Human trafficking in Burkina Faso

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Burkina Faso is a country of origin, transit, and destination for persons, mostly children, subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced labor and forced prostitution as of 2010. [1]

Contents

The Government of Burkina Faso has provided data from the Ministry of Social Action showing that, in 2009, security forces and regional human trafficking surveillance committees intercepted 788 children Burkinabe and foreign children, 619 of whom were boys, destined for exploitation in other countries, principally Côte d'Ivoire, Mali, and Niger. Child trafficking victims who remained inside Burkina Faso were usually found in large cities such as Ouagadougou, Bobo-Dioulasso, Nouna, and Hounde. Child victims faced conditions of forced labor or services as plantation and mining hands, laborers on cocoa farms, domestic servants, beggars recruited as pupils by unaccredited Koranic schools, or captives in the prostitution trade. [1]

To a lesser extent, traffickers recruited Burkinabe women for nonconsensual commercial sexual exploitation in Europe. Women from neighboring countries like Nigeria, Togo, Benin, and Niger migrated to Burkina Faso on the promise of respectable[ neutrality is disputed ] work, but were subjected to forced labor in bars or forced prostitution. [1]

The U.S. State Department's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons placed the country in "Tier 2 Watchlist" in 2017. [2] The country was moved to Tier 2 in 2023. [3] In 2023, the Organised Crime Index gave the country a score of 7 out of 10 for human trafficking. [4] Burkina Faso ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in May 2002. [5]

Prosecution

Burkina Faso's May 2008 anti-trafficking law prohibits all forms of trafficking and prescribes maximum punishments for convicted offenders as high as 20 years or life imprisonment; these penalties are commensurate with prescribed penalties for other serious offenses, such as rape. As of 2010, there was no evidence of government officials' complicity in trafficking, though some corrupt law enforcement agents may have facilitated trafficking-related activity. [1]

Protection

As of 2010, the government is not in a position to provide many services directly to trafficking victims. To help foreign victims return to their homes countries quickly, the government has processed their travel documents and collaborated with NGOs to ensure a safe return. Burkinabe law permits a victim to seek legal action against trafficking offenders, but official agencies did not report any such cases in 2009, or any instances of victims assisting in the prosecution of suspected offenders. The government does not provide legal alternatives to the removal of foreign victims to countries where they face hardship or retribution. The government has made efforts to sensitize law enforcement agents to child trafficking issues, but did not as of 2010 develop official programs to train officials in identifying victims. The prevalence of child trafficking in the country is well known, but officials and private citizens alike have difficulty distinguishing between children who migrate voluntarily for work, and those who are victims of trafficking. [1]

Prevention

Partnerships with NGOs and international organizations been used by the Burkinabe government in order to sustain nationwide anti-trafficking information and education campaigns. Local and international partners have supported workshops and seminars focused on child trafficking, and government and private media have aired radio and television programs that have impacted approximately 600,000 people. The government has distributed thousands of booklets describing the Anti-TI P National Action Plan, but has not been able to implement the plan. The mayor of Ouagadougou has attempted to reduce the demand for commercial sex acts by closing 37 brothels in the capital in 2009. The government has provided Burkinabe military troops with human rights and trafficking training prior to their deployment abroad as international peacekeepers. [1]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Trafficking in Persons Report 2010 Country Narratives - Countries A Through F". US Department of State. 2010-06-17. Archived from the original on 2010-06-17. Retrieved 2023-02-11.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  2. ↑ "Trafficking in Persons Report 2017: Tier Placements". www.state.gov. Archived from the original on 2017-06-28. Retrieved 2017-12-01.
  3. ↑ US Government website, Trafficking in Persons Report 2023
  4. ↑ Organised Crime Index website, Burkina Faso: 2023
  5. ↑ United Nations Treaty Collection website, Chapter XVIII Penal Matters section, Section 12a, retrieved August 19, 2024
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