Human trafficking in the Dominican Republic

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Projection map of the Dominican Republic Dominican Republic (orthographic projection).svg
Projection map of the Dominican Republic

Human trafficking in the Dominican Republic is the third largest international crime enterprise in the Caribbean, generating 9.5 billion U.S, dollars annually. [1] [2] The large population of undocumented or stateless persons of Haitian descent in the country is particularly vulnerable to trafficking. [3] [4] Women and children have been reportedly subjected to forced sex in the country and throughout the Caribbean, Europe, South America, and the United States. Women from other countries are also brought to the Dominican Republic for prostitution, and an unknown number may have subsequently become trafficking victims, even if they came voluntarily at first. [1]

Contents

The Dominican Republic ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in February 2008. [5]

The U.S. State Department's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons placed the country in "Tier 2" in 2017. [6] The country was placed on the Tier 2 Watch List in 2023. [7]

In 2023, the Organised Crime Index noted that most victims came from Venezuela, Haiti and Colombia. [8]

History

Trafficking routes of women, children and men Trafficking of women, children and men routes.svg
Trafficking routes of women, children and men

The United Nations defines trafficking as "the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring, or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability, or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation." [9] Men and women have been subjected to sex forced labor in the United States and Argentina. Most trafficked victims are sent to Western Europe, and some are sent to North America. [1] [2] Out of all areas in the Caribbean, the Dominican Republic has the highest number of trafficked persons; women are trafficked to Costa Rica and Panama as well as to Western Europe. There are over one thousand commercial sex workers from the island in Spain and 3,675 in Switzerland. [10]

While the Ministry of Labor reported that sugar plantations no longer use child labor, the sugar industry has been cited as vulnerable for possible use of forced labor. A 2009 NGO study found of some 500 male Haitian construction workers interviewed, 21 percent reported experiencing forced labor in the Dominican Republic at some point, although not in their current jobs as construction workers. However, the December 2014 List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor reported 5 agricultural goods produced under such working conditions in the Dominican Republic, all of them involving child labor and one involving both child labor and forced labor. Street children and undocumented or stateless Haitian people – including the Dominican-born children and grandchildren of Haitian migrants – were vulnerable groups to trafficking. Child sex tourism is a problem, particularly in coastal resort areas, with child sex tourists arriving year-round from various countries.

The Government of the Dominican Republic does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so. The government has not convicted any trafficking offenders, including officials possibly complicit in trafficking, since 2007. Results in the areas of victim protection, and trafficking prevention were also limited.

Why the Caribbean?

Unemployment, poverty, illiteracy, history of abuse, drug use, and gang membership are all individual causes of rising human trafficking within the Caribbean. [10] [11] Oftentimes, traffickers will work along the border between Haiti and the Dominican Republic and trick fathers and mothers into letting their children leave, resulting in the exploitation of their children. [12] There are external and global factors as well, some of which include the global demand for domestic servants, agricultural workers, and factory labor; political, social, or economic crises; natural disasters, the machismo attitude which causes men to discriminate against the female gender, public corruption, lack of government interest, and the limited economic opportunities. Most trafficked individuals often are never able to pay off their remittances which equates to about an estimated amount of 325 billion U.S. dollars; resulting in a lack of development to his or her said country.

More specifically, in the Dominican Republic, 38% of the 784 Dominican and Haitian children questioned worked in the agricultural sector, as domestic workers in family homes and other informal activities such as street selling. Most children work six or seven days a week because they are required to take care of themselves. [12]

Two groups that are currently of specific concern are irregular migrants and deportees. Irregular migrants are those that move illegally across borders, those who enter a country legally but then stay beyond the limits of his or her visas, and people whose residency or citizenship status is modified because of changes in laws and regulations. Irregular migrants often enter into a vulnerable state where they suffer from both physical and emotional abuse. They do not want to leave the country and so suffer extortion and exploitation as a result. Many are promised that they will gain employment and then are sold by trafficking gangs. [10]

It is difficult to deduce the exact impact of trafficking or the number of women and children who have been affected because of circumstances such as violence, abuse, coercion, trauma and stigma associated with being a victim of trafficking. The language barrier can sometimes be a problem; especially when some words in the English language are not in the Spanish vocabulary. Another reason why it is difficult to obtain an exact number of people who are being trafficked is because there are no registers or indicators, no legal processes on the matter, and there are seldom complaints and reports of this type of offense. [12] [13]

Dominican law prohibits all forms of trafficking through its comprehensive anti-trafficking Law 137-03, which prescribes penalties of up to 20 years’ imprisonment. The government reported 36 persons “currently in preventive detention” under Law 137-03, but these data conflate trafficking and smuggling, as Law 137-03 covers both. Authorities reported the government may prosecute trafficking offenders under other statutes; NGO observers have said corruption on the part of authorities is a problem. The government reported it provided training for officials posted abroad on identifying and assisting trafficking victims, and each year, judges take an online course on trafficking, available through the National Magistrates School. [14] The government has claimed to have made several efforts to identify and protect trafficking victims,[ when? ] but results were limited. The government has not clarified whether it has a formal mechanism to guide officials in proactively identifying victims among vulnerable groups and refer them to available services offered by NGOs. The government provided $13,500 in support for an NGO-run shelter and religious order that assisted adult, female victims.

A government agency, which is reportedly underfunded, managed shelters for children that assisted child trafficking victims during the reporting period. While the government did not provide formal long-term reintegration assistance programs for trafficking victims, the First Lady’s office facilitated victims’ access to psychological and financial support, and another government agency offered skills training to some victims during the reporting period. The Dominican government claimed to have encouraged victims to assist with the investigation and prosecution of their traffickers, but few elected to do so. Another NGO reported an instance where several victims were willing to assist with a prosecution but claimed there had been no progress in four years. Some officials and an NGO reported some alleged trafficking offenders made deals to compensate victims in lieu of criminal prosecution.

The government did not implement a national public awareness campaign during the reporting period, though there were several campaigns on raising anti-trafficking awareness targeted toward at-risk populations and tourist areas. A national interagency anti-trafficking commission chaired by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs facilitated inter-agency cooperation and oversaw implementation of a national action plan, which remained reliant on donor funding but was hampered by lack of participation of the prosecution service. The government did not undertake efforts to reduce the demand for commercial sex acts during the reporting period. Since 2001, the U.S. government has given over four hundred million dollars in foreign assistance to help combat and eliminate human trafficking and the U.S. government has funded 42 task forces on human trafficking between 2004 and 2006. [1] [2] However, on July 16, 2012, the Dominican Republic signed three agreements dealing with human trafficking within the United States. [15]

The Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act was enacted by the United States in 2000 and was created to establish minimum standards to combat human trafficking applicable to countries that have significant trafficking problems. [11] The Secretary of State was to provide reports each year about countries that do not follow the minimum standards for eliminating trafficking. Each country is part of a Tier group; 1-3 with 3 being the worst. The Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2003 was created much like the VTVPA however it also addressed the top countries to be keeping a close eye on. [11] The William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Reauthorization Act of 2008 gave more freedom to monitor and evaluate all assistance given under the previous laws. Other countries were also required to undergo inspections in critical areas where trafficking is most likely. Lastly, there also need to be better indicators for human trafficking. [16] Data needs to describe the international population movements and provide governments with a solid basis for policy formulation and implementation. One of the greatest needs is to provide technical and financial assistance to developing countries in order to enable them to collect better migration data. [12]

Results of human trafficking in the Caribbean

There are many economic, societal, health, and other impacts on human trafficking. [1] [2]

Economic impacts

Trafficking results in a transfer of money to developing countries because the trafficked individuals have to pay off the debt that he or she has for being trafficked.

Societal impacts

Trafficking reduces extended family ties and the forced absence of females leads to a breakdown of families and neglect of children and the elderly members of the family. The victims of trafficking are often ignored and shunned once he or she returns to the community and then this individual gets involved with criminal activity. Children who are trafficked are seen as forever damaged and these children suffer from trauma and psychological problems.

Health impacts

Transporting individuals can result in injury and for some even death before he or she reaches their intended destination. Certain diseases can be a result because the transportation devices are overcrowded and unsanitary. Many individuals who are trafficked for the sex industry may also develop HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases; many times the victims are not given the option to use condoms.

Miscellaneous impacts

Women and children are the main vulnerable groups of exploitation. These people who are trafficked no longer have human rights; these people lose the right and opportunity to grow up in a protected environment. These people also lose the right to healthcare, education, work, and other freedoms. Many governments are unable to protect women and children who are kidnapped and many government officials are bribed by the traffickers and therefore cannot combat against the rugs human trafficking.

Related Research Articles

Suriname ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in May 2007.

In 2008 Vietnam was primarily a source country for women and children trafficked for commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor. Women and children were trafficked to the People’s Republic of China (P.R.C), Cambodia, Thailand, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Macau for sexual exploitation. Vietnamese women were trafficked to the P.R.C., Taiwan, and the Republic of Korea via fraudulent or misrepresented marriages for commercial exploitation or forced labor. Vietnam was also a source country for men and women who migrate willingly and legally for work in the construction, fishing, or manufacturing sectors in Malaysia, Taiwan, P.R.C., Thailand, and the Middle East but subsequently face conditions of forced labor or debt bondage. Vietnam was a destination country for Cambodian children trafficked to urban centers for forced labor or commercial sexual exploitation. The country had an internal trafficking problem with women and children from rural areas trafficked to urban centers for commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor. Vietnam was increasingly a destination for child sex tourism, with perpetrators from Japan, the Republic of Korea, the P.R.C., Taiwan, the UK, Australia, Europe, and the U.S. In 2007, an Australian non-governmental organization (NGO) uncovered 80 cases of commercial sexual exploitation of children by foreign tourists in the Sa Pa tourist area of Vietnam alone.

In 2008, Honduras was principally a source and transit country for women, girls, and boys trafficked for the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation. Honduran children were typically trafficked from rural areas to urban and tourist centers such as San Pedro Sula, the North Caribbean coast, and the Bay Islands. Honduran women and children are trafficked to Guatemala, El Salvador, Mexico, and the United States for sexual exploitation. Most foreign victims of commercial sexual exploitation in Honduras were from neighboring countries; some were economic migrants en route to the United States who are victimized by traffickers. Internal child labor and forced child labor for violent criminal gangs were serious concerns.

Italy ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in August 2006.

Jamaica is a source, transit, and destination country for adults and children trafficked for the purposes of sexual exploitation and forced labor.

Angola ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in September 2014.

The Bahamas ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in September 2008.

Bangladesh is a source and transit country for men, women, and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced labor and forced prostitution. A significant share of Bangladesh's trafficking victims are men recruited for work overseas with fraudulent employment offers who are subsequently exploited under conditions of forced labor or debt bondage. It also includes the trafficking of children – both boys and girls – within Bangladesh for commercial sexual exploitation, bonded labor, and forced labor. Some children are sold into bondage by their parents, while others are induced into labor or commercial sexual exploitation through fraud and physical coercion. Women and children from Bangladesh are also trafficked.

In 2010, Barbados was a source and destination country for men, women, and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced prostitution and forced labor. Some children in Barbados were subjected to commercial sexual exploitation in “transactional sex” wherein a third party such as a parent received a benefit from the child's participation in sexual activity. Researchers identified patterns of transactional sex within families, most often by adult male caretakers such as step-fathers, as well as child prostitution outside the home. Women from the Dominican Republic, Guyana, and Jamaica voluntarily entered Barbados as illegal migrants, and some expected to engage in prostitution. Some of these women were exploited in forced prostitution subsequent to their arrival. Some other foreign women who entered the country illegally were exploited in involuntary domestic servitude in private homes. Foreign men have been transported to Barbados for the purpose of labor exploitation in construction and other sectors. Sex traffickers, primarily organized criminals from Guyana, formed partnerships with pimps and brothel owners from Trinidad and Tobago and Barbados, and lured women to Barbados with offers of legitimate work. Trafficking victims tend to enter the country through legal means, usually by air; traffickers later used force and coercion to obtain and maintained the victims' work in strip clubs, massage parlors, some private residences, and “entertainment clubs” which operate as brothels. Traffickers used methods such as threats of physical harm or deportation, debt bondage, false contracts, psychological abuse, and confinement to force victims to work in construction, the garment industry, agriculture, or private households.

Bolivia Bolivia ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in May 2006.

Tunisia ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in July 2003.

Nicaragua ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in October 2004.

Guinea ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in November 2004.

In 2010 Mongolia was a source country, and to a much lesser extent, a destination for men, women, and children who were subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced prostitution and forced labor. Mongolian men, women, and children were found in these conditions in China, Macau, Malaysia, South Korea, and Hong Kong. Mongolian men and women were found in conditions of forced labor in Turkey, Kazakhstan, and the Czech Republic. Visa-free travel of Mongolians to Turkey resulted in a significant increase in the number of both labor and sex trafficking cases of Mongolian labor migrants in Turkey. There remained concerns about involuntary child labor in the Mongolian construction, mining, and industrial sectors, where children were vulnerable to injury and face severe health hazards. The problem of Mongolian women subjected to conditions of involuntary servitude after engaging in brokered marriages - mainly to South Korean men - continued. Trafficking within Mongolia often involved women and girls forced to work in saunas or massage parlors where they were subjected to forced prostitution. Anecdotal reports continued to indicate that South Korean and Japanese tourists engaged in child sex tourism in Mongolia.

The country of Colombia, South America, has a high prevalence of women and girls who are subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced prostitution. These women and girls work within Colombia, and are also sent to sex tourism destinations in other parts of Latin America, the Caribbean, Europe, Asia, and North America, including the United States. The humanitarian crisis in Venezuela has worsened from 2010 to the present, with almost 1.5 million people fleeing from Venezuela to cities throughout Colombia in recent years. Immigrants in major Colombian cities such as Bogotá, Medellín, and Cali find work scarce, and some turn to prostitution as a last resort to feed their families. Within Colombia, some men are found in conditions of forced labor, but the forced prostitution of women and children from rural areas and urban areas remains a larger problem. Individual cases of forced marriage – a risk factor for trafficking – involuntary domestic servitude, and forced begging have been reported. Some children are subjected to forced labor in mines and quarries, in the agricultural sector or as domestic servants. Groups at high risk for internal trafficking include displaced persons, poor women in rural areas, and relatives of members of criminal organizations. Continued armed violence in Colombia has displaced many in rural communities, making them vulnerable to human trafficking. Guerillas and new illegal armed groups have been reported to forcibly recruit children to join their ranks; the government estimates thousands of children are exploited under such conditions. Members of gangs and organized criminal networks may force their relatives and acquaintances, and displaced persons – typically women and children – into conditions of forced prostitution and forced labor, including forced work in the illegal drug trade. Colombia is also a destination for foreign child sex tourists, particularly in coastal cities such as Cartagena and Barranquilla. Migrants from South America, Africa, and China transit Colombia en route to the United States and Europe; some may fall victim to traffickers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human trafficking in Costa Rica</span> Trade of people in Costa Rica

Costa Rica ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in September 2003.

In 2009, Cyprus was a destination country for women who were subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced prostitution, as well as for men and women in forced labor. Women identified as sex trafficking victims in Cyprus originated from Moldova, Ukraine, Bulgaria, the Philippines, Morocco, and Hungary. A large number of Romanian nationals were subjected to forced labor in the country in 2009. Sex trafficking occurred within venues used by Cyprus' commercial sex industry, including cabarets, bars, pubs, and massage parlors disguised as private apartments located throughout the country. Groups vulnerable to forced labor included domestic workers, asylum seekers, and migrants working in the farming and agricultural sectors. According to a 2008 EU Thematic Study on Child Trafficking for Cyprus, some children within migrant and Roma communities may be vulnerable to trafficking.

Djibouti is a transit and, to a lesser extent, a source and destination country for men, women, and children who are subjected to trafficking in people, specifically conditions of forced labor and forced prostitution. There is little verifiable data on the human trafficking situation in Djibouti. An estimated 150 000 voluntary economic migrants from Ethiopia and Somalia passed illegally through Djibouti en route to Yemen and other locations in the Middle East in 2022; among this group, a small number of women and girls may fall victim to involuntary domestic servitude or forced commercial sexual exploitation after reaching Djibouti City or the Ethiopia-Djibouti trucking corridor. An unknown number of migrants – men, women, and children – are subjected to conditions of forced labor and forced prostitution after reaching Yemen and other destinations in the Middle East. Djibouti's large refugee population – consisting of Somalis, Ethiopians, and Eritreans – as well as foreign street children remain vulnerable to various forms of exploitation within the country, including human trafficking. Older street children reportedly act, at times, as pimps for younger children. A small number of girls from impoverished Djiboutian families may engage in prostitution with the encouragement of family members or other people in prostitution. Members of foreign militaries stationed in Djibouti contribute to the demand for women and girls in prostitution, including trafficking victims.

Women, and children from Eastern Europe, West Africa, and Asia, as well as the Caribbean and Brazil, subjected to trafficking in persons, forced prostitution and forced labor. U.S. State Department's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons placed the country in "Tier 1" in 2017. Women and children, many from Africa, continued to be subjected to forced domestic servitude. Often their "employers" are diplomats who enjoy diplomatic immunity from prosecution, including those from Saudi Arabia. Reportedly men from North Africa are subjected to forced labor in the agricultural and construction sectors in southern France. The Government of France estimates that the majority of the 18,000 women in France's commercial sex trade are likely forced into prostitution. It also estimates a significant number of children in France are victims of forced prostitution, primarily from Romania, West Africa, and North Africa. Romani and other unaccompanied minors in France continued to be vulnerable to forced begging. There were reportedly six French women subjected to forced prostitution in Luxembourg in 2009.

Human Trafficking or "trafficking in persons" is the recruiting, harboring, transporting, providing, or obtaining a person for mainly the purposes of forced labor or prostitution. Other reasons for human trafficking are the removal of organs, forced marriage, and other exploitations. South America is one of the biggest source and destination locations in the world and has struggled with the issue for many years. The ILO estimates that of the 20.9 million victims of human trafficking in 2012, 1.8 million were from Latin America. There are many factors that cause human trafficking, like a high demand for domestic servants, sex laborers, and factory workers, the existence of already established trafficking networks that often take advantage of young women and children, corruption in the governments and local law enforcement agencies, a governmental disinterest in the issue and a lack of opportunity for women in South American regions where trafficking occurs. People exploited in human trafficking are often impoverished, members of indigenous peoples, unemployed, victims of abuse, illiterate, substance users, homeless, or involved in gang activity. Research by the United States Department of State has also found that LGBTQ+ people are vulnerable to human trafficking. By far, sex trafficking is the leading type of human trafficking, making up 79 percent of all human trafficking. This is then followed by forced labor at 18 percent. About 20 percent of trafficking victims are children. Primary destinations for trafficking and illegal immigration are the United States, Spain, Britain, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Canada. Globalization, capitalism and societal attitudes facilitate and reduce the barriers to human trafficking.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 M'Cormack, Freida (8 December 2011). "The impact of human trafficking on people and countries" (PDF). Governance and Social Development: 1–12. Retrieved 2013-03-27.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Benoit, Catherine (1999). "Sex, AIDS, migration, and prostitution: human trafficking in the Caribbean". New West Indian Guide. 73 (3 and 4): 27–42. doi: 10.1163/13822373-90002576 . Retrieved 2013-03-27.[ permanent dead link ]
  3. ↑ "Haitian children sold as cheap labourers and prostitutes for little more than £50".
  4. ↑ "Human Trafficking".
  5. ↑ United Nations Treaty Collection website, Chapter XVIII Penal Matters section, Section 12a, retrieved August 19, 2024
  6. ↑ "Trafficking in Persons Report 2017: Tier Placements". www.state.gov. Archived from the original on 2017-06-28. Retrieved 2017-12-01.
  7. ↑ US Government website, Trafficking in Persons Report 2023
  8. ↑ Organised Crime Index website, Dominican Republic, retrieved August 31, 2024
  9. ↑ Lacko, Frank. "Developing Better Indicators of Human Trafficking". Brown Journal of World Affairs. 1. X.
  10. 1 2 3 Thomas-Hope, Elizabeth. "Human Trafficking in the Caribbean and the Human Rights of Migrants": 1–15.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  11. 1 2 3 Seelke, Clare (2011). "Trafficking in persons in Latin America and the Caribbean". Trends in Organized Crime. 14 (2/3): 272–277. doi:10.1007/s12117-011-9135-z. S2CID   157161064.
  12. 1 2 3 4 "Human Trafficking: Dominican Republic". UNICEF. Retrieved April 30, 2013.
  13. ↑ Langberg, Laura (2005). "A Review of Recent OAS Research on Human Trafficking in the Latin American and Caribbean Region". International Migration. 43 (1–2): 129–139. doi:10.1111/j.0020-7985.2005.00315.x.
  14. ↑ "Dominican Republic Trafficking in Persons Report 2010". U.S. Department of State. June 14, 2010.
  15. ↑ Karas, David (July 13, 2011). "Human trafficking: Corporate America enlists in the global fight". The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved April 29, 2013.
  16. ↑ Laczko, Frank; Marco A. Gramegna (Fall 2003). "Developing Better Indicators of Human Trafficking" (PDF). Brown Journal of World Affairs. X (1). Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 April 2011. Retrieved 8 May 2013.
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