international Archives - Shared Hope International

June 24, 2013 by Guest

2013 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report Release

On June 19, Secretary of State John Kerry released the 2013 Trafficking in Persons Report, an evaluation of 188 countries’ efforts to combat human trafficking. by : Jessica Garber

Written by: Jessica Garber – Intern at Shared Hope International

On Wednesday, June 19^th, Secretary of State John Kerry released the 2013 Trafficking in Persons Report, concluding that there are approximately 27 million people enslaved worldwide. Throughout the past year, world efforts to end human trafficking shed light on 46,000 victims. While the fight to end modern-day slavery is an extensive one, Kerry announced a benchmark success: the number of global convictions of human traffickers has increased by 20 percent since the 2012 report release, displaying progress on a worldwide level.

The Department of State’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (TIP Office) assessed 188 countries for this year’s report, and evaluates them based upon “the extent of their governments’ efforts to comply with the ‘minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking’ found in Section 108 of the TVPA” (U.S. Dept. of State Website). The countries can be ranked in three tiers, Tier 1 being the highest. However, just because a country may be ranked in Tier 1 does not mean that they do not have a human trafficking problem, but rather indicates that their government has acknowledged the existence of the problem and made efforts to address it. Thirty countries ‘made the grade’ for Tier 1, including the U.S and the U.K. Ninety-two countries made Tier 2, such as Switzerland, Romania, and Vietnam, meaning that they haven’t quite reached TVPA’s minimum standards. Lastly, 21 countries, including Russia and China, were classified as Tier 3 and are “found by law not to be taking the affirmative steps necessary to fight human trafficking.” The TIP Office also creates “watch lists” which alert the country that they might be making their way downward toward a lower tier. There are 42 countries on the Tier 2 watch list, meaning that they need to be cautious about slipping down to Tier 3.

Aside from the information release, Kerry shed a hopeful light on the issue of human trafficking, an issue that seems now to be taking on more of a presence in the public sphere:

“There is abuse that can take place in even the most improbable places in the most probable ways. And I learned then, looking in the eyes of young women who had been the victims of these crimes, that they were terrified of being victimized again, by the process, by the system. And nobody quite understood what it meant to a victim or the ways you could help victims through the system. Only when we started focusing on victims, not just as potential witnesses but as survivors, human beings entitled to respect and dignity, that’s when we started to provide people with a greater measure of justice. And that’s when we were able to give people a better chance at rebuilding the future.”

–John Kerry, 2013 TIP Report Release, 6/19/13

You can download the report, free of cost, from the State Department’s website: http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2013/index.htm

May 26, 2012 by SHI Staff

Back to Our Beginning: Montego Bay, Jamaica

“We call it a different name, we call it survival.”

In one simple sentence our partner in Montego Bay, Jamaica defined the challenge to combatting sex trafficking in the country. With the widespread prevalence of poverty and sexual abuse, buyers and traffickers are eager to exploit Jamaican youth with offers of provision and protection.

Today, we had the opportunity to meet with our partners in Montego Bay, tour their new home, meet a shy but sweet young boy who is currently seeking adoptive parents, talk about the issue of sex trafficking to teenagers attending a life skills class, and meet with board members and leadership to discuss challenges and explore solutions to effectively respond to sex trafficking in Jamaica.

During our discussion with students we asked if they ever knew anyone who traded sex for a place to live or were forced by a violent boyfriend to have sex in exchange for goods or money. The answer was an overwhelming, YES! They explained that despite its prevalence, sex trafficking was hardly ever discussed by media or the community. We are working with our local partner to develop awareness and education strategies to inspire prevention and increased care for at-risk or victimized youth.

Tomorrow, we have the opportunity to educate students and staff members at a local community center on the issue of sex trafficking. We will explain indicators of trafficking and offer response solutions to mobilize a community of new activists.

April 18, 2011 by Guest

Sex Traffickers and Pimps: the Real Winners of the World Cup

Brazil: one of the best destinations in the world. Great people. Beautiful beaches. Rain forests. An abundance of adventures to be had. The question is: what isn’t amazing about Brazil? The sad truth is that human trafficking and sexual exploitation is a major problem in this vacation spot. According to the State Department Trafficking in Persons Report, sex trafficking of Brazilian citizens within and across the country’s borders flourishes. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime stated that there is an outrageous industry of child sex tourism and child prostitution in Brazil; “According to a January 2005 report, child prostitution rings operate in 937 municipalities throughout the country.” It doesn’t seem asthough it could get much worse. However, after Spain came out victorious last year in the FIFA World Cup, Brazil was named as the next host of this colossal event in 2014. Unfortunately, this great honor brings booming business for the sex industry.

Right before the World Cup took place in Germany and South Africa, several anti-trafficking and human rights groups spoke up about the increased sexual exploitation that would take place during the tournaments. They encouraged the government and law enforcement agencies to step up and keep a watchful eye. Amnesty International and Human Trafficking.org estimated that between 30,000 and 60,000 children and women would be sexually exploited during the World Cup in Germany. ESPN’s Outside the Lines investigation on the effects of the South Africa World Cup on human trafficking found “more young people have been trafficked either into South Africa from other countries or internally to work in a rapidly growing sex industry because of the month long soccer tournament.” Time Magazine cited a trafficker in South Africa gloating about the anticipated increase in business, “Yeah, this is good! Us people are going to make a lot of money then if you know what you’re doing.” There was criticism of too much hype surrounding the problem and inflated numbers of trafficked victims but that does not negate the correlation between the World Cup and sexual exploitation. The Outside the Lines article above reiterated the words of an ordained minister who runs the conservative Family Policy Institute, “Sex traffickers see the World Cup as an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to ‘cash in.’”

Advocates of the anti-trafficking movement will once more begin to voice their concerns about the 2014 FIFA World Cup. The importance of soccer in Brazil will likely increase the tournament’s attendance and subsequently the number of customers for trafficking victims. As mentioned earlier, Brazil already boasts a thriving tourism industry and this World Cup could draw more U.S. attendees than normal because of its proximity. We are looking to determined anti-trafficking advocates and dedicated law enforcement officials to lead the charge in this monstrous challenge to make sure traffickers aren’t the real winners at the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

April 12, 2011 by Guest

The Nejloveanu Family: A Look Into How Pimps are Created

Sex trafficking is one of the most inhuman acts in the world. Its utter disregard for basic human rights is staggering. It begs the question, who would do this? Two months ago, the Nejloveanu father-son duo were handed hefty convictions for sex trafficking in the UK. The Nejloveanu family charmed multiple women between the ages of 16 and 25 into selling their bodies for money. They kept the women as their “sexual playthings” through threatening, beating, and degrading them. So why did they do it?

The act of human trafficking is an inexcusable crime but there are some key events in childhood that may be responsible for desensitizing traffickers to violence. A Chicago based study of 25 ex-pimps found that 76% experienced sexual assault as a child, with the average age of assault being 9.5!

The study showed that one of the reasons why people start pimping is the influence of other pimps’ wealth. One former pimp praised his father’s success as a pimp and expressed how that caused him to want to join the family business.

“I wanted to be respected like my daddy. He dressed very well, $400 and $500 suits. He drove the best Cadillacs. I wanted all of that. I grew up in it. It gave me the same things I saw my daddy with. I loved pimping.”

While there is research documenting how pimps control, employ, and recruit women for the sex trade, little is known about why they begin trafficking. According to the Chicago study, another reason why pimps get involved in the industry is the relatively low danger of prosecution compared to the large payoff. The ex-pimps in the Chicago study made anywhere between $150,000 and $500,000 in one year! Marius Nejloveanuand his father made anywhere from $117,000 to $234,000 every year.
From the case of the Nejloveanu family and the Chicago Study we can infer two possible reasons why pimping begins: the hefty income and the lack of danger. The payoff for pimping can become less advantageous by making it easier to convict traffickers, increasing the penalties, and requiring a well trained police force to be present in areas of pimping. Lastly, it is clearly important for interventions in child sexual abuse and physical violence, which are precursors of pimping and trafficking and contribute to transforming victims into victimizers.