The US has placed Taiwan on a list of “Tier 2” countries for human trafficking for the second year in a row, saying Taiwanese authorities had failed to comply with the minimum standards to eliminate trafficking while commending them for making significant efforts to do so.
The Trafficking in Persons Report 2008 released on Wednesday by the US Department of State described Taiwan as a destination for men, women and children trafficked for the purposes of forced labor and sexual exploitation.
Taiwan is also a source of women trafficked to Japan, Australia, the UK and the US, the report said.
“Many foreign workers remain vulnerable to trafficking because legal protections, oversight by authorities and enforcement efforts are inadequate,” it said.
The report recommended that Taiwan pass and implement a comprehensive anti-trafficking law prohibiting and punishing all severe forms of trafficking and extend full Labor Standards Law (勞動基準法) protection to all categories of foreign workers, including domestic helpers and caregivers.
It also suggested that Taiwan fully implement a recent Immigration Law amendment to extend its protection to trafficking victims and ensure that law enforcement personnel, prosecutors and judges consistently follow formal trafficking victim identification procedures to prevent the prosecution of trafficking victims.
Taiwan should establish procedures for referring victims to shelters, improve incentives for victims to assist in the prosecution of traffickers, and increase police efforts to investigate trafficking crimes and to identify trafficking victims, the report said.
Taiwan should also launch a campaign to discourage child sex tourism by Taiwanese and improve cooperation with the governments of labor source countries, it said.
The report this year rated 170 countries and regions and placed them on three lists, based primarily on the extent of government action to combat trafficking.
Governments that fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of human trafficking are placed on the “Tier 1” list, while those that are making significant efforts to meet the minimum standards are placed under “Tier 2.” Governments that do not fully comply with the minimum standards and are not making significant efforts to do so are placed on the “Tier 3” list and may be subject to certain sanctions.
In 2006, Taiwan was placed on the “Tier 2 Watch List” for not fully complying with the minimum standards for the elimination of human trafficking. The US government removed Taiwan from the watch list and ranked it among “Tier 2” countries again last year in view of the country’s significant efforts to tackle the problem.
LONG FLIGHT: The jets would be flown by US pilots, with Taiwanese copilots in the two-seat F-16D variant to help familiarize them with the aircraft, the source said The US is expected to fly 10 Lockheed Martin F-16C/D Block 70/72 jets to Taiwan over the coming months to fulfill a long-awaited order of 66 aircraft, a defense official said yesterday. Word that the first batch of the jets would be delivered soon was welcome news to Taiwan, which has become concerned about delays in the delivery of US arms amid rising military tensions with China. Speaking on condition of anonymity, the official said the initial tranche of the nation’s F-16s are rolling off assembly lines in the US and would be flown under their own power to Taiwan by way
OBJECTS AT SEA: Satellites with synthetic-aperture radar could aid in the detection of small Chinese boats attempting to illegally enter Taiwan, the space agency head said Taiwan aims to send the nation’s first low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite into space in 2027, while the first Formosat-8 and Formosat-9 spacecraft are to be launched in October and 2028 respectively, the National Science and Technology Council said yesterday. The council laid out its space development plan in a report reviewed by members of the legislature’s Education and Culture Committee. Six LEO satellites would be produced in the initial phase, with the first one, the B5G-1A, scheduled to be launched in 2027, the council said in the report. Regarding the second satellite, the B5G-1B, the government plans to work with private contractors
‘NARWHAL’: The indigenous submarine completed its harbor acceptance test recently and is now under heavy guard as it undergoes tests in open waters, a source said The Hai Kun (海鯤), the nation’s first indigenous defense submarine, yesterday began sea trials, sailing out of the Port of Kaohsiung, a military source said. Also known as the “Narwhal,” the vessel departed from CSBC Corp, Taiwan’s (台灣國際造船) shipyard at about 8am, where it had been docked. More than 10 technicians and military personnel were on deck, with several others standing atop the sail. After recently completing its harbor acceptance test, the vessel has started a series of sea-based trials, including tests of its propulsion and navigational systems, while partially surfaced, the source said. The Hai Kun underwent tests in the port from
MISSION: The Indo-Pacific region is ‘the priority theater,’ where the task of deterrence extends across the entire region, including Taiwan, the US Pacific Fleet commander said The US Navy’s “mission of deterrence” in the Indo-Pacific theater applies to Taiwan, Pacific Fleet Commander Admiral Stephen Koehler told the South China Sea Conference on Tuesday. The conference, organized by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), is an international platform for senior officials and experts from countries with security interests in the region. “The Pacific Fleet’s mission is to deter aggression across the Western Pacific, together with our allies and partners, and to prevail in combat if necessary, Koehler said in the event’s keynote speech. “That mission of deterrence applies regionwide — including the South China Sea and Taiwan,” he
RSS