Global human trafficking roundup (May 10, 2011)

NORTH AMERICA

Missouri: A man was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison for trafficking people for labor. An Uzbekistan man brought thousands of people from abroad and forced them into labor in local restaurants and hotels. He also larded fees for uniforms and housings. He also had put some of the workers into work for as little as $1 an hour.

Tennessee: Law enforcement busted a human trafficking ring last week. They arrested nine people, including three women at three different residences. Law enforcement said that it's not clear how many women were forced into prostitution by this trafficking ring. The arrest was a result of five month long undercover investigation.

Michigan: A former janitor at the University of Michigan was arrested for bringing a family of four from African to work in his home. He is charged with human trafficking, forced labor, and visa and mail fraud. ICE agents found journals written by the victims detailing abuse by the man at his residence. If convicted, he could face up to 20 years in prison.

New Jersey: Nonprofit group says that New Jersey is a hub of human trafficking. A Polaris Project representative says that labor trafficking males, most male Hispanic migrants, significantly increases during the growing seasons, and transgender youths are forced into survival or commercial sex. Also many foreign women are forced into prostitution in massage parlors throughout the state.

Massachusetts: The state house is considering a bill to combat sex trafficking in the state. The new bill will define people managing prostitutes or pimps as traffickers. The bill will also impose much stiffer penalties on pimps and johns who pay for sex.

LATIN AMERICA

Argentina: A new study reports that U.S. is the destination for many Argentine men, women, and children for human trafficking. 80% of the trafficked victims work as sex workers under pretenses. The study also says that Argentina is a transit point for many women trafficked from neighboring countries.

AFRICA

Kenya: Police arrested a woman who was allegedly involved in child trafficking. The police also found three children that she was going to sell in Kisii. The children were later reunited with their parents, and the woman is still under investigation.

Global human trafficking roundup (April 1, 2011)

NORTH AMERICA

New Jersey: Federal Judge approves of four lawsuits filed by four Moldovan sex tourism victims against a New Jersey millionaire, Anthony Bianchi under the Alien Tort Statute. Bianchi currently is serving 25 years in prison for traveling to foreign countries to have sex with boys in the age of 12 and 15. Bianchi's lawyer argued that the Alien Tort Statute does not apply to citizens and rape, apart from the context of genocide or war, is not actionable under the law. The judge disagreed finding that "the plain language of the ATS includes "no requirement of state action," and that Bianchi's targeting of children and the frequency of his crimes "is extreme enough for subject matter jurisdiction to exist under the ATS."

Minnesota: Human trafficking victims share pain and healing through art. A group of survivors appeared at the State Capitol Hill to raise the awareness of human trafficking and talked about their artworks. One trafficking survivor shared her experienced as a victim after being trafficked from Nigeria and forced into labor in Minnesota. Her trafficker controlled her movement and gave her a limited access to food. She was also threatened with deportation if she refused to listen.

Nevada: Las Vegas is a hub of child sex trafficking, the Las Vegas Interfaith Sponsoring Committee says. According to Shared Hope International, "1,496 children from 40 states were trafficked into and arrested for prostitution in Clark County, Nevada between January 1994 and July 2007.”

Washington: A man is convicted of promoting child prostitution under the new legislation that impose tougher penalty on the offense. He forced a 17 year old girl into prostitution on Backpage.com. But, initially, he denied the allegation and told the police that he was a drug dealer, not a pimp though he called himself "a pimp in action" on his Myspace page.

ASIA

Thailand: Thai police crackdowns on new lottery which offers the winner one night of sexual service with a woman. Police said that the lottery is becoming popular among the factory workers in Thailand, and it is a new form of human trafficking. The offenders would face 4 -8 year prison term upon conviction.

The Philippines: A British accountant and his Filipino girlfriend was charged with kidnapping and murdering a six year old girl in Cebu. The 48 year old British accountant allegedly kidnapped her in front of her school to use her for child pornography. Police found the body of the six year old victim that the couple dumped over the cliff. They also found child porn and the sex toys.

Global human trafficking roundup (March 17, 2011)

NORTH AMERICA

South Dakota: The governor signs a new state human trafficking law. The new legislation will allow law enforcement to prosecute human trafficking. The new legislation will impose 10 year prison sentence and a $20,000 fine on convicted traffickers.

Oregon: The legislators are looking into the ways to crackdown on human trafficking. Law makers introduced at least nine bills to give law enforcement tools to deter child prostitution. One of the bills will impose a $20,000 fine on a john who solicited sex with minors. If he fails to do so, his name, address, and photo will be published online or a newspaper.

New Jersey: A 25 year old woman was arrested for pimping on several women, including two high school students. She was charged with human trafficking and promoting prostitution. According to the report, she allegedly operated in and around casinos.

Wisconsin: A man and two women were arrested for forcing minors into prostitution. The arrest was made after a 17 year old girl reported to the police that she was forced to perform prostitution against her will. The girl met one of the women at a party, where she was asked to become a prostitute. The woman also posted pictures of the teen only wearing underwear and advertised sexual favors on backpage.com.

ASIA

India: A 16 year old girl was rescued from prostitution. She was sold to a brothel owner by her uncle for $2200 while looking for a domestic worker job. She was rescued during the raid conducted by an anti-human trafficking organization. According to the report, she was placed at a government shelter for rehabilitation after the rescue.

Cambodia: Cambodia sets age limits on foreigners who pursue international marriage with Cambodian women. The new law will ban foreign men in the age of 50 or older from marrying Cambodian brides. Also, foreign men earning less than $2580 per month will be forbidden from marrying Cambodian women.

Global human trafficking roundup (February 11, 2011)

NORTH AMERICA

Hawaii: A report reveals sex trade in Waikiki. With its high turn over tourist population, many girls are prostituted on the street. According to the report, though some of them are local recruits, many of them are from out of town. Many victims live with physical and emotional abuse but are afraid of asking for help.

New Jersey: A man is accused of offering a 14 year old boy money in exchange for sex. He allegedly showed pornographic images to the 14 year old boy and offered him money for sexual favor according to the prosecutor. The 64 year old man is now facing charges on endangering child's welfare and promoting prostitution.

EUROPE

Luxembourg: ECPAT, a nonprofit organization to fight child trafficking and sexual exploitation of children, says Luxembourg government does little to fight human trafficking. According to the report, the organization severely criticized that the government makes no effort of raising awareness nor educating public and government officials to fight against human trafficking.

UK: Campaign against sex trafficking says crackdown on brothels is vital to combat trafficking in Britain. The Poppy Project urged police to prioritized brothels as urgent target as an environment of human trafficking.

ASIA

China: Authority announced that more than 9000 children were rescued as a result of nationwide campaign against human trafficking. In particular, Chinese microblog found by a professor in Beijing further helped missing children reunite with their parents.

India: Police rescued five teenage girls and arrested their trafficker. The arrest is made during the raid at a Bus stop. Police also seized cash from each victim who told the police that the man was transporting them from Orissa to Uttar Paradesh.

Australia: A pimp was fined $3000 after pleading guilty to running an illegal prostitution. He pleaded guilty to nine counts of procuring and other related charges. He also pleaded guilty to possessing child exploitation materials.

AFRICA

Nigeria: Immigration officer captured two people who were attempting to cross the border with three people, including a female. They allegedly were heading to Italy without proper immigration documents. The authority is still investigating whether there is human trafficking involved.

South Africa: Police arrested two Chinese women and rescued two victims. The two Chinese women were forced the victims into prostitution at a massage parlor. The victims were tied up with nylon straps at the time of rescue.

Human trafficking roundup (February 5-7, 2011)

NORTH AMERICA

New York: FBI is investigating Church of Scientology regarding human trafficking incidents. Former Scientologists claim that they were pressured to have abortions as teenagers in order to focus on their efforts on their religious works. Also, many former members reported brutal treatment by the sect, including financial exploitation, censorship, and invasion of privacy.

New Jersey: The state Senate proposes a new bill to open john schools. The bill, if implemented, will allow the first time offender of sex buyers a chance to walk in exchange of completing the program in John school. In john schools, the offenders will learn how their actions affect proliferation of human trafficking and sex trade.

LATIN AMERICA

Barbados: The government sector and nonprofit groups raises the concern over human trafficking on the island during the debate to implement Transnational Organized Crime bill. The senior government official gave an example of a Ghanaian females who were forced into prostitution in Barbados and subsequently disappeared afterwards.

EUROPE

Romania: Romania has become a major transit of human trafficking in Europe. Victims are as young as 12 years old, and they are trafficked to as far as Honduras, Afghanistan, the Congo, and China. According to the report, the country's admission to European Union in 2007 brought lax border regulations and attracted more traffickers to the country.

UK: Child trafficking in London is alarming, a report says. British Campaign against human trafficking reveals that many children become human trafficking victims in London and forced into drug trade or slavery. London Council launched a new set of tools to help agencies protect child trafficking victims. The guidelines aim to support social workers, government staff, healthcare professionals and law enforcement to better identify child trafficking victims. During the 14 month testing period, the pilot identified 56 child trafficking victims.

ASIA

The Philippines: The Philippines vowed to curb human trafficking. The vice president of the country, who is visiting Washington D.C., promised the U.S. authority to curb human trafficking and take the country off of the US TIP watch list next year.

AFRICA

Zimbabwe: Police busted a human trafficking ring which sexually exploited young women. Many victims are Zimbabwean females fleeing the country for better life. The victims were forced into prostitution in South Africa and falsely imprisoned in a confined place.

Swaziland: A school for deaf children tightens security system to protect children from traffickers. The authority tightened security system around the school after few children are disappeared after school. They were later discovered in other towns. The government also mandated the school to have 24 hour security guards around the school.

Looking for volunteers to post human trafficking roundup over the summer. If interested, please email me at ybdale@gmail.com. Thank you!!!