Human trafficking in Guinea

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Guinea ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in November 2004. [1]

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In 2010 Guinea was a source, transit, and to a lesser extent, a destination country for men, women, and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically in the areas of forced labor and forced prostitution. The majority of victims were children, and these incidents of trafficking were more prevalent among Guinean citizens than among foreign migrants living in Guinea. Within the country, girls were largely subjected to involuntary domestic servitude and commercial sexual exploitation, while boys were subjected to forced begging and forced labor as street vendors, shoe shiners, and laborers in gold and diamond mines. [2] Some Guinean men are also subjected to forced agricultural labor within Guinea. Smaller numbers of girls from Mali, Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia, Senegal, Burkina Faso, and Guinea-Bissau migrate to Guinea, where they were subjected to involuntary domestic servitude and likely also commercial sexual exploitation. Some Guinean boys and girls were subjected to forced labor in gold mining operations in Senegal, Mali, and possibly other African countries. Guinean women and girls were subjected to involuntary domestic servitude and forced prostitution in Nigeria, Côte d'Ivoire, Benin, Senegal, Greece, and Spain. Chinese women were trafficked to Guinea for commercial sexual exploitation by Chinese traffickers. Networks also trafficked women from Nigeria, India, and Greece through Guinea to the Maghreb and onward to Europe, notably Italy, Ukraine, Switzerland, and France for forced prostitution and involuntary domestic servitude. [3]

n 2010, the Government of Guinea did not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking; however, it made significant efforts to do so, despite limited resources. The government sustained its efforts to investigate alleged trafficking crimes and detain suspected trafficking offenders during the reporting period. The junta, however, made minimal progress toward combating human trafficking in Guinea since coming to power in a coup d'etat in December 2008. While Guinea had an adequate anti-trafficking legal framework, which it had strengthened by enacting the Child Code of 2008, the junta did not report any trafficking prosecutions or convictions for the second year in a row, and protection and prevention efforts remained weak. Therefore, Guinea was placed on the "Tier 2 Watch List" for the third consecutive year. In February 2009, the head of government issued a declaration giving security forces the right to shoot anyone apprehended while trafficking a human being, raising significant human rights concerns. In the same month, the National Committee to Combat Human Trafficking met to evaluate the 2005-2006 National Action Plan and to outline an updated version for 2009–2011, but released no such document to the public. Many ministries claimed involvement in efforts to address trafficking, but the country was severely limited in its ability to address the problem due to budget constraints, capacity limitations, and unclear allocation of law enforcement and social welfare responsibilities. [3]

The U.S. State Department's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons placed the country in "Tier 3" in 2017. [4] The country was placed at Tier 2 in 2023. [5]

Prosecution (2010)

The Government of Guinea did not show progress in its anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts during the reporting period. Guinea prohibits all forms of trafficking in persons through separate statutes. The Child Code of 2008 includes provisions prohibiting all forms of child trafficking, specifically criminalizing child domestic servitude, and allowing NGOs to bring cases to court on behalf of victims. The government, in partnership with NGOs and international organizations, has yet to complete the implementing text for this law, which will prescribe penalties that allow the law to be enforced. Article 337 of the 1998 Penal Code prohibits individuals from entering into agreements that deprive third parties of their liberty, prescribing penalties of five to 10 years' imprisonment and confiscation of any resulting profits. Forced prostitution and child prostitution are criminalized by Article 329 of Guinea's Penal Code, which prescribes six months' to two years' imprisonment if the trafficked victim is an adult, and two to five years' imprisonment if the victim is a child. These penalties for sex trafficking of adults are neither sufficiently stringent nor commensurate with penalties prescribed for other serious crimes, such as rape. The government did not prosecute any human trafficking cases during the reporting period, although the Ministry of Justice reported that there were 13 new cases that involved the arrest of at least 40 suspected trafficking offenders during 2009. Of the alleged traffickers, 30 remain in detention. Another 17 trafficking cases from the previous reporting period continue to await prosecution. The government provided only limited specialized training to its officials on the recognition, investigation, and prosecution of human trafficking, due to budget constraints. [3]

Protection (2010)

The government demonstrated weak efforts to protect trafficking victims during the reporting period. The government reportedly referred an unknown number of potential victims to NGOs and international organizations for assistance, though government officials did not demonstrate use of systematic referral procedures or proactive measures to identify victims among vulnerable groups, such as foreign children at worksites. The Ministry of Social Affairs continued to provide assistance to a few hundred children, a small number of whom may be trafficking victims. The government did not offer shelter for trafficking victims, but frequently assisted victims by contacting local and international NGOs directly to coordinate shelter and family reunification cases. The government did not provide trafficking victims with access to legal, medical, or psychological services, and did not subsidize services provided by foreign or domestic NGOs. Foreign trafficking victims do not benefit from permanent residency status or relief from deportation. The government reported that 106 trafficked children were identified by various entities in 2009, but offered no additional data on these children. The government occasionally provided victims refuge in jails when no alternative was available. The government encouraged trafficking victims to assist in the investigation and prosecution of their traffickers, as long as the victim was at least 12 years of age. At the government's invitation, two such victims, one of whom was a child, separately discussed their cases on national television in April and June 2009, though their traffickers had not been brought to justice; this raises concerns for the security and well-being of the victims. [3]

Prevention (2010)

The Government of Guinea demonstrated minimal efforts to conduct anti-trafficking or educational campaigns during the reporting period. The head of the junta, however, gave several speeches highlighting the importance of combating human trafficking. The government did not monitor immigration or emigration patterns for evidence of trafficking. The government did not take steps to reduce the demand for commercial sex acts. [3]

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Tunisia ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in July 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human trafficking in Papua New Guinea</span>

In 2009, Papua New Guinea was a source, destination, and transit country for men, women, and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced prostitution and forced labor. Women and children were subjected to commercial sexual exploitation and involuntary domestic servitude; trafficked men were forced to provide labor in logging and mining camps. Children, especially young girls from tribal areas, were most vulnerable to being pushed into commercial sexual exploitation or forced labor by members of their immediate family or tribe. Families traditionally sold girls into forced marriages to settle their debts, leaving them vulnerable to involuntary domestic servitude, and tribal leaders trade the exploitative labor and service of girls and women for guns and political advantage. Young girls sold into marriage were often forced into domestic servitude for the husband's extended family. In more urban areas, some children from poorer families were prostituted by their parents or sold to brothels. Migrant women and teenage girls from Malaysia, Thailand, China, and the Philippines were subjected to forced prostitution, and men from China were transported to the country for forced labor.

In 2009, Paraguay was a source and transit country for women and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically sex trafficking, as well as a source and transit country for men, women, and children in forced labor. Most Paraguayan trafficking victims were found in Argentina, Spain, and Bolivia; fewer victims were exploited in Brazil, Chile, France, South Korea, and Japan. In one case, 44 suspected Paraguayan trafficking victims were detained at the international airport in Amsterdam, and Dutch authorities arrested the alleged trafficking offender. In another case, 13 Paraguayan women were found in conditions of forced prostitution in a brothel in La Paz, Bolivia. Paraguay was a destination country for 30 Indonesian orphans, who were allegedly brought into the country for a long-term soccer camp, but who the government suspects are trafficking victims.

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In 2009, Niger was a source, transit, and destination country for children and women subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced labor and forced prostitution. Caste-based slavery practices, rooted in ancestral master-slave relationships, continued primarily in the northern part of the country. Children are trafficked within Niger for forced begging by religious instructors known as marabouts; forced labor in gold mines, agriculture, and stone quarries; as well as for involuntary domestic servitude and forced prostitution. The ILO estimates at least 10,000 children work in gold mines in Niger, many of whom may have been forced to work. Nigerien children, primarily girls, were also subjected to commercial sexual exploitation along the border with Nigeria, particularly in the towns of Birni N'Konni and Zinder along the main highway, and boys are trafficked to Nigeria and Mali for forced begging and manual labor. There were reports Nigerien girls entered into "false marriages" with citizens of Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates: upon arrival in these countries, the girls are often forced into involuntary domestic servitude. Child marriage was a problem, especially in rural areas, and may have contributed to conditions of human trafficking. Niger is a transit country for women and children from Benin, Burkina Faso, Gabon, Ghana, Mali, Nigeria, and Togo en route to Northern Africa and Western Europe; some may be subjected to forced labor in Niger as domestic servants, forced laborers in mines and on farms, and as mechanics and welders. To a lesser extent, Nigerien women and children were sometimes trafficked from Niger to North Africa the Middle East, and Europe for involuntary domestic servitude and forced commercial sexual exploitation."

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human trafficking in Ghana</span>

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Guinea-Bissau ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in September 2007.

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Ecuador ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in September 2002.

In 2009 El Salvador was a source, transit, and destination country for women and children who were subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced prostitution and forced labor. Most victims were Salvadoran women and girls from rural areas who were forced into commercial sexual exploitation in urban areas, though some adults and children were subjected to forced labor as agricultural workers and domestic workers. The majority of foreign victims were women and children from neighboring countries, such as Honduras, Nicaragua, and the Dominican Republic, who migrated to El Salvador in response to job offers, but were subsequently forced into prostitution or domestic servitude. Trafficking offenders used fraudulent documentation to facilitate the movement of foreign victims. Salvadorans have been subjected to forced prostitution in Guatemala, Mexico, Belize, the United States, Spain, and Italy.

References

  1. ↑ "United Nations Treaty Collection". treaties.un.org.
  2. ↑ "Guinea, 2013 Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor".
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Trafficking in Persons Report 2010 Country Narratives - Countries G Through M". US Department of State. 2010-06-18. Archived from the original on 2010-06-18. Retrieved 2023-02-14.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  4. ↑ "Trafficking in Persons Report 2017: Tier Placements". www.state.gov. Archived from the original on 2017-06-28. Retrieved 2017-12-01.
  5. ↑ "Technical Difficulties" (PDF).
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