exploitation. Experts noted asignificant increase in trafficking within the country,mostly women from eastern Hungary trafficked toBudapest and areas along the Austrian border. Romawomen and girls who grow up in Hungarian orphanagesare highly vulnerable to internal sex trafficking.The Government of Hungary does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to doso. Although Hungary sustained efforts in certain areas tocombat trafficking in persons, it did not demonstrate theappreciable progress over the previous year contemplatedby the minimum standards in the Trafficking VictimsProtection Act. While the government’s anti-traffickinghotline referred an increased number of victims forassistance and the police implemented a new traffickingdatabase to help improve victim identification, thegovernment’s overall efforts to combat traffickingdeclined in 2008.The government did not provide funding to NGOs forvictim assistance and protection and caused one NGOto close its trafficking shelter—one of only two in thecountry—when it cancelled the lease for the governmentownedbuilding in which the shelter was housed. Whilethe government offered alternative shelter space to theNGO, the location of the proposed facility was too remoteto be practical and provide adequate assistance to victims.Hungary conducted no trafficking prevention efforts untilthe end of the reporting period when it began a threemonthcampaign focused on demand reduction in March2009. In April 2008, the government adopted a nationalstrategy, creating a national coordinator to coordinate allanti-trafficking efforts and to create an anti-traffickingnational action plan; however, the national coordinatordid not have its first meeting until February 2009 and thegovernment appeared to do very little to implement thestrategy during the reporting period.Recommendations for Hungary: Increase fundingto NGOs providing victim assistance and protection;continue sensitivity training for patrol officers to ensureproactive victim identification and appropriate, humanetreatment of identified victims; increase the number ofvictims referred by police for assistance; increase thenumber of trafficking investigations and continue toensure the majority of convicted traffickers serve sometime in prison; conduct campaigns to reduce domesticdemand for commercial sex acts; and increase generalHUNGARY153

ICELANDtrafficking awareness efforts by warning vulnerablepopulations about the dangers of both sex and labortrafficking.ProsecutionThe Hungarian government’s law enforcement effortswere mixed during the reporting period. Hungaryprohibits all forms of trafficking through Paragraph175/b of its criminal code, though prosecutors relyon other trafficking-related statutes to prosecute mosttrafficking cases. Penalties prescribed in Paragraph175/b range from one to 15 years’ imprisonment, whichare sufficiently stringent and commensurate with thoseprescribed for other grave crimes, such as rape. Police andborder guards conducted 21 trafficking investigations,a significant drop from 48 investigations in 2007.Authorities prosecuted 18 traffickers in 2008, comparedwith 20 in 2007. Convictions were obtained against 18traffickers in 2008—16 for sex trafficking and two forlabor trafficking—compared with 17 total convictions in2007. In 2008, seven of 18 convicted traffickers receivedsuspended sentences and served no time in prisoncompared to 2007 when only one convicted traffickerreceived a suspended sentence. During the reportingperiod, four traffickers were sentenced to up to threeyears’ imprisonment, one trafficker was sentenced to18 months’ imprisonment, one trafficker was sentencedto two years’ imprisonment, and five traffickers weresentenced to five to nine years’ imprisonment. In 2008,the government provided victim sensitivity and treatmenttraining for 15 judges, as well as victim identificationtraining for crisis hotline operators. In January 2009,Hungarian and French authorities successfully disruptedan international sex trafficking ring and identified asmany as 100 victims.victims. During the reporting period, 88 traffickingvictims were identified and assisted by NGOs, comparedto 45 victims assisted in 2007. The government-runtrafficking hotline referred 50 victims to NGOs forassistance, up from 37 victims referred for assistanceby government officials in 2007. Law enforcementand consular officials identified approximately 26victims domestically and abroad in 2008. Victims werenot penalized for acts committed as a direct result ofbeing trafficked and there were no reported cases ofauthorities’ mistreatment of trafficking victims. Thegovernment encouraged victims to assist with traffickinginvestigations and prosecutions; however, no victimsassisted law enforcement during the reporting period. Thegovernment offered foreign victims a 30-day reflectionperiod to decide whether to assist law enforcement;however, no victims applied for or received the 30-daytemporary residency permits in 2008. Victims may applyfor a six-month temporary residency permit if they chooseto cooperate with law enforcement; there was no dataavailable on the number of permits granted to traffickingvictims during the reporting period.PreventionHungary demonstrated no increased efforts to preventincidents of human trafficking throughout the year.The government did not conduct any anti-traffickinginformation or education campaigns during most ofthe reporting period. The government took limitedmeasures to reduce the demand for commercial sexacts during this reporting period. In March 2009, at theend of the reporting period, the government began athree-month campaign focused on demand reduction.Hungary actively monitored immigration and emigrationpatterns for evidence of trafficking. During the year,the government provided anti-trafficking trainingto Hungarian troops prior to their deployment forinternational peacekeeping missions.ProtectionHungary significantly decreased its victim assistanceefforts during the reporting period. In 2008, thegovernment provided no funding for NGOs providingvictim assistance including shelter, medical care, legalassistance, and psychological counseling; in 2007, thegovernment provided $150,000 for victim assistance.In June 2008, the government cancelled the lease fora government-owned building which housed one ofonly two trafficking shelters in the country. While thegovernment offered an alternative facility space for theshelter, the location was too remote to adequately assistICELAND (Tier 2)Iceland is primarily a destination country and, to a lesserextent, a transit country for men and women from theBaltic states, Poland, Russia, Bulgaria, Equatorial Guinea,Brazil, and China trafficked to and through Iceland toWestern European states for the purposes of commercialsexual exploitation and forced labor in the restaurant andconstruction industries.The Government of Iceland does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. In 2008,the Government of Iceland drafted a national action planto fight trafficking. However, the government did notdemonstrate significant law enforcement efforts duringthe reporting period. Victim identification and victimassistance were challenges; some victims of traffickingmay have been deported without any effort to determinewhether they were victims. The government also did not154

R RANKING BY YEARconduct any anti-trafficking awareness campaigns.Recommendations for Iceland: Amend the criminalcode to ensure penalties prescribed for sex trafficking arecommensurate with penalties prescribed for other gravecrimes, such as rape; increase efforts to investigate andprosecute trafficking offenses and convict and punishtrafficking offenders; provide training for law enforcementinvestigators and prosecutors on trafficking cases; developlegal alternatives to the removal of foreign victimsto countries where they face retribution or hardship;develop a victim identification and referral mechanism;consider opening a trafficking-specific shelter to ensurethat victims are adequately assisted; ensure that victimsare not penalized for acts committed as a direct result ofbeing trafficked, including immigration violations; andconduct an awareness and prevention campaign focusedon both sex and labor trafficking and the demand forboth forms of trafficking.PreventionIceland conducted no substantive trafficking preventionefforts, including measures to increase public awarenessof trafficking, during the reporting period. Thegovernment did, however, draft a national action planto address trafficking. Border police at the country’sonly international airport provided potential traffickingvictims with information about assistance if theyfind themselves in a future trafficking scenario. Thegovernment adequately monitored immigration patternsfor evidence of trafficking. Iceland has not ratified the2000 UN TIP Protocol.ICELAND TIER RANKING BY YEARINDIAKING BY YEARG BY YEARG BY YEARY YEARProsecutionThe Government of Iceland demonstrated modest lawenforcement efforts over the reporting period. Icelandprohibits trafficking for both sexual exploitationand forced labor through Section 227 of its criminalcode, although prosecutors have never used Section227 and have instead relied on alien smuggling anddocument forgery statutes to prosecute trafficking cases.Punishments prescribed for trafficking under section227 extend up to eight years’ imprisonment, which aresufficiently stringent, though not commensurate withpenalties prescribed for other grave crimes, such asrape. Police conducted one sex trafficking investigationand one labor trafficking investigation during thereporting period, compared to no investigations in 2007.Authorities prosecuted and convicted no traffickers in2008, the same as in 2007.ProtectionIceland demonstrated limited efforts to assist andprotect trafficking victims over the last year. Localgovernments and NGOs identified 20 probable victimsof trafficking and less than 10 victims received assistancefrom government-funded programs. Iceland did notprovide trafficking-specific shelters; instead victims wereaccommodated at a domestic violence shelter. In 2008,the care available under this structure was limited becausethe government did not provide trafficking-specificassistance that adequately addressed the unique needs ofvictims of trafficking. Icelandic authorities did not employprocedures to proactively identify victims of trafficking;the lack of such procedures increased the risk that victimswere detained, prosecuted, jailed, and deported forimmigration violations. Iceland did not employ a victimreferral process, though NGOs reported that some lawenforcement officers referred victims for assistance onan ad hoc basis. Victims were encouraged to assist in theinvestigation and prosecution of trafficking offenders; twovictims assisted law enforcement in 2008.KOSOVO TIER RANKING BY YEARINDIA (Tier 2 Watch List)India is a source, destination, and transit country formen, women, and children trafficked for the purposes offorced labor and commercial sexual exploitation. Internalforced labor may constitute India’s largest traffickingproblem; men, women, and children in debt bondageare forced to work in industries such as brick kilns, ricemills, agriculture, and embroidery factories. Although nocomprehensive MALDIVES TIER study RANKING of forced BY YEAR and bonded labor has beencarried out, some NGOs estimate this problem affectstens of millions of Indians. Those from India’s mostdisadvantaged social economic strata are particularlyvulnerable to forced or bonded labor and sex trafficking.Women and girls are trafficked within the country forthe purposes of commercial sexual exploitation andforced marriage. Children are also subjected to forcedlabor as factory workers, domestic servants, beggars, andagricultural workers. In recent years, there has been anNAMIBIA TIER RANKING BY YEARincrease of sex trafficking to medium-sized cities andsatellite towns of large cities.India is also a destination for women and girls fromNepal and Bangladesh trafficked for the purpose ofcommercial sexual exploitation. There are also victimsof labor trafficking among the thousands of Indians whomigrate willingly every year to the Middle East, Europe,and the United States for work as domestic servants andlow-skilled laborers. In some cases, such workers are thePALAU TIER RANKING BY YEARvictims of fraudulent recruitment practices committedin India that lead them directly into situations offorced labor, including debt bondage; in other cases,high debts incurred to pay recruitment fees leave themvulnerable to exploitation by unscrupulous employersin the destination countries, where some are subjected155

INDIAto conditions of involuntary servitude, including nonpaymentof wages, restrictions on movement, unlawfulwithholding of passports, and physical or sexual abuse.Men and women from Bangladesh and Nepal aretrafficked through India for forced labor and commercialsexual exploitation in the Middle East. Over 500 Nepalesegirls were jailed in the state of Bihar on charges ofusing false documents to transit India in the pursuit ofemployment in Gulf countries. Indian nationals travel toNepal and within the country for child sex tourism.The Government of India does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts todo so. Despite these significant efforts, India has notdemonstrated sufficient progress in its law enforcementefforts to address human trafficking, particularly bondedlabor; therefore India is placed on Tier 2 Watch List.India’s central government faces several challenges indemonstrating a more robust anti-trafficking effort:states under the Indian Constitution have the primaryresponsibility for law enforcement, and state-levelauthorities are limited in their abilities to effectivelyconfront interstate and transnational trafficking crimes;complicity in trafficking by many Indian law enforcementofficials and overburdened courts impede effectiveprosecutions; widespread poverty continues to providea huge source of vulnerable people; and the Indiangovernment faces other equally pressing priorities such asbasic healthcare, education, and counterterrorism. Duringthe reporting period, the central government continued toimprove coordination among a multitude of bureaucraticagencies that play a role in anti-trafficking and laborissues. Government authorities continued to rescuevictims of trafficking for commercial sexual exploitationand forced child labor. Several state governments(Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, Goa, and WestBengal) demonstrated significant efforts in prosecution,protection, and prevention, although largely in the area oftrafficking for commercial sexual exploitation.Recommendations for India: Continue to expandcentral and state government law enforcement capacityto conduct intrastate and interstate law enforcementactivities against trafficking and bonded labor; considerexpanding the Central Ministry of Home Affairs “nodalcell” on trafficking to coordinate law enforcement effortsto investigate and arrest traffickers who cross state andnational lines; significantly increase law enforcementefforts to decrease official complicity in trafficking,including prosecuting, convicting, and punishingcomplicit officials with imprisonment; continue toincrease law enforcement efforts against sex traffickers,including prosecuting, convicting, and punishingtraffickers with imprisonment; improve central and stategovernment implementation of protection programs andcompensation schemes to ensure that certified traffickingvictims actually receive benefits, including compensationfor victims of forced child labor and bonded labor, towhich they are entitled under national and state law; andincrease the quantity and breadth of public awareness andrelated programs to prevent both trafficking for labor andcommercial sex.ProsecutionIndian government authorities made significant progressin law enforcement efforts against sex trafficking andforced child labor during the year, but made littleprogress in addressing bonded labor. The governmentprohibits some forms of trafficking for commercial sexualexploitation through the Immoral Trafficking PreventionAct (ITPA). Prescribed penalties under the ITPA, rangingfrom seven years’ to life imprisonment, are sufficientlystringent and commensurate with those prescribed forother grave crimes, such as rape. India also prohibitsbonded and forced labor through the Bonded Labor(Abolition) Act of 1976, the Child Labor (Prohibitionand Regulation) Act of 1986, and the Juvenile JusticeAct of 1986. These laws were ineffectively enforced, andtheir prescribed penalties—a maximum of three years inprison—are not sufficiently stringent. Indian authoritiesalso use Sections 366(A) and 372 of the Indian PenalCode, prohibiting kidnapping and selling minors intoprostitution, respectively, to arrest traffickers. Penaltiesprescribed under these provisions are a maximum of tenyears’ imprisonment and a fine. Although Section 8 of theITPA allows the arrest of trafficked women for soliciting,the Indian cabinet debated for another year proposedamendments that would give trafficking victims greaterprotections.State governments continued to demonstrate efforts toaddress forced child labor, but failed to punish mosttraffickers. During the year, the New Delhi governmentrescued more than 100 children from forced laborsituations, such as the February 2009 rescue of 35children found enslaved in four small factories makingleather products under hazardous and forced conditionswithout pay. In Jharkhand (with a population of 29million people), the state labor ministry and police, incollaboration with an NGO, conducted raids on 120establishments during a planned operation and rescued208 children from forced or bonded labor situations.The central government and state governments continuedto demonstrate efforts to combat sex trafficking of womenand children, though convictions and punishments ofsex traffickers were infrequent. The central government’sNational Crime Records Bureau provided limitedcomprehensive data, compiled from state and unionterritory governments, on actions taken against sextrafficking offenses in 2007. The 2007 data indicated that4,087 cases were registered (investigations started), whichlikely includes sex trafficking cases referred to courtsfor prosecution as well as cases investigated and closedwithout such referrals. This data did not include reportedprosecutions and convictions. Data for 2008 will not beavailable until 2010.In Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, Goa, andWest Bengal (with a combined population of 360156

million people), government officials registered 964sex trafficking cases, conducted 379 rescue operations,helped rescue 1,653 victims, arrested 1,970 traffickers(including 856 customers), convicted 30 sex traffickers,helped rehabilitate 876 sex trafficking victims, andtrained 13,490 police officers and prosecutors. InMumbai, authorities prosecuted 10 sex trafficking casesbut obtained no convictions in 2008. In Andhra Pradesh,courts convicted and sentenced eleven traffickers toimprisonment for 10 to 14 years. Tamil Nadu’s stategovernment reported arrests of 1,097 sex traffickingoffenders in 2008, though the number of traffickingprosecutions and convictions during the reporting periodwas not reported. The city of Pune attained its first sextrafficking conviction in 2008.During the reporting period, the central governmentmade little progress to investigate, prosecute, convict,and punish labor trafficking offenders. However, itallocated $18 million to the Ministry of Home Affairsto create 297 anti-human trafficking units across thenation to train and sensitize law enforcement officials.According to NGOs, state-level officials who receivedsuch training in the past are increasingly recognizingwomen in prostitution as potential victims of traffickingand therefore not arresting them for solicitation. InTamil Nadu (with a population of 65 million people), anNGO reported a significant improvement in how policefile charges in bonded labor cases. The police now alsoemploy the Indian Penal Code’s tougher provisions,which allow bonded labor cases to be processed morequickly through the judicial system.The significant problem of public officials’ complicityin sex trafficking and forced labor remained largelyunaddressed by central and state governments duringthe reporting period. Corrupt law enforcement officersreportedly continued to facilitate the movement of sextrafficking victims, protect brothels that exploit victims,and protect traffickers and brothel keepers from arrestand other threats of enforcement. India reported noprosecutions, convictions, or sentences of governmentofficials for trafficking-related offenses during thereporting period.ProtectionIndia’s efforts to protect victims of trafficking variedfrom state to state. Protection efforts often sufferedfrom a lack of sufficient financial and technical supportfrom government sources, and protection for victims oflabor trafficking remained very weak. Under its Swadharprogram – which covers a broad range of activities ofwhich anti-sex trafficking is one – the governmentsupports over 200 shelters with an annual budget ofmore than $1 million to provide care for more than13,000 women and girls rescued from a range of difficultcircumstances, including sex trafficking. The Ministry ofWomen and Child Development continued to give grantsunder its Ujjawala program for the prevention, rescue,rehabilitation, and reintegration of sex trafficking victims.The ministry approved funding for at least 53 stateprojects under this program, benefiting more than 1,700victims. Since August 2008, the ministry provided thestates of Karnataka, Maharashtra, Manipur, and Nagalandalmost $243,000 for 18 projects at 12 rehabilitationcenters. Andhra Pradesh established a fund specifically forvictim rehabilitation, giving victims rescued from sexualexploitation $200 in temporary relief. Tamil Nadu beganproviding free legal aid and drug and alcohol addictioncounseling services in state shelters to trafficking victims.The Delhi government established a helpline staffed byNGOs in February 2009 to help rescue children foundbegging.Although victims of bonded labor are entitled to20,000 rupees ($400) from the government if they arecertified as victims of bonded labor and may be housedin government shelters, disbursement of rehabilitationfunds is sporadic and the quality of care in manyshelters is not high. NGOs reported that some corruptlocal officials take unlawful “commissions” from therehabilitation packages. Overall, government authoritiesdo not proactively identify and rescue bonded laborers,so few victims receive assistance, though Tamil Nadushowed the greatest effort to identify and assist victims ofbonded labor. In other states, NGOs provided the bulk ofprotection services to bonded labor victims.The central government’s Ministry of Overseas IndianAffairs, during the reporting period, showed resolveto address the trafficking of Indian migrant workers.For example, in September 2008, the Governmentordered an inquiry after reports surfaced of girls fromnortheastern India being trafficked to Malaysia forsex work. The Government arrested the travel agent,promptly rescued the girls and paid for their repatriationto India. The Ministry also drafted an amendment tothe Emigration Act that would increase administrativepenalties for Indian labor recruitment agencies involvedin fraudulent recruitment or human trafficking. SomeIndian diplomatic missions in destination countries,especially those in the Middle East, provide significantservices, including temporary shelters to nationals whohave been trafficked. Some foreign victims trafficked toIndia are not subject to removal. Those who are subject toremoval are not offered legal alternatives to their removalto countries where they may face hardship or retribution.NGOs reported in the past some Bangladesh victimsof sex trafficking were pushed back across the borderINDIA157

INDONESIAwithout protection services. During the reporting period,India worked closely with Bangladesh on resolving crossbordertrafficking issues, including formally designatinga government official to handle such issues during HomeSecretary-level discussions in August 2008.Government shelters for sex trafficking victims are foundin all major cities, but the quality of care varies widely.In Maharashtra, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, and AndhraPradesh, state authorities operated homes for minorvictims of sex trafficking. Although states have madesome improvements to their shelter care, victims inthese facilities do not receive comprehensive protectionservices, such as psychological assistance from trainedcounselors. Many victims decline to testify againsttheir traffickers due to fear of retribution by traffickersand India’s sluggish and overburdened judicial system.The government does not actively encourage victims toparticipate in cases against their traffickers.PreventionIndia continued to conduct information and educationcampaigns against trafficking in persons and child labor.In late 2008 the central government completed its 18-month long consultation process with government andNGO stakeholders on a comprehensive “Integrated Planof Action to Prevent and Combat Human Traffickingwith Special Focus on Children and Women.” Overall,the government’s anti-trafficking policies and programsremained framed by the limited perspective of humantrafficking defined as the trafficking of women andchildren for sexual exploitation, in line with the 2002South Asian Association for Regional CooperationConvention on Combating Trafficking of Women andChildren for Prostitution. Kerala (with a population of33 million people and India’s largest source of laborerswho migrate overseas) regularized recruitment agenciesand introduced a toll free number for potential migrants.In January 2009, the central government approved anationwide model that merges its national educationaland poverty alleviation programs together to combatchild labor.While the government made modest efforts to preventtrafficking for commercial sexual exploitation, it didnot report new or significant efforts to prevent the largeproblem of bonded labor. The Ministry of Women andChild Development remained the central government’scoordinator of anti-trafficking policies and programs,though its ability to enhance interagency coordinationand accelerate anti-trafficking efforts across thebureaucracy remained weak. In August 2008, a UNreport alleged several Indian peacekeepers posted in theDemocratic Republic of the Congo had been involvedin paying minor Congolese girls for sex in 2007 and2008. In March 2009, the Indian military exonerated thesoldiers after conducting an investigation. According to aGovernment of India official, training for Indian soldiersdeployed in peacekeeping missions includes awarenessabout trafficking. In May 2008, the Ministry of Womenand Child Development created a think tank to expandpublic-private partnerships to play a greater role inpreventing and combating human trafficking.Following agreements reached prior to this reportingperiod with Middle Eastern labor destination countries,the Indian prime minister in November 2008 signeda major agreement with Oman to combat illegalrecruitment and human trafficking during his visit there.The agreement stipulates that terms and conditions ofemployment in Oman shall be defined by an individualemployment contract between the employee and theemployer and authenticated by Oman’s Ministry ofManpower.The Ministry of Labor and Employment issued a “Protocolon Prevention, Rescue, Repatriation, and Rehabilitationof Trafficked and Migrant Child Labor” in May 2008 toguide state and district-level authorities and NGOs, andexpanded the central government’s list of occupations thatare banned from employing children. The governmentundertook several measures to reduce demand forcommercial sex acts during the reporting period, suchas the arrests of 856 customers of prostitution in AndhraPradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, Goa, and West Bengal. Indiahas not ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.INDONESIA (Tier 2)Indonesia is a major source of women, children, andmen trafficked for the purposes of forced labor andcommercial sexual exploitation. To a far lesser extent,it is a destination and transit country for foreigntrafficking victims. The greatest threat of traffickingfacing Indonesian men and women is that posed byconditions of forced labor and debt bondage in moredeveloped Asian countries – particularly Malaysia,Singapore, and Japan – and the Middle East, particularlySaudi Arabia, according to IOM data. Indonesian womenand girls are also trafficked to Malaysia and Singaporefor forced prostitution and throughout Indonesia forboth forced prostitution and forced labor. Each ofIndonesia’s 33 provinces is a source and destination ofhuman trafficking; the most significant source areas are,in descending order: Java, West Kalimantan, Lampung,North Sumatra, South Sumatra, Banten, South Sulawesi,West Nusa Tenggara and East Nusa Tenggara, and NorthSulawesi. Trafficking of young girls, mainly from WestKalimantan, to Taiwan as false brides, persists; uponarrival, many are coerced into prostitution. A new trendidentified during the last year was the trafficking ofdozens of Indonesian women to Iraq’s Kurdistan regionfor domestic servitude. Another trend was the use ofabduction by traffickers, particularly in trafficking younggirls to Malaysia for forced prostitution. Women fromthe People’s Republic of China, Thailand, and EasternEurope are trafficked to Indonesia for commercial sexualexploitation, although the numbers are small comparedwith the number of Indonesians trafficked for thispurpose.158

A significant number of Indonesian men and women whomigrate overseas each year to work in the construction,agriculture, manufacturing, service (hotels, restaurants,and bars), and domestic service sectors are subjectedto conditions of forced labor or debt bondage. Thedestinations for such trafficking are, in descending order:Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Japan, Syria, Kuwait,Iraq, Taiwan, Thailand, Macau, Hong Kong, the UnitedArab Emirates, Qatar, Mauritius, Yemen, Palestine,Egypt, France, Belgium, Germany, Cyprus, Spain, theNetherlands, and the United States.Some labor recruitment companies, known as PJTKIs,operated similarly to trafficking rings, luring both maleand female workers into debt bondage, involuntaryservitude, and other trafficking situations. Some workers,often women intending to migrate, became victims oftrafficking during their attempt to find work abroadthrough licensed and unlicensed PJTKIs. These laborrecruiters charge workers commission fees up to $3,000,which often require workers to incur debt to work abroad,leaving some of them vulnerable in some instancesto situations of debt bondage. PJTKIs also reportedlywithheld the documents of some workers, and confinedthem in holding centers, sometimes for periods of manymonths. Some PJTKIs also used threats of violence tomaintain control over prospective migrant workers.Recruitment agencies routinely falsified birth dates,including for children, in order to apply for passports andmigrant worker documents.Internal trafficking remains a significant problemin Indonesia with women and children exploited indomestic servitude, commercial sexual exploitation,and small factories. Traffickers, sometimes with thecooperation of school officials, began to recruit youngmen and women in vocational programs for forced laborin hotels in Malaysia through fraudulent “internship”opportunities. Indonesians are recruited with offers ofjobs in restaurants, factories, or as domestic workers andthen forced into the sex trade. A new trend noted this yearwas the recruitment of hundreds of girls and women forwork as waitresses in extractive industry sites in Papuawho were subsequently forced into prostitution. Duringthe year, minor girls were rescued in illegal logging campsin West Kalimantan, where they were coerced into sexualservitude.Malaysians and Singaporeans constitute the largestnumber of child sex tourists in Indonesia, and the RiauIslands and surrounding areas operate a “prostitutioneconomy,” according to local officials. Child sex tourismis rampant in most urban areas and tourist destinations.The Government of Indonesia does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Thegovernment improved its law enforcement response totrafficking offenses and demonstrated that a significantnumber of its trafficking prosecutions and convictionsinvolved labor trafficking offenses, the first time suchdisaggregation in data has been reported. Moreover, itsustained strong efforts to assist victims of traffickingthrough the funding of basic services and referral ofvictims to those services and others provided by NGOsand international organizations. The government showedinsufficient progress, however, in efforts to confront labortrafficking committed through exploitative recruitmentpractices of politically powerful PJTKIs. Also, there werefew reported efforts to prosecute, convict, or punishIndonesian law enforcement and military officialscomplicit in human trafficking, despite reporting on suchtrafficking-related corruption.Recommendations for Indonesia: Begin using the 2007law to address the country’s largest trafficking problem– labor trafficking, including debt bondage; significantlyimprove record of prosecutions, convictions, andsentences for labor trafficking—including against laborrecruitment agencies involved in trafficking; re-examineexisting MOUs with destination countries to incorporatevictim protection; increase efforts to prosecute andconvict public officials who profit from or are involved intrafficking; increase efforts to combat internal trafficking;enforce existing laws to better protect domestic workers;and increase funding for law enforcement efforts and forrescue, recovery and reintegration of victims.ProsecutionThe Indonesian government showed overall progress inanti-trafficking law enforcement efforts over the reportingperiod. Through a comprehensive anti-traffickinglaw enacted in 2007, Indonesia prohibits all forms oftrafficking in persons, prescribing penalties of three to15 years’ imprisonment. These penalties are sufficientlystringent and commensurate with those prescribed forother grave crimes, such as rape. Police and prosecutorsbegan using the new anti-trafficking law during thereporting period; however, other laws were still usedin cases pending widespread implementation of thenew law. The Indonesian government prosecuted 129suspected trafficking offenders in 2008, an increase from109 prosecuted in 2007. Similarly, convictions in 2008increased to 55 from 46 convictions in 2007. Fifty-eightof the prosecutions and 9 of the convictions in 2008were for labor trafficking offenses. The average sentencegiven to convicted trafficking offenders was 43 months,similar to the average sentence of 45 months in 2007.Indonesian officials and local NGOs often criticizedthe police as too passive in combating trafficking absentINDONESIA159

INDONESIAspecific complaints. Nevertheless, the 21-man Jakartabasednational police anti-trafficking task force workedwith local police, the Ministry of Manpower, the MigrantWorkers Protection Agency, Immigration, Ministry ofForeign Affairs, and NGOs to shut down several largetrafficking organizations. After receiving training froman international donor, the Jakarta police set up ananti-trafficking unit and conducted a series of significantinvestigations and arrests. The ongoing two-part“Operation Flower,” which continued through 2008 in11 provinces, targeted women and children trafficked forcommercial sexual exploitation. Exploitation by PJTKIsremained a serious problem although several major jointpolice and Ministry of Manpower (MOM) raids resultedin a number of such operations shutting down. Policeassigned liaison officers to Indonesian embassies inSaudi Arabia, Malaysia, Australia, the Philippines, andThailand to support law enforcement cooperation withhost governments, including trafficking investigations.Indonesia’s national police cooperated with U.S. lawenforcement authorities in the investigation of suspectedtrafficking of Indonesians to the United States for thepurpose of forced labor and debt bondage.Progress was noted in the government’s dismissing,disciplining or prosecuting officials complicit intrafficking. Some immigration officials, labor officers,and local government officials were arrested for activitieswhich abetted trafficking. Complicity in traffickingby members of the security forces remained a seriousconcern during the reporting period, and this often tookthe form of officials either engaged directly in traffickingor facilitating it through the provision of protectionto brothels and prostitution fronts in discos, karaokebars, and hotels, or by receiving bribes to ignore theproblem. In addition, some local officials facilitatedtrafficking by certifying false information to producenational identity cards and family data cards for childrento allow them to be recruited for work as adults abroadand within the country. Some MOM officials reportedlylicensed and protected international labor recruitingagencies involved in human trafficking. In return forbribes, some immigration officials turned a blind eye topotential trafficking victims, failing to prevent out-boundtrafficking through due diligence in the processing ofpassports and the application of immigration controls.Some immigration officials also directly facilitatedtrafficking by accepting bribes from PJTKIs to passmigrant workers to their agents at Jakarta InternationalAirport. Members of the police and military were directlyinvolved in the operation of brothels and fronts forprostitution, including establishments that exploitedchild sex trafficking victims. Despite the persistence ofthese reports attesting to a serious problem of officialcomplicity in trafficking, the Indonesian governmentdid not initiate new prosecutions of security or othergovernment personnel for involvement in or facilitationof trafficking during the reporting period, though inJune 2008 a former national chief of police and anIndonesian diplomat were sentenced to two and fouryears’ imprisonment, respectively, for their facilitation oftrafficking-related criminal activity.ProtectionIndonesia demonstrated strong efforts to protect victimsof trafficking in Indonesia and abroad; however, availablevictim services remain overwhelmed by the large numberof victims. The government operated 41 “integratedservice centers” providing services to victims of violence,including trafficking victims; four of these centers werefull medical recovery centers specifically for traffickingvictims. The government also relied significantly oninternational organizations and NGOs for the provisionof services to victims. Although most security personneldid not employ formal procedures for the identificationand referral of victims among vulnerable groups, suchas females in prostitution, children migrating withinthe country, and workers returning from abroad, somevictims were referred on an ad hoc basis to serviceproviders. Throughout 2008, the government set up305 district-level women’s help desks to assist womenand child victims of violence, including trafficking – anincrease from 25 such desks existing in 2006. Authoritiesat the Tanjung Priok seaport in Jakarta screened travelersin order to identify victims of trafficking and refer themto appropriate shelters and medical care facilities. TheIndonesian government provided some funding todomestic NGOs and civil society groups that supportedservices for trafficking victims. Although the governmentpracticed a policy of not detaining or imprisoningtrafficking victims, some victims reportedly were treatedas criminals and penalized for prostitution activities.Some government personnel, such as the Jakarta-basedpolice anti-trafficking unit, encouraged victims to assistin the investigation and prosecution of trafficking cases;others were less solicitous of victims’ cooperation. Insome cases, police reportedly refused to receive traffickingcomplaints from victims.In mid-2008, the National Agency for the Placement andProtection of Overseas Workers (BNP) opened a newterminal at Jakarta’s international airport – Terminal4 – dedicated to receiving returning Indonesian workers.BNP and MOM officials at this terminal, which replacedthe older Terminal 3, screened returning migrants toidentify those in distress, though inadequate efforts weremade to identify victims of trafficking. Indigent victimsreturning through Terminal 4 were sometimes forcedto spend several days in the terminal until they couldfind adequate funds for their transportation back totheir community. While the Legal Aid Society, an NGO,succeeded in curtailing the practice of labor brokerspicking up trafficking victims at Terminal 4 and forcingthem back into debt bondage, traffickers adjusted bypicking up victims at the regular passenger terminal towhich victims had been diverted by corrupt immigrationofficials. Both BNP and MOM were largely ineffective inprotecting migrant workers from trafficking. Indonesia’s160

Foreign Ministry continued to operate shelters fortrafficking victims and migrant workers at some of itsembassies and consulates abroad. During the past year,these diplomatic establishments sheltered thousands ofIndonesian citizens, including trafficking victims. TheForeign Ministry sustained proactive efforts in protectingthe rights of trafficked migrant workers abroad.PreventionThe Indonesian government made significant effortsto prevent trafficking in persons during the reportingperiod. The government continued some collaborationwith NGOs and international organization efforts toraise awareness of trafficking. The Ministry of Women’sEmpowerment (MOWE), as the government’s focal pointand coordinator for the National Anti-Trafficking TaskForce, drafted a new 2009-2013 national plan of actionon human trafficking. Several provinces and districtsestablished local plans of action and anti-traffickingcommittees. The MOWE conducted anti-traffickingoutreach education in 33 provinces in 2008. The nationalgovernment showed little political will to renegotiatea 2006 MOU with Malaysia which ceded the rights ofIndonesian domestic workers to hold their passportswhile working in Malaysia. The government made noreported efforts to reduce the demand for forced labor orthe demand for commercial sex acts during the last year.Indonesian police cooperated with Australian and Swissauthorities to arrest and deport two pedophiles sexuallyabusing children, and an Indonesian court sentenced oneAustralian child sex tourist to eight years’ imprisonmentin February 2009. The government provided antitraffickingtraining to Indonesian troops prior to theirdeployment abroad on international peacekeepingmissions. Indonesia has not ratified the 2000 UN TIPProtocol.involuntary servitude or debt bondage, includingrestriction of movement, non-payment of wages, andphysical or sexual abuse. There are reports that womenfrom Azerbaijan and Tajikistan travel to Iran to findemployment and fall victim to forced prostitution.Press reports indicate that criminal organizations playa significant role in human trafficking to and from Iran,particularly across the borders with Afghanistan andPakistan in connection with smuggling of migrants,drugs, and arms among large flows of people. Thereare nearly one million Afghans living in Iran, someas refugees and others as economic migrants, who arevulnerable to conditions of human trafficking.The Government of Iran does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking,and is not making significant efforts to do so. Lack ofaccess to Iran by U.S. Government officials impedesthe collection of information on the country’s humantrafficking problem and the government’s efforts to curbit. The government did not share information on itsanti-trafficking efforts with the international communityduring the reporting period. For example, Iran was notamong the 155 countries covered by the UN’s GlobalReport on Trafficking in Persons, published in February2009. Publicly available information from NGOs, thepress, international organizations, and other governmentsnonetheless support two fundamental conclusions.First, trafficking within, to, and from Iran is extensive;and second, the authorities’ response is not sufficientto penalize offenders, protect victims, and eliminatetrafficking. Indeed, some aspects of Iranian law andpolicy hinder efforts to combat trafficking. These includepunishment of victims and legal obstacles to punishingoffenders.IRANIRAN (Tier 3)Iran is a source, transit, and destination for men,women, and children trafficked for the purposes ofsexual exploitation and involuntary servitude. Iranianwomen are trafficked internally for the purpose offorced prostitution and forced marriage. Iranian andAfghan children living in Iran are trafficked internallyfor the purpose of forced marriage, commercial sexualexploitation, and involuntary servitude as beggars orlaborers to pay debts, provide income, or support drugaddiction of their families. Iranian women and girls arealso trafficked to Pakistan, Turkey, Qatar, Kuwait, theUnited Arab Emirates, Iraq, France, Germany, and theUnited Kingdom for commercial sexual exploitation.There are reports of women and girls being sold formarriage to men in Pakistan for the purpose of sexualservitude. Men and women from Pakistan migratevoluntarily or are smuggled to Iran, or through Iran,to other Gulf states, Greece, and Turkey seekingemployment. Some find themselves in situations ofRecommendations for Iran: Share with the internationalcommunity efforts made to investigate trafficking offensesand prosecute and punish trafficking offenders; institute avictim identification procedure to systematically identifyand protect victims of trafficking, particularly amonggroups such as women arrested for prostitution; and ceasethe punishment of victims of trafficking.ProsecutionNo reliable information was available on humantrafficking investigations, prosecutions, convictions orpunishments during the past year. Iranian press reportsover the year quoted a law enforcement official as stating161

IRAQthat 7,172 people were arrested for “trafficking” fromJanuary to July 2008, although it was not clear whetherthis group included human smugglers, those sponsoringprostitution, victims of trafficking, or a mix of these. A2004 law prohibits trafficking in persons by means ofthe threat or use of force, coercion, abuse of power orof a position of vulnerability of the victim for purposesof prostitution, removal of organs, slavery or forcedmarriage. Reports indicate, however, that the law has notbeen enforced. The Constitution or Labor Code or bothprohibit forced labor and debt bondage; the prescribedpenalty of a fine and up to one year’s imprisonment is notsufficient to deter these crimes and is not commensuratewith prescribed penalties for grave crimes, such as rape.In addition, the Labor Code does not apply to workin households. The law permits temporary marriagefor a fixed term (“sigheh”), after which the marriageis terminated. Some persons abuse this institution inorder to coerce women into sexual exploitation; there arereports of Iranian women sold into fixed term marriagesto men from Pakistan and Gulf states or into forcedprostitution. It was extremely difficult for women forcedinto sexual exploitation to obtain justice: first, becausethe testimony of two women is equal to that of one man,and second, because women who are victims of sexualabuse are vulnerable to being executed for adultery,defined as sexual relations outside of marriage.ProtectionThere were no reported efforts by the Government ofIran to improve its protection of trafficking victimsthis year. The government reportedly punishes victimsfor unlawful acts committed as a direct result of beingtrafficked, for example, adultery and prostitution. Therewere reports that the government arrested, prosecuted,and punished several trafficking victims on charges ofprostitution or adultery. It is unknown how many victimsmay have been subjected to punishment during thereporting period for such acts committed as a result ofbeing trafficked. Foreign victims of trafficking do not havea legal alternative to removal to countries in which theymay face hardship or retribution. According to a March2009 report citing UNICEF and provincial authorities inHerat, Afghanistan, more than 1,000 Afghan childrendeported from Iran in 2008 faced poverty and were atrisk of abuses, including human trafficking; there wereno known efforts to identify trafficking victims amongthis group. Previous reports indicate that the governmentdoes not encourage victims to assist law enforcementauthorities as they investigate and prosecute theirtrafficking cases.PreventionThere were no reports of efforts by the Government ofIran to prevent trafficking during the past year, such ascampaigns to raise public awareness of trafficking, toreduce demand for commercial sex acts, or to reducedemand for child sex tourism by Iranians travelingabroad. In March 2008, the Iranian governmentreportedly hosted and co-sponsored with an NGO,a workshop with regional participation on irregularmigration, which included discussion of strategies toprevent human trafficking, protect victims, and prosecutetraffickers. Iran has not ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.IRAQ (Tier 2 Watch List)Iraq is both a source and destination country for men,women, and children trafficked for the purposesof commercial sexual exploitation and involuntaryservitude. Iraqi women and girls, some as young as 11years old, are trafficked within the country and abroadto Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Kuwait, UAE, Turkey, Iran,and possibly Yemen, for forced prostitution and sexualexploitation within households in these countries. Somevictims are sexually exploited in Iraq before being sold totraffickers who take them abroad. In some cases, womenare lured into sexual exploitation through false promisesof work. The more prevalent means of becoming a victimis through sale or forced marriage. Family members havetrafficked girls and women to escape desperate economiccircumstances, to pay debts, or resolve disputes betweenfamilies. Some women and girls are trafficked withinIraq for the purpose of sexual exploitation through thetraditional institution of temporary marriages (muta’a).Under this arrangement, the family receives a dowryfrom the husband and the marriage is terminated aftera specified period. When trafficked by persons otherthan family members, women can be placed at risk ofhonor killings if their families learn that they have beenraped or forced into prostitution. Anecdotal reports tellof desperate Iraqi families abandoning their children atthe Syrian border with the expectation that traffickerson the Syrian side will pick them up and arrange forgeddocuments so the young women and girls can stay inSyria in exchange for working in a nightclub or brothel.Iraqi boys, mostly from poor families of Turkmenand Kurdish origin, are trafficked within Iraq for thepurpose of forced labor, such as street begging andsexual exploitation. Iraqi men and boys who migrateabroad for economic reasons may become victims oftrafficking. Women from Ethiopia, Indonesia, Nepal,and the Philippines are trafficked into the area underthe jurisdiction of the Kurdistan Regional Government(KRG) for involuntary domestic servitude after beingpromised different jobs. Over the past year, there was acredible report of women trafficked by the director of awomen’s shelter in KRG area; the shelter was subsequentlyclosed. There were also reports that some foreign womenrecruited for work in beauty salons in the KRG areahad debts imposed on them and were coerced intoprostitution. During 2008, dozens of Indonesian womentrafficked to Iraq were trapped without assistance fromlaw enforcement authorities. IOM helped to rescue andrepatriate several of these women.Iraq is a destination for men trafficked from Bangladesh,India, Pakistan, Indonesia, Nepal, the Philippines,162

Sri Lanka, and Thailand for involuntary servitude asconstruction workers, security guards, cleaners, andhandymen. There are reports that some workers wererecruited by a labor broker to work for contractors or subcontractorsof U.S. Government agencies, but the servicesof this broker were discontinued subsequent to a U.S.Government investigation. The governments of India,Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and the Philippines bantheir nationals from working in Iraq. These bans are noteffective, however, as some laborers circumvent the lawor are deceived by labor brokers in their home countriesinto believing they were getting jobs in one of the Gulfstates or Jordan. They then find themselves in Iraq; theirpassports are confiscated and wages withheld to repaythe broker for recruitment, transport, and costs of living.Others are aware they are coming to Iraq, but once incountryfind that the terms of employment are not whatthey expected and they face coercion and serious harm,financial or otherwise, if they attempt to leave.Men brought to Iraq by labor recruiters, some ofwhom reportedly provided labor for U.S. Governmentcontractors, at times found upon arrival that the jobsthey expected were contingent on contracts that had notyet been awarded. While in camps awaiting work, theywere sometimes charged exorbitant prices for lodgingand supplies, which increased their debts and prolongedthe time required to pay them, typically ranging fromsix months to one year. Some of these conditions mayconstitute human trafficking.Traffickers are predominantly male, but sometimesfemale family members traffic their own children orrelatives. Traffickers include both large crime groupsand small, family-based groups, as well as businessessuch as employment agencies. Several factors contributeto human trafficking in, into, and out of Iraq. Since theousting of the former regime in 2003, reconstructionactivity and provision of goods and services contractedby the government and the Multi-National Forceshave drawn foreign workers (some 30,000 to 50,000).Instability and violence have created as many as fourmillion Iraqi refugees in neighboring countries orinternally displaced, many of them in economicallydesperate circumstances. Finally, foreign workersare drawn to the KRG by relative stability, economicopportunity, and higher salaries compared to those athome.The Government of Iraq does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Inparticular, despite the serious security challengesfacing the government, it is committed to enactingcomprehensive anti-human trafficking legislation,which it began to draft during the past year. Despitethese overall significant efforts, the government didnot show progress over the last year in punishingtrafficking offenses using existing laws or identifying andprotecting victims of trafficking. During the reportingperiod, the government’s attention was devoted toother priorities, TIMOR-LESTE specifically, TIER RANKING political BY YEARreconciliation,restoration of security throughout the country, andeconomic reconstruction. The Iraqi government did nottake adequate action to monitor or combat trafficking inpersons. Notwithstanding the inattention to trafficking inthe past year, some Iraqi officials have begun to recognizethe problem, and the Legal Advisor’s Office of the Councilof Ministers Secretariat has begun to draft comprehensiveanti-trafficking legislation.Recommendations TRINIDAD & TOBAGO for Iraq: TIER RANKING Enact and BY YEAR implement a lawthat criminalizes all forms of trafficking; investigate,prosecute, and punish trafficking offenders; provideprotection services to victims, ensure that they are notpunished for acts committed as a direct result of beingtrafficked, and encourage their assistance in prosecutingoffenders; train officials in methods to identify victims;undertake a campaign to raise public awareness oftrafficking; take measures to screen migrant workers toidentify human trafficking; take steps to end the practiceCAMBODIA TIER RANKING BY YEARof forced marriages and curb the use of temporarymarriages that force girls into sexual and domesticservitude; consider measures to reduce abuse of migrantworkers who learn upon arrival in Iraq that the job theywere promised does not exist; and regulate recruitmentpractices, including recruitment fees, of foreign laborbrokers to prevent practices that facilitate forced labor.IRAQ TIER RANKING BY YEARProsecutionLESOTHO TIER RANKING BY YEARThe government did not prosecute trafficking casesin the past year. There were no mechanisms to collectdata on offenses or enforcement. Although no singlelaw defines trafficking in persons or establishes it as acriminal offense, various provisions of Iraqi law applyto trafficking. The 2005 Iraqi Constitution prohibitsforced labor, slavery, slave trade, trafficking in women orchildren, and sex trade. Several provisions of the PenalCode, dating from 1969, criminalize unlawful seizure,kidnapping, and detention by force or deception. Theprescribed penalty is up to seven years in prison andup to 15 years if the victim is a minor and force is used.The penalty for sexual assault or forced prostitution ofa child is 10 years’ imprisonment, which is sufficientlystringent to deter, though not commensurate with thepenalties prescribed for rape (15 years in prison). Becausecoercion is not a legal defense, however, women who havebeen trafficked into prostitution have been prosecutedand convicted. When women or girls are trafficked byfamily members into sexual exploitation, the crimeIRAQ163

IRELANDoften goes unreported because of the shame involved,or uninvestigated because of the courts’ reluctance tointervene in what are considered internal family matters.There is anecdotal evidence of occasional complicityin trafficking by officials. An investigation of allegedtrafficking involving the director of a women’s shelter inthe KRG area had not been completed at the time of thisreport.ProtectionThe Iraqi government did not provide protection tovictims of trafficking during the reporting period. Thegovernment did not operate shelters for traffickingvictims, nor offer legal, medical, or psychologicalservices. An NGO operated a shelter in Baghdad forwomen and girls who were victims of violence, althoughit is not known whether any of the people assistedwere trafficking victims. Six shelters for abused womenand girls in the KRG areas received some support fromthe regional government. A few NGOs provided legalassistance, counseling, and rehabilitation assistance totrafficking victims. Iraq did not have formal procedures toidentify victims of trafficking among vulnerable groups,such as women arrested for prostitution or the foreignworkers imported to Iraq by labor brokers, some ofwhom reportedly provided workers for U.S. Governmentcontractors and sub-contractors. About half of the1,000 men from Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan,the Philippines, and Sri Lanka found in December 2008living for months in squalid conditions in camps nearBaghdad International Airport were repatriated withIOM assistance; most of the rest found jobs in Iraq.The government was not involved in investigating theabuses or repatriating the men. Victims of traffickingreportedly were prosecuted for prostitution. Therewere documented cases of female victims being kept in“protective custody” in detention centers to deter violenceagainst them by their families and traffickers. Abusedchildren were typically placed in women’s or juvenileprisons. Since trafficking is not established as a crimein Iraq, the government did not encourage victims toassist in investigations or prosecutions. Foreign victimshad no legal protection against removal to countries inwhich they may face hardship or retribution. There wasno victims’ restitution program. The draft law wouldestablish a framework for assisting victims of trafficking.It specifies the ways the government is obligated toassist victims, including by providing medical care andlegal counseling. The law also stipulates that victimsmust be provided with shelter appropriate to their sexand age group, physical and mental rehabilitation, andeducational and job training opportunities. As for foreigntrafficking victims, the law requires that the authoritiesprovide them with language and legal assistance andfacilitate their repatriation.PreventionThe Government of Iraq did not take measures toprevent trafficking in persons this reporting period,although some government officials have acknowledgedthat human trafficking is a problem. In March 2009,a few Iraqi officials attended training offered by anNGO in drafting effective anti-trafficking legislation.Local governments have held the view that traffickingis not a problem within their jurisdictions. A KRGparliamentarian told the press in August that there was notrafficking of women in the KRG area. The KRG Ministerfor Social Welfare did, however, call a high-level internalKRG meeting to look at the problem. The governmentdoes not sponsor any anti-trafficking campaigns.Although the Ministry of Human Rights and the Ministryof State for Women’s Affairs have in the past expressedinterest in running such a campaign, both lack fundsand staffing. The Minister of State for Women’s Affairs inFebruary 2009 resigned over this lack of basic support;the ministry is now being led by an acting minister. Thegovernment did not provide any specialized training forgovernment officials to identify trafficking victims. Lawenforcement officials did not screen people leaving orentering Iraq for evidence of trafficking. The borders ofIraq remained generally unsecured, with limited presenceby understaffed law enforcement officials outside ofdesignated border crossings. The large numbers ofinternally displaced persons and refugees moving withinIraq and across its borders compounded the difficulty ofidentifying trafficking victims.IRELAND (Tier 2)Ireland is a destination and, to a lesser extent, transitcountry for women, men, and children trafficked for thepurposes of commercial sexual exploitation and forcedlabor. Women from Eastern Europe, Nigeria, other partsof Africa and, to a lesser extent, South America and Asiareportedly have been trafficked to Ireland for forcedprostitution. Labor trafficking victims reportedly consistof men and women from Bangladesh, Pakistan, Egypt,and the Philippines, although there may be some victimsfrom South America, Eastern Europe, and other parts ofAsia and Africa. One Irish NGO reported that forced laborvictims are found in domestic labor and restaurant andagricultural work. Unaccompanied minors from varioussource countries, particularly China, are vulnerable totrafficking. Over the last eight years, 388 unaccompaniedimmigrant children have disappeared from state care.While Irish authorities believe the majority of thesechildren have been reunited with family members, thegovernment reported that a small number of the missingchildren have been found in involuntary servitude inbrothels, restaurants, and in domestic service.The Government of Ireland does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts todo so. The government enacted legislation criminalizinghuman trafficking during the reporting period, increasedtrafficking awareness efforts, and investigated nearly 100cases of potential trafficking. Although Ireland madesignificant strides, there was no evidence that traffickingoffenders were prosecuted or convicted during the164

eporting period, and concerns remained about victimidentification and protection.Recommendations for Ireland: Vigorously prosecutetrafficking offenses and convict and sentence traffickingoffenders; continue to implement procedures to guideofficials in proactive identification of possible sex andlabor trafficking victims among vulnerable groups, suchas unaccompanied foreign minors; continue to take stepsthat will ensure trafficking victims are not penalizedfor unlawful acts committed as a direct result of beingtrafficked; and continue prevention measures targeted atreducing the vulnerability of the unaccompanied foreignminor population to trafficking.ProsecutionThe Government of Ireland made significant progressin improving its anti-trafficking legislative tools and intraining personnel to combat human trafficking, but therewere no documented prosecutions of trafficking offendersduring the reporting period. The Government of Irelandprohibits all forms of trafficking through the CriminalLaw (Human Trafficking) Act, enacted in 2008. Penaltiesrange from no prescribed minimum to life imprisonment,which are sufficiently stringent and commensuratewith punishments prescribed for rape. In 2008, thegovernment initiated 96 investigations into allegedhuman trafficking offenses. The government reported noprosecutions or convictions under its human traffickingstatute in 2008. One defendant was convicted andsentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment in 2007 for sexualviolence offenses against two victims, one of whommight have been in domestic servitude. The governmentreported that it cooperated with other countries oninternational anti-trafficking investigations and arrestedthree people wanted in other European countries ontrafficking charges. In conjunction with IOM, thegovernment trained more than 770 police officers and 130other government officials, including airport authorities,on anti-trafficking law enforcement techniques.ProtectionIreland provided limited protection and assistanceto trafficking victims during 2008. The governmentdisbursed funds for one NGO that works with sextrafficking victims, and to which the government referredsuspected trafficking victims. Suspected victims oftrafficking may also receive housing and services underthe state program for asylum seekers. In December, theanti-trafficking working group formalized proceduresfor the referral of victims to NGOs, which will becodified in the National Action Plan. Irish officials alsoreferred trafficking victims to NGOs providing food,shelter, health care, and legal assistance or to immigrantdetention centers. The government assessed childvictims’ needs individually and placed the majority ofchild victims in the care of the government’s HealthService Executive. As a result of the problem of missingunaccompanied minors, the government upgradedsecurity at some of the residential housing units inwhich they were placed and trained health departmentofficials working with these children in proactivetrafficking victim identification efforts. The governmentencouraged victims to participate in investigations andprosecutions of trafficking offenders through witnessprotection measures and a 60-day reflection period – bothnewly designed government incentives. The governmentprovided temporary legal alternatives to the removal offoreign victims during the reflection period, and longerterm residency arrangements are possible. One of thelead anti-trafficking NGOs in Ireland publicly expressedconcerns that the Irish government does not recognizeall signs of trafficking as it screens suspected traffickingvictims, though this concern was not unanimous amongNGOs. Out of 40 suspected human trafficking victimsreferred to police during the reporting period, two weregranted the 60-day reflection period by authorities. Ofthe remainder, all reside legally in Ireland. The police didnot report the existence of any other victims during thereporting period. There was evidence during the year thatpotential trafficking victims were penalized for unlawfulacts committed as a direct result of their being trafficked.One suspected victim spent several months in jail forfailing to provide proof of identification, though sheclaimed she had been forced into prostitution in Ireland.PreventionIreland made significant progress in prevention effortsduring the reporting period. In October, the governmentlaunched a broad awareness campaign using the “BlueBlindfold – Don’t Close Your Eyes to Human Trafficking”theme developed by the UK Human Trafficking Centre.Ireland held the lead role in the G6 anti-traffickingcampaign, which included newspaper advertisementson four separate dates, distribution of 1,250 informationpacks to various government and civic organizations,advertising on mass transit, Internet advertisements,business cards distributed to hairdressers, advertisementsin rugby programs, and a dedicated website. The Irishgovernment produced a short film and advertisementdesigned to educate potential clients of the sex tradeabout human trafficking and to draw attention tothe criminal liability these clients potentially face forexploiting trafficking victims. Ireland coordinated itsgovernment response to human trafficking through aspecially created unit in the Justice Department. Thedirector of the government’s anti-trafficking unit hasaddressed numerous conferences within Ireland andhas created pages on Internet social networking sites.The new law criminalizing human trafficking providesIRELAND165

ISRAELfor extraterritorial jurisdiction over Irish residents whoengage in child sex tourism abroad. Ireland’s Departmentof Defense provided anti-trafficking training to Irishtroops being deployed abroad as peacekeepers. Irelandhas not ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.ISRAEL (Tier 2)Israel is a destination country for men and womentrafficked for the purposes of forced labor and sexualexploitation. Low-skilled workers from China, Romania,Turkey, Thailand, the Philippines, Nepal, Sri Lanka, andIndia migrate voluntarily and legally to Israel for contractlabor in the construction, agriculture, and health careindustries. Some, however, subsequently face conditionsof forced labor, including the unlawful withholding ofpassports, restrictions on movement, non-payment ofwages, threats, and physical intimidation. Many laborrecruitment agencies in source countries and in Israelrequire workers to pay recruitment fees ranging from$1,000 to $10,000 – a practice that makes workers highlyvulnerable to trafficking or debt bondage once in Israel.Women from Russia, Ukraine, Moldova, Uzbekistan,Belarus, and China are trafficked to Israel for forcedprostitution, often by organized crime groups across theborder with Egypt. Israeli women are trafficked withinthe country for commercial sexual exploitation, and smallnumbers are reportedly trafficked to Ireland and theUnited Kingdom.offenses, including the unlawful practice of withholdingpassports as a means to keep a person in a form of laboror service; increase investigations, prosecutions, andpunishments of internal trafficking for commercial sexualexploitation; and extend comprehensive protectionservices to victims of forced labor.ProsecutionThe Government of Israel increased its efforts toinvestigate cases of forced labor during the reportingperiod, while its prosecution of sex trafficking offensesand conviction of sex trafficking offenders declined.Israel prohibits all forms of human trafficking through itsAnti-Trafficking Law of 2006, which prescribes penaltiesof: up to 16 years’ imprisonment for sex trafficking of anadult; up to 20 years’ imprisonment for sex traffickingof a child; up to 16 years’ imprisonment for slavery; andup to seven years’ imprisonment for forced labor. Thesepenalties are sufficiently stringent and commensuratewith those prescribed for other grave crimes. In 2008,the government investigated nine cases of alleged sextrafficking, filed six indictments, and obtained theconvictions of six individuals – 32 fewer than last year –with sentences ranging from four months’ to seven years’imprisonment and fines. In addition, 12 prosecutionsfor sex trafficking remained in process, and eight casesawaited appeals. In March 2009, the government indictedeight men on charges of trafficking Eastern Europeanwomen to Israel over a six-year period for the purposeof forced prostitution. During the year, the governmentopened 24 investigations into cases of forced labor and48 into the unlawful withholding of migrant workers’passports; it filed its first indictment for forced laborunder the trafficking law in November 2008. Police,however, did not initiate any investigations into thetrafficking of Israeli citizens within the country andgenerally did not recognize trafficked Israeli women assuch. In 2008, the government requested the assistanceof three foreign governments in conducting internationaltrafficking investigations.166The Government of Israel does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Israelcontinued law enforcement actions against sex traffickingand provided victims of sex trafficking with shelterand protection assistance. Although the governmentfiled its first indictment for forced labor under its antitraffickinglaw in 2008, it did not obtain the convictionof any employer or recruitment agent for labor traffickingoffenses. In addition, the government did not provide themajority of forced labor victims with adequate protectionservices, such as appropriate shelter or medical andpsychological services. Extending protection servicesto all victims of trafficking identified in Israel, andimproving identification of victims of labor traffickingand internal trafficking would enhance Israel’s antitraffickingresponse.Recommendations for Israel: Significantly increaseprosecutions, convictions, and sentences for forced laborProtectionThe government continued to improve its protection oftrafficking victims over the reporting period, thoughprotective services available to victims of forced labor andinternal trafficking remained limited. The governmentsupervised and funded a local NGO’s operation of ashelter for foreign victims of sex trafficking, allocating$1.25 million for operations, security, and medical carein 2008. During the year, the shelter assisted 44 women,12 of whom were referred by the police. Victims in thisshelter received medical treatment, psychiatric and socialservices, stipends, temporary residency, and work permits.Local observers, however, continued to report the shelter’sreluctance to accept trafficked women with children, andthat victims outside the shelter could not access medicalor psychological care unless they first paid for insurance.The government employed formal procedures to identifyvictims of sex trafficking and refer them to the shelter orother NGO facilities; these victims were not punished for

acts committed as a direct result of their being trafficked.The government made protective services available for thefirst time to Israeli victims of sex trafficking at the end ofthe reporting period. In December 2008, the Ministries ofHealth and Social Affairs launched a $2.5 million projectto assist Israeli females engaged in prostitution, includingtrafficking victims, resulting in the opening of emergencyapartments in Tel Aviv and Haifa, establishment of ahotline, and operation of a mobile clinic; while 70 womenbenefited from these services, none were identified astrafficking victims.Israel lacked a specific shelter for victims of labortrafficking, but government authorities referred sixfemale victims of forced labor to the aforementionedshelter during the reporting period. In 2008, theMinistry of Social Affairs solicited bids for the creationof three facilities for labor trafficking victims – a shelterfor women, a shelter for men, and three short-termapartments – and selected an NGO to operate them. InMay 2008, the Committee of Directors General approvedand disseminated procedures to identify labor traffickingvictims to relevant government entities and NGOs.NGOs reported, however, that the guidelines were notimplemented and the Detention Tribunal that reviewsimmigration violation cases continued to misclassifylabor trafficking cases on a regular basis, resulting in thedetention and deportation of many victims. In July 2008,the Ministry of Interior published procedures for grantingtemporary visas to victims of slavery and forced labor;the government issued temporary visa extensions for27 sex trafficking victims and 17 forced labor victims in2008. In February 2008, an inter-ministerial committeelaunched a new system for licensing nursing recruitmentagencies and employing foreign caregivers in Israel thatallows workers who legally entered the country to obtainalternate employment if they lose or choose to leavetheir first job; no licenses of abusive employers have beenrevoked since the new system came into place, thoughthere have been reports of abusive employers over the lastyear. In November 2008, the Knesset passed Legal AidLaw (Amendment 9) granting free legal aid to victims oftrafficking and slavery. In February 2009, the Minister ofJustice signed Penal Regulations 5769-2009, making itpossible to distribute property and funds confiscated fromtrafficking offenders to victims, NGOs, and governmentagencies to assist victim rehabilitation programs.PreventionThe Israeli government made efforts to prevent traffickingin persons during the reporting period. The NationalCoordinator for Anti-Trafficking Efforts provided lectureson trafficking to army units, city and municipalityworkers, students, and social workers. In addition, theAuthority for the Advancement of Women, the Ministryof Education, the State Attorney’s Office, and the Ministryof Justice’s Legal Aid Branch sponsored anti-traffickingseminars, conferences, and lectures throughout thecountry. The government distributed a labor rightsbrochure to foreign workers arriving at the Ben GurionAirport and a second brochure to foreign constructionworkers throughout the year. To reduce the demand forcommercial sex acts within Israel, the Knesset drafted, buthas not yet passed, a private bill in 2008 – The Prohibitionof the Use of Paid Sexual Services Law – calling for thecriminalization of clients of the sex industry; the billprescribes punishment of six months’ imprisonment or aneducation program for first-time offenders. The NationalCoordinator convened a series of meetings with NGOs,academics, and government officials to examine the bill;its passage has been delayed one year to allow for furtherstudy and intensive public education campaigns on thesubject.ITALY (Tier 1)Italy is a destination and transit country for women,children, and men trafficked internationally for thepurposes of commercial sexual exploitation and forcedlabor. Women and children are trafficked for forcedprostitution mainly from Nigeria, Romania, Bulgaria,Moldova, Albania, and Ukraine but also from Russia,South America, North and East Africa, the Middle East,China, and Uzbekistan. Chinese men and women aretrafficked to Italy for the purpose of forced labor. Romachildren continue to be trafficked for the purposes ofsexual exploitation and forced begging. Men are traffickedfor the purpose of forced labor, mostly in the agriculturalsector in southern Italy. According to one NGO, 90percent of foreign seasonal workers are unregisteredand two-thirds are in Italy illegally, rendering themvulnerable to trafficking. The top five source countries foragricultural workers, from which forced labor victims arelikely found, are Poland, Romania, Pakistan, Albania, andCote d’Ivoire. Traffickers continued to move victims morefrequently within Italy, often keeping victims in majorcities for only a few months at a time, in an attempt toevade police detection. NGOs and independent expertsreport that trafficking has shifted into more private,hidden sectors, causing the identification of traffickingvictims to become more difficult and complex.The Government of Italy fully complies with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.During the reporting period, the government continuedto vigorously investigate and convict trafficking offendersand continued to implement its progressive victimcenteredapproach for the rescue, reintegration, andrepatriation of trafficking victims in Italy.Recommendations for Italy: Increase outreachand identification efforts to women and childrenin prostitution to ensure that trafficking victimsare identified, provided care, and not penalized forcrimes committed as a direct result of being trafficked;proactively identify potential trafficking victims amongItaly’s illegal immigrants; continue to vigorouslyinvestigate and prosecute allegations of trafficking-relatedcomplicity; and expand public awareness campaignsaimed at reducing domestic demand for commercial sexacts.ITALY167

ITALYProsecutionThe Government of Italy continued to vigorouslyinvestigate, prosecute and convict trafficking offendersduring the reporting period. Italy prohibits all forms oftrafficking in persons through its 2003 Measures AgainstTrafficking in Persons law, which prescribes penaltiesof eight to 20 years’ imprisonment. These penalties aresufficiently stringent and commensurate with penaltiesprescribed for other grave offenses. The governmentuses other laws, which carry lesser penalties, in somecases to prosecute trafficking for the purpose of forcedlabor. Incomplete data for 2008 show the governmentinvestigated 2,221 individuals, arrested 316, prosecuted480 trafficking suspects and convicted 225 traffickingoffenders, compared to 163 convicted for the sametime frame in 2007. The average sentence was six years’imprisonment, an increase from four years in 2007.Complete data for 2007 show the government convicteda total of 282 trafficking offenders. For sentences ofmore than two years, defendants were not eligible toreceive suspended sentences. In 2008, the governmentconvicted 23 trafficking offenders from a 2006 caseinvolving the trafficking of 113 Polish tomato pickers inPuglia who were exploited in forced labor conditions;all 23 trafficking offenders were sentenced to four toten years’ imprisonment. According to an NGO basedin Genoa working with Nigerian victims of trafficking,some government officials have been imprisoned forfacilitating trafficking. In September 2007, an officer ofthe Italian consulate in Kyiv was arrested for facilitatingthe trafficking of young girls for forced prostitution inclubs and discos; the Italian government did not report onany subsequent investigation in Italy.who benefited from these projects or the number whoentered social protection programs. According to theMinistry of Interior, the government issued 664 residencypermits to victims who assisted in the investigationof their traffickers during the reporting period. Thegovernment ensured, through IOM, the responsiblereturn of 81 trafficking victims in 2008. These victimswere given $678 by the government for their repatriation,up to $2,168 for resettlement in their home countryand reintegration assistance for six months. Article 18stipulates for the identification and referral of traffickingvictims to NGOs to care and assistance; however, thegovernment did have stand-alone procedures for frontlineresponders to ensure this aspect of the law was beingimplemented among vulnerable populations in Italy,particularly within its legalized prostitution regime.The government provided training for police officerson victim identification and assistance and promotedtraining exchanges on best practices for experts andsocial workers every three months in 2008. Despite thegovernment’s efforts to identify victims of trafficking,NGOs claim that some were still deported prior to beingidentified and assisted, such as Nigerian sex traffickingvictims. Based on a 2006 independent commission reportthat the government’s victim identification measures forimmigrants arriving in boats from North Africa werenot fully effective, the government reportedly improvedits process for identifying trafficking victims and itnow allows international organizations and NGOs toinspect detention facilities and to interview migrants.Victims who file complaints against traffickers generallydid not face penalties for unlawful acts committed as adirect result of their being trafficked. According to theMinistry of Interior, approximately 400 children cameashore in Sicily in 2008 and were hosted by NGOs beforedisappearing; some may have been trafficked for laborexploitation in the agricultural sector.ProtectionThe Italian government sustained its victim-centeredefforts to protect trafficking victims during the reportingperiod. Article 18 of its anti-trafficking law allowsauthorities to grant residence permits and provideprotection and job training services to victims oftrafficking. Article 13 of the law provides for three to sixmonths’ assistance to victims. Adult trafficking victimswere granted a six-month residency permit, whichwas renewed if the victim found employment or hadenrolled in a training program. Children received anautomatic residence permit until they reached age 18.In 2008, the government allocated $9.41 million for 66victim assistance projects; however, the government didnot provide data on the number of trafficking victimsPreventionThe Government of Italy made adequate efforts to preventtrafficking in 2008. While it did not initiate any newawareness campaigns during the reporting period, NGOscontinued to distribute government-funded materialsthat included TV spots, Internet banners, and bumperstickers in various languages during the reporting period.The government did not report any progress made on aplanned 2007 public awareness campaign, called ProjectPentametro, with several other countries to reducedemand for commercial sex acts and raise awarenessabout human trafficking. In March and April 2008,the Ministry of Interior released a radio and televisionawareness campaign specifically aimed at educatingpotential clients of the sex trade about human traffickingand publicizing the national anti-trafficking hotline. Asa measure to reduce the demand for commercial sex acts,officials in several Italian municipalities began finingclients of prostitution after the issuance of a nationalgovernment decree in May 2008 authorizing mayorsto prohibit street prostitution. In September 2008, thegovernment launched a study on labor exploitation.168

The Italian Ministry of Defense regularly organizestraining sessions on human rights and trafficking forboth civilians and military personnel who serve ininternational peacekeeping missions abroad. The NGOECPAT estimated that 80,000 Italian men travel toKenya, Thailand, Brazil, Latin America, and the CzechRepublic for sex tourism every year. In November 2008,the government launched a program to fight child sextourism that included outreach to tour operators andtravel agencies. In May 2008, the government sentencedan Italian man to 14 years’ imprisonment for child sextourism offenses committed in Thailand and Cambodia.The government did not report that it followed up on aFebruary 2007 case involving the arrest of a Universityprofessor in Naples for committing child sex tourismoffenses while in Thailand.JAMAICA (Tier 2)Jamaica is a source, transit, and destination country forwomen and children trafficked for the purposes of sexualexploitation and forced labor. The majority of victimsare poor Jamaican women and girls, and increasinglyboys, who are trafficked from rural to urban and touristareas for commercial sexual exploitation. Victims aretypically recruited by persons close to them or newspaperadvertisements promoting work as spa attendants,masseuses, or dancers; after being recruited, victims arecoerced into prostitution. Jamaican children also maybe subjected to conditions of forced labor as domesticservants. Child sex tourism in resort areas has beenidentified as a problem. Reportedly women from theDominican Republic, Russia, and Eastern Europe whohave been trafficked into Jamaica’s sex trade have alsobeen forced to transport illegal drugs. Some Jamaicanwomen and girls have been trafficked to Canada, theUnited States, the Bahamas, and other Caribbeandestinations for commercial sexual exploitation.The Government of Jamaica does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Duringthe reporting period, the government of Jamaica madestrong progress in the prosecution of trafficking offendersand continued solid efforts to prevent human trafficking,although its services to trafficking victims remainedlargely inadequate.Recommendations for Jamaica: Expand efforts toinvestigate, convict, and punish traffickers for theircrimes; extend training on human trafficking issuesamong law enforcement agencies; increase funding forshelter services and other assistance to victims; andcontinue awareness campaigns aimed at vulnerablepopulations, especially young people.ProsecutionThe Government of Jamaica took significant steps toapprehend, investigate, prosecute, and convict traffickingoffenders during the last year. The government prohibitsall forms of trafficking through its comprehensiveTrafficking Act of Jamaica, which went into effect in2007. The Act, which prescribes sufficiently stringentpenalties of up to 10 years’ imprisonment, applies tothose who committed, facilitated, or knowingly benefitedfrom the offense. If a corporate body is involved, everydirector, manager, secretary, or other similar officer maybe liable. During the year, the government reportedits first convictions for conspiracy to traffic in persons.In November 2008, two men convicted of traffickingoffenses committed before enactment of the new law wereeach sentenced to 12 months in prison in accordance withthe trafficking statutes of the Child Protection Act. Thealleged traffickers in the four trials currently underway,however, were all charged under the 2007 anti-traffickinglaw. The National Anti-Trafficking Task Force allows forcoordination among various NGOs and governmentagencies – internal, international, and multilateral – ontrafficking-related matters as per the national action plan.The police anti-trafficking unit works closely with liaisonofficers at the Department of Public Prosecution, wherespecially-trained officials provide guidance on whichcases should be prosecuted under trafficking laws. Policeand judicial officials received anti-trafficking trainingfrom IOM and other organizations. No reports of officialcomplicity with human trafficking were received in 2008.ProtectionDuring the reporting period, the government madelimited progress in its efforts to ensure victims’ accessto medical, psychological, legal, and victim protectionservices through a formal referral process. Existinglaw provides for the government to assist victims with:understanding the laws of Jamaica and their rights;obtaining any relevant documents and information toassist with legal proceedings; replacing travel documents;any necessary language interpretation and translation;meeting expenses related to criminal proceedings againsttheir traffickers; and provision of shelters and assistanceto cover expenses. A lack of financial resources seriouslyconstrains the government’s ability to provide theseservices. With the funding that is available, however,the government has begun construction of a shelterfor women and children trafficking victims scheduledto open in 2009. As specialized shelters for traffickingvictims remain largely unavailable, law enforcement andsocial service agencies refer victims to safe houses forabuse victims that are run by NGOs. Law enforcement,immigration, and social services personnel useestablished formal mechanisms to proactively identifyJAMAICA169

JAPANvictims of trafficking among high-risk populationsthey are likely to encounter, and to refer these victimsto NGOs for short- or long-term care. Pursuant to itsanti-trafficking statute, Jamaican authorities encouragevictims to assist in the investigation and prosecution oftheir traffickers. Victims may also independently file civilsuits or take other legal action against their traffickers.One victim assisted in the investigation and prosecutionof traffickers during the reporting period. Victims are notpenalized for immigration violations or other unlawfulacts committed as a direct result of being trafficked. TheJamaican government allows foreign trafficking victimsparticipating in a law enforcement investigation orprosecution to stay in Jamaica until their cases have beencompleted and their safe return to their home countries iscertain.PreventionThe government made steady efforts to further raise thepublic’s awareness of trafficking during the reportingperiod. The government conducted anti-traffickingeducation campaigns in schools and rural communities.Local NGOs used videos and live theatrical performancesto highlight the dangers of trafficking, and also includedanti-trafficking components in outreach to vulnerablepopulations, especially in popular tourist destinations.The campaigns targeted potential trafficking victims.Having previously eliminated their use in nightclubs, thegovernment further tightened issuance of “exotic dancer”permits for Jamaican hotel establishments by increasingthe permit fee significantly beyond the financial reachof the hotels. This may be effective in preventing sextrafficking. Increased government collaboration withJamaica’s hotel and tourism industry would assist effortsto prevent child and adult sex tourism in resort areas;despite reported sexual exploitation of Jamaican childrenby foreign tourists, no investigations or prosecutions ofsuch suspected criminal activity committed by foreigntourists were reported by the government.JAPAN (Tier 2)Japan is one of several destinations and transit countriesto which men, women, and children are trafficked forthe purposes of forced labor and commercial sexualexploitation. Women and children from East Asia,Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe, Russia, South America,and Latin America are trafficked to Japan for commercialsexual exploitation, and male and female migrant workersfrom China, Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, andother Asian countries are sometimes subject to conditionsof forced labor. Most officially identified traffickingvictims are foreign women who migrate willingly toJapan seeking work, but are later subjected to debts of upto $50,000 that make them vulnerable to trafficking forsexual exploitation or labor exploitation. A significantnumber of Japanese women and girls have also beenreported as sex trafficking victims. During the last year, anumber of Paraguayan children were trafficked to Japanfor the purpose of forced labor. Traffickers occasionallyuse debts to coerce migrants into prostitution in Japan’slarge sex trade. Many foreign and Japanese womeninitially enter the sex industry voluntarily, only to findthemselves victims of involuntary servitude. In additionto severe economic coercion, trafficked women aresometimes subjected to coercive or violent physical andpsychological methods to prevent them from seekingassistance or escaping. Most independent observers andorganized crime experts believe that organized crimesyndicates (the Yakuza) continue to play a significant rolein trafficking, both directly and indirectly. Traffickersare increasingly targeting Japanese women and girls forcoerced exploitation in pornography and the sex industry.Female victims, both foreign and Japanese, are oftenreluctant to seek help from authorities due to shame orfear of reprisals by their traffickers. Japan is also a transitcountry for persons trafficked from East Asia to NorthAmerica. Japanese men continue to be a significant sourceof demand for child sex tourism in Southeast Asia.The Government of Japan does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Thegovernment increased the number of sex traffickingprosecutions initiated in 2008, yet most convictedoffenders of trafficking were given suspended sentences.Japan has not yet effectively addressed the problem oftrafficking for labor exploitation. The government’s effortsto identify victims of trafficking remained inadequate.Recommendations for Japan: Expand proactivelaw enforcement efforts to investigate trafficking incommercial sex businesses, especially in rural areasand including call-girl services (“delivery health”),“enjo-kosai” (compensated dating) sites, and socialnetworking sites; establish and implement formal victimidentification procedures and train personnel who havecontact with individuals arrested for prostitution, foreigntrainees, or other migrants on the use of these proceduresto identify a greater number of trafficking victims; ensurethat victims are not punished for crimes committed asa direct result of being trafficked; increase prosecutionsfor labor trafficking; send periodic formal instructionsto the National Police Agency and to Japanese Embassiesand Consulates instructing officials to cooperate withforeign authorities in investigating Japanese nationalsinvolved in possible child sexual exploitation; continueto increase the availability and use of translation servicesand psychological counselors with native language abilityat shelters for victims; and inform all identified victimsof the availability of free legal assistance and options forimmigration relief.ProsecutionThe Government of Japan demonstrated some lawenforcement efforts to combat trafficking in the last year,but did not impose adequate sentences for most convictedtrafficking offenders. The government did not adequatelyaddress the problem of trafficking for labor exploitationduring the reporting period. The government reported29 prosecutions and 13 convictions in 2008, all of which170

were for sex trafficking offenses. This is compared to11 prosecutions and 12 convictions in 2007. Offendersreceived sentences ranging from six months to four years’imprisonment with labor. Eleven of the 13 convictedoffenders received suspended sentences, however, andwere not punished with imprisonment. The governmentdid not sufficiently pursue investigations, prosecutions,and convictions of organized crime groups engaged bothdirectly and indirectly in trafficking. Arrests tend to belimited to street level operators. Japan’s 2005 amendmentto its criminal code and a variety of other criminal codearticles and laws, including the Labor Standards Law, theProstitution Prevention Law, the Child Welfare Law, andthe Law for Punishing Acts Related to Child Prostitutionand Child Pornography criminalize trafficking and a widerange of related activities. However, it is unclear if theexisting legal framework is sufficiently comprehensiveto criminalize all severe forms of trafficking in persons.The 2005 criminal code amendment prescribes penaltiesof up to seven years’ imprisonment, which is sufficientlystringent. Application of these statutes, however, hasbeen hindered by the difficulty of establishing thelevel of documentary evidence required for provinga trafficking crime. Labor exploitation, includingforced labor, continues to be widely reported by laborunions, NGOs, shelters, and the media. Based on callsto government-sponsored assistance hotlines, NGOsestimate that approximately five percent, or over 3,400foreign workers recruited as “trainees” in 2008, werepotential victims of labor trafficking. The ImmigrationBureau and Labor Standard Inspection Bodies continuedto report hundreds of abuses by companies involved inthe Industrial Trainee and Technical Internship Program(the “foreign trainee program”). Some reported abusesincluded fraudulent terms of employment, restrictionson movement, withholding of salary payments, anddebt bondage. According to labor rights groups, traineessometimes had their travel documents taken from themand their movement controlled to prevent escape. In afew companies, trainees were reportedly forced to workunpaid overtime, and wages were automatically depositedinto company controlled accounts, despite the illegalityof such forced deposits. There were no convictionsfor labor trafficking during the reporting period. Thegovernment is beginning to exhibit efforts to monitorand regulate its foreign trainee program, though it has notyet taken steps to investigate, prosecute, and convict anypotential offenders of labor trafficking in the program.NGOs working with illegal workers in Japan reportedthe government’s reluctance to consider any illegalworkers as trafficking victims, defining them instead asvictims of contract fraud. During the reporting period,there was a media report of an ex-government officialaccepting a $54,000 bribe to use government connectionsto facilitate the granting of entertainment visas to 280Filipina women who were to perform in charity concertsbut ended up working as hostesses in bars. Officials in theDepartment of Justice and the Ministry of Foreign Affairsgranted the visas. The government has not investigatedor prosecuted any individuals allegedly involved in thispossible trafficking-related corruption case, citing a lackof evidence. Corruption is a serious concern in the largeand socially accepted entertainment industry in Japan,largely due to the industry’s economic power.ProtectionVictim protection remained inadequate during thereporting period. The number of trafficking victimsidentified by the Japanese government declined for thethird consecutive year. Law enforcement authoritiesidentified 36 victims in 2008, down from 43 victimsin 2007, 58 in 2006, and 116 in 2005. This number isthought to be disproportionately low relative to thesuspected magnitude of Japan’s trafficking problem.Despite reports by both official and private entitiesof labor exploitation, the government only identifiedone victim of labor trafficking in 2008, which wasassociated with a sex trafficking case. NGOs workingwith trafficking victims continue to express concernsbased on interaction with trafficking victims that thegovernment is not sufficiently proactive in searching forvictims among vulnerable populations such as foreignworkers and foreign women in the sex trade. Expandedgovernment collaboration with NGOs is likely one ofthe most effective tools the government has availablein its efforts to combat trafficking. The governmentrepatriated 18 of 36 identified trafficking victimswithout referring them to IOM for risk assessment andformal repatriation processing in 2008. According tothe government, these early repatriations were at therequest of the victim. Japan does not have formal victimidentification procedures, nor does it dedicate governmentlaw enforcement or social services personnel solely to thehuman trafficking issue. During the reporting period,the Immigration Bureau created a database of traffickingcases. NGOs familiar with regular training coursesgiven to police, judges, and prosecutors, expressed thedesire that such courses be further improved, as somepotential victims appear to have been punished forcrimes committed as a direct result of being trafficked,including for immigration violations. The governmentdoes not appear to consistently recognize victimswho initially enter into the commercial sex industrywillingly, but later find themselves to be victims oftrafficking. In October 2008, police conducted a raid ona commercial sex establishment and identified 12 Thaitrafficking victims. Three women who may also have beentrafficking victims were not taken into custody becausethey were not considered illegal immigrants. TheseJAPAN171

JORDANthree have since overstayed their visas and are missing,indicating the need for greater law enforcement trainingon victim identification, quick access to trained, nativelanguage trafficking counselors to overcome the distrustof police commonly found in potential victims, andbetter incentives offered by the Government of Japan topotential victims in terms of retraining and the possibilityof legal avenues of employment.Thirty of the 33 identified trafficking victims in 2008 werehoused in government shelters – Women’s ConsultingCenters (WCCs). The victims had access to subsidizedmedical care and some victims received psychological carewhile in the WCCs. While in shelters or assisting in trials,victims have never been permitted to obtain employmentor otherwise generate income. This lack of opportunityto generate income, coupled with the trauma of beinga victim of trafficking, are likely factors leading mostvictims to agree to repatriation to their home country.NGOs report that, although the government encouragedvictims to assist in the investigation and prosecutionof trafficking crimes, the government did not providevictims with an environment conducive to cooperation.While the government can legally provide incentives forcooperation, such as the opportunity to work, there wereno victims who were provided this type of assistance in2008. To date there have been no reported cases wherethe government provided legal assistance to a traffickingvictim. The government has the capacity to provide longtermresidency visas for trafficking victims, but no foreigntrafficking victim has been granted such a visa as yet.Japan continued to provide IOM with $300,000 a year forrepatriation and reintegration assistance.PreventionThe Government of Japan continued to improve itsefforts to increase awareness of trafficking during thereporting period. The government continued distributionof approximately 30,000 posters and 50,000 leaflets tolocal governments, embassies, airports, harbors, andNGOs. The Immigration Bureau continued to distributetrafficking awareness leaflets in five languages. TheNational Police University began to teach classes andseminars on trafficking during the reporting period. Inorder to reduce Japanese demand for child sex tourism,the government displayed posters on child sex tourism inairports and at harbor facilities. A significant number ofJapanese men continue to travel to other Asian countries,particularly the Philippines, Cambodia, and Thailand,to engage in sex with children. Despite Japanese courts’extraterritorial jurisdiction over Japanese nationalswho have sexually exploited children in a foreigncountry, the government did not prosecute any Japanesenationals for child sex tourism during the reportingperiod. This also is an area that is cause for concern.The government conducted periodic police raids ofprostitution establishments, including some raids onInternet-based forms of commercial sex, but did not makeany other efforts to reduce the demand for commercialsex acts. During the reporting period, the governmentbegan funding a $5 million project to protect victimsof trafficking in Southeast Asia, and continued to funda number of other anti-trafficking projects around theworld. Japan has not ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.JORDAN (Tier 2)Jordan is a destination and transit country for womenand men from South and Southeast Asia for the purposeof forced labor. There were some reports of womenfrom Morocco and Tunisia being subjected to forcedprostitution after arriving in Jordan to work in restaurantsand night clubs. Women from Bangladesh, Sri Lanka,Indonesia, and the Philippines migrate willingly to workas domestic servants, but some are subjected to conditionsof forced labor, including unlawful withholding ofpassports, restrictions on movement, non-payment ofwages, threats, and physical or sexual abuse. During thereporting period, the Government of the Philippinescontinued to enforce a ban on new Filipina workersmigrating to Jordan for domestic work because of a highrate of abuse of Filipina domestic workers by employers inJordan. At the end of the reporting period, an estimated600 Filipina, Indonesian, and Sri Lankan foreign domesticworkers were sheltered at their respective embassies inAmman; most of whom fled some form of forced labor.In addition, some Chinese, Bangladeshi, Indian,Sri Lankan, and Vietnamese men and women haveencountered conditions indicative of forced labor in a fewfactories in Jordan’s Qualifying Industrial Zones (QIZs),including unlawful withholding of passports, delayedpayment of wages, including overtime, and, in a fewcases, verbal and physical abuse. In past years, Jordan hasbeen a transit country for South and Southeast Asian mendeceptively recruited with fraudulent job offers in Jordan,but instead trafficked to work involuntarily in Iraq. Therewere no substantiated reports of this, however, during thereporting period.The Government of Jordan does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Duringthe year, the government amended its labor law to coveragriculture and domestic workers, passed comprehensiveanti-trafficking legislation, initiated a joint labor inspectorand police anti-trafficking investigation unit, starteda Human Trafficking Office within the Public SecurityDirectorate’s (PSD) Criminal Investigation Unit, andimproved efforts to identify victims of trafficking andrelated exploitation among foreign domestic workers,foreign laborers in the QIZs, and foreign womenin prostitution. Nevertheless, anti-trafficking lawenforcement efforts were nascent and the identificationof labor trafficking offenses and related victims wasinadequate, with some victims treated as offenders andpenalized for acts committed as a direct result of theirbeing trafficked.Recommendations for Jordan: Use the newcomprehensive anti-trafficking law by increasing efforts172

to investigate, prosecute, and sentence traffickingoffenders, particularly those involving forced labor;complete regulations defining the terms of employmentfor domestic workers and those governing the operationof recruitment agencies; enhance services available fortrafficking victims to include a shelter; implement acomprehensive awareness campaign to educate the publicon trafficking and forced labor, focusing on domesticworkers and the new anti-trafficking law; and strengthenefforts to proactively identify victims of trafficking andforced labor and ensure victims are not punished forunlawful acts committed as a direct result of their beingtrafficked.ProsecutionThe Government of Jordan made improved efforts tocriminally punish trafficking offenders during thereporting period. On March 31, 2009, a comprehensiveanti-human trafficking law came into force that prohibitsall forms of trafficking. The new law prescribes penaltiesof up to ten years’ imprisonment for forced prostitutionand trafficking involving aggravating circumstances suchas the trafficking of a child or trafficking involving apublic official; penalties prescribed for labor traffickingoffenses not involving aggravating circumstances arelimited to a minimum of six months’ imprisonmentand a maximum fine of $7,000 – penalties that arenot sufficiently stringent. Jordan’s labor law assignsadministrative penalties, such as fines of up to $1,400, tolabor violations committed against Jordanian or foreignworkers, including forced labor offenses; these penaltiesalso are not sufficiently stringent. Although the Jordaniangovernment did not provide comprehensive data on itsanti-trafficking law enforcement efforts over the lastyear, it reported investigating at least 19 cases, of which10 were sent to judicial authorities for prosecution andnine were resolved administratively. During 2008, theMinistry of Labor (MOL) closed seven labor recruitmentagencies for offenses that relate to forced labor. The MOLinvestigated 535 general labor complaints received fromJordanian and foreign workers through the MOL-operatedhotline, which included some indicators of forced labor,such as employers withholding workers’ passports. Inlate 2008, the PSD’s Criminal Investigation Department(CID) investigated the forced prostitution of two Tunisianwomen and arrested their trafficker. In early 2009, theCID investigated and forwarded for prosecution two cases,involving seven women, of forced labor in night clubs.The government in October 2008 began prosecuting 75municipal employees in Karak for abuses of their powerthat included forging work permits for migrant workers,a potential contributor to forced labor. The governmentprovided anti-trafficking training through the policetraining academy and a training program for laborinspectors.ProtectionThe Jordanian government made improved butinadequate efforts to protect victims of trafficking duringthe last year. The government continued to lack directshelter services for victims of trafficking, though Article7 of the newly passed anti-trafficking law contains aprovision for the opening of shelters. A governmentrunshelter for abused Jordanian women housedapproximately 10 foreign domestic workers who had beensexually assaulted by their employers and subsequentlyreferred to the shelter by PSD’s Family ProtectionDepartment; these domestic workers may have beentrafficking victims. Although Jordanian law enforcementauthorities did not employ systematic procedures toproactively identify or refer victims of trafficking, somevictims were identified by the PSD and referred to NGOsfor care. The government did not ensure that victimswere not penalized for unlawful acts committed as adirect result of being trafficked; victims continued to bevulnerable to arrest and incarceration if found withoutadequate residency documents and some foreign domesticworkers fleeing abusive employers were incarcerated aftertheir employers filed false claims of theft against them.The government did not actively encourage victims ofdomestic servitude to participate in the investigation orprosecution of trafficking offenders. The fining of foreignworkers without valid residency documents – includingidentified trafficking victims – on a per day basis for beingout-of-status served as a disincentive to stay in Jordanand pursue legal action against traffickers. Nevertheless,the Ministry of Interior often waived the accumulatedoverstay penalties levied against “runaway” foreigndomestic workers in order to repatriate them.PreventionJordan made limited efforts to prevent trafficking inpersons during the reporting period. The Ministry ofLabor (MOL) collaborated with local NGOs to raiseawareness of labor trafficking through ads on billboards,and public service announcements in the print media andvia radio. The MOL continued training labor inspectorson various facets of human trafficking and continueddistribution of a guidebook it published on protectionsfor foreign domestic workers, including hotlines to callto report abuse. The PSD provided trafficking-specifictraining to the thousands of officers it sent abroad forparticipation in international peacekeeping efforts. Thegovernment did not undertake any discernable measuresto reduce the demand for commercial sex acts. Jordan hasnot ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.JORDAN173

KAZAKHSTANKAZAKHSTAN (Tier 2)Kazakhstan is a source, transit, and destination countryfor men, women, and children from Uzbekistan,Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan trafficked to Russia and theUAE for the purposes of commercial sexual exploitationand forced labor in the construction and agriculturalindustries. Women from Kazakhstan are traffickedto China and Turkey for the purpose of commercialsexual exploitation. Kazakhstan is a destination countryfor a significant number of Uzbek men, women, andgirls trafficked for the purposes of commercial sexualexploitation and forced labor, including domesticservitude and forced labor in the tobacco, cotton, andmeat processing industries. Men, women, and childrenare trafficked internally for the purposes of forced laborand forced prostitution.The Government of Kazakhstan does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts todo so. Over the last year, the government demonstratedincreased efforts to investigate, prosecute, and convicttraffickers and improved efforts to prosecute labortraffickers. It also significantly increased funding forpublic awareness efforts. The government, however,identified a smaller number of victims over the reportingperiod.Recommendations for Kazakhstan: Increase efforts toidentify both sex and labor trafficking victims; increasethe number of victims who receive government-fundedassistance by increasing funding to anti-trafficking NGOs;and conduct trafficking awareness campaigns aimedat reducing the demand for both labor trafficking andcommercial sexual exploitation.ProsecutionThe Kazakhstan government demonstrated some progressin its anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts over thereporting period. Kazakhstan prohibits trafficking inpersons for both labor and sexual exploitation throughArticles 128, 133, 125(3)(b), 126(3)(b), and 270 ofits penal code, which prescribe penalties of from fiveto 15 years’ imprisonment – penalties sufficientlystringent and commensurate with those prescribed forother grave crimes, such as rape. Police conducted 44trafficking investigations, a significant increase from 22investigations in 2007. Authorities prosecuted 30 casesin 2008, up from 16 prosecutions in 2007. Twenty-fourtrafficking offenders were convicted – including 18 for sextrafficking offenses and six for labor trafficking offenses– up from 19 trafficking convictions in 2007. Only onetrafficker received a suspended sentence and served notime in prison. Twelve sex trafficking offenders weregiven sentences ranging from between 1.5 to six years’imprisonment and six sex trafficking offenders were givensentences ranging from seven to 11 years’ imprisonment;four labor traffickers were given sentences ranging from1.5 to five years’ imprisonment and two labor traffickerswere given sentences ranging from 6.5 to 10 years’imprisonment. The government did not investigate,prosecute, convict, or punish government officialscomplicit in trafficking in 2008.ProtectionThe government’s efforts to assist and protect victimsdecreased during the year. NGOs continued to report thatlocal police and government officials lacked awarenessabout labor trafficking, causing some labor traffickingvictims to go unidentified during the year. The policeformally identified 50 victims, a significant decreasefrom 112 victims identified by police in 2007. NGOs andIOM assisted 64 victims in 2008, including 22 victimsassisted by government-funded programs. Kazakhstanallocated $45,838 for victim assistance in 2008, comparedto $35,000 in 2007. Twenty-two victims were assistedby government-funded programs during the reportingperiod. A local government provided modest assistancefor one anti-trafficking shelter in 2008. The Ministry ofForeign Affairs paid for the repatriation of some Kazakhvictims trafficked abroad. The government encouragedvictims to participate in the investigation and prosecutionof trafficking offenses. Foreign victims who agreedto cooperate with law enforcement were permitted toremain in Kazakhstan for the duration of the criminalinvestigation; no reported victims received temporaryresidence permits in 2008. Many victims refused totestify for fear of retribution from traffickers and becausethe government had not devoted sufficient resourcesfor the protection of victims who serve as witnesses forthe prosecution. The law provides that victims are notpenalized for unlawful acts committed as a direct result ofbeing trafficked.PreventionThe government significantly increased its funding fortrafficking prevention efforts during the reporting period.In 2008, the government allocated $333,000 for nationwideanti-trafficking awareness campaign advertised ontelevision, radio, in newspapers, and in magazines; a totalof 300 trafficking television and radio programs aired and400 trafficking articles were published. The governmentalso funded NGOs to produce trafficking awarenessbrochures for Kazakh nationals traveling abroad. Mosttrafficking awareness efforts in 2008 were targeted atpotential victims of trafficking and did not address thedemand for trafficking.174

KENYA (Tier 2)Kenya is a source, transit, and destination country formen, women, and children trafficked for the purposesof forced labor and sexual exploitation. Kenyanchildren are trafficked within the country for domesticservitude, forced labor in agriculture (including on flowerplantations), cattle herding, in bars, and for commercialsexual exploitation, including involvement in the coastalsex tourism industry. In 2008, internally displacedpersons residing in camps as a result of post-electionviolence reportedly were trafficked within the country.Kenyan men, women, and children are trafficked to theMiddle East, other East African nations, and Europefor domestic servitude, exploitation in massage parlorsand brothels, and forced manual labor, including in theconstruction industry. Employment agencies facilitate andprofit from the trafficking of Kenyan nationals to MiddleEastern nations, notably Saudi Arabia, the UAE, andLebanon. Children are trafficked to Kenya from Burundi,Ethiopia, Rwanda, Somalia, Tanzania, and Uganda forforced labor and commercial sexual exploitation. Mosttrafficked girls are forced to work as barmaids, where theyare vulnerable to sexual exploitation, or are forced directlyinto prostitution. Ethiopian and Somali refugees residingin camps and Nairobi’s Eastleigh section are particularlyvulnerable to trafficking. Chinese, Indian, and Pakistaniwomen reportedly transit Nairobi en route to exploitationin Europe’s commercial sex trade.The Government of Kenya does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Postelectionviolence and the subsequent governmentreorganization delayed a number of anti-traffickinginitiatives, such as the enactment of anti-traffickinglegislation and the passage of a draft national action plan.While local-level law enforcement officials across thecountry continued to arrest and charge alleged traffickersthroughout the year, prosecutions failed to progress anddata on such cases was not compiled at the provincialor national level. In addition, the government did notallocate adequate resources dedicated to anti-traffickingmeasures during the reporting period.Recommendations for Kenya: Pass, enact, andimplement the draft comprehensive anti-trafficking law;provide additional awareness training to all levels ofgovernment, particularly law enforcement officials, onidentifying and responding to trafficking crimes; increaseefforts to prosecute trafficking offenses and convict andpunish trafficking offenders; establish an official processfor law enforcement officials to refer trafficking victimsfor assistance; and institute trafficking awareness trainingfor diplomats posted overseas.ProsecutionThe government failed to punish acts of traffickingduring the reporting period, though it demonstratedcontinued efforts to investigate trafficking offenses andcharge alleged offenders. Kenya does not prohibit allforms of trafficking, though it criminalizes the traffickingof children and adults for sexual exploitation throughSections 13 to 15 and 18 of the Sexual Offenses Act of2006, which prescribes minimum sentences of from 10to 15 years’ imprisonment, penalties that are sufficientlystringent and commensurate with those for othergrave crimes; however, the law is not widely used byprosecutors. The Employment Act of 2007 outlaws forcedlabor and contains additional statutes relevant to labortrafficking. In February 2009, the Parliament passed amotion to introduce the Counter Trafficking in PersonsBill, the first step toward enactment of comprehensivehuman trafficking legislation.The Department of Public Prosecutions reported threeongoing investigations for trafficking-related offensesand no prosecutions during the reporting period; thedepartment was unable to produce data on the number ofcharges related to trafficking filed during the year. Despitethis inability to gather and disseminate information atthe national level, district courts reportedly heard severaltrafficking cases during the reporting period. In June2008, the Loitokitok District Court arraigned a Kenyanwoman on charges of trafficking a 17-year old Ugandangirl to her home for domestic servitude and subjecting herto cruelty; further details on this case were unavailable.In October 2008, two women were charged in a Nairobicourt with forcing two young girls into prostitution. InMarch 2009, 119 parents and guardians of 209 childrenwere charged in an Eldoret court with abusing theirchildren by removing them from school and forcing themto work as domestic servants. In addition, the governmentcooperated with the United Kingdom, Ireland, andINTERPOL in the investigation and prosecution of atleast two transnational trafficking cases involving Kenyanchildren during the reporting period. Laws against forcedlabor were not well enforced, though in June 2008, theMinistry of Labor raided and shut down an unregisteredrecruitment agency that was illegally sending Kenyanmigrant workers to Dubai. With the assistance of NGOlecturers, the Kenya Police Training College providedanti-trafficking and child protection training to policerecruits during their training as cadets. Corruption amonglaw enforcement authorities and other public officialscontinued to hamper efforts to bring traffickers to justice;anti-trafficking activists made credible claims that, incertain regions, corrupt police or border officials wereKENYA175

KOREA, REPUBLIC OFcomplicit in human trafficking. The government madeno efforts to investigate or prosecute officials suspectedof involvement in or facilitation of trafficking during thereporting period.ProtectionThe Kenyan government sustained minimal butinadequate victim protection efforts throughout theyear. The government lacked a formal referral process totransfer victims to NGOs for assistance and it maintainedno record of the number of victims referred on an adhoc basis to NGO service providers by governmentofficials during the year. In 2008, the Ministry ofGender, Children, and Social Development hired anadditional 160 Children’s Officers – officials charged withadvocating for children’s rights and obtaining servicesfor children in need – bringing the total number to 333.During the reporting period, several Children’s Officersposted throughout the country participated in traffickinginvestigations and provided counseling and followupto child trafficking victims. In addition, Children’sOfficers served on the management committee of theRescue Center, a shelter for sex trafficking victims inMombasa, and provided case assessments and servicereferrals for sex trafficking victims. City Council SocialServices Departments in Nairobi, Mombasa, and Kisumuoperated shelters to rehabilitate street children vulnerableto forced labor and commercial sexual exploitation; theshelters did not maintain records identifying traffickingvictims among children undergoing rehabilitation. Thegovernment encouraged Kenyan victims’ assistance in theinvestigation and prosecution of trafficking crimes, andensured that they were not inappropriately incarceratedor otherwise penalized for unlawful acts committedas a direct result of being trafficked. Police, however,reportedly arrested foreign trafficking victims for being inKenya without valid identity documents; in most cases,they pled guilty to immigration violations and werequickly deported. The government did not provide legalalternatives to the removal of victims to countries wherethey would face hardship or retribution.PreventionThe Government of Kenya made modest progress inits efforts to prevent human trafficking by publiclyhighlighting the dangers of human trafficking duringthe reporting period. Increased awareness within thegovernment at all levels, however, remained inadequatefor fostering better cooperation with civil societyand strengthening public education efforts. After thegovernment’s reorganization in April 2008, the newlycreated Ministry of Gender, Children, and SocialDevelopment became the lead agency in the government’santi-trafficking efforts. In May 2008, the ministry andan NGO launched a 24-hour toll-free hotline enablingcitizens to report cases of child trafficking, labor, andabuse; the hotline is located in a government-ownedbuilding and staffed, in part, by three Children’s Officerswho facilitated rescues and made referrals to appropriatedistrict officials. Government ministers and Kenya’s FirstLady highlighted the human trafficking issue in publicengagements, including the government’s celebrationof the Day of the African Child in June. Individuallabor officers, children’s officers, social workers, chiefs,health officials, police, religious leaders, and NGOsidentified and withdrew children from forced laborsituations during the reporting period. In 2008, CoastProvince’s regions of Mombasa, South Coast, and Taita-Taveta formed anti-trafficking networks comprised ofgovernment officials and civil society representatives.There were no reports of the Kenyan government’s effortsto provide anti-trafficking training for its troops beforedeployment on international peacekeeping missions.KOREA, REPUBLIC OF (Tier 1)The Republic of Korea (ROK) is a source country forthe trafficking of women and girls within the countryand to the United States (often through Canada andMexico), Japan, Hong Kong, Guam, Australia, NewZealand, and Canada, for the purpose of commercialsexual exploitation. The ROK is a destination countryfor women from Russia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan,Mongolia, the People’s Republic of China (PRC), thePhilippines, Thailand, Cambodia, and other SoutheastAsian countries, some of whom are recruited to work onentertainment visas and may be vulnerable to traffickingfor sexual exploitation or domestic servitude. Somebrokers target poor women and runaways, pay off theirdebts, and then use this as leverage to force them to workin the commercial sex trade. Labor trafficking is a problemin South Korea, and some employers allegedly withholdthe passports and wages of foreign workers, a practice thatcan be used as a means to subject workers to forced labor.One foreign embassy alleged that some of its citizenssign contracts for employment in their home country,but have their contracts destroyed upon arrival in Korea,where they are forced to work excessively long hours. Anincreasing challenge for the ROK is the number of womenfrom less developed countries who are recruited formarriage to Korean men through international marriagebrokers; limitations on citizenship and anecdotal reportsof fraudulent brokers mean some of these women maybe vulnerable to trafficking. Some, upon arrival inSouth Korea, may be subjected to conditions of sexualexploitation, debt bondage, and involuntary servitude.South Korean men reportedly continue to be a source ofdemand for child sex tourism in Southeast Asia and thePacific Islands.The Government of the Republic of Korea fully complieswith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking. The Korean National Police Agency continuesto cooperate with foreign law enforcement agencies tocrack down on human smuggling networks that havebeen known to traffic women for sexual exploitation.The government acknowledges that trafficking is aproblem and is committed to stopping it. The ROK176

government continued to improve its legal structureto protect populations vulnerable to trafficking; in2008 the Marriage Brokerage Act entered into force toregulate international marriage brokers, the Passport Lawincreased the government’s ability to prosecute certaincrimes committed overseas by Korean nationals, andthe Ministry of Labor continued to expand the scope ofcountries eligible for the Employment Permit System(EPS). The Korean government increased anti-traffickingpublic education efforts. These commendable efforts withrespect to sex trafficking have not yet been matched byconvictions for labor trafficking occurring within SouthKorea’s large foreign labor force. Efforts to reduce demandfor child sex tourism, in light of the scale of the problem,would be enhanced by increased law enforcement effortsto investigate Korean nationals who sexually exploitchildren abroad.Recommendations for the Republic of Korea: Expandefforts to reduce demand for child sex tourism byincreasing law enforcement efforts, including cooperationwith child sex tourism destination countries, toinvestigate and prosecute South Korean child sex tourists;continue to expand efforts to ensure that foreign womenmarried to Korean men through commercial marriagebrokers and residing in Korea are not vulnerable totrafficking; improve the available statistical data ontrafficking victims; develop and implement proactivevictim identification procedures to identify traffickingvictims among vulnerable populations including foreignwomen arrested for prostitution and foreign workers;develop and implement a formal trafficking-specificreferral process for law enforcement officials to directtrafficking victims to short- and long-term care; andtake steps to improve protections for foreign workers bycontinuing to investigate and prosecute any reported casesof forced labor among migrant workers.ProsecutionThe ROK government increased its anti-traffickinglaw enforcement efforts over the last year. The ROKprohibits trafficking for the purpose of commercialsexual exploitation, including debt bondage, throughits 2004 “Act on the Punishment of Intermediating inthe Sex Trade and Associated Acts,” which prescribesup to 10 years’ imprisonment – penalties that aresufficiently stringent and commensurate with thoseprescribed for other grave crimes, such as rape.Trafficking for forced labor is criminalized under theLabor Standards Act, which prescribes penalties of up tofive years’ imprisonment. The Korean government didnot, however, obtain the convictions of any offendersof labor trafficking during the reporting period. In2008, the ROK government reportedly conducted 220trafficking investigations and secured the convictions of31 sex traffickers who received sentences ranging fromsix months to 12 years in prison. It is unclear, however,how many of these were actually trafficking cases, sincethe laws used to prosecute traffickers are also used toprosecute a variety of other crimes, and the governmentdoes not keep track of the number of trafficking casesit handles. The government reportedly secured theconvictions of 52 traffickers the previous year. During thereporting period, ROK law enforcement authorities closelycooperated with U.S., Canadian, Australian, and Japanesecounterparts; however, one foreign embassy expressedconcern about entertainment (E-6) visas, arguing that theROK government should either significantly tighten thevisa qualifications or stop issuing them altogether. Koreanemployers of E-6 visa holders sometimes confiscateforeign workers’ passports, which can facilitate trafficking.While the government is currently investigating atleast one case of alleged trafficking through fraudulentinternational marriage, no other cases were reported tothe ROK government during the reporting period; therewere no prosecutions or convictions of such offenses in2008. In 2008, the Ministry of Labor investigated 4,204cases involving the alleged nonpayment of wages toforeign workers. To date the government has prosecuted1,385 of these cases, some of which may have involvedtrafficking in persons. The ROK government aggressivelyinvestigates and prosecutes trafficking-related crimesagainst foreigners as human rights abuses.ProtectionThe Government of the Republic of Korea increasedefforts to protect victims of sex trafficking over the lastyear. During the reporting period, the Korean governmentopened four additional support facilities for victims ofabuse, including trafficking victims, bringing the totalto 100. These facilities now include 43 adult and youthfacilities, 29 counseling centers, 10 group homes forlonger-term support, six rehabilitation centers, and threeshelters for foreign victims. In 2008, the government alsoincreased access to group homes by relaxing the standardsfor entrance and increasing the maximum length ofstay from one year to three years. Police regularly refervictims of abuse to care and counseling facilities, thoughthe government does not have a formal system toproactively identify trafficking victims among vulnerablepopulations, so the government did not employ atrafficking-specific official referral process to transfertrafficking victims to institutions that provide short- orlong-term care. The government did not provide dataon the number of trafficking victims it identified duringthe reporting period. The ROK government allocated$10.9 million in funding for victim support facilities toKOREA, REPUBLIC OF177

KOSOVOsupport victims of all types, including 29 counselingfacilities, 10 group homes, and 3 shelters for foreigners,a decrease from the previous year’s funding. Theseshelters provided clients, including trafficking victims,with psychological and medical aid, legal assistance,counseling, and occupational training. Counselingcenters subsidized by the central government providedmedical and legal aid to trafficking victims. NGOsreport that one counseling center and two shelters in thecountry are exclusively dedicated to foreign victims of sextrafficking. Most other facilities that support foreignersare geared towards women who have married Koreanmen and subsequently encounter abuse or conditions offorced labor, rather than sex trafficking victims. Most ofthe shelters are run by NGOs that are partially or fullyfunded by the government. The government encouragessex trafficking victims to assist in the investigation andprosecution of traffickers. The government provides legalalternatives to the removal of sex trafficking victims tocountries where they may face hardship or retribution –primarily through the issuance of G-1 visas or orders ofsuspension of the victim’s departure, though NGOs reportsome victims are not aware of these options. G-1 visaholders may apply for jobs in Korea, but are not eligiblefor permanent residency. The government has no recordof how many trafficking victims were granted G-1 visasduring the reporting period. The ROK government did notpenalize victims for unlawful acts committed as a directresult of their being trafficked. The government continuedimplementing the EPS, a system for recruiting foreignworkers through government-to-government agreements,that has eliminated the role of private labor agencies andrecruiters, many of which had been found to employhighly exploitative practices – including fraudulentrecruitment terms and excessive fees. The Ministry ofLabor continued to fund three Migrant Worker Centersto support the needs of foreign contract laborers in thecountry. During the reporting period, the Labor Ministryincreased from 20 to 27 the number of support centersthat facilitate recovering unpaid wages.PreventionThe ROK government continued anti-traffickingprevention efforts through sex trafficking awarenesscampaigns. In 2008, the Ministry of Gender Equalityallocated $118,000 to trafficking prevention campaignsand $45,000 to educational programs in public schools,public agencies, and local governments. The Ministry ofJustice continued to run 39 “John schools,” requiring thatconvicted male “clients” of prostitution attend these onedayseminars – in lieu of criminal punishment; 17,956first-time offenders who were arrested by ROK policein 2008 attended these seminars. The seminars weredesigned to reduce demand for commercial sex acts andgive attendees a greater appreciation for the potential forsex trafficking in Korea’s sex trade. Some NGOs criticizedthe fact that women detained for prostitution weresometimes also required to attend these rehabilitationseminars, along with the male “clients.” Some ROK menreportedly continue to travel to the PRC, the Philippines,Cambodia, Thailand, and elsewhere in Southeast Asiafor child sex tourism. In 2008, the government fundedan NGO to carry out anti-sex tourism and anti-child sextourism campaigns at Incheon International Airport. In2008, the National Assembly revised the Passport Lawenabling the ROK government to control more strictlythe issuance of passports and to cancel the passports ofKoreans convicted of engaging in a variety of illegal actsabroad, including participation in child prostitution.During the reporting period the Ministry of Laborimplemented measures to prevent delayed or nonpaymentof wages, protect underage workers, encouragefirms to abide by the minimum wage standards andhave all firms sign written contracts with their workers.However, the government has never prosecuted a Koreannational for child sex tourism. The ROK governmentprovided anti-trafficking training to troops prior totheir deployment abroad on international peacekeepingmissions. The Republic of Korea has not ratified the 2000UN TIP Protocol.KOSOVO (Tier 2)Kosovo is a source, transit, and destination country forwomen and children trafficked across national borders forthe purpose of commercial sexual exploitation. Kosovowomen and children are also trafficked within Kosovo forthe same purpose. NGOs reported that child trafficking,particularly from Roma communities, for the purpose offorced begging, was an increasing problem. Most foreignvictims are young women from Eastern Europe subjectedto forced prostitution. Kosovo victims are also traffickedto countries throughout Europe including Macedonia,Italy, and Albania. Kosovo residents, including threechildren, made up the majority of identified traffickingvictims in 2008. Police report that internal traffickinginvolving Kosovo Serbs may also occur in north Kosovo,a Serb-majority region that presents particular securitychallenges.The Government of Kosovo does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Thegovernment helped fund two NGO anti-traffickingshelters in 2008 and began implementing a new NationalAction Plan. The government did not adequatelyinvestigate and prosecute trafficking offenders, addresstrafficking-related corruption, and identify traffickingvictims.Recommendations for Kosovo: Aggressivelyinvestigate, prosecute, convict, and sentence sex andlabor trafficking offenders, including public officialscomplicit in trafficking; increase trafficking-specifictraining for prosecutors and judges; improve victimprotection services to ensure adequate rehabilitationand reintegration for repatriated victims; ensuresustained funding and staffing in shelters; improvevictim identification so that victims are not penalized178

R RANKING BY YEARKING BY YEARG BY YEARG BY YEARY YEARfor unlawful acts committed as a direct result of beingtrafficked; increase detection of victims of forced beggingin Kosovo; and continue trafficking prevention activities,including efforts to reduce the demand for commercialsex acts.ProsecutionKosovo law criminalizes sex and labor trafficking andprovides penalties for human trafficking of two to 12years’ imprisonment – penalties that are sufficientlystringent and commensurate with those prescribed forother grave crimes, such as rape. In 2008, the governmentreportedly prosecuted 24 trafficking cases, resulting in theconviction of 15 sex trafficking offenders. However, dueto limited data collection efforts, some of these cases maybe conflated with smuggling or other trafficking-relatedstatistics. Sentences for 14 offenders exceeded five yearsand one conviction resulted in a suspended sentence.The government continued to provide anti-traffickingtraining for police officers and recruits. While there wereno specific reports of trafficking-related complicity amonggovernment officials, foreign trafficking victims oftenarrive in Kosovo with valid documents and employmentcontracts stamped by municipal authorities; police reportsindicate that these local Kosovo officials may be awarethat the document holders are trafficking victims.ProtectionThe Government of Kosovo made important progressin protecting victims of trafficking in 2008. To helpremedy a funding shortfall for the two NGO-run shelters,the government, in cooperation with internationaldonors, provided critical funding totaling $158,593. Thegovernment also provided $64,786 for the operation of itsofficial shelter for high-risk trafficking victims in 2008.The government reportedly used standard operatingprocedures when encountering suspected traffickingvictims; however, a 2008 OSCE Report indicatedthat Kosovo officials often do not recognize victimsof trafficking and that female victims are sometimesarrested for prostitution offenses, penalized for unlawfulacts committed as a result of their being trafficked. Thegovernment reported it assisted 24 victims in 2008, adecline from 33 assisted in 2007. The government didnot provide any repatriation or reintegration assistanceto victims after they left a shelter. The governmenthas procedures in place that allow victims to provideanonymous testimony, though NGOs reported thatwitness intimidation remained a serious problem inKosovo. Only two victims assisted in the investigationand prosecution of their traffickers during the reportingperiod. Victims of trafficking have legal alternatives toremoval to countries where they would face hardship orretribution, including the granting of refugee status orapproval of residency permits.PreventionThe Government of Kosovo improved its preventionefforts during the reporting period. In April 2008, thegovernment appointed a new anti-trafficking nationalcoordinator and in July 2008 it adopted and beganimplementation of an anti-trafficking National Strategyand Action Plan. The Government of Kosovo supportednumerous educational programs from the primary toICELAND TIER RANKING BY YEARuniversity levels to prevent trafficking in 2008. IOMand the Ministry of Justice continued to jointly sponsoranti-trafficking hotlines. Most anti-trafficking campaignscontinue to be run by international organizations andNGOs, including a campaign geared to raise awarenessabout child trafficking, particularly for the purpose offorced begging.KOSOVO TIER RANKING BY YEARKUWAIT (Tier 3)MALDIVES TIER RANKING BY YEARKuwait is a destination country for men and womentrafficked for the purposes of forced labor. The majorityof trafficking victims are from among the over 500,000foreign women recruited for domestic service work inKuwait. Men and women migrate from Nepal, India,Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Indonesia, Pakistan, andBangladesh in search of work in the domestic andsanitation NAMIBIA industries. TIER RANKING Although BY YEARthey migrate willingly toKuwait, upon arrival some are subjected to conditions offorced labor from their “sponsors” and labor agents, suchas withholding of passports, confinement, physical sexualabuse and threats of such abuse or other serious harm,and non-payment of wages with the intent of compellingtheir continued service. Adult female migrant workersare particularly vulnerable, and consequently are oftenvictims of sexual exploitation and forced prostitution.There have been instances of domestic workers whoPALAU TIER RANKING BY YEARhave fled from their employers, lured by the promise ofwell-paying service industry jobs, and being coerced intoprostitution. In other cases, the terms of employment inKuwait are wholly different from those agreed to in theirhome countries.The Government of Kuwait does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking and is not making sufficient efforts to do so.Although the government made some efforts to improveits performance from previous years, heated publicdiscourse and wide press debate on human traffickinghave not yet resulted in the implementation of adequatelaws. The Kuwaiti government has shown an inabilityto define trafficking and has demonstrated insufficientpolitical will to address human trafficking adequately.Much of the human trafficking found in KuwaitKUWAIT179

KUWAITinvolves domestic workers in private residences and thegovernment is reluctant to prosecute Kuwaiti citizens. TheKuwaiti government has made progress on some of thecommitments it made in 2007, e.g. by investigating andprosecuting individuals for trafficking-related offensesand by arranging for officials to participate in traffickingrelatedtraining. However, the government has not madesignificant progress in fulfilling other commitmentsit made in 2007, which included enacting legislationtargeting human trafficking and establishing a permanentshelter for victims of trafficking.Recommendations for Kuwait: Enact legislationspecifically prohibiting and punishing all humantrafficking offenses; develop and expand on antitraffickingtraining to law enforcement and judicialofficials; establish methods to proactively discern victimsof human trafficking, especially among the femaledomestic worker population; provide a means by whichtrafficking victims can file claims against their offenders;and join international efforts and activities to discouragethe demand for commercial sex acts and sex tourism byKuwaiti nationals.ProsecutionThe Government of Kuwait demonstrated someprogress in punishing trafficking offenses this year.While existing legislation does not explicitly prohibittrafficking in persons, there are several related offenseswhich are prohibited by the Kuwaiti Criminal Code.Transnational slavery is prohibited through Article 185of the criminal code and prescribes a maximum penaltyof five years’ imprisonment. Article 201, which prohibitsforced prostitution, prescribes a maximum sentence offive years’ imprisonment if the victim is an adult andseven years if the victim is a minor under the age of18. These prescribed penalties are sufficiently severeand commensurate with those prescribed for othergrave offenses. While the government did not punishany offenders under the specific charge of “humantrafficking,” it charged 12 individuals with domestic laborabuse and registered 1,762 cases against persons chargedwith falsifying labor petitions. Kuwaiti law enforcementgenerally takes an administrative or civil approachin addressing cases of labor exploitation or abuses,such as assessing fines, shutting down employmentfirms, issuing orders for employers to return withheldpassports, or requiring employers to pay back wages.Police, lawyers and judges have not been adequatelytrained on trafficking issues, although the Ministry ofSocial Affairs and Labor (MOSAL) and the Ministry ofInterior (MOI) sent a small group of officers for trainingby IOM on human trafficking in Bahrain. In addition,the Kuwaiti government recently committed to fundinganti-trafficking training for 15 to 20 police officers to beprovided by IOM.ProtectionDuring the year, Kuwait made minimal efforts to improveprotection for victims of trafficking. In September 2007,the government opened a temporary shelter for femalevictims of forced labor. The shelter has a maximumcapacity of 40 and is intended to provide medical,psychological and legal services. During its first fullyear of operation, 279 domestic workers—the groupmost vulnerable to trafficking and abuse—entered anddeparted the shelter. There is, to date, no shelter availablefor male migrant workers. In 2007, the governmentproposed opening a larger shelter that would be ableto accommodate up to 700 men and women. Anexisting building was finally selected in 2008 to serveas the shelter and $2.5 million was allocated toward itsrefurbishment. Final authorization from the Council ofMinisters is necessary before the funds can be disbursedand refurbishment of the building can begin; as ofthis writing the shelter had not yet been opened. Thegovernment continues to lack a formal procedure for thesystematic identification and protection of traffickingvictims among vulnerable populations, such as foreignworkers arrested without proper identity documentsand women forced into prostitution. Governmentauthorities do not encourage victims to participate inthe investigation or prosecution of their traffickers. InJuly 2008, Kuwaiti law enforcement responded withforce to protests and riots by an estimated 80,000Bangladeshi workers complaining of non-payment ofwages and abuses; the government made no discernableeffort to identify trafficking victims among the 80,000or investigate their complaints related to forced labor;instead, hundreds of the workers were summarilydeported to Bangladesh. The government respondedto some of the protesting workers by offering themreimbursement of unpaid wages.PreventionKuwait made minimal efforts to prevent trafficking inpersons this year. Throughout September 2008, theMinistry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs organized a seriesof lectures in mosques throughout Kuwait in whichimams discussed the rights of domestic workers accordingto Islam. In April 2008, Kuwait established a HumanRights Commission, which meets once a month to discusssuch issues, though there has been no indication ofactions or decisions from these meetings. The governmentdid not take any steps to address child sex tourism amongKuwait citizens traveling abroad or efforts to reduce thedemand for commercial sexual acts within Kuwait.180

KYRGYZ REPUBLIC (TIER 2)The Kyrgyz Republic is a source, transit, and to a lesserextent, a destination country for men and womentrafficked from Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, andSouth Asia for purposes of forced labor and commercialsexual exploitation. Men and women are trafficked toKazakhstan and Russia for the purpose of forced laborin the agricultural, construction, and textile industries.Kyrgyz and foreign women are trafficked to the U.A.E,Kazakhstan, China, South Korea, Turkey, Greece, Cyprus,Thailand, Germany, and Syria for commercial sexualexploitation. The city of Osh is a growing destination forwomen trafficked from Uzbekistan for the purpose ofcommercial sexual exploitation.The Government of the Kyrgyz Republic does not fullycomply with the minimum standards for the eliminationof trafficking; however, it is making significant effortsto do so. Human trafficking complicity of low-levelgovernment officials remained a concern. The governmentmaintained good efforts to protect and assist Kyrgyzlabor migrants and potential trafficking victims inkey destination countries. In September 2008, thegovernment enacted a new anti-trafficking national actionplan.Recommendations for Kyrgyz Republic: Increase effortsto prosecute and convict trafficking offenders and ensurethat a majority of convicted trafficking offenders servetime in prison; vigorously investigate, prosecute, convict,and punish government officials complicit in trafficking;continue to improve the collection of trafficking lawenforcement data; continue trafficking sensitivity trainingfor police, prosecutors, and judges; continue efforts torepatriate expeditiously Kyrgyz victims found abroad;ensure that victims of trafficking are not punished foracts committed as a direct result of being trafficked;and encourage greater registration of newborns, therebyreducing the number of undocumented personsvulnerable to trafficking.in 2008 received suspended sentences. Sentences for theother two convicted traffickers ranged from three to eightsyears’ imprisonment. NGOs contend that some lowlevellaw enforcement officials are complicit in humantrafficking and accept bribes from traffickers; other lowlevelpolice tolerate trafficking due to a lack of awareness.The government reported no efforts to investigate,prosecute, convict, or punish these complicit governmentofficials.ProtectionThe government sustained modest efforts to assist victimsduring the reporting period. The government and NGOsidentified 161 victims of trafficking in 2008, compared to331 victims identified in 2007. Although the governmentprovided no direct funding for shelter or medicalassistance to victims, it continued to provide space forthree shelters run by anti-trafficking NGOs. In 2008, 34 ofthe total 117 victims assisted by NGOs and internationalorganizations were assisted by shelters that receivedin-kind government assistance. Government officialsreferred 20 victims to IOM and NGOs for assistance in2008, a significant increase from four victims so referredin 2007. Victims were encouraged to participate intrafficking investigations and prosecutions. Victims whocooperated with law enforcement investigations were notpenalized for crimes committed as a direct result of beingtrafficked; there were no reports of victims who did notcooperate with law enforcement being penalized duringthe reporting period. NGOs reported improved effortsby government officials to quickly repatriate Kyrgyznationals; in previous years, some victims remainedin destination countries for several months awaitingthe Kyrgyz government’s issuance of necessary traveldocuments.KYRGYZ REPUBLICProsecutionThe Kyrgyz government improved its collection oftrafficking-specific law enforcement data, although itdemonstrated weak law enforcement efforts duringthe reporting period. The 2005 Law on Preventionand Combating Trafficking in Persons criminalizestrafficking for both sexual exploitation and forced laborand prescribes penalties ranging from 3 to 20 years’imprisonment, which are sufficiently stringent andcommensurate with prescribed penalties for other gravecrimes, such as rape. In 2008, the government conducted92 investigations, according to its definition of trafficking– which appears broader than the U.S. Government’sdefinition – an increase from 33 investigations in 2007.The government reportedly prosecuted eight defendantsand secured the convictions of six trafficking offendersin 2008. Four of the six convicted trafficking offendersPreventionKyrgyzstan maintained its limited human traffickingprevention efforts over the last year. The governmentcontinued to publish brochures and leaflets in bothKyrgyz and Russian languages advising Kyrgyz nationalsseeking work abroad of the dangers of trafficking andproviding the numbers for trafficking assistance hotlinesin several key destination countries. The Kyrgyzgovernment maintained migration offices in six keydestination cities in Russia to assist and advise itsnationals vulnerable to labor trafficking of their rights181

LAOSand also provided in-kind assistance to an NGO-runnational labor migration hotline that provided legaladvice and assistance to potential victims of trafficking.LAOS (Tier 2)Laos is primarily a source country for women and girlstrafficked primarily to Thailand for the purposes ofcommercial sexual exploitation and forced labor asdomestic or factory workers. Some Lao men, women,and children migrate to neighboring countries in searchof better economic opportunities but are subjectedto conditions of forced or bonded labor or forcedprostitution after their arrival. Lao men who migratewillingly to Thailand are sometimes subjected toconditions of involuntary servitude in the Thai fishingand construction industry. Women who migrate toThailand are more likely to rely on recruitment agentsand incur debt, increasing their likelihood of becomingtrafficking victims. A small number of female citizenswere also reportedly trafficked to China to becomebrides for Chinese men. Ethnic minority populations inLaos are particularly vulnerable to trafficking because oftheir lack of Thai language skills and unfamiliarity withThai society. Laos is increasingly a country of transit forVietnamese, Chinese, and Burmese women destinedfor Thailand – including trafficked women – due to theconstruction of new highways and the acceleration ofinfrastructure projects linking the People’s Republic ofChina, Vietnam, Thailand, and Cambodia through Laos.There were new reports of Vietnamese women traffickedto Laos by Vietnamese organized crime gangs for forcedprostitution in the Vietnamese community. Internaltrafficking is also a problem that affects young womenand girls who are forced into prostitution in urban areas.The Government of Laos does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Duringthe last year, the government increased efforts toinvestigate trafficking offenses and prosecute and punishtrafficking offenders. It also sustained collaborationwith international organizations and NGOs to providetraining for government and law enforcement officials,repatriate and reintegrate Lao victims, and conductpublic awareness campaigns. A severe lack of resources,poor training of officials, and an ongoing corruptionproblem remain key impediments to the government’sability to combat trafficking in persons. The governmentcontinued to be largely dependent upon the internationaldonor community to fund anti-trafficking activities inthe country, though it continued to restrict greatly theactivities of NGOs, which impeded progress in antitraffickingefforts.Recommendations for Laos: Increase efforts to combatinternal trafficking, including the prosecution oftraffickers and identification of Lao citizens traffickedwithin the country; create and implement formal victimidentification procedures and train police and borderofficials to identify trafficking victims; increase effortsto combat trafficking-related complicity; implement andsupport a visible anti-trafficking awareness campaigndirected at clients of the sex trade; and improvecollaboration with international organizations and civilsociety to build capacity to combat trafficking in persons.ProsecutionThe Lao government demonstrated some progress in itsanti-trafficking law enforcement during the reportingperiod. Laos prohibits all forms of human traffickingthrough Penal Code Article 134, which was revisedin 2006. The prescribed penalties under Article 134,which are five years to life imprisonment, are sufficientlystringent and commensurate with those punishmentsprescribed for rape. In 2008, Lao judicial authoritiesconvicted 15 individuals of trafficking. Several sentencesimposed on convicted traffickers during 2008 consistedof one year’s imprisonment. An additional 53 cases arecurrently under investigation. Police corruption, a weakjudicial sector and the population’s general distrust ofthe court system impede anti-trafficking law enforcementefforts. Corruption remains a problem with governmentofficials susceptible to involvement or collusion intrafficking in persons. Observers of trafficking inLaos believe that at the local level, it is almost certainthat some officials are involved in facilitating humantrafficking, sometimes in collusion with their Thaicounterparts. There is also evidence that border officialspermit smuggling of all kinds, including of humans.However, no government or law enforcement officialshave ever been disciplined or punished for involvementin trafficking in persons. The Lao governmentcollaborated with international organizations and NGOsto increase law enforcement capacity through trainingfor police, investigators, prosecutors, and customs andborder officials. Through legal aid clinics, the Lao BarAssociation is currently assisting 10 victims of trafficking.ProtectionThe Lao government demonstrated a mixed record inensuring trafficking victims’ access to protective servicesduring the year. The Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare(MLSW) and Immigration Department continued tocooperate with IOM, the UN Inter-Agency Project onHuman Trafficking (UNIAP), and a local NGO to providevictim assistance. The MLSW, with NGO funding, alsocontinued operating a small transit center in Vientiane,where identified victims returning from Thailand remainfor one week before returning home. Victims not wanting182

to return home are referred to a long-term shelter runby the Lao Women’s Union or to a local NGO. Victimsrepatriated to Laos by Thai authorities are accompaniedby case files written in Thai, which Lao officials aresometimes unable to read. The government does notpenalize victims for unlawful acts committed as adirect result of their being trafficked. During 2008, 235formally identified victims of cross-border traffickingwere identified in Thailand and repatriated to Laos. Thegovernment did not identify any victims of internaltrafficking. The government provides medical services,counseling, vocational training, and employment servicesfor victims in its transit shelter in Vientiane. Whiledomestic trafficking victims can also be referred to thetransit shelter, there were no victims identified by Laoauthorities who stayed in the shelter. During the reportingperiod, at least two Vietnamese women who were sextrafficking victims were identified by Savannakhetprovincial units of the anti-trafficking police, and referredto NGOs for assistance and shelter after being housedin a local prison clinic for two weeks. The governmentsubsequently returned seven Vietnamese sex traffickingvictims, including one minor, to the establishmentwhere they had been exploited and government officialswithheld their passports after the victims told authoritiesthey did not want to be repatriated to Vietnam. Fourof the victims later returned to the police, requestingrepatriation assistance. They were repatriated, but Laoauthorities refused to follow established Vietnameseprocedures meant to ensure the safe and voluntary returnsof Vietnamese victims. The government did not prosecuteor convict any traffickers in this case and the victims didnot agree to testify. Although the government encouragedvictims to participate in investigations and prosecutionsof trafficking offenders, it did not provide foreign victimslegal alternatives for their removal to countries where theymay face hardship or retribution (e.g., Vietnam) if theytestify, and the Lao government did not offer incentivesfor foreign victims to participate in court proceedings. TheLao government occasionally provides office space, landfor shelters, and staff to assist in monitoring assistanceprograms run by NGOs and international organizations.PreventionThe Lao government continued efforts to preventtrafficking in persons with assistance from internationalorganizations and NGOs. With foreign funding, thegovernment sponsored media messages on the dangers oftrafficking. Also, in December 2008, the Lao Youth Unionheld a day-long event with workshops, puppet shows, andplays to address child trafficking. The event was led by theDeputy Prime Minister/Minister of National Defense whospoke about the dangers of trafficking. The Governmentof Laos demonstrated limited efforts to reduce demand forcommercial sex acts through periodic raids of nightclubsand discos used as fronts for commercial sex. Due to therise in tourism in Laos and the efforts in neighboringcountries to crackdown on foreign pedophiles’ sexualexploitation of local children, Lao government officialsand NGOs estimate that child sex tourism is likely togrow in Laos. Laos continued a national campaign topublicize the dangers of child sex tourism in the country,which included the training of tourism sector employeesto report suspicious behavior and the display of NGOcreatedpublic awareness posters in international hotels.LATVIA (Tier 2 Watch List)Latvia is a source and destination country for womentrafficked for the purposes of commercial sexualexploitation and forced labor. Latvian women aretrafficked to Germany, the United Kingdom, theNetherlands, Italy, Spain, Denmark, Switzerland, Greece,Ireland, and Japan for commercial sexual exploitation.Latvian teenage girls are trafficked within the country forthe purpose of commercial sexual exploitation. Latvia isa destination country for women trafficked from Belgiumand Portugal for the purpose of commercial sexualexploitation and for women from Thailand who may havebeen trafficked for the purpose of forced labor.The Government of Latvia does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Despitethese efforts, the government did not show evidenceof progress in prosecuting and punishing traffickingoffenders and assisting victims of trafficking; therefore,Latvia is placed on Tier 2 Watch List. During the reportingperiod, the results of the government’s efforts toinvestigate sex and labor trafficking crimes and prosecutethose responsible declined. It also cancelled fundingfor one NGO that had been providing victim care andit deported three potential victims of labor traffickingbefore their claims were completely vetted.Recommendations for Latvia: Provide governmentfundedassistance to a greater number of traffickingvictims; increase efforts to identify victims of traffickingamong vulnerable populations, such as women and girlsin prostitution, and refer these victims for assistance;ensure law enforcement, border guards, and laborinspectors receive labor trafficking training; ensure thata majority of convicted traffickers serve some time inprison; take steps to expand available victim servicesto areas outside of Riga; work with NGOs to improveservices available to victims of trafficking; and increaseefforts to raise awareness about both sex and labortrafficking.ProsecutionThe results of the Government of Latvia’s law enforcementefforts decreased in 2008. Latvia prohibits all formsof trafficking through Sections 154-1 and 154-2 of itsCriminal Law, which prescribe penalties of three to 15years’ imprisonment. These prescribed penalties aresufficiently stringent and commensurate with penaltiesprescribed for other grave crimes, such as rape. Thegovernment also uses non-trafficking related laws toprosecute traffickers. Authorities initiated 17 traffickinginvestigations, including at least one case of forcedlabor, compared to 21 trafficking investigations in 2007.LATVIA183

LEBANONAuthorities prosecuted 15 individuals and convicted 11traffickers in 2008, a decrease from 28 convictions in2007. Only three of the 11 trafficking offenders convictedin 2008 are serving time in prison; eight traffickers weregiven suspended sentences or fines and served no timein prison. One trafficker was sentenced to up to threeyears’ imprisonment and two traffickers were sentenced tofive to 10 years’ imprisonment. In 2007, seven convictedtraffickers served sentences ranging from one to 10 years’imprisonment and 21 traffickers served no time in prison.Despite several labor trafficking cases reported by policein 2008, the government did not try any suspected labortrafficking offenders.children, women in prostitution, and foreign migrantpopulations. Twenty-one out of 28 victims identifiedin 2008 were Latvian women trafficked abroad; sevenof these identified victims were exploited in Latvia.The government encouraged victims to participatein investigations against their traffickers; in 2008, 14victims assisted with law enforcement investigations.One trafficking victim benefited from the government’switness protection program. The government did notpenalize victims for unlawful acts committed as a directresult of their being trafficked.PreventionLatvia again demonstrated modest efforts to preventtrafficking in persons during the reporting period. TheMinistry of Education placed human trafficking as aneducation topic in the human rights curriculum of allhigh schools in Latvia. The government funded and theLatvian State Tourism Agency distributed informationsheets and travel guides for tourists that includedinformation designed to discourage sex tourism in Latvia.ProtectionThe government demonstrated mixed efforts to assistvictims during the reporting period. Although thegovernment increased the total amount of money spentfor victim assistance, the number of victims providedwith government-funded assistance remained the same;the government discontinued funding for all but oneanti-trafficking NGO operating in the country duringthe reporting period, reducing Latvia’s overall ability toidentify and assist victims of trafficking. The Governmentof Latvia spent $58,500 of $81,000 budgeted for victimassistance in 2008, an increase from $23,000 spentin 2007. However, only 12 of 28 identified victims oftrafficking qualified for government-funded assistancedue to a cumbersome application process; the remaining16 victims received assistance from privately fundedNGOs. The government offered foreign victims temporarylegal alternatives to their removal to countries wherethey may face hardship or retribution; victims whoagree to assist law enforcement may apply for temporaryresidency and work permits. No victims applied for orreceived the 30-day reflection period during the reportingperiod. The residency permits of three Thai women,initially identified as trafficking victims, were abruptlyterminated after the victims’ alleged traffickers requestedthat the government cancel their work permits. Thevictims were quickly deported and the police stoppedtheir investigation into their allegations of forced labor.The government identified and referred 17 victims toNGOs for assistance in 2008, compared to 10 in 2007;however, the NGO community expressed concerns thatvictim-screening mechanisms used by law enforcementdid not adequately identify victims of trafficking fromvulnerable populations living in Latvia including streetLEBANON (Tier 2 Watch List)Lebanon is a destination for Asian and African womentrafficked for the purpose of domestic servitude, andfor women from Eastern Europe and the former SovietUnion trafficked for the purpose of commercial sexualexploitation. Lebanese children are trafficked withinthe country for the purposes of forced labor (mostlystreet vending) and sexual exploitation. Women fromSri Lanka, the Philippines, and Ethiopia who travel toLebanon legally to work as household servants oftenfind themselves in conditions of forced labor throughwithholding of passports, non-payment of wages,restrictions on movement, threats, and physical or sexualassault. In some cases, employers have kept foreigndomestic workers confined in houses for years. Reportsfrom NGOs indicate that 15 percent of foreign domesticworkers encounter physical abuse from their employers, apotential indicator of involuntary domestic servitude.In April 2008, the Ethiopian government bannedits nationals from traveling to Lebanon to work ashousehold maids for numerous cultural and socioeconomicreasons, but also because of some incidentsof mistreatment, including physical abuse, rape, andmurder. The Philippines government lifted a similar banon its nationals traveling to Lebanon for work in March2009. The Lebanese government’s “artist” work permitprogram, which facilitates entry of women from EasternEurope and the former Soviet Union to work in the adultentertainment industry, serves to sustain a significantsex trade and facilitates sex trafficking. Some womenare reportedly held in debt bondage, receiving little orno income until the employer has forced the women torepay fraudulently imposed debts allegedly associatedwith the cost of their recruitment, transportation, andemployment.184

The Government of Lebanon does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts todo so. Despite these efforts, the government failed toshow significant progress in identifying foreign victims oftrafficking – particularly victims of domestic servitude –and punishing their exploiters. Nonetheless, it cooperatedwith NGOs, namely Caritas, by referring eight victims toCaritas in 2008. In October 2008, the Ministry of Justice,in cooperation with UNODC, launched a national reporton trafficking in persons and committed to undertakeefforts to combat trafficking. The assessment revealed anumber of policies and practices that contribute to thephenomenon of trafficking in Lebanon. While the reportrepresents a step forward in recognizing and bringingto light the nature of the problem, it may underestimatethe overall magnitude of Lebanon’s human traffickingproblem – particularly with regard to domestic servitude.Recommendations for Lebanon: Criminalize all formsof trafficking in persons; investigate and prosecutetrafficking offenses under existing law and convict andpunish trafficking offenders; develop and institute formalprocedures to identify victims of trafficking amongvulnerable populations, such as women holding “artist”work permits and foreign domestic workers who haveescaped from abusive employers; consider measures tolessen the abuse of the “artist” work permit as a conduitfor sex trafficking; enforce Lebanese law prohibiting theconfiscation of passports of foreign maids; implement theMarch 2009 Labor Code revision that provides a unifiedcontract; and ensure that victims of trafficking are referredto protection services rather than detained for crimescommitted as a direct result of being trafficked, such asimmigration violations and prostitution.ProsecutionLebanon made modest but insufficient efforts toprosecute or punish trafficking offenses during thereporting period. Although trafficking is not defined as acrime in Lebanese law, some trafficking-related offensesare codified in the criminal code, including commercialsexual exploitation, depriving a person of his or herfreedom, and use of documents belonging to anotherperson. The prescribed penalties for commercial sexualexploitation – a maximum of two years’ imprisonment– and forced prostitution – a minimum of one year’simprisonment – are not commensurate with thoseprescribed for other grave crimes, such as rape. Penaltiesfor other forms of trafficking are not sufficiently stringent:temporary hard labor is prescribed for the offense ofdepriving a person of freedom. During the past year,five cases were reported of foreign household servantswho had been victims of violence, insufficient paymentof salary, and withholding of passports; these may haveconstituted trafficking. In one case of rape of a domesticworker, an employer was prosecuted, convicted, andsentenced to five years’ imprisonment and ordered to paythe victim compensation. Other cases involved financialcompensation and/or two-month prison sentences. TheMinistry of Labor closed down two employment agenciesfor violation of workers’ rights, including physicalabuse. The General Security reported 47 complaints ofphysical abuse, rape, and withheld earnings of foreignwomen working in adult clubs in 2008 – complaintsthat may have involved conditions of involuntaryservitude. Most were settled out of court and the victimsdeported. These cases were hampered by a lack ofresources, court backlogs, corruption, cultural biasesagainst foreign women, bureaucratic indifference andinefficiency, difficulty proving cases of reported abuse,and victims’ lack of knowledge of their rights. Giventhe significant hurdles to pursuing criminal complaintsin the Lebanese court system, and in the absence ofalternate legal recourse, many foreign victims opted forquick administrative settlements followed by mandatoryrepatriation.ProtectionThe Government of Lebanon did not make sufficientefforts to protect victims of trafficking during thereporting period. The government did not providetrafficking victims with any services directly; onlyan NGO, funded by a foreign donor, providedshelter to foreign victims of involuntary domesticservitude. However, this NGO has a Memorandum ofUnderstanding with the Government of Lebanon, whichstipulates that the government will cooperate with theNGO by referring trafficking victims to the shelter. Thegovernment also provides security for the shelter andprotects the location’s whereabouts as requested bythe NGO. That NGO provided shelter for 92 victims oftrafficking in 2008. The government did not employformal procedures to identify and refer victims oftrafficking, although some victims are referred informallyto NGOs for assistance. Moreover, the governmentpursued policies and practices that significantly harmedforeign victims of trafficking. For example, authoritiesrequired that women recruited for prostitution under its“artist” work permit program be confined in hotels formost of the day and summarily deported them if theycomplained of mistreatment. Similarly, the governmentregularly detained and deported foreign domestic workerswho left their employers and did not have valid residencyand work permits, without attempting to determine if anywere victims of forced labor. Previously, domestic workerssigned a contract with an employment agency beforeLEBANON185

TRINIDAD & TOBAGO TIER RANKING BY YEARLESOTHOleaving their home country and signed a second contractin Arabic upon arrival in Lebanon, a language they maynot understand, and on terms that may not be consistentwith initial contract. The new unified contract providedin the March 2009 amendment to Lebanon’s Labor Codeis printed in nine languages and provided to prospectiveemployees in their home countries; domestic workers nowsign the same contract, in their native language, uponarrival in Lebanon. It is common practice for employersto force a domestic worker who breaks his or her contractto repay residency and work permit fees, or pay for apaper releasing him or her from their contract; there isno exception for workers who break their contracts dueto employers’ abuse. Victims were neither encouragedto participate in trials, nor offered legal alternatives toremoval to countries where they would face hardshipor retribution. Rather, the government often deportedvictims to their countries of origin before giving them theopportunity to testify against their traffickers.PreventionLebanon made minimal efforts to prevent traffickingin persons over the last year. In February 2009, theMinistry of Labor published a unified contractto be used by all employment agencies hiringdomestic workers locally or overseas; thecontract regulates working hours and stipulatesthat workers be given days off for vacationsand holidays. During 2008, 50 membersof the armed forces and law enforcementofficials participated in training conductedby an NGO on basic awareness of humanrights, migrant workers’ rights, and traffickingissues. In addition, the Ministry of Laborconducted routine training courses for its inspectors,although the Ministry has limited jurisdiction in cases ofhousehold employment. Aside from the introduction ofthe aforementioned unified contract for domestic workers,the government did not take additional steps to reducethe demand for domestic servitude or commercial sex actsin Lebanon during the reporting period. The governmentsimilarly did not institute a public awareness campaigntargeting citizens traveling to known child sex tourismdestinations.LESOTHO (Tier 2 Watch List)Lesotho is a source country for women and childrentrafficked for the purposes of sexual exploitation andforced labor. Victims are trafficked internally andto South Africa for domestic work, farm labor, andcommercial sexual exploitation. Women and girls are alsobrought to South Africa for forced marriages in remotevillages. Nigerian traffickers acquire Basotho victims forinvoluntary servitude in households of Nigerian familiesliving in London. Chinese organized crime units acquirevictims while transiting Lesotho and traffic them toJohannesburg, where they “distribute” them locally ortraffic them overseas. Identified traffickers in Lesothotend to be white, Afrikaans-speaking men and longdistancetruck drivers. Women and children attemptingto support families affected by HIV/AIDS and Basotholooking for better employment prospects in South Africaare most likely to be lured by a trafficker’s fraudulent offerfor a legitimate job.The Government of Lesotho does not comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Despitethese overall significant efforts, the government has notdemonstrated progress in combating human traffickingthrough effective law enforcement; therefore, Lesotho isplaced on Tier 2 Watch List. A program to train officers inseveral law enforcement agencies to identify traffickingsituations as part of a general strategy to improve lawenforcement has not yet resulted in any traffickingrelated arrests or prosecutions. Officials increased someanti-trafficking efforts, especially in raising the public’sawareness of the risks of trafficking, even as most of theirlimited resources were directed at addressing the country’sdebilitating HIV/AIDS pandemic.CAMBODIA TIER RANKING BY YEARIRAQ TIER RANKING BY YEARLESOTHO TIER RANKING BY YEARRecommendations for Lesotho: Enact a comprehensivelaw prohibiting all forms of human trafficking; collectdata on victims identified and assisted, traffickingoffenses investigated and prosecuted, and traffickingoffenders convicted and punished; ensure that victimsare not inappropriately punished for acts committedas a direct result of being trafficked; provide increasedtraining, possibly in conjunction with NGOs, to lawenforcement officers in victim identification, particularlyat border points; provide shelter and services to victims oftrafficking, possibly in collaboration with internationalorganizations and NGOs; and increase efforts to raisepublic awareness of trafficking.ProsecutionThe government did not increase its law enforcementefforts during the past year. Lesotho has nocomprehensive anti-trafficking law, which hinders thegovernment’s ability to address human trafficking. Slaveryand forced labor are constitutionally prohibited. Existinglaws governing abduction, kidnapping, labor exploitation,immigration and sexual abuse of children were usedto prosecute trafficking-related crimes in the past. TheChild Protection Act of 1980, the Sexual Offenses Actof 2003, the Common Law, and the Labor Code Order186

THE NETHERLANDS ANTILLES TIER RANKING BY YEARof 1981, as amended, prescribe penalties of at least fiveyears’ imprisonment for trafficking crimes, which aresufficiently stringent and commensurate with penaltiesprescribed for other serious crimes. The Child Protectionand Welfare Bill, drafted in 2005, defines child traffickingand prescribes penalties of 20 years’ imprisonment forST. VINCENT & GRENADINES TIER RANKING BY YEARconvicted offenders. This bill is currently under finalreview with the Office of the Attorney General. Nocurrent or draft laws specifically penalize the traffickingof adults. The government did not provide data ontrafficking prosecutions or convictions in the past year.Other sources stated that investigations of traffickingrelatedsituations are rare because trafficking is notspecifically defined as a crime under existing laws, andlaw enforcement resources and capacity are limited. Somepolice and TUNISIA customs TIER officers RANKING and BY YEAR members of the LesothoMounted Police Services’ Child and Gender ProtectionUnit (CGPU) received training on detecting and curbinga range of illegal activities at border posts, includinghuman trafficking. Law enforcement officers did notproactively identify trafficking victims among vulnerablepopulations such as women and children in prostitutionor illegal migrants, and have not been adequately trainedto recognize victims they may encounter as part of theirnormal duties.TURKMENISTAN TIER RANKING BY YEARProtectionThe Lesotho government took inadequate steps to protectvictims of trafficking over the last year. Officials didnot proactively identify victims, and have no formalmechanism for referring victims to service providers.Lesotho has no care facilities specifically for traffickingvictims. Orphanages supported by the Government ofLesotho and NGOs are available to provide some servicesto children identified as victims of trafficking. The CGPUstaff provided counseling to women and children whoare victims of abuse, including some who were possiblytrafficking victims. Existing law does not protect victimsfrom prosecution for offenses committed as a directresult of being trafficked. Information is not availableon whether authorities encouraged or would encouragevictims to participate in anti-trafficking investigationsand prosecutions. The law also did not provide foreignvictims of trafficking with alternatives to their removal tocountries where they may face hardship or retribution.In an ongoing partnership with NGOs, the CGPU trained250 children and 70 parents how to report possiblechild abuse, including suspected incidents of child sexand labor trafficking. A committee composed of severalgovernment ministries and the CGPU of the policehad nominal responsibility for coordinating policy ontrafficking but was not active during 2008 and early 2009.The government’s ongoing, incremental implementationof tuition-free primary education expanded compulsoryschool enrollment and attendance in an effort to identifyall school-aged children, prevent inappropriate childlabor, and reduce children’s vulnerability to traffickingand other crimes.LIBERIA (Tier 2)Liberia is a source, transit, and destination country forchildren and women trafficked for the purposes of forcedlabor and commercial sexual exploitation. Most victimsare trafficked within the country, primarily from rural tourban areas for domestic servitude, forced street vending,forced begging by religious instructors and sexualexploitation in brothels or private apartments. Childrenmay also be trafficked for labor on rubber plantationsand in alluvial diamond mines. Some children in Liberiaare subjected to sexual exploitation by internationalpeacekeeping troops and personnel from internationalorganizations. A January 2009 UN report indicates,however, that such abuses are declining. Internationally,children are trafficked to Liberia from Sierra Leone,Guinea, and Cote d’Ivoire and from Liberia to Coted’Ivoire, Guinea, and Nigeria for domestic servitude,street vending, sexual exploitation, agricultural labor, andforced begging.Liberia continues to struggle to rebuild after 14 yearsof civil conflict that crippled the nation’s economy andinstitutions and increased the vulnerability of childrento being trafficked. During its period of reconstruction,Liberia has taken some steps to address trafficking, butmore needs to be done.LIBERIAPreventionThe government modestly increased its efforts toprevent trafficking during the year. Immigrationauthorities monitored border crossings for indications oftransnational crimes such as smuggling and kidnapping,and received basic training in detecting potentialtrafficking situations. Police raised public awareness ofhuman trafficking through radio programs and brochuresexplaining what trafficking is and how to identify it.The government also encouraged the public to reportinstances of rape, physical abuse, and sexual harassment,including potential sex trafficking situations, and beganan associated increase in telephone access in rural areas.The Government of Liberia does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so, despitelimited resources. Although the government made limitedprogress in its efforts to combat trafficking through lawenforcement and victim protection measures, its overallanti-trafficking performance remained low.187

LIBYARecommendations for Liberia: Increase efforts toprosecute and punish trafficking offenders; allocateincreased funding for basic anti-trafficking lawenforcement and victim protection needs; combat thetrafficking complicity of government personnel in thecriminal justice system; educate judges about the lawprohibiting trafficking; and increase efforts to educate thepublic about trafficking.ProsecutionThe Government of Liberia demonstrated slightlyincreased law enforcement efforts to combat traffickingover the last year. Liberia’s 2005 Act to Ban Traffickingprohibits all forms of trafficking, prescribing a minimumpenalty of one year’s imprisonment for labor traffickingof adults, six years’ imprisonment for child labortrafficking, and 11 to 16 years’ imprisonment for childsex trafficking. These penalties are sufficiently stringentand commensurate with other grave crimes, such asrape. No trafficking offenders have yet been convictedor sentenced under this law. The government reportedinvestigating 18 cases of trafficking and arresting ninesuspects. Four child trafficking suspects are beingtried and five are awaiting trial. During the year, thegovernment extradited two traffickers to Guinea. Thecriminal justice system remains handicapped by shortagesin human and material resources: police lacked vehiclesto respond to trafficking reports, and courts lackedprosecutors. Police officers were sometimes required toplay the role of prosecutor, and judges were often unawareof the law against trafficking. NGO reports also indicatethat police, many of whom are poorly or infrequentlypaid, asked victims for compensation in exchange forbringing charges against suspected traffickers. Moreover,trafficking suspects reportedly bribed police in returnfor the dropping of criminal charges. The governmentadopted a revised national action plan to combattrafficking that expands the role of the National HumanTrafficking Task Force, which had previously focusedon awareness-raising, in investigating and prosecutingtrafficking crimes. Established in 2006, the Task Force ischaired by the Ministry of Labor (MOL) and consists ofgovernment ministries, the Inspector General of Police,and the Commissioner of Immigration. Implementingthis plan, in late 2008, Task Force members, includingrepresentatives from the Ministries of Labor and Heath,accompanied the Liberia National Police on traffickinginvestigations of religious schools where children areoften subjected to forced begging. An MOL attorney,whose position is funded by a donor, also accompaniedgovernment officials to court to provide guidance inprosecuting trafficking offenders during the year. Throughthe Joint Program on Sexual and Gender-based Violence,developed by the government and the UN in June 2008, acourt was established to address sexual and gender-basedviolence offences, including sexually exploitive activitiesby peacekeepers.ProtectionLiberia demonstrated minimal efforts to protecttrafficking victims during the year. The government didnot operate its own victim shelters or provide directassistance to victims due to resource constraints. TheLiberian National Police rescued 50 Liberian, SierraLeonean, and Guinean children from a religious school inLofa, where they were being forced to beg. Police referredthe children to an NGO-operated safe house for care andthe government has shut down the school. Immigrationofficials worked with the Task Force to ensure the entryback into Liberia of a 17-year-old male victim, who wasrepatriated from Niger. Once back in Liberia, the Ministryof Heath reunited him with his family. The governmentworked with Guinean officials to repatriate a child victimback to Guinea.The MOL used its operational funds to providetraining for government immigration officials, policecommenders, and the Police Women and ChildrenProtection Section in identifying victims. The governmentdid not encourage victims, all of whom are children, toassist in trafficking investigations or prosecutions. Lawenforcement officials did not employ formal proceduresfor identifying trafficking victims among females inprostitution. The government did not provide legalalternatives to the removal of foreign victims to countrieswhere they might have faced hardship or retribution.Victims were not, however, inappropriately incarcerated,fined or otherwise penalized for unlawful acts committedas a direct result of being trafficked.PreventionThe Government of Liberia made modest efforts toeducate the public about trafficking. The MOL conductedmultiple anti-trafficking awareness campaigns aimedprimarily at parents and community leaders duringthe year, the majority of which it funded. The NationalHuman Trafficking Task Force continued to raiseawareness about trafficking through radio broadcastsfunded by the MOL and broadcast on UN-donated airtime. In an effort funded by the MOL and NGOs, theTask Force also went into local communities to holdone-day workshops to explain the effects of traffickingon communities. The Task Force met monthly and morefrequently if required by newly developed cases. Thegovernment did not take steps to reduce demand forforced labor or for commercial sex acts.LIBYA (Tier 2 Watch List)Libya is a transit and destination country for men andwomen from sub-Saharan Africa and Asia traffickedfor the purposes of forced labor and commercial sexualexploitation. Migrants typically seek employment inLibya as laborers and domestic employees or transitLibya en route to Europe. Both migrants and traffickingvictims are routinely smuggled through Libya to Europe,188

especially to or through Italy and Malta, en route tovarious locations on the continent. Libya’s migrantpopulation of 1.5 to 2 million represents about one-thirdof its overall population. Although precise figures areunavailable, foreign observers estimate that one-half toone percent of foreigners (i.e., up to 20,000 people) maybe victims of trafficking. In some cases, smuggling debtsand illegal status leave migrants vulnerable to coercion,resulting in cases of forced prostitution and forced labor;employers of irregular migrants sometimes withholdpayment or travel documents. As in previous years, therewere reports that women from sub-Saharan Africa weretrafficked to Libya for the purposes of commercial sexualexploitation. In May 2008, Nigerian officials arrestedone of their nationals, a resident of Libya, and rescued 21young women who they claimed were being traffickedfor the purpose of prostitution in Europe after paying thetrafficker fees to work as maids in Libya.The Government of Libya does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Despitethese overall efforts, the government did not showevidence of progress in investigating and prosecutingtrafficking offenses and protecting trafficking victims;Libya is therefore placed on Tier 2 Watch List.Recommendations for Libya: Criminalize all forms oftrafficking; increase law enforcement efforts to investigateand prosecute trafficking offenses; increase training ofgovernment officials to identify and provide protectionto victims; develop a program to assist victims; andundertake an information campaign to raise publicawareness of the problem of human trafficking.ProsecutionThe government did not publicly release statistics oninvestigations or prosecutions of trafficking offenses orconvictions of trafficking offenders in 2008. Press reportsindicated that some traffickers were tried under othercriminal statutes, though the disposition of those casesis unknown. Although Libya does not have a single lawspecifically prohibiting trafficking in persons, it does havelaws criminalizing prostitution and sexual exploitation,which could be used to prosecute sex trafficking offenses,but there were no indications that the government didso. The 1970 labor law does not criminalize forced labor,but penalizes some exploitative labor practices, includingholding an employee’s passport. There is no evidence ofgovernment involvement in or tolerance of trafficking atany level.ProtectionThe government took minimal steps to improve theprotection of trafficking victims during the reportingperiod. Using established procedures, law enforcementofficials collaborated with IOM and UNHCR to screenfor evidence of trafficking among populations of refugeesand migrants, focusing particularly on individuals whoappeared to be traveling on fraudulent documents orclaiming a nationality other than their own. In somemigrant detention centers, an unknown number ofmigrants identified as potential victims were referredto NGOs and international organizations for ad hocmedical care and counseling; the government lacked aformal victim referral mechanism and legal services wereunavailable to victims. The government did not activelyencourage victims to participate in the investigationand prosecution of trafficking offenders. Like irregularmigrants, trafficking victims may be susceptible todeportation or punishment for unlawful presence in Libyaas a result of being trafficked.PreventionPublic awareness of human trafficking as a phenomenondistinct from illegal immigration and smuggling is lowin Libya, including among government officials. Duringthe reporting period, the government did not conductany anti-trafficking public information campaigns. Thegovernment, however, supported a series of workshops forlaw enforcement officials and NGOs to raise awarenessof human trafficking. During the year, the governmentprovided in-kind assistance to IOM, including facilities,translation services, and transportation costs, whichallowed IOM to provide anti-trafficking public awarenesscampaigns and law enforcement training to a largeraudience than initially budgeted. No informationwas available on measures to reduce the demand forcommercial sex acts, or to prevent possible child sextourism committed abroad by Libyan nationals. Thegovernment collaborated with IOM to conduct antismugglingand anti-trafficking campaigns targeted to theirregular migrant community.LITHUANIA (Tier 1)Lithuania is a source, transit, and destination countryfor women and children trafficked for the purpose ofcommercial sexual exploitation. One estimate concludedthat approximately 20 percent of Lithuanian traffickingvictims are underage girls. Lithuanian women aretrafficked within the country and to the United Kingdom,Germany, the Netherlands, Greece, Italy, France, and theCzech Republic for the purpose of forced prostitution.Women from Belarus are trafficked to Lithuania for thesame purpose.LITHUANIA189

LUXEMBOURGThe Government of Lithuania fully complies with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking. In2008, the government increased victim assistance fundingto $150,000, demonstrated strong law enforcementefforts, and increased the number of victims referred bylaw enforcement personnel for assistance. It also ensuredthat a majority of convicted traffickers served significanttime in prison.Recommendations for Lithuania: Train relevant lawenforcement personnel to improve efforts to identify andinvestigate human trafficking offenses, including labortrafficking; provide trafficking awareness and preventiontraining for peacekeepers deployed abroad; and continueto ensure a majority of convicted traffickers serve sometime in prison.ProsecutionThe Government of Lithuania sustained its antitraffickinglaw enforcement efforts during the reportingperiod. Lithuania prohibits all forms of traffickingthrough Article 147 of its criminal code, whichprescribes penalties ranging from probation to 15 years’imprisonment. These penalties are sufficiently stringentand commensurate with penalties prescribed for othergrave crimes, such as rape. In 2008, authorities initiated16 sex trafficking investigations and three labor traffickinginvestigations, up from a total of nine investigationsin 2007. Authorities prosecuted 20 defendants for sextrafficking during the reporting period, compared to eightdefendants prosecuted in 2007. In 2008, 13 traffickingoffenders were convicted, a significant increase from fourconvictions in 2007. Ten convicted traffickers were givensentences ranging from two to eight years’ imprisonment,while three traffickers were given no time in prison.ProtectionThe Lithuanian Government continued to improveits protection of trafficking victims. Law enforcementidentified 86 trafficking victims and referred themto NGOs for assistance in 2008, compared with 56victims referred in 2007. In 2008, the governmentprovided approximately $150,000 to 13 anti-traffickingNGOs to conduct victim assistance and rehabilitation,including vocational training and job placement forvictims, compared to $144,000 in 2007. Adult femaleand minor victims were provided shelter in domesticviolence shelters. Male victims of trafficking could behoused at community crisis centers, although to date nomale victims of trafficking have requested shelter. Thegovernment encouraged victims to assist in traffickinginvestigations and prosecutions; in 2008, twenty-fiveLithuanian victims assisted with trafficking investigationsand prosecutions. Foreign victims who participated incourt proceedings were eligible for temporary residencyand work permits. Identified victims were not penalizedfor unlawful acts committed as a direct result of theirbeing trafficked; however, some victims who were notproperly identified may have been fined for prostitutionoffenses. During the reporting period, the Ministry ofForeign Affairs assisted 17 Lithuanian victims identifiedabroad by referring them to local NGOs for assistance andprovided funding for their repatriation to Lithuania.PreventionLithuania demonstrated some efforts to preventtrafficking during the reporting period. For example,the government funded an education campaign targetedat children and adolescents in seven towns acrossthe country; the campaign focused on targeting bothpotential victims of trafficking and also potential futureclients of the sex trade.LUXEMBOURG (Tier 1)Luxembourg is a destination country for womentrafficked primarily from Russia and Ukraine for thepurpose of commercial sexual exploitation. An increasingnumber of women from Africa, primarily Nigeria,are engaged in prostitution in the country, and areparticularly vulnerable to trafficking due to debts theyincur in the process of migrating – legally or illegally – toLuxembourg. The government and NGOs did not identifyany cases of forced labor during the reporting period.The Government of Luxembourg fully complies with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.The government enacted additional anti-traffickinglegislation and funded a sex trafficking demand reductioncampaign during the reporting period. While formalizedvictim identification and referral procedures remainedlacking, the government established a 90-day reflectionperiod for victims in 2008.Recommendations for Luxembourg: Establish formalprocedures to identify victims among vulnerable groups,such as women in the legal commercial sex trade andillegal migrants, and to refer these victims to availableservices; ensure there are adequate protection facilitiesin place for all trafficking victims, including victims offorced labor, and child and male victims; and launchan awareness campaign to educate authorities and thegeneral public about forms of labor trafficking.ProsecutionThe Government of Luxembourg demonstrated progressin the prosecution of trafficking crimes during thereporting period. In February 2009, the governmentadopted long-awaited amendments to its penal code190

that distinguish human trafficking from smuggling orillegal migration and broaden the definition of humantrafficking to include forced labor. Penalties prescribedin the new legislation increased from a maximumprison term of three years, to a range of five to 10years’ imprisonment. These penalties are sufficientlystringent and commensurate with penalties prescribedfor other grave crimes. There were seven prosecutionsand convictions of sex trafficking offenders during thereporting period, compared with six from the previousyear. Sentences ranged from three months’ imprisonmentwith fines to three years’ imprisonment with fines. Themajority of trafficking offenders were sentenced to twoyears’ imprisonment or more. The government continuedits ongoing training of police, immigration, and othergovernment officials and NGOs on victim identification.There was no evidence of trafficking complicity byLuxembourg public officials during the year.ProtectionThe government made some additional progress inprotecting trafficking victims during the reporting period.The government adopted immigration legislation in 2008that provides human trafficking victims with relief fromdeportation through the granting of temporary residencestatus for a 90-day reflection period. The governmentdid not provide long-term shelter or housing benefitsfor victims of trafficking. The government encouragesvictims to participate in the investigation and prosecutionof trafficking offenders during the reflection period,though the granting of the reflection period is notconditional on victims’ cooperation with authorities.The government worked with neighboring countries on awitness protection plan for two trafficking victims duringthe reporting period. The government also funded twoNGOs providing services for women in distress that alsoserve female human trafficking victims. Child victims oftrafficking were placed in a general shelter for juvenilesthat offered specialized services for trafficking victims.The government has a stated policy of ensuring thatvictims are not punished for unlawful acts committedas a direct result of their being trafficked; it is unclearwhether all women in prostitution who are in the countryillegally are checked for trafficking indicators beforebeing deported or imprisoned. It is also unclear whetherauthorities are proactively identifying victims among theestimated 500 women in prostitution in Luxembourg’slegalized sex trade. The government did not appear toemploy a formal referral mechanism for authorities to usewhen referring victims to available services.PreventionThe government made some progress in its effortsto prevent trafficking during the reporting period. Itlaunched a sex trafficking public awareness campaign atbus stops. In addition, the Ministry of Equal Opportunityfunded a sex trafficking demand reduction postercampaign bearing the slogan, “If you hire a prostitute,you are financing human trafficking.” The governmentdid not report any child sex tourism prosecutions orprevention efforts during the reporting period.MACAU (Tier 2)Macau is primarily a destination for the trafficking ofwomen and girls from the Chinese mainland, Mongolia,Russia, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Burma,and Central Asia for the purpose of commercialsexual exploitation. Most victims are frominland Chinese provinces who migrate tothe border province of Guangdong in searchof employment, where they fall prey to falseadvertisements for jobs in Macau. Foreignand mainland Chinese women and girls aredeceived into migrating voluntarily to theMacau Special Administrative Region (MSAR)for employment opportunities in casinos, asdancers, or other types of legitimate employment; uponarrival in Macau, some of the victims are passed to localorganized crime groups, held captive, and forced intosexual servitude. Chinese, Russian, and Thai criminalsyndicates are sometimes involved in bringing womeninto Macau for its legalized prostitution industry. Victimsare sometimes confined in massage parlors and illegalbut widely tolerated brothels, where they are closelymonitored, have their identity documents confiscated,are forced to work long hours, or are threatened withviolence. The control of some victims by organized crimesyndicates makes it particularly dangerous for them toseek help. More rarely, Macau is also a source territoryfor women and girls trafficked elsewhere in Asia forcommercial sexual exploitation.The MSAR does not fully comply with the minimumstandards for the elimination of trafficking; however, it ismaking significant efforts to do so. During the reportingperiod, the government passed a comprehensive antitraffickinglaw and began to provide shelter, counseling,and medical and financial assistance to traffickingvictims. Nevertheless, overall efforts to investigate andprosecute traffickers, particularly those involved inorganized crime, remain inadequate. Victim identificationand protection efforts also need improvement. Macauhas the resources and government infrastructure to makegreater efforts in addressing trafficking in persons.Recommendations for the Macau SpecialAdministrative Region: Push for greater investigationsMACAU191

MACAUand prosecutions of traffickers under the newcomprehensive anti-trafficking law; cooperate closely withsource country governments on cross-border traffickingcases; increase efforts to identify victims of traffickingamong vulnerable groups such as migrant workers andforeign women and children arrested for prostitution;ensure that victims of trafficking are not punished forcrimes committed as a direct result of being trafficked;provide specialized training to Social Welfare Bureausocial workers in providing assistance to victims ofhuman trafficking and designate a social worker to assisttrafficking victims in the shelter; and support a visibleanti-trafficking awareness campaign directed at employersand clients of the legalized sex trade.ProsecutionThe Macau government made some progress in its antitraffickinglaw enforcement efforts during the reportingperiod. In June 2008, the Macau Legislative Assemblypassed comprehensive anti-trafficking legislation, whichprohibits all forms of trafficking in persons and prescribespenalties ranging from three to 12 years’ imprisonment,which are sufficiently stringent and commensurate withthose prescribed for other grave crimes, such as rape.While the government conducted some investigationsinto cases of human trafficking, there were several casesduring the reporting period of Vietnamese and Mongolianwomen allegedly trafficked to Macau for commercialsexual exploitation that Macau authorities did notinvestigate. Reports from law enforcement officials insource countries indicate a lack of cooperation by Macauauthorities when requesting assistance and follow-upin cases involving foreign nationals. Two sex traffickingprosecutions are awaiting trial, both of which resultedfrom victims filing complaints with authorities. Macauauthorities have yet to obtain a conviction of a traffickingoffender. In October 2008, two Macau female sextrafficking victims were rescued in Japan after one of thevictims sent a text message to a relative. Macau authoritiesworked with INTERPOL and Japanese law enforcement inthe repatriation of the victims. Macau police arrested onetrafficker in this case, who has not yet been prosecuted.Corruption is a significant problem in Macau, andis often closely linked to the gambling industry andorganized crime networks. One Macau police officerarrested in 2007 for allegedly blackmailing two womenin prostitution for “protection” fees has not been broughtto trial. Macau authorities did not report any allegationsof official complicity with human trafficking in 2008. Thecontrol of Macau, Chinese, Russian, and Thai criminalsyndicates over Macau’s lucrative sex trade continuedto challenge the effectiveness of prosecution efforts inMacau.ProtectionMSAR authorities demonstrated some efforts toprotect trafficking victims in 2008. Although Macauauthorities, with NGO assistance, developed guidelinesfor the proactive identification of trafficking victims,most trafficking victims were self-identified. Foreignvictims found it extremely difficult to escape their stateof servitude given the lack of services in their nativelanguage and the lack of their government’s diplomaticrepresentation in Macau. During the reporting period,several foreign women were trafficked to Macau forcommercial sexual exploitation but were not identified byMacau authorities; they were instead assisted by foreignNGOs and their home governments, who arranged fortheir repatriation. The Macau government providedtemporary shelter, counseling, and financial and medicalservices to 23 victims of trafficking in a shelter run by theSocial Welfare Bureau. One additional victim stayed in alocal NGO shelter. Victims are provided a weekly stipendduring their time in the shelters, but are not offeredlegal alternatives to their removal to countries wherethey may face hardship or retribution. Due to the lack ofeffective victim identification, other victims were likelydeported for immigration violations. Persons detained forimmigration violations were usually deported and barredfrom re-entry to Macau for up to two years. The Women’sGeneral Association of Macau receives governmentfunding to run a 24-hour trafficking victim assistancehotline. Although the Macau police also ran a traffickinghotline, the public appeared to lack awareness aboutthe hotline’s existence, and no trafficking cases wereidentified from hotline calls during the reporting period.PreventionThe government demonstrated progress in its traffickingprevention efforts. The government continued to publishanti-trafficking brochures in multiple languages thatwere displayed at border checkpoints, hospitals, andpublic gathering areas. It also ran radio and televisionadvertisements, and organized several seminars toincrease public awareness of human trafficking, in whichsenior Macau government officials called on the public tohelp the government fight trafficking. Authorities set asidefunding to conduct an independent evaluation of thetrafficking situation in Macau in 2009. The governmentdid not take measures during the reporting period toreduce the demand for commercial sex acts or conductany awareness campaigns targeting clients of Macau’slegalized prostitution industry.192

Macedonia (Tier 1)Macedonia is a source, transit, and destination countryfor women and children trafficked for the purpose ofcommercial sexual exploitation. Macedonian womenand children are trafficked within the country. Victimstrafficked into Macedonia are primarily from Albaniaand Kosovo. Macedonian victims and victims transitingthrough Macedonia are trafficked to South Centraland Western Europe. Children, primarily ethnic Roma,are trafficked for the purpose of forced begging withinthe country. Victims were trafficked for the purpose offorced labor in Macedonia’s service sectors. Traffickers’modus operandi continued to evolve in response to lawenforcement tactics, including increased use of morehidden, private sectors, such as beauty salons andmassage parlors.The Government of Macedonia fully complies withthe minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking. While the government could strengthen itsperformance in certain areas, the government improvedimplementation of the anti-trafficking statute to obtainconvictions of trafficking offenders and continuedto expand the usage of its victim-centered standardoperating procedures for the treatment and protection oftrafficking victims.Recommendations for Macedonia: Continue appreciableprogress in victim protection and assistance; proactivelyimplement the new standard operating procedures onvictim identification; ensure institutionalized protectionand reintegration services for victims; continue to ensureconvicted traffickers receive adequate jail time; vigorouslyprosecute, convict, and punish public officials complicitin trafficking; and expand overall prevention and demandreduction awareness efforts to educate clients of the sextrade and forced labor about trafficking.ProsecutionThe Government of Macedonia demonstrated someimportant progress in its anti-trafficking law enforcementefforts in 2008 by decreasing processing times fortrafficking cases and securing increased sentences forconvicted trafficking offenders. While one organizationreported that traffickers were still sometimes prosecutedunder smuggling laws, significant improvement inprosecuting suspected traffickers under the antitraffickingstatute was reported during the year. Thegovernment prohibits sex and labor trafficking throughits 2004 criminal code; Article 418(a) and (g) coversall forms of trafficking in persons. The minimumpenalty prescribed for trafficking for commercial sexualexploitation is four years’ imprisonment, which issufficiently stringent and commensurate with penaltiesprescribed for other grave crimes, such as rape. In 2008,the government prosecuted 11 cases under article 418(a)and (g) involving 28 trafficking suspects, resulting inthe conviction of 17 trafficking offenders. The averagesentence imposed was five years’ imprisonment. Thegovernment prosecuted three cases on forced laborcharges. These prosecutions resulted in eight sentences:four of four years, two of five years, one of six years, andone of seven years. There were reports that some lawenforcement officials, including prosecutors and judges,continued to demonstrate an inadequate understandingof trafficking and insensitivity towards victims’ rights,including in courtroom settings. The government didnot prosecute any acts of trafficking-related complicityby government officials during the reporting period;however, reports indicated that corruption continuedto directly hamper Macedonia’s anti-trafficking efforts.For example, local brothel owners were occasionallytipped off prior to raids, allowing traffickers to eludelaw enforcement and brothel owners to hide potentialtrafficking victims.ProtectionThe Government of Macedonia demonstrated someprogress in its protection of trafficking victims in 2008.It continued to conduct training, with the supportof international donors, on its standard operatingprocedures (SOPs) on the identification and referralof trafficking victims, and implementation of theseprocedures has continued to improve; however,application of the SOPs by local police was at times adhoc and dependent on particular, victim-sensitive officers.The government has acknowledged that local policeneed more consistent understanding and applicationof the SOPs, and in January 2009 implemented a newrequirement that all raids conducted by local policemust include an officer from the police anti-traffickingunit. An international organization reported that borderpolice did not employ systematic procedures to identifytrafficking victims among migrants at Macedonianborders, although several victims were identified as aresult of border police efforts. The government did nottake proactive and systematic efforts to identify victimsamong vulnerable groups within its labor sectors. Thegovernment has not yet funded an NGO providingprotection and assistance to domestic traffickingvictims. It recently announced plans to take over fullfinancial and material responsibilities for the country’sdomestic trafficking shelter, but there were concernsabout the impact on victims’ rights; these concerns wereaddressed and alleviated in a January meeting betweenthe government and the NGO that voiced them. TheMACEDONIA193

MADAGASCARgovernment continues to operate a reception center forforeign migrants and trafficking victims; victims’ freedomof movement in this center is severely restricted. Althoughlaw enforcement reported it identified 130 “presumed”victims in 2008, only 18 victims, 14 of whom wereMacedonian, qualified as trafficking victims during thereporting period. The government encouraged victims toparticipate in investigations and trials. The governmentin January 2008 created provisions for the offering ofa six-month residency permit and reflection period toforeign victims; none of the 118 presumed foreign victimsidentified during the reporting period requested thispermit. Presumed domestic victims were entitled to a30-day reflection period in the domestic shelter beforetaking part in a formal interview process with a trainedtrafficking specialist. The government provided somereintegration support through its 27 Centers for SocialWelfare. These centers assisted seven victims in 2008.NGOs and international experts reported some problemswith the government’s identification process, resulting inpossible misidentification of potential trafficking victimsby local authorities.PreventionThe government collaborated with NGOs and theinternational community in its trafficking preventionefforts, and in December 2008 drafted a National ActionPlan for the years 2009-2012. It did not provide any directfinancial support for NGOs conducting anti-traffickingprevention activities during the reporting period, butcontinued to provide significant in-kind support. InMay 2008, the government conducted a nationwidesurvey to determine the public’s level of awarenessabout trafficking. Based on the findings, it conductednine public roundtables throughout the country. Thegovernment included mandatory training in its primaryand secondary school curriculum to prevent trafficking.In December 2008, the National Commission organizeda national anti-trafficking week. The Commission setup booths in over a dozen cities throughout Macedoniato distribute anti-trafficking materials, and high-levelofficials spoke out about trafficking. In January 2009, theNational Commission published an annual report on itsanti-trafficking efforts. The government did not fund orinitiate any awareness campaigns to reduce demand forforced labor or commercial sex in 2008; however, it usedsome IOM-funded materials aimed at demand during itsanti-trafficking week.MADAGASCAR (Tier 2)Madagascar is a source country for women and childrentrafficked for the purposes of forced labor and sexualexploitation. Children, mostly from rural areas, aretrafficked within the country for domestic servitude,commercial sexual exploitation, forced marriage,forced labor for traveling vendors, and possibly forcedlabor in mining, fishing, and agriculture. Some childsex trafficking occurs with the involvement of familymembers, friends, transport operators, tour guides, andhotel workers. A child sex tourism problem exists incoastal cities, including Tamatave, Nosy Be, and DiegoSuarez, as well as the capital city of Antananarivo; somechildren are recruited for work in the capital usingfraudulent offers of employment as waitresses and maidsbefore being exploited in the commercial sex trade on thecoast. The main sources of clients for child sex tourism areFrance, Italy, Spain, Germany, Switzerland, and Reunion.Victims are usually girls, but reports of male touristsseeking sex with underage boys have increased. YoungMalagasy women are trafficked within the country fordomestic servitude and sexual exploitation, as well as insmall numbers to the Middle East for domestic servitude.The Government of Madagascar does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking but is making significant efforts to do so. Thisreport covers the efforts of the Malagasy governmentuntil January 2009’s political unrest, which resulted inan unlawful change in government in March. Efforts toverify implementation of the laws during the remainderof the reporting period, if any, were difficult given thelevel of political instability. The new regime’s policies andperspectives on Madagascar’s human trafficking problemare unknown; it remains to be seen whether the newgovernment will maintain the previous administration’skeen interest in combating trafficking. While thegovernment sustained its efforts to raise awareness ofchild sex trafficking, lack of institutional capacity andfunding remained significant impediments to its antitraffickingefforts, particularly impacting the effectivenessof law enforcement activities.Recommendations for Madagascar: Utilize the antitraffickinglaw to prosecute trafficking offenses, includingthose involving forced labor, and punish traffickingoffenders; institute a formal process for law enforcementofficials to document trafficking cases and refer victimsof both labor and sex trafficking for assistance; increaseefforts to raise public awareness of labor trafficking; andinvestigate and prosecute public officials suspected oftrafficking-related complicity.ProsecutionAlthough the government enacted anti-traffickinglegislation in January 2008, it reported no investigationsor convictions of trafficking offenders during thereporting period and was unable to provide statisticsregarding its anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts.Anti-Trafficking Law No. 2007-038, adopted in January2008, prohibits all forms of human trafficking, thoughit only prescribes punishments for sex trafficking; theserange from two years’ to life imprisonment, penaltiesthat are sufficiently stringent and commensurate withthose prescribed for other grave crimes. The Ministryof Justice disseminated copies of the new law to all 22regions during the year and magistrates received trainingin its use. Article 262 of the Labor Code criminalizes194

labor trafficking, for which it prescribes inadequatepenalties of one to three years’ imprisonment. Decree2007-563 prohibits various forms of child labor,including prostitution, domestic slavery, and forcedlabor. The government has yet to use its January 2008anti-trafficking law to punish traffickers; a lack of caseprecedent, poor coordination among ministries, lack ofsystematic information, lack of data shared between theregional and central levels, and the lack of a presidentialdecree mandating and codifying its use likely hinder thenew law’s implementation. Several alleged sex traffickingcases came to trial in 2008, but only two reportedlymade use of the anti-trafficking law, and neither hasreached a resolution; the remaining cases were triedunder other laws, and either dismissed or punished withsuspended sentences. The government did not investigateor prosecute cases of forced labor during the reportingperiod.In September 2008, a foreign government-fundedprogram finished the development of a centralizeddatabase for documenting and tracking traffickingcases nationwide. Training for personnel in the use ofthis database was conducted in the capital and areas ofthe country where high levels of trafficking have beenreported. While a positive example of increased antitraffickingcooperation between the gendarmerie andpolice, financial and legal issues threaten to derail thisproject; the center still lacks a presidential decree givingits work legal standing and financing remains uncertain.The database’s use is limited to cases in Antananarivo.In some tourist areas, local police appeared hesitant toprosecute child sex trafficking and child sex tourismoffenses, possibly because of deep-rooted corruption,pressures from the local community, or fear of aninternational incident. Some officials were punished in2007 for colluding with traffickers or accepting bribes tooverlook trafficking crimes. The Ministry of Justice didnot report any such cases in 2008, though the media ranstories alleging official complicity. The ministry beganrotating magistrates to different jurisdictions within thecountry, in part to stem corruption.ProtectionThe Government of Madagascar provided weak victimprotections. During the last year, previously reportedvictim protection efforts were determined to mostly beprovided by NGOs and international organizations andnot by the government. The government did not operatevictim assistance programs; the majority of traffickingvictims identified in 2008 were assisted exclusivelyby NGO-run centers. Counseling centers run by localNGOs and supported by the Ministries of Justice andHealth in Antananarivo and Fianarantsoa, however,provided psychological support and legal advice to childsex trafficking victims. An unknown number of parentsof such children received advice on filing court cases,but most declined to do so, either for fear of reprisal orbecause of a payoff from the perpetrator. As Madagascarlacked a formal process to identify trafficking victimsamong vulnerable populations or refer victims for care,law enforcement officials began drafting such proceduresduring the year with UNICEF assistance. However, theMinistry of Health’s local-level Child Rights ProtectionNetworks – which increased in number from 14 in 2007to 65 in 2008 with UNICEF support – brought togethergovernment institutions, law enforcement officials,and NGOs to fill this role. Networks coordinated childprotection activities, identified and reported abuse cases,and assisted victims in accessing appropriate socialand legal services. In 2008, for example, a protectionnetwork in Diego rescued two trafficked girls and thegovernment returned them to their families in Ambanjaand Nosy Be and provided money for school enrollment.Labor inspectors reportedly taught job-finding skills torescued victims during the year. The government did notpenalize trafficking victims for unlawful acts committedas a direct result of their being trafficked and encouragedthem to assist in the investigation and prosecution oftheir exploiters. The government does not provide legalalternatives to the removal of victims to countries wherethey would face hardship or retribution.PreventionThe government sustained its trafficking preventionefforts during the year. At the regional level, LocalAnti-Trafficking Boards, comprised of ministerialrepresentatives, improved information sharing amongstakeholders and sensitized the population on traffickingissues, resulting in NGO care centers receiving anincreasing number of cases in 2008. Although eightRegional Committees to Fight Child Labor increasedcoordination among government entities, NGOs, andILO/IPEC under the framework of the National ActionPlan for the Fight Against Child Labor, the Ministryof Labor’s five child labor inspectors were insufficientto cover areas beyond Antananarivo or in informaleconomic sectors. The government continued its nationalawareness campaign against child sex tourism andconducted a number of law enforcement actions againstforeign child sex tourists during the year. In December2008, President Ravalomanana presented remarks inNosy Be on the importance of protecting children fromforeign sex tourists. In May 2008, the Ministry of Justicelaunched a national campaign against child sexualexploitation that included messages on sex tourismin posters, a short film, and TV and radio spots. Thegovernment continued distributing anti-sex tourismMADAGASCAR195

MALAWIinformation to tourists at national events and culturalcelebrations, such as the Donia festival in Nosy Be, anda customs booklet to arriving international passengerscontaining a full-page warning of the consequences. InJanuary 2008, a man from Reunion was arrested andprosecuted for the commercial sexual exploitation ofa child in Nosy Be, but his case was dismissed for lackof evidence; four Reunionese considered accompliceswere deported from the country. A French nationalwas imprisoned in Tamatave for child sex tourism inSeptember 2008. Also, three French citizens’ cases forindecent assault or statutory rape were either dismissed orpunished with suspended sentences.MALAWI (Tier 2)Malawi is a source, transit, and destination country formen, women, and children trafficked for the purposesof forced labor and sexual exploitation. The incidenceof internal trafficking is believed higher than that oftransnational trafficking, and practices such as forcedlabor exist, particularly on tobacco plantations. Childrenare trafficked primarily within the country for forcedlabor in agriculture, animal herding, domestic servitude,and to perform forced menial tasks for small businesses.Girls and young women are trafficked internally forforced labor and prostitution at local bars and rest houses.Malawian adults and children are lured by fraudulentoffers of employment into situations of forced laborand commercial sexual exploitation in Mozambique,South Africa, and Zambia. In 2008, Malawian menwere also trafficked to Tanzania for forced labor in thefishing industry. Children, as well as a smaller number ofwomen, from Zambia, Mozambique, Tanzania, Burundi,and Zimbabwe are trafficked to Malawi for forced laborand commercial sexual exploitation.The Government of Malawi does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Whilethe government incrementally improved its effortsto identify victims and bring trafficking offenders tojustice, the largely inconsequential punishments metedout to convicted traffickers during the reporting perioddemonstrated a continued lack of understanding of theseriousness of human trafficking crimes on the part ofjudicial and other government officials.Recommendations for Malawi: Provide additionaltraining to judges, prosecutors, and police – particularlythose working near border areas – on how to identify,investigate, and prosecute trafficking cases utilizingexisting laws; pass and enact comprehensive antitraffickinglegislation; expand the existing focuson protecting victims of child labor trafficking toinclude children exploited in domestic servitude orprostitution; and institute a system to compile data oncases investigated and prosecuted and victims assistedthroughout the country.ProsecutionThe Government of Malawi’s anti-trafficking lawenforcement efforts improved over the last year, thoughpunishments of trafficking offenders remained weak,inconsistent, and highly dependent on the knowledgelevel of the judges and prosecutors involved in the case.Malawi prohibits all forms of trafficking through existinglaws, including the Employment Act and Articles 135through 147 and 257 through 269 of the Penal Code,though a lack of specific anti-trafficking legislationallows for a range of potentially weak punishments to beimposed on convicted trafficking offenders. Prescribedpenalties under the aforementioned statutes range fromsmall fines to 10 years’ imprisonment; these penaltiesare sufficiently stringent and commensurate withpunishments prescribed for other grave crimes. TheChild Care, Protection and Justice Bill, which defineschild trafficking and sets a penalty of life imprisonmentfor convicted traffickers, remains in Cabinet and wasnot passed by Parliament during the reporting period.The Malawi Law Commission continued draftingcomprehensive anti-trafficking legislation to specificallyoutlaw all forms of human trafficking.In 2008, the government used laws against child labor,kidnapping, and profiting from prostitution to convicttrafficking offenders; as in past years, the majorityof trafficking cases involved forced child labor in theagricultural sector. According to the Ministry of Labor,the government conducted at least 24 such child labortrafficking investigations and prosecuted three casesunder the Employment Act in 2008. A court in Mchinjidistrict sentenced a man to eight years’ imprisonmentfor trafficking children for agricultural labor. A Mchinjitobacco farm employee received a sentence of twoyears’ imprisonment for his participation in child labortrafficking. A Kasungu district court sentenced a manto two years’ imprisonment for attempting to sell his17-year old daughter into slavery for $700. Most otheroffenders, however, received a warning for the firstoffense and a small fine for subsequent violations. TheMinistry of Labor reported the out-of-court settlementof at least 13 possible trafficking cases for payment ofback wages and repatriation costs. Responding to thetrafficking of young Burundian girls for prostitution,a Malawian court convicted two Burundian nationalsfor profiting from prostitution; they received finesrather than prison sentences. In 2008, the governmentdeported a Zimbabwean sex trafficking victim whenher temporary residency status expired, resulting in thedismissal of the court case against the Malawian truckdriver who trafficked her to Malawi. The Anti-CorruptionBureau did not provide information on the status of its2007 investigation into two complaints of governmentcorruption relating to trafficking.ProtectionMalawi depends heavily on foreign donors and NGOs tofund and operate most of the country’s anti-trafficking196

programs, limiting the government’s discretionin programming and placement of resources. Thegovernment funds and operates a social rehabilitationdrop-in center in Lilongwe for victims of trafficking andgender-based violence, but does not maintain recordsspecifically on trafficking victims receiving assistance oridentify trafficking victims among the center’s clients. Thegovernment provided shelter and legal assistance to oneidentified Zimbabwean trafficking victim in 2008. Usingestablished procedures, district and local officials – police,social welfare officers, and labor officers – also referredvictims to various NGO-run facilities that providedprotective services and, in some districts such as Mchinji,facilitated their return to their home districts. There wereno protective services available to Malawian traffickingvictims returning from other countries. Police stationsthroughout the country housed victim support units torespond to gender-based violence and trafficking crimes.These units provided limited forms of counseling and, insome places, temporary shelter, though their capacity toidentify and assist victims varied greatly among stations.Inter-ministerial district child protection committeesmonitored their districts for suspicious behavior andreported suspected trafficking cases to police and socialwelfare officers.During the reporting period, the Ministry of Women andChild Development trained 289 volunteer communitychild protection workers to recognize child victims ofall forms of exploitation, including trafficking. In early2009, it began the process of converting these volunteerpositions into paid positions within the ministry. Thegovernment allocated $176,056 to the Child LaborControl Unit for conducting inspections in 2008. Thegovernment encouraged victims’ participation in theinvestigation and prosecution of trafficking crimes anddid not inappropriately incarcerate, fine, or otherwisepenalize victims for unlawful acts committed as a directresult of being trafficked. Government officials indicatedthat foreign victims were usually granted temporaryresidency status; the length of court proceedings,however, sometimes exceeded the duration of this status,resulting in deportation and dismissal of cases againstalleged traffickers.PreventionThe Government of Malawi sustained its efforts to preventhuman trafficking in 2008. Child trafficking issuesfall under the purview of both the National SteeringCommittee on Orphans and Vulnerable Children andthe National Steering Committee on Child Labor, whichwere created to provide policy guidance and coordinatethe government’s engagement on children’s issues.Most districts have a district child labor committee, adistrict orphan and vulnerable child committee, and adistrict child protection committee, all of which haveresponsibility for trafficking issues. There is significantoverlap and inadequate communication and coordinationamong these committees. The effectiveness of thesecommittees in preventing child trafficking during thereporting period varied widely and was often dependenton the capacity of the individuals employed or theirpartnership with NGO- or foreign-funded projects in thevicinity. The government and UNICEF continued a childrights information campaign called “Lekani” or “Stop!”that included billboards, bumper stickers, newspaper ads,and radio programs which provided messages againsttrafficking, child labor, child sexual exploitation, andcommercial sexual exploitation. Through the NationalAIDS Commission’s Action Framework on HIV/AIDSPrevention, the government also provided communitysensitization on the dangers of commercial sexualexploitation and attempted to reduce the demand forcommercial sex acts. The Malawi Defense Force has azero tolerance policy on human trafficking and providedtraining on human rights, child protection, and theelimination of sexual exploitation to its nationalsdeployed abroad as part of peacekeeping missions.MALAYSIA (Tier 3)Malaysia is a destination and, to a lesser extent, a sourceand transit country for women and children traffickedfor the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation, andfor men, women, and children trafficked for the purposeof forced labor. Malaysia is mainly a destination countryfor men, women, and children who migrate willinglyfrom Indonesia, Nepal, Thailand, the People’s Republicof China (PRC), the Philippines, Burma, Cambodia,Bangladesh, Pakistan, India, and Vietnam for work –usually legal, contractual labor – and are subsequentlysubjected to conditions of involuntary servitude inthe domestic, agricultural, food service, construction,plantation, industrial, and fisheries sectors. Some foreignwomen and girls are also victims of commercial sexualexploitation. Some migrant workers are victimized bytheir employers, employment agents, or traffickers whosupply migrant laborers and victims of sex trafficking.Some victims suffer conditions including physicaland sexual abuse, forced drug use, debt bondage,non-payment of wages, threats, confinement, andwithholding of travel documents to restrict their freedomof movement. Some female migrants from Indonesia,Thailand, the Philippines, Cambodia, Vietnam, Burma,Mongolia, and the PRC are forced into prostitution afterbeing lured to Malaysia with promises of legitimateemployment. Individual employment agents, which areMALAYSIA197

MALAYSIAsometimes used as fronts for human trafficking, soldwomen and girls into brothels, karaoke bars, or passedthem to sex traffickers. There were reports of Malaysians,specifically women and girls from indigenous groupsand rural areas, trafficked within the country for laborand commercial sexual exploitation. Burmese migrants,including some Burmese registered with the UnitedNations as refugees, a legal status not recognized by theMalaysian government, are trafficked for forced labor.To a lesser extent, some Malaysian women, primarily ofChinese ethnicity and from indigenous groups and ruralareas, are trafficked abroad to destinations includingSingapore, Hong Kong, France, and the United Kingdom,for commercial sexual exploitation.There were a number of credible reports of Malaysianimmigration authorities’ involvement in the traffickingof Burmese refugees from immigration detention centersto the Thai-Malaysian border. Several credible sourcesreported that immigration officials sold refugees forapproximately $200 per person to traffickers operatingalong Thailand’s southern border. In turn, the traffickersdemanded ransom – ranging from $300 for children to$575 for adults – in exchange for their freedom. Informedsources estimated 20 percent of the victims were unableto pay the ransom, and were sold for the purpose of laborand commercial sexual exploitation. The Malaysian andIndonesian governments did not amend or replace a 2006Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between thetwo countries covering the employment of Indonesianwomen as domestic servants in Malaysia. The MOUauthorizes Malaysian employers to confiscate and holdthe passport of the domestic employee throughout theterm of employment. Although the MOU stated thatdomestic workers should be paid directly and be giventime off in lieu of overtime, it remained common practicefor employers to deposit wages with recruiting agenciesas repayment for debts. NGOs reported that manyIndonesian household workers were required to work 14to 18 hours a day, seven days a week.The Government of Malaysia does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of traffickingand is not making significant efforts to do so, despitesome progress in enforcing the country’s new antitraffickinglaw. While the government took initial actionsunder the anti-trafficking law against sex trafficking,it has yet to fully address trafficking in persons issues,particularly labor trafficking in Malaysia. Credibleallegations of involvement of Malaysian immigrationofficials in trafficking and extorting Burmese refugees,including those released in April 2009 in a formalreport by the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee,overshadowed initial steps by the ImmigrationDepartment to address human trafficking. The RoyalMalaysian Police is investigating the allegations with thecooperation of the Immigration Department, as publiclyconfirmed by the Prime Minister but no officials werearrested, prosecuted, or convicted for involvement intrafficking during the reporting period. The governmentdid not develop mechanisms to screen effectively victimsof trafficking in vulnerable groups. The government alsocontinued to allow for the confiscation of passports byemployers of migrant workers – a common practice inMalaysia. This practice is recognized by many in theinternational anti-trafficking community as facilitatingtrafficking. The practice of withholding the salaries offoreign domestic workers for three to six months so theemployer can recover the levy paid to hire the workerremained widely practiced. As a regional economic leaderapproaching developed nation status, Malaysia has theresources and government infrastructure to do more inaddressing trafficking in persons.Recommendations for Malaysia: Fully implement andenforce the comprehensive anti-trafficking in personslaw; increase the number of prosecutions, convictions,and sentences for both sex and labor trafficking; adoptand disseminate proactive procedures to identify victimsof trafficking among vulnerable groups such as migrantworkers and foreign women and children arrested forprostitution; apply stringent criminal penalties to thoseinvolved in fraudulent labor recruitment or exploitationof forced labor; ensure that victims of trafficking are notthreatened or otherwise punished for crimes committedas a result of being trafficked; re-examine existing MOUswith source countries to incorporate victim protectionand revoke passport or travel document confiscation;increase efforts to prosecute and convict public officialswho profit from or are involved in trafficking; expand thetraining of law enforcement, immigration, prosecutors,and judges on the use of the 2007 trafficking law;implement and support a comprehensive and visible antitraffickingawareness campaign directed at employers andclients of the sex trade; and increase efforts to prosecuteand convict public officials who profit from, or areinvolved in trafficking, or who exploit victims.ProsecutionThe Government of Malaysia made some progress ininvestigating sex trafficking offenses and punishingtrafficking offenders during the reporting period, buthas not demonstrated efforts to investigate, prosecute,or convict offenders of labor trafficking. Malaysian lawprohibits all forms of human trafficking through itsJuly 2007 comprehensive anti-trafficking law, whichprescribes penalties that are commensurate with thoseprescribed for other grave offenses, such as rape. InDecember 2008, the government convicted its firsttrafficking offender under the 2007 anti-trafficking law;198

an Indian national convicted of forcing a female domesticworker into prostitution was sentenced to eight yearsin prison. The government also initiated prosecutionsagainst an additional six alleged traffickers, one ofwhom fled while on bail. Although there were crediblereports of government officials’ direct involvement inhuman trafficking, none were arrested, prosecuted,or punished for trafficking. The Prime Minister andInspector General of Police reported that the governmentis actively investigating the allegations. In July 2008,the Director-General of Immigration and his DeputyDirector-General were arrested for graft and corruptioninvolving the acceptance of bribes for issuance of visasand visitation passes. Informed observers speculatethis corruption facilitated trafficking in persons. Therewere reports of a significant number of migrant laborerstrafficked to Malaysia and widespread media reporting ofthe trafficking conditions many of these workers face. Thegovernment did not report any criminal prosecutions ofemployers who subjected workers to conditions of forcedlabor or labor recruiters who used deceptive practices anddebt bondage to compel migrant workers into involuntaryservitude.During the reporting period, there were several NGO andmedia reports of groups of foreign workers subjected toconditions of forced labor in Malaysia. In August 2008,following an investigative news report, more than 1,000foreign workers at a Malaysian factory producing apparelfor a U.S. company were found subjected to squalid livingconditions, confiscation of their passports, withheldwages, and exploitative wage deductions—conditionsindicative of forced labor. Following its own investigation,the U.S. company stated that it found labor violationscommitted by the local factory, though a Malaysiangovernment official reportedly responded saying that thelocal factory’s management did not breach any labor laws.Moreover, the Malaysian government did not respondwith a criminal investigation of the allegations.In February 2009, a Malaysian newspaper revealed a caseof 140 Bangladeshi workers locked in a small apartment.The workers each reportedly paid recruiters $5,000 to$13,000 to find them jobs in Malaysia; however, therecruiters passed the workers to a Malaysian employmentagency, which upon their arrival in Malaysia, confiscatedtheir passports and work permits and did not pay theirwages for three to six months in most cases, althoughsome individuals were not paid in more than a year. TheMalaysian government is investigating the case as a labordispute rather than a human trafficking case. In 2008, alocal NGO coordinated with police in Sarawak to rescue17 male Cambodians forced to work on commercialfishing boats and repatriated them to Cambodia. Thegovernment did not prosecute any employers whoconfiscated passports of migrant workers or confinedthem to the workplace. Some employers who hiredforeign migrant workers held the wages of their employeesin ‘escrow’ until completion of a contract.ProtectionWhile Malaysia showed modest efforts to protect victimsof sex trafficking during the reporting period, its efforts toprotect victims of labor trafficking remained inadequate.Numerous source country governments of migrantworkers in Malaysia expressed concern about the lack oflegal protections in place for foreign workers, particularlythose subjected to involuntary servitude. There was nowidespread effort by the Government of Malaysia toidentify trafficking victims among vulnerable migrantgroups, such as girls and women detained for involvementin prostitution or the thousands of undocumentedmigrant workers rounded up by RELA, a governmentsponsoredpublic security auxiliary force. As a result,some unidentified victims, including children, detainedby immigration authorities were routinely processed asillegal migrants and held in prisons or illegal migrantdetention facilities prior to deportation. In some cases,especially those involving deportation over land borders,this made victims vulnerable to being re-trafficked bytraffickers operating at the borders such as along theMalaysian-Indonesian border on Borneo. Police reportedrescuing about 2,000 foreign women and minors forcedinto prostitution during raids on brothels in 2008. Thegovernment deported or voluntarily repatriated mostof the victims to their home countries, referring someto their respective embassy shelters and processing alimited number as victims under the anti-traffickinglaw. The Ministry for Women, Family, and CommunityDevelopment continued to run two trafficking shelters,which held suspected and confirmed trafficking victimsuntil they were repatriated to their home countries. In2008, the Ministry renovated a third shelter in the EastMalaysian state of Sabah. In 2008, the police referred 98potential trafficking victims to the government shelters inKuala Lumpur, 34 of which were certified by magistratesas officially recognized trafficking victims. Police alsoreferred hundreds of suspected trafficking victims to localand diplomatic missions operating victims’ shelters; thegovernment cooperated with the embassies’ repatriationof victims, but did not offer other assistance. Foreignmigrant laborers, legal and illegal, lacked regular accessto legal counsel in cases of contract violations andabuse, although in a small percentage of cases workersfiled complaints under the labor laws. Some suspectedtrafficking victims continued to be housed at immigrationdetention centers pending repatriation. The governmentoffered no facilities for male trafficking victims. Whilevictims may file a civil suit against exploiters underMalaysian law, they are unable to work while their suitis being considered, thus discouraging such attemptsat restitution. Immigration authorities did not screenforeign women arrested for prostitution for identificationas trafficking victims, but instead processed them forquick deportation. The government does not provide legalalternatives to the removal of victims to countries wherethey may face hardship or retribution.MALAYSIA199

THE MALDIVESPreventionMalaysia made limited efforts to prevent trafficking inpersons over the last year. Senior officials, includingthe Prime Minister, Inspector General of Police, andthe Minister for Women, Family, and CommunityDevelopment, spoke out more routinely againsttrafficking crimes, and the government-influencedmedia carried numerous reports that raised awareness oftrafficking. The Women’s Ministry developed informationbrochures on trafficking in English and Malay for NGOsto distribute to the public, and started a women’s hotlinefor victims of trafficking. The government condonedthe confiscation of passports by employers. Employerspassed the government’s “immigration levy” on to thelow-skilled workers, which facilitated debt bondage.There were no visible measures taken by the governmentto reduce the demand for forced labor or for commercialsex acts. Protection officers from the Women’s Ministryreceived specialized training on assisting victims. Thegovernment provided anti-trafficking training throughits Peacekeeping Training Center at Port Dickson totroops preparing to deploy to international peacekeepingmissions. Malaysia has not ratified the 2000 UN TIPProtocol.THE MALDIVES (Tier 2)The Maldives is primarily a destination country formigrant workers from Bangladesh and India traffickedinto forced labor and, to a lesser extent, a destinationcountry for women trafficked for the purpose ofcommercial sexual exploitation. An unknown numberof the 80,000 foreign workers currently workingin the Maldives – primarily in the constructionand service sectors –face fraudulent recruitmentpractices, confinement, confiscation of identity andtravel documents, debt bondage, or general slave-likeconditions. Twenty thousand of these workers do nothave legal status in the country, yet both legal and illegalworkers were vulnerable to conditions of forced labor.While some migrant workers have paid agents up to$4,000 for the opportunity to work in the Maldives, mostpay $2,000; these high fees may create vulnerabilitiesfor debt bondage, as noted in a recent ILO report onforced labor. A small number of women from Sri Lanka,Thailand, India, and China reportedly are trafficked toICELAND TIER RANKING BY YEARKOSOVO TIER RANKING BY YEARMALDIVES TIER RANKING BY YEARNAMIBIA TIER RANKING BY YEARMale, the capital, for purposes of commercial sexualexploitation. A small number of underage Maldiviangirls reportedly are trafficked to Male from other islandsfor domestic servitude. Trafficking offenders usually fallinto two groups: wealthy families that subject domesticservants to forced labor; and some of the 200 registeredemployment agents who bring low-skilled migrantworkers to the Maldives under false terms of employmentand subject them to conditions of forced labor uponarrival.The Government of the Maldives does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts todo so. During the reporting period, the governmentacknowledged the human trafficking problem on theMaldives and began taking steps to confront it effectively,though overall efforts were insufficient.Recommendations for the Maldives: Draft andenact legislation prohibiting and punishing all formsof trafficking in persons; develop and implementsystematic procedures for government officials to identifyvictims of trafficking among vulnerable groups such asundocumented migrants and women in prostitution;ensure that identified victims of trafficking are providednecessary assistance and are not penalized for unlawfulacts committed as a direct result of their being trafficked;increase efforts to investigate and prosecute traffickingoffenses and convict and sentence trafficking offenders;raise public awareness of human trafficking throughmedia campaigns; and take steps to ensure that employersand labor brokers are not abusing labor recruitment orsponsorship processes in order to subject migrant workersto forced labor.ProsecutionThe Government of the Maldives undertook minimalanti-trafficking law enforcement efforts during thelast year. Although the Maldives does not have ananti-human trafficking law, its constitution prohibitsforced labor and slavery and some laws covering sexualoffenses and child protection can be used to prosecutesex trafficking and child trafficking offenses. The sexualoffenses statute – Section 173 of the Rules of Procedureadopted in February 2008 – prescribes penalties of up to15 years’ imprisonment, which are sufficiently stringentand commensurate with those prescribed for othergrave crimes, such as rape. While overall awareness ofthe Maldives’ trafficking problem seemed low amonglaw enforcement personnel, the government providedthem with some training in the recognition of traffickingvictims. These officials, however, did not vigorouslyinvestigate possible cases of labor trafficking. Thegovernment prosecuted one case of forced labor duringthe year. A migrant worker had been chained in a smallroom for days and let out only for work; his employerwas convicted and sentenced to only four months’imprisonment. A case of suspected transnational sextrafficking was investigated, but the case was dropped dueto lack of evidence.200

ProtectionThe Maldivian government made no discernable effortsto identify or assist victims of human trafficking for laborexplotation. Over the year, there were reported cases offoreign workers suffering from conditions of fraudulentrecruitment, confinement, withheld pay, physical abuse,poor living conditions, and even debt bondage; however,authorities’ efforts to identify trafficking victims amongthese exploited workers were weak. The governmentprovided no services, such as shelter, counseling, medicalcare, or legal aid, to foreign or Maldivian victims oftrafficking. When workers in distress sought assistancefrom the government, they were returned to theircountries of origin, as the government lacked adequateresources to support them. The government’s generalpolicy for dealing with trafficking victims was to getthem out of the country as quickly as possible, notingthat deportation is less costly than incarceration. Twoforeign women identified by police as sex traffickingvictims in 2008 were provided temporary shelter beforebeing repatriated with the help of their home country’sdiplomatic mission in Male; there was no criminalprosecution related to their exploitation. There wereno reported investigations of internal trafficking ofMaldivian or transnational sex trafficking. Authorities didnot encourage victims to participate in the investigationor prosecution of trafficking offenses and did not provideforeign victims with legal alternatives to their removal tocountries where they might face hardship or retribution.The government did not ensure that victims of traffickingwere not penalized for unlawful acts committed as adirect result of their being trafficked, though there wereno reports during the reporting period of the governmentdeliberately punishing trafficking victims.PreventionThe Maldivian government made minimal efforts toprevent human trafficking over the reporting period. Thegovernment conducted one anti-trafficking informationalcampaign, however, in January 2008, which attemptedto educate the public on the provisions of the 2008Employment Law. Various government ministries andagencies lacked any mechanism – such as a committeeor plan of action – for coordination on anti-traffickingmatters. However, various ministries were in frequentcontact and relied on their personal relationships ratherthan a formal mechanism for contact. The governmentdid not take any measures to reduce the substantialdemand for forced labor on the islands but did startoperations of a Labor Tribunal which will address themain form of trafficking in the country. The Maldives hasnot ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.MALI (Tier 2 Watch List)Mali is a source, transit, and destination country forwomen and children trafficked for the purposes offorced labor and, to a lesser extent, commercial sexualexploitation. In Mali, victims are trafficked from ruralareas to urban centers, agricultural zones, and artisanalmining sites. Victims are also trafficked between Mali andother West African countries. Some notable destinationcountries for Malian child victims are Burkina Faso, Coted’Ivoire, Guinea, Senegal, Mauritania, Niger, and Nigeria.Women and girls are trafficked primarily for domesticservitude and, to a lesser extent, forced prostitution, whileboys are trafficked for forced begging and forced labor ingold mines and agricultural settings both within Mali andto neighboring countries. Reports in the last year indicatethat Malian boys and girls are trafficked to Senegal andGuinea for labor in gold mines and to Cote d’Ivoire forforced labor on cotton and cocoa farms. Boys from Mali,Guinea, Burkina Faso and other countries are traffickedby Koranic masters within Mali and across borders forforced begging and other forms of forced labor. Adult menand boys, primarily of Songhai ethnicity, are subjectedto the longstanding practice of debt bondage in the saltmines of Taoudenni in northern Mali. Some membersof Mali’s black Tamachek community are subjected totraditional slavery-related practices rooted in hereditarymaster-slave relationships.The Government of Mali does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so, despitelimited resources. Despite these overall significant efforts,the government failed to show evidence of progressin prosecuting and punishing trafficking offenders,and, therefore, Mali is placed on Tier 2 Watch List. Thegovernment arrested three alleged child traffickers duringthe year; they were released pending trial dates whichhave not been set. The government took some steps toprotect victims and raise public awareness of trafficking.Recommendations for Mali: Investigate and prosecutetrafficking offenses, including cases of traditionalslavery, and convict and punish trafficking offendersusing existing laws; criminalize the trafficking of adultsfor all purposes, including slavery; develop a system forcollecting data on trafficking crimes and the number ofvictims identified and referred by government authoritiesto service providers for care; and increase efforts toraise public awareness about trafficking and traditionalhereditary servitude.ProsecutionThe Government of Mali demonstrated limited lawenforcement efforts to combat trafficking during thelast year. Mali does not prohibit all forms of trafficking,MALI201

MALTAthough Article 244 of the criminal code prohibits allforms of child trafficking. Conviction of child traffickingcarries a penalty of from five to 20 years’ imprisonment.Article 229 of the criminal code criminalizes the sexualexploitation of children and forced prostitution of adultwomen. Criminal Code Article 242, passed in 1973,prohibits individuals from entering into agreements orcontracts that deprive third parties of their liberty.During the reporting period, the government arrestedthree suspected traffickers though it failed to prosecuteany trafficking offenders. A trial date has not yet been setfor three individuals arrested in March 2008 for allegedlytrafficking two Malian and 24 Guinean children to Malifrom Guinea; they were released in June pending trial. Sixcases of traditional enslavement are pending in Maliancourts. Judicial authorities have taken no action on any ofthese cases. One of these cases involves a black Tamachekchild taken from his parents in Kidal in September 2007by an individual claiming traditional ownership rightsover the child. The child remains in the custody of thistraditional master.ProtectionThe Government of Mali demonstrated moderate effortsto protect trafficking victims in the last year. Due to itslimited resources, the government does not operate anyvictim shelters or provide direct aid to victims. Instead itrefers victims to NGOs and international organizationsfor assistance. According to statistics provided by theMinistry for the Advancement of Women, Children andthe Family, in 2008 Mali assisted in the repatriation of 21boys of Malian origin discovered in neighboring countriesand 40 boys and one girl of other nationalities discoveredwithin Mali. The government also assisted with the returnof four girls and one boy of Malian nationality traffickedwithin Mali.The government continued to provide in-kind assistance,such as land and buildings to NGOs providing services totrafficking victims. These local NGOs and internationalorganizations collaborated to repatriate the 41 non-Malian child trafficking victims discovered during theyear. Most cases of trafficking identified by NGOs arereported to the government, and an official from theMinistry for the Advancement of Women, Children andthe Family coordinates the process of repatriation witha counterpart in the government of the victim’s countryof origin. In February 2009, government officials inthe towns of Gourma-Rharous and Bambara-Maoundefacilitated the rescue of a woman held as a hereditaryslave for 14 years. Government authorities also facilitatedthe rescue of the former slave’s eight year old son.There were no reports in the past year of the governmentinterviewing victims to gather evidence for investigationand prosecution of their traffickers or, in the case ofslavery allegations, their alleged masters. Mali does notprovide legal alternatives to the removal of foreign victimsto countries where they face hardship or retribution.Victims are not inappropriately incarcerated or finedfor unlawful acts committed as a direct result of beingtrafficked.PreventionThe Government of Mali made limited efforts to preventtrafficking, through awareness-raising or other means,during the last year. The government participated in anNGO-sponsored campaign to educate potential victims,primarily children, and their parents about trafficking.Officials overseeing the collection of statistics abouttrafficking victims participated in a donor-funded trainingon how to collect and disseminate this information.The government also assisted in organizing two IOMfundedanti-trafficking trainings, in June and December2008, for NGOs on capacity building and informationsharing. The National Steering Committee Against ChildLabor, which is comprised of 43 government, NGO andinternational organization members, met five timesduring the year. Mali continued to work toward theformation of anti-trafficking committees in each of thecountry’s eight regions to coordinate local anti-traffickingefforts. In 2008, Mali selected institutional membersfor each regional committee, including village leaders,mayors, and regional representatives. The governmenttook no visible measures to reduce the demand for forcedlabor, though it did take steps to reduce the demand forcommercial sex acts within Mali through periodic raidsof prostitution houses. The government did not takemeasures to ensure that its nationals who are deployedabroad as part of international peacekeeping missions donot engage in or facilitate trafficking.MALTA (Tier 2)Malta is a destination country for women from Russia,Ukraine, Romania, and other European countriestrafficked for the purpose of commercial sexualexploitation. In addition, irregular migrants from Africancountries arrive in Malta en route to Italy and elsewhereand may be vulnerable to human trafficking.The Government of Malta does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Maltademonstrated strong political will to combat humantrafficking through several executive branch initiatives,including the development of victim assistance services,training of government officials, and expanded publicawareness. There was limited visible progress onprosecution of cases and punishment of convictedtrafficking offenders. Progress in the area of convictionsand punishment of trafficking offenders during the nextreporting period is necessary to fully comply with theminimum standards.Recommendations for Malta: Vigorously prosecute andconvict trafficking offenders; ensure convicted traffickingoffenders, including officials complicit in trafficking,receive adequate punishment; continue to developand implement procedures for identifying and caring202

for victims, including possible child victims, amongmigrants and other vulnerable populations; continue todevelop procedures, in consultation with internationalorganizations or NGOs as appropriate, in relevantsource countries to ensure safe, voluntary repatriationfor victims; and consider raising awareness to deter thepossibility of child sex tourism.ProsecutionMalta demonstrated inadequate efforts to prosecutetrafficking in persons offenses during the reportingperiod. Malta’s criminal code prohibits traffickingfor commercial sexual exploitation and involuntaryservitude and prescribes punishments of two to nineyears’ imprisonment. These prescribed penalties aresufficiently stringent and commensurate with thoseprescribed for other grave crimes. In a 2004 case thatcame to trial in 2008, a Maltese woman was convictedof trafficking Russian women into forced prostitutionin Malta and given a two-year suspended sentence. Theongoing cases cited in the 2008 Report, including thecase of the police officer convicted in 2005 who remainedout of jail pending an appeal, were slowly working theirway through the Maltese legal system. In January 2009,the police trained 60 police officers in identifying andassisting trafficking victims.PreventionThe government boosted prevention activities overthe last year. Appogg produced detailed brochures toraise awareness about human trafficking that includedinformation about identifying potential victims andoutlets for assistance and distributed them at healthclinics, community centers, and churches. In addition,Appogg distributed these brochures in entertainmentareas to target potential clients of the sex trade. Malta’sgovernment Employment and Training Corporationconducted informational sessions within migrantdetention centers to inform migrants about their rightsand the process by which to attain work permits andproper employment if they are granted asylum andreleased. The assistant commissioner of police raisedawareness of human trafficking through a televisionappearance on a top rated talk show in 2008. Thegovernment did not report any specific actions to reducethe possible participation of Maltese nationals in child sextourism abroad.MAURITANIAProtectionMalta improved efforts to protect victims of traffickingduring the reporting period. In February 2009, the SocialWelfare Services Agency (Appogg) conducted a trainingsession on victim assistance for government socialworkers, including those who work with the irregularmigrant population. There are no NGOs in Maltaspecializing in assisting human trafficking victims; thegovernment assists foreign victims through governmentfundedshelters that are used primarily for victims ofdomestic violence. An NGO assisting irregular migrantsidentified four potential trafficking victims in a migrantdetention center. The government determined they werenot trafficking victims and did not offer traffickingspecificservices to them, though it released them fromdetention. On a case-by-case basis, the governmentcan offer legal alternatives to the removal of identifiedforeign trafficking victims to countries where they mayface hardship or retribution. There is no evidence thatauthorities punished victims of trafficking for unlawfulacts committed as a direct result of their being trafficked.The government developed a formal system for referringall women in prostitution apprehended by police togovernment social workers, and began proactively seekingto identify victims among asylum seekers, though it didnot identify any victims during the reporting period.Malta encourages victims to assist in the investigationand prosecution of trafficking crimes. In 2008, the onevictim referred to Maltese police by a foreign embassywas allowed to provide testimony against her traffickerthrough video conferencing.MAURITANIA (Tier 3)Mauritania is a source and destination countryfor children trafficked for forced labor and sexualexploitation. Slavery-related practices, rooted in ancestralmaster-slave relationships, continue to exist in isolatedparts of the country. Mauritanian boys called talibe aretrafficked within the country by religious teachers forforced begging. Children are also trafficked by streetgangs within the country that force them to steal, beg,and sell drugs. Girls are trafficked internally for domesticservitude and sexual exploitation. Mauritanian childrenmay also be trafficked for forced agricultural andconstruction labor, herding, and for forced labor in thefishing industry within the country. Boys from Mali andSenegal are trafficked to Mauritania for forced beggingby religious teachers. Senegalese and Malian girls aretrafficked to Mauritania for domestic servitude and forcedprostitution. Ghanaian and Nigerian women and girlsmay be trafficked to Mauritania for sexual exploitation.Reports indicate that while some slaves are forced bytheir masters to remain in conditions of servitude, othersstay with their masters because they lack land and othermeans to live freely.The Government of Mauritania does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination of203

MAURITIUStrafficking and is not making significant efforts to doso. The government did not show evidence of overallprogress in prosecuting and punishing traffickingoffenders, protecting trafficking victims, and preventingnew incidents of trafficking. Progress that the previousgovernment demonstrated in 2007 through enactmentof strengthened anti-slavery legislation and deepenedpolitical will to eliminate slavery and trafficking hasstalled.Recommendations for Mauritania: Improve on thecurrent void of anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts byinvestigating and prosecuting slavery and other traffickingoffenses, and convicting and punishing traffickingoffenders; consider measures to allow NGOs to filecomplaints on behalf of slaves; provide slaves with landand other resources to live freely; increase assistance tochild trafficking victims; end the practice of penalizingchildren trafficked in prostitution by placing them inprison and train authorities to identify trafficking victimsamong children detained for criminal conduct and illegalmigrants; and increase efforts to educate the public aboutslavery and trafficking.ProsecutionThe Government of Mauritania decreased its lawenforcement efforts to address human trafficking,including traditional slavery practices. Mauritanianlaw prohibits all forms of trafficking through its 2003Law Against Trafficking in Persons, which prescribespenalties of from five to 10 years’ imprisonment that aresufficiently stringent and exceed those prescribed forrape. Slavery is prohibited by Law number 2007-048,which was enacted in September 2007. This law definesslavery and prescribes an adequate penalty of from fiveto 10 years’ imprisonment. It supplements a 1981 antislaveryordinance that failed to prescribe penalties ordefine slavery and it repeals a provision in the ordinancecompensating slave owners for the liberation of theirslaves. The law’s effectiveness, however, is hampered byits requirement that slaves file a legal complaint beforea prosecution may be pursued. The law also bars NGOsfrom filing complaints on behalf of slaves. Because manyslaves are illiterate, they are often unable to completethe paperwork to file a legal complaint. Although thegovernment in 2007 pledged $7.5 million to combatslavery, a portion of which was allocated to enforcingthe new anti-slavery law, the government failed toenforce this law. The government reported no arrestsor prosecutions of slave holders or trafficking offendersduring the year. Although there were cases of slavesbreaking free of masters, no legal action was taken againstthe masters.The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) reportedly issued a directivefor the enforcement of the new anti-slavery law. Theministry also reported to have sent delegations to allregions of the country to educate local authorities aboutthe law. Local NGOs, however, were unaware of theseinitiatives. Labor inspectors lack the basic resources, suchas transport and office equipment, needed to investigateforced labor cases. In May 2008, the MOJ collaboratedwith UNICEF to host a child trafficking seminar for judgesand law enforcement officialsProtectionThe Government of Mauritania demonstrated weakefforts to protect victims of human trafficking, includingslavery. Although the government promised in 2007 toallocate funds in the 2008 budget to provide former slaveswith land and other resources for their reintegration, thiscommitment was not fulfilled; no government programsassisted former slaves during the year. The governmentclosed six centers that it jointly funded with a donor inNouakchott to provide care to indigent children, many ofwhom were talibe.The government did not encourage victims to assist intrafficking investigations or prosecutions. Mauritaniadoes not provide legal alternatives to the removal offoreign victims to countries where they face hardshipor retribution. Victims are inappropriately incarceratedor otherwise penalized for unlawful acts committedas a direct result of being trafficked. The governmentcontinued to place children in jail for stealing or engagingin commercial sexual activity, despite the fact that manyof them are likely trafficking victims who have beenforced into these activities. The government does notfollow procedures to identify trafficking victims amongillegal immigrants detained in a center in Nouadhibou,where conditions are extremely harsh.PreventionThe Government of Mauritania made inadequate effortsto raise awareness of trafficking during the last year. InNovember 2008, the Ministry of Labor collaborated withthe ILO to organize a National Forum on FundamentalLabor Principles and Rights. The government has nottaken steps to reduce the demand for forced and childlabor, including trafficking and slavery, or demand forcommercial sex acts.MAURITIUS (Tier 1)Mauritius is a source for children trafficked withinthe country for the purpose of commercial sexualexploitation. Secondary school-age girls and, to alesser extent, younger girls from all areas of the island,including from Rodrigues Island, are induced into204

prostitution, often by their peers, family members,or businessmen offering other forms of employment.Taxi drivers are known to provide transportation andintroductions for both the girls and the clients. Boyswhose mothers engage in prostitution are reportedlyforced into prostitution at a young age. Some drugaddictedwomen are forced to engage in prostitution bytheir boyfriends, who serve as pimps.The Government of Mauritius fully complies with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.Mauritius sustained its strong efforts to identify, address,and prevent incidences of trafficking during the reportingperiod. Government officials demonstrated an increasinglevel of awareness of human trafficking and commitmentto addressing the problem. Public awareness projects,particularly those convened for school students bypolice officers and the National Children’s Council, werefrequently conducted and broad-reaching. Mauritius’parliament passed a comprehensive human traffickinglaw in April 2009.Recommendations for Mauritius: Utilize newly passedanti-trafficking legislation to investigate and prosecutetrafficking offenses and convict and punish traffickingoffenders; designate an official coordinating bodyor mechanism to facilitate improved anti-traffickingcommunication and coordination among the relevantministries, law enforcement entities, working groups,and NGOs; and increase protective services availableto victims of child commercial sexual exploitation,particularly in regard to safe shelter and educationalopportunities.ProsecutionThe Mauritian government demonstrated increasedanti-trafficking law enforcement efforts, vigorouslyinvestigating cases of human trafficking throughoutthe year. During the year, the State Law Office draftedthe Combating of Trafficking in Persons Bill and theOffice of the Attorney General held consultations withrelevant ministries and government agencies, includingthe Prime Minister’s Office, Ministry of Women’sRights, Child Development, and Family Welfare(MOWCD), and the Mauritius Police Force on the law’simplementation. The law, which was introduced in theCabinet and passed by the parliament in April 2009,prescribes punishment of up to 15 years’ imprisonmentfor convicted offenders, penalties which are sufficientlystringent and commensurate with those prescribed forother grave crimes. The Child Protection Act of 2005prohibits all forms of child trafficking and prescribespunishment of up to 15 years’ imprisonment forconvicted offenders. In November 2008, however, thegovernment passed the Judicial Provisions Act whichprovided for increased penalties for various offenses; theact prescribes punishment for child trafficking offenses ofup to 30 years’ imprisonment. The government reportedeight child sex trafficking convictions during 2008:three under a brothel-keeping statute and five under a“debauching youth” statute. Sentences for these convictedoffenders ranged between three months’ and three years’imprisonment, with fines up to an equivalent $1,764. InJanuary 2009, police in Curepipe arrested and chargeda massage parlor owner for allegedly exploiting threegirls in prostitution within the spa. Police completed theinvestigation resulting from the January 2008 arrest of aman and woman charged with inducing their 12-year-oldniece into prostitution and referred the case to the Officeof the Director of Public Prosecution. Ten trafficking casesremain under investigation, including two for brothelkeepingand three for causing a child to be engagedin prostitution. The Mauritius Police Force utilized adatabase for tracking trafficking-related cases.ProtectionThe Mauritian government sustained its protection ofchild trafficking victims during the reporting period,paying NGO shelters $6 per day for the protection ofeach child, including victims of trafficking. Governmentofficials regularly referred children to these organizationsfor shelter and other assistance. The governmentfunded,NGO-run drop-in center for sexually abusedchildren, which provided counseling to approximately16 girls engaged in prostitution in 2008, advertised itsservices through bumper stickers, a toll-free number,and community outreach; its social worker continued topromote the services in schools and local communities.Nevertheless, due to the drop-in center’s lack of shelterfacilities and the often crowded conditions at NGOshelters, comprehensive protective services were notreadily available to all victims identified within thecountry. To remedy this, the MOWCD acquired landand obtained funding to construct a residential centerfor victims of child commercial sexual exploitationlate in the year. The ministry also operated a 24-hourhotline for reporting cases of sexual abuse; three casesof child prostitution were reported to the hotline in2008. Mauritius has a formal protocol on the provisionof assistance to all victims of sexual abuse; minorsvictimized by commercial sexual exploitation areaccompanied to the hospital by a child welfare officer andpolice work in conjunction with this officer to obtain astatement. Medical treatment and psychological supportwere readily available at public clinics and NGO centers inMauritius. In December 2008, the parliament passed theChild Protection (Amendment) Act, which created a childmentoring scheme to provide support and rehabilitationMAURITIUS205

MEXICOto children in distress, including children engaged inprostitution. In May 2008, the government launcheda capacity-building program for its five District ChildProtection Committees, which report cases of vulnerablechildren in their respective localities, including thoseinvolving child prostitution. The government encouragesvictims’ assistance in the investigation and prosecution oftrafficking crimes. The government ensures that victimsare not inappropriately incarcerated, fined, or otherwisepenalized solely for unlawful acts committed as a directresult of being trafficked.PreventionThe Mauritian government made notable efforts toprevent the sex trafficking of children and reduce thedemand for commercial sex acts during the year. In2008, the Ministry of Tourism, Leisure, and ExternalCommunications published and distributed to hotelsand tour operators 3,000 pamphlets regarding theresponsibility of the tourism sector to combat child sextrafficking. Law enforcement and child welfare officialsconducted surveillance at bus stops, night clubs, gaminghouses, and other places frequented by children toidentify and interact with students who were at a high riskof sex trafficking. The Police Family Protection Unit andthe Minor’s Brigade, in conjunction with the MOWCD’sChild Development Unit, conducted a widespread childabuse awareness campaign at schools and communitycenters that included a session on the dangers andconsequences of engaging in prostitution; this campaignreached over 12,035 persons in 2008, including 145parents, 300 primary school teachers, and 35 youthleaders. In addition, the police provided specific trainingon avoiding child prostitution to over 100 children inFlic en Flac, a tourist destination on the west coast of theisland.MEXICO (Tier 2)Mexico is a large source, transit, and destination countryfor persons trafficked for the purposes of commercialsexual exploitation and forced labor. Groups consideredmost vulnerable to human trafficking in Mexicoinclude women and children, indigenous persons,and undocumented migrants. A significant number ofMexican women, girls, and boys are trafficked within thecountry for commercial sexual exploitation, lured by falsejob offers from poor rural regions to urban, border, andtourist areas. According to the government, more than20,000 Mexican children are victims of sex traffickingevery year, especially in tourist and border areas. The vastmajority of foreign victims trafficked into the country forcommercial sexual exploitation are from Central America,particularly Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador; manytransit Mexico en route to the United States and, to alesser extent, Canada and Western Europe. In a new trend,unaccompanied Central American minors, travelingthrough Mexico to meet family members in the UnitedStates, increasingly fall victim to human traffickers,particularly near the Guatemalan border. Victims fromSouth America, the Caribbean, Eastern Europe, and Asia,are trafficked into Mexico for sexual or labor exploitation,or transit the country en route to the United States.Mexican men and boys are trafficked from southern tonorthern Mexico for forced labor. Central Americans,especially Guatemalans, are subjected to forced labor insouthern Mexico, particularly in agriculture. Child sextourism continues to grow in Mexico, especially in touristareas such as Acapulco and Cancun, and northern bordercities like Tijuana and Ciudad Juarez. Foreign child sextourists arrive most often from the United States, Canada,and Western Europe. Organized criminal networks trafficMexican women and girls into the United States forcommercial sexual exploitation. Mexican men, women,and children are trafficked into the United States forforced labor, particularly in agriculture and industrialsweatshops.The Government of Mexico does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Thegovernment took steps to implement its federal antitraffickinglaw, issuing regulations in February 2009. Asof May 2009, twenty-two Mexican states and its federaldistrict had enacted legislation to criminalize some formsof human trafficking on the local level. However, noconvictions or stringent punishments against traffickingoffenders were reported last year, though the federalgovernment opened 24 criminal investigations againstsuspected trafficking offenders. Moreover, the governmenthas not completed renovations on its planned traffickingshelter, though it continued to refer victims to NGOsfor assistance. While Mexican officials recognize humantrafficking as a serious problem, the lack of a strongerresponse by the government is of concern, especiallyin light of the large number of victims present in thecountry.Recommendations for Mexico: Vigorously implement thenew federal anti-trafficking law and provide funding forsuch implementation; increase efforts to investigate andprosecute trafficking offenses, and convict and punishtrafficking offenders, including complicit public officials;dedicate more resources for victim assistance; continueto develop and implement formal procedures to identifytrafficking victims among vulnerable populations; andincrease anti-trafficking training for judges and lawenforcement, including immigration and labor officials.ProsecutionThe Government of Mexico failed to improve on itslimited anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts againstoffenders last year. No convictions or sentences oftrafficking offenders were reported by federal, state, orlocal authorities. In late 2007, the federal governmentenacted legislation to prohibit all forms of humantrafficking, prescribing penalties of six to 12 years’imprisonment. Under aggravated circumstances, suchas when the victim is a child or lacks mental capacity,206

penalties increase to nine to 18 years’ imprisonment;when the defendant is a public official, penalties increaseby one half. The above penalties are sufficiently stringentand exceed those prescribed for other serious crimes,such as rape. However, there are concerns over thenew law’s effective implementation, particularly thatvictims must press charges against traffickers, otherwisethey will not be considered trafficking victims and willnot be provided with victim assistance. During thereporting period, the Attorney General’s Crimes AgainstWomen and Trafficking in Persons Unit (FEVIMTRA),which prosecutes federal anti-trafficking cases incoordination with the Organized Crimes Unit, opened24 investigations into suspected trafficking activity,including 11 cases of labor exploitation and 13 casesof commercial sexual exploitation; FEVIMTRA alsohandled a large number of domestic violence againstwomen cases last year. In October 2008, FEVIMTRAfiled one prosecution for forced labor in the state ofChiapas. In Mexico’s federalist system, state governmentsinvestigate and prosecute trafficking activity on thelocal level. As of May 2009, twenty-two Mexican statesand its federal district had enacted at least partial antitraffickinglaws. Federal jurisdiction is typically invokedin organized crime cases, or cases involving internationalor transnational trafficking; however, Mexico’s federalgovernment has yet to assert its clear jurisdiction oversuch human trafficking cases. Last year, prosecutorsfor the state of Chihuahua opened nine anti-traffickingcases; two are awaiting trial, and seven remain underinvestigation. The Mexican federal government continuedto provide significant assistance to the U.S. governmenton cross-border trafficking investigations last year. TheUnited States extradited a suspected child trafficker toMexico in 2006; the defendant has yet to be prosecutedin Mexico, though he remained in federal custody duringthe reporting period. Last year, competing anti-crimepriorities and security concerns in Mexico, along withscarce government resources, continued to hamperinvestigations against human traffickers. However, asorganized crime groups continue to encompass humantrafficking within the scope of their unlawful activities,the government’s battle against organized crime, largelydrug cartels, includes combating human trafficking.NGOs and other observers continued to report thatcorruption among public officials, especially local lawenforcement and immigration personnel, was a significantconcern; some officials reportedly accepted or extortedbribes or sexual services, falsified identity documents,discouraged trafficking victims from reporting theircrimes, or ignored child prostitution and other humantrafficking activity in commercial sex sites. No convictionsor sentences against corrupt officials were achieved lastyear, although two immigration officials arrested in 2007for their alleged leadership of an organized criminalgroup involved in extortion and smuggling remainedunder custody. Operation Limpieza, the Mexicangovernment’s investigation of high level corruption,resulted in arrests of senior officials from the MexicanAttorney General’s Office, in addition to military officials.Newly instituted vetting procedures for the AttorneyGeneral’s Office have resulted in multiple dismissals oflower-ranking officials. Government-sponsored antitraffickingtraining for public officials continued, thoughNGOs noted that many public officials in Mexico,including state and local officials, did not adequatelydistinguish between alien smuggling and humantrafficking offenses.ProtectionThe Mexican government provided limited victimassistance last year, relying on NGOs and internationalorganizations to provide the bulk of specialized assistanceand services for trafficking victims, particularly adults.Mexico’s social welfare agency operated shelters forchildren who are victims of violence, including childtrafficking victims. In 2007, the Mexican Congressappropriated 70 million pesos ($7 million) for shelters fortrafficking victims to house men, women, and children;the funds were allocated during the last year, and adedicated property is now being renovated to hold up to33 persons. The shelter will include a detoxification clinic,therapy rooms, and workshop studios. The AttorneyGeneral’s Office at the end of 2007 donated a residenceit confiscated from a convicted narco-trafficker for use asa human trafficking shelter. The residence was renovatedlast year and is fully operational, accommodating up to22 victims. The government offered foreign victims atemporary legal alternative to their removal to countrieswhere they may have faced hardship or retribution;however, most foreign trafficking victims, particularlyadults, continued to be deported within 90 days. Thegovernment continued to issue renewable one-yearhumanitarian visas to foreign victims who assisted withthe investigation and prosecution of their traffickers;however, foreign victims who declined to assist lawenforcement personnel were repatriated to their homecountries and were not eligible for aid or services. Onlythree trafficking victims received humanitarian visaslast year. Many victims in Mexico were afraid to identifythemselves or push for legal remedies due to their fearsof retribution from their traffickers, many of whomare members of organized criminal networks. Therewere no confirmed reports of victims being penalizedfor unlawful acts committed as a direct result of beingtrafficked. The government did not employ formalprocedures for identifying trafficking victims amongMEXICO207

MICRONESIA, FEDERATED STATES OFvulnerable populations, such as prostituted women inbrothels. However, the government’s immigration agencycontinued to develop guidelines for identifying traffickingvictims, particularly children, among detainees. Lastyear Mexican authorities identified 55 trafficking victimswithin the country: 28 females and 27 males; traffickingallegations related both to commercial sexual exploitationand forced labor. FEVIMTRA directed identified victims tolocal resources for assistance.PreventionFederal and state governments sustained traffickingprevention efforts last year. In January 2009, FEVIMTRAinaugurated a widespread campaign to distribute antitraffickingmaterials across the country. With assistancefrom NGOs and international organizations, thegovernment continued additional activities to raisepublic awareness, particularly against the commercialsexual exploitation of children. In February 2009, thegovernment issued implementing regulations to establisha formal interagency anti-trafficking commission andassign responsibilities to various federal agencies.Government collaboration with NGOs and internationalorganizations on anti-trafficking efforts continued lastyear, but was reportedly uneven among the variousfederal agencies involved; under regulations issuedpursuant to the federal anti-trafficking law, NGOs havelimited involvement with the government’s interagencyanti-trafficking committee and related activities, suchas developing anti-trafficking statistics. Authoritiestook some steps to reduce demand for commercial sexacts through state-level prosecutions of individualsengaging in commercial sex acts with children. Nospecific measures to reduce demand for forced labor werereported.Micronesia, FederatedStates of (Tier 2 Watch List)The Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) is a sourcecountry for some women trafficked to Guam for thepurposes of commercial sexual exploitation, and possiblya destination for women from the People’s Republic ofChina (PRC) trafficked for the purposes of commercialsexual exploitation. FSM may be a destination countryfor a few men and women from other Pacific nationsMICRONESIA (FSM) TIER RANKING BY YEARTHE NETHERLANDS ANTILLES TIER RANKING BY YEARtrafficked for the purpose of forced labor. In one reportedcase, a small group of young women in the state ofChuuk were lured by job opportunities in the service andhospitality sectors with salaries unavailable locally tothe U.S. Territory of Guam. Instead of working as storeclerks or waitresses, however, the women were forcedto engage in prostitution. Brothel owners reportedlyconfiscated their passports and physically harmed thevictims to ensure their obedience. Very little data onhuman trafficking in FSM exists, as the government hasnot conducted any relevant investigations, studies, orsurveys on the issue. Anecdotal reporting suggests thatfew victims are trafficked within or outside FSM.The Government of the Federated States of Micronesiadoes not fully comply with the minimum standards forthe elimination of trafficking; however, it is makingsignificant efforts to do so. Despite significant overallefforts, the government has not provided evidence ofvigorous efforts to identify trafficking victims and toprevent trafficking incidents by educating the publicabout the dangers of trafficking; therefore FSM is placedon Tier 2 Watch List. In the two police academy classesthat have taken place since 2007, anti-trafficking inpersons techniques were a major part of the curriculum.Recommendations for FSM: Develop and implement acomprehensive federal anti-human trafficking law; createor support campaigns to educate and inform the publicabout the dangers of trafficking; monitor the practices ofoverseas employment recruiters, and investigate recruiterswho may be involved in trafficking; and develop aninternal structure which ensures victims’ access toprotective services.ProsecutionFSM national police has jurisdiction over traffickingissues, although no specific or comprehensive federal lawsprohibit human trafficking or trafficking-related offensessuch as slavery, forced labor, or forced prostitution. Eachof the four states could prosecute trafficking offensesunder related laws prohibiting false imprisonment,criminal coercion, kidnapping, and even “makingthreats.” Penalties for trafficking offenders under theselaws range from five to 10 years’ imprisonment and aresufficiently stringent and commensurate with penaltiesfor other serious crimes, such as rape. The government’sTransnational Crime Unit (TCU), part of the PacificTransnational Crime network, was the main conduitfor general law enforcement information coming frominternational sources. The unit had regular contactwith the FBI and the Australian Federal Police. FSMpolice cooperated with foreign law enforcement officialsinvestigating the case of the women trafficked fromChuuk to a brothel in Guam, where prosecution of theillegal brothel owners for trafficking began in early 2009.FSM reportedly began an investigation into the activitiesof the Micronesian citizen who recruited the women inChuuk and is believed to also have been trying to recruitwomen in the state of Pohnpei. Law enforcement agencies208

operated under significant resource, personnel, andcapacity constraints.ProtectionDuring the reporting period, the government did notidentify any trafficking victims within FSM’s borders, andtherefore did not provide specific assistance to victimsof trafficking, though it ensured that identified victimswould have access to limited, general protective servicesprovided by government agencies. No NGOs providevictim services independently or in cooperation withthe government. FSM has no laws specifically protectingtrafficking victims or witnesses, although general materialwitness laws give the government the right to detainwitnesses for their own protection. Effective due processprocedures in FSM criminal justice system generallyensured that the rights of all victims of crime wererespected and protected. While no specific civil remedy fortrafficking victims is spelled out in the state or nationalcodes, each state’s code does provide general redress forpersonal injuries caused by another. Victims may bringpersonal injury civil suits against traffickers, although nosuits have ever been filed. The law did not provide legalalternatives to the removal of foreign victims to countrieswhere they faced hardship or retribution.PreventionThe government made no efforts to prevent traffickingor increase the public’s awareness of trafficking risksin FSM and the region during the reporting period.Evidence and anecdotal reports suggest that the currentnumber of internal or transnational trafficking victimsis relatively low; the government’s limited resources werethus often directed to meet more emergent priorities.The government, however, did initiate anti-trafficking inpersons training for new police recruits in the last twopolice academy classes. FSM supports no anti-traffickingtask forces or working groups. The government has run nocampaigns aimed at reducing the demand for commercialsex acts. FSM has not ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.MOLDOVA (Tier 2 Watch List)Moldova is a source, and to a lesser extent, a transitand destination country for women and girls traffickedfor the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation andmen trafficked for forced labor. According to an ILOreport, Moldova’s national Bureau of Statistics estimatedthat there were likely over 25,000 Moldovan victims oftrafficking for forced labor in 2008. Moldovan women aretrafficked primarily to Turkey, Russia, Cyprus, the UAE,and also to other Middle Eastern and Western Europeancountries. Men are trafficked to work in the construction,agriculture, and service sectors of Russia and othercountries. There have also been some cases of childrentrafficked for begging to neighboring countries. Girlsand young women are trafficked within the country fromrural areas to Chisinau, and there is evidence that menfrom neighboring countries are trafficked to Moldova forforced labor. The small breakaway region of Transnistriain eastern Moldova is outside the central government’scontrol and remained a source for trafficking victims.The Government of Moldova does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Despiteinitial efforts to combat trafficking-related complicitysince the government’s reassessment to Tier 2 Watch Listin September 2008, and increased victim assistance, thegovernment did not demonstrate sufficiently meaningfulefforts to curb trafficking-related corruption, whichis a government- acknowledged problem in Moldova;therefore, Moldova is placed on Tier 2 Watch List.While some of Moldova’s anti-trafficking activitiesremained dependent on international donor funding,the government improved victim protection efforts,deployed more law-enforcement officers in the effort,and contributed direct financial assistance toward victimprotection and assistance for the first time.Recommendations for Moldova: Continue to investigateand prosecute law enforcement officials’ complicity intrafficking, and seek punishment of any guilty officials;continue to improve data collection on investigations,prosecutions, convictions, and sentences for traffickingoffenders, and demonstrate increased law enforcementefforts; continue to disburse resources for victimassistance and protection; boost proactive efforts toidentify and protect trafficking victims, including childvictims and victims trafficked within Moldova; considerprevention activities specifically targeted at reducing thedemand for human trafficking in Moldova.ProsecutionThe Government of Moldova acknowledged a traffickingrelatedcomplicity problem and investigated some casesof trafficking-related complicity, though it did not convictany complicit officials or demonstrate increased overalllaw enforcement efforts over the reporting period.The Government of Moldova prohibits all forms oftrafficking through Articles 165 and 206 of its criminalcode. Penalties prescribed range from seven years’ tolife imprisonment, which are sufficiently stringent andcommensurate with those prescribed for rape. Datacollection on trafficking-related law enforcement statisticsimproved in 2008, though accuracy concerns remained.The government reported initiating 246 traffickinginvestigations (decreased from 507 reported last year) and127 trafficking prosecutions (decreased from 250 reportedlast year), including 31 under the child trafficking statute.The government reported 58 convictions (comparable to60 reported last year) with sentences ranging from sevento 23 years. Despite widespread reports of corruptionrelated to human trafficking, the government still has notconvicted any official for trafficking-related complicity.In June 2008, the government acknowledged a lack ofadequate efforts to prosecute officials reportedly complicitin trafficking and at that time re-opened three highMOLDOVA209

MONGOLIAprofile cases involving allegations of trafficking-relatedcorruption that had previously been dismissed underquestionable circumstances. These investigations remainopen. During 2008, the government prosecuted onetrial court judge and investigated another suspected ofunreasonably downgrading the charges in two traffickingcases and imposing on the defendants penalties morelenient than prescribed by the law; the governmentreported that the prosecution remains open, though itclosed the separate investigation for lack of evidence. Thegovernment opened several additional investigations ofalleged trafficking complicity of law enforcement officialsin 2008 but later determined they were not traffickingrelatedcases. The national police academy included aregular segment on trafficking in its curriculum, theMinistry of Internal Affairs organized 32 traffickingseminars for employees, and officials held one seminarfor consular officers on trafficking in 2008.PreventionThe government sustained prevention efforts duringthe reporting period. In 2008, CCTIP participated in27 interviews broadcast on radio and TV, conducted30 seminars on trafficking prevention in schools anduniversities, and provided outreach to church leaders.The government’s national committee charged withcoordinating anti-trafficking activities in Moldova heldonly one meeting in 2008. The Ministry of Economyand Trade provided vocational training free of charge toat-risk persons and returned trafficking victims referredby IOM. The Ministry of Interior funded and operateda victim assistance hotline during the reporting period.The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integrationtrains consular officers to assist victims in destinationcountries. There was no evidence that the governmentundertook prevention activities specifically targeted atreducing the demand for commercial sex or forced laborin Moldova.ProtectionMoldova improved its victim protection efforts duringthe reporting period. For the first time, the governmentfunded approximately $52,000 for the operation of anIOM-operated primary shelter for repatriated adult andchild victims. In cooperation with IOM, the governmentexpanded the national system of referring identifiedtrafficking victims to shelters to cover 16 districts andtwo municipalities, an increase from seven districtscovered in 2007. During the last year, the governmentenacted regulations for facilitating and funding victimrepatriation. Moldovan law exempts victims fromcriminal prosecution for unlawful acts committed asa direct result of being trafficked. NGOs continued todocument instances of trafficking victims’ rights beingviolated in court, though the official government policyremained one of encouraging victims to participate in theinvestigation and prosecution of trafficking offenders.Most NGOs noted that the government’s treatmentof victims improved during the last year. Moldova’sgovernment Center to Combat Trafficking in Persons(CCTIP) continued operating a special unit for physicaland psychological protection of victims and witnesses,and in September 2008, the government enacted a newwitness protection law. Moldova does not provide legalalternatives to the removal of foreign victims to countrieswhere they may face retribution or hardship.MONGOLIA (Tier 2)Mongolia is a source country for men, women, andchildren trafficked for the purposes of sexual exploitationand forced labor. Mongolian women and girls aretrafficked to China, Macau, Hong Kong, Malaysia, andSouth Korea for both forced labor and sexual exploitation.Mongolian men and women are trafficked to Kazakhstanand Turkey for labor exploitation. There is also concernabout involuntary child labor in the Mongolianconstruction, mining, and industrial sectors, where theyare vulnerable to injury and face severe health hazards,such as exposure to mercury. Mongolian traffickingvictims were documented over the last year in a greaternumber of destinations, including Germany, Switzerland,the United Arab Emirates, Israel, and other countriesin the Middle East. Some Mongolian women who enterinto marriages with foreign nationals – mainly SouthKoreans – were subjected to conditions of involuntaryservitude after moving to their spouses’ homeland.Mongolia continues to face the problem of childrentrafficked internally for the purpose of commercialsexual exploitation, reportedly organized by criminalnetworks. There have been several reports of Mongoliangirls and women being kidnapped and forced to workin the country’s commercial sex trade. According toNGOs, South Korean and Japanese child sex tourists arevisiting Mongolia in greater numbers. Methods used bytraffickers to lure victims grew increasingly organized andsophisticated. For instance, traffickers are beginning toutilize “TV Chat,” a late-night broadcast through whichviewers send and view text messages, as a method torecruit victims, typically through the promise of lucrativejobs. Around 150 North Koreans remain employed inMongolia as contract laborers. In 2008, the Mongoliangovernment signed an agreement with North Korea thatcould bring as many as 5,300 additional DPRK laborersto Mongolia. Once overseas, North Korean workers do210

not appear to be free to leave their employment, theirfreedom of movement and communication are restricted,and workers typically only receive a fraction of the moneypaid to the North Korean government for their work.The Government of Mongolia does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to doso. The use of laws other than trafficking-specific laws toprosecute traffickers resulted in generally lower sentencesfor convicted offenders. The government cooperated withNGOs on anti-trafficking measures, but did not providesufficient assistance to victims. Despite continued reportsof complicity by government officials in severe forms oftrafficking, there were no investigations or prosecutions ofsuch corruption.Recommendations for Mongolia: Make more effectiveuse of Article 113, Mongolia’s trafficking law, to prosecutesuspected trafficking offenses; investigate and prosecutegovernment officials complicit in trafficking; expand thenumber of police investigators and prosecutors dedicatedto addressing trafficking cases; raise awareness amonglaw enforcement officials and prosecutors throughout thecountry about trafficking crimes; develop and implementformal victim identification and referral procedures toensure that victims are found among at-risk populationsand referred for victim services; consider measures toprotect victims who assist and testify in trafficking trials;and improve protection and rehabilitation services forvictims.ProsecutionThe Mongolian government made some progress inenforcing its anti-trafficking laws during the last year.Mongolia criminalizes all forms of human traffickingthrough Article 113 of its criminal code, which wasamended in 2007 and which prescribes penalties thatare sufficiently stringent – up to 15 years’ imprisonment– and commensurate with those penalties prescribedfor other serious offenses. The government secured theconvictions of 10 trafficking offenders under Article113, compared to seven convictions in the previousreporting period. Those convicted under Article 113,including a woman who trafficked five young Mongolianwomen to Macau, received sentences of 10 to 15 years’imprisonment. Thirty-three other people were convictedunder the lesser offense of forced prostitution (Article124) and were sentenced to between one and three years’imprisonment. Several trafficking offenders convictedunder Article 124 were fined and were not sentenced toprison. Two cases prosecuted in 2008 under Article 124involved five victims who were children. During theyear, the Supreme Court issued an interpretation of theamended Article 113 that created ambiguities as to whenprosecutors and judges should apply the law. Police,judges, and prosecutors continued to exhibit a lack ofknowledge regarding trafficking. There continued to bereports of law enforcement officials directly involvedin or facilitating trafficking crimes during the year,including assisting traffickers in identifying potentialvictims. Anecdotal reporting suggests that some highlevelgovernment and police officials have been clients ofminors exploited in prostitution, but the government didnot investigate or take any disciplinary actions againstlaw enforcement officers implicated in trafficking-relatedcorruption.ProtectionThe Mongolian government’s efforts to protect traffickingvictims were inadequate, and it continued to rely heavilyon NGOs and international organizations to provide thebulk of victim services. Sixty-one trafficking victims wereidentified during the reporting period, compared with115 victims identified during the previous year. Mostvictims were trafficked to China for sexual exploitation.It is unclear how many victims were identified by thegovernment, as opposed to NGOs. Government personneldid not proactively identify trafficking victims, nor dothey refer trafficking victims to appropriate governmentor NGO services. The government encouraged victimsto participate in investigations and prosecutions oftrafficking offenders, but Mongolian law continued to lackprotection provisions for victims of any crimes, includingtrafficking. Victims were sometimes punished forunlawful acts committed as a direct result of their beingtrafficked, as they faced the risk of being prosecuted oncharges related to prostitution. In February 2009, whilein police custody, two trafficking victims filed chargesagainst their trafficker. When they left police custody,their trafficker used threats to force them to recant thecharges. Upon doing so, the trafficker had the victimscharged with defamation and making false statementsto the police. The girls were arrested and sentenced inthe Sukhbaatar District Court on February 18, 2009, totwo years in prison, but the sentence was suspended forone year and the girls placed under police supervision toprovide time for their NGO-provided lawyer to preparean appeal. Given its limited resources, the governmentdid not run or fund shelters for victims of trafficking; nordid it provide direct assistance to Mongolian traffickingvictims repatriated from other countries.PreventionThe Government of Mongolia did not undertake anysignificant new trafficking prevention activities duringthe reporting period. Government personnel continuedthe distribution of NGO-sponsored passport and trainMONGOLIA211

MONTENEGROticket inserts, which led to the repatriation of severaladditional Mongolian trafficking victims. The governmentsustained collaboration with NGOs providing antitraffickingtraining to police, immigration officials,Border Force officials, and civil servants. NGOs continuedto report, however, that cooperation varied considerablyby government ministry. The government did not takeany measures during the reporting period to reducethe demand for commercial sex acts. Mongolian troopsdeployed abroad for international peacekeeping missionswere briefed on the fact that solicitation of prostitutionwhile serving abroad would be considered a criminal actunder Mongolian law.MONTENEGRO(Tier 2 Watch List)Montenegro is primarily a transit country for thetrafficking of women and girls from Ukraine, Moldova,Serbia, Albania, and Kosovo to Western Europe for thepurpose of commercial sexual exploitation. There havebeen reported cases of forced labor in the constructionindustry. There is anecdotal evidence that foreignchildren, mainly Roma, are also trafficked throughMontenegro for the purpose of forced begging. In 2008,there were no reports of Montenegrins being trafficked toother countries. Groups that are vulnerable to traffickinginclude women in prostitution, unaccompanied foreignminors, ethnic Roma, and foreign construction workers.Refugees and displaced persons also are vulnerable, astheir lack of legal status in Montenegro limits their accessto legal employment and social rights.Recommendations for Montenegro: Continue tovigorously investigate and prosecute trafficking offenses,and convict and sentence trafficking offenders, includingany public officials complicit in trafficking; ensurethat convicted trafficking offenders receive adequatepunishment; improve tracking of human trafficking lawenforcement data; increase efforts to identify victimsamong vulnerable groups, such as women arrested forprostitution violations, undocumented migrants, andchild beggars, and refer them to the government shelter ortrafficking NGOs; provide protection for potential childvictims of trafficking; continue the recently launchedanti-trafficking public awareness campaign; and continuevigorous efforts to coordinate all anti-trafficking entitieswithin Montenegro.ProsecutionThe Government of Montenegro did not demonstratevigorous anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts in2008. Montenegro prohibits sex and labor traffickingthrough Article 444 of its criminal code, which prescribespenalties that are sufficiently stringent and commensuratewith those prescribed for rape. Precise traffickingrelatedstatistics for 2008 were unavailable, but the newcoordinator is working on establishing a mechanism thatwould address this concern as well as improving overallprosecution efforts. According to information providedby the government and media reports, the governmentinitiated 18 trafficking prosecutions and secured theconvictions of eight trafficking offenders during thereporting period. Sentences ranged from two years to sixyears’ and 10 months’ imprisonment. The governmentreported that four of the eight convicted traffickers arecurrently serving time in jail. The government alsoconfirmed that three convicted trafficking offenderssentenced each to five years’ imprisonment in 2007 werenot serving their sentences in jail. Although corruptionis a significant problem in Montenegro, during thereporting period, neither civil society, nor media outlets,nor government agencies reported specific allegations ofofficial complicity in trafficking in persons crimes.212The Government of Montenegro does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant effortsto do so. Despite these overall significant efforts, thegovernment did not provide adequate evidence ofprogress in punishing convicted traffickers or proactivelyidentifying trafficking victims among vulnerable groups;therefore, Montenegro is placed on Tier 2 Watch List. In apositive development late in the reporting period, the newanti-trafficking coordinator has made it a priority to createa mechanism that accurately tracks anti-trafficking lawenforcement statistics, conduct outreach to the judicialbranch to address concerns about trafficking prosecutions,and raise awareness about human trafficking withinMontenegro. It is expected that these positive steps shouldportend tangible results in the coming year.ProtectionThe Government of Montenegro continued efforts toprotect trafficking victims over the last year, althoughresults were mixed. The government funded all expensesfor a trafficking victim shelter and provided medical andlegal assistance as well as vocational training for victims.The government reported it used a formal mechanismto guide police in referring potential trafficking victimsto the government shelter, but authorities reportedidentification of just three victims, two of whom werereferred to the shelter in 2008. Also during the reportingperiod, at least 75 minors were apprehended for begging;police determined they were not trafficking cases anddid not refer any of the children to the government’strafficking shelter, which can accommodate potentialchild victims. Police conducted raids on nightclubs andillegal construction sites but reported no additionalreferrals. According to official policy, the government

encouraged victims to participate in the investigationsor prosecution of trafficking offenders; lengthy courtproceedings lead to prolonged shelter stays and delayedrepatriation for victims while they waited to participatein prosecutions. In practice, few victims have participatedin the prosecution of their traffickers beyond givingstatements to the police due to fear of reprisals; as notedpreviously, many convicted traffickers have not beensentenced to prison. The government reported thattrafficking victims have not been penalized for unlawfulacts committed as a direct result of their being trafficked.Under Montenegrin law, the government can providetemporary or permanent residency status to foreignvictims, depending on the circumstances of the case.PreventionThe government acknowledged that human traffickingwas a regional problem, but has not specificallyacknowledged that there is a problem occurringin Montenegro. During the reporting period, thegovernment funded six workshops for various ministriesinvolved in combating trafficking and performed anawareness raising campaign in schools. The governmentalso signed a memorandum of understanding with NGOsto facilitate cooperation on combating human trafficking.The government adopted a new action plan in December2008 valid through 2009. The government did not fundMontenegro’s hotline for trafficking victims but pledgedto do so in the future. The new coordinator has broughtrenewed focus to the government’s efforts to combattrafficking in persons, reinstating regular meetings of theanti-trafficking working group. There were no awarenessefforts aimed at reducing the demand for sex or labortrafficking during the reporting period.MOROCCO (Tier 2)Morocco is a source, destination, and transit country formen, women, and children trafficked for the purposeof forced labor and commercial sexual exploitation.Children are trafficked within the country from ruralareas to urban centers to work as maids or laborers, or forexploitation in the sex trade. Men, women, and childrenare trafficked to European and Middle Eastern countriesas illegal migrants who become exploited for forced laborand prostitution. Young Moroccan girls from rural areasare recruited to work as child maids in cities, but oftenface restrictions on movement, non-payment of wages,threats, and physical or sexual abuse. Moroccan boysexperience involuntary servitude as apprentices in theartisan and construction industries and in mechanicshops. Transnational human trafficking in Morocco isassociated with people smuggling and drug trafficking.Some Moroccan women are trafficked to Gulf States,Jordan, Libya, Syria, Cyprus, and European countriesfor commercial sexual exploitation. There were reportsof Moroccan men who were promised jobs in the Gulf;upon arrival their passports were confiscated and theywere forced into debt bondage. Men lured to Italy withjob offers were forced to sell drugs. In addition, men andwomen from sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and thePhilippines enter Morocco voluntarily, but illegally, withthe assistance of smugglers; once in Morocco, some of thewomen are coerced into commercial sexual exploitation.The Government of Morocco does not comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Thegovernment did not take adequate steps to collect dataon trafficking, identify victims, increase overall lawenforcement efforts to investigate, convict, or punishtraffickers, or provide adequate protection for victimsof trafficking who were often detained and subject todeportation. Moroccan authorities, however, moved toengage international organizations to conduct a firstbaseline assessment of human trafficking in the country,which is expected to be completed in 2009.Recommendations for Morocco: Enact comprehensiveanti-trafficking legislation that increases prescribedpenalties for forced labor; significantly increaseprosecutions of trafficking offenders; collect data onincidence of trafficking (as distinct from smuggling);institute a victim identification mechanism; ensure thatvictims are not punished for acts committed as a directresult of being trafficked; and conduct public awarenesscampaigns, encompassing child sex tourism.ProsecutionThe Government of Morocco made inadequate effortsto investigate trafficking offenses and punish traffickingoffenders during the reporting period. Morocco appearsto prohibit all forms of trafficking. Its Penal Codeprohibits forced child labor through Article 467, forcedlabor through Article 10, and forced prostitution andprostitution of a minor through Articles 497-499. TheGovernment of Morocco reports that it also employsthe Immigration Law of 2003 and other statutes, suchas those prohibiting kidnapping, fraud, and coercion,to prosecute trafficking offenses. Penalties prescribedby these various statutes for sex trafficking offensesare sufficiently stringent, and commensurate withthose prescribed for other grave crimes, such as rape.In contrast, prescribed penalties for labor traffickingappear not to be sufficiently stringent; penalties forchild labor under Article 467 range from one to threeyears’ imprisonment, while general penalties for forcedlabor under Article 10 are limited to fines for first-timeoffenders or six days’ to three months’ imprisonmentfor repeat offenders. Authorities claim they dismantled220 trafficking or smuggling rings in 2008; however,the government made no distinction between migrantsmuggling and trafficking, so it was unclear how manywere truly human trafficking rings. Authorities reportedprosecuting 42 individuals for exploiting childrentrafficked for the purpose of domestic servitude undertrafficking-related statutes during the reporting period. In2008, the government also prosecuted 200 individuals for“inciting” children into prostitution or sexually abusingchildren; some of these prosecutions likely involveMOROCCO213

MOZAMBIQUEtrafficking offenses. The government did not reportthe number of individuals convicted or punished fortrafficking offenses in 2008. The government offered antitraffickingtraining to judges, prosecutors, the territorialpolice, and border security officials.ProtectionMorocco made insufficient progress in protecting victimsof trafficking over the last year. Foreign trafficking victimsare often treated as illegal migrants, subject to arrest anddeportation. Government officials continued to roundup illegal sub-Saharan migrants – failing to make effortsto identify trafficking victims among them – and leftthem at the Algerian border, often without food or water;there were reports that some were robbed, assaulted, andsexually abused by criminal gangs that operate in thearea. The government did not offer legal alternatives tothe removal of foreign victims of trafficking to countrieswhere they might face retribution. Morocco does notencourage victims to participate in investigations againsttheir traffickers, although some victims reportedly testifyduring prosecutions. Reports from NGOs indicate thatsome potential trafficking victims suffered physical abuseat the hands of Moroccan police. NGOs provided mostservices to domestic victims of trafficking. Governmentoperatedcenters in Casablanca and Marrakech offeredassistance to street children and other victims of violence,abuse, and sexual exploitation, including victims oftrafficking. Also, during the reporting period, Moroccandiplomatic missions provided assistance with passportsand transportation home to Moroccan women traffickedto Middle Eastern countries for commercial sexualexploitation.PreventionThe government periodically undertook awareness-raisingcampaigns related to the abuse of children, child labor,and sexual exploitation during the year. The 2006-2015 National Plan for Action for Children includes thegoal of protecting children from abuse, violence, andexploitation, in part by reducing the incidence of childlabor. Authorities did not make significant efforts to raisepublic awareness of the commercial sexual exploitation ofchildren and women, especially in tourist areas, and didnot take any reported measures to reduce the demand forcommercial sex acts.The government fully supported UN efforts to investigateaccusations that Moroccan peacekeepers in Côted’Ivoire sexually abused underage girls. An inquiryteam consisting of UN investigators and Moroccan armyofficers was unable to find any conclusive evidence ofabuse. An investigation by the UN Office of InternalOversight was ongoing at the end of the reporting period.The government provided Moroccan soldiers participatingin UN peacekeeping missions with training on the issueof sexual exploitation and abuse. Morocco has not ratifiedthe 2000 UN TIP Protocol.MOZAMBIQUE (Tier 2)Mozambique is a source and, to a much lesser extent,a destination country for men, women, and childrentrafficked for the purposes of forced labor and sexualexploitation. The use of forced and bonded child laborersis a common practice in Mozambique’s rural areas, oftenwith the complicity of family members. Women andgirls, often with promises of employment or education,are trafficked from rural to urban areas of Mozambique,as well as to South Africa, for domestic servitude andcommercial sexual exploitation; young men and boysare trafficked to South Africa for farm work and mining.Trafficked Mozambicans often labor for months in SouthAfrica without pay and under coercive conditions beforetheir exploiters have them arrested and deported as illegalmigrants. Traffickers are typically part of small networksof Mozambican and/or South African citizens; however,the involvement of larger Chinese and Nigerian syndicateshave been reported. Small numbers of Mozambicanchildren and adults are reportedly trafficked to Zambiafor agricultural labor, while adults are trafficked toPortugal for forced labor and commercial sexualexploitation. Zimbabwean and Malawian women andgirls are trafficked to Mozambique for sexual exploitationand domestic servitude. A recent NGO report found thathuman trafficking of Mozambican children and adults forthe forcible removal of body parts is significant; so-calledwitchdoctors in Mozambique and South Africa seekvarious body parts of live victims for traditional medicalconcoctions commonly purchased to heal illness, fostereconomic advancement, or hurt enemies.The Government of Mozambique does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to doso. Mozambique demonstrated an increased commitmentto combating trafficking in 2008, particularly through theenactment of comprehensive anti-trafficking legislation,the creation of an anti-trafficking police unit, and theconviction and sentencing of two child traffickers.Recommendations for Mozambique: Utilize newanti-trafficking legislation to prosecute and convictsuspected trafficking offenders; launch a nationwidepublic awareness campaign; build the capacity of thenew police anti-trafficking unit and victim support unitsto investigate cases and provide short-term protectionto victims; and investigate and prosecute public officialssuspected of accepting bribes to overlook traffickingcrimes or free traffickers.214

ProsecutionThe government demonstrated progress in its antitraffickinglaw enforcement efforts during the reportingperiod. In April 2008, the National Assembly passed thefinal version of a comprehensive human trafficking law.In June, the president signed the bill into law; it wentinto force in September after being gazetted. The lawprovides for penalties of 16 to 20 years’ imprisonmentfor those recruiting or facilitating the exploitation ofa person for purposes of prostitution, forced labor,slavery, or involuntary debt servitude; these penalties aresufficiently stringent and exceed those for other gravecrimes. The government budgeted $360,000 to supportthe enforcement of this new law, though this fundinghas not yet been allocated to any government entity.Following passage of the law, the Mozambican Policecreated a six-person anti-trafficking unit to apprehendtrafficking offenders, investigate cases, and reintegratevictims. This unit began developing procedures forinterviewing potential victims and transferring them tothe care of other organizations. In 2008, the Ministryof Justice launched a juvenile court system in Maputospecifically designed to handle trafficking cases, as wellas other sensitive cases involving children; this new courthas yet to hear a child trafficking case. In July 2008,under child abuse laws, a Maputo court sentenced twoTurkish citizens to a year in prison and fined each $3,100for physically and sexually abusing 17 children whomthey brought to the capital under pretense of providingan Islamic education, but actually used for domesticservitude at their private residence. In mid-2008, the MOIworked closely with South African authorities to developevidence needed for the trial of a Mozambican sextrafficker in Pretoria. During the reporting period, policealso reported breaking up several trafficking schemes,arresting several drivers and facilitators, but not theorganizers behind the operations.Many low-ranking police and border control agentsreportedly accept bribes from traffickers, severelyhindering Mozambique’s prosecution efforts. In response,the government institutionalized training on humantrafficking as a standard part of the mandatory trainingprogram for new border guard and police cadets. Inaddition, the MOI’s Office for Assistance to Womenand Vulnerable Children began implementing a plan toaugment trafficking awareness training for police officers;it also increased the availability of victim support servicesin each of the country’s police stations.ProtectionThe government’s efforts to protect victims of traffickingcontinued to suffer from limited resources and a lack ofpolitical commitment; government officials regularlyrelied on NGOs to provide shelter, food, counseling,and rehabilitation. Moreover, the government continuesto lack formalized procedures for identifying potentialvictims and transferring them to NGOs with the capacityto provide care. The Office of Assistance to Women andVulnerable Children, however, continued collaborationwith a network of anti-trafficking NGOs to respondquickly to tips on potential trafficking cases and providecare and protection to victims. Each of the 204 policestations has designated staff to respond to cases ofwomen and children victimized by violence; these victimsupport centers registered complaints and filed reports oftrafficking crimes before transferring victims to the care ofNGOs. The Mozambican police force reportedly rescuedmore than 200 Mozambican children being trafficked toSouth Africa in the first half of 2008. The government alsoprovided shelter and medical care for two Mozambicangirls rescued from sex trafficking in South Africa in March2008; the trial of their Mozambican trafficker is ongoingin Pretoria. The government encouraged victims to assistin the investigation and prosecution of traffickers, anddid not penalize victims for unlawful acts committed asa direct result of their being trafficked. The governmentneither systematically seeks to identify trafficking victimsamong vulnerable groups nor provides legal alternativesto the removal of foreign trafficking victims to countrieswhere they would face hardship or retribution.PreventionThe government’s prevention efforts remained weakduring the reporting period; it has yet to launch anationwide campaign to foster public awareness of humantrafficking among government officials and privatecitizens. As a result, most Mozambicans, including manylaw enforcement officials, reportedly still do not have aclear understanding of what constitutes trafficking. In theyear following the March 2008 arrest of a Mozambicansex trafficker in South Africa, the government-ownedand private press ran frequent articles on updates to thecase, the need for passage of the anti-trafficking law,and suspected cases of trafficked Mozambican children,including children abducted from school playgrounds inMaputo and Matola. At year’s end, police and Ministryof Justice officials began regularly meeting with NGOsto develop a viable anti-trafficking strategy for the2010 World Cup, which is expected to increase theincidence of Mozambicans trafficked to South Africa forsexual exploitation. Radio Mozambique and TelevisionMozambique continued to produce and air, with theassistance of international organizations, child-to-childprograms focused on children’s themes, including childtrafficking. Radio Mozambique aired an IOM-producedradio drama on human trafficking. The government,however, did not take any significant measures during theMOZAMBIQUE215

NAMIBIAreporting period to reduce the demand for forced labor orcommercial sex acts.NAMIBIA (Tier 2)Namibia is a source, transit, and destination country forchildren trafficked for the purposes of forced labor andcommercial sexual exploitation. Namibian children aretrafficked within the country for domestic servitude andforced agricultural labor, cattle herding, vending, andcommercial sexual exploitation. In some cases, Namibianparents may have unwittingly sold their children intotrafficking conditions, including child prostitution. Therehave been reports of Namibian children being traffickedto South Africa, typically by truck drivers, for the purposeof sexual exploitation. Zambian and Angolan children aretrafficked to Namibia for domestic servitude, agriculturallabor, and livestock herding. There is evidence that aWest African labor trafficking syndicate transports WestAfrican adults through Namibia to Angola to work underfalse pretenses.The Government of Namibia does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to doso. The Ministry of Gender Equality and Child Welfare’s(MGECW) distribution of anti-trafficking brochuresand commissioning, with foreign funding, of a baselinestudy on human trafficking in Namibia demonstratesthe government’s increasing awareness of the issue andcommitment to addressing it. The government also hostedthe ninth annual INTERPOL working group meeting ontrafficking in persons in September 2008.ICELAND TIER RANKING BY YEARKOSOVO TIER RANKING BY YEARMALDIVES TIER RANKING BY YEARNAMIBIA TIER RANKING BY YEARRecommendations for Namibia: Draft and enactanti-trafficking legislation that prohibits and punishesall forms of trafficking; implement already enactedlegislation against forced labor to prosecute traffickingoffenses and convict labor trafficking offenders; launcha national anti-trafficking public awareness campaign,particularly in the border areas; provide further trainingto law enforcement and social services officials on theidentification and provision of assistance to traffickingvictims; and begin maintaining statistics on specifichuman trafficking offenses.PALAU TIER RANKING BY YEARProsecutionThe Government of Namibia’s anti-trafficking lawenforcement efforts were moderate during the reportingperiod. The Prevention of Organized Crime Act of 2004has a provision that criminalizes trafficking in personsand prescribes up to 50 years’ imprisonment or finesof up to $140,000 for those convicted. This act wasimplemented in May 2009. Section 4 of Namibia’s LaborAct of 2007, which was signed into law in 2007 and cameinto force in November 2008, prohibits forced labor andprescribes penalties of up to four years’ imprisonmentor a fine of up to $2,000, or both. Section 3 of the LaborAct prohibits various forms of exploitative child labor,prescribing penalties equal to those for forced laboroffenses. Existing laws prohibiting child prostitution,pimping, and kidnapping could also be used to prosecutetrafficking cases. Prescribed penalties for the above crimesare sufficiently stringent and commensurate with thoseprescribed for other grave crimes. The government didnot prosecute any cases of human trafficking during thereporting period. In mid-2008, before the November2008 implementation of the Labor Act which prescribescriminal penalties for forced and child labor, the Ministryof Labor issued three administrative compliance orders topotential child trafficking offenders under the 2004 LaborAct. Though an August 2008 case involving Angolanchildren forced to herd cattle was slated to be reopened in2009 under the Act’s new criminal penalties, the Ministryof Labor discovered in March 2009 that the suspect,a farmer, had disappeared. Police initiated variousinvestigations during the year into suspected cases ofpimping and brothel-keeping, but the lack of appropriateanti-trafficking legislation prevented the prosecution ofalleged perpetrators.ProtectionThough the Women and Child Protection Unit of thepolice and the MGECW’s gender liaison officers attendeda half-day workshop on trafficking during the reportingperiod, government officials did not identify anytrafficking cases. The government lacked the financialresources and capacity to provide direct care to victims.NGOs and other civil society entities provided short-termshelter facilities to which government authorities referredvictims of crime for assistance; however, shelters areoften full and cannot accommodate all victims of abusereferred. Neither long-term shelter facilities nor servicesspecifically tailored to the needs of trafficking victimsexist in Namibia. MGECW social workers are assigned tothe Namibian Police’s 15 Women and Child ProtectionUnits; these units implemented a formal referralagreement with a local NGO that offers counseling tovictims of trauma, but there is no record they have everreferred a trafficking victim to this organization. TheNamibian legal system provided protection to victimswho wish to testify against their abusers, as well as alegal alternative to foreign victims’ removal to countrieswhere they faced hardship or retribution in the form of acomprehensive asylum policy.PreventionUnderstanding of what constitutes human traffickingremained limited in Namibia, though the government216

made efforts during the year to raise awarenessthroughout the country. There were, however, nodiscernible efforts made to reduce the demand forcommercial sex acts during the reporting period. In2008, the MGECW designed, printed, and distributed13,000 brochures explaining human trafficking to localpopulations in the country’s 13 regions through itsgender liaison officers, community liaison officers, socialworkers, and officials from each Regional Council. Inaddition, the Ministry of Labor conducted a nationalpublic awareness campaign to introduce the new laborlegislation that included radio and television programs,visits by Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare officialsto all regions, and the production and distribution of300,000 copies of a 12-page pamphlet explaining the act’sprovisions, including those prohibiting exploitative childlabor.subjected to debt bondage, which can in some cases befacilitated by fraud and high recruitment fees charged byunscrupulous agents in Nepal. Many traffickers provideparents of victims a “salary advance” in order to placethe victims in a state of indebtedness, which may thenbe used to compel those victims to perform labor or aservice in order to avoid threatened serious harm. In2008, there was an increased number of reports of Nepalimen who had been recruited for work in Gulf States, butwere subsequently trafficked into forced labor in Iraqand Afghanistan by manpower agencies. Nepal’s role asa destination for foreign child sex tourists appears to begrowing, as efforts to confront this problem in traditionalSoutheast Asian destinations have become more effective,according to local observers.NEPALNEPAL (Tier 2)Nepal is a source country for men, women, and childrentrafficked for the purposes of commercial sexualexploitation and involuntary servitude. Children aretrafficked within the country and to India and theMiddle East for commercial sexual exploitation orforced marriage, as well as to India and within thecountry for involuntary servitude as domestic servants,circus entertainers, factory workers, or beggars. NGOsworking on trafficking issues report an increase inboth transnational and domestic trafficking during thereporting period, although a lack of reliable statisticsmakes the problem difficult to quantify. NGOs estimatethat 10,000 to 15,000 Nepali women and girls aretrafficked to India annually, while 7,500 childrenare trafficked domestically for commercial sexualexploitation. In many cases, relatives or acquaintancesfacilitated the trafficking of women and young girls intosexual exploitation. Women and girls are also trafficked toother Asian destinations, including Malaysia, Hong Kong,and South Korea for commercial sexual exploitation andforced labor.The Nepalese Youth Opportunity Foundation estimatedthat, annually in Nepal, 20,000 to 25,000 girls becomeinvoluntary domestic workers. Bonded labor alsoremains a significant problem, affecting entire familiesforced into labor as land tillers or cattle herders. Overone million Nepali men and women work abroad incountries other than India, which is, by far, the mostpopular destination for Nepali workers; many of themmigrate willingly to Malaysia, Israel, South Korea, theUnited States, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, and otherGulf states with the help of labor brokers and manpoweragencies to work as domestic servants, constructionworkers, or other low-skill laborers, and subsequently faceconditions indicative of forced labor such as withholdingof passports, restrictions on movement, non-paymentof wages, threats, deprivation of food and sleep, andphysical or sexual abuse. Many are deceived about theirdestination country. Many Nepali trafficking victims areThe Government of Nepal does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Thegovernment continued modest efforts to prosecutetraffickers and raise public awareness of trafficking duringthe reporting period, though its efforts to adequatelypunish labor trafficking could be improved. Additionally,trafficking-related complicity by government officialsremained a serious problem in Nepal.Recommendations for Nepal: Significantly increaselaw enforcement efforts against all types of trafficking,including bonded labor, forced child labor, fraudulentlabor recruitment for the purpose of forced labor, andsex trafficking; increase law enforcement efforts againstgovernment officials who are complicit in trafficking;institute a formal procedure to identify victims oftrafficking and refer them to protection services to ensurethat they are not punished for unlawful acts committed asa direct result of their being trafficked; improve protectionservices available for victims of all forms of trafficking;and put in place more effective tracking mechanisms forboth sex and labor trafficking cases.ProsecutionNepal made limited progress in its anti-trafficking lawenforcement efforts over the reporting period. Throughits 2007 Trafficking in Persons and Transportation(Control) Act (TPTA), Nepali law prohibits all formsof trafficking and prescribes penalties ranging from10 to 20 years’ imprisonment, which are sufficientlystringent and commensurate with those prescribedfor other grave crimes, such as rape. The 2007 ForeignEmployment Act, through its Chapter 9, criminalizes217

THE NETHERLANDSthe acts of an agency or individual sending workersabroad based on false promises or without the properdocumentation, prescribing penalties of three to sevenyears’ imprisonment for those convicted. Nepali lawformally prohibits bonded labor, but the governmentdoes not enforce penalties for violators. According to theOffice of the Attorney General (OAG), 14 individualswere convicted of trafficking offenses during thereporting period, six more than in the previous year,while 19 people were acquitted. The OAG did notprovide information on the punishment imposed. In2008, the government reported 400 cases filed underthe Foreign Employment Act on behalf of workers fordeceptive recruitment practices that may have led tosituations of labor trafficking, including 137 cases againstmanpower agencies and 263 cases against individuallabor recruiters, representing a significant increase fromthe previous reporting period. The government did notindicate, however, which of these cases involved acts ofhuman trafficking. Of the 800 labor recruitment agencieslicensed by the Department of Labor under the Act, 220have had their licenses revoked for deceptive recruitmentpractices since late 2007. Trafficking-related complicityby government officials remained a serious problemin Nepal, with traffickers using ties to politicians,businesspersons, state officials, police, customs officials,and border police to facilitate trafficking. NGOs reportthat some police, border guards, and other officialsroutinely accept bribes to turn a blind eye to activitiesof traffickers. Many dance bars, “cabin restaurants,”and massage parlors in Kathmandu that facilitate sextrafficking are reportedly co-owned by senior police andarmy officials. Additionally, given the large number ofgenuine Nepali passports containing false informationthat Indian officials have encountered in traffickingcases, it is clear that some Nepali officials are workingwith traffickers to provide them with these documents.Despite these serious concerns regarding the prominentrole complicit government officials play in trafficking, thegovernment did not prosecute any official complicit intrafficking during the reporting period. It is critical for theGovernment of Nepal to take serious and proactive effortsto investigate and punish this trafficking complicity.ProtectionNepal made minimal efforts to protect victims oftrafficking during the reporting period. Althoughthe TPTA includes provisions for assistance to Nepalicitizens trafficked abroad, these provisions have notbeen implemented due to lack of resources. Most of thefacilities that can assist trafficking victims are run byNGOs. During the reporting period, the governmentbegan providing financial support to NGO-run traffickingshelters in Kathmandu, Sindhualchowk, and Kanchanpur,and made plans to fund four additional shelters in 2009.Child victims were placed in foster care in governmentinstitutions. The government did not directly provide anymedical or psychological services to trafficking victims,though the Ministry of Women, Children and SocialWelfare provided limited legal counseling through theNepal Women’s Commission. The government did notreport the number of trafficking victims identified orassisted during the reporting period. The governmentencourages sex trafficking victims to participate ininvestigations against their traffickers, but lacks sufficientresources to ensure their personal safety. Additionally,victims who are material witnesses in court cases arenot permitted to obtain employment or leave Nepaluntil the case has concluded; as such, many victims arereluctant to testify. NGOs complained that police andother authorities were not rigorous in their efforts toidentify trafficking victims. Law enforcement officersdo not employ formal procedures to identify victimsof trafficking from among vulnerable groups, such aswomen arrested for prostitution, and did not ensure thatvictims of trafficking were not penalized for unlawfulacts committed as a direct result of their being trafficked.As a result, some victims were arrested and fined for actscommitted as a result of being trafficked. In September2008, the police cracked down on entertainmentestablishments in Kathmandu, many of which were frontsfor prostitution; hundreds of women and underage girlswere arrested, though none were screened by police andidentified as victims of trafficking, or given protection,and no manager, owner, or client of these establishmentswas arrested. It is of particular concern that Nepali policedo not attempt to identify as trafficking victims childrenin prostitution in such establishments or adult womenwho are in prostitution involuntarily. The governmentdoes not provide victim protection services for men andwomen trafficked abroad for involuntary servitude, andthere were a number of incidents in 2008 in which Nepaliworkers who may have been victims of labor traffickingwere stranded overseas.PreventionNepal sustained its efforts to prevent trafficking inpersons throughout the reporting period. The Ministryof Women, Children, and Social Welfare increased itsfinancial assistance to task forces in 26 high-risk districtsto raise awareness and mobilize communities againsttrafficking, however it remains insufficient. In orderto increase awareness of trafficking in the country, thegovernment ran a public information campaign on thecountry’s National Anti-Trafficking Day. There were nomeasures taken by the government to reduce the demandfor commercial sex acts or raise awareness about childsex tourism. To date, the government has done littleto prevent the exploitation of minors in the growingdomestic sex industry, or to conduct an awarenesscampaign to reduce the demand for commercial sex acts.Nepal has not ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.THE NETHERLANDS (Tier 1)The Netherlands is a source, transit, and destinationcountry for men, women, and children trafficked for thepurposes of commercial sexual exploitation and forcedlabor. During 2008, most female victims were exploited218

in forced prostitution, and the majority of identified sextrafficking victims were from the Netherlands. Withinthe Netherlands, victims are trafficked by so called “pimpboys” or “lover boys”—men who seduce vulnerableyoung women and girls and force them into prostitution.During the reporting period, women were also traffickedfrom Asia, Africa, other parts of Europe, and the WesternHemisphere; the most common countries of origin forforeign female trafficking victims were China, Nigeria,Hungary, and Sierra Leone. Males were trafficked intocommercial sexual exploitation as well as forced laborin the catering, cleaning, agriculture, and constructionsectors. The main countries of origin for male victimswere China, India, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and theNetherlands. According to the Dutch National Rapporteurfor Trafficking in Persons, the highest risk sectors forlabor trafficking are domestic employment, temporaryemployment agencies, agriculture and horticulture,restaurants, hotels, and construction. Groups vulnerableto trafficking include single underage asylum seekers,women with dependent residence status obtained throughfraudulent marriages, and women recruited in Africa,China, and Thailand for work in massage parlors.The Government of the Netherlands fully complies withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.The government sustained strong anti-sex traffickinglaw enforcement efforts, sustained protections providedto female trafficking victims, and improved servicesavailable to male trafficking victims. It also expandedprevention activities, including a program targeted atraising trafficking awareness among clients of the sextrade.Recommendations for the Netherlands: Vigorouslyinvestigate and prosecute, and convict and punish labortrafficking offenders; enhance forced labor awarenesstraining for prosecutors and judges; continue antitraffickingawareness initiatives aimed at educatingclients of the commercial sex trade as well as beneficiariesof forced labor about the causes and consequencesof trafficking; continue efforts to proactively identifytrafficking victims in the prostitution and relevant laborsectors of the Netherlands.statistics are available, compared to 216 during theprevious year. In 2007, verdicts were handed down in120 cases, 81 percent of which resulted in convictions,12 percent resulted in acquittals, and 7 percent weredismissed. According to the National Rapporteur’soffice, average prison sentences imposed in 2007 rangedfrom 20 to 23 months, down from 27 months in 2006.The police included a module on trafficking as part ofstandard police training curriculum. The Netherlands,Netherlands Antilles, and Aruba signed a memorandumof understanding on increasing cooperation in combatinghuman trafficking.ProtectionThe Dutch government made increased efforts to protecttrafficking victims during the reporting period. Dutchauthorities provided a temporary residence mechanismto allow foreign trafficking victims and witnesses to stayin the Netherlands during a reflection period of threemonths and, separately, during the investigation andprosecution of their traffickers. During these periods,the government provided victims with legal, financial,and psychological assistance, including shelter (infacilities that also serve victims of domestic violence),medical care, social security benefits, and educationfinancing. Child victims had access to a full range ofspecialized services. The government opened four newshelters specifically equipped to assist male victims ofhuman trafficking during the reporting period. Thegovernment provided permanent residence status to somevictims based on particular conditions. The governmentencouraged victims to press charges against traffickersand to assist in prosecutions. Nevertheless, victims wereoften reluctant to assist law enforcement personnel, dueto fear of reprisals from traffickers. In 2008, the nationalvictim registration center identified and registered 826trafficking victims, including 46 males, compared with716 identified victims in 2007. The Justice MinistryTHE NETHERLANDSProsecutionThe government demonstrated progress in investigatingand prosecuting sex trafficking offenses, though itsprosecutions of labor trafficking offenses diminished.Since January 2005, the Netherlands has prohibited allforms of trafficking through Criminal Code Article 273,which prescribes penalties for any form of traffickingof six to 15 years’ imprisonment, with fines of up to$58,000. These penalties are sufficiently stringent andcommensurate with those prescribed for other gravecrimes. There were no new labor trafficking prosecutionsor convictions during the reporting period, comparedwith five during the previous reporting period. Thegovernment prosecuted 221 persons for human traffickingoffences in 2007, the last year for which comprehensivetook measures to prevent victims from being punishedfor unlawful acts committed as a direct result of beingtrafficked, including through training of prison staff onproactive victim identification. Police and prosecutorsprovided specialized training to help judges, laborinspectors, and immigration officers identify and assisttrafficking victims during the reporting period. Localgovernments were responsible for regulating legalizedprostitution sectors and for conducting anti-traffickinginspections of brothels in these sectors. The Hague’s vice219

THE NETHERLANDS ANTILLESsquad checked sex establishments at least six times duringthe reporting period; the Amsterdam vice squad inspectedbrothels at least four times. The inspections includedobservation for any signals of trafficking, informalinterviews with persons in prostitution, and the review ofresidence and work permits.PreventionThe government demonstrated some progress inpreventing trafficking during the year. In February 2009,the government introduced an information card entitled“exploitation at the workplace” that was made availableto all municipalities and social welfare agencies duringthe reporting period. The card provides examples oflabor exploitation, information on where to seek help,and details on victims’ rights in several languages.The Justice Ministry funded the “Meld M” multimediacampaign, targeted at clients of the sex trade and personsin prostitution, as well as residents, shopkeepers and taxidriversin areas where prostitution occurs. The campaignencouraged people to report suspicions of trafficking toan anonymous hotline. In December 2008, the Interiorand Justice Ministers released a draft act containing newregulations for legalized prostitution; the regulationsreportedly would boost efforts to counter sex trafficking.The Ministry of Foreign Affairs funded $2.5 million foranti-trafficking programs in trafficking source countriesin Europe, the Caribbean, Asia, and Africa. The NationalRapporteur for Trafficking in Persons in July 2008published its sixth report, which is available on the JusticeMinistry’s website. Since January 2008, the governmentprovided single underage asylum seekers with intensivecounseling in secured shelters to protect them againsttraffickers. The Foreign Ministry website includes travelinformation warning Dutch travelers that sex withchildren is prosecutable in the country of destinationas well as in the Netherlands. The government fundsseveral initiatives to prevent child sex tourism includinga project to assist tour operators in Cambodia, Thailand,and the Philippines to adopt and implement a code ofconduct aimed at preventing child sex tourism. The JusticeMinistry estimates several dozen convictions annually inthe Netherlands of Dutch residents found guilty of childsex tourism offenses abroad. The Dutch military providedtraining to all military personnel on the preventionof trafficking and additional training on recognizingtrafficking victims for Dutch troops being deployedabroad for duty as international peacekeepers.The Netherlands Antilles(Tier 2 Watch List)*The five islands of the current Netherlands Antilles are atransit and destination point for men and women fromColombia, Venezuela, Suriname, Cuba, the DominicanRepublic, and other parts of South America and theCaribbean, trafficked for the purposes of commercialsexual exploitation and forced labor. The women inprostitution in the Netherlands Antilles’ regulatedand illegal sex trades are highly vulnerable to humantrafficking. Credible reports have alleged the traffickingof over 100 Cuban construction workers employed bythe Curacao Dry Dock Company in 2006—a case thatgarnered significant international press during thereporting period as a result of a related civil case in a U.S.court. Local authorities believe that men and womenhave also been trafficked into local domestic servitude aswell as into the agriculture and construction industries.Groups vulnerable to labor trafficking include Haitianmales in the agriculture and gardening sectors and LatinAmerican and Caribbean males in construction. There isanecdotal evidence that some Middle Eastern and Asianmigrants in restaurants and local businesses may bevulnerable to debt bondage.The Government of the Netherlands Antilles doesnot fully comply with the minimum standards forthe elimination of trafficking; however, it is makingsignificant efforts to do so. Despite these overall efforts,the government is placed on Tier 2 Watch List. Thegovernment has not enacted anti-trafficking legislation,although during the reporting period legislation wasintroduced, processed, and awaits final action. Thegovernment also did not develop and fund victimassistance policies and programs or raise awarenessamong clients of the sex trade and beneficiaries offorced labor about the causes and consequences ofhuman trafficking. As noted above in the Netherlandsnarrative, in January 2009 the justice ministers of theNetherlands Antilles, the Netherlands, and Aruba signeda memorandum of understanding to promote increasedanti-trafficking cooperation.Recommendations for the Netherlands Antilles: Enactlegislation criminalizing all forms of human trafficking;vigorously prosecute and convict sex and labor traffickingoffenders throughout the Netherlands Antilles; establishformal procedures to guide officials in the proactiveidentification of trafficking victims and referral of thesevictims to service providers; consider ways to educateclients of the sex trade and beneficiaries of forced laborabout the causes and consequences of trafficking.ProsecutionThe Netherlands Antilles’ anti-trafficking law enforcementefforts were greatly hindered by the absence of specificanti- trafficking legislation. A draft amendment to theNetherlands Antilles penal code prohibiting traffickingfor sexual exploitation and forced labor remainedpending in the Antillean Parliament during the reportingperiod. There were two likely cases of human traffickingthat officials in St. Maarten prosecuted using statutesprohibiting other non-trafficking offenses. In May 2008,a man who had held three women in a brothel againsttheir will was convicted and sentenced to 36 months inprison for human smuggling and ill-treatment. Anotherman was detained briefly on allegations of keeping ahousehold servant locked in his house. A court required220*The Netherlands Antilles is a semi-autonomous entity within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The Kingdom Charter divides responsibility among the three co-equal parts ofthe Kingdom based on jurisdiction and matter. For the purpose of this report, the Netherlands Antilles is not a “country” to which the minimum standards for the eliminationof trafficking in the Trafficking Victims Protection Act apply. This narrative reflects how the Antilles would be assessed if it were a separate, independent country.

KING BY YEARR RANKING BY YEARG BY YEARYEARBY YEARthe man to pay the domestic servant’s outstanding wagesand the costs associated with the servant’s repatriation.Antillean authorities cooperated with Suriname’s requestthat the Dutch extradite several traffickers who fled toCuracao during a trafficking-related law enforcementaction. Funding for and staffing of police and judicialoffices remained a chronic problem in the NetherlandsAntilles. Local media reported on corruption related tothe issuance of immigration and work permits, thoughthese did not involve specific trafficking allegations. Thegovernment provided training to individual prosecutorsand members of the islands’ police departments andhas systematic anti-trafficking training in place for lawenforcement authorities.ProtectionThe government’s victim protection efforts were mostlyad hoc during the reporting period. Trafficking victimsreceived limited assistance through a combinationof government agencies and NGOs that receive somegovernment subsidies in the Netherlands Antilles,including the Bureau for Aid to Victims in Curacaoand the Women’s Desk in St. Maarten. There were nospecific trafficking victim health care facilities in theNetherlands Antilles, but government health careproviders were available to assist trafficking victims. Thelegal system allows witnesses to trafficking crimes toprovide anonymous testimony or testimony from abroad.Island governors had the authority to issue temporaryresidency status for trafficking victims; it is unknownif any were issued. The government does providelong-term shelter for trafficking victims. In practice,consulates representing source countries often handledassistance to and repatriation of their citizens. Curacaohas one legal, government-regulated brothel compoundwith approximately 90 foreign women in prostitution.International organizations have expressed strongconcern about the working conditions, including possibleinvoluntary servitude at this brothel. The governmentdid not train health officials charged with regulating theCuracao brothel on identifying trafficking indicatorsand referring suspected victims for assistance. Thejustice ministry reiterated a directive in 2008 prohibitingimmigration officials from holding the passports offoreign women entering the islands for the purpose oflegal prostitution. One official in Curacao reported thatsome officials practiced proactive identification measureswithin detention facilities. There were no reported casesof victims being penalized during the reporting periodfor crimes that were a direct result of being trafficked. Thegovernment espoused a policy of encouraging traffickingvictims to participate in investigations and prosecutionsof trafficking offenders, but officials acknowledged thatmany victims were reluctant to participate.PreventionThe government made some efforts to raise awareness ofhuman trafficking during the reporting period but didnot undertake any measures to reduce the demand forcommercial sex acts. Formal interagency anti-traffickingworking groups operated in Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, St.Eustatius, and St. Maarten during the reporting period.The anti-trafficking coordinator based in Curacao spokeout about the problem of human trafficking in the regionand continued to promote an IOM-developed publicawareness campaign. The anti-trafficking coordinatorin Curacao also arranged for a short awareness raisingdocumentary video to be aired on local televisionMICRONESIA (FSM) TIER RANKING BY YEARstations. Netherlands Antilles officials issued a contractfor an outside evaluation of their anti-trafficking strategyin 2008. The government provided in-kind supportfor two human trafficking hotlines in the NetherlandsAntilles. There were no awareness campaigns specificallytargeting potential clients of the sex trade or beneficiariesof forced labor in the Netherlands Antilles.THE NETHERLANDS ANTILLES TIER RANKING BY YEARNEW ZEALAND (Tier 1)ST. VINCENT & GRENADINES TIER RANKING BY YEARNew Zealand is a source country for underage girlstrafficked internally for the purpose of commercial sexualexploitation. It is also reportedly a destination countryfor women from Hong Kong, Thailand, Taiwan, thePeople’s Republic of China, Eastern Europe, and otherAsian countries trafficked into forced prostitution. Veryfew minors are found in prostitution in legal or illegalbrothels.TUNISIASomeTIERunderageRANKINGgirlsBY YEARengage in prostitutionoccasionally on the street without the obvious control ofa third party, while other girls engaging in prostitutionare tightly controlled by local gangs. A number of Asianwomen migrate voluntarily to New Zealand to work inthe legal sex trade, although it is illegal for them to do so.Reports indicate that traffickers subsequently coerce themto work against their will in exploitive situations or bythreatening them with abuses of the law like deportationor jail. Unskilled Asians and Pacific Islanders migrate toTURKMENISTAN TIER RANKING BY YEARNew Zealand voluntarily to work legally or illegally inthe agricultural sector, and women from the Philippinesmigrate legally to work as nurses. Some of these workersreport that manpower agencies placed them in positionsof involuntary servitude or debt bondage by chargingthem escalating and unlimited recruiting fees, imposingunjustified salary deductions on them, restricting theirtravel by confiscating their passports, and significantlyaltering contracts or working conditions without theiragreement. Relative to the population of New Zealand,the estimated number of trafficking victims is modest,although no research has been conducted to determineNEW ZEALAND221

NEW ZEALANDthe full extent of the trafficking problem in New Zealand.The Government of New Zealand fully complies with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.New Zealand’s laws prohibit all forms of humantrafficking, and the government funds and participatesin international anti-trafficking initiatives. It offers anextensive network of protective services to internal andtransnational trafficking victims, regardless of whetherthey are recognized as trafficking victims. It is likely,however, that foreigners in New Zealand exploited inforced labor and the commercial sex trade have not beenidentified by the government as trafficking victims.Recommendations for New Zealand: Consider amendingrelevant laws to provide for minimum sentences fortrafficking crimes, including the internal trafficking ofchildren for commercial sexual exploitation; develop andimplement a visible anti-trafficking awareness campaigndirected at clients of the legal sex trade; and institute moreeffective formal procedures for law enforcement officialsto proactively identify trafficking victims in vulnerablepopulations, such as women and children engaged inprostitution and migrant laborers.deportation, three left voluntarily, and two were allowedto remain in New Zealand. Law enforcement officers whointerviewed the women did not uncover evidence of laborexploitation, and could not determine whether they werevictims of sex trafficking. In July, a brothel owner fromChristchurch became the first person charged under alaw from 2006 banning sexual slavery. Two girls, ages16 and 17, were found exploited in his brothel for morethan a year. The prosecution is pending. Authoritiescharged a New Plymouth brothel owner in Decemberwith several offenses related to “employing” a 15-yearoldgirl as a prostitute for six months in 2005. Also inDecember, the Tauranga District Court sentenced a Bay ofPlenty man to 27 months’ imprisonment for assisting andreceiving earnings from the prostitution of his 15-year-oldgirlfriend in 2006 and 2007. Police charged a 47-year oldAuckland man with facilitating and profiting from theprostitution of underage children in February 2009. Thegovernment conducted 264 agricultural labor compliancechecks in 2008. Although they received complaints oflabor exploitation in agricultural work over several years,labor officials did not believe the situations indicatedtrafficking and opened no investigations or prosecutionsin relation to the complaints.ProsecutionThe Government of New Zealand made uneven progressin law enforcement efforts against trafficking during thepast year. New Zealand prohibits transnational sex andlabor trafficking under Part 5 and various amendments ofthe Crimes Act of 1961, yet it has prosecuted no offensesunder this law. Laws against rape, abduction, assault,kidnapping, child sexual abuse, sexual slavery, the receiptof financial gain from exploiting children in prostitution,and labor exploitation prohibit forms of internaltrafficking, but such crimes are not specifically includedwithin the anti-trafficking provisions of the Crimes Act.Sufficiently stringent maximum penalties of 20 years’imprisonment and/or a fine of $250,000 under theabove statutes are commensurate with those prescribedfor other serious crimes. Although the mandatoryminimum sentence prescribed as punishment for rapeis eight years, New Zealand law has no such minimumpenalties prescribed for either transnational traffickingoffenses or the commercial sexual exploitation of a childdomestically. During 2008, law enforcement officers made21 compliance visits to brothels, homes, and premisesused for the sex industry and found nine foreignersin prostitution. Four of the women were processed forProtectionThe Government of New Zealand provides strong supportand social services for victims of all crimes, includingtrafficking, through the New Zealand Council of VictimSupport Groups. Under the Victim’s Rights Act of 2002police attend to victims’ immediate welfare needs, such asfood and shelter. The law currently allows foreign victimstemporary legal residence and relief from prosecutionfor immigration offenses, and the Interagency WorkingGroup (IWG) is considering a specific immigration statusfor trafficking victims and longer-term support servicesin the national plan of action. The government offerssupport services for children involved in, or at risk of,commercial sexual exploitation. No identified victimswere jailed, fined, or deported. It is possible, however, thatforeigners were not identified by police and immigrationofficials as possible trafficking victims. New Zealandsignificantly contributed to victim protection programsin the Mekong Sub-Region and the Pacific Island region.No victims of trafficking were proactively identified bythe government during the reporting period, besidesthe aforementioned children found exploited in NewZealand’s commercial sex trade.PreventionThe Government of New Zealand demonstratedinconsistent efforts to prevent human trafficking.During the year, it did not run campaigns to raise publicawareness of trafficking risks, nor did it take steps toreduce demand for commercial sex acts. It did makeefforts, however, to educate officials on trafficking andtheir obligations under the laws and included funding foranti-traficking awareness campaigns in next year’s budget.The IWG, as part of the national plan of action process,222

worked with NGOs and civil society, and published itsactivities on a ministry website. An assumption thatall women engaging in prostitution in New Zealanddo so willingly appears to underpin official policy andprograms, and has inhibited public discussion andexamination of indications that trafficking exists withinboth the decriminalized and illegal sex industries. NewZealand remained active in international efforts tomonitor and prevent trafficking. Its foreign assistanceagency provided substantial funding to countries andorganizations to build countries’ anti-trafficking capacity,to prevent trafficking, and to provide services to victims.New Zealand emphasized its laws on child sex tourism,which apply extraterritorially, on its travel webpage.The government provided anti-trafficking training tomilitary personnel assigned to international peacekeepingmissions prior to their deployment. There were no reportsof New Zealand peacekeeping personnel involved intrafficking or exploiting trafficking victims during theyear.NICARAGUA (Tier 2 Watch List)Nicaragua is principally a source and transit countryfor women and children trafficked for the purposes ofcommercial sexual exploitation and forced labor. Womenand children are trafficked within the country and toneighboring countries, most often to El Salvador, CostaRica, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, and the UnitedStates, for commercial sexual exploitation. The mostprevalent form of internal trafficking is the exploitationof children, both boys and girls, in prostitution. NGOsidentify Managua, Granada, Esteli, and San Juan del Suras destinations for foreign child sex tourists. NGOs reportinstances of forced child marriages between young girlsand older foreign men, particularly in San Juan del Sur.Children are trafficked within the country for forced laborin construction, agriculture, the fishing industry, and fordomestic servitude. Young Nicaraguan men and boys aretrafficked from southern border areas to Costa Rica forforced labor in agriculture and construction. To a lesserextent, Nicaragua is a destination country for womenand children trafficked from Colombia, Guatemala,and Honduras for the purpose of commercial sexualexploitation. All forms of human trafficking appearto be growing in Nicaragua, which NGOs indicate isunderreported to authorities.The Government of Nicaragua does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Despitesuch efforts, the government did not show evidence ofprogress in combating human trafficking, particularlyin terms of providing adequate assistance to victims andconfronting trafficking-related complicity; therefore,Nicaragua is placed on Tier 2 Watch List.Recommendations for Nicaragua: Increase effortsto investigate and prosecute trafficking offenses, andconvict and punish trafficking offenders, includinggovernment officials who may be suspected of complicitywith trafficking activity; increase law enforcementefforts against forced labor; dedicate additionalresources for victim assistance; provide adequate carefor adult trafficking victims; and raise public awarenessabout human trafficking, particularly among youngNicaraguans seeking gainful employment.ProsecutionThe Government of Nicaragua demonstrated inadequateefforts to combat human trafficking through lawenforcement during the reporting period. Nicaraguacriminalizes all forms of human trafficking. A penalcode reform law, which was passed by the NicaraguanNational Assembly in November 2007, came into forcein July 2008. Article 182 of the new code prohibitstrafficking in persons for the purposes of slavery, sexualexploitation, and adoption, prescribing penalties of fromseven to 10 years’ imprisonment. A separate statute,Article 315, prohibits the submission, maintenance, orforced recruitment of another person into slavery, forcedlabor, servitude, or participation in an armed conflict;this offense carries penalties of from five to eight years’imprisonment. These prescribed punishments aresufficiently stringent and commensurate with penaltiesprescribed for other serious crimes such as rape. Duringthe reporting period, the government investigated 13trafficking cases and filed 10 prosecutions but achievedno convictions. Such results represent diminished effortscompared to the previous year, when the governmentinvestigated 17 cases, filed two prosecutions, and achievedtwo convictions, securing sentences of more than fouryears’ imprisonment for each trafficking offender. Thegovernment opened no investigations of suspected officialcomplicity with human trafficking, despite crediblereports of trafficking-related corruption in the judiciary,in addition to police and immigration officials acceptingbribes, sexually exploiting victims, or turning a blind eyeto such activity, particularly at the nation’s borders.ProtectionThe Nicaraguan government made inadequate efforts toprotect trafficking victims during the last year, and NGOsand international organizations continued to provide thebulk of assistance to victims. The government providedbasic shelter and services to child trafficking victims,but such assistance was not readily accessible in all partsof the country, nor was it generally available for adulttrafficking victims. Last year, the government’s donorfundedanti-trafficking telephone hotline was reportedas not working regularly. With assistance from IOM andOAS, the government trained diplomatic and consularpersonnel in identifying trafficking victims abroad.Consular officials assisted six Nicaraguan traffickingvictims last year, aiding repatriation efforts from ElSalvador, Costa Rica, Panama, Mexico, Guatemala, andFrance. The government encouraged victims to participatein trafficking investigations and prosecutions, thoughmany were reluctant to do so due to social stigma, fear ofNICARAGUA223

NIGERretribution from traffickers, and long court delays. Thegovernment provided a temporary legal alternative to theremoval of foreign victims to countries where they mayface hardship or retribution.PreventionThe Nicaraguan government made inadequate effortsto prevent trafficking, such as through awarenessraisingcampaigns, during the last year. The governmentconducted no anti-trafficking outreach or educationcampaigns in 2008, relying on NGOs and internationalorganizations to sponsor such activities. The governmentmaintained an interagency anti-trafficking committeeto direct anti-trafficking efforts, but it conducted fewactivities during the reporting period. Governmentcollaboration with NGOs on anti-trafficking activities isreported to be better on the local level. The governmentreported no efforts to reduce demand for commercialsexual acts, such as enforcement of Article 177 – its penalcode provision against child sex tourism – or awarenessraisingcampaigns on child prostitution; nor did itundertake efforts to reduce demand for forced labor.NIGER (Tier 3)Niger is a source, transit, and destination country forchildren and women trafficked for forced labor andcommercial sexual exploitation. Caste-based slaverypractices, rooted in ancestral master-slave relationships,continue primarily in the northern part of the country. Anestimated 8,800 to 43,000 Nigeriens live under conditionsof traditional hereditary slavery. Children within Nigerare trafficked for forced begging by religious instructors,forced labor in gold mines, domestic servitude, sexualexploitation, and possibly for forced labor in agricultureand stone quarries. Nigerien children, primarily girls, arealso subjected to commercial sexual exploitation alongthe border with Nigeria, particularly in the towns of BirniN’Konni and Zinder, and boys are trafficked to Nigeriaand Mali for forced begging and manual labor. Womenand children from Benin, Burkina Faso, Gabon, Ghana,Mali, Nigeria, and Togo are trafficked to and throughNiger for domestic servitude, sexual exploitation, forcedlabor in mines and on farms, and as mechanics andwelders. Nigerien women and children are trafficked fromNiger to North Africa, the Middle East, and Europe fordomestic servitude and sexual exploitation.The Government of Niger does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking andis not making significant efforts to do so. The Nigeriengovernment demonstrated marginal efforts to combathuman trafficking, including traditional slavery, duringthe last year.Recommendations for Niger: Pass and enact draft 2006legislation against trafficking; strengthen efforts toprosecute and punish trafficking offenders, particularlythose guilty of slavery offenses; increase efforts to rescuevictims of traditional slavery practices; and increaseefforts to educate the public about the law criminalizingtraditional slavery practices.ProsecutionThe Government of Niger demonstrated weak lawenforcement efforts to address child trafficking andtraditional slavery. Niger prohibits slavery through a2003 amendment to Article 270 of its Penal Code andprohibits forced and compulsory labor through Article4 of its Labor Code. Penal Code Articles 292 and 293prohibit procurement of a child for prostitution. Nigerdoes not, however, prohibit other forms of trafficking.The government’s 2006 draft law against traffickingstill awaits adoption by the Council of Ministers. Theprescribed penalty of 10 to 30 years’ imprisonment forslavery offenses is sufficiently stringent. The penaltyprescribed for forced labor, a fine ranging from $48 to$598 and from six days to one month’s imprisonment, isnot sufficiently stringent.In the last year, law enforcement authorities arrested11 individuals suspected of trafficking 81 children. Sixsuspects were released without being charged, whilefive were charged with the abduction of minors andremain in preventative detention pending investigation.The government cooperated with Malian and Togoleseofficials to investigate and arrest three suspectedtraffickers from Mali and one trafficker from Togo. Borderofficials cooperated with their Beninese counterpartsto monitor the border of Niger and Benin for humantrafficking activity. In December 2008, the Niamey Courtof Appeals held hearings on the 2006 enslavement caseTimidria and Assibit Wanagoda vs. Tafane Abouzeidi, foundno grounds for prosecution, and dismissed the case.An additional 2006 enslavement case, Midi Ajinalher vs.Hamad Alamine and three brothers is still pending beforethe same court. In June 2008, senior Ministry of Laborofficials delivered presentations on labor laws and corelabor standards at an ILO-funded forced labor trainingevent.In October 2008, the ECOWAS Court of Justice ruledthat the Government of Niger’s administrative and legalservices failed to protect a Nigerien woman sold intoslavery in the case Timidria and Hadidjatou Mani Koraouvs. the Government of Niger. When the victim, who wassold into slavery at the age of 12 for $500, originallybrought her case to a Nigerien court, the judge found224

that no slavery existed. He then sentenced the victim tosix months’ imprisonment for bigamy for entering into amarriage by choice after she fled her forced marriage toher master. The ECOWAS court ordered the governmentto pay $20,000 in damages to the victim. In March 2009,the government paid the victim the ordered restitutionand secured the conviction of the victim’s former master,Naroua, who was given a sentence of one year in prisonand a fine of $1,000. Naroua, however, has yet to belocated and detained. The status of seven women whoreportedly remained enslaved by Naroua after the victim’sescape is unknown. The whereabouts of the victim’s twochildren, who were enslaved by Naroua as well, is alsounknown. NGOs reported to officials that in 2008, fourNigerien girls were sold to Nigerian businessmen in Zaria,on the border of Nigeria and Niger, but the governmenthas failed to respond to these reports. The governmentreported that it was dismantling trafficking networks inthe Konni region.ProtectionThe Government of Niger demonstrated slightly decreasedefforts to provide care to child trafficking victims andsome increased efforts to assist victims of traditionalslavery practices. Due to lack of resources, the governmentdid not operate its own victim shelter, but refers childtrafficking victims to NGOs for assistance. While thegovernment lacked a formal system for identificationand referral of trafficking victims, authorities referredtrafficking victims to NGOs for care on an ad hoc basis.In Agadez, local authorities assisted UNICEF in rescuing37 child trafficking victims and referring them to NGOsfor care. At a government-operated but donor-fundedvictim transit center in Makalondi, police assisted withthe rescue, rehabilitation, and return of 44 child victims.In February 2009, Nigerien and Togolese law enforcementofficials conducted a joint investigation resulting in therescue of a Nigerien female who had been abducted andtrafficked to Togo in 1998, when she was 14 years old.A 2007 government plan to combat child exploitationby religious instructors in Islamic schools has not beenimplemented due to lack of funding. During the year,government officials assisted a local NGO in rescuing40 individuals subjected to traditional slavery practicesby assisting with the purchase of land and animalsfor the former slaves. The officials also housed theNGO delegation and educated the community aboutslavery. During the year, the Ministry of Education paidthe salaries for five teachers working at NGO-fundedschools for children of former slaves. The governmentencouraged victims to report their traffickers to lawenforcement officials and interviewed them for evidencefor investigations and prosecutions. The Ministry of theInterior continued to operate a program to welcome andprovide temporary shelter – for about one week – torepatriated Nigeriens, some of whom may be traffickingvictims. While ministry officials interviewed thesecitizens to assist with their reintegration, they did notattempt to identify trafficking victims among them. Thegovernment did not provide legal alternatives to theremoval of foreign victims to countries where they facehardship or retribution. Victims were not inappropriatelyincarcerated or fined for unlawful acts committed as adirect result of being trafficked.PreventionThe Government of Niger made solid prevention effortsthrough campaigns to educate the public about childtrafficking during the reporting period. State televisionbroadcast a donor-funded anti-trafficking skit repeatedlyin French and local languages. Niger’s First Lady and theMinister of Justice made public appearances denouncingtraditional slavery and child trafficking. In July 2008, theMinister of Women’s Promotion and Children’s Protectionchaired a regional training workshop for journalistsfrom nine countries on child trafficking and labor. InDecember 2008, Niger’s Youth Parliament held its secondordinary session which focused on child rights, includingchild trafficking. In July 2008, the National Commissionon Human Rights and Fundamental Liberties released asix-month study on forced labor, child labor, and slavery.In cooperation with UNICEF, the Nigerien governmenthelped establish regional committees to prevent childtrafficking. The government identified committeemembers and leaders and provided them with educationand training. A 2006 draft anti-trafficking agreementbetween Niger and Nigeria remained unsigned. Niger’s2006 draft national action plan to combat traffickingand draft plan to combat forced labor linked to slaveryhas yet to be adopted. The Nigerien government did nottake measures to reduce demand for commercial sexacts during the year. Nigerien troops deployed abroadas part of international peacekeeping missions did notreceive human trafficking awareness training prior todeployment. In February 2009, however, the governmentrevised the bylaws of its armed forces to prohibit suchtroops from engaging in or facilitating trafficking.NIGERIA (Tier 1)Nigeria is a source, transit, and destination countryfor women and children trafficked for the purposes offorced labor and commercial sexual exploitation. WithinNigeria, women and girls are trafficked primarily fordomestic servitude and commercial sexual exploitation.Boys are trafficked for forced labor in street vending,NIGERIA225

NIGERIAagriculture, mining, stone quarries, and as domesticservants. Religious teachers also traffic boys, calledalmajiri, for forced begging. Women, girls, and boys aretrafficked from Nigeria to other West and Central Africancountries, primarily Gabon, Cameroon, Ghana, Chad,Benin, Togo, Niger, Burkina Faso, and The Gambia,for the same purposes listed above. Benin is a primarysource country for boys and girls trafficked for forcedlabor in Nigeria’s granite quarries. Nigerian women andgirls are trafficked through Libya, Morocco, and Algeriato Europe, primarily for the purpose of commercialsexual exploitation, and to the Middle East, particularlySaudi Arabia, for forced prostitution and forced labor.While Italy is the primary European destination countryfor Nigerian victims, other common destinations areSpain, the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria, Norway,Denmark, Finland, Germany, Switzerland, Ireland,France, and Greece. Children from Nigeria and otherAfrican countries are trafficked from Lagos to the UK’surban centers for domestic servitude and forced labor inrestaurants and shops.The Government of Nigeria fully complies with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.Over the last year, the government more than doubledthe number of trafficking offenders convicted, whileit improved assistance given to victims, demonstratedstrong awareness-raising efforts, and increased fundingto its anti-human trafficking organization, the NationalAgency for the Prohibtion of Trafficking in Persons(NAPTIP). Nigeria’s strengthened anti-trafficking recordover the last year reflects the cumulative impact ofprogressively increasing efforts made by NAPTIP over thelast several years.Recommendations for Nigeria: Continue strong effortsto prosecute and convict trafficking offenders; reconsiderthe practice of interrogating suspected traffickers inLagos in the same building where trafficking victims aresheltered; and ensure that victims’ rights are respectedand that they are not detained involuntarily in shelters.ProsecutionThe Government of Nigeria demonstrated increased lawenforcement efforts to combat trafficking during the lastyear. Nigeria prohibits all forms of trafficking throughits 2003 Trafficking in Persons Law Enforcement andAdministration Act, which was amended in 2005 toincrease penalties for traffickers. This law’s prescribedpenalties of five years’ imprisonment for labor trafficking,10 years’ imprisonment for trafficking of children forforced begging or hawking, and a maximum of lifeimprisonment for sex trafficking are sufficiently stringentand commensurate with penalties prescribed for othergrave crimes, such as rape. Nigeria’s 2003 Child Rights Actalso criminalizes child trafficking, though only 20 of thecountry’s 36 states have enacted it.During the year, NAPTIP reported that it investigated 209trafficking cases, 37 of which were prosecuted, resultingin the conviction of 19 sex traffickers and four labortraffickers. Sentences imposed on convicted traffickersranged from six months’ to 40 years’ imprisonment.One sex trafficking offender received a sentence of 40years’ imprisonment, two received sentences of 24 years’imprisonment, and others received two-, five-, and sevenyearsentences. Six sex traffickers received sentences of oneyear’s imprisonment or less. While one labor trafficker wassentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment, one was sentencedto one year imprisonment and two were given the optionof serving one to two years in prison or paying fines ofbetween $65 and $600. Over the year, the governmentprovided anti-trafficking training for 823 law enforcementofficials and integrated a trafficking training course in theNational Police Force’s standard curriculum. For severalmonths in 2008, NAPTIP cooperated with Europeanlaw enforcement counterparts in Operation Koovis. Thisresulted in the arrest of 60 Nigerian trafficking suspects inEurope, where they will be prosecuted.ProtectionNigeria intensified its efforts to protect trafficking victimsduring the last year. NAPTIP continued to operate sevenshelters in Lagos, Abuja, Kano, Sokoto, Enugu, Uyo, andBenin City. The Ministry of Women’s Affairs operatestwo additional shelters, one in Kano and one in AkwaIbom. The government collaborated with NGOs andinternational organizations to provide victims with care.NAPTIP continued to provide care to victims with HIV/AIDS through agreements with hospitals whereby thegovernment pays portions of this care and hospitals agreeto provide care at lower cost or sometimes for free. Thegovernment reported that between October 2007 andSeptember 2008 it identified 887 trafficking victims, ofwhom NAPTIP rescued 291, the Immigration Servicerescued 215, the Nigerian Police intercepted 304, the CivilDefense Corps intercepted 56, the Federal Road Safetyrescued 18, the State Security Service intercepted two,and a Nigerian Embassy rescued one. NAPTIP reportedthat from February 2008 to February 2009 932 victims– 387 of whom were children – received care at its sevenshelters. The agency’s largest shelter in Lagos, with acapacity for 120 victims, housed an average of 35 to 40victims at any given period during the year. This shelteroffers victims vocational training and has 12 full-timecounselors trained to treat trauma. NAPTIP detainssuspected traffickers for questioning in the same buildingcontaining the Lagos shelter, a practice that threatenedto jeopardize the safety of victims and contribute to theirpsychological distress. The government also reported226

that some of its shelters lack adequate vocational trainingfacilities. NAPTIP repatriated 45 victims back to Nigeriawith some assistance from IOM and repatriated 54foreign victims back to their African countries of origin.In August 2008, NAPTIP launched the Victims’ TrustFund, which accepts donations to provide restitutionto victims on a case-by-case basis. In November 2008,Nigeria approved a National Policy on Protection andAssistance to Trafficked Persons to increase protectionand rehabilitation efforts, though implementation hasnot begun. The government also operated hotlines forassistance to victims in each of NAPTIP’s zonal areas.The government encouraged victims to participate ininvestigations and prosecutions of trafficking crimes,as victim testimony is usually required to prosecutetraffickers. Because cases take so long to go to trial,victims often returned to their home communities beforethey could give testimony in court.Nigeria provided a limited legal alternative to theremoval of foreign victims to countries where theyface hardship or retribution – short-term residencythat cannot be extended. The government also placedforeign victims in shelters under guard until they wererepatriated. Although there were no reports of victimsinappropriately incarcerated, fined, or penalized forunlawful acts committed as a result of being trafficked,police and immigration officers did not always followprocedures to identify trafficking victims among femalesarrested for prostitution. While NAPTIP investigatorsfollow formal procedures to identify sex traffickingvictims, such procedures have not been formalized withinthe National Police Force or the National ImmigrationService. In March 2009, NAPTIP dismissed two officersfor attempting to extort bribes from trafficking victimsduring investigations.PreventionThe Government of Nigeria demonstrated strong effortsto raise awareness about trafficking over the last year.In August 2008, on its five-year anniversary, NAPTIPorganized the First Trafficking Awareness week, a seriesof anti-trafficking, awareness-raising events, includingthe launch of the “Red Card,” a leaflet distributed tothe public with information on the human traffickingphenomenon, including hotline numbers. In November2008, Nigeria and Benin hosted a four-day, antitraffickingforum attended by representatives from Togo,Gabon, and Congo. During the year, NAPTIP providedguidance to counterparts in Ghana on establishing asimilar anti-trafficking agency. In August 2008, Nigeriaadopted a new National Plan of Action on Traffickingin Persons, though implementation has not yet begun.In 2008, the government provided NAPTIP with $9.3million in funding, up from $7.2 million in 2007. NAPTIPhosted two national stakeholders’ forums during theyear attended by government, NGO, and internationalorganization representatives. Nigerian troops receiveanti-trafficking awareness training through a donorfundedprogram before being deployed abroad as part ofinternational peacekeeping missions. The governmenttook steps to reduce the demand for commercial sexacts within Nigeria by closing down two commercialestablishments for trafficking activities in July 2008.NORTH KOREA (Tier 3)The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK orNorth Korea) is a source country for men, women, andchildren trafficked for the purposes of forced labor andcommercial sexual exploitation. The most common formof trafficking involves North Korean women and girlssubjected to involuntary servitude after willingly crossingthe border into the People’s Republic of China (PRC).Many of them are from North Hamgyong province, oneof the poorest provinces in the country, located nearthe Chinese border. Once in China, they are pickedup by traffickers and sold as brides to PRC nationals,often of Korean ethnicity. In other cases, North Koreanwomen and girls are lured out of North Korea to escapepoor economic, social, and political conditions by thepromise of food, jobs, and freedom, only to be forced intoprostitution, marriage, or exploitative labor arrangementsonce in China. North Koreans trafficked into or withinthe PRC are often passed from one trafficker to the nextuntil they reach their ultimate destinations. In somecases, women and girls may be sold to traffickers by theirfamilies or acquaintances. Women sold as brides aresometimes re-abducted by the traffickers or are sold byhusbands who no longer want them. In some cases, NorthKorean women are sold multiple times to different menby the same trafficker. Trafficking networks of Korean-Chinese and North Korean men operate in NortheastChina and along the China-DPRK border, where theyseek out North Korean women and girls. There are somereports that businessmen who operate along the China-DPRK border use their trade routes along the Yalu Riverto traffic North Korean women into China. While manywomen trafficked into China are sold as brides, someNorth Korean women in China are forced to work in thehighly exploitative sex industry, including as prostitutesin brothels and in internet sex operations. Many victimsof trafficking, unable to speak Chinese, are held asvirtual prisoners. The illegal status of North Koreans inthe PRC and other Southeast Asian countries increasestheir vulnerability to trafficking for purposes of forcedlabor and sexual exploitation. NGOs estimate that tensof thousands of North Koreans presently live in China,more than half of whom are women; according to someestimates, over 80 percent of North Korean refugees arevictims of human traffickingThe North Korean regime continues to use forced laboras part of an established system of political repression.North Koreans do not have a choice in the jobs they workand are not free to change jobs at will; the DPRK regimedetermines what work each citizens will have. Hundredsof thousands of men, women, and children in politicalNORTH KOREA227

where they may undergo torture, forced labor, sexualabuse by prison guards, and other severe punishment.Repatriated victims who are suspected of having becomepregnant in China are reportedly subject to forcedabortions, and prison authorities kill some babies bornto repatriated victims while in detention. The NorthKorean government places a priority on controlling allactivities within its borders; protecting individuals frommistreatment, exploitation, and retribution are notgovernment priorities. The government did not ensurethat trafficking victims are not penalized for unlawfulacts committed as a direct result of their being trafficked.PreventionThe North Korean government made no significant effortsto prevent human trafficking. It did not acknowledge theexistence of human rights problems, including traffickingin persons. The DPRK does not allow indigenous NGOsto exist, and the few international NGOs permitted tooperate in the country work under intense governmentscrutiny. North Korea has not ratified the 2000 UN TIPProtocol.NORWAY (Tier 1)Norway is a destination country for women and girlstrafficked from Nigeria, Bulgaria, Brazil, Estonia,Ghana, Eritrea, Cameroon, Kenya, and the DemocraticRepublic of Congo for the purpose of commercialsexual exploitation. Victims from Africa and Brazil arefrequently trafficked through Italy, Spain, Morocco,and the Balkans. Men and children are traffickedfrom Thailand, the United Kingdom, India, Sri Lanka,Romania, and Bulgaria to Norway for the purposes ofdomestic servitude and forced labor in the constructionindustry. Children in Norwegian refugee centers arevulnerable to human trafficking.The Government of Norway fully complies with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.During the reporting period, Norway continued to fundanti-trafficking programs in key source countries withgrants totaling $7.4 million, including $600,000 to antitraffickingprograms in Nigeria. The government alsoimproved its victim identification system by publishingnew victim identification guidelines in May 2008 anddistributing them to all government agencies that maycome in contact with potential victims of trafficking; thiseffort may have led to a 26 percent increase in the numberof victims identified. In November 2008, the governmentamended its immigration law to prohibit the deportationof any victim who testifies in court against a trafficker.Recommendations for Norway: Continue efforts tovigorously prosecute and convict both sex and labortrafficking offenders; continue to seek appropriateprison sentences for convicted trafficking offenders;and maintain efforts to reduce the domestic demand forcommercial sexual exploitation in Norway.ProsecutionThe Norwegian government increased its anti-traffickinglaw enforcement efforts during the reporting period.Norway prohibits all forms of trafficking in personsthrough its Crimes Against Personal Freedom Law of2004, which prescribes a maximum penalty of five years’imprisonment – a penalty that is sufficiently stringent andcommensurate with punishments for other grave offenses,such as rape. In 2008, police significantly increased thenumber of trafficking investigations from 19 in 2007to 45 in 2008—including 41 sex trafficking and fourlabor trafficking investigations. Norwegian authoritiesprosecuted five people for sex trafficking and one personfor labor trafficking in 2008, compared to a total ofsix prosecutions in 2007. Six people were convicted oftrafficking during the reporting period, compared to sixconvictions in 2007. All six traffickers were sentenced tosome time in prison; no traffickers were given suspendedsentences. Sentences imposed on the five convicted sextraffickers ranged from 18 to 36 months’ imprisonment.One person convicted of labor trafficking was sentencedto 18 months’ imprisonment. In 2007, six traffickerswere sentenced to 18 to 30 months’ imprisonment.Throughout the year, Norwegian law enforcementpersonnel collaborated on trafficking investigations withcounterparts from numerous countries including theCzech Republic, Albania, Italy, Nigeria, Spain, the UnitedKingdom, Bulgaria, Romania, Germany, the Netherlands,Switzerland, Brazil, and all of the Nordic-Baltic countries.ProtectionThe government continued to improve its impressiveefforts to identify and protect victims of trafficking duringthe year. The government identified 256 victims in 2008,an increase from 190 victims identified in 2007. Lawenforcement and other government officials referred atleast 118 victims for assistance in 2008. Forty-four victimswere assisted in 2008, up from 37 victims in 2007. Thegovernment provided direct social assistance services tovictims as well as funding for assistance provided by antitraffickingNGOs. In 2008, trafficking victims in Norwayhad access to shelter, medical care, vocational training,and legal assistance; however, many female victims offorced prostitution were provided shelter in domesticviolence shelters rather than in trafficking-specificshelters. Victims are permitted to stay in Norway withoutconditions during a six-month reflection period in orderto receive assistance; 40 victims benefited from theNORWAY229

OMANreflection period in 2008 compared to 30 in 2007. Afterthe reflection period, victims can apply for one-yearresidency permits; in 2008, 15 victims received one-yearresidency permits. The government encouraged victims toparticipate in trafficking investigations and prosecutions.Trafficking victims were not penalized during thereporting period for unlawful acts committed as a directresult of their being trafficked.PreventionThe government continued its trafficking preventionoutreach in key source countries while improvingawareness efforts in Norway during the reportingperiod. The government conducted two campaignsaimed at reducing the demand for commercial sex acts;these campaigns were advertised on the internet and inNorwegian airports. Norway criminalized the purchaseof sexual services in January 2009, which may have animpact on the demand for commercial sex within Norway.The government briefed all Norwegian troops on humantrafficking prior to deployment overseas on internationalpeacekeeping missions and monitored immigrationpatterns for evidence of trafficking.OMAN (Tier 2)Oman is a transit and destination country for men andwomen, primarily from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, SriLanka, the Philippines, and Indonesia, most of whommigrate willingly to Oman as domestic servants or lowskilledworkers in the country’s construction, agriculture,and service sectors. Some of them subsequently faceconditions indicative of involuntary servitude, suchas withholding of passports and other restrictions onmovement, non-payment of wages, long working hourswithout food or rest, threats, and physical or sexualabuse. Unscrupulous labor recruitment agencies andtheir sub-agents at the community level in South Asiaand the United Arab Emirates (UAE) may coerce ordefraud workers into accepting work in Oman that turnsout to be exploitative and, in some instances, constitutesinvoluntary servitude. Oman is also a destination andtransit country for women from China, India, Morocco,Eastern Europe, and South Asia who may be trafficked forcommercial sexual exploitation. Male Pakistani laborers,as well as others from India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, andEast Asia, transit Oman en route to the UAE; some ofthese migrant workers are exploited in situations of forcedlabor upon reaching their destination.The Government of Oman does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Thegovernment’s enactment of anti-trafficking legislation andcompletion of its first prosecution under these provisionsdemonstrated increased commitment to combatingtrafficking during the reporting period. The government,however, continued to lack systematic procedures toidentify trafficking victims among women in prostitutionand illegal migrants, comprehensive victim protectionservices, and programming to raise general publicawareness of all forms of human trafficking.Recommendations for Oman: Increase investigationsand prosecutions of trafficking crimes and convictionsand punishment of trafficking offenders; continuetraining government officials in all relevant departmentsto recognize and respond appropriately to humantrafficking crimes; institute formal procedures foridentifying trafficking victims among women inprostitution and illegal migrants and transferring them tocare facilities; complete construction and begin operationof a shelter that provides appropriate protection servicesto both labor and sex trafficking victims, including shelterand medical, psychological, and legal assistance; andenact and enforce penalties for employers who withholdtheir employees’ passports as a measure to prevent labortrafficking.ProsecutionThe government’s anti-trafficking law enforcement effortsincreased during the reporting period, evidenced by itspassage of a comprehensive human trafficking statuteand prosecution of its first specific trafficking case. InNovember 2008, the government enacted Royal DecreeNo. 126/2008, the Law Combating Human Trafficking,which prohibits all forms of trafficking and prescribespunishments of three to 15 years’ imprisonment, inaddition to financial penalties. These punishments aresufficiently stringent and commensurate with penaltiesprescribed for other grave crimes. The law becameeffective in early December 2008 after publication inthe official gazette. Articles 260 and 261 of the penalcode prohibit slavery and prescribe penalties of three to15 years’ imprisonment. Article 220 prohibits coercedprostitution and prescribes penalties of three to five years’imprisonment. A legally enforceable circular prohibitsemployers’ withholding of migrant workers’ passports,which often contributes to forced labor; the circular,however, does not specify penalties for noncompliance,and this trafficking-related practice continues to bewidespread. In March 2009, the government charged 13male suspects, of whom 11 were convicted (five Omanisand six expatriates) with bringing 13 foreign womeninto Oman as their wives and then transiting them toanother Gulf country to engage in prostitution. Thisis the first trafficking case investigated and prosecutedunder the recently enacted anti-trafficking law. Thecase concluded in May 2009, with the conviction andsentencing of 11 defendants to seven years’ imprisonmentand a fine of $26,000; two defendants were acquitted forlack of evidence. The government confiscated the Omanidefendants’ commercial establishments and forbade themfrom sponsoring additional expatriate workers.ProtectionThe government made efforts to improve protectionservices for victims of trafficking during the reporting230

period. The government did not provide shelter services,counseling, or legal aid to trafficking victims in 2008.Beginning in March 2009, however, the governmentprovided 13 female victims shelter at a Royal OmanPolice “accommodation center.” In December 2008,the Ministry of Manpower instituted a mechanism foridentifying trafficking victims among migrant workersemployed by private companies that involved reviewingbank statements, employment contracts, and salaryslips, and speaking privately with randomly selectedworkers at each site. The government, however, lackedsystematic procedures to identify victims of traffickingamong other vulnerable groups, such as migrantsdetained for immigration violations and women arrestedfor prostitution, or to refer victims for assistance; thereare limited NGO-run facilities for trafficking victims inOman. The government advocates a policy of encouragingvictims to participate in the investigation and prosecutionof their traffickers. The government’s new humantrafficking statute enables the Public Prosecution or courtto permit a victim to remain in Oman if an investigationor trial finds cause. Trafficking victims who have fledabusive employers without obtaining new employmentsponsorship are allowed to remain in country one monthin order to locate a new sponsor.PreventionThe Omani government made efforts to preventtrafficking of migrant laborers during the reportingperiod, such as the launch of a public campaign toeducate workers, employers, and the general public onlaws and potential abuses, but did not take measures toraise awareness of sex trafficking or educate the generalpopulation about the nature of human trafficking asboth a local and global phenomenon. In April 2009,the government’s National Committee for CombatingTrafficking in Persons convened its first meeting. Tostrengthen enforcement of labor laws that prohibitcertain acts related to human trafficking, the governmenthired 94 additional male and female labor inspectorsin September 2008, bringing the total to 160. Thegovernment funded the travel of ILO trainers to Oman,as well as provided venues for ILO-conducted antitraffickingtraining of the labor inspectorate and otherMinistry of Manpower officials. In November 2008, thegovernment signed a memorandum of understandingwith the Government of India strengthening cooperationin regard to the employment of Indian workers in Oman;the memorandum commits the countries to shareinformation regarding illegal recruitment and traffickingof Indian workers. During the reporting period, Ministryof Manpower officials conducted seminars on workers’rights throughout the country for workers employed byprivate companies. The ministry also distributed 180,000brochures in 11 languages highlighting the rights andservices to which workers are legally entitled to sourcecountry embassies and to new migrant laborers atairports, recruitment agencies, and in their places of work.The government also launched a broad public campaignon labor issues, which included weekly televisionand radio spots, the placement of articles weekly ingovernment-owned newspapers, and presentations bygovernment officials at schools, colleges, chambers ofcommerce, and women’s associations in all major towns.The government did not take any known measuresduring the reporting period to reduce the demand forcommercial sex acts.PAKISTAN (Tier 2 Watch List)Pakistan is a source, transit, and destination country formen, women, and children trafficked for the purposesof forced labor and sexual exploitation. The country’slargest human trafficking problem is that of bonded labor,which is concentrated in Sindh and Punjab provinces,particularly in brick kilns, carpet-making, agriculture,fishing, mining, leather tanning, and production of glassbangles; estimates of Pakistani victims of bonded labor,including men, women, and children, vary widely butare likely over one million. Parents sell their daughtersinto domestic servitude, prostitution, or forced marriages,and women are traded between tribal groups to settledisputes or as payment for debts. Pakistani women andmen migrate voluntarily to Gulf states, Iran, and Greecefor low-skilled work as domestic servants or in theconstruction industry. As a result of fraudulent job offersmade and high fees charged during recruitment, however,some find themselves in conditions of involuntaryservitude or debt bondage once abroad, includingrestrictions on movement, non-payment of wages, threats,and physical or sexual abuse. Moreover, NGOs contendthat Pakistani girls are trafficked to the Middle East forsexual exploitation. Pakistan is also a destination forwomen and children from Afghanistan, Azerbaijan,Bangladesh, India, Iran, and Nepal trafficked primarilyfor forced labor. Women from Bangladesh and Nepal aretrafficked through Pakistan to the Gulf states.The Government of Pakistan does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Despitethese significant overall efforts, including the prosecutionof some trafficking offenses and the launch of publicawareness programming, the government did not showevidence of progress in addressing the serious issues ofbonded labor, forced child labor, and the trafficking ofmigrant workers by fraudulent labor recruiters; therefore,Pakistan is placed on Tier 2 Watch List. Convictions ofPAKISTAN231

PAKISTANtrafficking offenders decreased during the reportingperiod. The government continued to punish victims ofsex trafficking and did not provide protection services forvictims of forced labor, including bonded labor.Recommendations for Pakistan: Significantly increaselaw enforcement activities, including adequate criminalpunishment, against bonded labor, forced child labor, andfraudulent labor recruiting for purposes of trafficking;continue to vigorously investigate, prosecute, and punishacts of government complicity in trafficking at all levels;and expand victim protection services for victims offorced labor and sex trafficking.ProsecutionThe Government of Pakistan made insufficient lawenforcement efforts to address trafficking in 2008,particularly in regard to labor trafficking. Pakistanprohibits all forms of transnational trafficking in personsthrough its Prevention and Control of Human TraffickingOrdinance (PACHTO); the ordinance’s prescribedpenalties range from seven to 14 years’ imprisonment.The government uses Sections 17 through 23 of theEmigration Ordinance to prosecute internal cases oftrafficking. In addition, the Bonded Labor SystemAbolition Act prohibits bonded labor, with prescribedpenalties ranging from two to five years’ imprisonment ora fine, or both. Prescribed penalties for all above offensesare sufficiently stringent and commensurate with thosefor other grave crimes, such as rape.Pakistan did not provide data to demonstrate anysignificant law enforcement efforts against labortrafficking. Though Pakistan has a substantial problemof bonded labor, neither the federal nor the provincialgovernments provided evidence of criminal prosecutions,convictions, or punishments for perpetrators of bondedlabor, or for other acts of forced labor, includingfraudulent recruitment for the purpose of forced labor,and forced child labor. With respect to sex trafficking,primarily prosecuted as a transnational crime underPACHTO, during the reporting period, the governmentsecured the convictions of 28 trafficking offenders – 24fewer than last year; unlike in past years, the FederalInvestigation Agency (FIA) did not make availablethe specifics of the punishments given to traffickingoffenders. During the reporting period, FIA, withassistance from IOM and NGOs, continued to offertraining on investigating trafficking cases and sensitivelytreating victims; FIA did not provide data on the numberof law enforcement officials that received such training.Government officials at all levels have been implicatedin human trafficking; there were reports of bribery ofgovernment and law enforcement officials during thereporting period. Pakistani authorities disciplined 147law enforcement officers for complicity with humantrafficking under the Government Service Rules andRegulations; 12 were permanently removed, four werecompulsorily retired, and seven were reduced in rank. Theremaining cases resulted in administrative actions.ProtectionThe government’s efforts to protect victims of traffickingwere inadequate during the reporting period. Pakistan didnot report any programs to identify and protect victims offorced labor – the largest sectors of Pakistan’s traffickingvictims – particularly bonded labor and forced child laborin informal industries such as domestic work. Foreignvictims of trafficking also did not receive governmentprotection services. Protection for victims of commercialsexual exploitation remained limited; internally traffickedwomen could access 25 federal government-run “Women’sCenters” or 276 provincial government-run “Darul Aman”centers offering medical treatment, vocational training,and legal assistance to abused women and children.Pakistani sex trafficking victims were sometimes arrestedand incarcerated for prostitution without screeningfor evidence of trafficking, and some were subjectedto punishment under Islamic law for fornication andadultery. During the year, the Punjab Government’s ChildProtection Bureaus in Lahore, Rawalpindi, Rahim YarKhan, Multan, and Faisalabad sustained efforts begun in2005 to rescue child beggars from the streets and providerehabilitative services; at the time of this writing, Lahore’sfacility housed 219 boys. In past years, the governmentencouraged foreign victims to participate in investigationsagainst their traffickers by permitting them to seekemployment while awaiting trial; there is no evidence ofthe government providing assistance to foreign traffickingvictims in 2008 or encouraging their participation ininvestigations. Foreign victims reportedly were notprosecuted or deported for unlawful acts committed as adirect result of being trafficked, but some foreign victimsmay have been subject to punishment for fornication,even as victims of sex trafficking. The government didnot provide foreign victims with legal alternatives to theirremoval to countries where they may face hardship orretribution. The Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis providedassistance to repatriated Pakistani trafficking victims,such as medical, legal, and financial assistance.PreventionPakistan made a number of efforts to prevent traffickingin persons during the reporting period, though lack ofpublic awareness continued to be a problem. In 2008,the FIA sponsored anti-trafficking advertisements inmajor Urdu- and English-language newspapers, andits officers visited the five Punjab districts identifiedas major source areas to convene discussions with232

KING BY YEARKOSOVO TIER RANKING BY YEARG BY YEARG BY YEARY YEARtypical source communities. The FIA launched a hotlinefor reporting cases of trafficking and smuggling thatreceived 811 complaints, but did not specify the numberof trafficking-specific calls. In addition, the Ministryof Interior produced and distributed a film about thedangers of trafficking on state television and to vulnerablepopulations along the border with India. The government,however, did not take any reported measures during thereporting period to reduce the country’s considerabledemand for bonded labor, nor did it address demand forcommercial sex acts. The government did not provideanti-trafficking training to its nationals deployed abroadfor international peacekeeping missions. Pakistan has notratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.PALAU (Tier 2)Palau is a transit and destination country for a smallnumber of women trafficked from the Philippines andthe People’s Republic of China (PRC) for the purpose ofcommercial exploitation, and for a small number of menfrom the Philippines, the PRC, and Bangladesh for thepurpose of forced labor. Some employers recruit foreignmen and women to work in Palau through fraudulentrepresentation of contract terms and conditions ofemployment. These foreign workers willingly migrateto Palau for jobs in domestic service, agriculture, orconstruction, but are subsequently coerced to work insituations significantly different than what their contractsstipulated – excessive hours without pay, confiscation oftheir travel documents, and the withholding of salarypayments as a means of controlling their movement; theseconditions may be indicative of involuntary servitude.Some workers are also threatened by their employers,and some women expecting to work as waitresses orclerks are forced into commercial sexual exploitation inkaraoke bars and massage parlors. Since the late 1990s,the Philippines government banned its nationals frommigrating to Palau to serve as domestic workers.The Government of Palau does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Duringthe reporting period, the government continued its lawenforcement and prosecution efforts against traffickingoffenders. Victim services and efforts to raise publicawareness of human trafficking, however, remainedlimited.Recommendations for Palau: Increase efforts toinvestigate, prosecute, and punish trafficking offenders;monitor employment agents recruiting foreign men andwomen for work in Palau to prevent trafficking for laborexploitation; establish formal procedures to identify andrefer trafficking victims to protective services; work withNGOs or international organizations, as appropriate,to provide additional services to victims; and developand conduct anti-trafficking information and educationcampaigns.ProsecutionThe Government of Palau made minor progress inits law enforcement and prosecution efforts againsttrafficking offenders during the reporting period. TheAnti-Smuggling and Trafficking Act of 2005 prohibits allforms of trafficking in persons. Its sufficiently stringentpenalties, ranging from 10 to 50 years’ imprisonment andfines up to $500,000, are commensurate with penaltiesMALDIVES TIER RANKING BY YEARprescribed for other serious crimes, such as rape. Despitelimited resources and a relatively small number ofvictims, Palau prosecuted and convicted four traffickingoffenders in 2007. These traffickers had forced 15 Filipinasand nine Chinese waitresses into commercial sexualexploitation and subjected them to food deprivation,confinement, and illegal salary deductions. One of thetraffickers appealed his conviction in 2008. In February2009, the conviction was reversed and the case againstthe trafficker NAMIBIA was TIER dismissed RANKING BY without YEAR prejudice, meaningit can be refiled. There were no other investigations,prosecutions, or convictions during the reporting period.The government did not train law enforcement officersto proactively identify victims or to identify traffickingvictims among vulnerable populations, such as foreignwomen in prostitution.PALAU TIER RANKING BY YEARProtectionThe government of Palau offered minimal protectiveservices to victims of trafficking over the reporting period.No long-term protective services were available to victims,and Palauan government agencies did not employ formalprocedures to identify and refer trafficking victims forthe services which were available. The government didnot identify or assist any victims of trafficking duringthe year although it has done so in the past. A religiousorganization provided limited assistance to victimsof any crime. In the past, its services were available totrafficking victims and would be made available again,as needed. Palauan law does not penalize victims forillegal acts committed as a direct result of being trafficked,and encourages victims to assist in the investigation andprosecution of trafficking offenders. The governmentdoes not remove victims to countries where they may facehardship or retribution. In 2007, Filipina and Chinesevictims were offered the choice of remaining in Palau andseeking different employment or returning home.PreventionThe government made no discernable efforts to preventhuman trafficking through planned campaigns toPALAU233

PANAMAeducate the public about its dangers, but publicizedits anti-trafficking activities at least twice during theyear. Government agencies cooperated with each other,with foreign governments, and with internationalorganizations on trafficking matters. No detailedinformation about Palau’s national plan to addresstrafficking was available at the time of this Report’sdrafting. Palau Customs, Immigration and Police haveformed a four-person training team which has createdan identity crime training program for governmentemployees, to help them recognize false documentswhich might be used by traffickers. Palau also improvedits immigration controls, in part to deter trafficking inpersons, in accordance with its participation in the PacificRegional Immigration Identity Project and the PacificImmigration Directors Conference. The governmentmade no discernable efforts to address the demand forcommercial sex acts or the demand for forced laborduring the reporting period. Palau has not ratified the2000 UN TIP Protocol.PANAMA (Tier 2)Panama is a source, transit, and destination countryfor women and children trafficked for the purpose ofcommercial sexual exploitation. Some Panamanianwomen are trafficked to Jamaica, Europe, and Israel forcommercial sexual exploitation, but most victims aretrafficked to and within the country into Panama’s sextrade. NGOs report that some Panamanian children,mostly young girls, are trafficked into domestic servitude.Government agencies indicate that indigenous girlsmay be trafficked by their parents into prostitution inDarien province. Most foreign sex trafficking victims areadult women from Colombia, the Dominican Republic,and neighboring Central American countries; somevictims migrate voluntarily to Panama to work but aresubsequently forced into prostitution. Weak controlsalong Panama’s borders make the nation an easy transitpoint for trafficked persons.The Government of Panama does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. In 2008,the government showed some anti-trafficking progressby enacting a legislative reform package to strengthenPanama’s anti-trafficking laws, and by increasingprevention efforts. The government also eliminated itsalternadora visa category, which had been used to trafficforeign women, mostly Colombians, into Panama’s sextrade. However, vigorous government efforts to prosecutehuman trafficking crimes and provide adequate shelter,particularly for adult victims, remained lacking.Recommendations for Panama: Amend anti-traffickinglaws to prohibit forced labor, including involuntarydomestic servitude; intensify law enforcement efforts toinvestigate and prosecute trafficking offenses and convictand sentence trafficking offenders, including any publicofficials complicit with trafficking activity; dedicate moreresources for victim services; and develop a formal systemfor identifying trafficking victims among vulnerablepopulations, particularly women in prostitution.ProsecutionThe Government of Panama increased its ability toinvestigate and prosecute trafficking crimes duringthe reporting period. In June 2008, the governmentpublished Law 26, a penal code reform package, tostrengthen Panama’s anti-trafficking laws and prohibitthe internal sex trafficking of adults, a gap which existedunder previous law. The new law will enter into forcein June 2009. Article 178 of the new code criminalizesinternal and transnational trafficking of persons for thepurpose of sexual slavery or unauthorized paid sexualactivity, through means of deceit, coercion, or retentionof identity documents and prescribes penalties rangingfrom six to nine years’ imprisonment. Additionally,Article 180 of the new code prohibits the internal andtransnational trafficking of minors for commercial sexualexploitation, prescribing prison terms of eight to 10 years’imprisonment. The above punishments are sufficientlystringent and commensurate with those prescribed forrape. Panamanian law, however, does not specificallyprohibit human trafficking for the purpose of forcedlabor, including domestic servitude. In September 2008,the government began investigating a case of potentiallabor trafficking activity, in which 52 Panamanianlaborers were transported to Laurel, Mississippi, forwork in a transformer manufacturing facility. Duringthe reporting period, the government investigated 11 sextrafficking cases, resulting in two criminal traffickingconvictions with sentences of 60 months’ imprisonmenteach. This compares to 13 sex trafficking casesinvestigated and one trafficking offender convicted duringthe previous year.In March 2008, the Department of Judicial Investigationscreated a specialized unit to investigate trafficking cases.While a lack of coordination among police, prosecutors,and immigration authorities on anti-trafficking casesremains a concern, the Panamanian attorney generaldeveloped a computerized information network topromote the sharing of information between prosecutorsand other agencies. The government maintained antitraffickingtraining efforts, and the attorney generaldecreed that one prosecutor in each of Panama’s 13provinces should be trained to prosecute traffickingcrimes. An NGO reported anecdotally that somepolice officers sexually exploited prostituted minors in234

exchange for providing protection, but it was unclearwhether higher-level officials were aware of such activity.The government opened no formal trafficking-relatedcorruption investigations during the reporting period.ProtectionThe Panamanian government sustained its efforts toassist trafficking victims during the reporting period,though overall victim services – particularly those foradults – remained inadequate. Child trafficking victimsaccessed basic care at 43 government-funded sheltersacross the country. Although the government did notprovide dedicated services for trafficking victims, itfunded an NGO-operated shelter with dedicated housingand social services for child trafficking victims. Servicesand shelter care for adult trafficking victims remainedlimited, though newly enacted Immigration Law 3required that the government build a dedicated shelterfor adult victims. The government housed victims inhotels on an ad hoc basis. In one case, several foreigntrafficking victims were housed at a police station becausethere was no place to take them. The government did notemploy systematic procedures for identifying traffickingvictims among vulnerable populations, but did requirethat women entering the country under entertainmentvisas attend a seminar on trafficking in persons. Thehigh number of women in prostitution in the countrymay warrant the development of more thorough victimidentification procedures. Panamanian authoritiesencouraged victims to assist with the investigationand prosecution of their traffickers. The governmentallowed foreign victims to remain in Panama duringinvestigation of their cases by judicial order, but did notprovide other legal alternatives to their return to countrieswhere they may face hardship or retribution. Moreover,prosecutors indicated that some foreign victims wererepatriated involuntarily before they could fully assistwith legal efforts against their traffickers. Victims werenot penalized for unlawful acts committed as a directresult of being trafficked. Panamanian consular officialswere trained to aid Panamanians trafficked abroad,and provided repatriation assistance, including airfare,housing, and medical care.PreventionThe government increased efforts to prevent humantrafficking during the reporting period. In response topast reports of sex trafficking of foreign women holdingalternadora visas, the government terminated this visacategory as part of an immigration reform package thatcame into force in August 2008. While foreign womenin the nation’s sex trade may still apply for “entertainer”visas, the government increased efforts to preventhuman trafficking by creating a registry of businessesrequesting such visas and instituting tougher conditionsfor their issuance. No entertainer visas were issued underthe new law during the reporting period. In 2008, thegovernment conducted awareness-raising efforts andcollaborated with NGOs and international organizationson other anti-trafficking prevention projects. Officialrecognition of human trafficking crimes appears to beincreasing, though government officials tend to viewPanama as principally a transit country. In June 2008,the government released a three-year national plan tocombat the commercial sexual exploitation of minors,and a small office was established to implement the plan.In an effort to reduce demand for commercial sex acts,the government conducted media campaigns warningthat commercial sexual exploitation is a prosecutablecrime. The government’s overall anti-trafficking effortscontinued to suffer from limited resources, and a measureto dedicate one dollar from the tax imposed on eachvisiting tourist to anti-trafficking projects remained miredin an interagency process after five years.PAPUA NEW GUINEA (Tier 3)Papua New Guinea is a source, destination, and transitcountry for men, women, and children trafficked forthe purposes of commercial sexual exploitation andforced labor. Women and children are trafficked withinthe country for the purposes of commercial sexualexploitation and domestic servitude; men are traffickedto logging and mining camps for the purpose of forcedlabor. Women and children from Malaysia, Thailand, thePeople’s Republic of China (PRC), and the Philippines aretrafficked to Papua New Guinea for forced prostitutionand PRC men are trafficked to the country for forcedlabor. Chinese organized crime groups still may trafficsome Asian women and girls through Papua NewGuinea to Australia, Indonesia, New Zealand, and othercountries for forced prostitution and forced labor, thoughless frequently than in the past. Unique and enduringcultural practices in Papua New Guinea reinforce theperception of females and children as commodities -families often sell minor girls into marriages to settletheir debts; tribes trade females for guns and politicaladvantage; men compensate the relatives of a girl theyhave raped with a payment of pigs. Young girls sold intomarriage are often also forced into domestic servitude forthe husband’s extended family. The majority of foreignvictims voluntarily migrate to Papua New Guinea withvalid passports and visas, lured by Chinese organizedcrime units, foreign logging companies, and Papuanbusinessmen with false offers to work as engineers,secretaries, cooks, and guards. After arrival in PapuaNew Guinea, most of the female victims are coercedinto prostitution and domestic servitude at logging andmining camps. Foreign and Papuan men are more oftenexploited for labor at the camps. They work excessivehours in dangerous conditions, frequently with little orno safety gear. Many of these men are also compelled tocontinue working for the company indefinitely throughinduced debt bondage. Employers escalate the victims’indebtedness to the company by cutting workers’ agreeduponwages, taking unjustifiable payroll deductions, andartificially inflating prices at the only place in the regionemployees can buy food, the company store. Governmentofficials facilitate trafficking by accepting bribes to allowillegal migrants to enter the country or to ignore victimsPAPUA NEW GUINEA235

PAPUA NEW GUINEAforced into prostitution or labor, by receiving femaletrafficking victims in return for political favors, and byproviding female victims in return for votes.The Government of Papua New Guinea does not fullycomply with the minimum standards for the eliminationof trafficking and is not making significant efforts to doso. The government acknowledges the existence of forcedlabor in Papua New Guinea, but denies the widespreadsex trafficking of women and children. Some corruptgovernment and law enforcement officials accept bribesto ignore trafficking-related activity. Despite evidence ofa trafficking problem, to date no suspected traffickingoffender has been arrested, prosecuted, or convicted ofa human trafficking offense. The government lacks asystematic procedure to identify victims of traffickingin vulnerable populations, such as foreign women orchildren in prostitution, and has done little to preventtrafficking in Papua New Guinea.Recommendations for Papua New Guinea: Continuethe process of drafting and enacting legislation thatprohibits and punishes all forms of trafficking; increasecollaboration with civil society, religious, and triballeaders to raise awareness about trafficking, including theneed to reduce demand for forced labor and commercialsex acts; investigate, prosecute and punish officials whofacilitate or benefit from trafficking; develop and institutea formal procedure to identify victims of traffickingamong vulnerable groups; ensure victims of traffickingare not arrested, deported, or otherwise punished for actscommitted as a direct result of being trafficked; and trainlaw enforcement officers on victim identification andprotection.ERITREA TIER RANKING BY YEARPAPUA NEW GUINEA TIER RANKING BY YEARProsecutionThe Government of Papua New Guinea reported minimalprogress in law enforcement efforts against traffickingoffenders over the last year. The penal code of PapuaNew Guinea does not prohibit all forms of trafficking. Itscriminal code, which does not prohibit the trafficking ofadults, prohibits the trafficking of children for commercialsexual exploitation, slavery, and abduction. Labor lawsprohibit fraudulent recruiting and employment practices,and prescribe weak penalties for offenders. Prostitutionis prohibited in Papua New Guinea, but the relevant lawsare either selectively or rarely enforced even in casesinvolving of children. In August 2008, the TransnationalCrime Unit rescued a group of about 20 women forced toSWAZILAND TIER RANKING BY YEARCONGO (ROC) TIER RANKING BY YEARwork in prostitution at a Chinese restaurant; no chargeswere filed against their alleged trafficker as none ofthe women would cooperate with police investigators.Trafficking-related crimes in rural areas were referred tovillage courts which administered customary law, ratherthan criminal law, and resolved cases through restitutionpaid to the victim, rather than through criminal penaltiesassigned to the trafficking offender. Wealthy businesspeople, politicians, and police officials who benefitfinancially from the operation of establishments profitingfrom sex trafficking were not investigated or prosecuted.Most government offices and law enforcement agenciesremained weak as the result of corruption, cronyism, alack of accountability, and a promotion system based onpatronage. In 2008, the government arranged for expertassistance with the drafting of a comprehensive antitraffickinglaw, and began coordinating multi-agencypreparations and contributions to the process.ProtectionThe Government of Papua New Guinea demonstratedincreasing efforts to protect and assist victims oftrafficking. Due to severe resource constraints, thegovernment continued to rely on internationalorganizations or NGOs to provide victim services. Thegovernment contributed funds to a shelter for victims? TIER RANKING BY YEARof domestic violence in Port Moresby run by an NGO,which could provide shelter and some legal aid totrafficking victims, although it did not do so during theyear. Women’s shelters in Port Moresby and Lae couldalso house foreign and local victims. The Departmentof Health, with NGO assistance, set up support centersin hospitals throughout the country for victims ofdomestic violence which could provide traffickingvictims with direct counseling and outpatient services,although not long-term care. ? TIER The RANKING government BY YEAR did notproactively identify trafficking victims among vulnerablepopulations. When potential victims of traffickingsought assistance from the government, they wereoften jailed, and some were sexually abused by policeofficers. Immigration inspectors routinely refused entryto potential trafficking victims identified at the borders.Other government officials, however, would morelikely refer identified victims to social groups, churches,or NGOs for assistance. Rescued victims of internal? TIER RANKING BY YEARtrafficking often received compensation payments of cashor pigs from the offender, which is culturally acceptablein Papua New Guinea, and were reluctant to then notifypolice and bring additional criminal charges against theirtraffickers.PreventionThe government continued to rely on internationalorganizations and NGOs for the bulk of its traffickingprevention activities, such as? TIEReffortsRANKINGto raiseBY YEARpublicawareness about trafficking combined with educationcampaigns on child prostitution, HIV/AIDS, and domesticviolence. The government increased cooperation withAustralian and New Zealand Federal Police, as well236? TIER RANKING BY YEAR? TIER RANKING BY YEAR

as other international law enforcement and customsagencies, to draft laws, and investigate and preventtransnational crimes including human trafficking. Thegovernment made some effort to reduce the demand forcommercial sex acts as a way to halt the spread of HIV/AIDS. The government acknowledged that prostitutionand child pornography are problems that need to beaddressed. Papua New Guinea has not ratified the 2000UN TIP Protocol.PARAGUAY (Tier 2)Paraguay is principally a source and transit countryfor women and children trafficked for the purpose ofcommercial sexual exploitation, as well as a source andtransit country for men, women, and children traffickedinto forced labor. Most Paraguayan victims are traffickedto Argentina and Spain; smaller numbers of victimsare trafficked to Brazil, Chile, Italy, and Bolivia. In onecase last year, two Paraguayan women were forced intoarranged marriages with Korean men by a Brazilian-Korean trafficking syndicate in Sao Paulo. In another case,at least six children were trafficked to Japan for forcedlabor as domestic servants. The involuntary domesticservitude of adults and children within the country isa serious problem. Indigenous persons are vulnerableto forced labor exploitation, particularly in the Chacoregion. Poor children are trafficked from rural areas tourban centers such as Asuncion, Ciudad del Este, andEncarnacion for commercial sexual exploitation anddomestic servitude. Street children and working childrenare common targets for trafficking recruiters. According tothe ILO, some traffickers coerce underage males, knownas “taxi boys,” into transgendered prostitution. Someof these boys are trafficked abroad, particularly to Italy.Trafficking of Paraguayan and Brazilian women, girls,and boys for commercial sexual exploitation commonlyoccurs in the Tri-Border Area of Paraguay, Argentina, andBrazil.The Government of Paraguay does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to doso. Last year the government increased law enforcementefforts against trafficking offenders, but showed limitedevidence of progress in providing adequate assistance totrafficking victims. The revised Penal Code, scheduled tocome into force later this year, reinforces the existing legalframework available to prosecute trafficking offenses andstrengthens penalties against trafficking crimes. However,the government did not make sufficient progress inconfronting acts of official complicity.Recommendations for Paraguay: Intensify efforts toidentify and prosecute trafficking offenses, includingdomestic forced labor crimes, as well as efforts to convictand punish trafficking offenders; launch criminalinvestigations of public officials who may have facilitatedtrafficking activity; dedicate more resources for victimassistance; and increase efforts to raise public awarenessabout human trafficking, particularly among thoseseeking work abroad.ProsecutionThe Paraguayan government increased law enforcementactions against trafficking offenders during the past year,but made insufficient progress against official complicityin human trafficking. In October 2008, the ParaguayanAttorney General’s office established an anti-traffickingprosecutorial unit with three attorneys and six assistants,which has increased the government’s investigation ofhuman trafficking crimes. However, during the pastyear, some government officials, including police, borderguards, judges, and elected officials, reportedly facilitatedtrafficking crimes by accepting payments from traffickers;other officials reportedly undermined investigationsor alerted suspected traffickers of impending arrests.Despite the serious nature of such allegations, Paraguayanauthorities took only limited steps to investigate actsof trafficking-related corruption and there were noprosecutions related to official complicity in traffickingoffenses.Article 129 of the 1997 Paraguayan Penal Code prohibitstransnational trafficking for the purpose of prostitution,prescribing penalties of six years’ imprisonment. Articles129(b) and (c) of a new code, which is scheduled tocome into force in July 2009, will prohibit trafficking forthe purposes of prostitution and forced labor throughmeans of force, threats, deception, or trickery, prescribingpenalties up to 12 years’ imprisonment. All the abovepenalties are sufficiently stringent and commensuratewith penalties prescribed for serious crimes, such asrape. To prosecute internal cases of human trafficking,including forced labor, prosecutors may also drawon deprivation of liberty and kidnapping statutes(articles 124 and 125), as well as other Penal Codeprovisions. During the reporting period, Paraguayanauthorities opened investigations into 43 traffickingcases. Authorities indicted 11 traffickers and secured theconvictions of four trafficking offenders in one case, whoeach received six years in prison. These results representan increase in the government’s investigative effortscompared to the previous year, when the governmentopened nine cases and obtained the convictions of fivetrafficking offenders in two cases. Cross-border casesinvestigated last year include two Paraguayan womenwho were trafficked to Chile for commercial sexualexploitation; the victims helped to identify nine otherpotential sex trafficking victims. In another case, a 15-year-old Paraguayan girl escaped from a brothel in BuenosAires and filed a complaint with Paraguayan prosecutors;25 women were subsequently rescued from the brothelwith the assistance of Argentine law enforcement.ProtectionThe government modestly increased efforts to protectvictims of trafficking, but assistance in Paraguayremained inadequate overall. The government providesPARAGUAY237

PERUshort-term services such as medical, psychological, andlegal assistance, in addition to temporary shelter care foradult women and girls. Paraguay does not have shelterfacilities for men, and boys are typically placed withfamilies or in foster care. Foreign trafficking victimsgenerally do not have access to government-operatedshelters. The government provides limited legal, medical,psychological, and shelter assistance to Paraguayanstrafficked abroad and later repatriated to the countrythrough the Secretariat of the Repatriated and Co-National Refugees (SEDERREC); however, follow-upwith victims was inadequate. The government providesa small amount of funding to anti-trafficking NGOs,but relies on larger NGOs and international donors tofurnish additional victim assistance. During the reportingperiod, prosecutors identified 67 trafficking victims,including 20 children, and referred 51 victims for care,compared to 14 victims assisted in the previous year.Paraguayan authorities encourage victims to assist withthe investigation and prosecution of their traffickers,though some victims avoided the court system due tosocial stigma or fear of retaliation. Victims typically arenot jailed, deported, or otherwise penalized for actscommitted as a direct result of being trafficked. Paraguaydoes not have a formal system for proactively identifyingtrafficking victims among vulnerable populations suchas prostituted women. Paraguay provides temporary orpermanent residency status for foreign trafficking victimson a case-by-case basis.PreventionThe government conducted prevention activities last year.The government’s interagency anti-trafficking roundtableand the Women’s Secretariat sponsored educationalseminars for 663 government officials, and thegovernment works closely with NGOs and internationalorganizations on additional anti-trafficking efforts. Thegovernment reported no efforts to reduce consumerdemand for commercial sex acts or forced labor.PERU (Tier 2)Peru is a source, transit, and destination country formen, women, and children trafficked for the purposesof forced labor and commercial sexual exploitation.The majority of human trafficking occurs within thecountry. The ILO and IOM estimate that more than20,000 persons are trafficked into conditions of forcedlabor within Peru, mainly in the mining and loggingsectors, agriculture, the brick-making sector, andas domestic servants. Many trafficking victims arewomen and girls from impoverished rural regions ofthe Amazon, recruited and coerced into prostitution inurban nightclubs, bars, and brothels, often through falseemployment offers or promises of education. Indigenouspersons are particularly vulnerable to being subjectedto debt bondage by Amazon landowners. Forced childlabor remains a problem, particularly in informal goldmines and coca production. To a lesser extent, Peruviansare trafficked to Ecuador, Spain, Italy, Japan, and theUnited States for commercial sexual exploitation, and toArgentina, Chile, and Brazil for forced labor. Peru also isa destination country for some Ecuadorian and Bolivianfemales trafficked for commercial sexual exploitation, andthe trafficking of Bolivians for forced labor. The Peruviangovernment recognizes child sex tourism to be a problem,particularly in Iquitos, Madre de Dios, and Cuzco.The Government of Peru does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Last year,the government increased law enforcement efforts againstsex trafficking crimes. Nonetheless, the government’sefforts to combat forced labor crimes and provide victimassistance were inadequate. While Peruvian officialsrecognize human trafficking as a serious problem, andhave taken concrete steps to address it, a stronger andmore coordinated response by the government is required,especially in light of the estimated number of victimspresent in the country.Recommendations for Peru: Increase efforts toinvestigate and prosecute trafficking offenses, and convictand punish trafficking offenders, including corruptofficials who may facilitate trafficking activity; increaseinvestigations of forced labor crimes; increase protectionservices for victims or funding to NGOs with capacity toprovide trafficking victims, including adult males, withspecialized care; increase anti-trafficking training forprosecutors and judges and sustain training for police andother government personnel, including labor inspectors;increase public awareness of the dangers of humantrafficking; improve data collection; and increase victimparticipation in their own cases.ProsecutionThe Government of Peru improved efforts to combathuman trafficking through law enforcement last year.Peru prohibits all forms of trafficking in persons pursuantto Article 153 of its penal code, which prescribes penaltiesof eight to 15 years’ imprisonment. These penalties aresufficiently stringent and commensurate with thoseprescribed for other serious crimes, such as rape. Peru’santi-trafficking law was enacted in January 2007, andthe law’s implementing regulations were approved inNovember 2008, assigning anti-trafficking responsibilitiesto different government entities; the regulations alsocite a strong need for increased anti-trafficking training.During the reporting period, the government opened 54sex trafficking prosecutions and secured the convictions238

of five sex trafficking offenders, who received sentencesranging from eight to 12 years’ imprisonment. Suchresults represent a significant increase from the previousyear, when the government opened 15 prosecutions andachieved no convictions. Most defendants were convictedon charges involving the commercial sexual exploitationof minors, particularly in Iquitos. However, there werevery few prosecutions or convictions reported for forcedlabor offenses, despite an estimated high incidenceof forced labor in the country. In March 2008, thegovernment established a dedicated anti-trafficking policeunit, and it conducted raids of brothels that resultedin the rescue of 56 sex trafficking victims. Numerousbarriers to effective police investigations of traffickingcrimes remained, however, including an inadequate flowof information and coordination among police units atthe local, metropolitan, and national levels, and withprosecutors and other actors in the criminal justicesystem, including social service providers. NGOs reportedthat many police still lacked sensitive interviewingtechniques, and had limited knowledge of humantrafficking crimes. Corruption among low-level officialsenabled trafficking in certain instances, and individualpolice officers tolerated the operation of unlicensedbrothels. No investigations of official complicity withtrafficking activity were reported last year.PreventionThe government sustained anti-trafficking preventionefforts, and continued operation of a toll-free IOMassistedhotline for the reporting of trafficking crimes. Thegovernment aired anti-trafficking videos in transportationhubs, warning travelers of the legal consequences ofengaging in trafficking activity or consuming servicesfrom trafficked persons. The government involved theprivate sector in its education campaigns and workedto gain public commitment from businesses not toparticipate in trafficking activity. The labor ministryand NGOs provided awareness campaigns to informindigenous people of their rights and prevent debtbondage situations. The government provided specializedtraining on forced labor for a small number of laborinspectors last year. No additional efforts to reducedemand for commercial sex acts or forced labor werereported. Peruvian peacekeepers deployed to Haitireceived standards of conduct training through the UnitedNations last year.PHILIPPINESProtectionThe government provided limited assistance to traffickingvictims last year. Child victims of trafficking werereferred to government institutions for basic shelter andcare. Similarly, the government operated generalizedshelters accessible to adult female victims of abuse,including trafficking victims. However, specializedservices and shelter for trafficking victims remainedlargely unavailable. While the government providedsome assistance to anti-trafficking NGOs, adequatevictim services remained unavailable in many parts ofthe country. Last year, Peruvian authorities identified 153trafficking victims, though the number of victims in thecountry is thought to be much higher. The governmentdid not employ a formal mechanism for identifyingtrafficking victims among vulnerable populations, suchas adult women in prostitution. Police made efforts tocontact parents of identified child trafficking victims.Trafficking victims, however, often lacked personalidentification documents and many police released themwithout classifying them as trafficking victims or referringthem to shelters. Many minors exploited in prostitutionended up returning to brothels in search of shelter andfood. Lack of victim participation in the investigationor prosecution of traffickers remained a problem. Thegovernment did not penalize victims for unlawful actscommitted as a direct result of being trafficked. Thegovernment provided legal alternatives to the removal offoreign victims to countries where they may face hardshipor retribution, and the government assisted foreignvictims with voluntary repatriation.PHILIPPINES (Tier 2 Watch List)The Philippines is a source, transit, and destinationcountry for men, women, and children trafficked forcommercial sexual exploitation and forced labor. Asignificant number of Filipino men and women whomigrate abroad for work are subjected to conditions ofinvoluntary servitude in Bahrain, Brunei, Canada, Coted’Ivoire, Cyprus, Hong Kong, Japan, Kuwait, Lebanon,Malaysia, Palau, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, SouthAfrica, Taiwan, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates.Muslim Filipina girls from Mindanao were trafficked tothe Middle East by other Muslims.Filipinas are also trafficked abroad for commercial sexualexploitation, primarily to Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia,Singapore, South Korea, and countries in Africa, theMiddle East, and Western Europe. Internally, women andchildren are trafficked from poor farming communitiesin the Visayas and Mindanao to urban areas such asManila and Cebu City, but also increasingly to cities inMindanao, for commercial sexual exploitation or forforced labor as domestic servants or factory workers.An increasing number of women and children fromMindanao were trafficked internally and transnationallyfor domestic work. Traffickers used land and seatransportation to transfer victims from island provincesto major cities. A growing trend continued to be the use239

PHILIPPINESof budget airline carriers to transport victims out of thecountry. Traffickers used fake travel documents, falsifiedpermits, and altered birth certificates. Migrant workerswere often subject to violence, threats, inhumane livingconditions, non-payment of salaries, and withholding oftravel and identity documents. A small number of womenare occasionally trafficked from the People’s Republic ofChina, Russia, South Korea, and Eastern Europe to thePhilippines for commercial sexual exploitation. NGOssuggested that organized crime syndicates, includingsyndicates from Japan, were heavily involved in Manila’scommercial sex industry, where there are many domesticand some foreign victims of trafficking. Internationalorganized crime syndicates also transited traffickedpersons from mainland China through the Philippines tothird country destinations. Child sex tourism continues tobe a serious problem for the Philippines, with sex touristscoming from Northeast Asia, Australia, Europe, andNorth America to engage in sexual activity with minors.The Government of the Philippines does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts todo so. Despite these overall efforts, the government didnot show evidence of progress in convicting traffickingoffenders, particularly those responsible for labortrafficking; therefore, the Philippines is placed on Tier 2Watch List. Although there was an increase in the numberof trafficking cases filed in court, only four traffickingconvictions were obtained under the 2003 anti-traffickinglaw during the reporting period, and there were noreported labor trafficking convictions, despite widespreadreports of Filipinos trafficked for forced labor within thecountry and abroad. The number of convictions for sextrafficking offenders is low given the significant scope andmagnitude of sex trafficking within the country and todestinations abroad. Achieving more tangible results inconvicting trafficking offenders, and in investigating andprosecuting officials complicit in trafficking is essentialfor the Government of the Philippines to make moreprogress toward compliance with the minimum standardsfor the elimination of trafficking.Recommendations for the Philippines: Significantlyimprove efforts to prosecute, convict, and punishtrafficking offenders, including officials complicitin trafficking; dedicate more resources to efforts toprosecute trafficking cases; assess methods to measureand address domestic labor trafficking; implement antitraffickingawareness campaigns directed at domesticand foreign clients of the sex trade in the Philippines;dedicate increased funding for the Inter-Agency CouncilAgainst Trafficking (IACAT) and improve anti-traffickingcoordination between government agencies; disseminateinformation on the 2003 law throughout the country; andtrain law enforcement officers and prosecutors on the useof the 2003 law.ProsecutionThe Philippine government demonstrated sustained butinadequate efforts to convict trafficking offenders duringthe reporting period. The Philippines criminally prohibitstrafficking for both sexual and labor exploitation throughits 2003 Anti-Trafficking Persons Act, which prescribespenalties that are sufficiently stringent and commensuratewith those prescribed for other serious crimes, suchas rape. The government has convicted 12 individualsof trafficking since the passage of this act, all for sextrafficking offenses. During the reporting period, fourindividuals in three cases of sex trafficking were convictedin Philippine courts; three of the convictions were aresult of cases filed and prosecuted by an NGO on behalfof victims under an approach where the Philippinesallows private attorneys to prosecute cases underthe direction and control of public prosecutors. Oneconvicted trafficker was sentenced to life imprisonment,and the remaining three were sentenced to 20 years’imprisonment, in addition to fines and damages. InDecember 2008, after a four-year trial, a judge acquittedan accused trafficker charged with transporting minorsfrom Mindanao to Manila with the intent of forcingthem into prostitution because the minors were rescuedbefore they were actually forced into prostitution. Thecase is being appealed. NGOs report that an impedimentto successful trafficking prosecutions is the lack ofunderstanding of trafficking among judges, prosecutors,and especially law enforcement officers, some of whomhave limited knowledge of using evidence to build cases.The government did not convict any offenders of labortrafficking during the reporting period. Philippine lawenforcement agencies reported 168 alleged traffickingcases to the Department of Justice (DOJ) in 2008, ofwhich prosecutors initiated prosecutions in 97 of thecases, an increase of more than 60 percent over the prioryear. The remaining cases remain under preliminaryinvestigation or were dismissed for lack of evidence orwitnesses, or on other grounds. In November 2008, thePhilippine government assisted Malaysian authoritiesin the case of a Singaporean recruiter who allegedlytrafficked Filipina women to Malaysia for commercialsexual exploitation.The government’s ability to effectively prosecutetrafficking crimes is severely limited by an inefficientjudicial system and endemic corruption. Despite a2005 Department of Justice circular instructing that alltrafficking cases receive preferential attention, trials oftentake years to conclude because of a lack of judges andcourtrooms, high judge turnover, and non-continuoustrials, which cause some victims to withdraw theirtestimony. Prosecutors with the DOJ’s Anti-TraffickingTask Force handle trafficking cases along with manyother types of cases, but receive special training to handletrafficking cases. A high vacancy rate among judgessignificantly slowed trial times further. In 2008, thePhilippine Overseas Employment Agency (POEA) filed318 administrative cases against licensed labor recruiterswho used fraudulent and deceptive offers to entice jobseekers abroad or imposed inappropriately high orillegal fees on prospective employees. There were sevenconvictions under the illegal recruitment law in 2008.240

Corruption among law enforcement agents remainedpervasive, and some law enforcement and immigrationofficers were complicit in trafficking and permittedorganized crime groups involved in trafficking to conducttheir illegal activities. It is widely believed that somegovernment officials were directly involved in or profitedfrom trafficking operations within the country. Lawenforcement officers often extracted protection moneyfrom illegitimate businesses, including brothels, inreturn for tolerating their operation. During the reportingperiod, there were several reports of immigration officialsinvolved in the trafficking of Filipinos overseas. Thegovernment conducted investigations during the year intoofficial complicity or involvement in trafficking, but caseswere still pending. The government did not prosecuteor convict any officials for trafficking-related corruptionduring the reporting period. In September 2008, anImmigration officer was apprehended for her alleged rolein aiding the trafficking of 17 Mindanao children to Syriaand Jordan, but charges against her were dropped dueto insufficient evidence. The 2005 case of police officerDennis Reci, charged for allegedly trafficking minorsfor commercial sexual exploitation at his night club inManila, was still pending in early 2009.ProtectionThe Philippine government continued to provide supportservices to victims of human trafficking, includingthrough sustained partnerships with NGOs andinternational organizations. Police sometimes broughtcharges of vagrancy against victims, despite laws thatseek to ensure that victims are not penalized for crimesrelated to acts of trafficking. The government activelyencouraged victims to assist in the investigation andprosecution of trafficking and related crimes, but thefinancial and emotional costs of prolonged and delayedcourt proceedings, which may take place in otherprovinces, often deterred victims from doing so. Fear ofretaliation by their traffickers sometimes led victims torecant their testimony. Although the government offeredvictims modest protection from reprisals and economicdislocation, a lack of funding and awareness preventedvictims from being offered more effective incentivesfor assisting in prosecutions of trafficking offenders.The government provides temporary residency status,relief from deportation, shelter, and access to legal,medical, and psychological services to trafficking victims.The Department of Social Welfare and Developmentoperated 42 temporary shelters for victims of all typesof crimes throughout the country that were availableto trafficking victims. The Philippine Ports Authorityprovided buildings and amenities at halfway houses fortrafficking victims at seven ports, which were managedby an NGO. The Manila International Airport Authorityand a partner NGO opened a halfway house at the NinoyAquino International Airport in 2008. The Department ofForeign Affairs (DFA) extended assistance to Philippinecitizens trafficked abroad and managed repatriations.The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE)deployed 40 labor attaches who served in embassiesaround the world to help protect migrant workers.DOLE operated 20 Filipino Worker Resource Centers in17 key labor destination countries, providing servicesand shelter to Filipinos who have suffered abuse ortrafficking conditions. In addition, DOLE’s OverseasWorkers Welfare Administration (OWWA) continued tosend welfare officers abroad to support the work of laborattaches. The IACAT released a manual on the recoveryand reintegration of trafficking victims and developednational performance standards for government handlingof cases of violence against women, including trafficking.PreventionThe Philippine government demonstrated continuedefforts to raise awareness and prevent trafficking inpersons, mainly for migrant workers, during the reportingperiod. In 2008, POEA conducted 1,250 pre-employmentorientation seminars for over 60,000 departing overseasFilipino workers and trained approximately 130 localgovernment units on how to identify warning signs ofillegal recruitment and human trafficking, representing asignificant increase over the number of local governmentunits trained in 2007. POEA also trained diplomaticstaff and overseas labor and social welfare officers inmethods for assisting trafficking victims abroad. Sinceits establishment in 2004, the government has notprovided funding to IACAT. While lacking a substantialbudget, the IACAT cooperated with NGO anti-traffickinginitiatives, including a road-show campaign againsthuman trafficking in Mindanao. IACAT continued tosupport the creation of local IACAT councils and createdmodel anti-trafficking local ordinances. The governmentcontinued to turn over suspected U.S. citizen child sextourists to the U.S. government for prosecution in theUnited States. The government did not make any effortsto reduce the demand for child sex tourism. Prior todeployment of troops for peacekeeping operations, theDepartment of National Defense and the PhilippineNational Police conducted seminars and training forpeacekeepers, including a training module on trafficking.The government routinely provided training on antitraffickingand victim protection to personnel bound foroverseas assignments. In 2008, DFA, with support froman international NGO, developed a computer-based, antitraffickingcourse that trained 350 foreign service officers.The government did not make any other efforts to reducethe demand for commercial sex acts in the Philippines,despite the country’s thriving commercial sex industry;PHILIPPINES241

POLANDnor did the government take discernable steps to addressthe demand for forced labor.POLAND (Tier 1)Poland is a source country for men and women traffickedto Italy, Austria, Germany, Belgium, France, Spain,Sweden, the Netherlands, and Israel for purposes of forcedlabor and sexual exploitation. It is also a transit anddestination country for women trafficked from Moldova,Ukraine, Bulgaria, Romania, Belarus, Russia, Sudan,Senegal, Uganda, Kenya, Djibouti, China, and Vietnamfor the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation.Women from Ukraine, Bulgaria, Mongolia, and Vietnamare trafficked to Poland for purposes of forced labor,forced begging, and debt bondage.The Government of Poland fully complies with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.The government increased its reflection period forforeign victims to 90 days. The government alsosignificantly increased funding for victim assistanceprograms, by pledging additional support for theonly specialized trafficking shelter in the country andexpanded the capacity of non-specialized shelters andcrisis intervention centers to provide assistance totrafficking victims. The government worked with NGOsand international organizations to raise awareness oftrafficking in Poland and abroad, including a limitednumber of campaigns to reduce demand for commercialsex acts.crime statutes are used to prosecute labor traffickingcases, though there are no provisions that specificallydefine and address trafficking for labor exploitation.Prosecutors rely on trafficking definitions in the 2000UN TIP Protocol when pursuing cases against traffickers.Penalties prescribed under Article 253 range from threeto 15 years’ imprisonment, and Articles 203 and 204prescribe from one to 10 years’ imprisonment; thesepunishments are sufficiently stringent and commensuratewith those prescribed for other grave crimes, such asrape. Law enforcement officials and NGOs continued toreport that the lack of a clear legal definition of traffickingin Poland’s criminal code limits effective prosecutions.Police investigated 119 alleged trafficking violations in2008 under Articles 253, 203, and 204 (Sections 3 and 4),compared to 122 alleged trafficking violations in 2007.Authorities prosecuted 78 individuals in 2008, underArticles 253, 203, and 204 (Sections 3 and 4), an increasefrom 62 prosecutions in 2007. In 2008, 46 traffickerswere convicted in Courts of First Instance under Articles253 and 203, an increase from 43 convictions in 2007.Post-appeal sentences, which are considered final, arecollected for Articles 253, 203, and 204 (Sections 3 and 4).In 2007, the most recent year for post-appeal sentencingdata, 24 out of 42 convicted traffickers – or 57 percent –received suspended sentences; the remaining 18 convictedtraffickers were given sentences ranging from one tofive years’ imprisonment. In 2006, 39 out of 86 – or 45percent – of convicted traffickers were given suspendedsentences. In 2008, the government continued to providetrafficking-related training to judges and prosecutors.There were also numerous training programs for lawenforcement officials on victim identification. In March2009, Poland’s Central Anti-Trafficking Police Unit issueda new set of guidelines on identifying victims of forcedbegging to regional police units around the country.242Recommendations for Poland: Continue training forprosecutors and judges on the application of the existingtrafficking law; ensure that a majority of traffickingoffenders serve time in prison; expand sensitivity andawareness training for municipal and regional police andborder guards; ensure that male trafficking victims areprovided with adequate housing; continue to increase theshelter system’s capacity to assist victims; and conductadditional awareness campaigns to reduce the demand forcommercial sex acts.ProsecutionThe Government of Poland demonstrated progress inits overall law enforcement efforts during the reportingperiod. Poland prohibits all forms of trafficking throughits criminal code. Article 203, Article 204, Sections 3and 4, and Article 253 of the criminal code are used toprosecute sex trafficking cases. Article 253 and organizedProtectionThe government demonstrated improved efforts toassist trafficking victims during the reporting period.Specifically, the government increased its direct assistanceto the country’s only specialized trafficking shelter by40 percent (to $70,000) and in January 2009 pledged anadditional $215,000 in emergency funding to keep theshelter open through December 2009. The promised grantwas awarded in April 2009. In addition, the governmentexpanded its network of specialized crisis interventioncenters, which served both trafficking and domesticviolence victims, from 33 in 2007 to 37 in 2008, andinitiated a nationwide training program with the centersto improve provision of assistance to trafficking victims.The Law on Social Assistance provides that all foreignvictims of trafficking are entitled to assistance. There areno specialized shelters for male victims of trafficking; asa result, male trafficking victims who require temporaryhousing are placed in facilities that provide social servicesand shelter for homeless people, as well as half-wayhouses for recently released prison inmates. Over the lastyear, 315 victims were identified by NGOs and authorities;most victims requested and received government-funded

assistance. In October 2008, the government extendedthe reflection period for foreign victims from two tothree months; two victims used the reflection period in2008. There were reports that police encouraged victimsto cooperate immediately with law enforcement and toforego the reflection period. In 2008, 21 victims assistedlaw enforcement with trafficking investigations.PreventionThe government demonstrated adequate efforts toprevent trafficking through awareness-raising activitiesin 2008. For example, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs(MFA) published a guidebook for Poles working abroad,warning them about the dangers of labor exploitation.A local government also conducted an awarenesscampaign through posters and leaflets targeting Polishlabor migrants and provided information on methodsof trafficking recruitment and offered practical adviceon what to do if a person is trafficked. The MFA alsodistributed approximately 140,000 leaflets throughPolish consulates in Eastern Europe and Central Asia forforeigners granted Polish work visas. The governmentcarried out a limited number of law enforcement andpublic awareness campaigns to reduce demand forcommercial sex acts over the year. The governmentprovided anti-trafficking training for all militarypersonnel and police being deployed abroad forinternational peacekeeping missions.PORTUGAL (Tier 2)Portugal is a destination, transit, and a source country forwomen, men, and children trafficked from Brazil and, toa lesser extent, from Ukraine, Moldova, Russia, Romania,and Africa for the purpose of commercial sexualexploitation and forced labor. The majority of traffickingvictims identified in Portugal are Brazilian womentrafficked for commercial sexual exploitation. Malevictims from Eastern European countries are trafficked forforced labor into the farming and construction industries.According to a 2008 ILO Report, Portuguese men are alsotrafficked to Western Europe for forced labor. Traffickingvictims also transit through Portugal to other Europeancountries. There are an estimated 50-100 Roma childrenin Portugal, brought by family networks; some aretrafficked for the purpose of forced begging.The Government of Portugal does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Thegovernment improved its collection of national data ontrafficking, more vigorously investigated and prosecutedtrafficking offenses, and implemented proactive antitraffickingprevention campaigns during the reportingperiod. The government did not provide, however,comprehensive data on the number of traffickingoffenders convicted and sentenced in 2008. Although thegovernment identified a significant number of traffickingvictims during the year, it reported that very few acceptedlaw enforcement’s offers for protection and assistancewhile detained; thus, many confirmed trafficking victimswere not referred to NGOs for comprehensive care.Recommendations for Portugal: Provide data onsentences given to convicted trafficking offenders;improve procedures for the proactive referral of potentialtrafficking victims to care and assistance; considerinvolving NGOs in the initial identification of potentialtrafficking victims; conduct awareness campaigns thateducate clients about trafficking for sexual exploitation;and conduct specific anti-trafficking prevention trainingfor military personnel being deployed abroad oninternational peacekeeping missions.ProsecutionThe Government of Portugal sustained its investigationand prosecution efforts in 2008 and improved itscollection of national law enforcement data on trafficking.Portugal prohibits transnational and internal traffickingin persons for both labor and sexual exploitation throughArticle 160, which prescribes penalties of three to 12years’ imprisonment, which are sufficiently stringentand commensurate with those for other serious crimes.During 2008, the government investigated 55 suspectedcases of trafficking, prosecuting 57 cases of sexualexploitation and forced labor, involving 190 charges.Some of these cases may include the prosecution of clientsof prostitution. The government did not provide data onindividuals convicted or sentenced. Law enforcementofficials received periodic specialized anti-traffickingtraining during the reporting period. There were noreported cases of government officials complicit intrafficking.ProtectionThe Government of Portugal continued to fundgovernment and NGO shelters providing assistance totrafficking victims, and it provided protection to someidentified victims in 2008. While authorities identified138 trafficking victims during the reporting period,only 22 of these victims were permitted a 30- to 60-day reflection period during which to decide whetherthey wished to participate in a criminal investigation orprosecution against their traffickers. There continued tobe a significant gap between the number of identifiedvictims and those that accepted protection and assistance.Two victims were housed at the government shelterand eight were housed at an NGO shelter in 2008.The government employed a standardized method forcollecting information on victims and informing thosevictims about available assistance while temporarilydetaining them. However, gaps remain in the referral ofvictims for care, as questioning is done in a detentionsetting and NGOs are not involved in the initialidentification process. In June 2008, the governmentsigned a protocol guaranteeing the long-term funding forthe safe house it opened for trafficking victims in January2007. It continued to fund the majority of costs for anNGO-run shelter, provided an annual subsidy for another,and provided a fixed subsidy for each victim, includingtheir children, for another. The government providedPORTUGAL243

QATARforeign victims of trafficking with short-term legalalternatives to their removal; victims are given a limitedtime to legalize their residency status or are repatriated.Reportedly, the government worked with IOM to ensurethat victims were returned responsibly to source countries;however, it did not provide data on repatriations for 2008.Victims reportedly did not face penalties for unlawfulacts committed as a direct part of their being trafficked.The government encouraged victims to participate ininvestigations and prosecutions of trafficking offenders;eight victims testified against their traffickers during thereporting period. The government reported that policemade proactive and systematic efforts to identify sextrafficking victims within its legal prostitution sectors.PreventionThe Government of Portugal continued its proactiveefforts to prevent trafficking during the reportingperiod. In October 2008, the government launched andpublicized a national level campaign to raise publicawareness about trafficking and publicized its immigranthotline. The theme of the campaign was “Wake up toReality: Don’t Ignore It – Report It.” Also in October2008, it promoted an awareness campaign in one townin northern Portugal, to prevent the exploitation ofRomanian immigrant farm workers. It also distributed200,000 brochures to front-line responders with thegoal of reaching more potential victims of trafficking.Portuguese officials also launched a campaign inOctober 2008 to alert students all over the countryto the issue of trafficking. The government did notconduct awareness campaigns that educate clients ofprostitution about trafficking for sexual exploitation.Although the Government of Portugal contributes troopsto international peacekeeping efforts abroad, it did notprovide specific anti-trafficking prevention training forthese troops before deployment.QATAR (Tier 2 Watch List)Qatar is a transit and destination country for menand women trafficked for the purposes of involuntaryservitude and, to a lesser extent, commercial sexualexploitation. Men and women from India, Pakistan,Bangladesh, Nepal, the Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam,Sri Lanka, Ethiopia, Sudan, Thailand, Egypt, Syria,Jordan, and China voluntarily travel to Qatar as laborersand domestic servants, but some subsequently faceconditions indicative of involuntary servitude. Theseconditions include threats of serious harm, includingfinancial harm; job switching; withholding of pay;charging workers for benefits for which the employeris responsible; restrictions on freedom of movement,including the confiscation of passports and traveldocuments and the withholding of exit permits; arbitrarydetention; threats of legal action and deportation; falsecharges; and physical, mental, and sexual abuse. OneNepali man was reportedly recruited for work in Qataras a domestic servant, but was then coerced or forcedinto labor in Saudi Arabia as a farm worker. Qatar is alsoa destination for women from China, Indonesia, thePhilippines, Morocco, Sri Lanka, Lebanon, India, Africa,and Eastern Europe for prostitution, but it is unknownhow many are trafficked for the purpose of commercialsexual exploitation.The Government of Qatar does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts todo so. In February 2009, Qatar enacted a new migrantworker sponsorship law that criminalizes somepractices commonly used by trafficking offenders, andit announced plans to use that law effectively to preventhuman trafficking. Senior members of the Qatarigovernment have indicated their plans to finalize andenact a draft comprehensive law on human trafficking.These measures constitute significant efforts by the Qatarigovernment; because they are steps that the governmenthas indicated it will carry out over the coming year, Qataris placed on Tier 2 Watch List. The Qatari governmentin early 2009 launched a month-long public outreachcampaign that involved local imams advocating antitraffickingnorms and designed to heighten citizenawareness of trafficking in persons. However, punishmentfor offenses related to trafficking in persons remains lowerthan that for crimes such as rape and kidnapping, andthe Qatari government has yet to take significant actionto investigate, prosecute, and punish trafficking offenses.In addition, the government continues to lack formalvictim identification procedures and, as a result, victimsof trafficking are likely punished for acts committed as adirect result of being trafficked.Recommendations for Qatar: Enact the draftcomprehensive anti-trafficking legislation; significantlyincrease efforts to investigate and prosecute traffickingoffenses, and convict and punish trafficking offenders;institute and consistently apply formal procedures toidentify victims of trafficking among vulnerable groups,such as those arrested for immigration violationsor prostitution; and abolish or significantly amendprovisions of Qatar’s sponsorship law – such as theprovision requiring workers to obtain their sponsor’spermission to leave Qatar – to prevent the forced labor ofmigrant workers.ProsecutionThe Government of Qatar made modest efforts toinvestigate and prosecute trafficking offenses duringthe reporting period. Qatar does not prohibit all acts244

of trafficking, but it criminalizes slavery under Section321 and forced labor under Section 322 of its CriminalLaw. The prescribed penalty for forced labor – up to sixmonths’ imprisonment – is not sufficiently stringent.Article 297 prohibits the forced or coerced prostitutionof a child below age 16; the prescribed penalty is up to15 years’ imprisonment, which is commensurate withpenalties prescribed for other grave crimes, such as rape.In February of 2009, the Qatari government enacted anew sponsorship law that explicitly prohibited certainacts found to be common to trafficking in persons.Under this new law, employers face stiff penalties andup to three years in jail for such offenses as withholdingemployees’ passports and forcing employees to workfor people other than their sponsors. Nonetheless, thegovernment does not have any laws that specifically targetall trafficking offenses. During the reporting period, thegovernment prosecuted two individuals under traffickingrelatedlaws. One of these resulted in the convictionof a foreign national for murdering a domestic workerwho was believed to have been subjected to conditionsof forced labor; the defendant was sentenced to sevenyears’ imprisonment. The government provided noother evidence of criminally prosecuting or punishingemployers or recruiters for forced labor or fraudulentrecruitment. Similarly, the government failed to reportany law enforcement efforts against trafficking forcommercial sexual exploitation.PreventionQatar made significant efforts to prevent trafficking inpersons during the reporting period. The governmentcontinued to produce informational anti-traffickingbrochures in several targeted languages, posters, andradio and TV commercials. In addition, a large outreachprogram that enlisted the support of local imams beganin March 2009 with the aim of educating Qatari citizensabout the moral and legal implications of trafficking inpersons. During the year, senior Qatari officials madepublic statements reflecting the government’s recognitionthat trafficking in persons is a serious problem in Qatar,though the problem was characterized as a phenomenonthat originates in the country of origin rather thanQatar itself. Qatar also tightened visa requirements toprevent the entry of women suspected of engaging inprostitution, but did not report efforts to distinguishthese women from victims of trafficking to protect them.The government did not take any other reported measuresto reduce the demand for commercial sex acts. Similarly,Qatar did not undertake any known public awarenesscampaigns targeting citizens traveling to known child sextourism destinations abroad. Qatar has not ratified the2000 UN TIP Protocol.ROMANIAProtectionQatar failed to make signficant efforts to protect victimsof trafficking during the reporting period. Althoughhealth care facilities reportedly refer suspected abusecases to the government anti-trafficking shelter forinvestigation, the government continues to lack asystematic procedure for law enforcement to identifyvictims of trafficking among vulnerable populations,such as foreign workers awaiting deportation and womenarrested for prostitution; as a result, victims may bepunished and automatically deported without beingoffered protection. Qatar commonly fines and detainspotential trafficking victims for unlawful acts committedas a direct result of being trafficked, such as immigrationviolations and running away from their sponsors, withoutdetermining the underlying causes. Some potentialvictims remain in deportation centers for several monthspending resolution of their cases, permission from theirsponsors to leave the country, or in retaliation for seekingto recover unpaid wages or request a new sponsor. Thegovernment-operated shelter for victims of traffickingremained underutilized, although it provides somevictims with medical, psychological, and legal assistance.During the reporting period, the shelter assisted fivevictims in filing civil charges against their employers.Qatar sometimes offers relief from deportation so thatvictims can testify as witnesses against their employers.Nonetheless, the government did not routinelyencourage victims to assist in trafficking investigationsor consistently offer victims alternatives to removal tocountries where they may face retribution or hardship.ROMANIA (Tier 2)Romania is a source, transit, and destination country formen, women, and children trafficked for the purposesof commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor.Romanian men, women, and children are trafficked toSpain, Italy, Greece, the Czech Republic, and Germanyfor commercial sexual exploitation, forced begging, andforced labor in the agriculture, construction, and servicesectors. Men and women from Romania are traffickedto Cyprus, the Netherlands, Slovakia, Poland, Portugal,Belgium, Turkey, Sweden, Hungary, and Denmark for thepurposes of commercial sexual exploitation and forcedlabor. Romanian men, women, and children are traffickedwithin the country for commercial sexual exploitationand forced labor, including forced begging and petty theft.In 2008, 69 percent of victims identified were traffickedfor forced labor. Romania is a destination country for asmall number of women from Moldova, Colombia, andFrance trafficked into forced prostitution and a smallnumber of men from the Democratic Republic of theCongo and Honduras trafficked for forced labor.The Government of Romania does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;245

RUSSIAhowever, it is making significant efforts to do so. In2008, the government significantly increased its fundingof NGOs providing victim assistance, made notableimprovements in victim referrals by law enforcement,and continued efforts to raise awareness of both sex andlabor trafficking. The government also demonstratedstrong cooperation with foreign law enforcementcounterparts, resulting in the disruption of severalhigh-profile trafficking rings. However, the number ofvictims who received government-funded assistancesignificantly decreased in 2008. Although 69 percentof identified victims were trafficked for the purpose oflabor exploitation, the government was again unableto report significant efforts to address labor trafficking.The Government of Romania announced plans in March2009 to reorganize the government’s lead anti-traffickingagency – the National Agency against Trafficking inPersons (NAATIP). Experts expressed concern that theproposed reorganization could reduce the authorityand independence of NAATIP, and could negativelyaffect government cooperation with NGOs, and victimtreatment, assistance, and protection.government officials were involved in trafficking duringthe reporting periodProtectionRomania demonstrated adequate efforts to protect andassist victims of trafficking during the reporting period.In 2008, the government provided $270,000 in support tofour NGOs to provide assistance to victims of traffickingcompared to $72,000 in 2007. Three hundred-six victimswere provided with government-funded assistance, downfrom 669 victims assisted by the government in 2007. Anadditional 234 victims were assisted by non-governmentfunded programs. In 2008, the government identified1,240 victims, compared to 1,662 victims identified in2007. In 2008, there were at least 649 identified victims offorced labor and at least 287 identified victims of sexualexploitation. The government operated nine shelters forvictims of trafficking, though their quality varied andmost victims preferred to go to NGO-operated shelters.Victims were encouraged to participate in traffickinginvestigations and prosecutions; 1,053 victims assistedsuch law enforcement efforts in 2008. Foreign victimsreceive a 90-day reflection period to decide whetherthey would like to cooperate in a criminal proceeding.Law enforcement proactively identified and referred 540victims of trafficking for assistance. While the rightsof victims were generally respected and victims werenot punished for acts committed as a result of beingtrafficked, some judges were disrespectful toward femalevictims of sex trafficking which discouraged victims fromparticipating in trafficking cases.246Recommendations for Romania: Take concerted steps toinvestigate and punish acts of labor trafficking; increasethe number of victims provided access to governmentfundedassistance; and provide victim sensitivity trainingfor judges.ProsecutionRomania sustained its law enforcement efforts overthe reporting period. Romania prohibits all forms oftrafficking in persons through Law no. 678/2001, whichprescribes penalties of three to 15 years’ imprisonment.These penalties are sufficiently stringent andcommensurate with penalties prescribed for other gravecrimes, such as rape. In 2008, authorities investigated494 new cases, up from 232 new cases in 2007. Thegovernment prosecuted 329 individuals for traffickingin 2008, compared to 398 individuals prosecuted in2007. During the reporting period, Romania convicted125 trafficking offenders, down from 188 individualsconvicted in 2007. During the reporting period, 106of the 125 convicted traffickers served some time inprison; 19 traffickers were given suspended sentences andserved no time in prison. In 2008, forty-eight traffickerswere sentenced to one to five years’ imprisonment,56 traffickers were sentenced to five to 10 years’imprisonment, and two traffickers were sentenced to morethan 10 years’ imprisonment. There were no reports thatPreventionRomania continued its efforts to raise awareness andprevent human trafficking during the reporting period.The government, in conjunction with NGOs, conductedtwo demand reduction campaigns that specificallytargeted clients of the sex trade. The government alsoworked with counterparts in the Czech Republic and IOMto raise awareness about Romanians trafficked to theCzech Republic for forced labor. In 2008, the governmentprovided 24 trafficking awareness training sessions forRomanian troops prior to their deployment abroad oninternational peacekeeping missions.RUSSIA (Tier 2 Watch List)Russia is a source, transit, and destination country formen, women, and children trafficked for the purposes offorced labor and commercial sexual exploitation. Menand women from the Russian Far East are trafficked toSouth Korea, China, Bahrain, Oman, Japan, and SouthKorea for purposes of sexual exploitation, debt bondage,and forced labor, including in the agricultural and fishingsectors. Some Russian women are trafficked to Turkey,Greece, South Africa, Germany, Poland, Italy, Israel,Spain, Vietnam, Thailand, Australia, New Zealand, andthe Middle East for the purpose of commercial sexualexploitation. Men and women from Central Asia andUkraine are trafficked to the Russian Far East for the

purpose of forced labor, including victims traffickedfor forced labor in the fishing industry. The ILO reportsthat labor trafficking is the most predominant form oftrafficking in Russia. Men and women are traffickedwithin Russia and from Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan,Uzbekistan, Ukraine, and Moldova to Russia for thepurposes of commercial sexual exploitation and forcedlabor, including work in the construction industry. Asignificant number of men from Belarus are trafficked toRussia for the purpose of forced labor in the construction,manufacturing, and fishing sectors. Moscow and St.Petersburg have been destinations for children traffickedwithin Russia and from Ukraine and Moldova forpurposes of sexual exploitation and forced begging. Menfrom Western Europe and the United States travel toWestern Russia, specifically St. Petersburg, for the purposeof child sex tourism; experts continue to credit a decreasein the number of child victims in these cities to aggressivepolice investigations and Russian cooperation withforeign law enforcement.The Government of the Russian Federation does not fullycomply with the minimum standards for the eliminationof trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts todo so. Despite these significant efforts, the governmentover the last year: decreased the number of reportedtrafficking investigations, prosecutions, and convictions;did not vigorously prosecute, convict, and punishgovernment officials; made no significant efforts toimprove identification of and assistance to victims oftrafficking; and did not make adequate efforts to addresslabor trafficking; therefore, Russia is placed on Tier 2Watch List. Victim identification and assistance remainedinadequate and varied in quality and availability, despiteefforts by some regional and local authorities. The federalgovernment did not dedicate funding to anti-traffickingactivities or trafficking victim assistance during thereporting period; and, despite limited funding by somelocal governments, the majority of shelter and directtrafficking assistance continued to be provided by foreignfundedinternational organizations and NGOs.Recommendations for Russia: Develop and implementa comprehensive national strategy that addressesall forms of trafficking and provides comprehensivevictim assistance throughout Russia; provide fundingfrom federal, regional, and/or municipal budgets toimplement this national strategy; allocate funding toanti-trafficking NGOs that provide victim assistanceand rehabilitative care; increase the number of victimsidentified and assisted; designate trafficking-specificresponsibilities to relevant government ministries on thenational and regional levels; establish an official federalcoordinating body with the authority to implement thenational strategy; increase the number of investigations,prosecutions, and convictions for trafficking offenses,particularly government officials complicit in trafficking;ensure convicted traffickers and convicted complicitofficials are sentenced to some time in prison; createa central repository for investigation, prosecution,conviction, and sentencing data for trafficking cases;continue efforts to raise public awareness of both sex andlabor trafficking; increase efforts to investigate, prosecute,convict, and punish labor trafficking offenses; andcontinue to take steps to prevent the use of forced labor inconstruction projects for the 2014 Winter Olympics.ProsecutionThe Government of the Russian Federation sustained itsinvestigation efforts, but reported limited prosecutionand no conviction efforts during the reporting period.Article 127 of the Russian Criminal Code prohibits bothtrafficking for commercial sexual exploitation and forcedlabor. Other criminal statutes are also used to prosecuteand convict traffickers. Article 127 provides punishmentsof up to five years’ imprisonment for trafficking crimesand aggravating circumstances may extend penaltiesup to 15 years’ imprisonment; this is commensuratewith punishments prescribed for other grave crimes,such as rape. In 2008, police conducted 111 traffickinginvestigations under Article 127 – 95 for sex traffickingand 16 for forced labor cases – down from 139 traffickinginvestigations in 2007. It was difficult to ascertain theexact number of prosecutions and convictions resultingfrom these investigations because the government againdid not collect and maintain such statistics. At leastnine traffickers were prosecuted during the reportingperiod, compared with at least 46 prosecutions in 2007.The government did not report the number of convictedtraffickers or those sentenced to serve time in prisonduring the reporting period. In July 2006, the Dumapassed asset forfeiture legislation that permits prosecutorsto forfeit the assets of convicted persons, includingtraffickers; however, there were no reports that the law hasbeen used against human traffickers since its enactment.In 2008, authorities reportedly investigated threehigh-level officials for possible involvement in humantrafficking, including one military official for organizingan international sex trafficking syndicate which wasallegedly responsible for trafficking 130 women andgirls from Eastern Europe to Western Europe and theMiddle East between 1999 and 2007. One low-levelpolice officer was arrested for trafficking women to theUAE and two low-level police officers were arrested fortrafficking women within Russia for commercial sexualexploitation; these investigations were ongoing at theend of the reporting period. There was no updatedinformation on whether the three officials that werearrested for trafficking-related complicity in 2007 – asreported in the 2008 Report – were prosecuted, convicted,or punished during the reporting period. There was noupdated information on whether the five military officialsinvestigated in 2007 for the labor exploitation of militaryconscripts under their command were prosecuted,convicted, or punished for their actions during thereporting period.ProtectionRussia demonstrated limited progress in improving itsinadequate efforts to protect and assist victims duringthe reporting period. Russia lacks national policies andRUSSIA247

RWANDAnational programs to provide specific assistance fortrafficking victims. The majority of aid to NGOs andinternational organizations providing victim assistancecontinued to be funded by international donors. Somelocal governments reportedly provided modest financialand in-kind support to some anti-trafficking NGOs. Alocal government in the Russian Far East provided facilityspace for a foreign-funded shelter that opened in February2009; one victim was assisted during the reporting period.The City of St. Petersburg continued to fund a numberof shelters for children which provided assistance tosome child victims of trafficking in 2008. Although thegovernment did not track the number of victims assistedby local governments and NGOs in 2008, some victimsof trafficking were provided with limited assistance atregional and municipal-run government-funded domesticviolence and homeless shelters. However, the quality ofthese shelters varied and they were often ill-equipped toprovide for the specific legal, medical, and psychologicalneeds of trafficking victims. Also, foreign and Russianvictims found in regions where they did not reside weresometimes denied access to state-run general health careand social assistance programs, as local governmentscould restrict eligibility to these services to local residents.asylum to remain in Russia. There were no reports thatvictims were punished for unlawful acts committed as adirect result of being trafficked.PreventionRussia maintained its modest awareness efforts from theprevious reporting period. Government-owned mediain newspapers, television, and over the Internet reportednumerous stories and aired documentaries relatingto human trafficking, and often detailed preventativemeasures for potential victims to avoid falling prey totraffickers. The Russian Academy of Sciences conducteda recent survey of 837 potential victims of trafficking;the results indicated that more than 70 percent of thosesurveyed were aware of the dangers of both sex and labortrafficking. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs continued tomaintain a website warning Russian citizens travelingabroad about the dangers of trafficking. The governmentdid not take specific steps to reduce the demand forcommercial sex acts. In 2008, one American manwas arrested by authorities for the commercial sexualexploitation of a child; the defendant subsequentlypleaded guilty and was expected to be sentenced afterthe conclusion of the reporting period. The governmentdid not report trafficking-specific training for itstroops deployed abroad as peacekeepers. The regionalgovernment in Yekaterinburg continued to fund a migrantcenter that worked with local Diaspora organizationsto shelter and legalize migrants, making them lessvulnerable to labor trafficking in the region.Russia demonstrated inadequate efforts to identifyvictims; the majority of assisted victims continued to beidentified by NGOs or international organizations. Somemunicipalities across Russia had cooperation agreementsbetween NGOs and local authorities to refer victims forassistance, and in 2008, an increasing number of thevictims assisted nation-wide were referred by governmentofficials; IOM reported that approximately 48 percent ofthe 117 trafficking victims assisted by their foreign-fundedshelter in Moscow were referred by law enforcementand other government authorities. In October 2008, alocal government in Tatarstan signed a Memorandumof Understanding with a local NGO to improve victimidentification and referral for assistance. In early April2009, an NGO-run shelter in Vladivostok also signeda similar agreement with the local police. Police insome communities encouraged victims to participate intrafficking investigations and prosecutions. The Ministryof Interior introduced anti-trafficking training in its policeacademies. No victims of trafficking were assisted by thewitness protection program in 2008. Foreign victims werepermitted to reside in Russia pending the investigationand prosecution of their trafficker and may petition forRWANDA (Tier 2)Rwanda is a source country for some women andchildren trafficked for the purposes of forced laborand sexual exploitation. Rwandan girls are traffickedwithin the country for domestic servitude, as well as forcommercial sexual exploitation; in a limited number ofcases, this trafficking is facilitated by loosely organizedprostitution networks. There were isolated reports ofsuch sex trafficking networks operating in secondaryschools and universities. In addition, older femalesreportedly offer vulnerable younger girls room andboard, eventually pushing them into prostitution to payfor their keep. Rwandan children are also trafficked toUganda, Tanzania, and Kenya for agricultural labor oruse in commercial sexual exploitation. Recruiters for theNational Congress for the Defense of the People (CNDP),fraudulently promising high paying employment,defrauded Congolese men and boys from Rwanda-basedrefugee camps, as well as Rwandan adults and childrenfrom towns in western Rwanda, into forced labor andsoldiering in the Democratic Republic of the Congo(DRC). In December 2008, the UN Group of Experts onthe DRC released a report accusing Rwandan authoritiesof complicity in the fraudulent recruitment of soldiers,including children, by the CNDP and their movementacross the border. Rwandan police or administrative248

officers reportedly were sometimes present during suchrecruitment.The Government of Rwanda does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Duringthe reporting period, the government concluded its firstknown anti-trafficking prosecution.Recommendations for Rwanda: Enact and enforcethe anti-trafficking provisions of the draft Penal Codethrough increased investigations and prosecutionsof traffickers; take additional steps to assist childrentrafficked into prostitution and domestic servitude andto provide for their care; and launch a nationwide antitraffickingpublic awareness campaign.ProsecutionThe government’s anti-trafficking law enforcementefforts increased modestly during the reporting period.Rwandan law does not prohibit all forms of trafficking inpersons, though existing penal and labor code statutesprohibit slavery, forced labor, forced prostitution, andchild prostitution, under which traffickers are prosecuted.Prescribed penalties under these statutes range from smallfines to six years’ imprisonment, which are sufficientlystringent but not commensurate with penalties prescribedfor other grave crimes. Penal code revisions thatencompass draft anti-trafficking legislation remainedunder consideration by the plenary of the Chamber ofDeputies in 2008. Amendments to the Child ProtectionLaw, which include draft provisions criminalizing theactions of hotels and cinema halls that provide venues forchild prostitution, were not passed during the reportingperiod. In 2008, the Cabinet approved revisions tothe labor code and transferred them to Parliament forreview. On the local level, more than 10 districts haveinstituted bylaws against child labor that prescribe finesfor employers and parents; NGOs reported that thesebylaws’ provision of fines, accompanied by sensitizationcampaigns, has had a deterrent effect on child labor inlocal jurisdictions.The government did not provide statistics on thepunishment of trafficking offenders during the year.However, in May 2008, the Gasabo district courtsentenced a man to 30 years’ imprisonment for operatingan underage prostitution ring. Due to her status as aminor, his 17-year-old accomplice received a suspendedsentence of five years’ imprisonment. This is the country’sfirst known conviction of a trafficking offender. InDecember 2008, the government arrested but has yet tocharge three Rwandans suspected of illegally recruitingchildren and adults on behalf of the CNDP. Laborinspectors issued warnings and levied fines duringthe reporting period against those illegally employingchildren; no cases of forced labor were brought to court.At border crossings and security checkpoints throughoutthe country, the National Police questioned mentraveling with children but without an adult female andinspected suspected irregularities, including any possibleindications of trafficking; such inspections yielded noreported cases of trafficking.ProtectionWith the exception of its care for former child combatants,some of whom are trafficking victims, the governmentprovided few protective services to victims. The RwandanDemobilization and Reintegration Commission (RDRC)continued operation of a center for child ex-combatantsin Muhazi, which provided three months of care andeducation to children returned from the DRC by theUnited Nations Mission to the Congo; 28 children arrivedat the center during the reporting period, joining 13children who remained at the center from the previousreporting period. The RDRC worked with local authoritiesand an NGO to locate the children’s families, and socialworkers sensitized the families before their child’s return;in 2008, 12 children were reunited with their families.RDRC’s social workers and district integration officerstrack each child’s progress for two years and provideassistance with school fees and expenses, as well asoffering income-generating support to their families.In January 2009, Rwandan authorities cooperated withUgandan law enforcement to repatriate a traffickedRwandan boy to the country. During the reportingperiod, some local authorities identified children inprostitution and brought them to the attention of localorganizations for assistance. The police headquarters inKigali operated a hotline and an examination room forvictims of gender-based violence; both were staffed bytrained counselors and could be used by female victims oftrafficking. Fully equipped examination rooms were alsooperational in Gasabo and Rwamagana. In June 2008, theSupreme Court distributed three checklists developed forpolice officers, prosecutors, and judges, respectively, onproper investigative, protective, and judicial proceduresfor addressing the needs of sexual and domesticviolence victims; these measures are also applicableto the provision of protective services to traffickingvictims. Resource and capacity constraints hinderedfull implementation of these procedures nationwide. In“catch-up” education programs spread over 80 centers,the Ministry of Education provided education forapproximately 9,000 children who had missed all or partof their primary education due to involvement in childlabor. The government encouraged victims to participatein investigation and prosecution of trafficking crimes andRWANDA249

Y YEARMICRONESIA (FSM) TIER RANKING BY YEARST. VINCENT AND THE GRENADINESKING BY YEARYEARARdid not penalize victims for unlawful acts committed as adirect result of their being trafficked during the reportingperiod. Beyond a temporary stay of up to one month,existing legal statutes do not provide foreign traffickingvictims with legal alternatives to their removal to acountry where they may face hardship or retribution.PreventionThe government’s anti-trafficking prevention effortssignificantly increased during the reporting period. Thereis, however, a general lack of understanding amonggovernment officials and the general population of whatconstitutes human trafficking. In January 2009, theActing Commissioner General of Police spoke publiclyabout a case of child trafficking to Uganda and theimportance of addressing trafficking crimesas a regional concern. In 2008, the Ministryof Public Service and Labor (MIFOTRA)and an NGO produced a documentary onchild labor that was broadcast on nationaltelevision eight times. The national university’sradio station, in collaboration with laborinspectors, conducted awareness programsfor parents, children, and teachers onexploitative child labor. District child labortask forces, comprised of the mayor, the vicemayor for social affairs, police, army child protectionofficers, education officers, teachers, and local leaders,met bi-monthly and conducted sensitization activitieson the dangers and illegality of exploiting child labor,including during monthly community service days. Inmid-2008, cell leaders, under the supervision of theNyaruguru district child labor task force, conducted asurvey assessing the extent of exploitative child laborand released the results in February 2009. In an effort toreduce the demand for commercial sex acts, men arrestedfor procuring females in prostitution received informalsensitization on women’s rights, including a brochure ongender-based violence. Rwandan troops deployed to theUN peacekeeping mission in Darfur received training ongender sensitivity and sexual exploitation.ST. VINCENT AND THEGRENADINES(Tier 2 Watch List)St. Vincent and the Grenadines is a potential sourcecountry for children trafficked internally for the purposesof sexual exploitation; it may also be a destinationcountry for women trafficked for the purposes ofcommercial sexual exploitation. Anecdotal reportingsuggests the number of victims trafficked in, to, orthrough St. Vincent and the Grenadines is small.Information on the full extent of human trafficking inSt. Vincent and the Grenadines, however, is lacking, asneither the government nor NGOs have conducted anyrelated investigations, studies, or surveys. Reports indicatethat a traditional practice of sending children away fromhome to live with another family is sometimes misusedfor the purpose of coercing children into commercialsexual exploitation. In these situations, care-givers forcefostered children into sexual relationships in exchange forfinancial and in-kind compensation.The Government of St. Vincent and the Grenadinesdoes not fully comply with the minimum standards forthe elimination of trafficking; however, it is makingsignificant efforts to do so. Despite these overallsignificant efforts, the government did not provideevidence of vigorous law enforcement efforts to combattrafficking by investigating reports of the commercialsexual exploitation of children and of women who maybe forced to engage in prostitution; therefore, St. Vincentand the Grenadines is placed on Tier 2 Watch List.THE NETHERLANDS ANTILLES TIER RANKING BY YEARST. VINCENT & GRENADINES TIER RANKING BY YEARRecommendations for St. Vincent and the Grenadines:Develop and implement a comprehensive anti-traffickinglaw; investigate allegations of the commercial sexualexploitation of children; utilize existing legal statutesto prosecute cases of women or children forced intocommercial sexual exploitation; and provide protectiveservices to children rescued from commercial sexualexploitation.TUNISIA TIER RANKING BY YEARProsecutionThe Government of St. Vincent and the Grenadinesdid not make adequate progress in anti-traffickinglaw enforcement efforts over the last year. It has nospecific or comprehensive laws prohibiting traffickingin persons, although slavery and forced labor are bothconstitutionally prohibited. Trafficking offenders couldbe prosecuted under relevant provisions in immigration,prostitution, or labor laws, though there were no suchreported efforts over the past year. Sufficiently stringentpenalties for trafficking offenders under these laws,ranging from 10-15 years’ imprisonment, are sufficientlystringent and commensurate with penalties prescribedfor other serious crimes, such as rape. The governmentdid not receive reports of trafficking victims duringthe reporting period. St. Vincent and the Grenadineslegal experts, in conjunction with IOM and nine otherCaribbean countries, developed and published a countertraffickinglegislative model for the Caribbean and theaccompanying explanatory guidelines.TURKMENISTAN TIER RANKING BY YEARProtectionIn cooperation with local NGOs, the government ensuresvictims’ access to limited medical, psychological, legal,and social services. The St. Vincent and the Grenadines250

Human Rights Association would provide legal servicesand other limited aid to identified trafficking victims,though it was not requested to do so during the year.Government officials did not proactively identifyvictims of trafficking for the purpose of forced laboror commercial sexual exploitation. The governmentprovided some funding to a local NGO which offerscounseling and other victim care services that wouldbe available to trafficking victims. Under current laws,the government did not encourage victims’ assistance inthe investigation and prosecution of trafficking or othercrimes, nor did it provide legal alternatives to the removalof foreign victims to countries where they would facehardship or retribution. St. Vincent and the Grenadineshad no law or official procedures in place to ensure thatvictims would not be inappropriately incarcerated, fined,or otherwise penalized for offenses committed solely asa direct result of being trafficked. The government hascollaborated, however, with international organizationsto provide specialized training in identifying andreaching out to potential victims.PreventionThe government made weak efforts to prevent traffickingand increase the public’s awareness of human traffickingin St. Vincent and the Grenadines. The governmentconducted no anti-trafficking campaigns and made noefforts to reduce the demand for commercial sex acts.SAUDI ARABIA (Tier 3)Saudi Arabia is a destination country for men and womentrafficked for the purposes of involuntary servitudeand, to a lesser extent, commercial sexual exploitation.Men and women from Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka,Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, Indonesia, Sudan,Ethiopia, and many other countries voluntarily travel toSaudi Arabia as domestic servants or other low-skilledlaborers, but some subsequently face conditions indicativeof involuntary servitude, including restrictions onmovement, withholding of passports, threats, physicalor sexual abuse, and non-payment of wages. Women,primarily from Asian and African countries, are alsobelieved to have been trafficked into Saudi Arabia forcommercial sexual exploitation; others were reportedlykidnapped and forced into prostitution after runningaway from abusive employers. In addition, Saudi Arabiais a destination country for Nigerian, Yemeni, Pakistani,Afghan, Chadian, and Sudanese children traffickedfor involuntary servitude as forced beggars and streetvendors. Some Saudi nationals travel to destinationsincluding Morocco, Egypt, Yemen, Afghanistan, Pakistan,India, and Bangladesh to engage in commercial sexualexploitation. Some Saudi men have also used legallycontracted “temporary marriages” in countries such asMauritania, Yemen, and Indonesia as a means by whichto sexually exploit migrant workers. Females as young asseven years old are led to believe they are being wed inearnest, but upon arrival in Saudi Arabia subsequentlybecome their husbands’ sexual slaves, are forced intodomestic labor and, in some cases, prostitution.The Government of Saudi Arabia does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking and is not making discernible efforts to doso. There is no evidence that the government criminallyprosecutes or punishes trafficking offenders, particularlyabusive employers and fraudulent recruiters involved inlabor trafficking. Furthermore, it has not been observedthat the government took law enforcement actionagainst trafficking for commercial sexual exploitation inSaudi Arabia, or took any steps to provide victims of sextrafficking with protection. In general, victim protectionefforts in Saudi Arabia remain weak, with authoritiesfailing to institute a formal victim identificationprocedure and often treating victims of trafficking ascriminals. The government shows no sign of significantpolitical commitment to addressing the serious issue ofinvoluntary servitude in the Kingdom; indeed, an officialresponsible for such matters has denied that traffickingin persons takes place in Saudi Arabia. Despite tighteningimmigration laws and visa entry requirements, there hasbeen no prevention of the trafficking of men, women, andchildren who migrate legally and voluntarily, but whoare subsequently trafficked into involuntary servitude orcommercial sexual exploitation.Recommendations for Saudi Arabia: Enact acomprehensive anti-trafficking law that criminalizes allforms of trafficking in persons and assigns sufficientlystringent criminal penalties; significantly increasecriminal prosecutions and punishments of traffickers,including abusive employers and those culpable oftrafficking for commercial sexual exploitation; institutea formal victim identification mechanism to distinguishtrafficking victims among the thousands of workers itdeports each year for immigration violations and othercrimes; ensure that trafficking victims are not detainedor punished for acts committed as a direct result of beingtrafficked, such as violations of immigration regulations;extend protection to victims of sex trafficking; undertakepublic awareness campaigns to reduce the demand forcommercial sex acts and child sex tourism committed bySaudi nationals abroad; and consider measures to preventlabor trafficking, such as ensuring that all workers holdtheir own passports and are free to depart the countrywithout requiring permission from their sponsors, andextending labor law protections to domestic workers.ProsecutionSaudi Arabia made no discernible efforts to criminallyprosecute or punish trafficking offenses during thereporting period. While the government points toexamples of employers being jailed or fined, theseexamples are rare and are usually only in cases of extremephysical abuse that may or may not include trafficking.The government does not prohibit all forms of traffickingin persons, but penalizes forced labor through Articles229-242 of its Labor Law. Penalties prescribed under theseforced labor statutes, however, are limited to fines or banson future hiring, and are not sufficiently stringent. TheseSAUDI ARABIA251

SENEGALlaws also do not apply to domestic servants, the primaryvictims of forced labor in Saudi Arabia. In March 2009, itwas reported that the Shura Council discussed a numberof draft regulations that would prohibit some activitiesthat facilitiate human trafficking, including a proposedcomprehensive anti-trafficking law. Saudi Arabia doesnot have a law specifically prohibiting trafficking forcommercial sexual exploitation. The Saudi governmentasserts that Shari’a (Islamic) law can be used to prosecutetrafficking offenses, though in practice no prosecutionof such cases was observed. Trafficking victims are oftendeported without receiving assistance and with little orno compensation. By May 2008, all charges were droppedand a conviction was nullified against the employerof Nour Miyati, an Indonesian domestic worker whowas severely abused, exploited, and enslaved in a Saudiresidence in 2004 and 2005; after years of seeking justicein her well publicized case, Ms. Miyati was awarded just$668 in compensation by a Saudi court. In addition,despite available administrative laws, the governmentdoes not regularly enforce fines or bans on hiring workersimposed upon abusive employers or recruitment agencies.Police continue to be criticized for being unresponsiveto requests for help from foreign workers. Furthermore,it has been maintained by some observers that the socialstatus of the employer weighs heavily on the chances of ajudge siding with a plaintiff’s case in court, with wealthyindividuals, high officials, and royalty rarely if ever losinga case. As in previous years, training was provided inJanuary 2009 to judges, prosecutors, and investigatorsabout trafficking; the training has not yet been observedto result in improved criminal law enforcement againsttrafficking in persons. Adequate enforcement is notpossible without a comprehensive anti-trafficking law thatclearly outlines jail time and fines for specific acts.ProtectionSaudi Arabia made insufficient efforts to protect victimsof trafficking. The government operates deportationfacilities for runaway workers in several cities and ashelter for female domestic workers in Riyadh. Thegovernment sometimes pays workers’ repatriationexpenses but not their claims for compensation. However,many victims are not provided access to governmentfacilities or shelter; they must seek refuge at theirembassies, negotiate settlements with their employers,and independently obtain funds to return home. Ofparticular concern is Saudi Arabia’s continued lack ofa formal procedure to identify victims of traffickingfrom among vulnerable populations, such as foreignersdetained for immigration violations or women arrestedfor prostitution. As a result, victims of trafficking areoften punished or automatically deported without beingoffered protection. Women arrested for prostitution arenot interviewed for evidence of trafficking and may besubjected to stringent corporal punishment under Saudilaw. Women who have been raped by their employershave found themselves imprisoned or sentenced tolashes for “moral criminality.” Although Saudi Arabiaoffers temporary relief from deportation to some victimswho identify themselves to authorities, those who haverun away from their employers, overstayed their visas,or otherwise violated the legal terms of their visas maybe jailed. Saudi officials do not encourage victims toassist in investigations against their traffickers, andoften discourage cooperation by persuading victims totake monetary compensation in lieu of filing criminalcharges against their employers or by returning to theiremployers. The length of time to process cases againstemployers leads many foreign workers to drop bothcriminal and monetary claims, choosing instead to returnto their home countries in lieu of submitting to a legalprocess. There is no mechanism in place under Saudi lawfor continuing such cases once the employee has departedSaudi Arabia. Although the government reports providinglegal services to victims, the lack of translation assistanceand lengthy and costly delays often discourage victims.Some children caught in begging rings are now sent tojuvenile shelters and reportedly offered counseling andmedical care instead of being put into prison, which waspreviously the norm. The government does not offer legalalternatives to the removal of foreign trafficking victimsto countries where they may face hardship or retribution.PreventionSaudi Arabia has not made significant efforts to preventtrafficking in persons during the reporting period.Although the Shura Council indicated its intent to discussa comprehensive anti-trafficking law in November 2008,there has been no public discussion of the matter todate. The government continues to produce brochuresabout workers’ rights in Arabic, English, and some sourcecountry languages, but the distribution of these materialsappears extremely limited. Officials tend to favoremployers – particularly those who are well-connected– who claimed they were victims of nonperforming,negligent migrant workers and accuse them of suchoffenses as child abuse and witchcraft and even moreroutinely of theft. No information was available from thegovernment about measures taken during the reportingperiod to reduce the demand for commercial sex acts.Similarly, there is no evidence that Saudi Arabia tooksteps to reduce participation in child sex tourism by itsnationals abroad.SENEGAL (Tier 2 Watch List)Senegal is a source, transit, and destination country forchildren and women trafficked for the purposes of forcedlabor and commercial sexual exploitation. Trafficking252

within the country is more prevalent than trans-bordertrafficking and the majority of victims are children.Within Senegal, religious teachers traffic boys, calledtalibe, by promising to educate them, but subjecting theminstead to forced begging and physical abuse. A 2007study done by UNICEF, the ILO, and the World Bankfound that 6,480 talibe were forced to beg in Dakar alone.Women and girls are trafficked for domestic servitude andcommercial sexual exploitation – including exploitationby foreign sex tourists – within Senegal. Children arealso trafficked for forced labor in gold mines withinSenegal. Transnationally, boys are trafficked to Senegalfrom The Gambia, Mali, Guinea-Bissau, and Guineafor forced begging by religious teachers. Senegalesechildren are trafficked to Mali, Guinea, and possibly otherWest African countries for forced labor in gold mines.Senegalese women and girls are trafficked to neighboringcountries, the Middle East, and Europe for domesticservitude and possibly for sexual exploitation. Womenand girls from other West African countries, particularlyLiberia, Ghana, Sierra Leone, and Nigeria may betrafficked to Senegal for sexual exploitation, including forsex tourism.The Government of Senegal does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to doso, despite limited resources. The government continuedto demonstrate a strong commitment to protecting childtrafficking victims during the year by providing them withshelter, rehabilitation, and reintegration services. Despitethese overall significant efforts, the government did notshow progress in prosecuting, convicting, and punishingtrafficking offenders over the last year; therefore, Senegalis placed on Tier 2 Watch List.Recommendations for Senegal: Intensify efforts toprosecute and convict trafficking offenders; ensure thatthe Ministry of Interior’s Special Commissariat AgainstSex Tourism and the Tourism Ministry’s sex tourismpolice unit arrest suspected sex tourists and rescue theirvictims; and increase efforts to raise awareness abouttrafficking.ProsecutionThe Government of Senegal demonstrated insufficientanti-trafficking law enforcement efforts during the year.Senegal prohibits all forms of trafficking through its2005 Law to Combat Trafficking in Persons and RelatedPractices and to Protect Victims. The law’s prescribedpenalties of five to 10 years’ imprisonment for all formsof trafficking are sufficiently stringent and commensuratewith penalties prescribed for rape. The governmentreported that it arrested two religious teachers forabusing boys they had trafficked for forced begging.The government did not report any additional arrests,prosecutions, or convictions of trafficking offences.During the year, the Ministry of Justice’s Center forJudicial Training conducted a UNICEF-funded trainingfor police, gendarmerie, and immigration officials toeducate them about trafficking. Although the governmentin 2007 activated two special police units to combatchild sex tourism, one within the Interior Ministry andthe other within the Tourism Ministry, these units didnot report any law enforcement actions against foreignpedophiles. The Ministry of the Interior, through itsBureau of Investigations, continued to work with Interpolto monitor immigration and emigration patterns forevidence of trafficking.ProtectionThe Government of Senegal sustained solid effortsto protect trafficking victims over the last year. Thegovernment continued to operate the Ginndi Center,its shelter for destitute children, including traffickingvictims. While the Family Ministry, which funds andoperates the Center with support from internationaldonors, began using a donor-funded computerizeddatabase to track trafficking victims in 2006, the centerrecently stopped using the database due to lack of funds.The center, which has the capacity to house 60 childrenat a time, assisted 949 foreign and Senegalese destitutechildren, including trafficking victims, over the last year.With international organization and NGO assistance,807 children were reunited with their families and 69were trained in vocational centers located in the Ginndicenter. The government also continued to operate its freechild protection hotline out of the Ginndi Center. In thelast year, the hotline received 17,501 calls, though it isnot known how many of these calls related to humantrafficking. The government also sometimes referredtrafficking victims to NGOs for care on an ad hoc basis.The government espoused a policy of encouraging victimsto assist in trafficking investigations or prosecutionsin part by permitting closed door victim testimoniesduring trafficking prosecutions. The government didnot report, however, that it encouraged any victimsto assist in prosecutions during the last year. Thegovernment provided legal alternatives to the removal offoreign victims to countries where they faced hardshipor retribution. Trafficking victims had the option ofremaining temporarily or permanently in Senegalunder the status of resident or refugee. Victims were notinappropriately incarcerated or fined for unlawful actscommitted as a direct result of being trafficked.PreventionThe Government of Senegal made modest efforts to raiseawareness about trafficking during the reporting period.As part of its program against the worst forms of childlabor, the Family Ministry continued to conduct donorfundedworkshops and roundtables in Mbour, Dakarand other areas of the country to raise awareness aboutforced child begging, child domestic servitude, and childprostitution. In 2008, the Family Ministry collaboratedwith the ILO and the Governments of Mali, Cote d’Ivoire,Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, and Burkina Faso to implementa 12-month regional anti-trafficking project. The projectcollected information on the parameters of regionaltrafficking and organized donor-funded anti-traffickingworkshops for 60 police, gendarmerie, and customsSENEGAL253

SERBIAofficials from the participating countries. In December2008, project participants released a document listing68 best practices to combat trafficking in the region.The government did not take steps to reduce demandfor commercial sex acts in Senegal. The government didnot take measures to ensure that its nationals who aredeployed abroad as part of peacekeeping missions do notengage in or facilitate trafficking.SERBIA (Tier 2)Serbia is a source, transit, and destination country formen, women, and girls trafficked internationally andwithin the country for the purposes of commercialsexual exploitation and forced labor. Foreign victims aretrafficked to Serbia from Eastern Europe and CentralAsia through Kosovo and Macedonia. Serbia continuedto serve as a transit country for victims trafficked fromBosnia, Croatia, and Slovenia and destined for Italy andother countries in Western Europe. Children, mostlyRoma, continued to be trafficked for the purpose ofsexual exploitation, forced marriage, or forced streetbegging. The majority of identified victims in 2008 wereSerbian women and girls trafficked for the purpose ofsexual exploitation; over half were children. There was anincrease in cases of trafficking for forced labor in 2008.The Government of Serbia does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant effortsto do so. The government increased funding forprotection of victims and appointed a new NationalAnti-Trafficking Coordinator in November 2008,though serious concerns remained about punishmentof traffickers and prosecution of complicit officials.Moreover, law enforcement data provided was incomplete.The government also has not yet developed formalprocedures to adequately identify and refer potentialtrafficking victims, seriously hampering its ability toprovide assistance and protection to victims. Serbia maybe negatively assessed in the next Report if it does notaddress these deficiencies.Recommendations for Serbia: Provide comprehensivedata on efforts to vigorously prosecute, convict,and punish traffickers; aggressively prosecute andpunish officials who facilitate trafficking; implementa standardized protocol for victim identification andreferral that includes the Agency for Coordinationof Protection of Victims of Trafficking and NGOs, asappropriate; provide sustained direct funding for victimprotection and assistance; increase training for socialworkers and police to improve identification of traffickingvictims; develop programs to address the increasinglygrowing problem of trafficking for forced labor andchildren who are victims of trafficking; and improveprevention efforts.ProsecutionThe Government of Serbia continued to activelyinvestigate trafficking cases, but it did not provideevidence it adequately prosecuted, convicted andpunished trafficking offenders. Trafficking suspectsaccused of violent crimes often continued to be freedduring the pre-trial and appeal process, posing aserious risk to their victims. The criminal code forSerbia prohibits sex and labor trafficking through itsarticle 388, which prescribes penalties of two to 10years’ imprisonment; these are sufficiently stringentand commensurate with those prescribed for othergrave offenses, such as rape. In 2008, the governmentinvestigated and charged 94 persons with trafficking. Thegovernment did not provide comprehensive prosecutiondata, but reported that, in 2008, 18 trafficking offenderswere convicted and sentenced to prison; 17 others wereacquitted. The government did not provide informationon the length of these sentences or whether any weresuspended. It reported that it detained 29 traffickingsuspects pending trial or investigation during 2008.At times, traffickers were not held in detention duringpre-trial and appeals processes; by law, individualsconvicted for trafficking are only detained during theappeals process if their sentence was greater than fiveyears. Trials that last months or years and multipleappeals result in delays, sometimes by several years,in convicted traffickers serving their sentences. One ofSerbia’s most infamous traffickers, sentenced to four yearsand three months by the Supreme Court in 2006, remainsfree. NGOs and international organizations reportedanecdotally that sentences were increasing due to bettereducation of judges. In December 2008, an individual wasconvicted of trafficking in persons in the District Courtin Subotica, which sentenced him to 10 years in jail; thistrafficker remains in jail pending appeal. The governmentdid not demonstrate adequate punishment of officialscomplicit in trafficking. In a high profile case in NoviPazar in August 2008, the government prosecuted andconvicted 12 trafficking offenders, including the DeputyPublic Prosecutor and two police officers. The principaltrafficker in this case, a private citizen, received an eightyearsentence, though the two police officers receivedsuspended sentences and the prosecutor was given asuspended sentence of three years and released for timeserved of one year. The prosecutor had sexually exploitedsome of the victims. There were no further developmentsin the 2007 case reported by the media of a police officeinvestigated for facilitating the trafficking of a forced laborvictim. The government’s refusal to cooperate with theKosovo government hampers Serbia’s efforts to investigateand prosecute transnational trafficking.254

ProtectionThe Government of Serbia increased efforts to protectvictims but did not improve its identification proceduresin 2008. While the government, with the assistance ofinternational organizations, trained law enforcementofficials on victim identification and treatment, thegovernment continued to lack systematic victimidentification, referral, and treatment procedures andstandards; trafficking cases were addressed on an adhoc basis. The government provided three NGOs with$36,571 for victim assistance in July 2008 through theone-time sale of a special stamp. The government’sAgency of Coordination for Protection of Victims ofTrafficking remained understaffed, but it received $18,501in direct government funding, an increase compared to2007, and also received $29,143 from the public stampsubsidy for its victim assistance funding. In 2008, thegovernment and NGOs identified 55 trafficking victimsand accommodated 20 in two NGO shelters. Identifiedvictims generally are not detained, jailed, or otherwisepenalized for unlawful acts committed as a direct resultof their being trafficked; however, government officialsand organizations that deal with trafficking believethat due to the lack of systematic victim identificationprocedures, some victims were not identified and mayhave been penalized for acts committed as a result ofbeing trafficked. In February 2008, border police arrestedtwo trafficked girls from Uzbekistan for immigrationviolations. Serbia’s Ombudsman learned of the case andfacilitated the girls’ release from detention two weekslater. The girls declined temporary residence permitsand departed Serbia at their own expense. Reportedly,their traffickers fled across the border before police wereable to arrest them. According to organizations dealingwith trafficking, many victims were not provided withadequate protection in court mandated by the 2006Witness Protection Law due to the lack of court facilitiesthat would allow victims to await court proceedings ortestify in areas separated from the defendants. An NGOreported that in early 2009, one victim and her child wererepeatedly threatened by the trafficker during the trial; thevictim subsequently changed her testimony; she was thencharged by the government with perjury and defamation.During the reporting period, six NGO-municipal multidisciplinaryteams established last year to improve victimprotection continued to operate.PreventionThe Government of Serbia demonstrated some effortsto prevent trafficking in 2008. The new governmentappointed a new anti-trafficking national coordinator inNovember 2008, after the previous government left theposition unfilled for many months. The government alsocreated a ministerial-level Anti-Trafficking Council thesame month. The Council and the working level Anti-Trafficking Team and Working Groups, which includedNGO and international organization representatives,collaborated on a 2009-2011 national anti-traffickingaction plan which the government adopted in April 2009.The Interior Minister and Justice Minister held a pressconference on International Women’s Day specificallyto draw attention to human trafficking. The governmentfunded and implemented an anti-trafficking campaignthat included posters displayed at airports and bordercrossings around the country, flyers distributed at schoolsand police stations, and advertisements published in thehelp-wanted sections of magazines. The materials weredesigned to warn potential victims and to ask the publicto report trafficking-related activity to a police hotline.An NGO campaign targeted at potential clients of the sextrade was not funded by the government.SIERRA LEONE (Tier 2)Sierra Leone is a source, transit, and destination countryfor children and women trafficked for the purposes offorced labor and commercial sexual exploitation. Themajority of victims are children trafficked internallywithin the country, largely from rural provinces, andsometimes from refugee communities, to urban andmining centers. Within the country, women and childrenare trafficked for: domestic servitude; commercial sexualexploitation; forced labor in agriculture, diamondmining, and the fishing industry; forced petty trading;forced street crime; and forced begging. Transnationally,Sierra Leonean women and children are trafficked toother West African countries, notably Guinea, Coted’Ivoire, Liberia, Nigeria, Guinea-Bissau, and The Gambiafor the same purposes listed above and to North Africa,the Middle East, and Europe for domestic servitude andsexual exploitation. Sierra Leone is a destination countryfor children trafficked from Nigeria, and possibly fromLiberia and Guinea, for forced begging, forced labor andfor sexual exploitation.The Government of Sierra Leone does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to doso, despite limited resources. Sierra Leone demonstratedslightly increased law enforcement efforts over the lastyear by convicting a second trafficker under its 2005anti-trafficking law. Sierra Leone also reported referringmore trafficking victims to IOM for care than the priorreporting period. Overall anti-trafficking efforts remainedweak, however, as government authorities continued tolack a clear understanding of trafficking and relied largelyon the NGO and international community to tackle it.SIERRA LEONE255

SINGAPORERecommendations for Sierra Leone: Strengthen effortsto prosecute and convict trafficking offenders; train lawenforcement officers and social workers to implementformal procedures to identify trafficking victims amongvulnerable populations, such as females in prostitution,unaccompanied foreign children, and illegal migrants;provide comprehensive services to identified victims;improve coordination between the central and provincialgovernments for the collection of data on traffickersarrested and victims rescued; and increase governmentparticipation at meetings of the national trafficking taskforce.ProsecutionThe Government of Sierra Leone made slightly increasedlaw enforcement efforts to combat trafficking in thelast year. Sierra Leone prohibits all forms of traffickingthrough its 2005 Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act,which prescribes a maximum penalty of 10 years’imprisonment. This penalty is sufficiently stringent, butnot commensurate with penalties for rape, which carry amaximum sentence of life imprisonment. Comprehensivelaw enforcement statistics were not available due to poordata collection and communication among law officialsin the interior of the country and central governmentauthorities. According to data collected by the FamilySupport Units (FSU) of the Sierra Leone Police (SLP)tasked with addressing trafficking, between Januaryand December 2008, the government investigated 38trafficking cases. More than half of these cases involvedfemale victims below the age of 16. During the year, atotal of 12 individuals were charged with trafficking. InDecember 2008, the government secured the convictionof a man for trafficking a child for forced labor; hewas given a sentence of four years’ imprisonment. InFebruary 2009, the Special Court of Sierra Leone, whichwas operated jointly by the UN and the Sierra Leoneangovernment, convicted two former members of theRevoutionary United Front for conscripting child soldiersduring the country’s 11-year civil war. Border officialscontinue to lack a full understanding of the distinctionbetween smuggling and trafficking.ProtectionThe Sierra Leonean government demonstrated someefforts to protect trafficking victims during the last year.The government does not provide direct assistance tovictims, but instead refers them to the country’s onlytrafficking victim shelter, which is located in Freetownand operated by IOM. The FSU in 2008 identified 38trafficking victims, whom it referred to the Ministry ofSocial Welfare (MOSW). The MOSW referred the majorityof these victims to IOM’s shelter for care, while otherswere placed in the custody of family members. In 2008,government officials referred 84 victims to IOM for care.Some victims outside Freetown were not referred forcare, however, due to lack of transport to the capital orthe difficulty of travel during the rainy season. While theSierra Leonean government has developed a protocolfor law enforcement and social services authorities’identification of trafficking victims, only a small numberof officials have been trained to follow it. Authoritiesdo not follow procedures to identify trafficking victimsamong most populations vulnerable to trafficking, suchas females in prostitution, unaccompanied minors, andundocumented immigrants. When identified, however,victims are encouraged to participate in the prosecutionof their traffickers. Due to lengthy delays in courtproceedings, many victims are not available to testifyin court, often resulting in the dropping of traffickingcharges against suspected traffickers. Sierra Leonedoes not provide legal alternatives to the removal offoreign victims to countries where they face hardship orretribution. There were no known cases during the year oftrafficking victims penalized for unlawful acts as a directresult of being trafficked. However, a weak understandingamong officials of trafficking has likely led to sometrafficking victims being penalized as illegal immigrantsor females in prostitution.PreventionThe Government of Sierra Leone made inadequate effortsto raise awareness about trafficking during the reportingperiod. Every two months during the year, the MOSWconvened meetings of the Task Force, a joint government,NGO, and international organization entity to coordinatenational anti-trafficking efforts. These meetings, however,were not well attended by government ministries,hampering the government’s coordination with donors.While Sierra Leone’s 2007 national action plan wasimplemented with donor funding throughout 2007 andearly 2008, implementation halted in late 2008 due tolack of support and resources within the government.The government took no measures to reduce demandfor commercial sexual exploitation. Sierra Leone has notratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.SINGAPORE (Tier 2)Singapore is a destination country for women andgirls trafficked for the purpose of commercial sexualexploitation. Some women from Thailand and thePhilippines who travel to Singapore voluntarily forprostitution or work are subsequently deceived orcoerced into sexual servitude. Some foreign domesticworkers are subject to conditions that may be indicativeof labor trafficking, including physical or sexualabuse, confiscation of travel documents, confinement,inadequate food, rest, or accommodation, deceptions256

about wages or conditions of work, and improperwithholding of pay. Some Singaporean men travel tocountries in the region for child sex tourism.The Government of Singapore does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts todo so. Singapore secured convictions of two defendantsfor sex trafficking-related crimes, including the firstconviction under a recently amended law criminalizingthe commercial sexual exploitation of children between16 and 18 years of age. Singapore strengthened theConditions of Work Permits for foreign domestic workersand collected unpaid wages on behalf of such workersin 276 cases. The government did not take adequatemeasures to protect victims of trafficking, particularlyforeign domestic workers subjected to forced laborconditions. While Singapore has made progress incombating trafficking to date, it can and should do moreto investigate and prevent trafficking and to identify andassist trafficking victims.Recommendations for Singapore: Prosecute themaximum possible number of cases involvingthe trafficking of children under the age of 18 forcommercial sexual exploitation; prosecute employersand employment agencies who unlawfully confiscateworkers’ passports as a means of intimidating workers orholding them in a state of involuntary servitude, or useother means to extract forced labor; expand investigationsand prosecutions in adult sex trafficking cases; developrobust procedures to identify potential traffickers andtrafficking victims by immigration officers at ports ofentry and other law enforcement personnel; devoteadditional resources to systematically identifying andquantifying sex and labor trafficking within and acrossnational borders, as well as indicators (such as certainunlawful labor practices) that are commonly associatedwith trafficking, and publish findings and follow-up;use the findings to improve the anti-trafficking trainingof police, immigration, and Ministry of Manpowerofficers, as well as judicial personnel; carry out targetedanti-trafficking law enforcement operations; conductfocused public information campaigns, and makeappropriate adjustments to administrative rules orprocedures relating to the prevention of trafficking orthe protection of trafficking victims; study ways to makeaffordable legal aid to trafficking victims to enablethem to obtain redress by pursuing civil suits againsttheir traffickers; reduce the demand for commercial sexacts in Singapore by vigorously enforcing existing lawsagainst importing women for purposes of prostitution,trafficking in women and girls, importing women orgirls by false pretenses, living or trading on prostitution,and keeping brothels; increase cooperative exchangeof information about potential trafficking issues withNGOs and foreign diplomatic missions in Singapore;conduct public awareness campaigns to inform citizensand residents of the recent amendments to the PenalCode and the penalties for involvement in traffickingfor sexual exploitation or forced labor; and cooperatewith foreign governments to institutionalize proceduresfor reporting, investigating, and prosecuting child sextourism committed overseas by Singaporean citizens andpermanent residents.ProsecutionThe Government of Singapore demonstrated some lawenforcement efforts to combat trafficking in personsduring the reporting year. Singaporean law criminalizesall forms of trafficking, through its Penal Code, Women’sCharter, Children and Young Persons Act, Employmentof Foreign Manpower Act, Employment Agencies Act,Employment Agency Rules, and the Conditions of WorkPermits for foreign domestic workers. Penalties prescribedfor sex trafficking, including imprisonment, fines, andcaning, are sufficiently stringent and commensuratewith those prescribed for other grave crimes, as arepenalties prescribed for labor trafficking. The SingaporePolice Force investigated 54 reports of sex traffickingduring the reporting period; two cases resulted inprosecutions, while the others reportedly were closeddue to lack of substantiating evidence. The governmentprosecuted and secured the convictions of two traffickingoffenders in 2008, both for sex trafficking offenses. Onetrafficker who brought a Filipina woman into Singaporefor the purpose of prostitution was fined $8,000 withan alternative sentence of 12 weeks’ imprisonmentif she failed to pay the fine. Another trafficker whobrought an underage Chinese girl to Singapore forcommercial sexual exploitation was sentenced to oneyear in prison. There were no criminal prosecutions oflabor agency representatives for trafficking crimes in2008; the government prosecuted some employers forphysical or sexual abuse of foreign domestic workers,for “illegal deployment” (unlawfully requiring a workerto work at premises other than those stated in the workpermit), for failing to pay wages due, or for failing toprovide acceptable accommodation or a safe workingenvironment. There were no reports of governmentofficials’ complicity in trafficking crimes during thereporting period.ProtectionThe government did not show appreciable progressin protecting trafficking victims, particularly foreigndomestic workers subjected to forced labor conditions.The government does not operate victim shelters, butinstead referred potential victims of trafficking to NGOshelters or foreign embassies over the reporting period.Although two foreign embassies in Singapore documentedover 150 women allegedly trafficked into Singaporefor the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation,the government only identified two trafficking victimsduring the reporting period. One identified victim,a Chinese girl, was referred by the government to anNGO-operated shelter during the prosecution of hertrafficker. The other victim returned voluntarily to thePhilippines before a report was filed with the police.In 2008, one NGO reported offering assistance to over850 foreign workers, some of whom claimed they hadSINGAPORE257

SLOVAK REPUBLICexperienced trafficking-related conditions, such asfraudulent recruitment, withholding of documents,confinement, threats of serious financial harm related torecruitment debts as part of a scheme to keep the workerperforming the relevant labor or service, and physicalabuse. In a survey of 206 migrant workers who residedat the shelter, 95 percent reported that their employeror employment agency in Singapore held their passport,a known contributing factor to trafficking if done as ameans to keep the worker performing a form of labor orservice. The Philippine Embassy in Singapore reportedcontacts from 136 potential sex trafficking victims whoseclaims Philippine authorities determined to be credible.Six other diplomatic missions in Singapore reported acombined total of 21 to 23 potential or confirmed sextrafficking victims. Law enforcement efforts aimed atcurbing prostitution may have resulted in victims of sextrafficking being penalized for acts committed as a directresult of being trafficked. In 2008, the police arrested5,047 foreign women for prostitution, who were generallyincarcerated and then deported. The number of traffickingvictims among this group is unknown; however,government measures to proactively identify potentialtrafficking victims among this vulnerable population,if any, appear to have been limited during the majorityof the reporting period. At least 53 of those reportedlyarrested and deported without being formally identifiedand provided with appropriate protective services werechildren, who should therefore have been classified ascrime victims under Singapore’s amended Penal Code.The government encourages identified victims to assist inthe investigation and prosecution of trafficking offenders,and makes available to all foreign victims of crimetemporary immigration relief that allows them to residein Singapore pending conclusion of their criminal case.Singapore does not otherwise provide trafficking victimswith a legal alternative to removal to countries where theymay face hardship or retribution.PreventionThe Singaporean government demonstrated someincreased efforts to prevent trafficking in persons duringthe year. The government expanded its informationcampaign that aims to raise awareness among foreignworkers of their rights and resources available, in aneffort to prevent incidents of trafficking. It continued toprint information on employees’ rights and police hotlinenumbers for domestic workers on prepaid phone cards.The Ministry of Manpower has a biannual newsletter,published in multiple languages, that it mails directlyto all 180,000 foreign domestic workers. All foreigndomestic workers working in Singapore for the first timeattend a compulsory course on domestic safety and theiremployment rights and responsibilities. The governmentundertook some administrative actions for violations oflabor laws potentially related to trafficking, includingemployer fines and license suspensions for severalemployment agencies. It also strengthened the termsof work permits to expressly prohibit employers frommaking unauthorized deductions from domestic workers’salaries. Throughout the reporting period, at least 25employers were convicted of physically or sexuallyabusing their foreign domestic workers and sentencedto terms of imprisonment ranging from a few weeks toover two years, depending on the severity of the abuse.Some male employers convicted of sexual abuse were alsosentenced to caning. The government did not undertakespecific measures to reduce demand for commercial sexacts involving adults in the legalized commercial sexindustry in Singapore. Singapore has not ratified the 2000UN TIP Protocol.SLOVAK REPUBLIC (Tier 2)The Slovak Republic is a source, transit, and limiteddestination country for women and girls from Moldova,Ukraine, Bulgaria, the Baltics, the Balkans, and Chinatrafficked to the Czech Republic, Germany, Austria,Switzerland, Sweden, Italy, the Netherlands, the UnitedKingdom, Spain, Croatia, and Slovenia for the purpose ofcommercial sexual exploitation. Roma women and girlsare trafficked internally for sexual exploitation and Romachildren are trafficked to Austria, Italy, and Germany forthe purpose of forced begging.The Government of the Slovak Republic does not fullycomply with the minimum standards for the eliminationof trafficking; however, it is making significant effortsto do so. The government allocated $400,000 for allanti-trafficking efforts in 2008, a significant increasefrom $91,000 allocated in 2007; more than half of thisfunding went toward victim assistance. In December2008, the Ministry of Interior adopted a National ReferralMechanism for use by law enforcement across the countryin referring identified victims to necessary services.Despite these significant efforts, including sustained lawenforcement measures, it failed to identify or assist anyforeign victims of trafficking during the reporting period.Recommendations for the Slovak Republic: Ensurethat a majority of convicted traffickers serve sometime in prison; provide additional training on victimidentification and victim treatment for border police,prosecutors, judges, and Roma community social workersin Eastern Slovakia; continue to increase the number ofvictims assisted by government-funded NGO programs;ensure that foreign victims are identified and providedaccess to government-funded assistance; continuecollaboration with NGOs in identifying victims amongpersons in police detention centers and immigration258

facilities; and conduct a public awareness campaign toreduce the demand for commercial sex acts.ProsecutionThe Government of the Slovak Republic sustained itslaw enforcement efforts during the reporting period. TheSlovak Republic prohibits all forms of trafficking throughSections 179-181 of its criminal code, which prescribepenalties ranging from 4 to 25 years’ imprisonment. Thesepenalties are sufficiently stringent and are commensuratewith those prescribed for other grave crimes, such asrape. Police conducted 18 trafficking investigations in2008, including one labor trafficking investigation, anincrease from 14 investigations conducted in 2007. Thegovernment prosecuted three individuals in 2008, asignificant decrease from 16 individuals prosecuted in2007. Eleven trafficking offenders were convicted duringthe reporting period, an increase from seven in 2007;some traffickers convicted in 2008 were prosecuted andinvestigated during the previous reporting period. In2008, seven out of 11 convicted traffickers were givensuspended sentences and thus served no time in jail.There were no official cases of high-level governmentofficials involved in trafficking during the reportingperiod. The government funded victim identificationtraining for 160 police officers in 2008.ProtectionThe government demonstrated mixed efforts to assistand protect victims in 2008. The government provided$220,000 to five anti-trafficking NGOs to implement avictim assistance program; it again failed to identify andassist any foreign victims. Seventeen victims receivedgovernment-funded shelter and assistance in 2008,a significant increase from four victims in 2007. Anadditional 20 victims were assisted by nongovernmentfundedprograms. Police identified and referred 16victims to NGOs for assistance, compared to 15 in 2007.The government claimed to offer foreign victims, upontheir identification, an initial 40-day reflection periodto receive assistance and shelter and to consider whetherto assist law enforcement; however, no foreign victimswere granted the reflection period in 2008. During thereporting period, 17 victims participated in traffickinginvestigations and prosecutions. Foreign victims whocooperate with law enforcement are permitted to remainin Slovakia and work for the duration of the investigationor trial; however, the government did not identify anyforeign victims during the reporting period. The Ministryof Foreign Affairs funded the repatriation of threetrafficking victims in 2008. The government did notpenalize victims for unlawful acts committed as a directresult of being trafficked.PreventionSlovakia demonstrated some efforts to prevent traffickingduring the reporting period. The government partiallyfunded an IOM-run trafficking hotline that openedin June 2008 and provided information to personsvulnerable to trafficking and assisted trafficking victims;in 2008, hotline staff identified three victims. Thegovernment paid for posters, leaflets, and radio andtelevision public awareness commercials advertising theexistence of the hotline. During the reporting period, thegovernment provided trafficking awareness training forSlovak troops before they were deployed to internationalpeacekeeping missions.SLOVENIA (Tier 1)Slovenia is primarily a transit country for men, women,and children trafficked from Ukraine, Moldova, Slovakia,Romania, Bulgaria, the Dominican Republic, Thailand,and Iran through Slovenia to Western Europe for thepurposes of commercial sexual exploitation and forcedlabor. To a lesser extent, Slovenia is also a destinationcountry for men, women, and children trafficked fromUkraine, the Dominican Republic, and Romania forforced labor and commercial sexual exploitation anda source of women trafficked for the purpose of forcedprostitution within Slovenia.The Government of Slovenia fully complies with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.In November 2008, the government amended Slovenia’scriminal code to increase the maximum penalty fortrafficking to 15 years’ imprisonment. Authorities alsoincreased the number of trafficking prosecutions andconducted public awareness campaigns aimed at reducingthe demand for commercial sex acts. Although the totalnumber of victims identified and assisted increased,Slovenia decreased funding for victim assistance.Recommendations for Slovenia: Continue to vigorouslyinvestigate both sex and labor trafficking offensesand increase trafficking prosecutions and convictions;continue to provide trafficking awareness training forjudges; ensure that a majority of convicted traffickersserve some time in prison; and continue to refer asignificant number of identified victims for assistance.ProsecutionThe Government of Slovenia demonstrated increased lawenforcement efforts in 2008. The government prohibitsall forms of trafficking in persons through Article 113 ofits criminal code, which prescribes penalties ranging fromsix months to 15 years’ imprisonment. These penaltiesare sufficiently stringent and commensurate with thoseprescribed for other grave crimes, such as rape. Thegovernment conducted seven trafficking investigationsin 2008, compared to six in 2007. Authorities prosecutedSLOVENIA259

SOUTH AFRICAeight cases in 2008, an increase from three cases in2007. Six traffickers were convicted in 2008, comparedto five convictions in 2007. Four traffickers convicted in2008 were given sentences ranging from 9 to 48 months’imprisonment, and two traffickers served no time inprison; in 2007, four traffickers were given sentencesranging from 15 to 57 months’ imprisonment, andone convicted trafficker served no time in prison. TheMinistry of Justice collaborated with an NGO to holdseveral anti-trafficking training seminars for judges,prosecutors, and police during the reporting period.ProtectionThe Government of Slovenia maintained its efforts toprovide adequate victim assistance and protection duringthe reporting period. The government provided $95,000to two NGOs to provide both short-term and extendedvictim assistance, including shelter, rehabilitativecounseling, medical assistance, vocational training, andlegal assistance; this is a decrease from $105,000 providedin 2007. During the reporting period, governmentofficials referred 70 potential victims for assistance,compared to four victims in 2007. A total of 65 victimswere identified, of which 38 were provided with assistanceby government-funded NGOs, an increase from 26victims in 2007. After identification, victims were granteda 90-day reflection period. Victims were encouraged toparticipate in trafficking investigations and prosecutionsof trafficking offenders. Foreign victims who assistedlaw enforcement could apply for a temporary residencepermit and remain in Slovenia for the duration of the trialand may choose to stay longer if they are employed or inschool. Nine victims assisted law enforcement in 2008,compared to eight the previous year. Victims were notpunished for unlawful acts committed as a direct result ofbeing trafficked.PreventionThe government maintained its prevention efforts duringthe reporting period. In 2008, the Ministry of Interior,UNHCR, and local NGOs jointly administered a projectthat addressed trafficking and gender-based violence byproviding information and assistance to asylum seekersat greatest risk of being trafficked, particularly singlewomen and children separated from their parents. Thegovernment monitored immigration and emigrationpatterns for evidence of trafficking, and immigrationand law enforcement officials screened for potentialtrafficking victims along borders. The government printedbrochures and produced television commercials as part ofan awareness campaign aimed at reducing the demand forcommercial sex acts.SOUTH AFRICA (Tier 2)South Africa is a source, transit, and destination countryfor trafficked men, women, and children. Children arelargely trafficked within the country from poor rural areasto urban centers like Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban,and Bloemfontein – girls trafficked for the purposes ofcommercial sexual exploitation and domestic servitude;boys trafficked for forced street vending, food service,begging, crime, and agriculture; and both boys and girlstrafficked for “muti” (the removal of their organs fortraditional medicine). The tradition of “ukuthewala,”the forced marriage of girls as young as 12 to adult men,is still practiced in remote villages in the Eastern Cape.Local criminal rings and street gangs organize childprostitution in a number of South Africa’s cities, whichare also common destinations for child sex tourists. In thepast, victims had typically been runaways who fell preyto city pimps, but now crime syndicates recruit victimsfrom rural towns. South African women are trafficked toEurope and the Middle East for domestic servitude andsexual exploitation. Nigerian syndicates have reportedlybegun moving trafficked women from South Africa to theU.S. as well for African migrant clients there. Women andgirls from Thailand, Congo, India, the People’s Republicof China (PRC), Taiwan, Russia, Ukraine, Mozambique,and Zimbabwe are trafficked to South Africa forcommercial sexual exploitation, domestic servitude,and other forced work in the service sector. Some ofthese women are trafficked onward to Europe for sexualexploitation. A large number of Thai women are traffickedinto South Africa’s illegal brothels, while EasternEuropean organized crime units force women from Russiaand Ukraine into debt-bonded prostitution in exclusiveprivate men’s clubs. Traffickers control victims throughintimidation and threats, use of force, confiscation oftravel documents, demands to pay job “debts,” andforced use of drugs and alcohol. Organized traffickersfrom the PRC bring victims from Lesotho, Mozambique,and Swaziland to Johannesburg for exploitation locally,or to send them on to other cities. Men from PRC andTaiwan are trafficked to mobile sweatshop factories inChinese urban enclaves in South Africa which evade laborinspectors by moving in and out of neighboring Lesothoand Swaziland to avoid arrest. Young men and boysfrom Mozambique, Malawi, and Zimbabwe voluntarilymigrate illegally to South Africa for farm work, sometimeslaboring for months in South Africa with little or no payand under conditions of involuntary servitude beforeunscrupulous employers have them arrested and deportedas illegal immigrants.The Government of South Africa does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts todo so. The government opened prosecutions against260

16 suspected trafficking offenders during the year andis continuing to prepare for late 2009 passage andsubsequent implementation of its comprehensive antitraffickinglaw by developing inter-agency operatingprocedures and training officials on the law, victimidentification, and agency roles. Foreign victims in SouthAfrica, however, still face inadequate protection fromthe government and sometimes are treated as criminals.Labor trafficking does not receive as much governmentattention as does sex trafficking. Moreover, little orno information is made available about the status ofpending prosecutions, and the government suspendeddevelopment of a national anti-trafficking plan of actionto start the process anew.Recommendations for South Africa: Pass and enactthe Prevention and Combating of Trafficking in PersonsBill; implement the Children’s Amendment Act of2007; increase awareness among all levels of relevantgovernment officials as to their responsibilities underthe trafficking provisions of the Sexual Offenses andChildren’s Acts; support prevention strategies developedby NGOs to address demand for commercial sex acts andprotect children from commercial sexual exploitation inadvance of the 2010 World Cup; support the adoption ofmeasures to protect children from sexual exploitationin travel and tourism; and institute formal proceduresto regularly compile national statistics on the numberof trafficking cases prosecuted and victims assisted, as isdone for other crimes.ProsecutionThe government greatly increased its law enforcementefforts in 2008. Since May 2008, the governmentbegan prosecuting new trafficking cases under recentlyimplemented sex offense laws; the court cases areon-going and no trafficking offenders have yet beenconvicted. The South African Law Reform Commission(SALRC) released a first draft of comprehensive antitraffickinglegislation in mid-2008 for consultations andrevisions. The SALRC then submitted a report on the billalong with a second draft to the Minister of Justice andthe parliamentary committee in November 2008. Thatdraft is posted online for public commentary to close byJune 15, 2009, in preparation for a year-end Parliamentaryvote. A variety of other criminal statutes, such as thePrevention of Organized Crime Act (POCA) and theSexual Offenses Act (SOA), were used to prosecutetrafficking crimes. Law enforcement authorities could alsouse existing laws prohibiting involuntary servitude, childlabor, and forced labor to prosecute labor trafficking casesbut have done so in only one case. The aforementionedlaws prescribe sufficiently stringent penalties of up to20 years’ imprisonment, which are commensurate withpenalties prescribed for other grave crimes, such as rape.During the past year, the government opened at least fivenew trafficking prosecutions, including two with chargesunder the newly expanded SOA, and began arrestingsuspects as a result of a separate recently-completedinvestigation in Durban. In May 2008, the PretoriaMagistrate’s Court opened the trial of a Mozambicanwoman charged under the SOA and labor laws withchild trafficking and forced labor for exploiting threeMozambican girls in prostitution and domestic servitudein early 2008. The trial was interrupted and postponedtwice in 2008 for illness and equipment failure, thenresumed in late February 2009 when the final prosecutionwitnesses testified. No result had been announced as ofthe drafting of this report. Also in May 2008, a femaleclub owner and her adult daughter were arrested forforcing eight South African women into prostitution; thegovernment did not provide any additional informationon this case. In June 2008, the government beganprosecuting a Sierra Leone national for selling girls aged 8to 12 into prostitution. In December 2008, a prosecutionbegan of five Nigerian men charged under the SOA fortrafficking Nigerian women through South Africa. Inlate January 2009, six Nigerians and one Tanzanianwere arrested, and 17 South African victims rescued, inNorth West province. In late March 2009, several topbusinessmen in Durban were arrested for involvementin a child prostitution syndicate and charged under theamended SOA, child protection laws, and pornographylaws; their prosecutions are pending. Police continuedinvestigating other suspects in this case. Prosecutionsbegun in 2006 and 2007 were still before the courts – noverdict has been reached in the trial of a South Africanman charged in 2006 with the forced prostitution of 16Thai victims, racketeering and money laundering; the trialof two Indian and Thai traffickers arrested in July 2007at a brothel in Durban also continued. In April 2008, aSouth African citizen and his Thai wife pled guilty tocharges of keeping a brothel and prostitution, and bothwere deported to Thailand. Twenty-seven Chinese femaletrafficking victims who were arrested in a brothel raidalong with their traffickers in March 2008 were deportedto China for immigration and employment violations, butno information about the traffickers has been releasedby the government. In conjunction with the NationalProsecuting Authority (NPA), IOM used anti-traffickingfunds from multiple donors to train police, immigrationand border officials to identify trafficking victims amongprostituted women, laborers, travelers, and victims ofabuse. Police began to alert some embassies and IOM inadvance of raiding brothels suspected of holding foreignvictims.ProtectionSouth African government efforts to ensure traffickingvictims’ access to protective services increased during thereporting period. The Department of Social Developmentdirectly ran some shelters, notably for children, whilealso overseeing and helping to fund private sheltersfor victims of trafficking. Draft legislation and recentlyenacted laws contained significant provisions forthe protection of victims which had previously beenunavailable, and some agencies began to train theirofficials and implement the provisions. The amended SOAstipulates that victims of sex trafficking not be chargedwith crimes which are the direct result of having beentrafficked; in the two trafficking cases prosecuted underSOUTH AFRICA261

SPAINthe SOA, trafficked women forced into prostitution wereidentified by police as victims during a raid to arrest theirtraffickers, and were referred for assistance rather thanarrested. Following extensive awareness and sensitivitytraining by the UNODC, IOM, and others, police beganto implement victim protection provisions containedin the SOA and in the Children’s Act, which is still notenacted. Both identified and suspected trafficking victimsreceived services and shelter at overextended facilities forvictims of domestic abuse, gender-based violence, rape,and sexual assault run by NGOs. The Department ofSocial Development (DSD), South African Police Service(SAPS), and these private shelters collaborated to carefor identified trafficking victims. DSD is the only agencyauthorized to refer victims to registered private shelters,and to monitor their care, prepare them for court, andaccompany them through trial and/or repatriation stages.DSD and SAPS formally notified each other of casesto enable rapid care, as well as effective gathering ofevidence and testimony.Victim-witnesses in the aforementioned child-traffickingtrial testified via video-link from outside the courtroom.Three Thai women are currently receiving long-termassistance, which is offered to foreign victims who agreeto remain in South Africa in witness protection programswhile awaiting the trial of their traffickers. Sex traffickingvictims continued to be classified in law enforcementrecords as victims of rape, domestic abuse, and genderbasedviolence; as a result, there are no official statisticsconcerning the number of victims assisted duringthe reporting period. South Africa did not provide alltrafficking victims with legal alternatives to deportationto countries where they may face hardship or retribution.In March 2009, the press reported that police deportedthe aforementioned 27 Chinese women detained in 2007along with their seven alleged traffickers. Awareness oftrafficking-related law, the ability to apply it to identifyvictims, and knowledge of appropriate procedures werelacking among many police and immigration officers,since only a relatively small number have yet receivedspecific counter-trafficking training.PreventionThe government demonstrated strong progress incombating human trafficking through prevention efforts.Extensive workshops by the NPA’s Sexual Offenses andCommunity Affairs unit (SOCA), IOM, NGOs, andacademic experts prepared over 3,000 government,community, NGO, and media personnel for the passageof the comprehensive anti-trafficking law. As part ofthe training program, IOM ran 30 awareness-raisingworkshops across all nine provinces which drew 573community participants; government officials presentedspeeches and led discussions during these events. Thegovernment worked with IOM to distribute more than85,000 counter-trafficking posters and brochures in sixlanguages, publicizing IOM’s toll-free helpline. High-levelofficials repeatedly spoke out against sex trafficking thatmight occur during the 2010 FIFA World Cup preparationsand activities. The Inter-sectoral Task Team addressedanti-trafficking and child protection measures as part ofthe plans for hosting the World Cup. The multinationalSouth African Immigration Liaison (SAIL) Team atJohannesburg’s airport observed passengers’ behaviorand travel histories for patterns indicative of trafficking.In addition, flight manifests were checked for knowntrafficking suspects against databases with informationabout persons of concern before boarding began. Thegovernment continued a project begun in 2003 bydrafting a Child Labor Plan of Action to combat andprevent child labor, including trafficking for child labor,which the government planned to implement in 2009.The government provided anti-trafficking training to allSouth African troops destined for peacekeeping missionsabroad prior to their deployment.SPAIN (Tier 1)Spain is a transit and destination country for men,women, and children trafficked for the purposes ofcommercial sexual exploitation and forced labor. Victimsare primarily trafficked from Romania, Russia, Ukraine,Brazil, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador,Paraguay, Venezuela, and Nigeria, though victimsare also trafficked from other areas of Latin America,Eastern Europe, and Africa. While most identifiedvictims are women between the ages of 18 and 25 whoare trafficked for sexual exploitation, minor females arealso trafficked to Spain for the same purpose, and menand women are trafficked for forced labor, most oftenin the agriculture and construction sectors. There hasbeen an increase in the number of minors trafficked intoSpain for forced begging. In smaller numbers, Chinesevictims are trafficked to Spain, primarily for forced labor.A coalition of 20 NGOs in Spain estimates that thereare at least 50,000 people in Spain who are victims ofhuman trafficking. Particularly vulnerable to traffickingare migrants from Romania and Bulgaria and possiblyunaccompanied migrant minors, though there is limiteddata available on the latter group.The Government of Spain fully complies with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.The government recognized weaknesses in the areaof victim protection and took formal steps during thereporting period to strengthen policies to ensure thatvictims are granted full protection under the law.262

Recommendations for Spain: Continue to vigorouslyinvestigate and prosecute human trafficking crimes andconvict and punish trafficking offenders; track dataon trafficking prosecutions, convictions and sentencesserved by trafficking offenders; continue to developformal procedures to guide government officials inproactively identifying victims among vulnerable groups,such as irregular migrants and women in prostitution;implement the new national referral mechanism;ensure victim protection and assistance programs areadequately funded; ensure male and child victims’ accessto appropriate assistance and protection; consider acampaign at the national level to raise awareness of laborand sex trafficking.ProsecutionThe government demonstrated solid efforts to prosecuteand punish trafficking offenders during the reportingperiod. Spain prohibits all forms of trafficking in personsthough Articles 313 and 318 of its criminal code andthe Organic Law 11/2003, which prescribe penalties forsex trafficking of from five to 15 years’ imprisonmentand penalties for labor trafficking of four to eight years’imprisonment. These penalties are sufficiently stringent,and the penalties prescribed for sex trafficking arecommensurate with the prescribed penalties for othergrave crimes. During the reporting period, Spanish policearrested 403 people for sex trafficking and 68 people forforced labor. In 2008, the government prosecuted 135trafficking cases – up from 102 in 2007 – and convicted107 trafficking offenders (14 of which were involved inforced labor) – down from 142 in 2007, with an averagesentence of slightly more than four years. Approximately95 percent of those convicted received sentences of oneyear or more imprisonment, and five percent of thoseconvicted received a fine and/or suspended sentence.There were no reports of trafficking related officialcomplicity in Spain in 2008.ProtectionThe government demonstrated efforts to address victimprotection deficiencies that came to light in 2008. Duringthe course of dismantling a large-scale sex traffickingnetwork from 2007 to 2008, authorities arrested over 500possible victims and deported many of them back to theircountry of origin; it is unclear if any of them receivedtrafficking victim protection assistance subsequent totheir arrests. In December 2008, in an effort to improvevictim protection measures, Spain established a formalmechanism for referring victims to service providers.While Spain still is in the process of developing formalprocedures for officials to use in identifying potentialvictims among vulnerable groups, such as people involvedin the decriminalized commercial sex trade or migrantworkers, the government funded NGOs to provide victimidentification training for officials throughout Spain andreportedly identified 771 sex trafficking and 133 forcedlabor victims during the reporting period. Five of theleading anti-trafficking NGOs in Spain assisted 1,002victims in 2008. While Spain did not release officialfigures on the amount it spent on victim protection,the government increased funding to a leading antitraffickingNGO during the reporting period. Victimswere entitled to medical and psychological assistance,including emergency care, through the national healthcare system as well as access to temporary shelter andlegal protection. It is not clear whether the governmentoffered specialized anti-trafficking services for labortrafficking or child victims. The government encouragedforeign victims to assist in trafficking investigations andprosecutions by providing trafficking victims with a 30-day reflection period. The government did not report onthe number of victims that received the reflection period.Trafficking victims may qualify for the establishment ofnew identities in some instances. Spanish law permitstrafficking victims to remain in Spain if they agreeto testify. According to government policy, after legalproceedings conclude, victims had the option to remainin Spain permanently.PreventionSpain sustained efforts to prevent trafficking throughawareness raising about human trafficking over thepast year. The government approved a national antitraffickingaction plan in December 2008 that pledgedapproximately $57 million over the next four yearstoward combating trafficking through law enforcement,victim assistance, and trafficking prevention programs.The national government did not implement a broadanti-trafficking public awareness campaign during thereporting period, but the cities of Madrid, Barcelona andSeville funded local public awareness campaigns. TheMadrid city government produced awareness posterstargeted at potential clients of the sex trade with theslogan “Because you pay, prostitution exists…Do notcontribute to the perpetuation of 21 st century slavery.” Agovernment-funded NGO provided a 24-hour numberfor trafficking victims, but the number was not toll freethroughout the country. Under the motto “There Are NoExcuses,” the Spanish government in 2008 partnered withUNICEF on a website to warn Spanish travelers againstcommitting child sex tourism offenses abroad. Accordingto the Spanish military, Spanish troops receive traffickingawareness training before their deployment abroad forinternational peacekeeping missions.SPAIN263

SRI LANKASRI LANKA (Tier 2 Watch List)Sri Lanka is primarily a source and, to a much lesserextent, a destination for men and women trafficked forthe purposes of forced labor and commercial sexualexploitation. Sri Lankan men and women migratewillingly to Kuwait, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Lebanon,the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Bahrain, and Singaporeto work as construction workers, domestic servants, orgarment factory workers. Some of these workers findthemselves in situations of involuntary servitude whenfaced with restrictions on movement, withholding ofpassports, threats, physical or sexual abuse, and debtbondage that is, in some instances, facilitated by largepre-departure fees imposed by labor recruitment agenciesand their unlicensed sub-agents. Children are traffickedwithin the country for commercial sexual exploitationand, very infrequently, for forced labor. The designatedForeign Terrorist Organization, Liberation Tigers of TamilEelam (LTTE) continued to recruit, sometimes forcibly,children for use as soldiers in areas outside of the SriLankan government’s control. Government securityforces may be complicit in letting a breakaway LTTEfaction that has aligned itself with the government, tounlawfully recruit child soldiers, sometimes with force.A small number of women from Thailand, China, andRussia, and other countries of the former Soviet Unionmay be trafficked into Sri Lanka for commercial sexualexploitation.Sri Lanka does not fully comply with the minimumstandards for the elimination of trafficking; however,it is making significant efforts to do so. Despite theseoverall efforts, the government has not shown evidenceof progress in convicting and punishing traffickingoffenders; therefore, Sri Lanka is placed on Tier 2 WatchList. While the Sri Lankan government did not achieveany convictions of trafficking offenders, it arrested 29alleged traffickers and started prosecutions againstten people for trafficking-related offenses, an increasefrom the previous year when no one was arrested orprosecuted for trafficking-related crimes. It also drafteda national policy on migration that promises to preventthe trafficking of Sri Lankan migrants and it developeda national anti-trafficking task force that should becomeoperational in the coming year.Recommendations for Sri Lanka: Vigorously investigateand prosecute suspected trafficking offenses and convictand punish trafficking offenders, particularly thoseresponsible for recruiting victims with fraudulent offersof employment and excessive commission fees; followthrough with the creation of the national anti-traffickingtask force; develop and implement through training of lawenforcement personnel formal victim referral procedures;and ensure that victims of trafficking found withinSri Lanka are not detained or otherwise penalized forunlawful acts committed as a direct result of their beingtrafficked.ProsecutionAlthough the Government of Sri Lanka made stridesin arrests and prosecutions of alleged traffickers, it didnot demonstrate adequate law enforcement efforts inaddressing human trafficking cases over the reportingperiod. Sri Lanka prohibits all forms of traffickingthrough an April 2006 amendment to its penal code,which prescribes punishments of up to 20 years’imprisonment; these penalties are sufficiently stringentand commensurate with those prescribed for other graveoffenses, such as rape. While the government conductedover 400 raids of fraudulent foreign recruiting agenciesand took legal action against 80 of them, which resultedin their licenses being suspended and the initiationof two prosecutions – the majority had not yet beenprosecuted criminally for trafficking-related offenses.The government canceled the licenses of 32 agenciesand imposed fines on them. The police made 29 arrestsof suspected trafficking offenders under the 2006 antitraffickingstatute. In addition, the Attorney General’sDepartment has started prosecutions against 12 peoplefor trafficking-related offenses. There were no reportedtrafficking convictions during the reporting period.The Sri Lankan Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE),which is responsible for regulating foreign employmentagencies and protecting Sri Lankan workers going abroad,developed a ranking system that would publicly gradeall employment agencies based inter alia on the numberof complaints the SLBFE receives relating to each agency,the number of legal cases against each, and the timeeach takes to resolve disputes with workers. This rankingsystem will be available on a website, but has not yet beenfinalized. The Attorney General began drafting a circularthat would advise police to identify possible traffickingvictims among women they detain for prostitution; thistoo has not yet been finalized. In collaboration with IOM,the police added a trafficking training module to thestandard police curriculum used to train all new policerecruits, as well as adding the curricula of two in-servicepolice training institutes; so far, 520 police officers havereceived training on the new trafficking module.Following the November 2007 repatriation of 118 SriLankan peacekeepers from Haiti because of accusationsthat some of them had engaged in sexual misconduct,including possible exploitation of children, a Sri Lankanmilitary court found 23 officers and soldiers guilty ofsexual misconduct and abuse of children during the lastyear, two officers were forced out of the military andone solider was discharged, while two other soldiers264

subsequently died in military action within Sri Lanka.Punishment for the remaining eight officers and tensoldiers has not yet been reported.ProtectionThe government made some efforts to provide victimswith necessary protection directly and ensure theyreceived access to protective services provided by NGOs orinternational organizations. The government continued toprovide limited counseling and day care for child victimsof trafficking – through the operation of six resourcecenters run by the National Child Protection Authority(NCPA). In addition, the SLBFE runs an overnightshelter for international trafficking victims returningfrom overseas at Sri Lanka’s only international airport.The Commissioner General for Rehabilitation, withthe assistance of the NCPA, operated two rehabilitationcenters specifically for children involved in armedconflict.Although government personnel did not employ formalprocedures for proactively identifying victims andreferring them to service providers, some ad hoc referralswere made during the year. Police did not attempt toidentify trafficking victims among 16 foreign women whowere arrested on prostitution charges during the year; allwere placed in detention until they could pay for theirdeparture from Sri Lanka. The government provided nolegal alternatives for the removal of foreign victims tocountries where they may face hardship or retribution.Authorities encouraged victims to participate ininvestigations and prosecutions of trafficking offenders,though sex trafficking victims rarely came forward tocooperate with police and prosecutors out of fear thatdoing so would damage their reputations. The slowpace of the Sri Lankan judicial system provided a strongdisincentive to come forward. The government generallydid not penalize victims of trafficking for unlawful actscommitted as a direct result of their being trafficked,though some sex trafficking victims could have beenpenalized because the government failed to identify themamong persons arrested for prostitution offenses. Victimswho were employed abroad may seek assistance from theSLBFE. The SLBFE collected fees from registered workerswho went abroad, which were used to run shelters abroad,as well as domestically at the international airport.PreventionThe Sri Lankan government undertook modest effortson trafficking prevention during the last year. Thegovernment conducted several trafficking awarenessraisingactivities, including the Women and Children’sBureau of the Police’s sponsorship of a series of televisiondocudramas that highlighted violence and crime againstwomen and children, including the sex trafficking ofSri Lankan women and girls. The SLBFE launched anawareness campaign in October 2008 to inform thepublic of the dangers of using non-registered employmentagencies. The Ministry of Foreign Employment Promotionand Welfare developed a National Policy on Migrationand presented it to the parliament for consideration.Among other things, this policy seeks to better protectSri Lankan workers abroad. The government continuedplans started in 2007 to develop an inter-agency antitraffickingtask force, to be coordinated by the Secretaryof the Ministry of Child Development and Women’sEmpowerment, though the task force has not yet beenlaunched. The government showed some efforts to reducedemand for commercial sex acts during the year. SriLanka has not ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.SUDAN (TIER 3)Sudan is a source country for men, women, and childrentrafficked internally for the purposes of forced laborand sexual exploitation. Sudan is also a transit anddestination country for Ethiopian women traffickedabroad for domestic servitude. Sudanese women and girlsare trafficked within the country for domestic servitude.Local observers report the recruitment – sometimesby force – of Darfuri girls to work in private homes,including those occupied by soldiers from the SudaneseArmed Forces (SAF), as cooks or cleaners; some of thesegirls are subsequently pressured by male occupants toengage in commercial sexual acts. Sudanese women andgirls are trafficked to Middle Eastern countries such asQatar, for domestic servitude and to European countries,such as Poland, for sexual exploitation. Sudanese childrenare trafficked through Yemen to Saudi Arabia for forcedbegging. Sudanese gangs coerce other young Sudaneserefugees into prostitution in nightclubs in Egypt.Sudanese children are unlawfully conscripted, attimes through abduction, and exploited by armedgroups – including the Justice and Equality Movement(JEM), all Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) factions, thePopular Defense Forces, Janjaweed militia, and Chadianopposition forces – in Sudan’s ongoing conflict in Darfur;the Sudanese Armed Forces, associated militias, and theCentral Reserve Police also continue to unlawfully recruitchildren in this region. There were confirmed reports offorcible child recruitment in 2008 by the JEM in severalrefugee camps in eastern Chad, as well as villages inDarfur. Forcible recruitment of adults and particularlychildren by virtually all armed groups involved inSudan’s concluded north-south civil war was previouslycommonplace; thousands of children still associated withthese forces await demobilization and reintegration intotheir communities of origin. Although the Sudan People’sLiberation Army (SPLA) high command committed topreventing recruitment and releasing the remainingchildren from its ranks, reports suggest some localcommanders continue recruiting children. In certainstates, the SPLA also persists in using children for militaryactivities, even after these children have been formallyidentified for demobilization and family reunification.A recently released report by a consortium of NGOs foundSUDAN265

SUDANthat government-supported militia, like the Janjaweedand the Popular Defense Forces, together with elementsof the SAF, have systematically abducted civilians for thepurposes of sexual slavery and forced labor as part ofthe Darfur conflict. This practice was far more common,however, at the beginning of the conflict in 2003 thanduring the reporting period, when the conflict in Darfurhad largely subsided. Some were released after days orweeks of captivity, while others escaped after a number ofmonths or even years. The vast majority of those abductedare from non-Arabic speaking ethnic groups like the Fur,Massalit, and Zaghawa. Abducted women and girls aresubjected to rape, forced marriage, and sexual slavery, aswell as forced domestic and agricultural labor. Abductedmen and boys are subjected to forced labor in agriculture,herding, portering goods, and domestic servitude.Thousands of Dinka women and children were abductedand subsequently enslaved by members of the Missiriyaand Rizeigat tribes during the north-south civil war.An unknown number of children from the Nuba tribewere similarly abducted and enslaved. A portion ofthose who were abducted and enslaved remained withtheir abductors in South Darfur and West Kordofan andexperienced varying types of treatment; others were soldor given to third parties, including in other regions of thecountry; and some ultimately escaped from their captors.While there have been no known, new abductions ofDinka by members of Baggara tribes in the last severalyears, inter-tribal abductions continue in southern Sudanbetween warring African tribes, especially in Jonglei andEastern Equatoria States; Murle raids on Nuer villages inJonglei State resulted in the abduction of an unknownnumber of children.The terrorist rebel organization, Lord’s Resistance Army(LRA), continues to harbor small numbers of enslavedSudanese and Ugandan children in southern Sudan foruse as cooks, porters, and combatants; some of thesechildren are also trafficked across borders into Ugandaor the Democratic Republic of the Congo. UN/OCHAreported 66 LRA-related abductions in southern Sudan’sWestern Equatoria Province in 2008 and early 2009.The Government of National Unity of Sudan (GNU) doesnot fully comply with the minimum standards for theelimination of trafficking and is not making significantefforts to do so. This report discusses the problem ofhuman trafficking as it impacts the country in its entiretyand analyzes the efforts of the national government,the Government of Southern Sudan (GOSS), and thestate governments to combat the problem. Sudan’sTier 3 ranking reflects the overall lack of significantanti-trafficking efforts demonstrated by all levels ofthe country’s governing structures, each of which bearresponsibility for addressing the crime. While the GNUand the GOSS took greater steps to demobilize childsoldiers, combating human trafficking through lawenforcement or significant prevention measures was nota priority for any Sudanese government entity in 2008.The national government published neither data norstatistics regarding its efforts to combat human traffickingduring the year; it did not respond to requests to provideinformation for this report.Recommendations for Sudan: Increase efforts toinvestigate suspected human trafficking cases, prosecutetrafficking offenses, and convict trafficking offenders;implement trafficking-related provisions of newlyenactedlegislation, including the Sudan Armed ForcesAct; establish an official process for law enforcementofficials to identify trafficking victims and refer them forassistance; demobilize all remaining child soldiers fromthe ranks of the armed forces, as well as those of alignedmilitias; take steps to identify and provide protectiveservices to all types of trafficking victims found withinthe country; and make a much stronger effort, through acomprehensive policy approach that involves all vestedparties, to identify, retrieve, and reintegrate abducteeswho remain in situations of enslavement.ProsecutionThe government’s anti-trafficking law enforcementefforts were negligible during the reporting period; itdid not investigate or prosecute any suspected traffickingcases. Sudan is a large country with porous borders anddestitute hinterlands; the national government hadlittle ability to establish authority or a law enforcementpresence in many regions. Sudan’s criminal code doesnot prohibit all forms of trafficking in persons, thoughits Articles 162, 163, and 164 criminalize abduction,luring, and forced labor, respectively. No trafficker hasever been prosecuted under these articles. In May 2008,the Council of Ministers received the Child Act 2008for review; the act must be approved by the council andratified by the parliament before it can be implemented.The Act prohibits the recruitment of children under theage of 18 into armed forces or groups and ensures thedemobilization, rehabilitation, and reintegration of childvictims of armed conflict. Several states subsequentlydrafted their own child acts based on the national act;in November 2008, Southern Kordofan State ratified itsChild Act. In December 2008, Sudan’s National Assemblyapproved the Sudan Armed Forces Act of 2007, whichestablishes criminal penalties for persons who recruitchildren under 18 years of age, as well as for abductionand enslavement; the act prescribes penalties of up tofive years’ imprisonment for child recruitment and upto 10 years’ imprisonment for enslavement. In August2008, the Southern Sudan Legislative Assembly passedthe Southern Sudan Child Act of 2008, which prohibitsthe recruitment and use of children for military orparamilitary activities and prescribes punishmentsof up to 10 years’ imprisonment for such crimes. ThePresident of the Government of Southern Sudan (GOSS)signed the act into law in October 2008. The SouthernSudan Penal Code Act, enacted in July 2008, prohibitsand prescribes punishments of up to seven years’imprisonment for unlawful compulsory labor, includingabduction or transfer of control for such purposes; theAct also criminalized the buying or selling of a minor forthe purpose of prostitution and prescribes a punishmentof up to 14 years’ imprisonment. In December 2008, the266

Minister of Justice issued a decree establishing officeswith specialized children’s attorneys in Southern Darfur,Gedaref, Southern Kordofan, Sennar, Blue Nile, WesternDarfur, and Kassala States to supervise investigations.The government neither documented anti-traffickinglaw enforcement efforts nor provided specialized antitraffickingtraining to law enforcement, prosecutorial,and judicial personnel during the year. At the request ofthe Sudanese Police, in January 2009, UNPOL trained122 women police officers who staff gender desks in childprotection. UNPOL also conducted a five-day trainingprogram on human rights, gender, and child protectionfor 25 police officers in Aweil.an interim program to monitor demobilized children’sparticipation in reintegration opportunity programs;in October 2008, the program provided training toNSDDRC’s child DDR workers on DDR standards andcommunicating effectively with children. In August 2008,the GOSS opened a child protection unit to ensure thatno children are part of the SPLA’s ranks. In December2008, the Sudan Armed Forces, the National Council forChild Welfare, and UNICEF signed a memorandum ofunderstanding to strengthen the protection of childrenin Sudan and prevention of recruitment into the armedforces.SUDANProtectionSudan’s Government of National Unity (GNU) madeonly minimal efforts to protect victims of traffickingduring the past year, and these efforts focused primarilyon the demobilization of child soldiers. The governmentcontinued to demonstrate extremely low levels ofcooperation with humanitarian workers in the Darfurregion on a broad spectrum of issues, including humantrafficking. The GNU and GOSS provide little to noprotection for victims of trafficking crimes; Sudan hadfew victim care facilities readily accessible to traffickingvictims and the government did not provide access tolegal, medical, or psychological services. The governmentdid not publicly acknowledge that children are traffickedinto prostitution or domestic servitude in Sudan ortake steps to identify and provide protective servicesto such victims. The Khartoum State Police’s child andfamily protection unit, which offers various servicessuch as legal aid and psychosocial support, assisted anunknown number of child victims of abuse and sexualviolence in 2008 and could have potentially providedthese services to trafficking victims. In 2008, similarunits were established with UNICEF’s support in WesternDarfur, Northern Darfur, Southern Kordofan, NorthernKordofan, and Gedaref States. The government did nothave a formal referral process to transfer victims toorganizations providing care or a system of proactivelyidentifying victims of trafficking among vulnerablepopulations.In January 2008, the government and its UN counterpartsestablished a forum to share information and coordinatean appropriate response to children affected by armedconflict; the group met three times during the year.In May 2008, the Northern Sudan DDR Commission(NSDDRC) and the Southern Sudan DDR Commission(SSDDRC), with support from UNICEF and the IntegratedUNDDR Unit, demobilized 88 children formerlyassociated with the SPLA in Kurmuk, Blue Nile State. InDecember 2008, the SSDDRC demobilized 46 childrenfrom the SPLA training academy in Korpout, UpperNile State; they were part of a group of 68 childrenregistered for demobilization in July 2007. Identificationand registration programs were ongoing for remainingchildren still serving under the SPLA in Unity andJongley States, as well is in South Kordofan. In July 2008,NSDDRC in Blue Nile State and UNICEF commencedDuring the reporting period, the government punishedtrafficking victims for crimes committed as a directresult of being trafficked. Following the May 2008 clashbetween JEM and government forces in Omdurman, asuburb of Khartoum, Sudanese authorities arrested 110children on charges of attempted violent overthrow ofthe state and held them with adults for several days.The government then established a Presidential HighCommittee to care for the children under the leadershipof the Humanitarian Aid Commissioner. The NationalCouncil for Child Welfare (NCCW) took custody of 100children, placed them in a National Security detentioncenter, and provided medical care and psychosocialsupport; international NGOs certified the quality ofthe center as good and in keeping with internationalstandards. However, 10 children were not sent to theseparate facility and remained in detention with adultsand an estimated 30 children were used as witnessesin trials of JEM combatants. The government pardonedand released 103 children for family reunification; tried,acquitted, and released four children; and sentenced onechild to death, pending appeal. The whereabouts of onechild is unknown.The Committee for the Eradication of Abduction ofWomen and Children (CEAWC), established in 1999 tofacilitate the safe return of abducted and enslaved womenand children to their families, was not operationalduring the reporting period. Its most recent retrievaland transport missions took place in March 2008 withGOSS funding; since that time, neither the GNU nor theGOSS provided CEAWC with the necessary funding forthe transport and reunification of previously identifiedabductees with their families. The government made noefforts to address issues of abduction and enslavement inDarfur during the reporting period.267

SURINAMEPreventionThe government made limited efforts during thereporting period aimed at the prevention of trafficking.In September 2008, the SSDDRC and the UN’s DDRunit began a weekly radio talk show to sensitize thepublic on demobilization and reintegration issues. InJune 2008, the government NCCW, in collaborationwith UNICEF, hosted its national celebration of the Dayof the African Child in Kadugli, South Kordofan State.Based on the theme “No use of children under 18 yearsin the military,” activities included speeches, radio andtelevision interviews, songs, children’s theater, traditionaldance, sporting events, and the distribution of printedmaterials such as posters, leaflets, and banners; theseevents reached an estimated 85,000 people in Kadugli.Similar celebrations took place in all other states incollaboration with state Councils for Child Welfare andstate Ministries of Social Welfare. During 2008, Sudanesenational security personnel prevented the publicationof newspaper articles on human trafficking. Thegovernment did not take any known measures during thereporting period to reduce the demand for forced labor orcommercial sex acts. Sudan has not ratified the 2000 UNTIP Protocol.SURINAME (Tier 2)Suriname is a destination and transit country for men,women, and children from the Dominican Republic,Brazil, Guyana, Colombia, Haiti, Indonesia, Vietnam,and China trafficked for the purposes of commercialsexual exploitation and forced labor. Suriname is also asource country for women and children trafficked withinthe country for sexual exploitation and forced labor, aswell as women trafficked transnationally for forced labor.Foreign trafficking victims are exploited in illegal urbanbrothels and the western district of Nickerie. Guyanesewomen and girls are forced into street prostitution andare trafficked into the sex trade near both legal andillegal gold mining camps in the Amazon jungle. At leastone criminal network traffics Brazilian women amonggold mining sites in both Suriname and French Guiana.Women from urban areas are recruited for domesticwork at these mining camps and subsequently coercedinto sexual servitude. Some Chinese men are subjectedto forced labor in the construction industry, while someChinese women are forced into prostitution in massageparlors and brothels. Chinese men and women areforced to labor in grocery stores. Some Haitian migrantstransiting Suriname are forced to work in agriculture.Traffickers fraudulently promised at least 23 Surinamesewomen that they would be given well-paying jobs inEurope after finishing cooking school in Trinidad andTobago. The women were intercepted in Curacao andreturned to Suriname. Although Chinese organized crimeunits traffic some people to and through Suriname, mosttraffickers in Suriname operate through smaller, localnetworks.The Government of Suriname does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Despitesignificant resource constraints, the government increasedanti-trafficking law enforcement actions, and modestlyimproved victim assistance and prevention efforts.Reports of officials’ complicity in trafficking, however,continue and the government has made no efforts toreduce demand for commercial sex acts.Recommendations for Suriname: Continueinvestigating, prosecuting, and adequately punishingtrafficking offenders; investigate and prosecute corruptpublic officials who allegedly facilitate trafficking;investigate reports of forced labor; consider measures tobetter protect both foreign and Surinamese traffickingvictims; and sponsor public campaigns to reduce thedemand for commercial sex acts.ProsecutionThe Surinamese government strongly increased itsanti-trafficking law enforcement efforts over the lastyear. Suriname prohibits all forms of human traffickingthrough a 2006 amendment to its Criminal Code,which prescribes sufficiently stringent penalties offive to 20 years’ imprisonment – penalties that arecommensurate with those prescribed for other gravecrimes. An interagency, public-private working group(IWG) coordinates government efforts to investigate andprosecute traffickers. The public prosecutor reported ninetrafficking arrests between March 2008 and February2009. Three offenders were convicted: A Korean boatcaptain was sentenced to six years’ imprisonment forthe forced labor of four Vietnamese, and two nightclubowners, a Chinese and Brazilian couple, were convictedof trafficking nine Brazilian women into prostitution.The husband was sentenced to 12 months’ and the wife tofour months’ imprisonment. A case with three defendantsaccused of trafficking a 16-year old Guyanese girl forsexual exploitation at a nightclub was before the courts inMarch 2009. Two additional cases are pending. The TIPPolice Unit regularly inspected places where traffickingvictims might be found, and conducted random brothelchecks to ensure the women were not mistreated, nominors were present, and that owners did not keep thewomen’s airline tickets and passports. The governmentrequested the extradition of four Surinamers fromCuracao, in connection with the probable trafficking of21 Surinamese men and two women en route to Europe268

through Trinidad and Tobago; three more Surinamerswere arrested in Suriname in connection with the case,and are in jail pending trial. Investigations continuein the case of 11 Indonesians rescued from forcedlabor at a motorbike assembly plant. The governmentinitiated investigations of some Surinamese officialswho reportedly facilitated trafficking into the country byaccepting money and favors from suspected traffickers,though no prosecutions were begun.ProtectionThe government continued to provide moderateprotection for victims of trafficking during the year. Thegovernment provided free legal services to traffickingvictims, and instituted a formal mechanism for referringvictims to a local foundation which, in collaborationwith the TIP Police Unit and the Ministry of Justice andPolice, coordinates the provision of shelter, medicalcare, and psychological services to identified foreignand Surinamese victims. Surinamese law does not grantforeign victims temporary or permanent residencystatus or legal alternatives to removal to countries wherethey may face hardship or retribution, though victimswho participated in law enforcement investigationsand prosecutions were allowed to stay during theseproceedings. There were reports that some foreignvictims were incarcerated and deported for immigrationviolations, though identified foreign victims are generallynot penalized for unlawful acts committed as a directresult of being trafficked. The same local foundation ischarged with arranging shelter and services for as long asvictims are needed for the investigation and court case,then works with embassy or consulate officials to arrangevictims’ repatriation. Foreign victims were required toremain in the country until they could issue a swornstatement and a judge determined that they could leaveSuriname. Victims who had been found working illegallyin Suriname could not seek temporary employmentwhile awaiting trial proceedings. The Ministry of Justiceand Police is reviewing draft legislation that would grantforeign victims legal resident status. The governmentencourages victims to assist in the investigation andprosecution of trafficking offenders. During the year,at least 28 victims cooperated with police. None choseto file a civil suit for restitution against their traffickers,although that option is available.PreventionThe government continued its solid prevention effortsduring the year. Senior officials continued to condemnand draw public attention to the problem of humantrafficking in Suriname. The government ran an educationcampaign for journalists, religious groups, youthorganizations, officials, labor unions, brothel owners,and NGOs, and conducted a specialized campaign in theMarowijne District. The IWG systematically monitoredgovernment anti-trafficking efforts. Immigration policemonitored visa applications and ports of entry forpatterns that might indicate trafficking. Police closeda brothel in Nickerie district for exploiting a minor inprostitution. The Ministry of Labor along with the YouthAffairs section of the Police Force and the Commissionfor Child Rights educated and informed the public onthe worst forms of child labor and child exploitation.The government made no discernable efforts to reducedemand for commercial sex acts.SWAZILAND (Tier 3)Swaziland is a source, destination, and transit countryfor women and children trafficked internally andtransnationally for the purposes of commercial sexualexploitation, domestic servitude, and forced laborin agriculture. Swazi girls, particularly orphans, aretrafficked internally for commercial sexual exploitationand domestic servitude in the cities of Mbabane andManzini, as well as to South Africa and Mozambique.Swazi boys are trafficked for forced labor in commercialagriculture and market vending. Some Swazi women areforced into prostitution in South Africa and Mozambiqueafter voluntarily migrating to these countries in searchof work. Chinese organized crime units acquire victimsin Swaziland and traffic them to hubs in Johannesburg,where they “distribute” victims locally or send them onto be exploited overseas. Traffickers force Mozambicanwomen into prostitution in Swaziland, or else transitSwaziland with their victims en route to South Africa.Mozambican boys migrate to Swaziland for work washingcars, herding livestock, and portering; some of these boyssubsequently become victims of trafficking.The government of Swaziland does not comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking andis not making significant efforts to do so. The governmentbelieves that trafficking probably does occur, but does notknow the extent of the problem. Its limited resources weredirected towards other issues because the governmentdoes not judge trafficking to be an “important” problem,a judgment which significantly limited the government’scurrent efforts to eliminate human trafficking, or to plananti-trafficking activities or initiatives for the future.Recommendations for Swaziland: Enact and implementcomprehensive anti-trafficking legislation; prosecutetrafficking offenses under existing laws; train lawenforcement officials to recognize human traffickingsituations; proactively identify victims; institute a formalsystem to refer victims for assistance; work with NGOsand international organizations as appropriate, to betterdetermine the nature and extent of Swaziland’s traffickingproblem; implement a comprehensive law-enforcementrecord-keeping system; and conduct visible campaignsto educate the public about the dangers and risks oftrafficking in Swaziland.ProsecutionThe government made no effort to investigate or prosecutetrafficking offenses during the year. While Swazilandhas no law specifically prohibiting trafficking, existingstatutes prohibiting acts such as kidnapping, forced andcompulsory labor, confiscation of passports, aiding andSWAZILAND269

SWEDENabetting “prohibited immigrants” to enter the country,brothel keeping, procurement for prostitution, sex orsolicitation of sex with an underage girl, and employingchildren under the age of 15 could be used to prosecutetrafficking offenses, but were not. Under traditionalSwazi law, many such cases are resolved within thechiefdom via customary, rather than civil, law and casesreviewed under customary law are not generally reportedto civil authorities, or the media. As plaintiffs in thesecases tend to be reluctant to bring additional civil orcriminal charges against the suspected offender, thegovernment has no information whether any of thesecases do or could involve trafficking. A draft bill nowin its fourth year of review – the Sexual Offenses andDomestic Violence Bil – would criminalize sex traffickingand mandate psychological services for victims. It hasnot yet been presented to parliament. In the past year,law enforcement officials made no effort to proactivelyidentify cases of children trafficked for labor.ERITREA TIER RANKING BY YEARPAPUA NEW GUINEA TIER RANKING BY YEARSWAZILAND TIER RANKING BY YEARProtectionThe Swaziland government made inadequate efforts toprotect victims of trafficking over the reporting period.There were no government programs which providedservices specifically to victims of trafficking, and thegovernment continued to depend on NGOs to provideshelter, referral, counseling, and other care for victims.A government-run center in Manzini provides medicaland social services to victims of abuse, which would bemade available to trafficking victims. Swazi law did notprotect victims from prosecution for crimes committed asa direct result of trafficking. Under the Immigration Act, aperson entering Swaziland for the purpose of prostitution,even as a victim of trafficking, is subject to deportation,although it is not automatic. The government did notprovide legal alternatives to the removal of foreign victimsto countries where they would be at risk of hardship orretribution.CONGO (ROC) TIER RANKING BY YEAR? TIER RANKING BY YEARPreventionThere were no government-run anti-trafficking campaignsduring the reporting period. In late 2008, the Ministryof Home Affairs’ Gender Unit again worked with NGOsto organize the 16 Days of Activism Against GenderViolence campaign, which addressed human traffickingand other abuses against women and children. Movementacross the borders with South Africa and Mozambique arenot well-controlled; undocumented crossings of illegalmigrants and trafficking victims are common. Althoughthe authorities lack the personnel to patrol Swaziland’sborders adequately, they claim that they made someefforts to monitor them for trafficking? TIER RANKINGduringBY YEARthe year.The government also made some effort to reduce demandfor commercial sex acts during the year. Swaziland hasnot ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.SWEDEN (Tier 1)Sweden is a destination, and, to a lesser extent, a transitcountry for women trafficked from Romania, Russia,Nigeria, Albania, Tanzania, Thailand, ? TIER RANKING and BY Estonia YEAR forthe purpose of commercial sexual exploitation. Some ofthese women are trafficked through Sweden to Norway,Denmark, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Womenand children from Romania are trafficked to Sweden forthe purpose of forced begging. One man from Ukrainewas trafficked to Sweden for the purpose of begging andpetty theft. In 2008, a Swedish national was identified asa victim of trafficking in another EU country, where heralleged trafficker attempted to force her into prostitution.? TIER RANKING BY YEARThe Swedish police estimate that 400 to 600 personsare trafficked to Sweden annually, primarily for forcedprostitution.The Government of Sweden fully complies with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.In January 2009, Sweden used its anti-trafficking law toprosecute and convict labor traffickers for the first time.The government allocated $26 million to implement theMinistry for Integration and Gender Equality’s two- year? TIER RANKING BY YEARcomprehensive anti-trafficking action plan in Swedenand in select source countries, which included measuresto prevent sex trafficking, improve victim assistanceand the victim repatriation system, provide training forlaw enforcement and judges, and improve screening forpotential victims during the visa application process.Recommendations for Sweden: Consider increased useof the 2002 anti-trafficking law to prosecute traffickingoffenders; improve efforts to collect trafficking specific? TIER RANKING BY YEARlaw enforcement data; develop and implement formalprocedures for the identification of trafficking victimsand increase efforts to identify victims; improve labortrafficking awareness and coordination among localand regional police; continue training judges on theapplication of the anti-trafficking law; and continueefforts to better identify, address and prevent childtrafficking to Sweden.ProsecutionThe government continued its law enforcement effortsto fight sex trafficking and improved efforts to addresslabor trafficking over the reporting period. Sweden’s2002 anti-trafficking law prohibits trafficking for bothsexual exploitation and forced labor and prescribespenalties of two to 10 years’ imprisonment, penalties thatare sufficiently stringent and commensurate with thoseprescribed for other grave crimes. Prosecutors continued,however, to rely on a prostitution procurement law with270

weaker penalties to prosecute and convict some sextraffickers. In 2008, police conducted 15 sex traffickingand eight labor trafficking investigations, compared to 15investigations reported in 2007. Authorities prosecutedfour labor trafficking offenders and nine sex traffickingoffenders, compared to 13 prosecutions in 2007. Fourindividuals were convicted for labor trafficking and eightindividuals were convicted for sex trafficking, comparedto two labor trafficking convictions and 11 sex traffickingconvictions in 2007. Sentences given to nine convictedtraffickers ranged from six to 78 months’ imprisonment.ProtectionSweden provided adequate victim assistance during thereporting period, although the number of victims assisteddecreased over the reporting period. Police received somevictim identification training and referred identifiedvictims to NGOs for assistance. The government fundedNGOs both in Sweden and abroad to provide victimrehabilitation, health care, vocational training, andlegal assistance. Identified foreign victims were granteda minimum 30-day temporary residency permit thatprovided them with access to health care and socialservices. Swedish authorities encouraged victims toparticipate in trafficking investigations and prosecutions;victims who declined to participate in investigations weresubject to deportation after the 30-day reflection period,although no victims were deported from Sweden in 2008.Over the reporting period, six victims received statefundedassistance compared to 11 victims in 2007. Fourvictims received temporary residency permits to remainin Sweden for the duration of the relevant criminal trial,a decrease from 10 victims given such temporary permitsin 2007. The Swedish government provided temporaryresidency to certain victims, but did not otherwise offerlegal alternatives to the removal of foreign victims tocountries where they face hardship or retribution. Thegovernment did not punish victims for unlawful actscommitted as a result of being trafficked.PreventionThe Government of Sweden demonstrated efforts to raiseawareness and prevent trafficking over the reportingperiod. The local government in Stockholm conductedan awareness campaign targeted at cab drivers andhotel and restaurant personnel who are likely to comein contact with victims of trafficking; the campaignconsisted of posters and television advertisements andprovided information on how the public can reportsuspected instances of trafficking. In July 2008, theMinistry for Integration and Gender Equality adopted acomprehensive anti-trafficking action plan, which in partrequires increased efforts to prevent commercial sexualexploitation.SWITZERLAND (Tier 1)Switzerland is primarily a destination and, to a lesserextent, a transit country for women and childrentrafficked for the purposes of commercial sexualexploitation and forced labor. One NGO reported thatroughly 50 percent of the trafficking victims counseledin Switzerland came from Eastern Europe; 27 percentwere from Latin America; 14 percent were from Asia; andthe remaining nine percent came from Africa. Primarycountries of origin during the reporting period wereRomania, Hungary, Poland, Bulgaria, Slovakia, theCzech Republic, Slovenia, Ukraine, Moldova, Brazil,the Dominican Republic, Thailand, Cambodia, Nigeria,and Cameroon. Swiss federal police assess that thetotal number of potential trafficking victims residingin Switzerland is between 1,500 and 3,000. There isreportedly forced labor in the domestic service sector.Trafficking of ethnic Roma minors, who reportedly arebrought from other European countries to various Swisscities to beg and commit petty theft, is a rising concern ofSwiss authorities.The Government of Switzerland fully complies with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.While only 16 percent of trafficking offenders convictedduring the reporting period served time in jail andauthorities initiated no labor trafficking prosecutions, thenumber of sex trafficking convictions increased.Recommendations for Switzerland: Increase thenumber of convicted traffickers serving time in prison;establish formal procedures to guide officials nationwidein proactively identifying victims amongvulnerable groups, such as women inprostitution, street children or undocumentedmigrant worker; establish formal procedures toguide officials nationwide in referring potentialvictims to service providers; provide adequatefunding for trafficking victim service providers;consider a nationwide awareness campaignthat addresses labor and sex trafficking andtargets potential victims, the general public,as well as potential clients of the sex trade andbeneficiaries of forced labor.ProsecutionThe Government of Switzerland’s anti-trafficking lawenforcement efforts yielded an increased numbers ofsex trafficking convictions during the reporting period,though very few convicted trafficking offenders served jailtime, and there were no labor trafficking prosecutions.Switzerland prohibits trafficking for both sexual andSWITZERLAND271

SYRIAlabor exploitation under the new Article 182 of the Swisspenal code, which prescribes penalties of up to 20 years’imprisonment and are commensurate with penaltiesprescribed for other grave crimes. To improve the processfor gathering statistics on trafficking prosecutions,Switzerland’s 26 cantons embarked on a dataharmonization process that has resulted in a change oftiming for the release of comprehensive law enforcementstatistics. As a result, the latest available law enforcementstatistics for this Report were the comprehensive datafrom 2007. Authorities reported 20 prosecutionsunder the trafficking statute in 2007, compared to 20prosecutions under the trafficking statute in 2006. Swisscourts handed down convictions of 22 people underarticle 182 and three for sex trafficking under a separateforced prostitution statute in 2007, compared with fiveunder the trafficking statute and 11 for sex traffickingunder the forced prostitution statute in 2006. Authoritiesreported no labor trafficking prosecutions or convictionsin 2007. Of those convicted and receiving sentences thatwere not subsequently suspended, the average sentencein 2007 was two years’ imprisonment the same averagesentence seen in 2006. The maximum jail sentence thatwas not suspended in 2007 was four years, compared toa maximum of 28 months’ imprisonment in 2006. Thegovernment reported that only 16 percent (four of the 25)convicted trafficking offenders in 2007 served time in jail.The government trained 25 Swiss prosecutors and judgesin November on sensitization to trafficking issues, suchas recognizing trafficking crimes and appropriate victimprotection.ProtectionThe government demonstrated sustained victimprotection efforts during the reporting period. The Swissfederal and cantonal governments have established somesystems for human trafficking identification. For example,the Swiss Foreign Office has procedures for screening visacandidates who seek to travel to Switzerland to work ascabaret dancers, a group considered to be particularlyvulnerable to trafficking. The Federal Police have atrafficking victim-screening checklist that is distributed toall federal and cantonal police officials and is mandatoryfor use in all cantonal immigration offices. Thirteenout of Switzerland’s 26 cantons have their own formalprocedures for victim identification and referral. NGOssuggested that centrally-determined standards for howindividual cantons are to provide assistance to victimswould be useful. Trafficking victims had access to free andimmediate medical, psychological, and legal assistance incoordination with government-and NGO-funded victimassistance centers or battered women’s shelters. Fundinglevels for the reporting period were not available, butsome NGOs indicated government funding for victimassistance was inadequate. Special protective measureswere available for juvenile trafficking victims. There wereno specialized facilities for male victims of trafficking,although authorities did not identify any male victims in2007. In January 2009, Switzerland amended its victimassistance law to include incentives for victim assistancecenters to tailor programs for trafficking victims. Thegovernment reported assisting 128 trafficking victims in2007. There were no reports that victims were penalizedfor unlawful acts committed as a direct result of theirbeing trafficked. Swiss authorities encouraged victims toparticipate in the prosecution of trafficking offenders andgranted foreign victims both temporary and long-termlegal alternatives to removal to countries where they facedhardship or retribution. The government started a pilotprogram in April 2008 to assist victims with repatriationto their home countries.PreventionThe government demonstrated some traffickingprevention efforts during the reporting period. Inconjunction with the European Soccer Cup, whichSwitzerland hosted jointly with Austria in June 2008, thegovernment provided $96,000 to NGOs to implementan anti-trafficking public awareness campaign. Thecampaign targeted potential clients of Switzerland’s sextrade through TV and Internet spots and posters butran only from March to September. The governmentprovided funding for a hotline for Russian-speakingtrafficking victims, though it did not provide fundingfor the main victim assistance hotline, which was runby an NGO on private donations. The Swiss Ministry ofForeign Affairs hosted a November 2008 conference onthe linkages among prostitution, migration, and humantrafficking. The Swiss government funded traffickingprevention and protection programs in various countriesand regions at an annual level of approximately $5.4million. The Swiss federal police added a form to itswebsite where suspected incidents of child sex tourismcould be reported. Switzerland’s penal code provides forextraterritorial application of Switzerland’s child sexualabuse laws, though there were no reported prosecutionsor convictions of Swiss child sex tourists under this law.The government provided specific anti-trafficking trainingmodules for all Swiss peacekeeping troops.SYRIA (Tier 3)Syria is principally a destination country for womenand children trafficked for the purposes of domesticservitude and commercial sexual exploitation. Womenfrom Iraq, Eastern Europe, former Soviet states,Somalia, and Morocco are recruited as cabaret dancersand subsequently forced into prostitution after theiremployers confiscate their passports and confine them to272

their work premises. A significant number of women andchildren in the large Iraqi refugee community in Syriaare forced into sexual exploitation by criminal gangsor, in some cases, their families. Some desperate Iraqifamilies reportedly abandon their girls at the border withthe expectation that traffickers on the Syrian side wouldarrange forged documents for the children and “work” ina nightclub or brothel. Iraqi families arrange for younggirls to work in clubs and to be “married,” often multipletimes, to men for the sole purpose of prostitution. SomeIraqi women and girls who turn to prostitution out ofeconomic desperation are trafficked back into Syriaafter they are arrested and deported. Syria is becominga destination for sex tourism by citizens of other MiddleEastern countries, due in part to the influx of Iraqi womenand girls exploited in prostitution. Syria is also a transitcountry for Iraqi women and girls trafficked to Kuwait,the UAE, and Lebanon for forced prostitution.Some women, mostly from South and Southeast Asia andEast Africa, who are recruited to work in Syria as domesticservants are subjected to conditions of involuntaryservitude by employers and some of the dozens ofrecruitment agencies – many of which are unlicensed– within Syria. Their work as domestic servants isnot covered by Syrian labor law. Contracts signed inthe employee’s country of origin are often changedupon arrival in Syria, contributing to the employees’vulnerability to forced labor. Some of these women areconfined to the residences in which they work, and havetheir passports confiscated by their employers as a wayof restraining their movement. Employers sometimesphysically abuse their foreign domestic workers. TheGovernments of Sri Lanka, Indonesia, East Timor, and thePhilippines ban their citizens from accepting employmentas domestic workers in Syria, absent enhanced measuresto regulate such employment, although this has notstopped the flow of workers into the country.The Government of Syria does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of traffickingand is not making significant efforts to do so. Syria againdid not report any law enforcement efforts to investigateand punish trafficking offenses over the past year.Protection of trafficking victims remained inadequateoverall, though the government opened a new shelterin cooperation with IOM in late 2008 and made plansto open a second shelter in 2009. The governmentmade no significant efforts to inform the Syrian publicabout the practice of human trafficking or to reduce thedemand for forced labor – particularly the forced laborof domestic servants – or commercial sex acts in Syria.The government has drafted and is reviewing an antitraffickinglaw, though it has not made the text public orindicated when the legislation might be enacted.Recommendations for Syria: Enact a law thatcriminalizes trafficking; investigate, prosecute, andpunish offenders; institute a formal procedure to identifytrafficking victims among vulnerable groups, such asgirls and women found in prostitution, or foreignersdetained for lack of immigration documentation, andrefer these identified victims to providers of appropriatecare; and undertake a campaign to raise public awarenessof trafficking.ProsecutionThe Government of Syria made no reported efforts toinvestigate or punish trafficking crimes during the pastyear, though the government reportedly closed severallabor recruitment agencies that may have been involvedin recruiting workers through fraudulent means for thepurpose of exploitation. Syria continued to lack antitraffickinglegislation, without which the police werestymied in identifying potential victims and investigatingsuspected trafficking offenses. During the year, thegovernment showed signs of nascent recognition ofSyria’s trafficking problem. Anti-trafficking legislationwas drafted and reviewed by the Cabinet and Parliamentduring the year, though it was not passed or enacted.Without an adequate trafficking law, authorities coulduse existing statutes prohibiting kidnapping, forcedprostitution, forced labor, and illegal entry into Syria, toprosecute some trafficking cases; however, there was noevidence that they did so.The 1961 anti-prostitution law criminalizes bringing aperson into the country for the purpose of prostitution,and prohibits prostituting a minor less than 16 yearsold, with a prescribed penalty of one to seven years’imprisonment. The General Penal Code imposes a threeyearprison term and nominal fine for exploitation ofprostitution by force, fraud, or coercion. These penaltiesare not commensurate with the penalties prescribed forrape. Decree 29 of 1970, which regulates immigration,stipulates that “any foreigner who tries to enter thecountry with false documents and anyone who aided thatperson is subject to imprisonment of three months to oneyear.” In practice, however, these laws are not targetedtoward, or enforced against, traffickers. A 2005 law onmoney laundering and terrorism financing authorizesprosecution of anyone who receives illicit funds from,inter alia, “trading in people,” although there is noinformation indicating that anyone has been prosecutedunder this provision.ProtectionDuring the year, the Syrian government made modestprogress in protecting trafficking victims. The governmentdonated building space for a new trafficking shelteropened in Damascus in late 2008, and made plans toopen a second shelter in Aleppo later this year. Theseshelters offer legal and medical services and psychologicalcounseling to victims of domestic violence and humantrafficking. Referral of trafficking victims to shelters orNGOs remained informal absent enactment of antitraffickinglegislation or development of a formal antitraffickingpolicy. In some cases, Iraqi refugee womenwho were identified as victims of trafficking were movedfrom detention facilities to shelters. The governmentcontinues to lack formal victim identification proceduresto identify potential trafficking victims. As a result,victims of trafficking may have been arrested and chargedSYRIA273

TAIWANwith prostitution or violating immigration laws. Therewere reports, however, that some women arrested forprostitution and subsequently identified as victims oftrafficking were referred to shelters; this is a positivedevelopment. Also, Syrian immigration authoritiesworked with IOM and foreign embassies to arrange forrepatriation of several women, most of whom had escapedfrom abusive situations as domestic workers. Syria didnot actively encourage victims to assist in investigationsor prosecutions of their traffickers and did not provideforeign victims with legal alternatives to their removal tocountries in which they may face hardship or retribution.PreventionDuring the past year, the government took minimalsteps to prevent trafficking. Syria did not conduct anycampaigns to educate the public about trafficking, or takeany measures to reduce the demand for commercial sexacts. Similarly, the government did not undertake anypublic awareness campaigns against child sex tourism.Together with IOM, the government provided trainingto Syrian border immigration officials on combatingfraudulent documents, which included a traffickingawarenesscomponent. Syria has not ratified the 2000 UNTIP Protocol.TAIWAN (Tier 2)Taiwan is primarily a destination for men, women, andchildren trafficked for the purposes of forced labor andcommercial sexual exploitation. To a far lesser extent, itis a source of women trafficked to Japan, Australia, theUK, and the United States for sexual exploitation andforced labor, as well as a transit area for People’s Republicof China (PRC) citizens seeking to enter the UnitedStates illegally, some of whom may become victims ofdebt bondage and forced prostitution. Most traffickingvictims are workers from rural areas of Vietnam,Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines, employedthrough recruitment agencies and brokers to performlow-skilled work in Taiwan’s construction, fishing, andmanufacturing industries, or to work as domestic workers.Many of these workers fall victim to labor trafficking byunscrupulous brokers and employers, who force workersto perform work outside the scope of their contractand often under exploitative conditions. Some womenand girls from the PRC and Southeast Asian countriesare trafficked to Taiwan through fraudulent marriages,deceptive employment offers, and illegal smugglingfor sexual exploitation and forced labor. Many migrantworkers are charged job placement and service fees up tothe equivalent of $14,000, some of which are unlawful,resulting in substantial debt that unscrupulous laborbrokers or employers may use as a coercive tool to subjectthe workers to involuntary servitude. Labor brokersoften help employers forcibly deport “problematic”employees, thus allowing the broker to fill the emptyquota with a new foreign worker who must pay placementand brokerage fees that may be used to subject them toinvoluntary servitude. Many foreign workers remainvulnerable to trafficking because legal protections,oversight by authorities, and enforcement efforts arecurrently inadequate. Taiwan authorities reported thattraffickers, including syndicates in Southeast Asia,continued to recruit women from the PRC, Vietnam,Indonesia, and other Southeast Asian countries intomarriages with Taiwan men, and then force them intoprostitution or exploitative labor upon their arrival.Some women knowingly enter into false marriages afterbeing promised jobs as caregivers or domestic workersin Taiwan, but are subsequently forced into Taiwan’ssex industry or into forced labor. NGOs continuedto report an increase in the number of boys rescuedfrom prostitution, mainly discovered during policeinvestigations of online social networking sites suspectedof fronting for prostitution rings.Taiwan authorities do not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, they are making significant efforts to do so.Taiwan authorities made noticeable progress duringthe reporting period by passing a new anti-traffickinglaw, bolstering law enforcement efforts, and approvinga budget plan of $14.8 million for victim protectionmeasures. Authorities provided training for lawenforcement, social workers, and judicial personnel toenhance investigative skills and increase understandingof human trafficking, victim protections and relatedlegal issues. Taiwan’s efforts on victim identification andprotection, however, remained inadequate over the lastyear. NGOs report that immigration, police, and local lawenforcement officials continue to view trafficking victimsas runaways or criminals, resulting in some victims beingpenalized rather than assisted.Recommendations for Taiwan: Extend labor protectionsto all categories of workers including domestic workersand caregivers to prevent labor trafficking; implement thenew comprehensive anti-trafficking law and effectivelycarry out its victim and witness protections so thatvictims are not penalized for acts committed as a directresult of being trafficked; ensure law enforcementpersonnel, prosecutors, and judges consistentlyimplement victim identification procedures and victimprotection procedures to prevent the prosecution oftrafficking victims for acts committed as a direct result ofbeing trafficked; encourage victims to voluntarily assistin the prosecution of traffickers; increase police efforts toinvestigate trafficking crimes and to identify trafficking274

victims; and improve cooperation with governments oflabor source countries on trafficking investigations.ProsecutionTaiwan authorities made notable progress in combatingtrafficking through law enforcement efforts during thelast year. In January 2009, Taiwan’s Legislative Yuanpassed a new anti-trafficking law, which along withportions of the Criminal Code, criminalizes traffickingfor both sexual exploitation and forced labor. The newlaw, which provides punishment of up to seven years’imprisonment for sex and labor trafficking, will come intoeffect when all corresponding statutes and regulationshave been amended to conform to its provisions.During the reporting period, prosecutors continued touse sections of Taiwan’s criminal code, labor law, andimmigration law to prosecute labor and sex traffickingoffenses. The Labor Standards Law, which prohibitsforced labor, does not apply to the unknown numberof Taiwan nationals and the 169,000 foreign workers– approximately half of Taiwan’s foreign work force –employed as caregivers or domestic workers on Taiwan,who are especially vulnerable to labor trafficking. Typicalpunishments imposed on offenders convicted of forcedlabor or labor trafficking-related provisions under theLabor Standards Law are fines or imprisonment of lessthan one year – punishments that were not sufficient. Thenew anti-trafficking law criminalizes labor traffickingand significantly increases penalties for such offenses.According to the Ministry of Justice (MOJ), six individualswere convicted in 2008 of trafficking-related provisionsunder the Employment Services Act. There were notrafficking-related convictions under the Labor StandardsLaw in 2008. Taiwan regulations allow employers toimplement a system of “forced savings,” a practice knownto facilitate trafficking whereby employers deduct upto 30 percent of a foreign worker’s monthly salary to beplaced in a bank account in the worker’s name, while theworker has no access to the account. Foreign workers areforced into such an arrangement upon arrival in Taiwan,and they are often sent home if they object. The money isnot returned if the worker ends work early due to abuseor exploitation, thereby deterring trafficked workers fromseeking assistance. Traffickers also lure women to Taiwanwith promises of marriage to Taiwanese men, preying onhopes of a higher standard of living. These arrangementsare sometimes fraudulent, resulting in foreign womentrafficked into forced labor or sexual exploitation inTaiwan. Taiwan authorities banned for-profit marriagebroker agencies in 2008, although there is a one-yeargrace period to allow existing agencies to close downoperations.The Ministry of Justice reports that authoritiescommenced prosecutions against 481 individuals forsuspected trafficking from April to December 2008,most of which were sex trafficking cases. From April2008 until January 2009, 234 individuals were convictedof trafficking-related offenses, including 80 for sexualexploitation and 35 for labor trafficking. In October2008, the Taoyuan District Court convicted 18 people foroffenses related to coercing Indonesian and Vietnamesewomen to engage in prostitution and withholding theirpassports and earnings. The court sentenced the principaldefendant to 20 years’ imprisonment and others toas many as 12 years’ imprisonment. Some traffickingvictims have been required to serve as witnesses in thetrials of their traffickers and, as a result, have spentmany months on Taiwan unable to work. Althoughamendments to the Immigration Act in August 2008allow some trafficking victims to apply for temporarywork permits, foreign victims have not been permittedto work while awaiting the outcome of labor disputesand trafficking investigations, and their mounting, oftenfraudulent, debts owed to home country and Taiwaneselabor brokers lead many to flee shelters to seek illegalsources of income. When the new anti-traffickinglegislation is enacted, victims will not be required to serveas witnesses in an open court trial and will not need to bedesignated as witnesses by prosecutors in order to obtaina temporary work permit. During the reporting period,there were reports that some local officials took bribes toturn a blind eye to trafficking, and allegations that someTaiwan politicians accompanied employers or brokers tolocal Bureau of Labor Affairs (BLA) mediation sessionswith workers who registered complaints. Some sourcesbelieve these were thinly-veiled attempts to influenceBLA officials and intimidate workers in order to achievea favorable outcome for the employer or broker. Noofficials were indicted or convicted of trafficking-relatedcorruption during the reporting period.ProtectionProtection efforts by Taiwan authorities improvedduring the reporting period. A significant number oftrafficking victims on Taiwan continue to go undetectedby law enforcement authorities. Despite provisionsin amendments to Taiwan’s Immigration Act enactedin August 2008, which allows trafficking victims toapply for six-month temporary residency and workpermits, no such immigration relief has been granted.Although Taiwan authorities have adopted formalvictim identification procedures, implementation wasnot consistent and the process of referring victims fromlaw enforcement custody to shelter facilities remainedunreliable. In February 2009, the Ministry of Justiceamended victim identification principles to simplify andstandardize trafficking indicators across agencies and toprovide law enforcement officials with a reference guideTAIWAN275

TAJIKISTANfor questioning victims. These guidelines encouragemultiple victim identification assessments by both fieldofficers and detention center officials. During the year,officials began to outsource victim placement servicesto NGOs, who are better equipped to provide socialsupport services victims need. Nevertheless, manytrafficking victims are treated as illegal immigrants orillegal laborers, held in detention facilities, prosecuted,fined, and ultimately deported. While incarcerated,most detainees have limited access to psychological orlegal counseling. NGOs reported that more victims werebeing identified by government authorities during theperiod, and the government ensured that these identifiedvictims were not penalized for unlawful acts committedas a direct result of their being trafficked, though othervictims not so identified by government authorities werelikely arrested and penalized for immigration violations.Officials claimed that language barriers hamper theirability to sufficiently identify victims and investigatetrafficking cases. In 2008, the Ministry of Interior (MOI)began compiling a centralized interpreter databaseaccessible by all law enforcement officials. Victims whocooperated with prosecutors in cases where charges wereactually filed against the trafficker or other defendantswere, in most cases, excused from punishment. Taiwanhas no law to protect foreign trafficking victims frombeing removed to countries where they face hardship orretribution.The treatment afforded to victims varies considerablyfrom place to place. The Council for Labor Affairs(CLA) provides subsidies to 11 NGO-operated sheltersfor trafficking victims. Most of those sheltered in thesefacilities were referred by churches, NGOs, or otherinformal channels. In August 2008 and March 2009, theNational Immigration Agency (NIA) contracted NGOsto operate two new trafficking shelters for one year, onein Taoyuan and one in Hualien. The Taoyuan shelter,which is co-located with one of NIA’s long-term detentionfacilities, housed 12 victims in 2008, most of whom werelabor trafficking victims. There are some concerns that theshelter, which is a refurbished detention facility, wouldplace victims under constant supervision by NIA officials.The Crime Victim Protection Act was amended in January2009 to expand protections to include foreign victimsof trafficking. According to the MOI, local governmentagencies placed 65 trafficking victims with governmentsubsidizedNGO shelters during 2008. In December 2008,the Executive Yuan approved a $14.8 million budget foranti-trafficking efforts through 2010.PreventionTaiwan authorities report that their efforts to combattrafficking abroad are hampered by a lack of formaldiplomatic relations with source country governmentsand an inability to join relevant internationalorganizations. Taiwan demonstrated continuedcommitment to trafficking prevention efforts, spendingover $900,000 in training and public awarenesscampaigns in 2008. Authorities launched a multimediacampaign to increase public awareness of Taiwan’s humantrafficking problem, and held multiple training seminarsand workshops for law enforcement, prosecutors, laborofficials, judges, social work and medical personnel,and NGOs. The National Immigration Agency compiledand distributed an operations manual on humantrafficking cases to law enforcement agencies, and theMinistry of Education included teaching materials onhuman trafficking in the national curriculum. A DirectEmployment Service Center allows the rehiring offoreign domestic workers without going through laborbrokers. This program could be improved and expanded,however, to encourage greater participation. As part ofan ongoing campaign to combat child sex trafficking,authorities on Taiwan continued to display public serviceannouncements in movie theaters, on television, and ononline chat rooms, and the Ministry of Transportationand Communications (MOTC) along with NGOsproduced pamphlets and other materials in Mandarin,Japanese, and English to raise awareness of the child sextrade. Taiwan has a law with extraterritorial applicationthat criminalizes the sexual exploitation of children byTaiwan passport holders traveling abroad; however, it didnot prosecute anyone for child sex tourism abroad duringthe reporting period.TAJIKISTAN (TIER 2 Watch List)Tajikistan is a source country for women trafficked tothe UAE often through Kyrgyzstan and Russia, for thepurpose of commercial sexual exploitation. Some womenare trafficked from Tajikistan to Russia, Turkey, Iran, andIndia for the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation.Men are trafficked to Russia and, to a lesser extent,Kazakhstan for the purpose of forced labor, primarilyin the construction and agricultural sectors. Children,men, and women are coerced by some local governmentauthorities to harvest cotton. In 2008, a small numberof Tajik men were trafficked to Poland for the purpose offorced labor. Boys and girls are trafficked internally forvarious purposes, including forced labor, forced begging,and commercial sexual exploitation.The Government of Tajikistan does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Despitethese efforts, the government did not demonstrateprogress in prosecuting and convicting officials complicitin trafficking and ensuring that victims have access toprotection; therefore, Tajikistan is placed on Tier 2 WatchList. The government reported limited improvementsin law enforcement efforts, although these efforts wereovershadowed by the government’s failures to addressserious and systemic problems. The most significant ofthese problems were the government’s failure to addresstrafficking corruption; poor coordination between lawenforcement and security institutions with overlappingresponsibilities; failure to adequately investigate276

allegations of security officials’ abuse of victims; andexcessive reliance on the international community toconduct trafficking awareness campaigns and to ensurevictims have access to assistance and protection.The government also failed to prevent local officials fromcompelling men, women and children – particularly inKhatlon and Sughd regions – to pick cotton during theannual cotton harvest. For the first time in 2008, localprosecutors initiated investigations into allegationsthat local officials and teachers forced children to pickcotton—although there were no convictions of officialsfor compelled labor during the reporting period. Forcedlabor in the cotton sector remained problematic becausethe Government of Tajikistan continued to set a fixedprice for a small cadre of investors to purchase cottonfrom farmers. This fixed price is well below marketvalue, making it difficult for farmers to pay workers topick cotton. This undervaluing of labor, and consequentlack of voluntary laborers, leads local officials to compelpeople to participate in the cotton campaign.Recommendations for Tajikistan: Vigorously investigateand prosecute trafficking offenses, especially thoseinvolving labor trafficking, and convict and punishtrafficking offenders with imprisonment; ensure bettercoordination between law enforcement and securityinstitutions, particularly the State Committee on NationalSecurity; prosecute and convict government officialswho participate in or facilitate trafficking in personsand ensure they serve time in prison; ensure indentifiedvictims are not assaulted or re-victimized by governmentofficials and ensure such allegations of assault are fullyinvestigated and culpable offenders are prosecutedand criminally punished; provide financial or in-kindassistance to existing trafficking shelters; be directlyinvolved in trafficking awareness campaigns, and ensureanti-trafficking information appears in governmentmedia outlets; prohibit the forced or coerced labor ofchildren and adults in the annual cotton harvest bymonitoring school and university attendance, inspectingcotton fields during the harvest, and enforcing existinglaws prohibiting the use of forced labor; make effortsto improve trafficking data collection and analysis; anddevelop a victim identification and referral mechanism.investigating 23 individuals suspected of trafficking, anincrease from 12 trafficking investigations in 2007. Thegovernment reported 23 prosecutions in 2008, comparedto 19 reported in 2007. Courts convicted 17 traffickersin 2008, up from 11 convictions reported in 2007.The government reported that no convicted traffickersreceived suspended sentences or were granted amnestyin 2008; sentences for those serving time in prisonranged from six months to eight years’ imprisonment.The government worked with Russian authorities toinvestigate two trafficking cases in 2008.The government did not demonstrate significant effortsto address government complicity in trafficking duringthe reporting period. The State Committee on NationalSecurity did not vigorously investigate reports that threeidentified trafficking victims were sexually assaulted byits officers after they were repatriated to Tajikistan. Therewere unconfirmed reports that some government officialsused their authority to stop trafficking investigationsbecause of illicit ties to traffickers. Local officials inSughd and Khatlon regions were directly involved inorganizing and coercing students to participate in theannual cotton harvest, and, despite widespread publicreports of this forced labor, the Ministry of Labor did notdeploy inspection teams to investigate them and Ministryof Education officials generally did not discipline teachersor local administrators who facilitated or directed suchpractices. However, after the conclusion of the harvest,government prosecutors in Khatlon investigated 12 localgovernment officials and teachers for forcing schoolage and university students to pick cotton; some of theeducation officials were reprimanded for their actions,however no officials were convicted of criminal offensesduring the reporting period.TAJIKISTANProsecutionThe Government of Tajikistan reported increased butlimited anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts duringthe reporting period. Article 130.1 of the criminal codeprohibits both sexual exploitation and forced labor, andprescribes penalties of five to 15 years’ imprisonment,which are sufficiently stringent but are lower thanpenalties prescribed for other grave crimes, such as rape.Although it was added to the criminal code in 2003,officials have not successfully used the statute to prosecutetrafficking offenders. However, officials have used othercriminal provisions to address trafficking related crimes,and for the first time, authorities investigated suspectedlabor trafficking cases. In 2008, authorities reportedProtectionThe government demonstrated no efforts to assisttrafficking victims during the reporting period. Virtuallyall victim assistance and protection including shelter,medical assistance, rehabilitative counseling, legalassistance, and vocational training was provided byforeign-funded shelters and NGOs; the governmentdid not provide financial or in-kind assistance to anyNGO or organization that provided victim assistance.In 2008, thirty-eight victims were provided with shelterand assistance by foreign-funded NGOs, compared to 46victims in 2007. The government again made no efforts todevelop and implement systematic victim identification277

TANZANIAprocedures or a domestic mechanism to refer victims tocare providers. Victims were encouraged to participatein trafficking investigations and prosecutions; however,many authorities remained untrained and unskilledon interviewing and caring for victims of trafficking.Although victims were generally not detained orpunished, three female victims of sex trafficking allegedthat border service officials sexually assaulted them upontheir repatriation to Tajikistan.PreventionTajikistan again demonstrated limited preventionefforts during the reporting period. In October 2008,the government produced and broadcasted televisionprograms informing potential labor migrants of theirrights and practical considerations for the migrationprocess. In 2008, officials instituted monitoring andlicensing requirements for travel firms to help detect orinvestigate firms suspected of labor trafficking complicity.TANZANIA (Tier 2)Tanzania is a source, transit, and destination country formen, women, and children trafficked for the purposesof forced labor and sexual exploitation. The incidenceof internal trafficking is believed to be higher than thatof transnational trafficking. Tanzanian girls from ruralareas are trafficked to urban centers and the island ofZanzibar for domestic servitude; some domestic workersfleeing abusive employers fall prey to forced prostitution.Tourist hotels reportedly coerce some girls employed ascleaning staff into prostitution. Boys are trafficked withinthe country for forced labor on farms, in mines, in theinformal business sector, and possibly on small fishingboats. Smaller numbers of Tanzanian children and adultsreportedly are trafficked to surrounding African nations,South Africa, Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom, Sweden,and possibly other European countries for domesticservitude and sexual exploitation. Indian womenlegally migrate to Tanzania to work as entertainers inrestaurants and nightclubs; some are reportedly forcedinto prostitution after arrival. In 2008, Malawian menwere trafficked to Tanzania for forced labor in fishing.Citizens of neighboring countries may be traffickedthrough Tanzania for forced domestic labor and sexualexploitation in South Africa, Europe, and the Middle East.The Government of Tanzania does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. InAugust 2008, the government enacted a comprehensivehuman trafficking law and made progress in educatinglaw enforcement officials and prosecutors about the fullscope of human trafficking. Although more than 250victims of trafficking were identified by governmentofficials over the year, the government initiated no knownprosecutions of their traffickers.Recommendations for Tanzania: Use newly enacted antitraffickinglegislation to prosecute and punish traffickingoffenders; implement national procedures for victimprotection, including the identification of traffickingvictims among undocumented migrants; institutetrafficking-specific data collection systems for use bythe national police and courts; and provide additionaltraining to law enforcement authorities on differentiatinghuman trafficking from smuggling.ProsecutionThough the Tanzanian government enacted antitraffickinglegislation and received significant amounts oftraining from outside entities during the reporting period,it reported no prosecutions or convictions of traffickingoffenders. In June 2008, the parliament passed thecomprehensive Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2008,which was signed by the president in August. In February2009, the law came into effect after being translatedinto Swahili and officially published. This statuteprescribes punishments of one to 20 years’ imprisonmentdepending upon the severity of the crime, punishmentsthat are sufficiently stringent and commensurate withthose prescribed for other grave crimes. However, as nospecific anti-trafficking law existed for the majority of thereporting period, existing statutes criminalizing the saleof people, forced labor, child labor, and various sexualoffenses were applied to human trafficking cases. Thegovernment reportedly investigated cases of traffickingusing these statutes, but provided no information on theprosecution or conviction of trafficking offenders duringthe year. Acting on a hotline tip, police in Mlandiziarrested and charged a Rwandan woman attemptingto traffic a Tanzanian child to France; her trial date hasnot been set. Although the Ministry of Labor reportedlyconducted inspections and issued warnings to violators ofchild labor statutes, there were no reported forced childlabor cases brought to court in 2008. Likewise, Zanzibar’sMinistry of Labor did not take legal action againstany cases of forced child labor. In February 2009, thegovernment transferred responsibility for all anti-humantrafficking law enforcement efforts from a specific Anti-Human-Trafficking Unit to the police’s INTERPOL office,which has broad responsibility for transnational crimes.The police Cyber Crimes Unit estimated investigating 200trafficking-related cases since its establishment in 2006;however, no arrests have resulted from these efforts. InDecember 2008, the government opened the East AfricanRegional Training Academy for immigration officials;approximately 60 percent of this facility’s funding isprovided by the Tanzanian government. The academy’scurriculum includes a module devoted to anti-traffickingeducation.ProtectionThe government’s efforts to protect victims of traffickingduring the reporting period were moderate andsuffered from a lack of resources. Government officialspartnered with NGOs to provide shelter, counseling,and rehabilitation for victims of trafficking; facilitiesfor shelter and specialized care were limited to urban278

areas. While Tanzania lacked systematic victim referralprocedures, police and social workers across the countryreceived training on victim protection and governmentauthorities referred trafficking victims to NGOs forassistance during the reporting period. For instance,police and community social workers referred 256female trafficking victims to an NGO-run shelter in2008. In March 2009, local social workers in Pwaniregion took custody of a rescued child, placed her in anorphanage, and enrolled her in school. A plain-clothesfemale police officer, part of the Dar es Salaam citypolice force, visited shelters to obtain sex traffickingvictims’ statements in a private setting. In mid-2008,the government collaborated with IOM and NGOs todraft a plan for the referral of trafficking victims forcare; this mechanism has not yet been finalized. Thegovernment provided free use of buildings and suppliedteachers, doctors, and social workers, to assist antitraffickingNGOs during the reporting period. A 24-hourcrime hotline staffed by Tanzanian police officers wasavailable for citizens to make anonymous reports aboutsuspected trafficking victims; the hotline responded totwo trafficking tips during the reporting period. Thegovernment generally encouraged Tanzanian victims’assistance in the investigation of their traffickers, but thelack of national procedures for victim identification likelyled to the deportation of many foreign victims beforethey were identified or able to give evidence in court.With no formal procedure in place to identify foreignvictims, they may have been treated by the government asillegal migrants and housed in prisons until deportationarrangements could be made. The government conductededucational programs to help law enforcement officialsidentify trafficking victims among vulnerable groups. TheAnti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2008 provides foreignvictims legal alternatives to their removal to countrieswhere their safety or the safety of their families may beendangered.PreventionWhile awareness of human trafficking increased furtherin Tanzania, including among communities in remotelocations, understanding of what constitutes traffickingremained low; law enforcement and social welfareofficials sometimes conflated human trafficking withsmuggling. In April 2008, the government producedguidelines for child labor intervention at the district andcommunity levels that were implemented to varyingdegrees. For example, to prevent child labor exploitationand trafficking, teachers, police, and labor inspectorsfollowed up with parents to determine whether childrenmissing from school had been forced into domesticservitude or other forms of labor. While there wereno reports of local government officials carrying outlegal action against such parents, the resulting fear ofcriminal penalties significantly reduced the availabilityof child domestic workers in Dar es Salaam by year’send. Local Child Labor Committees, partially comprisedof local government officials, partnered with ILO-IPECto identify and withdraw children from situationsof forced labor and enroll them in public schools orMinistry of Education – operated Community LearningCenters. High-ranking national and local officials werevisibly present at events associated with IOM’s nationalcampaign, “Uwe Sauti Yao” (Be Their Voice). In an effortto decrease the demand for commercial sex acts, in June2008, Dar es Salaam police arrested and indicted 38 menand women – madams, women engaged in prostitution,and clients – on charges of keeping brothels and solicitingsexual services. All suspects were released on bail orwith fines; trial dates have not yet been determined. AllTanzanian soldiers completed a module on the respectof human rights and anti-trafficking interventions aspart of their basic curriculum. Troops received additionalhuman rights training, including sessions on genderand women’s rights, the protection of civilians, andinternational humanitarian law, before their deploymentto international peacekeeping missions.THAILAND (Tier 2)Thailand is a source, transit, and destination country formen, women, and children trafficked for the purposesof forced labor and commercial sexual exploitation.Thailand’s relative prosperity attracts migrants fromneighboring countries and from as far away as Russiaand Fiji who flee conditions of poverty and, in the case ofBurma, military repression. Significant illegal migrationto Thailand presents traffickers with opportunities toforce, coerce, or defraud undocumented migrants intoinvoluntary servitude or sexual exploitation. Followingmigration to Thailand, men, women, and children,primarily from Burma, are trafficked for forced laborin fishing-related industries, factories, agriculture,construction, domestic work, and begging. Womenand children are trafficked from Burma, Cambodia,Laos, the People’s Republic of China, Vietnam, Russia,and Uzbekistan for commercial sexual exploitationin Thailand. Ethnic minorities such as northern hilltribe peoples, many of whom do not have legal statusin the country, are at a disproportionately high risk fortrafficking internally and abroad. Media reports duringthe year alleged trafficking of some Burmese migrants,including some refugees, from Malaysia to Thailand.Most Thai sex trafficking victims repatriated to Thailandwere trafficked to Bahrain and Malaysia. Some Thai menwho migrate for low-skilled contract work in Taiwan,Malaysia, the United States and elsewhere are subjectedTHAILAND279

THAILANDto conditions of forced labor after arrival. There are noreliable estimates of the number of trafficking victimsin Thailand. Sex tourism in Thailand may encouragetrafficking for sexual exploitation.The Royal Thai Government does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Thegovernment began implementing a new, comprehensiveanti-human trafficking law that came into force in June2008 and trained the law enforcement community on thenew legislation. In recent years, the number of annualconvictions for sex trafficking has declined. Three sextraffickers were convicted, and the government initiatedprosecutions of 54 individuals for trafficking offenses,including forced child labor, during the reporting period.The government did not, however, achieve a convictionfor a labor trafficking offense during the year. Thegovernment initiated prosecution for multiple traffickingoffenses of three owners of a Samut Sakhon shrimpprocessing factory raided in 2006.Recommendations for Thailand: Increase effortsto investigate labor trafficking and prosecute labortraffickers; improve efforts to identify victimsof trafficking among vulnerable groups, such asundocumented migrants; ensure that adult foreigntrafficking victims who are willing to work with local lawenforcement are not confined to shelters involuntarily;develop and implement mechanisms to allow adultforeign trafficking victims to seek and find employmentoutside shelters; and educate migrant workers on theirrights, their employers’ obligations to them, legal recourseavailable to victims of trafficking, and how to seekremedies against traffickers.ProsecutionThe Royal Thai Government continued some lawenforcement efforts to combat trafficking in persons. Acomprehensive anti-trafficking law that went into effectin June 2008 covers all forms of trafficking and prescribespenalties that are sufficiently stringent and that arecommensurate with penalties prescribed for other gravecrimes, such as rape. Prescribed punishments are doubledif the convicted trafficking offender is a public official.The government initiated prosecutions against at least54 individuals for trafficking offenses, eight of whomare being prosecuted for forced child labor. During thereporting period, there were at least three convictions forsex trafficking offenses; two Thai women were convictedand sentenced to 34 and 50 years’ imprisonment,respectively, for brokering children for prostitution, andanother Thai woman was sentenced to 14 years in prisonfor the 2006 trafficking of two young women to Italyfor prostitution. The government trained police officers,immigration officers, prosecutors and social workers onthe new anti-trafficking law. A police division establishedin 2006 – the Children and Women Protection Division– continues to have nationwide jurisdiction to conductanti-trafficking investigations. In addition, the police’snewly established Transnational Crime CoordinationCenter collects and analyzes trafficking information andconducts strategic planning for anti-trafficking effortsalong with the Office of the Attorney General’s CenterAgainst International Human Trafficking. Nevertheless,investigations for trafficking offenses were disrupted ordelayed because of frequent personnel turnover, andobservers reported that cooperation between policeand prosecutors on criminal (including trafficking)cases could be improved. There were reports that localpolice protected brothels, other sex venues, and seafoodand sweatshop facilities from raids, and occasionallyfacilitated the movement of women into or throughThailand. In the absence of specific, credible allegationsof official complicity in trafficking, the government didnot report any investigations or prosecutions of Thaiofficials for trafficking-related corruption. A police officersuspected of trafficking in 2007 was convicted, fined,and fired for alien smuggling. The government reportedthat available evidence did not support a traffickingprosecution. The government initiated prosecution ofthree owners of a shrimp processing factory, in which 66trafficking victims were found in September 2006, formultiple trafficking offenses. Authorities also initiatedprosecutions of six individuals in the March 2008 raidof a separate shrimp processing facility, but their trial isnot yet complete. In July 2006, a fleet of six fishing vesselsreturned to a Thai port and surviving crew membersreported the death while at sea of 39 seafarers, most ofwhom were Burmese. Although survivors have testifiedthat the 39 died from conditions of malnutrition dueto captains’ failure to provide food and freedom to theseafarers – as they were confined to the fishing boats forover three years – and that their bodies were disposedof at sea, the government has been unable to locate thecaptains to arrest them for unlawful disposal of corpsesand believes it is unlikely that available evidence willsupport trafficking-related charges.ProtectionThe Thai government continued to provide impressiveprotection to foreign and Thai victims of traffickingin Thailand and Thai trafficking victims abroad.The government expanded its network of temporaryshelters for trafficking victims from 99 to 138, withat least one temporary shelter in each Thai province.The government refers victims of trafficking to one ofeight longer-stay regional shelters run by the Ministryof Social Development and Human Security (MSDHS),where they receive psychological counseling, food,280

oard, and medical care. The new anti-trafficking lawextended victim protection provisions to male traffickingvictims, and one of the government’s long-stay sheltersexclusively serves adult male victims and their families.In 2008, the government’s shelters provided protectionand social services for at least 102 repatriated Thaivictims and 520 foreigners trafficked to Thailand. TheDepartment of Consular Affairs in the Ministry of ForeignAffairs reported that 443 Thai nationals classified astrafficking victims were repatriated from a number ofoverseas locations, including Bahrain (360 victims),Malaysia (73 victims), and Taiwan (5 victims), betweenOctober 2007 and September 2008. Most of the victimswere sex trafficking victims held in conditions of debtbondage. The Thai government, with NGO assistance, hasimplemented trafficking victim identification procedures,and has since conducted trainings for approximately2,500 government officials. The government claimedthat it screened undocumented migrants for traffickingvictims, but informed observers asserted that it did notsystematically do so. The government provides shelterand social services to all identified Thai and foreigntrafficking victims pending their repatriation to theircountry or town of origin. Foreign trafficking victims inThai custody, including those who cooperate with lawenforcement, cannot leave shelters unsupervised, are notoffered legal alternatives to their removal to countrieswhere the victims may face hardship or retribution, andare not permitted to work outside shelters. Some foreignvictims have been confined to shelters for as long as twoyears. The government encourages victims’ participationin the investigation and prosecution of trafficking crimes,and some victims do participate. NGOs have reportedcomplaints by some foreign victims in shelters who feelthat the government does not handle their repatriationin a timely fashion, and who feel pressured to remain inshelters in order to assist with prosecutions. Languagebarriers, fear of traffickers, distrust of Thai officials,slow legal processes, and the financial needs of victimsall played a role in the decision of some victims to notparticipate in the Thai legal process, including criminalprosecutions. The 1998 Labor Protection Act allows forcompensatory damages from employers in cases of forcedlabor, and the government ordered compensation inone of the shrimp factory cases and funded plaintiffs’attorneys in a successful civil action in the other shrimpfactory case.for illegal commercial sex acts and child sex tourism wereevidenced through the prosecution of approximately 20child sex tourists, as well as occasional police raids toshut down brothels and awareness-raising campaignstargeting tourists. Thailand has not ratified the 2000 UNTIP Protocol.TIMOR-LESTE (Tier 2)Timor-Leste is a destination country for women fromIndonesia, Thailand, the People’s Republic of China,Malaysia, and the Philippines trafficked for the purposeof commercial sexual exploitation, and a destinationfor men from Burma trafficked for the purpose of forcedlabor. Timor-Leste has a growing internal traffickingproblem, mainly women and children lured to Dili fromrural areas or camps for internally displaced personswith offers of employment and subsequently forcedinto prostitution. Transnational traffickers, who may bemembers of organized crime syndicates, typically recruitand control their victims through fraud and psychologicalcoercion.The Government of Timor-Leste does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts todo so despite limited resources. During the year, thegovernment improved counter-trafficking coordinationamong ministries, trained officials and law enforcementagents on human trafficking, implemented a birthregistration program as a form of preventing trafficking,established procedures to identify victims amongforeign women arrested for prostitution, and increasedtrafficking awareness among vulnerable populations. Thegovernment, however, did not arrest or prosecute anytrafficking offenders, though officials identified sometrafficking victims, and has not investigated persistentreports of law enforcement agents accepting bribes fromtraffickers.TIMOR-LESTE TIER RANKING BY YEARTIMOR-LESTEPreventionThe Thai government continued to support preventionand public awareness activities on trafficking duringthe year, including through “public dialogues” ontrafficking and television advertisements. Informedobservers report significant forced labor among migrantswho participate in Thailand’s temporary work program,suggesting victims’ inability to seek assistance from thegovernment without fear of punishment or deportationand a lack of efforts to inform migrant workers of optionsfor remedies against exploitative employers and laborbrokers. Government efforts to reduce domestic demandTRINIDAD & TOBAGO TIER RANKING BY YEARRecommendations for Timor-Leste: Enact the draftPenal Code provisions on trafficking in persons;increase investigations, prosecutions, and punishmentof trafficking offenders; train law enforcement officerson victim identification and protection; institute formalprocedures for referring victims to service providers; andinvestigate, prosecute, and punish government officialswho accept bribes to facilitate sex trafficking.CAMBODIA TIER RANKING BY YEAR281

TOGOProsecutionThe Government of Timor-Leste demonstrated a minimalincrease in anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts overthe past year. Although both labor and sex traffickingvictims were identified, the government did notinvestigate, arrest or prosecute any trafficking offenders.The Ministry of Justice drafted a new Timor-Leste PenalCode, which defines and punishes all forms of traffickingand provides protection to witnesses and victims. ThePenal Code is awaiting approval by the Council ofMinisters. During the year, trafficking cases could havebeen prosecuted under provisions in the Immigrationand Asylum Act of 2003. Timor-Leste prohibits all formsof sex and labor trafficking through this Act, whichprescribes penalties ranging from three to 12 years’imprisonment – penalties that are sufficiently stringentbut not commensurate with those prescribed for seriouscrimes, such as rape. The government and IOM held jointtraining courses on human trafficking for civil servants,immigration, police and military officers, and membersof the diplomatic, civil and religious communities.The Victims’ Protection Unit (VPU) of the police alsoreceived gender-protection training from two NGOs. Thegovernment did not investigate persistent reports thatpolice officers in Dili accepted bribes or sex in exchangefor tolerating brothels’ exploitation of trafficking victims.Complaints that some border officials accept bribes tolet trafficking victims enter Timor-Leste were also notinvestigated.ProtectionDuring the past year, the government continued toensure victims’ access to protection services provided byNGOs and international organizations, as a severe lack ofresources and personnel limit the Timorese government’sability to provide services directly. The Ministry of Laborhelped arrange assistance and shelter for victims of labortrafficking when cases were brought to its attention. In theabsence of formal procedures, social service, immigration,and law enforcement agencies referred identified victimsto NGOs for assistance on an ad hoc basis. Within thegovernment, only the Immigration Department ofthe Ministry of Interior followed formal procedures toidentify proactively trafficking victims among high-riskpopulations such as foreign women in prostitution. Thegovernment did not encourage victims to participate ininvestigations and prosecutions of trafficking offenders,although victims could file civil suits or take other legalaction against traffickers. The draft penal code includeswitness protection provisions; the present lack of suchprotections makes it difficult for victims to safely stepforward and make their own allegations. Victims oftrafficking were arrested for offenses committed as adirect result of being trafficked. This year, however,the government began to provide victims relief fromimprisonment, summary deportation, or removal to acountry where they may face hardship or retribution.Officials, in consultation with IOM, were authorizedto determine a person’s status as a trafficking victim,rather than rely on the inefficient court system for such adetermination.PreventionAcknowledging that trafficking is a problem in thecountry, the Timorese government expanded its nationwidetrafficking awareness campaign in partnershipwith international and local NGOs. The Ministry ofForeign Affairs chaired the Trafficking Working Group,which includes the Ministries of Justice, Labor, andSocial Solidarity, the VPU of the national police, theOffice for the Promotion of Gender Equality, andrepresentatives from the civil, religious, diplomatic, andNGO communities. During the year, the group met twice.IOM, the government, and a local NGO implemented acomprehensive trafficking awareness program for civilservants and police officers. Anti-human traffickingposters with emergency contact numbers are nowprominently displayed at most government agencies, inNational Police stations throughout the districts, and theDili port and airport. The Ministry of Social Solidaritydeployed 13 child protection officers, one to each district,to monitor and manage cases of vulnerable children.Local women’s and children’s rights NGOs worked withthe government on campaigns to raise public awarenessof trafficking and to prevent the sexual abuse of children.They distributed leaflets in several communities,which include the telephone numbers for the NationalSocial Service Division, the police, and three local andinternational NGOs. The government also implementeda new birth registration program and began developinga new adoption and guardianship law, as a way to makechildren less vulnerable to trafficking. Timor-Leste hasnot ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.TOGO (TIER 2)Togo is a source, transit and, to a lesser extent, adestination country for women and children traffickedfor the purposes of forced labor and commercial sexualexploitation. Trafficking within Togo is more prevalentthan transnational trafficking and the majority of victimsare children. Togolese girls are trafficked primarily withinthe country for domestic servitude, for forced work asmarket vendors and produce porters, and for commercialsexual exploitation. To a lesser extent, girls from Togoare also trafficked to other African countries, primarilyBenin, Nigeria, Ghana, and Niger, for the same purposeslisted above. Although some Togolese boys are trafficked282

within the country, they are more commonly traffickedtransnationally to work in agricultural labor, including oncocoa farms, in other African countries, primarily Nigeria,Cote d’Ivoire, Gabon and Benin. Over the last year,Togolese boys were also trafficked to Ghana for forcedbegging by a religious instructor. Beninese and Ghanaianchildren have been trafficked to Togo. There were reportsof Togolese women and girls trafficked to Lebanon andSaudi Arabia, likely for domestic servitude and forcedprostitution. Togolese women may be trafficked toEurope, primarily to France and Germany, for the samepurposes.The Government of Togo does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so, despitelimited resources. The government continued steadyefforts to protect trafficking victims and to prosecute andconvict trafficking offenders.Recommendations for Togo: Continue to increase effortsto prosecute and convict trafficking offenders; criminalizethe trafficking of adults; increase efforts to raise publicawareness about trafficking, particularly about legislationcriminalizing it; and establish the National Committee toCombat Child Trafficking mandated in Togo’s 2005 lawagainst child trafficking.ProsecutionThe Government of Togo demonstrated increased lawenforcement efforts to combat trafficking during thelast year. Togo does not prohibit all forms of trafficking,though in July 2007 the government enacted a ChildCode that criminalizes all forms of child trafficking.This law supplements Togo’s 2005 Law Related to ChildTrafficking, which criminalizes the trafficking of children,but provides a weak definition of trafficking and failsto prohibit child sexual exploitation. Togo’s maximumprescribed penalty of 10 years’ imprisonment for childtrafficking is sufficiently stringent and commensuratewith prescribed penalties for other grave offenses. Theprescribed penalties of one to five years’ imprisonmentfor sex trafficking of children 15 years and older, and10 years’ imprisonment for sex trafficking of childrenyounger than 15 years, are sufficiently stringent andcommensurate with penalties prescribed for statutoryrape. Article 4 of the 2006 Labor Code criminalizes forcedand obligatory labor, prescribing inadequate penalties forforced labor of either three to six months’ imprisonment,a fine, or both, and double these penalties for “obligatory”labor. This Article does not provide definitions of eitherof these labor violations. The Government of Togoreported 13 prosecutions of trafficking offenders, 12 ofwhom were convicted. Four convicted traffickers eachreceived sentences of two years’ imprisonment, and oneof these perpetrators, who is Beninese, was banned fromentering Togo for five years after serving his sentence. Sixtraffickers each received punishments of eight months’imprisonment and two traffickers received prisonsentences of six months.The Ministry of Social Affairs (MOSA) contributedvehicles and trainers to UNICEF-supported antitraffickingtraining of magistrates in Atakpame andKara. In June 2008, the Ministry of Security conducteda donor-funded trafficking training for 30 police officersand gendarmerie. The government relied largely on ILOfundedlocal vigilance committees, usually composedof local government officials, community leaders, andyouth, to report trafficking cases.ProtectionThe Togolese government continued steady effortsto protect trafficking victims over the last year. Thegovernment did not operate its own victim shelter.Togolese officials continued to refer trafficking victimsto NGOs for care, however. After identifying traffickingvictims, police regularly contacted MOSA staff, whoarranged for victim referral to an NGO. The MOSA alsohelped to identify the families of child victims andhelped with their reintegration by ensuring that theyreceived schooling. Two MOSA social workers wereon-call 24-hours a day to assist trafficking victims. Thegovernment also provided temporary shelter to victimsat community transit centers located in each of its fourregions if NGO facilities were stretched to capacity. Oneanti-trafficking NGO in Lome that cares for child victims14-years-old and younger reported that approximatelytwo-thirds of the 180 children it provided with care in thelast year were referred by government officials. AnotherNGO that assisted 260 female victims below the age of18 during the year estimated that 65 percent of thesevictims were referred by the government. During the year,a MOSA vocational center for destitute children assistedapproximately 20 trafficking victims. In April 2008,Togolese officials collaborated with authorities in Beninto repatriate two male child trafficking victims to Beninfrom Togo.Because the government does not follow systematicprocedures to identify trafficking victims among womenand girls in prostitution, sex trafficking victims may havebeen inappropriately incarcerated or fined for unlawfulacts committed as a direct result of being trafficked. Thegovernment sometimes encouraged victims to assist intrafficking investigations or prosecutions on an ad hocbasis. The government did not provide legal alternativesto the removal of foreign victims to countries where theyface hardship or retribution; however, the majority ofvictims identified in Togo were Togolese.PreventionThe Government of Togo made weak efforts to preventtrafficking during the year. In June 2008, the Presidentpresided over a day-long program to promote thegovernment’s anti-trafficking strategy during whichfive child victims told their stories of being trafficked,an anti-trafficking film was shown, and both thePresident and the Minister of Social Affairs publiclydenounced trafficking. At the end of the day, local anti-TOGO283

TRINIDAD AND TOBAGOtrafficking committees presented recommendationsfor a strengthened anti-trafficking response. In January2009, the government ran a campaign to publicize itsnew toll-free hotline staffed by government personnelto report cases of violence against children, includingtrafficking. The number, “ALLO 111,” is jointly funded byTogo Telecom, private cell phone companies, UNICEF andan NGO. Soon after the hotline was announced, a callerphoned in a tip that prevented two children from beingtrafficked across the border to Benin. Whilesome minor action items in the national actionplan, which was developed in 2007, have beenstarted, the majority of the plan has not yetbeen implemented due to lack of financialmeans. The National Committee for theReception and Social Reinsertion of TraffickedChildren reported close collaboration withits counterparts in Benin and Togo to developbilateral anti-trafficking action plans. Thegovernment provided Togolese troops deployedabroad as part of peacekeeping missions sometrafficking awareness training prior to their deployment.The National Committee to Combat Trafficking mandatedby Togo’s 2005 anti-trafficking law has not yet beenestablished. Togo did not take measures to reduce demandfor commercial sex acts.TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO(Tier 2)Trinidad and Tobago is a destination and transit countryfor women and children trafficked for the purpose ofcommercial sexual exploitation. In some instances,women and girls from Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana,Suriname, and the Dominican Republic have beenidentified as trafficking victims in Trinidadian brothelsand casinos. Last year the government identifiedfive Colombian victims in the country; neighboringgovernments in Venezuela, Guyana, and Surinameidentified additional victims. Foreign victims, includingwomen who voluntarily enter the country to engage inprostitution, may subsequently be trafficked after beingdeceived by unscrupulous recruiters about the true natureand conditions of their employment. Additional reportingsuggests that men from China and Guyana may betrafficked to Trinidad and Tobago for labor exploitationin construction and other sectors. Trinidad and Tobagoalso is a transit point to Caribbean destinations such asBarbados and the Netherlands Antilles for traffickers andtheir victims.The Government of Trinidad and Tobago does not fullycomply with the minimum standards for the eliminationof trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts todo so. During the reporting period, senior Trinidadianofficials publicly condemned human trafficking, notingthat the country is a destination point for traffickedpersons. The government worked closely with IOM andother Caribbean governments to draft model antitraffickinglaws for the region, and to develop standardsfor victim repatriation and care. The government alsoincreased anti-trafficking training for law enforcement,and collaborated with IOM on additional awarenessraisingmeasures. However, vigorous government effortsto investigate and prosecute trafficking crimes underexisting laws remained lacking, and adequate victimservices were extremely limited.TIMOR-LESTE TIER RANKING BY YEARTRINIDAD & TOBAGO TIER RANKING BY YEARRecommendations for Trinidad and Tobago: Enactlegislation to prohibit all forms of human trafficking;increase efforts to investigate and prosecute traffickingoffenses, and to convict and sentence traffickingoffenders; increase victim services and protectionefforts, particularly for foreign victims; develop formalprocedures to identify trafficking victims amongvulnerable populations; continue to increase antitraffickingtraining and efforts to raise public awareness.CAMBODIA TIER RANKING BY YEARIRAQ TIER RANKING BY YEARProsecutionThe Government of Trinidad and Tobago demonstratedsome progress in anti-trafficking law enforcement effortsover the last year. While Trinidad and Tobago has nospecific laws prohibiting human trafficking, traffickingoffenders could be prosecuted under trafficking-relatedoffenses such as kidnapping, rape, or procuring a personfor prostitution. Penalties for such crimes range from15 years’ to life imprisonment, which are sufficientlystringent and commensurate with penalties prescribed forother serious crimes. Last year the government workedclosely with IOM and neighboring countries to draftmodel anti-trafficking legislation for the Caribbean, andengaged experts from the Canadian High Commissionto assist with writing an anti-trafficking law for Trinidadand Tobago. During the reporting period, the governmentachieved no prosecutions, convictions, or sentencesof trafficking offenders. In past years, Trinidadian lawenforcement have utilized proactive strategies suchas brothel raids to enforce anti-prostitution laws andprosecute the owners of such establishments, thoughformal procedures to identify trafficking victims duringsuch operations are not typically utilized. In partnershipwith IOM, the government provided anti-traffickingtraining to more than 1,500 law enforcement officers lastyear, and published reference guides for immigration andpolice personnel. No allegations of trafficking-relatedcorruption were reported.LESOTHO TIER RANKING BY YEAR284

KING BY YEARR RANKING BY YEARG BY YEARYEARProtectionThe Trinidadian government made limited efforts toMICRONESIA (FSM) TIER RANKING BY YEARassist trafficking victims during the reporting period,relying on international organizations and NGOs toprovide care and services for identified victims. Thegovernment encouraged crime victims, includingtrafficking victims, to assist with the investigation andprosecution of offenders, and provided interpreters fornon-English speaking complainants. Foreign victimswere not eligible to receive government-provided servicessuch as medical assistance, counseling, or legal assistancewith filing aTHEcomplaint.NETHERLANDSMoreover,ANTILLEStheTIERgovernmentRANKING BY YEARdidnot employ formal procedures for identifying victims ofsex or labor trafficking among vulnerable populations,such as prostituted women in brothels or foreign migrantworkers. The government did not provide foreigntrafficking victims with legal alternatives to removal tocountries where they may face hardship or retribution;most foreign victims were detained and deported withoutbeing identified as trafficking victims. However, thegovernment ST. recently VINCENT instituted & GRENADINES a protocol TIER RANKING where BY YEAR identifiedforeign trafficking victims are maintained in NGO safehouses until authorities in the victim’s home countrycan be contacted to assist with travel documents andrepatriation. In January 2009, government immigrationofficials met with Colombian counterparts to discussprocedures for identifying and sheltering Colombiantrafficking victims found in Trinidad and Tobago, as wellas their safe return to Colombia; the workshop occurreddue to a 2007 brothel raid in which more than 70TUNISIA TIER RANKING BY YEARColombian nationals, some of whom were believed to betrafficking victims, were detained and deported for beingin Trinidad and Tobago illegally.trafficked for the purposes of forced labor and commercialsexual exploitation. Several Tunisian traffickingvictims were identified during the reporting period inforeign locations; two women were rescued from forcedprostitution in Jordan and three men from forced labor inMICRONESIA (FSM) TIER RANKING BY YEARItaly. Some Tunisian girls are trafficked within the countryfor domestic servitude. A 2008 survey of 130 domesticworkers in the Greater Tunis region found that 52 percentwere under the age of 16; twenty-three percent claimed tobe victims of physical violence, and 11 percent of sexualviolence. Ninety-nine percent indicated they had nowork contracts and the majority received salaries belowthe minimum wage. These conditions are indicators ofpossible forced labor. In 2007, three Ukrainians wereTHE NETHERLANDS ANTILLES TIER RANKING BY YEARidentified as having been trafficked to Tunisia for work inhotels and commercial sexual exploitation.The Government of Tunisia does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking,but is making significant efforts to do so. Despite thesesignificant overall efforts, including the conviction andsentencing of a trafficking offender and the signing ofa cooperative agreement with Italy on trafficking andillegal migration, the government did not show evidenceof progressST. VINCENTin proactively& GRENADINESidentifyingTIER RANKINGor protectingBY YEARtrafficking victims or raising public awareness of humantrafficking over the last year; therefore, Tunisia is placedon Tier 2 Watch List. Human trafficking is not perceivedto be a problem in Tunisia; it is possible that victims oftrafficking remain undetected because of a lack of effortto identify them among vulnerable groups.TUNISIA TIER RANKING BY YEARTUNISIABY YEARPreventionIn collaboration with international and local NGOs, thegovernment increased its efforts to educate the publicabout the dangers of trafficking. Senior governmentofficials condemned human trafficking publicly, andemphasized TURKMENISTAN the need to protect TIER RANKING victims. BY YEAR During 2008, lawenforcement officers and an IOM expert on investigatingand prosecuting sexual offenses conducted several raidsof brothels where foreign women engage in prostitution,thus addressing demand for commercial sex acts byarresting and prosecuting “clients.” The ILO and thegovernment distributed informational brochures onregional child labor and protection concerns such asslavery, debt bondage, child drug trafficking, prostitution,and trafficking children in the Caribbean. Thegovernment also enacted laws to keep children in school,and raised the working age from 14 to 16 as measuresto prevent child labor. No additional efforts to reducedemand for adult forced labor were reported.TUNISIA (Tier 2 Watch List)Tunisia is a source, destination, and possible transitcountry for small numbers of men, women, and childrenRecommendations TURKMENISTAN for TIER Tunisia: RANKING BY Utilize YEAR existing criminalstatutes on forced labor and forced prostitution toinvestigate and prosecute trafficking offenses and convictand punish trafficking offenders; undertake a baselineassessment to better understand the scope and magnitudeof the human trafficking problem; draft and enactlegislation that prohibits and adequately punishes allforms of human trafficking; and institute a formal victimidentification mechanism to identify and refer traffickingvictims to protection services.ProsecutionThe Government of Tunisia made limited anti-traffickinglaw enforcement efforts during the reporting period;one known trafficking offender was brought to justice.Tunisian laws do not specifically prohibit humantrafficking, though trafficking offenders could be285

TURKEYprosecuted under several laws that prohibit specific formsof trafficking in persons. The Penal Code prescribes10 years’ imprisonment for capturing, detaining, orsequestering a person for forced labor; one to two years’imprisonment for forced child begging, and up to fiveyears’ imprisonment for forced prostitution of womenand children. The penalty for forced prostitution – fiveyears’ imprisonment – is sufficiently stringent, thoughnot commensurate with penalties prescribed for othergrave offenses, such as rape. In April 2009, a Tunis courtconvicted and sentenced a Tunisian woman to threeyears’ imprisonment under Article 218 of the penal code(violence with premeditation) for subjecting to domesticservitude and physically abusing a seven-year old girl.The Ministry of Social Affairs, Solidarity and TunisiansAbroad is responsible for investigating violations of thelabor code and conducted approximately 30,000 laborinspections in 2008; it reported no known cases of forcedlabor or exploitative child labor to Tunisian courts in2008. There is no evidence that the government providedanti-trafficking training to law enforcement officialsin 2008. There is no evidence of official tolerance of orcomplicity in trafficking in persons.ProtectionWhile the government did not provide protection servicesspecifically for trafficking victims during the reportingperiod, women’s organizations provided services to at-riskgroups of women and children with government support.While the government does not operate care facilities forcrime victims, its social workers provided direct assistanceto abused women and children in two shelters operatedby a local NGO; these shelters could provide assistanceto trafficking victims. The government encouraged thevictim in the aforementioned legal case to testify againsther trafficker during the court proceedings and providedher with medical care. The Ministry of Women’s Affairs,Family, Children, and Elderly Persons employed a childprotection delegate in each of Tunisia’s 24 districts tointervene in cases of sexual, economic, or criminalexploitation of children; these delegates ensured thatchild sexual abuse victims received adequate medical careand counseling and could potentially advocate for serviceprovision for child victims of labor and sex trafficking.The government lacked formal procedures to identifytrafficking victims among vulnerable groups, such asillegal migrants and those arrested for prostitution. Asa result, trafficking victims, when not identified, maybe vulnerable to deportation or other punishment ifcaught engaging in illegal acts under Tunisian law. Thegovernment does not provide trafficking victims legalalternatives against removal to countries where they mayface hardship or retribution.PreventionThe government made minimal efforts to preventtrafficking during the reporting period; there wereno government campaigns to raise public awarenessof trafficking or to reduce demand for commercialsex acts, but a government-sanctioned NGO hosted asymposium in December 2008 that raised awarenessabout exploitation of women, particularly domesticworkers, in the workplace. The government monitoredits borders closely to interdict smuggling rings andillegal immigration, but did not systematically screenfor trafficking victims among illegal migrants. InJanuary 2009, Tunisia and Italy agreed to strengthentheir cooperation to combat illegal immigration andhuman trafficking The government did not take anysignificant measures during the reporting period toreduce the demand for commercial sex acts. Informationwas unavailable regarding specific measures adoptedby the government to ensure its nationals deployed topeacekeeping missions do not facilitate or engage inhuman trafficking; members of the military, however,received training on international human rightsstandards, which included human trafficking, as part oftheir 200 hours of required coursework.TURKEY (Tier 2)Turkey is a destination and, to a lesser extent, transitcountry for women and children predominately fromEastern Europe and the former Soviet Union traffickedprimarily for the purpose of commercial sexualexploitation and, to a lesser degree, for the purpose offorced labor. Source countries for identified traffickingvictims in 2008 included: Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan,Moldova, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Georgia, Ukraine,Azerbaijan, Romania, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Bulgaria,Indonesia, and Morocco. According to Armenian NGOsand the Government of Armenia, the trafficking ofArmenian women to Turkey for the purpose of sexualexploitation continued to be a problem, although theGovernment of Turkey did not identify any such victimsin 2008. Four foreign child victims were documented overthe last year. The number of Uzbek and Turkmen victimsincreased in 2008. Some victims are reportedly traffickedthrough Turkey to the area administered by TurkishCypriots for the purpose of sexual exploitation. Althougha much smaller problem, some internal traffickinginvolving Turkish citizens in both the legal and illegalprostitution sectors is believed to occur.The Government of Turkey does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Lawenforcement continued to successfully target and disrupttrafficking networks and the government improvedits prosecution of trafficking offenders in 2008. Thegovernment’s anti-trafficking efforts were constrained,however, by inconsistent identification, referral,protection, and assistance to trafficking victims in Turkey.Recommendations for Turkey: Ensure consistent andsustained assistance for trafficking victims, includingadequate government funding of shelters in Ankara andIstanbul; expand shelter capacity for victims; considerincluding NGOs and international organizations more286

consistently in the identification and interviewingprocess; take steps to identify trafficking victims withinvulnerable populations in Turkey; continue to vigorouslyprosecute trafficking offenses and convict public officialscomplicit in trafficking; and expand awareness efforts toeducate the public about the demand for commercial sexacts and its links to trafficking.ProsecutionThe Government of Turkey sustained vigorous antitraffickinglaw enforcement and prosecutorial efforts in2008. Article 80 of the Penal Code prohibits traffickingfor both sexual exploitation and forced labor, andprescribes penalties of from 8 to 12 years’ imprisonment,which are sufficiently stringent and commensurate withpenalties prescribed for other grave crimes, such as sexualassault. The Government of Turkey prosecuted 69 casesinvolving 273 suspected traffickers in 2008, a significantincrease from 160 suspected traffickers prosecuted in2007. The government reported securing the convictionsof 58 trafficking offenders in 2008. The governmentexpanded its use of Article 80 in 2008, convicting 13traffickers under the trafficking-specific article, a threefoldincrease from 2007. The 13 convicted traffickersreceived sentences averaging eight years’ imprisonment.Other trafficking offenders were convicted using Article227, an older anti-trafficking statute. Penalties imposedon traffickers convicted under Article 227 averaged threeto four years’ imprisonment. Six traffickers convictedunder other related articles received a sentence of twoto four years’ imprisonment. The government continuedto institutionalize and implement comprehensive lawenforcement training in 2008. The government reportedinvestigating 25 security officials for trafficking-relatedcomplicity in 2008. In January 2008, the governmentsecured the conviction of a Court of Appeals Judgefor aiding traffickers; he was sentenced to two years’imprisonment, although the court subsequently reducedthe sentence to probation and a prison term of one yearand eight months. In June 2008, the government obtainedthe conviction of a judicial hall employee to one year andsix months’ imprisonment and barred him from publicservice for one year for trafficking-related complicity.Turkish law, however, allows for the suspension of prisonsentences of two years or less under certain conditions.The government continued an investigation of a prisonwarden who was arrested and jailed in February 2007for facilitating trafficking activities. The governmentreported improvements in anti-trafficking cooperationwith some governments during the reporting period.Lack of cooperation with other source countries, however,hampered the government’s ability to investigate andprosecute some traffickers.ProtectionThe government’s overall protection efforts for victimsof trafficking did not improve during the reportingperiod. Turkey failed to provide adequate direct fundingfor its two trafficking shelters and the overall numberof trafficking victims identified dropped for a secondconsecutive year. In June 2008, Istanbul’s municipalgovernment suspended the provision of free rent toIstanbul’s shelter, despite a signed protocol betweenthe municipality and the shelter stipulating otherwise.Although the government continues to report that itis focused on finding a long-term financial solution tothis problem, it has yet to commit adequate funding toeither of its shelters in Ankara and Istanbul. However,the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has pledged and begundisbursing approximately $20,000 per year to each shelterfor three years beginning in 2009. Both shelters continueto require perennial outside donor funding. These twoNGO-run shelters provided care to 83 trafficking victims,a decline from 109 in 2007. In 2008, the governmentidentified a total of 118 trafficking victims, a decline from148 in 2007; IOM facilitated the repatriation of 78 ofthese victims.Due to inconsistent implementation of the government’sreferral mechanism, some victims are not identifiedprior to being deported. Gaps in the referral process alsoresulted in some victims not receiving adequate careand assistance after providing information about theirtraffickers to law enforcement. While the governmentencouraged victims to participate in traffickinginvestigations and prosecutions, very few traffickingvictims choose to testify in court cases against theirtraffickers, possibly because they feared retribution fromtheir traffickers, but also because court proceedings arelengthy. The government also reported that many victimsfrom neighboring source countries request to immediatelyreturn to their country of origin. During the reportingperiod, the government passed a general witnessprotection law, which may encourage more traffickingvictims to testify against their traffickers. The governmentoffers victims legal alternatives to their removal tocountries where they would face retribution or hardship.Foreign victims may apply for humanitarian visas andremain in Turkey up to six months with the option toextend for an additional six months. Few such visas areissued, however; the government issued only two in 2008.PreventionThe government sustained its anti-trafficking preventionefforts during the reporting period. The government’sinteragency task force met more frequently in 2008and assumed a stronger role in coordinating theTURKEY287

TURKMENISTANgovernment’s anti-trafficking efforts. In 2008, thegovernment published its second annual report oncombating human trafficking and, with EU and IOMsupport, planned and supported via state TV and otherfree advertising, a campaign aimed at raising awarenessof the national anti-trafficking (“157”) hotline. However,it failed to adopt a new National Action Plan; the planhas awaited formal adoption for over a year. Althoughthe government signaled in 2007 that it would take overfunding and operation of the “157” hotline from IOM,it has yet to do so. The Turkish government providedanti-trafficking training to its military personnel priorto their deployment aboard for peacekeeping duties. Thegovernment did not report any measurable steps to reducedemand for commercial sex acts during the year.MICRONESIA (FSM) TIER RANKING BY YEARTURKMENISTAN(Tier 2 Watch List)Turkmenistan is a source country for women traffickedprimarily to Turkey but reportedly also to the UAE,Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and Pakistan for the purposeof commercial sexual exploitation. Men and women aretrafficked to Turkey for the purpose of domestic servitudeand forced labor, specifically in textile sweatshops.The Government of Turkmenistan does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts todo so. Despite these efforts, the government did notpublicly acknowledge trafficking as a problem, undertakesignificant efforts to raise awareness, or assist victims;therefore, Turkmenistan is placed on Tier 2 Watch List.The government did investigate a small number oftrafficking cases during the reporting period. While thegovernment did make significant efforts by adoptingthe “Law on the Battle against Trafficking in Persons”in December 2007, it did not implement the law duringthe reporting period. The law identifies responsibleministries within the government to combat traffickingand requires authorities to develop measures to preventtrafficking, prosecute traffickers, and assist victims. Thegovernment began the process of updating the criminalcode to include penalties for trafficking offenses definedas such in the 2007 trafficking law. All forms of traffickingcurrently are prohibited under existing disparate statutes.THE NETHERLANDS ANTILLES TIER RANKING BY YEARST. VINCENT & GRENADINES TIER RANKING BY YEARTUNISIA TIER RANKING BY YEARTURKMENISTAN TIER RANKING BY YEARRecommendations for Turkmenistan: Implement the2007 Law on the Battle Against Trafficking in Personsby completing revisions to the national criminal code toprescribe penalties for both sex and labor trafficking asdefined in the 2007 Law on the Battle Against Traffickingin Persons; vigorously investigate, prosecute, and convicttrafficking offenders; investigate individual instancesof government officials complicit in the facilitation oftrafficking, provide victim identification, victim referral,and victim sensitivity training for border guards andpolice; provide financial assistance to anti-traffickingorganizations assisting victims; continue to expand andimprove systematic victim identification and referralprocedures; establish safeguards and training proceduresto ensure victims are not punished for acts committed asa direct result of trafficking, such as migration violations;and conduct a trafficking awareness campaign to informthe general public about the dangers of trafficking.ProsecutionThe Government of Turkmenistan demonstratedno significant law enforcement efforts during thereporting period. Turkmenistan’s Law on the Battleagainst Trafficking in Persons, adopted in December2007, prohibits all forms of trafficking, but does notexplicitly prescribe penalties for such crimes. All formsof trafficking currently are prohibited under disparatestatutes, and the criminal code is being amended toprescribe penalties for trafficking under the 2007 law.Statutes under which traffickers may be prosecuted andpunished include those prohibiting pimping, organizinga brothel, the illegal harboring of a person, and theunlawful taking of freedom. In 2008, the governmentinvestigated and prosecuted two cases of traffickingunder non-trafficking statutes. The government providedno information on the number of traffickers convictedor sentenced to time in prison in 2008. The GeneralProsecutor’s Office provided victim identification trainingfor officials on international trafficking. There wereunconfirmed reports that some customs or migrationofficials were notified of cases when women weretrafficked abroad but made no efforts to prevent thetrafficking.ProtectionThe government made no effort to protect or assistvictims during the reporting period. The Governmentof Turkmenistan did not provide medical assistance,counseling, shelter, legal assistance, or rehabilitativeservices to victims of trafficking, nor did it supplyfunding to international organizations or NGOs toprovide services to victims. The 2007 trafficking lawhas provisions for victim care facilities and guaranteesprotection and assistance for victims of trafficking.Twenty victims were assisted by nongovernmentfundedorganizations during the reporting period;the government referred no victims for assistance.Government personnel employ no formal victimidentification procedures. In 2008, at least two victims288

assisted in the investigation and prosecution of traffickingcases. Some law enforcement officers detained andquestioned victims in order to obtain information; therewere no reports of victim imprisonment.PreventionTurkmenistan demonstrated no efforts to raise awarenessduring the reporting period. The government did not fundor conduct any anti-trafficking awareness campaigns in2008. The government monitored the trafficking situationwithin its borders.UGANDA (Tier 2)Uganda is a source and destination country for men,women, and children trafficked for the purposes offorced labor and sexual exploitation. Ugandan childrenare trafficked within the country for forced labor in thefishing, agricultural, and domestic service sectors, aswell as for commercial sexual exploitation; they are alsotrafficked to other East African and European countriesfor the same purposes. Karamojong women and childrenare sold as slaves in cattle markets or by intermediariesand are subsequently forced into domestic servitude,sexual exploitation, cattle herding, and begging. Securitycompanies in Kampala recruit Ugandans to migrate andwork as security guards in Iraq where sometimes theirtravel documents and pay have been withheld as a meansto restrain them and coerce them into continued labor.Pakistani, Indian, and Chinese workers are traffickedto Uganda, and Indian networks traffic Indian childrento the country for sexual exploitation. Children fromthe Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Rwanda,Burundi, Kenya, and Tanzania are trafficked to Ugandafor agricultural labor and commercial sexual exploitation.Until August 2006, the terrorist rebel organization, Lord’sResistance Army (LRA), abducted children and adultsin northern Uganda to serve as soldiers, sex slaves, andporters. At least 711 additional people, mostly children,were abducted by the LRA between December 2007 andJanuary 2009 in the Central African Republic, the DRC,and southern Sudan. Human trafficking of Ugandanchildren for the forcible removal of body parts reportedlyis widespread; so-called witchdoctors seek various bodyparts of live victims for traditional medical concoctionscommonly purchased to heal illness, foster economicadvancement, or hurt enemies.The Government of Uganda does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Despitethese significant overall efforts, the government did notshow progress in prosecuting human trafficking offensesand punishing trafficking offenders. In addition, thegovernment’s provision of protective victim servicesremained weak and sex trafficking victims continued tobe arrested and sometimes punished.Recommendations for Uganda: Increase efforts toprosecute, convict, and punish trafficking offenders;enact and implement the newly passed comprehensiveanti-trafficking legislation; investigate and punishlabor recruiters responsible for knowingly sendingUgandans into forced labor abroad; and develop furthermechanisms for providing, in partnership with NGOs,protective services to all types of trafficking victims.ProsecutionThe government’s punishment of trafficking offendersdid not improve in 2008; however, extensive training oflaw enforcement officials and the establishment of ananti-trafficking police unit occurred late in the reportingperiod. The government reported no prosecutions orconvictions compared to several trafficking convictionsobtained the previous year. In 2008, the Minister ofInternal Affairs partnered with Uganda’s 102 femaleparliamentarians to advance draft comprehensive antitraffickinglegislation in Parliament. In early April 2009,the Parliament passed the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Actof 2008, which prescribes penalties of 15 years’ to lifeimprisonment; these penalties are sufficiently stringentand commensurate with those prescribed for other gravecrimes. The act will become law 45 days from the dateof passage. In anticipation of the law’s enactment, thegovernment established a five-person anti-traffickingpolice unit within the Ugandan Police Force’s (UPF) Childand Family Protection Unit (CFPU) in January 2009. Lawenforcement officials investigated a number of suspectedtrafficking cases during the reporting period, but didnot secure convictions of any trafficking offenders. Forexample, in November 2008, police in Rakai Districtarrested a Rwandan woman as she attempted to sell a15-year old Rwandan boy. She was remanded to prisonin Kampala; the case is pending before the court.Immigration officials posted at the border rescued 12Tanzanian children from a Tanzanian trafficker who hadpromised to pay their school fees in Uganda.After receiving foreign anti-trafficking training, 27Ugandan instructors from the UPF, ImmigrationDepartment, and Ministry of Gender, Labor, andSocial Development (MGLSD), in turn trained 2,010colleagues in a series of one-day sessions in late 2008.The instructors distributed a UPF-developed 25-pagepocket manual for first responders. The Inspector Generalof Police issued an order requiring all police officers toreceive specialized anti-trafficking training.UGANDA289

UKRAINEProtectionThe Ugandan government showed some efforts tooffer initial protection to children demobilized fromthe ranks of the LRA, including trafficking victims,though it did less to care for victims of other types oftrafficking. Lacking resources to provide direct assistance,it typically referred identified victims to NGOs. Duringthe reporting period, the UPF referred 12 child traffickingvictims to a local NGO’s shelter. The UPF’s January 2009memorandum of understanding with the same NGOallowed for the placement of the NGO’s social workersin the Central Police Station and in stations in twoother districts to assist trafficking victims with legal,medical, and psychological services. The governmentalso repatriated a child trafficking victim to Rwanda andassisted IOM in repatriating two female Ugandan victimsby issuing travel documents. In 2008, the Ugandanmilitary’s Child Protection Unit (CPU) received 60children returning from LRA captivity; the children wereprocessed at transit shelters before being transported toNGO-run rehabilitation centers for longer-term care. Thegovernment provided each child with non-food items andapproximately $50 for resettlement. In December 2008,the Governments of Uganda, the DRC, and SouthernSudan launched a joint military operation against theLRA in the DRC’s territory, enabling the rescue of 346people, including 127 children; as of this Report’s writing,10 Ugandan children were transferred to a rehabilitationcenter in northern Uganda. The government continuedto remove Karamojong children in possible traffickingsituations from the streets of Kampala and transferredthem to two shelters in Karamoja. Local governmentsalso convened child labor committees that institutedlocal bylaws against child labor, monitored the workingconditions of children, and counseled parents whosechildren were not in school. The government does nothave a formal system to identify victims among high riskgroups and potential victims are sometimes prosecutedfor immigration or prostitution violations. The Ministerof Internal Affairs possesses the authority to allow foreignvictims to remain in Uganda to assist with investigations,but this authority was not used and most potentialvictims were quickly deported to their country of origin.The government encouraged victims of sex trafficking totestify against their exploiters.PreventionThe government sustained its efforts to prevent humantrafficking through increased public awareness effortsduring the year. The Parliamentary Committee onDefense and Internal Affairs conducted extensiveand well-publicized hearings on the draft Bill for theProhibition of Trafficking in Persons. In December2008 and January 2009, the Ugandan People’s DefenseForce (UPDF) airdropped flyers to LRA abductees ineastern DRC directing them to locations for rescue. Thegovernment also continued its use of local languageradio spots to persuade abducted children and theircaptors to surrender. In February 2009, the governmentestablished a 15-member inter-ministerial anti-traffickingtask force comprised of police, immigration, and MGLSDofficials. The police announced the availability of a newhotline to report trafficking cases in the same month.Joint government-NGO efforts to reduce the demand forcommercial sex acts included a billboard campaign inUganda’s major cities discouraging “sugar daddies,” andarrests of men found procuring females in prostitution ondisorderly conduct charges. The government provided twoUgandan battalions being deployed to the African UnionMission in Somalia with training on human traffickingfrom the UPDF’s Human Rights Desk and CPU personnel.Ugandan forces deployed to the DRC in December 2008received refresher briefings on the treatment of childrenabducted by the LRA; each deployed unit contained twoto five child protection officers. Uganda has not ratifiedthe 2000 UN TIP Protocol.UKRAINE (Tier 2 Watch List)Ukraine is a source, transit and, to a lesser extent,destination country for men, women, and childrentrafficked for the purposes of commercial sexualexploitation and forced labor. Forty-eight percent of thetrafficking victims assisted by IOM and its local NGOpartners in Ukraine in 2008 suffered sexual exploitation;three percent had been forced to beg; and 49 percentsuffered other forms of forced labor. Ukrainian victimsare trafficked to Russia, Poland, Turkey, Italy, Austria,Spain, Germany, Portugal, the Czech Republic, UnitedArab Emirates, United Kingdom, Israel, Greece, Lebanon,Benin, Tunisia, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina,Hungary, Slovakia, Syria, Switzerland, the United States,Canada and Belarus. Women were forced into the sexindustry, or forced to work as housekeepers, in serviceindustries, or in textile or light manufacturing. Themajority of Ukrainian male labor trafficking victims wereexploited in Russia but also in other countries, primarilyas construction laborers, factory and agriculture workers,or sailors. There were three instances in which maleswere forced to take part in criminal activities, such asdismantling stolen cars for parts to be sold on the blackmarket. Children were most often trafficked for sexualexploitation or forced begging. Ukraine continues to be acountry of transit for trafficking victims from Central Asiaand Russia. Victims were trafficked within Ukraine forthe purpose of labor exploitation in the agriculture andservice sectors, sexual exploitation, and begging. In 2008,IOM reported one male from Belarus was trafficked toUkraine for the purpose of labor exploitation. Homelesschildren or children in orphanages are particularlyvulnerable to trafficking in Ukraine.The Government of Ukraine does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Despitethese overall efforts, the government did not showevidence of progress in punishing trafficking offenders,addressing the significant complicity of government290

officials, and providing sufficient protection for traffickingvictims; therefore, Ukraine is placed on Tier 2 Watch List.Recommendations for Ukraine: Seek sentences forconvicted trafficking offenders that require them toserve appropriate jail time; take steps to curb traffickingcomplicity by government officials; continue traffickingspecifictraining for prosecutors and judges; increasefunding for victim protection and assistance; developformal systems to guide law enforcement in proactiveidentification of trafficking victims and referral of victimsto available services; take steps to provide specializedprotection and assistance to child trafficking victims; andconsider awareness initiatives targeted at potential clientsof the sex trade and labor trafficking beneficiaries toreduce the demand for human trafficking.ProsecutionThe Government of Ukraine made progress in prosecutinglabor trafficking cases during the reporting period,though these efforts were overshadowed by inadequatepunishments imposed on both sex and labor traffickingoffenders and a lack of effort to address official complicityin human trafficking. The government prohibits allforms of trafficking through Article 149 of its CriminalCode. Penalties prescribed range from three to 15years’ imprisonment, which are sufficiently stringentand commensurate with those prescribed for othergrave crimes. This year, the government prosecuted 80trafficking cases, compared with 95 cases in 2007. Thenumber of labor trafficking prosecutions increased from23 in 2007 to 53 in 2008. The government reported 99convictions in 2008 compared with 128 in 2007. Theaverage prison term imposed on convicted traffickingoffenders was six years; however, only 39 percent ofconvicted traffickers actually served time in jail. Twooffenders who were convicted of the most serious categoryof trafficking crimes were sentenced only to pay fines.In 2008, the General Prosecutor’s Office issued a reportassessing human trafficking trial procedures and callingfor prosecutors to give more serious attention to humantrafficking cases. The Academy of Judges incorporated ahuman trafficking lecture into professional training forjudges and the Ministry of Interior conducted ongoingtraining throughout Ukraine on trafficking awareness forpolice officers. Widespread trafficking-related corruptionof law enforcement officials remained a seriousimpediment to more effective anti-trafficking efforts inUkraine. NGOs reported that corruption was particularlya problem at times involving prosecutors or judges,though the government reported no investigations,prosecutions, or convictions of government officialscomplicit in trafficking.ProtectionUkraine’s protection efforts remained heavily relianton international donor funding during the reportingperiod. While one of the goals of the government’s2007-2010 national anti-trafficking plan was to provideassistance to trafficking victims, the government has notdeveloped a mechanism for referral or sufficient fundingfor assistance. Through donor-sponsored programs andsome government services, foreign and domestic victimsof trafficking in Ukraine received shelter, medical,psychological, legal, and job placement assistance.The government placed child trafficking victims intemporary homeless shelters for children that do notoffer specialized services for trafficking victims. Localgovernments offered sporadic in-kind contributionstoward protection of victims. The government doesnot have a formal system established to proactivelyidentify trafficking victims. While the government hasexpressed a policy of encouraging victims to participatein investigations or prosecutions through a witnessprotection program, in practice the government rarelyemployed this program due to lack of funding or a lackof prosecutors’ understanding of the program. In 2008,IOM, working with its local partners, registered 820victims, including 32 victims of internal trafficking. IOMreported that 295 of these 820 victims participated incriminal proceedings. There were no reports of victimsbeing punished for unlawful acts committed as a directresult of being trafficked, but there were reports thatvictims’ rights were not fully respected during court trials.The government did not provide legal alternatives to theremoval of foreign victims to countries where they mayface hardship or retribution.PreventionThe government made modest progress in preventingtrafficking in persons during the reporting period. In2008, the government spent approximately $34,431for printing and distribution of anti-traffickingawareness materials targeting potential victims. Thegovernment also cooperated with local televisionchannels to broadcast public service announcementsand informational programs aimed at raisingawareness of human trafficking. There were no specificcampaigns targeted at potential clients of the sex tradeor beneficiaries of forced labor. Inadequate funding,lack of performance indicators and other obstaclesimpeded implementation of the government’s nationalanti-trafficking plan in 2008. The Kherson regionalgovernment provided some financial support to alocal awareness campaign. Ministry of Interior policeconducted two operations in 2008 aimed at identifyingand preventing Ukrainians and foreigners participatingUKRAINE291

UNITED ARAB EMIRATESin sex-tourism. Ukraine’s National Academy of Defensecooperated with IOM to conduct five pre-departurecounter trafficking training for Ukrainian troops beingdeployed for international peacekeeping duties in 2008.UNITED ARAB EMIRATES(Tier 2 Watch List)The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is a destination for menand women, predominantly from South and SoutheastAsia, trafficked for the purposes of labor and commercialsexual exploitation. Migrant workers, who comprise morethan 90 percent of the UAE’s private sector workforce,are recruited from India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal,Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Ethiopia, Eritrea, China, and thePhilippines. Women from some of these countries travelwillingly to work as domestic servants or administrativestaff, but some are subjected to conditions indicativeof forced labor, including unlawful withholding ofpassports, restrictions on movement, non-payment ofwages, threats, or physical or sexual abuse. Trafficking ofdomestic workers is facilitated by the fact that the normalprotections provided to workers under UAE labor lawdo not apply to domestic workers, leaving them morevulnerable to abuse. Similarly, men from India, Sri Lanka,Bangladesh, and Pakistan are drawn to the UAE for workin the construction sector, but are often subjected toconditions of involuntary servitude and debt bondage –often by exploitative “agents” in the sending countries– as they struggle to pay off debts for recruitment feesthat sometimes exceed the equivalent of two years’ wages.Some women from Eastern Europe, South East Asia, theFar East, East Africa, Iraq, Iran, and Morocco reportedlyare trafficked to the UAE for commercial sexualexploitation. Some foreign women also are reportedlyrecruited for work as secretaries or hotel workers bythird-country recruiters and coerced into prostitution ordomestic servitude after arriving in the UAE.The vulnerability of some migrant workers to traffickinglikely increased towards the end of the reporting periodas a global economic decline – noted particularly in theconstruction sector, the UAE’s largest single employer offoreign workers – saw many laborers repatriated to theirhome countries where they still owed debts. Unpaidconstruction workers often were defrauded or forced tocontinue working without pay, as they faced threats thatprotests may destroy any chance of recovering wagesowed to them. By the unique nature of their work inhomes, domestic workers were generally isolated from theoutside world making it difficult for them to access help.Restrictive sponsorship laws for foreign domestic workersoften gave employers power to control their movementsand left some of them vulnerable to exploitation.The Government of the United Arab Emirates doesnot fully comply with the minimum standards forthe elimination of trafficking; however, it is makingsignificant, and increasingly public, efforts to do so.Although the government demonstrated sustainedefforts to prosecute and convict sex trafficking offendersduring the year and made modest progress to provideprotections to female trafficking victims, there were nodiscernable anti-trafficking efforts against the forced laborof temporary migrant workers and domestic servants.The UAE historically has not recognized people forcedinto labor as trafficking victims, particularly if they areover the age of 18 and entered the country voluntarily;therefore, the United Arab Emirates is placed on Tier 2Watch List.Recommendations for the UAE: Increase efforts toinvestigate and prosecute human trafficking offenses,particularly those involving labor exploitation, andconvict and punish trafficking offenders, includingrecruitment agents (both locals and non-citizens) andemployers who subject others to forced labor; developand institute formal procedures for law enforcementand Ministry of Labor officials to proactively identifyvictims of trafficking among vulnerable groups such asworkers subjected to labor abuses, those apprehendedfor violations of immigration laws, domestic workerswho have fled their employers, and foreign females inprostitution; improve protection services for victimsof sex trafficking and forced labor, including adequateand accessible shelter space, referral to available legalaid, and credible recourse for obtaining financialrestitution; consider sustaining and expanding the pilotprogram involving recruitment of foreign laborers inkey source countries in order to eliminate recruitmentfraud and other contributing factors to debt bondageand forced labor; ensure trafficking victims are notincarcerated, fined, or otherwise penalized for unlawfulacts committed as a direct result of being trafficked;consider conducting interviews of potential traffickingvictims in safe and non-threatening environmentswith trained counselors (preferably conversant in thevictims’ languages); collaborate with sending countriesof laborers and domestic workers on investigations ofrecruiting agencies that engage in trafficking; and workproactively with NGOs to provide services for victims andeducate both employers and workers on the practices thatconstitute human trafficking, and how to prevent them.ProsecutionThe UAE government made uneven progress in its antitraffickinglaw enforcement efforts over the last year.The prosecutions of at least 20 sex trafficking cases wereinitiated in UAE courts – and six of these resulted inconvictions during the year, with sentences imposed ofthree years’ to life imprisonment. The government didnot prosecute, convict, or punish any labor traffickingoffenders. It did, however, impose fines on companiesthat violated labor laws, though such administrativeresponses are inadequate for labor trafficking crimes. TheUAE prohibits all forms of trafficking under its federal lawNumber 51 of 2006, which prescribes penalties rangingfrom one year’s imprisonment to life imprisonment. These292

penalties are sufficiently stringent and commensuratewith those prescribed for other grave crimes, such asrape. Although this comprehensive law emphasizes labortrafficking offenses, it has not yet been used to prosecutea labor trafficking offense – a major gap in the UAE’santi-trafficking efforts. When victims of potential labortrafficking were identified by law enforcement authorities,criminal investigations were not initiated; instead thecases were often referred to the Ministry of Labor (MOL)to file an administrative complaint. In collaboration withIOM, the government provided anti-trafficking trainingto law enforcement personnel in Dubai and Abu Dhabiduring the reporting period.During the year, a member of a UAE ruling family andsix of her traveling party were arrested and charged by aBelgian court for subjecting at least 17 Asian and MiddleEastern girls into to forced labor as domestic servants.ProtectionThe UAE government showed modest but unevenprogress in its efforts to provide victims of traffickingwith assistance. The government continued operation ofa Dubai shelter largely for female victims of traffickingand abuse and opened a second shelter for femaletrafficking victims in Abu Dhabi in February 2009; theDubai shelter reported assisting 43 trafficking victimssince its September 2007 opening, and the Abu Dhabishelter provided assistance to 35 trafficking victimssince its opening. Administration of the Dubai shelter,however, included several practices harmful to victims’welfare, including detention of victims that the policewanted to hold for use as prosecution witnesses, an overlyrestrictive intake process that prohibited assistance tovictims who did not have appropriate immigration status,and tight restrictions on victims’ movements and accessto persons outside the shelter. Moreover, Dubai police donot consistently ensure that women who enter the UAEvoluntarily to engage in prostitution but later becomevictims of sex trafficking are not penalized for unlawfulacts committed as a direct result of their being trafficked.When the police identify women in prostitution astrafficking victims, however, the victims are encouragedto participate in investigations and prosecutions of theirtraffickers. Victims who agree to testify against theirtraffickers are provided shelter by the government, andsometimes the option of temporary work.Potential victims of labor trafficking – likely the mostprevalent form of trafficking in the UAE – were notoffered shelter or counseling or immigration reliefby the government during the reporting period. Thegovernment regularly referred potential victims, whohad been working in the formal sector, to the MOL tofile complaints through administrative labor resolutionchannels; this did not apply to domestic workers. Unlikeother laborers, domestic workers were not covered byUAE’s labor law and had little recourse to protectionfrom abuse. This administrative remedy is not asufficient deterrent to the serious crime of traffickingfor the purpose of labor exploitation. Several unofficialshelters were in operation, and supported hundredsof female domestic workers who fled their employers– termed “runaways” in the UAE – and who reportedconditions of forced labor at the hands of their employers.The UAE government, however, did not initiate anyreported investigations or prosecutions of forced laboroffenses associated with these victims. Together withthe Government of Mauritania, the UAE governmentclosed the cases of 560 Mauritanian children who hadbeen trafficked to the UAE as camel jockeys in previousyears, and had been removed from their exploitation andrepatriated; the UAE government continued funding aUNICEF program that provides rehabilitation assistanceto these and other repatriated child camel jockeys fromSudan, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. Police and immigrationofficials in Abu Dhabi and Dubai received training onidentification and appropriate care of trafficking victimsduring the year.PreventionThe UAE government made continued efforts toprevent human trafficking over the reporting period.Coordination of all government anti-trafficking effortscontinued through the National Committee to CombatHuman Trafficking, chaired by a coordinator who iscurrently the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs. TheMOL continued to implement a policy designed in partto prevent non-payment of salaries, and possibly debtbondage, by requiring employers of foreign workers topay salaries through an electronic system that could bemonitored. The MOL also embarked on a potentiallypath-breaking pilot initiative with the labor sendinggovernments of the Philippines and India to improvethe transparency and accountability of labor recruitmentfrom these countries and eliminate fraudulentrecruitment practices that have in the past fosteredforced labor and debt bondage; the initiative has yet tobe fully implemented. In January 2009, the governmentlaunched an awareness-raising campaign in UAEairports. During the reporting period, the governmentand many companies in the UAE embarked on a modellabor camp initiative to improve the accommodations ofthe country’s largely unskilled male foreign workforce.Currently standards for accommodation differ acrossthe UAE’s seven emirates, but the MOL has begunconsultations with the ILO to develop federal standardsof accommodation, health, and safety for the country’sUNITED ARAB EMIRATES293

UNITED KINGDOMguest workers, which are likely to prevent conditions thatcontribute to forced labor.UNITED KINGDOM (Tier 1)The United Kingdom (UK) is a significant destination and,to a lesser extent, transit country for women, children,and men trafficked for the purposes of commercial sexualexploitation and forced labor, primarily from EasternEurope, Africa, the Balkans, and Asia (principally China,Vietnam, and Malaysia). Some victims, including UKresidentchildren, are also trafficked within the country.Migrant workers are trafficked to the UK for forced laborin agriculture, construction, food processing, domesticservitude, and food services. Data collected from assistedwomen trafficked for sexual exploitation revealed thatLithuania, Nigeria, and Moldova were the leading sourcesof trafficking victims in the UK in 2008. Unaccompaniedforeign children, including girls from China, weretrafficked for the purposes of sexual exploitation andforced labor. It is estimated that hundreds of youngchildren, mostly from Vietnam and China, are traffickedto the UK and subjected to debt bondage by Vietnameseorganized crime gangs for forced work on cannabisfarms. Media reports and results from law enforcementoperations indicate a large-scale trafficking problem inScotland, involving both women and children for thepurpose of sexual exploitation. Inadequate protectionmeasures for these victims result in their re-traffickingthroughout the UK. London police estimate that 70percent of the 88,000 women involved in prostitution inEngland and Wales are under the control of traffickers.There is anecdotal evidence that some traffickingmay occur, although not on a large scale, in some UKterritories such as Bermuda.The Government of the United Kingdom fully complieswith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking. Over the last year, UK authorities continuedto vigorously investigate and prosecute trafficking andconducted innovative demand reduction and preventioncampaigns. Concerns remain that some victims, includingchildren, are not being adequately identified or receivingadequate protection and assistance.Recommendations for the United Kingdom: Adopt andimplement national procedures for identifying potentialtrafficking victims among vulnerable populations forall forms of trafficking in the UK; expand shelter andassistance capacity to meet the needs of all traffickingvictims, including specialized care for children who havebeen trafficked; establish protection measures specificallyfor foreign unaccompanied minors to prevent theirtrafficking; and ensure repatriation and reintegrationservices for victims to prevent their re-trafficking and revictimization.ProsecutionThe UK Government sustained its aggressive effortsto investigate and prosecute trafficking offenders in2008, doubling its conviction rate from the previousyear. The UK prohibits all forms of trafficking throughits 2004 Sexual Offenses Act and its 2004 Asylumand Immigration Act, which prescribe penalties of amaximum of 14 years’ imprisonment, though the specificpunishments prescribed for sex trafficking are lesssevere than those prescribed for rape. In March 2008,the government completed Pentameter II, a large-scaleoperation aimed at disrupting trafficking networks andrescuing victims, resulting in the identification of 167potential trafficking victims, the arrest of 528 suspectsand over $5 million in assets seized or forfeited. The UKgovernment reported prosecuting 129 ongoing traffickingcases between March 2008 and March 2009. Twenty-threetrafficking offenders were convicted – four of whom wereprosecuted for forced labor offenses – an increase from10 in 2007. Sentences imposed on convicted traffickingoffenders in 2008 ranged from 18 months’ to 14 years’imprisonment, with an average sentence of five years.In one case, a court sentenced six trafficking offendersto a combined total of 52 years for the trafficking of aSlovakian teenager for the purpose of sexual exploitationfrom 2006 until her escape in January 2008.ProtectionThe UK government demonstrated sustained effortsto protect victims of sex trafficking in 2008, but it didnot provide comprehensive or systematic protectionsto trafficked children and victims of forced labor.The government provided significant funding for itsspecialized shelter for sex trafficking victims, allocating$1.95 million for its operation in 2008. Overall, theshelter received 293 referrals, with law enforcementreferring the majority of potential victims. However,due to budget restraints and limited capacity, only 41women were accommodated by the shelter; others wereassisted on an outreach basis with counseling, subsistenceallowances, medical treatment, education and training,and legal support. In addition, some of the victims whowere not accommodated at the shelter did not meet allof the government’s criteria for admission: victims mustbe over 18; involved in prostitution within three monthsof referral; willing to cooperate in the prosecution oftheir traffickers; and must have been trafficked into theUK from abroad. The government provided trainingto front-line responders on victim identification andcontinued to develop nationwide and systematic referralsystem to improve identification for potential traffickingvictims. NGOs and international organizations continue294

to express serious concerns regarding the government’sability to protect children from traffickers in the UK; thegovernment does not provide systematic and specializedvictim care for children who have been trafficked. Manychildren who are trafficked into the UK from Vietnamand China for forced work on cannabis farms disappearafter being placed into foster care by social services –likely returning to their traffickers. Moreover, some ofthese children are prosecuted by the government forcannabis cultivation. While UK government policy isnot to penalize victims for unlawful acts committed asa direct result of being trafficked, some victims continueto be charged and prosecuted for immigration offenses.The UK provides foreign victims with legal alternativesto their removal to countries where they face hardshipor retribution. According to NGOs, however, this processcontinues to be cumbersome and inconsistent for victimsseeking such alternatives. To remedy this, the governmentratified the Council of Europe’s Convention againstTrafficking in December 2008 and agreed to provide a45-day reflection period and renewable one-year residencepermits. The government encourages victims to assist intrafficking investigations and prosecutions.PreventionThe UK government continued to serve as a modelin the region for its emphasis on progressive antitraffickingprevention campaigns. It continued its “BlueBlindfold” awareness campaign, launched in January2008 in 12 major cities in the UK. The governmentmakes its campaign materials available to countries forreplication and dissemination. In May 2008, it pilotedan anti-demand poster campaign in Westminster andNottingham to alert potential clients of prostitutionabout trafficking and off-street prostitution; the campaignalso included online advertisements in local newspapers.In November 2008, it published the results of a six-monthreview which recommended steps to reduce demandfor prostitution. In June 2008, the government revisedits action plan to update progress and to reflect victimprotection developments on ratifying the Council ofEurope Convention. The government continued to fundtargeted prevention projects in key source countriesincluding Bulgaria, Romania, and many countries inAsia. It provided anti-trafficking training to UK nationalsdeployed abroad for international peacekeeping missionsin 2008.URUGUAY (Tier 2)Uruguay is primarily a source and transit country formen, women, and children trafficked for the purposesof commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor.Most victims are women and girls trafficked within thecountry to border and tourist areas for commercial sexualexploitation; some boys are also trafficked for the samepurpose. Occasionally, parents facilitate the exploitationof their children in prostitution, and impoverishedparents in rural areas have turned over their children forforced domestic and agricultural labor. Lured by false joboffers, some Uruguayan women have been trafficked toSpain and Italy for commercial sexual exploitation.The Government of Uruguay does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Duringthe reporting period, the government showed strongprevention efforts and sustained victim services, andopened one criminal investigation under its new antitraffickinglaw. However, vigorous law enforcement effortsagainst trafficking offenders remained lacking.Recommendations for Uruguay: Increase efforts toinvestigate and prosecute trafficking offenses, and convictand punish trafficking offenders; increase efforts toimplement the new anti-trafficking law; expand antitraffickingtraining for judges and law enforcementpersonnel; and increase victim services and protectionefforts.ProsecutionThe Government of Uruguay modestly improved its antitraffickinglaw enforcement efforts during the last year.In early 2008, the government enacted an anti-traffickingstatute as part of a broader immigration reform package.Article 78 of this new law prohibits all forms of traffickingin persons, prescribing penalties of four to 16 years’imprisonment. Article 78 supplements older Uruguayanlaws that prohibit child trafficking, child pornography,and forced labor, which prescribe penalties ranging fromsix months’ to 12 years’ imprisonment. All the abovepenalties are sufficiently stringent and commensuratewith punishments prescribed for other serious crimes.During the reporting period, the government opened onecase under its new anti-trafficking law; two defendantswho allegedly trafficked nearly a dozen women intoforced prostitution in Spain were in prison awaitingtrial at the time of publication. Under older statutes,two female defendants were arrested and charged withpimping of minors in separate cases. In October 2008,the judiciary established two special courts to focus onorganized crime cases, including trafficking in persons.The government increased anti-trafficking trainingfor consular and immigration officials, though NGOsindicate that police and judges remain unfamiliar withUruguayan anti-trafficking laws, particularly outsideMontevideo. Uruguayan law enforcement officialscooperated with counterparts in neighboring Mercosurgovernments and other countries on internationaltrafficking cases. There was no confirmed evidence ofofficial complicity with human trafficking.ProtectionThe Uruguayan government sustained basic victimservices during the year. Child victims of trafficking arereferred to government institutions for care; 14 childtrafficking victims were offered assistance during thereporting period. The government operated sheltersURUGUAY295

UZBEKISTANaccessible to adult female victims of abuse, includingtrafficking victims, and endeavored to provide legal,medical, and psychological care. Adult male traffickingvictims, however, were not eligible for services. While thegovernment provided limited assistance to NGOs workingin the area of trafficking, the availability of victimservices remained uneven across the country, especiallyoutside the capital. The government does not have aformal system for identifying trafficking victims amongvulnerable populations, such as adults in prostitution orundocumented migrants. The government encourages butdoes not force victims to assist in the investigation andprosecution of their traffickers. There were no reports ofvictims being jailed, deported, or otherwise penalizedfor acts committed as a direct result of being trafficked.Uruguayan law does not force the repatriation of anyforeign trafficking victim, and allows trafficking victimsto seek citizenship in Uruguay.PreventionThe Uruguayan government increased its efforts to raisepublic awareness of the dangers of human traffickingand child prostitution during the reporting period,launching a widespread week-long information campaignin October 2008. Government officials spoke publiclyabout human trafficking, conducted media interviews,and distributed 50,000 anti-trafficking leaflets and5,000 posters in tourist areas. Government officials alsoconducted outreach to hotel workers and to others in thebroader tourism sector to raise awareness about childsex tourism and the commercial sexual exploitation ofminors. The government maintained good cooperationwith NGOs, and supported a local organization’s effortsto conduct anti-trafficking outreach among prostitutedwomen. The Ministry of Education continued to includeanti-trafficking material in its high school sex educationcurriculum. Last year the government formed an informalinteragency committee to direct its anti-traffickingefforts, in addition to maintaining a special committeefocusing on the commercial and non-commercial sexualexploitation of children. The government provided antitraffickingtraining to Uruguayan troops being deployedon international peacekeeping missions during the year.In an effort to reduce consumer demand for commercialsex acts, the government prosecuted a small number of“clients” for commercial sexual exploitation of minors.There were no known efforts to address demand for forcedlabor.UZBEKISTAN (Tier 2 Watch List)Uzbekistan is a source country for women and girlstrafficked to the UAE, India, Kazakhstan, Russia, Turkey,Thailand, Malaysia, South Korea, Japan, Indonesia, andIsrael for the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation.Men are trafficked to Kazakhstan and Russia for thepurpose of forced labor in the construction, cotton,and tobacco industries. Men and women are traffickedinternally for the purposes of domestic servitude, forcedlabor, in the agricultural and construction industries, andfor commercial sexual exploitation. Some girls are alsotrafficked internally for the purpose of commercial sexualexploitation. Many school-age children, college students,and faculty are forced to pick cotton during the annualharvest.The Government of Uzbekistan does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts todo so. During the reporting period, Uzbekistan did notmake significant efforts to eliminate the use of forcedlabor of adults and children in the cotton harvest anddid not make efforts to investigate, prosecute, or convictgovernment officials complicit in the use of forced laborduring the harvest; therefore, Uzbekistan is placed onTier 2 Watch List. In September 2008, the governmentamended its criminal code to prohibit forced laborand increased the maximum penalty for trafficking to12 years’ imprisonment. Also, in September 2008, thegovernment adopted a multi-year national action plan oncombating child labor and the Prime Minister issued aformal ban prohibiting the use of child labor during theharvest; both addressed the use of forced child labor. Thegovernment also reported increased efforts to investigate,prosecute, and convict trafficking offenders during thereporting period. While the government again did notprovide financial or in-kind support to the country’s twoNGO-run anti-trafficking shelters, it reported allocating$176,000 of state funds to establish a government-runshelter in Tashkent; construction of the new shelterreportedly began during the reporting period.In 2008, the Government of Uzbekistan maintained itsstrict quota system in which each province in the countryis required to produce a share of the designated nationalcotton yield. Provincial governors were held personallyresponsible for ensuring that the quota was met; thispressure was passed to local officials, some of whomorganized and forced school children, university students,and faculty to pick cotton to ensure the national quotawas met. Uzbek farmers were unable to pay higher wagesto attract a consenting workforce because the governmentpays the farmers below-market value for their cotton.Recommendations for Uzbekistan: Take substantiveaction to end the use of forced labor during the annualcotton harvest; implement the national anti-traffickingaction plan; continue to work with UNICEF andimprove cooperation with ILO to reduce the reliance296

on forced labor during the annual cotton harvest;allow international experts to conduct an independentassessment of the use of forced labor during the annualcotton harvest; investigate, prosecute, convict, andsentence government officials complicit in trafficking;provide financial or in-kind support to anti-traffickingNGOs to provide assistance and shelter for victims; takesteps to establish additional shelters outside of Tashkent;and continue efforts to improve the collection of lawenforcement trafficking data.ProsecutionUzbekistan reported improved law enforcement effortsto combat trafficking in 2008, although the governmentdid not report efforts to address official complicityduring the annual cotton harvest. The newly amendedArticle 135 of the criminal code now prohibits traffickingfor both sexual exploitation and forced labor, andprescribes penalties of three to 12 years’ imprisonment,which are sufficiently stringent and commensurate withpunishments prescribed for other grave crimes, suchas rape. In 2008, law enforcement agencies reportedconducting 900 trafficking investigations involving670 suspects, up from 273 investigations involving 303suspects reported in 2007. Authorities reported securingthe convictions of approximately 400 suspects fortrafficking in 2008, up from 185 in 2007. Approximately300 convicted traffickers were sentenced to some timein prison. During the last year, 177 convicted traffickers,including some convicted in previous years, were grantedamnesty and served a reduced sentence in prison. Thegovernment did not effectively enforce the law prohibitingthe use of forced labor or the formal ban issued by thePrime Minister prohibiting the use of child labor duringthe cotton harvest which also addressed forced childlabor. The government also did not take steps to monitorattendance at schools during the harvest to ensurestudents were not forced to work in the fields.Some reports of government officials involved intrafficking-related bribery and fraud continued;allegations included the fraudulent issuance of exit visasand individual police officers accepting bribes fromtraffickers. In 2008, the government reported that twohigh-level police officials were prosecuted, convicted,and each sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment fortrafficking Uzbek nationals to Russia. The governmentdid not investigate or prosecute any government officialsfor their involvement in organizing and compelling manyschoolchildren and university students as well as somefaculty to work in the fields during the annual cottonharvest.ProtectionIn accordance with new 2008 legislation, the governmenttook steps to improve assistance and protection forvictims of trafficking, though the Government ofUzbekistan did not provide financial or in-kind assistanceto the two foreign-funded and NGO-run shelters inthe country and all comprehensive victim assistancewas provided by foreign-funded NGOs during thereporting period. In late 2008, the national governmentreportedly allocated funding from the state budget toestablish an anti-trafficking shelter in Tashkent. Localobservers described a need for additional traffickingshelters in Karakalpakstan and Ferghana Valley. Thegovernment identified 2,941 victims in 2008; NGOsassisted 342 victims during the reporting period. The2008 comprehensive anti-trafficking law and the 2008anti-trafficking national action plan both mandate thatvictims receive immediate and long-term assistance.In 2008, the government reported assisting victimsthrough existing non-trafficking social service structuresincluding medical assistance for 164 trafficking victims,psychological help for 123 victims, access to legal counselfor 149 victims, vocational retraining courses for 32victims, direct employment for 47 victims, and othersocial assistance such as housing for 92 victims. Thegovernment did not employ formal procedures to identifyor refer victims of trafficking for assistance.Some victims assisted law enforcement in traffickinginvestigations in 2008; however, many victims were stillafraid to provide testimony or information out of culturalshame or fear of retribution by their traffickers, and thegovernment did not have a witness protection program forvictims who assisted law enforcement. The governmentreported that identified repatriated victims of traffickingwere not punished for acts committed as a direct result ofbeing trafficked; however, victims were required to signdocumentation confessing to their illegal departure fromUzbekistan.PreventionThe government demonstrated awareness efforts in 2008.State-run print, television, and radio media significantlyincreased its coverage of trafficking from the previousyear; efforts included television broadcasts of traffickingthemedfilms, radio service announcements, billboardsthroughout the country, and a state-financed productionof a theater show about trafficking. In July 2008, thegovernment adopted its first anti-trafficking nationalaction plan which established the national inter-agencytrafficking commission. The government-run media alsofocused attention on the amendments and subsequentenforcement of the criminal code which strengthenedpenalties and criminalized forced labor. However, theUZBEKISTAN297

VENEZUELAUzbek government made limited efforts to prevent the useof forced labor during the annual cotton harvest by somelocal officials.VENEZUELA (Tier 2 Watch List)Venezuela is a source, transit, and destination country formen, women, and children trafficked for the purposesof commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor.Venezuelan women and girls are trafficked within thecountry for commercial sexual exploitation, lured frompoor interior regions to urban and tourist areas such asCaracas and Margarita Island. Victims are often recruitedthrough false job offers, and subsequently coerced intoprostitution. Some Venezuelan children are forced towork as street beggars or as domestic servants. Venezuelanwomen and girls are trafficked transnationally forcommercial sexual exploitation to Mexico, in additionto Caribbean destinations such as Trinidad andTobago, the Netherlands Antilles, and the DominicanRepublic. A common trafficking route is for victims totransit Curacao en route to The Netherlands and othercountries in Western Europe. Men, women, and childrenfrom Colombia, Peru, Ecuador, Brazil, the DominicanRepublic, and Asian nations such as China are traffickedto and through Venezuela, and may be subjected tocommercial sexual exploitation and forced labor. A morerecent trend appears to be increased human traffickingactivity in Venezuela’s Orinoco River Basin area andborder regions of Tachira State, where political violenceand infiltration by armed rebel groups are common.The Government of Venezuela does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Despitethese overall significant efforts, the government did notshow evidence of progress in convicting and sentencingtrafficking offenders and providing adequate assistanceto victims; therefore, Venezuela is placed on Tier 2 WatchList.Recommendations for Venezuela: Amend existing lawsto prohibit and adequately punish all forms of traffickingin persons, particularly the internal trafficking of menand boys; intensify efforts to investigate and prosecutetrafficking offenses, and convict and punish traffickingoffenders; investigate reports of trafficking complicity bypublic officials; provide greater assistance and servicesto trafficking victims; consider designating a coordinatorto lead the government’s anti-trafficking efforts; andimprove data collection for trafficking crimes.ProsecutionThe Government of Venezuela made limited antitraffickinglaw enforcement efforts over the last year,though Venezuelan law prohibits most forms of humantrafficking. In 2007, the government enacted theOrganic Law on the Right of Women to a Violence-FreeLife. Article 56 of this recently enacted law prohibitsthe trafficking of women and girls for the purposesof sexual exploitation, forced labor, slavery, irregularadoption, or organ extraction, prescribing punishmentsof 15 to 20 years’ imprisonment. Articles 46 and 47prohibit forced prostitution and sexual slavery, andcarry penalties of 15 to 20 years’ imprisonment. Theseanti-trafficking provisions, however, do not address theinternal trafficking of adult males or boys. Article 16 ofthe Organic Law Against Organized Crime, enacted in2005, prohibits trafficking across international bordersfor labor or sexual exploitation, and prescribes penaltiesof 10 to 18 years’ imprisonment. The above penaltiesare sufficiently stringent, and commensurate with thosefor other serious crimes, such as rape. Prosecutors alsocan use Venezuela’s Child Protection Act and variousarticles of the penal code to prosecute the internaltrafficking of children, though many of these statutescarry extremely low penalties – typically a maximum ofthree months in jail or fines. Despite existing legal toolsfor punishing many forms of human trafficking, theVenezuelan government did not report any convictions orsentences of trafficking offenders in 2008. However, thegovernment opened six investigations of transnationalsex trafficking, one investigation of transnational labortrafficking, and one investigation of suspected internaltrafficking. International organizations indicated that thegovernment cooperated with INTERPOL on transnationaltrafficking cases, and increased screening for potentialtrafficking crimes at airports and borders. There wereno confirmed reports of government complicity withhuman trafficking in 2008, though corruption amongpublic officials, particularly related to the issuance offalse identity documents, appeared to be widespread.Moreover, many Venezuelan law enforcement officialsreportedly did not distinguish between human traffickingand alien smuggling offenses.ProtectionThe government sustained limited efforts to assisttrafficking victims during the reporting period. Thegovernment did not operate shelters accessible to ordedicated for trafficking victims, relying on NGOsand international organizations to provide the bulk ofvictim assistance. The government operated a national24-hour hotline through which it received traffickingcomplaints, and directed trafficking victims to NGOsfor care. Government-provided psychological andmedical examinations were available for traffickingvictims, but additional victim services such as follow-298

up medical aid, legal assistance with filing a complaint,job training, and reintegration assistance remainedlacking. The government reportedly increased, however,the availability of psychological services for traffickingvictims during the past year. Police reported that mosttrafficking victims were reluctant to testify in courtagainst their traffickers because of long court delays andfear of reprisals. According to NGOs, the government didnot have a formal mechanism for identifying traffickingvictims among vulnerable populations, such as women inprostitution. There were no reports of victims being jailedor penalized for unlawful acts committed as a directresult of being trafficked. The government reportedlyhad a policy of providing refugee status or other legalprotections for foreign victims who faced retribution ifreturned to their country of origin. The government alsoassisted with the repatriation of 28 Chinese nationals whohad been subjected to labor trafficking last year.PreventionThe Venezuelan government increased its efforts toprevent human trafficking over the year by providingsome funding to NGOs for education activities,conducting widespread public awareness campaignsabout the dangers of human trafficking, and continuinganti-trafficking training for government officials. Thegovernment advertised its hotline number, aired publicservice announcements, and widely distributed materialsagainst commercial sexual exploitation, forced labor,and child sex tourism. The government collaborated withNGOs and international organizations on other antitraffickingefforts, but relations with these organizationswere reportedly mixed. Moreover, high turnover ofgovernment personnel, particularly lack of an antitraffickingcoordinator, appears to have hampered thegovernment’s anti-trafficking progress. While manygovernment officials acknowledge that human traffickingis a problem in the country, some tended to view thenation as principally a transit point, demonstrating lessrecognition of internal trafficking concerns, such aschildren trafficked for commercial sexual exploitation. Nospecific activities to reduce demand for commercial sexacts or forced labor were reported.VIETNAM (Tier 2)Vietnam is a source and destination country for men,women, and children trafficked for forced labor andcommercial sexual exploitation. Women and childrenare trafficked to the People’s Republic of China (PRC),Cambodia, Thailand, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia,Indonesia, Taiwan, and Macau for sexual exploitation.Vietnam is a source country for men and women whomigrate for work through informal networks and throughstate-owned and private labor export companies inthe construction, fishing, or manufacturing sectors inMalaysia, Taiwan, South Korea, the PRC, Japan, Thailand,Indonesia, Western Europe, and the Middle East, butsubsequently face conditions of forced labor or debtbondage. Labor export companies may charge workersas much as $10,000 for the opportunity to work abroad,making them highly vulnerable to debt bondage. Thereare reports of Vietnamese children trafficked to the UKby Vietnamese organized crime gangs for forced laboron cannabis farms, and Vietnamese boys trafficked toChina for forced labor in agriculture and factory settings.Traffickers are often residents or former residents of thevictims’ communities. Some Vietnamese women going tothe PRC, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau, and increasingly tothe Republic of Korea for arranged marriages were victimsof trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitationor forced labor. There were reports of women fromHo Chi Minh City and the Mekong Delta forced intoprostitution after marrying overseas, as well as reportsof ethnic Hmong girls and women lured to or abductedand transported to southern China and subsequentlysold into marriage. Vietnam is a destination country forCambodian children trafficked to urban centers for forcedlabor or commercial sexual exploitation. Vietnameseand Cambodian children from rural areas are traffickedto Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi for forced begging orthe selling of flowers and lottery tickets, often part oforganized crime rings. Vietnam has a significant internaltrafficking problem with women and children from ruralareas trafficked to urban centers for commercial sexualexploitation and forced labor. Vietnam is increasingly adestination for child sex tourism, with perpetrators fromJapan, the Republic of Korea, the PRC, Taiwan, the UK,Australia, Europe, and the United States.The Government of Vietnam does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking; however, it is making significant efforts todo so. While the government continued to prosecute sextrafficking offenders and made some efforts to protectvictims of trafficking, it did not make sufficient effortsto criminally prosecute offenders of labor trafficking, orto protect victims of labor trafficking. While recent lawsprovide some recourse to victims of labor trafficking,bureaucratic inertia and a lack of resources for victimsmake this recourse difficult for trafficking victims topursue. Although it took steps to combat cross-border sextrafficking by expanding investigations and prosecutionsof traffickers, the Vietnamese government has not yetfocused adequately on internal trafficking and needsto make more progress in the areas of law enforcement,victim protection, and prevention of labor traffickingand internal trafficking. The government’s initiatives toincrease labor exports have not been complemented byadequate efforts to prevent labor trafficking and protectworkers going abroad.Recommendations for Vietnam: Institute criminalpenalties for recruitment agencies and others involved inlabor trafficking; criminally prosecute those involved infraudulent labor recruitment or exploitation of labor; takesteps to protect Vietnamese migrant workers from beingsubjected to practices that contribute to forced labor,VIETNAM299

VIETNAMsuch as the withholding of travel documents; ensurethat state-licensed recruitment agencies do not engagein fraud or charge illegal “commissions” for overseasemployment; extend proactive procedures to identifyvictims of internal trafficking and labor traffickingamong vulnerable groups, such as repatriated Vietnamesemigrant laborers; take measures to ensure that victims oflabor trafficking are not threatened or otherwise punishedfor protesting or leaving an exploitative labor situation inVietnam or abroad; assist Vietnamese workers returningfrom abroad in the resolution of labor contract disputes;and implement and support a visible anti-traffickingawareness campaign directed at clients of the sex trade.ProsecutionThe Vietnamese government demonstrated increasedlaw enforcement efforts to combat trafficking in personsfor transnational sex trafficking, though it did not takeadequate steps to combat labor trafficking. While statutesin the Penal Code prohibit trafficking, existing laws donot adequately cover all forms of trafficking, includinglabor trafficking and the recruiting and harboringof trafficking victims. The majority of traffickers areprosecuted under Articles 119 and 120 of the Penal Code,which can be used against some forms of trafficking forsexual and labor exploitation, but can also be used toprosecute a variety of related crimes. In October 2008,the government submitted proposed amendments toArticles 119 and 120 of the Penal Code to include thetrafficking of men over the age of 16. Labor laws do notprovide criminal penalties for labor trafficking. Contractdisputes between workers and the Vietnam-based exportlabor recruiting company or the employing companyoverseas are left almost entirely to the export laborrecruiting company. Workers must bring their cases tocourt if they feel they have been unjustly treated by theexport labor recruiting company, though in practice, fewhave the resources to do so. Despite several reported casesof forced labor and debt bondage of Vietnamese workersabroad, the government did not report any investigations,prosecutions, or convictions of offenders of labortrafficking during the reporting period. The Ministry ofLabor, War Invalids, and Social Affairs (MOLISA) reportedthat while some labor recruitment companies were finedor had activities restricted due to various violations,none had their licenses revoked for violations of the law.Vietnam’s National Steering Committee on traffickingin persons reported that in 2008, police investigated330 cases and convicted 424 individuals for violationsof Articles 119 and 120 of the Vietnamese Penal Code,which includes some forms of trafficking for sexual andlabor exploitation, as well as a variety of related crimes.Trafficking-related corruption occurred at the local level,where officials at border crossings and checkpoints takebribes to look the other way, though the government didnot report any investigations or prosecutions of officialsfor trafficking-related complicity.ProtectionThe Vietnamese government demonstrated some effortsat protecting cross-border sex trafficking victims in 2008.While the government took action to further protectworkers by implementing the labor export assistance fundand providing stricter regulations on brokerage fees forlabor export it does not provide adequate legal protectionor assistance to the estimated 500,000 Vietnameseworkers abroad from conditions of forced labor anddebt bondage. Agreements signed with governments oflabor-demand countries did not appear to have adequateprovisions to prevent human trafficking and protectvictims of trafficking from conditions of forced laborand debt bondage. Although the government says thepractice of passport confiscation is unacceptable, MOLISAauthorized recruitment companies to illegally withholdworkers’ travel documents during the reporting period;Vietnamese embassies abroad reportedly do issue traveldocuments when employers refuse to return them. TheVietnam Women’s Union (VWU), with the assistanceof NGOs, continued to run four shelters which providepsycho-social counseling and vocational training forfemale victims of sex trafficking. There are no sheltersdesignated specifically for victims of labor trafficking;however, these victims have access to the same “socialprotection centers” that many female sex traffickingvictims can turn to for assistance. Sex trafficking victimswere encouraged to assist in the investigation andprosecution process, but there was no data on the numberof victims involved in prosecutions during the reportingperiod. Repatriated Vietnamese trafficking victims werenot penalized for unlawful acts committed as a directresult of being trafficked. In March 2009, Vietnameseofficials repatriated a Vietnamese minor identified inLaos as a sex trafficking victim before she could accessnecessary medical treatment in Laos. The governmentestablished some procedures to identify cross-bordersex trafficking victims and trained 150 officials onthe procedures with assistance from an internationalorganization, but has not yet developed a comprehensivesystem to identify victims of internal trafficking or labortrafficking from among vulnerable groups. Since May2008, the government reported that it officially identified410 victims, compared to 450 for all of 2007. In May2008, the government, with NGO assistance, establishedprocedures for referring victims to appropriate care, andbegan to implement the referral system for women andgirls identified as trafficking victims. The governmentdoes not exhibit adequate efforts to identify trafficking300

victims among women arrested for prostitution; as aresult, sex trafficking victims may be vulnerable to beingpenalized for acts committed as a direct result of beingtrafficked.In February 2008, a group of 176 Vietnamese womenrecruited by Vietnamese state-owned labor agencies forwork in Jordan were allegedly subjected to conditions offraudulent recruitment, contract switching, debt bondage,unlawful confiscation of travel documents, confinement,and manipulation of employment terms – all indicationsof possible trafficking for forced labor. These conditionsled to a worker strike, and subsequently altercationsamong workers and with the Jordanian police. TheMinistry of Foreign Affairs sent an inter-ministerialteam to Jordan to address the situation and attempt toconvince the workers to go back to work. Some reportsstated that the workers faced threats of retaliation byVietnamese government officials and employment agencyrepresentatives if they did not return to work. Severalworkers reported that officials attempted to intimidatethem and refused workers’ requests to intervene to gettheir back pay and pressure the employer to honor theircontracts. After labor negotiations failed, the Vietnamesegovernment repatriated 157 of the workers; the other19 workers elected to stay in Jordan. Although thegovernment fined the three state-owned labor companiesinvolved and restricted them from sending workers toJordan in the future, it did not criminally prosecutelabor agency officials for trafficking-related offenses.The government does not consider the workers possiblevictims of trafficking and has not assisted the repatriatedworkers in retrieving their back pay or recruitmentfees. In another reported case of labor trafficking, fourVietnamese women were recruited by a state-ownedrecruitment company to work as domestic workers inMalaysia. The workers report that their passports andcontracts were confiscated upon arrival, and the womenwere imprisoned in their employers’ home where theywere forced to work 18 hours a day with no pay. Thewomen were able to escape and return to Vietnam, butthe government reportedly did not assist the victimsin obtaining compensation for their unpaid work inMalaysia and the high recruitment fees they reportedlypaid.PreventionThe Vietnamese government continued efforts to preventtrafficking through public awareness. The VWU and theVietnam Youth Union continued to conduct nationwideanti-trafficking public awareness campaigns. The VWUalso continued to cooperate with its South Koreancounterpart in a program of pre-marriage counselingcenters in Vietnam, in an effort to prevent traffickingthrough international marriages of Vietnamese women.In March 2008, the Vietnamese government signedan anti-trafficking Memorandum of Understanding(MOU) with the Government of Thailand, thoughsome NGOs question the feasibility of the agreement’simplementation. Despite Vietnam’s efforts to engagein dialogue and enhance law enforcement cooperationwith Malaysia and other Asian destination countries forVietnamese trafficking victims, regional cooperationremains a challenge. The government recognizesthat Vietnam is becoming an increasingly attractivedestination for international child sex tourism. Vietnamworks with foreign governments where foreign pedophilesare wanted for child sex tourism, though it declinedto share information on cases handled. There were nomeasures undertaken by the government to reducedemand for commercial sex acts. In April 2008, theVietnamese government completed an investigation ofa series of export labor-related fraud cases, 80 percentof which involved Vietnamese laborers recruited byunlicensed brokers to go to the Republic of Korea. Reportsindicate that over 100 perpetrators were convicted for atleast 70 cases of fraud involving 3,000 victims of fraud inthe 2006-2007 timeframe. Vietnam has not ratified the2000 UN TIP Protocol.YEMEN (Tier 2 Watch List)Yemen is a country of origin and, to a much lesserextent, transit and destination country for women andchildren trafficked for the purposes of forced labor andsexual exploitation. Yemeni children, mostly boys, aretrafficked across the northern border with Saudi Arabia orto the Yemeni cities of Aden and Sana’a for forced labor,primarily as beggars, but also for domestic servitude orwork in small shops. Some of these children are subjectedto commercial sexual exploitation in transit or once theyarrive in Saudi Arabia. To a lesser extent, Yemen is alsoa source country for girls trafficked internally and toSaudi Arabia for commercial sexual exploitation. Girls asyoung as 15 years old are exploited for commercial sex inhotels, casinos, and bars in the governorates of Mahweet,Aden, and Taiz. The majority of child sex tourists inYemen originate from Saudi Arabia, with a smallernumber possibly coming from other Gulf nations. Yemenigirls who marry Saudi tourists often do not realize thetemporary and exploitative nature of these agreementsand some are forced into prostitution or abandonedon the streets after reaching Saudi Arabia. Yemen is atransit and destination country for women and childrentrafficked from Ethiopia and Somalia for the purpose ofdomestic servitude; female Somali refugees are reportedlytrafficked by Somali men into prostitution in Aden andLahj governorates and Yemeni gangs traffic Africanchildren to Saudi Arabia.The Government of Yemen does not fully comply with theminimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Despitethese significant efforts, the Yemeni government did notshow evidence of progress in prosecuting and punishingtrafficking offenders or in preventing sex traffickingover the last year; therefore, Yemen is placed on Tier2 Watch List. The government reported no traffickinginvestigations, prosecutions, or convictions during thereporting period, and took no steps to address traffickingYEMEN301

YEMENfor commercial sexual exploitation. It continued,however, to provide protection and reunification servicesto child victims repatriated from Saudi Arabia andmade notable strides in raising awareness of child labortrafficking.Recommendations for Yemen: Take law enforcementaction against human trafficking; improve protectionservices available to victims of trafficking for commercialsexual exploitation; and institute a formal victimidentification mechanism to identify and refer victims toprotection services.ProsecutionThough the provision of anti-trafficking training to lawenforcement officials increased over the reporting period,the Government of Yemen made no discernable efforts toprosecute or punish trafficking offenders, in contrast tosix trafficking convictions obtained during the precedingreporting period. Article 248 of the penal code prescribes10 years’ imprisonment for anyone who “buys, sells, orgives as a present, or deals in human beings; and anyonewho brings into the country or exports from it a humanbeing with the intent of taking advantage of him.” Thisprescribed penalty is commensurate with that for othergrave crimes, such as rape. Article 161 of the ChildRights Law specifically criminalizes the prostitution ofchildren. Yemen’s Parliament considered draft legislationcriminalizing child trafficking during the reportingperiod. Law enforcement officials reportedly toleratedinternal trafficking in girls and women for the purposeof commercial sexual exploitation, making no knownattempts to intervene during 2008. In February 2009,however, Haradh police arrested a Yemeni man and aSaudi national in connection with an illegal marriageof a Yemeni girl to a Saudi tourist; this is the first penalaction taken by the government against “temporarymarriages,” which may constitute child trafficking. In thesame month, a sting operation conducted by the Ministryof Interior resulted in the arrest of four individuals inHarath who were attempting to traffic 13 children toSaudi Arabia. In addition, in February 2009, the Ministryof Justice permanently removed a judge who approveda contract for the sale of a 26-year old slave. During theyear, the Ministry of Interior trained 5,000 police officersand border guards in the northern governorates, wherechild trafficking is most prevalent, on recognition andprevention of trafficking.ProtectionThe government made limited progress in protectingvictims over the last year, and remained reluctantto acknowledge trafficking for commercial sexualexploitation. In partnership with UNICEF and a localNGO, the government continued operation of tworeception centers in Sana’a and Harath to rehabilitatechild labor trafficking victims deported from SaudiArabia. These facilities received 583 children duringthe reporting period – two of whom had been sexuallyexploited – and provided them with approximately twomonths of food, counseling, limited medical care, andfamily reunification services. Through contributionsof facilities, buses, and educational materials, thegovernment also supported three NGO-run rehabilitationcenters for child laborers in Sana’a, Sayun, and Aden,which provided food, basic health services, andvocational training; the centers are jointly funded bythe government and ILO-IPEC. The government-run al-Thawra Hospital in Sana’a provided free medical care fortrafficked children and child laborers. The government,however, did not provide protection services for internalsex trafficking victims or adult victims of trafficking, andonly assisted foreign victims by referring their cases toforeign missions in Yemen. For example, a Sudanese boydeported from Saudi Arabia to Sana’a in 2008 was turnedover to the Embassy of Sudan for repatriation.Child labor violations in Yemen, including forced childlabor, were rarely reported, investigated, or prosecutedin major urban areas; investigations were nonexistent inmore remote regions. Twenty child labor investigatorsunder the authority of the Ministry of Social Affairs andLabor (MOSAL) Child Labor Unit each received only a $15monthly allowance to conduct regional travel and inspectfarms, fisheries, and factories in Aden, Sana’a, and Sayun,limiting their effectiveness in counteracting child labortrafficking. Child labor trafficking victims were not jailedin Yemen in 2008. However, the government did notdifferentiate between voluntary and forced prostitution,and punished persons engaged in the commercial sextrade, including children. The government did notemploy procedures for proactively identifying victimsof sex trafficking among high-risk groups and lackeda formalized victim referral process. It was not knownwhether the government encouraged victims to assistin investigations against their traffickers. There were nolegal alternatives to the removal of foreign traffickingvictims to countries in which they may face hardship orretribution.PreventionYemen made progress in preventing child labor traffickingduring the reporting period, particularly by conductingfar-reaching awareness campaigns and training programs,but did little to combat trafficking for sexual exploitation.MOSAL trained 1,560 local leaders – sheikhs, teachers,and government officials – in 2008 in the northern bordergovernorates and other key areas with known child labortrafficking problems. Through lectures at taxi stands,302

MOSAL officials also trained 650 taxi and small busdrivers in Hudeidah, Hajja, Saada, and Sana’a to recognizesigns of trafficking and identify children being traffickedfor labor purposes. MOSAL also distributed 3,000anti-trafficking posters and 5,000 stickers throughoutthe country. The Ministry of Information produced andbroadcast public service announcements on child laboron 60 radio stations and five television stations in urbancenters across Yemen in 2008. In cooperation with alocal NGO, the government also organized a Children’sParliament that met three times in 2008 to hear testimonyfrom and question government officials on child laborand trafficking. In August 2008, the government approveda three-year National Action Plan to combat child laborand sex trafficking. A Technical Committee coordinatesthe government’s efforts to combat child traffickingand met quarterly in 2008. Throughout the year,government officials continued to press – without success– counterparts in Saudi Arabia to sign a memorandumof understanding to increase joint cooperation onhuman trafficking. The government, however, did nottake any significant measures during the reportingperiod to reduce the demand for commercial sex acts oraddress the problem of child sex tourism. Informationwas unavailable regarding measures, if any, adoptedby the government to ensure its nationals deployed topeacekeeping missions do not facilitate or engage inhuman trafficking. Yemen has not ratified the 2000 UNTIP Protocol.however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Duringthe reporting period, the government made strongefforts to increase and improve law enforcement effortsagainst trafficking offenders, to raise public awarenessof trafficking, and address demand. Services for victims,however, remained inadequate and the new antitraffickinglaw has yet to be enforced.Recommendations for Zambia: Continue to train police,immigration, and court officers on implementationof the new trafficking law; formalize and implementvictim identification and referral procedures; improvegovernment services for human trafficking victimsas provided for in the new law; increase anti-humantrafficking awareness, particularly among governmentlabor officials; and monitor the employment and laborrecruiting agencies and hold labor recruiters accountablefor fraudulent recruitment practices that contribute toforced labor.ZAMBIAZAMBIA (Tier 2)Zambia is a source, transit, and destination country forwomen and children trafficked for the purposes of forcedlabor and sexual exploitation. Child victims, primarilytrafficked within the country for labor and sexualexploitation, tend to be female, adolescent, and orphaned.In exchange for money or gifts, relatives or acquaintancesoften facilitate the trafficking of a child to an urbancenter for prostitution. Children are sometimes traffickedas a consequence of soliciting help from strangerssuch as truck drivers. Many Zambian child laborers,particularly those in the agriculture, domestic service,and fishing sectors, are also victims of human trafficking.Traffickers most often operate through ad hoc, flexiblenetworks of relatives, truck drivers, business people,cross-border traders, and religious leaders. Organizedrings offer Zambian women false job or marriage offers,then traffic them to South Africa via Zimbabwe forsexual exploitation, or to Europe via Malawi. Zambia’sgeographic location, porous borders, and lax immigrationenforcement make it a nexus for transnational traffickingfrom the Great Lakes region and Congo to South Africafor agricultural labor. Adults and children from Malawiand Mozambique are occasionally trafficked to Zambiafor forced agricultural labor.The Government of Zambia does not fully comply withthe minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;ProsecutionThe Government of Zambia’s anti-trafficking lawenforcement efforts produced concrete results overthe reporting period. Zambia’s president signed thecomprehensive “Anti-Human Trafficking Act of 2008”into law on November 19, 2008. In the months since itsentry into force, no investigations or prosecutions werestarted under its provisions. The new law criminalizesall forms of trafficking. The law prescribes sufficientlystringent penalties for trafficking that are commensuratewith those prescribed for other serious crimes, such asrape; penalties range from 25 years’ to life imprisonment,depending on various circumstances. Two traffickingoffenders were prosecuted and convicted in 2008 underanti-trafficking provisions in earlier laws. In April, theKasama High Court sentenced two men to 20 and 25years’ imprisonment, respectively, for child trafficking.The men were caught in 2006 attempting to sell aneight year-old boy for forced labor. A lack of financialresources, trained personnel, and technical capability,coupled by petty corruption at borders, police stations,and other lower-level government offices, constrain thegovernment’s ability to combat trafficking. With NGOassistance, the Zambian Police Victims’ Support Unitis revising its data collection practices on trafficking toimprove monitoring and reporting. The Zambia LawDevelopment Commission published a manual on thenew anti-trafficking law for police and prosecutors, andbegan training officials in February 2009. The government303

ZIMBABWEworked with NGOs to train police nationwide on humantrafficking issues, and to develop a cadre of trainerswithin the Zambian Police Service (ZPS). One suchtrainer and an immigration official conducted fourmonths of follow-on anti-trafficking training at borderposts around Zambia. The ZPS also instituted a nationalhotline for police officers, to connect them directly withZPS officers trained to identify and investigate trafficking.ProtectionThe government made minimal efforts to protectvictims of trafficking over the reporting period. Its closecooperation with IOM, UNICEF, and the YWCA has notresulted in the provision of adequate services for victimsidentified within Zambia or repatriated from destinationcountries. The government has not yet allocated fundsfor projects mandated by its anti-trafficking law, such asthe establishment of government centers for victims oftrafficking. During the year, the Ministry of Youth andSports and the Gender in Development Division of theCabinet Office provided limited financial support toNGOs which run shelters housing victims of traffickingalong with victims of domestic violence or other crimes.The government did not have a formal mechanism forreferring victims to NGOs for these services. Sheltersoffer some limited psychological counseling, medicaltreatment, and assistance dealing with the police; somealso offer brief training in income-generating activitiessuch as sewing or handicrafts. The new law prohibitsthe summary deportation of a trafficking victim andprovides legal alternatives to the removal of foreignvictims to countries where they may face hardship orretribution. The government generally does not penalizevictims for unlawful acts committed as a direct result ofbeing trafficked. The government encourages victims toassist in the investigation and prosecution of traffickers.Courts may order a convicted trafficking offender to payreparations to victims for damage to property, physical,psychological or other injury, or loss of income andsupport.PreventionThe Zambian government demonstrated increasinglystrong efforts to prevent trafficking over the reportingperiod. In January 2009, it formed an interagencycommittee on trafficking, and approved a national antitraffickingpolicy and an accompanying communicationsstrategy developed in association with NGOs and otherstakeholders. IOM and a local NGO operate a 24-hourhotline for Zambians to report possible trafficking casesor ask about the bona fides of offers to work abroad.The media extensively covered Zambian police raidsof suspected brothels in high-density neighborhoods;police officials were quoted in the press stressing thatprostitution is illegal and dangerous for both theclients and the prostitutes. The Zambian government’sinteragency committee on trafficking obtained weekly airtime on ZNBC, the nation’s largest television broadcaster,and on a national radio station to talk about traffickingissues. The government launched its “Break the Chainof Human Trafficking” trafficking prevention campaignwith assistance from IOM. The government targetedboth potential trafficking victims and those driving thedemand for the services of human trafficking victims withits information campaign. It also worked with IOM tomonitor movement patterns along the Zambia-Zimbabweborder for evidence of forced migration and humantrafficking. The military has no specific measures in placeto provide anti-trafficking training to troops currentlyparticipating in peacekeeping missions. New militarypersonnel, however, will receive trafficking awarenesstraining as part of a new anti-trafficking curriculum beingdeveloped for training academies.ZIMBABWE (Tier 3)Zimbabwe is a source, transit, and destination countryfor men, women, and children trafficked for the purposesof forced labor and sexual exploitation. Large scalemigration of Zimbabweans to surrounding countrieshas increased – as they flee a progressively moredesperate situation at home – and NGOs, internationalorganizations, and governments in neighboringcountries report that some of these Zimbabweans facehuman trafficking. Rural Zimbabwean men, women,and children are trafficked within the country to farmsfor agricultural labor and to cities for forced domesticlabor and commercial sexual exploitation. NGOs believeinternal trafficking increased during the year, largely dueto the closure of schools, worsening political violence,and a faltering economy. In 2008, Zimbabwean securityforces consolidated their control of mining in the Marangeregion, forcing members of the local population to minefor diamonds. Between the March 2008 presidentialelection and the June 2008 run-off, youth militiascontrolled by Robert Mugabe’s ZANU-PF political partyabducted and held an unknown number of women andgirls, particularly opposition supporters, in sexual anddomestic servitude at command bases.Zimbabwean women and children are trafficked fordomestic servitude and sexual exploitation, includingin brothels, along both sides of the country’s borderswith Botswana, Mozambique, South Africa, and Zambia.Young men and boys are trafficked to South Africa forfarm work, often being forced to labor for months inSouth Africa without pay before “employers” have themarrested and deported as illegal immigrants. Smallnumbers of Zimbabwean men are trafficked for workin Mozambique’s construction industry. Young womenand girls are lured to South Africa and potentially othercountries with false employment offers that result ininvoluntary domestic servitude or forced prostitution.Men, women, and children from the Democratic Republicof the Congo, Malawi, Mozambique, and Zambia aretrafficked through Zimbabwe en route to South Africa.The Government of Zimbabwe does not fully complywith the minimum standards for the elimination oftrafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so.304

The government made minimal progress in combatingtrafficking in 2008, and members of its military and theformer ruling party’s youth militias perpetrated acts oftrafficking on local populations. The government’s antitraffickingefforts were further weakened as it failed toaddress Zimbabwe’s economic and social problems duringthe reporting period, thus increasing the population’svulnerability to trafficking within and outside of thecountry.Recommendations for Zimbabwe: Cease the useby members of security forces of local populationsfor forced diamond mining; prosecute, convict, andpunish trafficking offenders; advance comprehensiveanti-trafficking legislation; formalize procedures forinterviewing victims and transferring them to the care ofNGOs; and launch a broad awareness-raising campaignthat educates all levels of government officials, as well asthe general public, on the nature of trafficking and theavailability of assistance for victims.ProsecutionThe government did not provide any data on its antitraffickinglaw enforcement efforts during the year,including any data on prosecutions and convictionsof traffickers. Zimbabwe does not prohibit all forms oftrafficking in persons, though existing statutes outlawforced labor and numerous forms of sexual exploitation.Forced labor offenses are punishable by a fine or twoyears’ imprisonment, or both; these penalties are notsufficiently stringent or commensurate with thoseprescribed for other grave crimes. The governmentreported in 2007 that it was drafting comprehensivetrafficking legislation; however, the draft was neitherpublicly available nor introduced in Parliament duringthe last year. Parliament was not sworn in until August2008 following March elections; the newly electedparliamentarians have not yet formed the committees thatreview and propose legislation. The government failed toprovide information on anti-trafficking law enforcementactivities conducted during the reporting period. TheMinistry of Justice reported that none of the casesinvestigated in 2007 was brought to trial during 2008. Thegovernment did not provide specialized anti-traffickingtraining for law enforcement officials.ProtectionThe growing number of illegal migrants deported fromSouth Africa and Botswana, combined with a cripplinglack of resources, severely impeded the government’sability to effectively identify victims of traffickingamong returnees. The Department of Immigrationrequired all deportees returning from South Africa viathe Beitbridge border crossing to attend an IOM-ledbriefing on safe migration, which includes a discussionon human trafficking and IOM and NGO assistanceservices. The reception center’s social workers – whoare employed by the Department of Social Welfare, butfunded and trained by IOM – screened the deportees andreferred them to NGO shelters; one trafficking victimwas identified through this process in 2008. The DistrictCouncil of Beitbridge employed one child protectionofficer and convened a child protection committee tocoordinate programs and resources on issues relating tochildren. In May 2008, IOM opened a second receptioncenter at the Plumtree border crossing for Zimbabweansdeported from Botswana. Although the governmenthas an established process for referring victims tointernational organizations and NGOs that provideshelter and other services, in 2008 the governmentprimarily depended on these organizations to identifytrafficking victims and alert the authorities. However, theZimbabwe Republic Police’s Victim Friendly Unit referredthree victims to IOM during the reporting period. Thegovernment generally encourages victims to assist inthe prosecution of traffickers, but is not believed to haveprosecuted trafficking offenses during the year. Likewise,the government did not inappropriately incarcerate orotherwise penalize victims for unlawful acts committedas a direct result of being trafficked. It could have offeredforeign victims relief from deportation while they receivevictim services and their cases are investigated, thoughthere were no cases of victims receiving such relief in2008. With the exception of deportees from South Africaand Botswana, the government’s law enforcement,immigration, and social services do not have a formalsystem for proactively identifying trafficking victimsamong vulnerable populations.PreventionThe government did not conduct anti-traffickinginformation or education campaigns during thereporting period, and there remained a general lack ofunderstanding of human trafficking across governmentagencies, especially at the local level. Senior governmentofficials occasionally spoke, however, about the dangersof trafficking and illegal migration, and the staterunmedia printed and aired warnings about falseemployment scams and exploitative labor conditions.During the year, all four government-controlled radiostations aired an IOM public service announcement eighttimes each day in five languages during peak migrationperiods. The inter-ministerial anti-trafficking task forcetook no concrete action during the year. Anecdotalreports indicated that the worsening economy reducedthe demand for commercial sex acts, though there wereno known government efforts to reduce the demandZIMBABWE305

SPECIAL CASESfor forced labor or the demand for commercial sex acts.Information was unavailable regarding measures adoptedby the government to ensure its nationals deployed topeacekeeping missions do not facilitate or engage inhuman trafficking. Zimbabwe has not ratified the 2000UN TIP Protocol.HAITI (Special Case)Haiti has had a weak government since widespreadviolence and political instability led to the resignationof the president in 2004. National elections in 2006elected a president and a Parliament that replaced anappointed interim government, but the effectiveness ofstate institutions remained severely limited. Civil unrestin April 2008 left the country without a governmentfor five months. The Government of Haiti’s ability toprovide basic services and security for citizens, and tocontrol rampant crime in the capital, Port-au-Prince,continues to be compromised by limited resources, anuntrained and poorly equipped police force, entrenchedgovernment corruption, and perennially weakgovernment institutions. The UN Stabilization Missionin Haiti (MINUSTAH) continued to maintain more than6,950 troops and 1,900 police throughout the countryto provide security. Haiti remains a Special Case for thefourth consecutive year as the new government formedin September 2008 has not yet been able to addressthe significant challenges facing the country, includinghuman trafficking. The U.S. government, however,notes the progress of Haiti’s government, and urges theGovernment of Haiti to take immediate action to addressits serious trafficking-in-persons problems. The followingbackground and recommendations are provided to guidegovernment officials.Scope and Magnitude: Haiti is a source, transit, anddestination country for men, women, and childrentrafficked for the purposes of forced labor and sexualexploitation. Haitian women, men, and children aretrafficked into the Dominican Republic, The Bahamas,the United States, Europe, Canada and Jamaica forexploitation in domestic service, agriculture, andconstruction. Trafficked Dominican women and girlsare forced into prostitution. Some may be patronizedby UN peacekeepers in Haiti, although MINUSTAH isimplementing programs among its personnel to suppressthis practice. Several NGOs noted a sharp increase in thenumber of Haitian children trafficked for sex and laborto the Dominican Republic and The Bahamas during2008. The majority of trafficking cases are found amongthe estimated 90,000 to 300,000 restaveks in Haiti, andthe 3,000 additional restaveks who are trafficked to theDominican Republic. Poor, mostly rural families sendtheir children to cities to live with relatively wealthier“host” families, whom they expect to provide the childrenwith food, shelter, and an education in exchange fordomestic work. While some restaveks are cared for andsent to school, most of these children are subjectedto involuntary domestic servitude. These restaveks, 65percent of whom are girls between the ages of six and 14,work excessive hours, receive no schooling or paymentand are often physically or sexually abused. Haitian, laborlaws require employers to pay domestic workers over theage of 15, so many host families dismiss restaveks beforethey reach that age. Dismissed and runaway restaveksmake up a significant proportion of the large populationof street children, who frequently are forced to work inprostitution or street crime by violent criminal gangs.Women and girls from the Dominican Republic aretrafficked into Haiti for commercial sexual exploitation.Some Haitians who voluntarily migrate to the DominicanRepublic, The Bahamas, the United States, and otherCaribbean nations, subsequently face conditions of forcedlabor on sugar-cane plantations, and in agriculture andconstruction.Government Efforts: Haitian officials recognize thathuman trafficking is a serious problem in the country,including the exploitation of restavek children as domesticservants. As a policy matter, however, the national policechild protection unit, the Brigade for the Protectionof Minors (BPM), does not pursue restavek traffickingcases because there is no statutory penalty against thepractice. Haitian law also does not specifically prohibittrafficking in persons, which limits its ability to punishtraffickers and protect victims. It did shut down a numberof unregistered orphanages whose residents were believedto be vulnerable to trafficking. The Ministry of SocialAffairs and Labor (MAST) should make every effort tocomplete its revision of and resubmit to Parliament itscomprehensive anti-trafficking bill; Parliament shouldconsider it, and then pass a law prohibiting all formsof human trafficking. Until then, authorities couldbegin to enforce existing criminal statutes penalizingslavery, kidnapping, forced prostitution, and forcedlabor to prosecute trafficking offenses. Judges, police,and prosecutors throughout the country need additionalanti-trafficking training before they can effectivelyprosecute and punish trafficking offenders. Lackingits own resources, the government cooperates withnumerous NGOs to assist victims and to train officialsabout trafficking issues. Haitian immigration officersworking with MINUSTAH proactively identified potentialchild trafficking victims at airports and the borderwith the Dominican Republic. The Office of NationalIdentification, with technical assistance from theOrganization of American States and the Governmentof Canada, began to provide national identity cardsto persons who reached the legal voting age since thelast election. It continued to provide birth certificatesto citizens who had not previously been issued officialidentity documents. The government does not followsystematic victim identification procedures, thoughHaitian authorities work closely with NGOs to referidentified victims – primarily children – and coordinateprotective services as needed. Shelter services for adulttrafficking victims do not exist, and the government306

should make every effort to open or support facilitieswhich could provide men and women with appropriateassistance.SOMALIA (Special Case)Somalia remains a Special Case for a seventh consecutiveyear due to the lack of a viable central government since1991. Control of its geographic area is divided among theself-declared independent Republic of Somaliland, thesemi-autonomous region of Puntland, and the remainderof the country, which is nominally under the control ofthe Transitional Federal Government (TFG). Somaliacurrently lacks a national governing structure that couldassume responsibility for addressing the country’s humantrafficking problem. During the reporting period, theTFG remained preoccupied with the task of securinggovernment representatives and installations fromattacks by extremist elements; in this perpetual stateof insecurity the government was not able to addresshuman trafficking. In addition, the TFG currently lacksthe necessary means to identify, investigate, or addresssystemic issues in Somalia, including those related totrafficking in persons; its capacity to address humantrafficking will not significantly increase without tangibleprogress in reestablishing governance and stability inSomalia.Scope and Magnitude. Information regarding traffickingin Somalia remains extremely difficult to obtain orverify; however, the Somali territory is believed to bea source, transit, and perhaps destination country fortrafficked men, women, and children. In Somali society,certain groups are traditionally viewed as inferior andare marginalized; Somali Bantus and Midgaan aresometimes kept in servitude to other more powerfulSomali clan members as domestics, farm laborers, andherders. During the year, the widespread use of childrenin fighting forces in the country was noted; the extremistgroups opposed to the TFG conscripted and recruitedchildren as young as eight years of age, including girls,for use in armed conflict, including soldiering, plantingbombs, carrying out assassinations, portering, anddomestic servitude. There were reports that militiasloyal to the TFG or associated with members of the TFGconscripted children. Armed militias also purportedlytraffic Somali women and children within the countryfor sexual exploitation and forced labor. Because of aninability to provide care for all family members, someSomalis willingly surrender custody of their children topeople with whom they share family relations and clanlinkages; some of these children may become victims offorced labor or commercial sexual exploitation. Thereare anecdotal reports of children engaged in prostitutionwithin the country, but the practice is culturallyproscribed and not publicly acknowledged.Human smuggling is widespread in Somalia and thereis evidence to suggest that traffickers utilize the samenetworks and methods as those used by smugglers.Dubious employment agencies are involved with or serveas fronts for traffickers, especially to target individualsdesiring to reach the Gulf States. Somali women aretrafficked to destinations in the Middle East, includingIraq, Lebanon, and Syria, as well as to South Africa, fordomestic labor and, to a lesser extent, commercial sexualexploitation. Female Somali refugees residing in Yemenare trafficked by Somali men into prostitution in Adenand Lahj governorates. Somali men are trafficked intolabor exploitation as herdsmen and menial workers inthe Gulf States. Some Somalis transit Djibouti to reachYemen. Somali children are reportedly trafficked toDjibouti for commercial sexual exploitation and forcedlabor, as well as to Saudi Arabia through Yemen forforced begging. Members of the Somali diaspora use fakeoffers of marriage to traffic unsuspecting victims, manyof whom are relatives, to Europe for commercial sexualexploitation. Ethiopian women are trafficked throughSomalia to Yemen and onward to other destinations inthe Middle East for forced domestic labor and sexualexploitation.Government Efforts. The respective authorities operatingin Somalia’s three regions did not make significantprogress in addressing human trafficking during thereporting period. Understanding of the phenomenonof human trafficking and how it is to be identified andaddressed remains low among government officials andthe general population. In Somaliland, laws explicitlyprohibit forced labor, involuntary servitude, and slavery,which, in addition to trafficking for sexual exploitation,may be prohibited under the most widespreadinterpretations of Shari’a and customary law. There areno such laws that prohibit these practices in other partsof Somalia. There is neither a unified police force in theterritory to enforce these laws, nor any authoritativelegal system through which trafficking offenders couldbe prosecuted. There were no known prosecutions ofhuman trafficking offenses during the reporting period.Most crimes, including rape, were addressed undercustomary law, with penalties varying among clans; mostpunishments involve paying animals to victims’ clanmembers. There were reports that government officialsmay be involved in trafficking; business people involvedin human smuggling and trafficking in Puntland,for instance, purportedly work with the knowledgeof influential officials within the administration. InFebruary 2009, Puntland’s newly elected president,accompanied by police and other officials, raided Marerovillage, a major hub for human smuggling and trafficking.No arrests were made.SPECIAL CASES307

RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL CONVENTIONSRELEVANT INTERNATIONAL CONVENTIONSCountryProtocol to Prevent,Suppress & PunishTrafficking in PersonsSignatureRatification,Accession (a), orAcceptance (A)ILO Convention182,Eliminationof WorstForms ofChild LaborRatificationOptional Protocol tothe Convention on theRights of the Child onthe Sale of Children,Child Prostitution andChild PornographySignatureRatification,Accession (a)Optional Protocol tothe Convention on theRights of the Child inArmed ConflictSignatureRatification,Accession (a)ILOConvention29, ForcedLabourRatificationILOConvention105,Abolitionof ForcedLabourAfghanistan X(a) X(a) XAlbania X X X X(a) X(a) X XAlgeria X X X X(a) X(a) X XAngola X X(a) X(a) X XAntigua & Barbuda X X X X XArgentina X X X X X X X X XArmenia X X X X X X X X XAustralia X X X X X X X X XAustria X X X X X X X X XAzerbaijan X X X X X X X X XBahamas X X X X XBahrain X(a) X X(a) X(a) X XBangladesh X X X X X X XBarbados X X X XBelarus X X X X(a) X(a) X XBelgium X X X X X X X X XBelize X(a) X X X X X X XBenin X X X X X X X X XBolivia X X X X X X(a) X XBosnia & Herzegovina X X X X X X X X XBotswana X X X X(a) X X X XBrazil X X X X X X X X XBrunei X X(a)Bulgaria X X X X X X X X XBurkino Faso X X X X X X X X XBurma X(a) XBurundi X X X X X X XCambodia X X X X X X X X XCameroon X X X X X X XCanada X X X X X X X XCentral African Rep. X(a) X X XChad X X X X X X XChile X X X X X X X X XChina (PRC) X X X X XColombia X X X X X X X X XCongo, Rep. of X X X XRatification308

CountryProtocol to Prevent,Suppress & PunishTrafficking in PersonsSignatureRatification,Accession (a), orAcceptance (A)ILO Convention182,Eliminationof WorstForms ofChild LaborRatificationOptional Protocol tothe Convention on theRights of the Child onthe Sale of Children,Child Prostitution andChild PornographySignatureRatification,Accession (a)Optional Protocol tothe Convention on theRights of the Child inArmed ConflictSignatureRatification,Accession (a)ILOConvention29, ForcedLabourRatificationILOConvention105,Abolitionof ForcedLabourCongo (DRC) X(a) X X(a) X X X XCosta Rica X X X X X X X X XCote D’Ivoire X X XCroatia X X X X X X X X XCuba X X X X X XCyprus X X X X X X X XCzech Republic X X X X X X XDenmark X X X X X X X X XDjibouti X(a) X X X X XDominican Republic X X X X(a) X X XEcuador X X X X X X X X XEgypt X X X X(a) X X XEl Salvador X X X X X X X X XEquatorial Guinea X X X X(a) X XEritrea X(a) X(a) X XEstonia X X X X X X X XEthiopia X X XFiji X X X X XFinland X X(A) X X X X X XFrance X X X X X X X X XGabon X X X X X XGambia, The X X X X X X XGeorgia X X X X(a) X XGermany X X X X X X X XGhana X X X X XGreece X X X X X X X XGuatemala X(a) X X X X X X XGuinea X(a) X X XGuinea-Bissau X X(a) X X X X XGuyana X(a) X X XHaiti X X X X X XHonduras X(a) X X(a) X(a) X XHungary X X X X X X XIceland X X X X X X X XIndia X X X X X X XRatificationIndonesia X X X X X XRELEVANT INTERNATIONAL CONVENTIONS309

RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL CONVENTIONSCountryProtocol to Prevent,Suppress & PunishTrafficking in PersonsSignatureRatification,Accession (a), orAcceptance (A)ILO Convention182,Eliminationof WorstForms ofChild LaborRatificationOptional Protocol tothe Convention on theRights of the Child onthe Sale of Children,Child Prostitution andChild PornographySignatureRatification,Accession (a)Optional Protocol tothe Convention on theRights of the Child inArmed ConflictSignatureRatification,Accession (a)ILOConvention29, ForcedLabourRatificationILOConvention105,Abolitionof ForcedLabourIran X X(a) X XIraq X(a) X X(a) X(a) X XIreland X X X X X X XIsrael X X X X X X X X XItaly X X X X X X X X XJamaica X X X X X X X XJapan X X X X X X XJordan X X X X X X XKazakhstan X(a) X X X X X X XKenya X(a) X X X X X XKorea, Rep. Of X X X X X XKosovoKuwait X(a) X X(a) X(a) X XKyrgyz Republic X X X X(a) X(a) X XLaos X(a) X X(a) X(a) XLatvia X X X X X X X X XLebanon X X X X X X X XLesotho X X X X X X X X XLiberia X(a) X X X X XLibya X X X X(a) X(a) X XLithuania X X X X(a) X X X XLuxembourg X X X X X X X XMacedonia X X X X X X X X XMadagascar X X X X X X X X XMalawi X(a) X X X X XMalaysia X(a) X XMaldives, The X X X XMali X X X X(a) X X X XMalta X X X X X X X XMauritania X(a) X X X XMauritius X(a) X X X X X XMexico X X X X X X X X XMicronesia (FSM) X XMoldova X X X X X X X X XMongolia X(a) X X X X X X XRatificationMontenegro X(a) X X X(a) X X X310

CountryProtocol to Prevent,Suppress & PunishTrafficking in PersonsSignatureRatification,Accession (a), orAcceptance (A)ILO Convention182,Eliminationof WorstForms ofChild LaborRatificationOptional Protocol tothe Convention on theRights of the Child onthe Sale of Children,Child Prostitution andChild PornographySignatureRatification,Accession (a)Optional Protocol tothe Convention on theRights of the Child inArmed ConflictSignatureRatification,Accession (a)ILOConvention29, ForcedLabourRatificationILOConvention105,Abolitionof ForcedLabourMorocco X X X X X X XMozambique X X X X(a) X(a) X XNamibia X X X X X X X X XNepal X X X X X X XNetherlands, The X X(A) X X X X X XNew Zealand X X X X X X X XNicaragua X(a) X X(a) X(a) X XNiger X X X X X X XNigeria X X X X X X XNorth KoreaNorway X X X X X X X X XOman X(a) X X(a) X(a) X XPakistan X X X X XPalauPanama X X X X X X X X XPapau New Guinea X X XParaguay X X X X X X X X XPeru X X X X X X X X XPhilippines X X X X X X X X XPoland X X X X X X X X XPortugal X X X X X X X X XQatar X X(a) X(a) X XRomania X X X X X X X X XRussia X X X X X X XRwanda X X X X(a) X(a) X XSt. Vincent & the Gren. X X X(a) X XSaudi Arabia X X X X XSenegal X X X X X X X X XSerbia X X X X X X X X XSierra Leone X X X X X X XSingapore X X X XSlovak Republic X X X X X X X X XSlovenia X X X X X X X X XSomalia X X XSouth Africa X X X X(a) X X XRatificationSpain X X X X X X X X XRELEVANT INTERNATIONAL CONVENTIONS311

RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL CONVENTIONSCountryProtocol to Prevent,Suppress & PunishTrafficking in PersonsSignatureRatification,Accession (a), orAcceptance (A)ILO Convention182,Eliminationof WorstForms ofChild LaborRatificationOptional Protocol tothe Convention on theRights of the Child onthe Sale of Children,Child Prostitution andChild PornographySignatureRatification,Accession (a)Optional Protocol tothe Convention on theRights of the Child inArmed ConflictSignatureRatification,Accession (a)ILOConvention29, ForcedLabourRatificationILOConvention105,Abolitionof ForcedLabourSri Lanka X X X X X X X XSudan X X(a) X X X XSuriname X(a) X X X X XSwaziland X X X XSweden X X X X X X X X XSwitzerland X X X X X X X X XSyria X X X(a) X(a) X XTajikistan X(a) X X(a) X(a) X XTanzania X X X X(a) X(a) X XThailand X X X(a) X(a) X XTimor-Leste X(a) X(a)Togo X X X X X X X X XTrinidad & Tobago X X X X XTunisia X X X X X X X X XTurkey X X X X X X X X XTurkmenistan X(a) X(a) X(a) X XUganda X X X(a) X(a) X XUkraine X X X X X X X X XUnited Arab Emirates X(a) X X XUnited Kingdom X X X X X X X X XUnited States X X X X X X X XUruguay X X X X X X X X XUzbekistan X X X(a) X(a) X XVenezuela X X X X X X X X XVietnam X X X X X XYemen X X(a) X(a) X XZambia X(a) X X X X XZimbabwe X X XRatification312A prevention campaign warns travelers on Air France flights that sexual exploitation of minors in other countriesamounts to “rape, kidnapping, assault, and battery” and can earn them up to 20 years in prison.

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TRAFFICKING VICTIMS PROTECTION ACT (TVPA)TRAFFICKING VICTIMS PROTECTION ACT:MINIMUM STANDARDS FOR THE ELIMINATIONOF TRAFFICKING IN PERSONSTrafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000, Div. A of Pub. L. No. 106-386, § 108, as amended.(A) Minimum standardsFor purposes of this chapter, the minimum standardsfor the elimination of trafficking applicable to thegovernment of a country of origin, transit, or destinationfor victims of severe forms of trafficking are the following:(1) The government of the country should prohibitsevere forms of trafficking in persons and punish actsof such trafficking.(2) For the knowing commission of any act of sextrafficking involving force, fraud, coercion, orin which the victim of sex trafficking is a childincapable of giving meaningful consent, or oftrafficking which includes rape or kidnapping orwhich causes a death, the government of the countryshould prescribe punishment commensurate withthat for grave crimes, such as forcible sexual assault.(3) For the knowing commission of any act of a severeform of trafficking in persons, the government ofthe country should prescribe punishment that issufficiently stringent to deter and that adequatelyreflects the heinous nature of the offense.(4) The government of the country should make seriousand sustained efforts to eliminate severe forms oftrafficking in persons.(B) CriteriaIn determinations under subsection (a)(4) of this section,the following factors should be considered as indicia ofserious and sustained efforts to eliminate severe forms oftrafficking in persons:(1) Whether the government of the country vigorouslyinvestigates and prosecutes acts of severe forms oftrafficking in persons, and convicts and sentencespersons responsible for such acts, that take placewholly or partly within the territory of the country,including, as appropriate, requiring incarceration ofindividuals convicted of such acts. For purposes ofthe preceding sentence, suspended or significantlyreduced sentences for convictions of principal actorsin cases of severe forms of trafficking in persons shallbe considered, on a case-by-case basis, whether to beconsidered as an indicator of serious and sustainedefforts to eliminate severe forms of traffickingin persons. After reasonable requests from theDepartment of State for data regarding investigations,prosecutions, convictions, and sentences, agovernment which does not provide such data,consistent with the capacity of such governmentto obtain such data, shall be presumed not to havevigorously investigated, prosecuted, convicted orsentenced such acts. During the periods prior tothe annual report submitted on June 1, 2004, andon June 1, 2005, and the periods afterwards untilSeptember 30 of each such year, the Secretary of Statemay disregard the presumption contained in thepreceding sentence if the government has providedsome data to the Department of State regardingsuch acts and the Secretary has determined that thegovernment is making a good faith effort to collectsuch data.(2) Whether the government of the country protectsvictims of severe forms of trafficking in persons andencourages their assistance in the investigation andprosecution of such trafficking, including provisionsfor legal alternatives to their removal to countriesin which they would face retribution or hardship,and ensures that victims are not inappropriatelyincarcerated, fined, or otherwise penalized solely forunlawful acts as a direct result of being trafficked,including by providing training to law enforcementand immigration officials regarding the identificationand treatment of trafficking victims using approachesthat focus on the needs of the victims.(3) Whether the government of the country has adoptedmeasures to prevent severe forms of trafficking inpersons, such as measures to inform and educate thepublic, including potential victims, about the causesand consequences of severe forms of trafficking inpersons, measures to establish the identity of localpopulations, including birth registration, citizenship,and nationality, measures to ensure that its nationalswho are deployed abroad as part of a peacekeepingor other similar mission do not engage in or facilitatesevere forms of trafficking in persons or exploitvictims of such trafficking, and measures to preventthe use of forced labor or child labor in violation ofinternational standards.(4) Whether the government of the country cooperateswith other governments in the investigation andprosecution of severe forms of trafficking in persons.(5) Whether the government of the country extraditespersons charged with acts of severe forms oftrafficking in persons on substantially the sameterms and to substantially the same extent aspersons charged with other serious crimes (or, tothe extent such extradition would be inconsistentwith the laws of such country or with internationalagreements to which the country is a party, whetherthe government is taking all appropriate measures314

to modify or replace such laws and treaties so as topermit such extradition).(6) Whether the government of the country monitorsimmigration and emigration patterns for evidence ofsevere forms of trafficking in persons and whetherlaw enforcement agencies of the country respondto any such evidence in a manner that is consistentwith the vigorous investigation and prosecution ofacts of such trafficking, as well as with the protectionof human rights of victims and the internationallyrecognized human right to leave any country,including one’s own, and to return to one’s owncountry.(7) Whether the government of the country vigorouslyinvestigates, prosecutes, convicts, and sentencespublic officials who participate in or facilitate severeforms of trafficking in persons, including nationalsof the country who are deployed abroad as partof a peacekeeping or other similar mission whoengage in or facilitate severe forms of trafficking inpersons or exploit victims of such trafficking, andtakes all appropriate measures against officials whocondone such trafficking. After reasonable requestsfrom the Department of State for data regardingsuch investigations, prosecutions, convictions, andsentences, a government which does not provide suchdata consistent with its resources shall be presumednot to have vigorously investigated, prosecuted,convicted, or sentenced such acts. During the periodsprior to the annual report submitted on June 1, 2004,and on June 1, 2005, and the periods afterwardsuntil September 30 of each such year, the Secretaryof State may disregard the presumption containedin the preceding sentence if the government hasprovided some data to the Department of Stateregarding such acts and the Secretary has determinedthat the government is making a good faith effort tocollect such data.(8) Whether the percentage of victims of severe formsof trafficking in the country that are non-citizens ofsuch countries is insignificant.(9) Whether the government of the country, consistentwith the capacity of such government, systematicallymonitors its efforts to satisfy the criteria describedin paragraphs (1) through (8) and makes availablepublicly a periodic assessment of such efforts.(10) Whether the government of the country achievesappreciable progress in eliminating severe forms oftrafficking when compared to the assessment in theprevious year.(11) Whether the government of the country has madeserious and sustained efforts to reduce the demandfor(A) commercial sex acts; and(B) participation in international sex tourism bynationals of the country.Protecting Domestic WorkersAn Indonesian labor recruitment company sends theseinstructions to employers of Indonesian domestic workersin the Middle East.Explanations on the Treatmentof Employees1. We expect that you are patient in guiding her andinstructing her on housework, and that you consider thedifference of customs and language between yours andhers. We hope that she would be shown respect from allmembers of the family, and that you would avoid anycruel or harsh treatment and understand that she mightmiss her community. Also, we hope that you wouldavoid, as appropriate, blaming or scolding her excessivelyfor simple mistakes, for her speaking for herself fromtime to time, or for her forgetfulness—for she is not freefrom mistakes.2. We expect that you provide for her housing, clothes, andfood and perhaps grant her the option of making herfood herself.3. We expect that you would not give her work above herlevel or make her continue without a break or rest, andthat you would provide for her cleanliness or physicalrest, as she is a helper only in housework or caring forchildren.4. We expect that you help her prepare and send letters toher family, because that is a great help for her spirits.And we expect you to give her your full and clear addressin English for ease of correspondence with her family.5. We expect that you pay her salary every 30 days and helpher send it to her family.6. Do not give her encouraging gifts in the first months. Ifyou wish to, save them for later months.7. We expect for adherence always to these instructions.Always familiarize and inform all members of the familyof them when it’s appropriate for everyone. This will bea great help to her efforts in serving you with full energyand loyalty.8. We expect that you provide appropriate meals as she isaccustomed to and make available to her the foods shelikes. Allow her to cook her meals herself if she wishesor to eat meals cooked before you in the house.TRAFFICKING VICTIMS PROTECTION ACT (TVPA)315

INTERNATIONAL PEACEKEEPERS316Stopping Human Trafficking, Sexual Exploitation,and Abuse by International PeacekeepersIn response to a Congressional mandate, this section summarizes actions taken by the United Nations (UN), the NorthAtlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) to preventtrafficking in persons or the exploitation of victims of trafficking.UNITED NATIONS (UN)The United Nations adopted a zero-tolerance policy in2003 and implemented a series of reforms over the lastfour years to prevent military and civilian personnelassigned to UN peacekeeping and humanitarian missionsfrom engaging in sexual exploitation and abuse. Beloware highlights of key UN reforms with updates from 2008.The measures below apply to approximately 140,000 UNuniformed personnel (troops, military observers andpolice), and UN international and locally-hired civilianstaff members.Prevention• UN Staff Regulations classify sexual exploitationand abuse as a form of serious misconduct subject todisciplinary action, including summary dismissal.• Consultants, individual contractors, volunteers, militaryobservers and civilian police are legally bound by thestandards of the Secretary-General’s 2003 bulletin. Allcontracts and “letters of undertaking” include thesestandards.• The UN has a model memorandum of understanding(MOU) (GA 61/267 B) to include provisions foraddressing sexual exploitation and abuse. TheDepartment of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) is alsorevising existing MOUs to include these provisions.• Where necessary, UN peacekeeping missions haveinstituted “off-limits premises and areas,” curfews, andtelephone hotlines and have required mission personnelto wear uniforms at all times.• In early 2008, the DPKO initiated mission-customizedinformation campaigns and strategies to combatcommercial sexual exploitation in Cote D’Ivoire,Democratic Republic of the Congo, Haiti, Liberia,Sudan, and East Timor.• The UN reports that its missions routinely inform thelocal population about the UN’s zero-tolerance policyon sexual exploitation and abuse, including the statusof allegations and the risk of making false allegations.The UN is also developing a mechanism by which toinform the public on the outcome of disciplinary casesinvolving UN personnel, including actions taken by theUN or the troop-contributing country (TCC).• The DPKO has three training modules for differentlevels of personnel to prevent sexual exploitation andabuse. The Department provides these modules to theTCCs for pre-deployment training, but it is not ableto verify if the training has been completed. All UNmission personnel are made aware of the standards ofconduct and zero-tolerance policy and are trained inprevention of sexual exploitation and abuse. Revisedpre-deployment training modules will be released toTCCs during the first half of 2009.• Civilian managers and military commanders areresponsible for ensuring implementation of the UN’sprograms and policies to eliminate sexual exploitationand abuse. The heads of UN missions evaluate civilianmanagers on their efforts to implement the zerotolerancepolicy.Victim Assistance• The UN’s victim assistance strategy (GA 62/214)authorizes UN missions to provide victims withmedical treatment, counseling, social support, legalservices, or material care. Children born as a result ofsexual exploitation and abuse by peacekeepers are alsoeligible to receive this assistance. The implementationguidelines have been finalized and transmitted to allUN missions.• In 2008, UN mission managers and NGO partners inKenya, Somalia, Liberia, and South Africa were trainedin advancing protection from sexual exploitation andabuse in the field. Similar trainings are planned forLibya, Nepal, Cote D’Ivoire, and Haiti in 2009.Investigations• The DPKO has conduct and discipline units (CDUs) atUN headquarters and peacekeeping missions. Theseunits inform local communities of the UN’s zerotolerancepolicy on sexual exploitation and proceduresfor reporting abuse. They also receive complaints, carryout initial assessments of allegations, and determinewhether specific allegations should be reported to theOffice of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) as seriousoffenses warranting full OIOS investigations. Lessserious allegations are handled by the peacekeepingmission itself. CDUs also train UN peacekeepers andcivilian mission staff on combating sexual harassment,exploitation, and abuse.• Some OIOS investigators are stationed in thepeacekeeping missions, though these may be moved toregional UN offices in the future -- to reduce costs andfor more effective and timely investigations.• There were 83 allegations against UN peacekeepingpersonnel in 2008, down from 127 allegations in2007. During that same period, the UN completed 82investigations into new and pending allegations anddeemed 65 of them credible. There were 14 repatriationsand five cases of disciplinary action such as suspension,dismissal, censure, demotion, and referral to employers.

Investigations for 52 cases are still pending.Further information on the UN’s sexual exploitation andabuse prevention measures is available at http://www.un.org/Depts/dpko/CDT/index.html.NORTH ATLANTIC TREATYORGANIZATION (NATO)NATO has measures in place to prevent its personnel fromengaging in human trafficking. To date there have beenno reports of any NATO personnel or units engaging inor facilitating human trafficking. NATO has six on-goingmissions with nearly 70,000 troops.• In 2004, NATO Allies and Partners adopted an antihumantrafficking policy. Provisions include trainingfor personnel of NATO-led missions, support forhost country law enforcement in anti-traffickinginvestigations, incorporated guidelines prohibitingcontractors from engaging in trafficking, andevaluations of implementation of efforts as part of ongoingreviews. All NATO operational plans incorporateanti-human trafficking directives.• NATO has also developed three anti-human traffickingawareness training modules for troops, commanders,and military police. These modules are available onlineand are offered at NATO’s two training facilities.Officials and staff who violate NATO’s zero-tolerancepolicy are subject to disciplinary action includingdismissal. NATO Allies and Partners are responsiblefor taking legal action against nationals participatingin missions who are in violation of the zero-tolerancepolicy. NATO mission personnel are instructed to refervictims to local NGOs for legal or social services andto cooperate with local law enforcement officials onhuman trafficking cases.• In February 2009, the North Atlantic Council agreed torecommendations made by NATO’s counter-traffickingchief. They included developing a standardized form forreporting trafficking cases; offering more anti-traffickingcourses at NATO training facilities; organizing aconference of national, international, and civil societyexperts to share best practices; and developing abrochure on NATO policy for the general public.Further information on NATO’s anti-human traffickingprevention measures is available at http://www.nato.int/issues/trafficking/.OSCE efforts to prevent misconduct by personnel.• The OSCE’s Code of Conduct for Staff and MissionMembers (Appendix 1 to Permanent Council 550/Corr.1, 27 June 2003) prescribes general conduct ofofficials and staff while on mission, with specificinstruction on preventing human trafficking.• The OSCE Ministerial Council Decision 16/05 “Ensuringthe Highest Standards of Conduct and Accountability ofPersons Serving International Forces and Missions” callson participating states to prevent human trafficking,sexual exploitation and abuse, and, as necessary, todiscipline its personnel.• The OSCE Ministerial Council Decision 15/06“Combating Sexual Exploitation of Children” directsexecutive structures to incorporate the issue of childsexual exploitation in code of conduct trainings andawareness-raising materials for OSCE officials.• The OSCE Ministerial Council Decision 11/08“Enhancing Criminal Justice Responses to Traffickingin Human Beings through a Comprehensive Approach”directs participating states to include human traffickingpolicies and consequences in pre-deploymentinstruction for military and civilian personnel.The OSCE provides these documents to all personnel,including locally-hired mission staff, during orientationtrainings. Officials and staff are subject to disciplinaryaction including dismissal. But OSCE member States andPartners are responsible for taking legal action againstnationals participating in missions who violate the policy.Field mission personnel at are instructed to refer victimsto local NGOs for legal or social services and to cooperatewith local law enforcement officials on human traffickingcases.For further information on the OSCE’s anti-traffickingprevention measures please go to http://www.osce.org/activities/13029.html.Monthly pay slip of a Burmese worker in the Thai seafood sector,showing large deductions for room rental, the store, and “shrimpdeduction.” Such deductions contribute to debt bondage andinvoluntary servitude.INTERNATIONAL PEACEKEEPERSORGANIZATION FOR SECU-RITY AND COOPERATION INEUROPE (OSCE)The OSCE has measures in place to prevent personnelfrom engaging in human trafficking, sexual exploitationand abuse. There have been no reports of any OSCEpersonnel engaging in or facilitating human trafficking.The OSCE has 18 field missions and 3,266 personnel.The OSCE Secretary-General is responsible for overseeing317

GLOSSARYGLOSSARY OF ACRONYMSECCASECOWASECPATEUILOILO-IPECINTERPOLIOMNGOOASOSCEUNUNDPUNHRCUNICEFUNIFEMUNODCEconomic Community of Central African StatesEconomic Community of West African StatesEnd Child Prostitution, Child Pornography and Trafficking ofChildren for Sexual PurposesEuropean UnionInternational Labour OrganizationInternational Labour Organization, International Program for theElimination of Child LabourInternational Criminal Police OrganizationInternational Organization for MigrationNon-Governmental OrganizationOrganization of American StatesOrganization for Security and Cooperation in EuropeUnited NationsUnited Nations Development ProgramUnited Nations High Commissioner for RefugeesUnited Nations Children’s FundUnited Nations Development Fund for WomenUnited Nations Office on Drugs and Crime2000 UN TIP Protocol Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, EspeciallyWomen and Children, Supplementing the United Nations Convention AgainstTransnational Organized CrimePHOTO CREDITSInside front cover: AP Photo/Apichart Weerawang4: Nikolay Suslov/BigStockPhoto.com5: Tang Chhin Sothy/AFP/Getty Images6: David Hogsholt/Getty Images8: Raveendran/AFP/Getty Images11: Nicolas Asfouri /AFP/Getty Images12: AP Photo/Ric Francis;14: Axel Schmidt/AFP/Getty Images16: Ricardo Funari/BrazilPhotos.com19: Emily Holland/International Rescue Committee20: (top and bottom) International Rescue Committee21: AFP/Getty Images22: China Photos/Getty Images23: AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell24: Joao Silva/The New York Times/Redux25: Ghaith Abdul-Ahad/Getty Images27: Damon Lynch28: AP Photo/Fakhrurradzie Gade30: Antony Dickson /AFP/Getty Images32: Karim Sahib/AFP/Getty Images33: AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko34: Michael Mates/Department of State35: Sofia Javed36: Stephanie Sinclair/VII37: Susan Meiselas/Magnum Photos38: Michael Gross/Department of State40: Shah Marai /AFP/Getty Images41: Paul Cristian Geletu/BigStockPhoto.com42: Vladimir Jovanovic/BigStockPhoto.com46: AP Photo/Saurabh Das48: AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh58: Kelly Young/BigStockPhoto.comSpecial thanks to Nick Crawford, GPO’s Creative Services Division; and GPO’s APS Team.318A public awareness campaign in Hungary aims to reduce the demandside of sex trafficking by asking “You can quit…and can she?”

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U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE PUBLICATION 11407OFFICE OF THE UNDER SECRETARY FOR DEMOCRACY AND GLOBAL AFFAIRSand Bureau of Public AffairsRevised June 2009