Global human trafficking roundup (April 21, 2011)

NORTH AMERICA

New York: U.S. State Department agrees to the UN resolution 86 to ensure the sex workers' access to public services paying attention to their vulnerability and human rights abuse. Sex workers' rights advocacy group argue that the resolution makes the distinction between the sex workers by their own choice and human trafficking victims. However, many anti-huamn trafficking activists argued that this is a political setback.

Hawaii: U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission files lawsuit against a few Hawaiian and two other farms, including Global Horizon for trafficking Thai workers. EEOC argued that the defendant engaged in "a pattern or practice of national origin and race discrimination, harassment, and retaliation, when it trafficked over 200 Thai male victims to farms in Hawaii and Washington where they were subjected to severe abuse.” In one case, 60 Thai workers were crammed into one house sharing two bathroom with not enough beds, blankets, etc.

California: Community groups fighting against child prostitution in Oakland see progress. An example of the progress, according to the report, is the convictions of child abuser in connection with child prostitution. Also, for the past three jury trial, the prosecutor was able to receive verdicts for life long sentence conviction.

LATIN AMERICA

Jamaica: Police rescued 14 human trafficking victims including a minor. The victims are from Dominican Republic, Panama, Guyana, and India. Meanwhile, the government authority expressed its plan to further step up its effort to fight against human trafficking. Though Jamaica's rank on U.S. TIP report was improved from Tier 3 to Tier 2, a Senate said that it needs to do more including providing shelters and assistance to victims.

EUROPE

Denmark: Denmark's prostitution law promotes pimping and human trafficking of women. Currently, buying and selling sex are not illegal as long as both prostitute and a john are in the age of 18 or older, and they consented to the solicitation. However, national Police statistics reveal that such legislation with lack of punitive measure and stigma only fosters sex trafficking.

ASIA

UAE: An Uzbek woman appealed the lower court's decision to convict her of trafficking a Moldovan woman. In the lower court, she was convicted of sex trafficking a 21 year old Moldovan woman that she brought to UAE as her maid. The Uzbek woman argued that she has never known the Moldovan woman. The Uzbek woman was arrested when the police raid an apartment after receiving an emergency call asking for help from the victim.

Global human trafficking roundup (March 31, 2011)

NORTH AMERICA

Michigan: Michigan toughens up its anti-huamn trafficking law through amendment. According to the report, the new amendment will impose longer prison term for involuntary servitude. An expert at Michigan University says that human trafficking is happening all over the state, and tougher measure by law enforcement is required.

Illinois: Sex trafficking is widespread in Chicago. One victim testified that she was raped and forced into prostitution against her will by her friend's boyfriend who called himself as her pimp. She was locked into a room at a house being naked and constantly injected with drugs. She said she was lucky to be escape from the slavery, but many girls are not able to do so.

EUROPE

UK: Former police chief begins his anti-human trafficking work in Wale. According to the police, at least 2600 people were working as prostitutes in England and Wale, trafficked from abroad. He further emphasized the importance of cooperation among law enforcement and charity groups to fight against the crime.

Denmark: Many women from Nigeria and other Eastern European countries are enslaved in sex trade. An advocate says that the number of women trafficked from Nigeria tripled. Victims are afraid of coming forward because when they are caught, they are treated as illegal immigrants and face deportation. Though victims are given reflection period to cooperate with the police investigation, experts say that it does not offer enough time nor incentive to the victims.

ASIA

Vietnam: A Vietnamese woman was sentenced to five years in prison for trafficking women to Malaysia and Singapore. She was convicted of selling seven Vietnamese women to work abroad. However, the woman argued that she was not aware of the victims sold to prostitution because she was only an agent who helped the women find jobs abroad.

Australia: An Australian Christian Lobby says that legal brothels participating human trafficking is a failure of regulation. She said she is not surprised when she heard that licensed brothels were under investigation for human trafficking and child prostitution. She said that legalized brothels have not made prostitution safer because prostitution in itself is harmful to women.

UAE: Two Nigerian women are convicted of human trafficking and sentenced to five years in prison. They are convicted of trafficking three women for prostitution from Nigeria. The women also confiscated the victims' documents and held them in an apartment against their will.

Global human trafficking roundup (December 14, 2010)

NORTH AMERICA

Florida: A couple were sentenced to 51 months and 78 months in jail for labor exploiting at least 39 Filipino workers. They forced the workers into labor with the threat of deportation and arrest. According to the report, 28 workers slept in one house, and some of them slept on the kitchen floor.

Georgia: The U.S. Marshall captured two fugitives at Tempa Florida. They were listed on America's most wanted in connection to the homicide case in Georgia. They are accused of killing and shooting a recruited prostitute who later ran away from them. The charges against them including murder, sex trafficking of minor, running a prostitution ring, etc.

Colorado: A state senator wants to open a class to educate johns who were arrested for soliciting prostitution. He argued that the new bill will allow johns to be educated on harmful side of sex industry on prostituted women and human trafficking victims. He also argue that after taking the class, johns will not go back to solicit prostitution. The class will also be available to first time offenders as plea bargain that would dismiss the charge if they complete the program.

EUROPE

Denmark: Denmark opted out from signing EU human trafficking directive. The authority argued that the agreement should be based on the decision among the member of union states, which would be a long process. Meanwhile, media slammed on the authority's opt-out on EU human trafficking directive arguing that the opt-out may cause Denmark to become a hub of human trafficking.

ASIA

Taiwan: Police busted Asia's largest human trafficking ring. The ringleader profited from more than 30 cases of human trafficking in the past, according to the report. The arrest was a result of cooperation among the law enforcement in Hong Kong, UK, the U.S., and Thailand. The police arrested seven members of human trafficking and summoned seven others for questioning.

China: Shelter manager arrested for selling homeless as forced labor. Some of the homeless people were mentally disabled. The investigation began after the police visited a factory, where the homeless people with mental disability were working. The shelter manager allegedly sold 11 residents to the factory.