Wed, Jun 16, 2010 page1

• Taiwan fares better in trafficking report

  WASHINGTON’S VIEW Ambassador Luis CdeBaca, who oversees the US’ anti-human trafficking effort, said Taiwan’s rank improved because of better victim protection

  • By William Lowther and Shih Hsiu-chuan / STAFF REPORTERS IN WASHINGTON AND TAIPEI
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  A new US State Department report says that while there has been significant improvement in Taiwan’s efforts to stop “modern slavery,” there is still much to be done.

  The department’s 10th annual review on the trafficking of men, women and children for forced labor and prostitution said Taiwan was moved up this year from the second or middle tier of offending countries to the top tier that includes countries actively working to end sex and labor trafficking.

  However, it said that Taiwan’s program to prosecute offenders “should be improved.”

  Released by US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, the report grades 175 countries and estimates there were 12.3 million victims of forced labor, sex trafficking, debt bondage and recruitment of child soldiers worldwide last year.

  The report recommends that to prevent labor trafficking, Taiwan should extend labor protections to all categories of workers including workers in the domestic service sector and caregivers.

  Taipei should continue efforts to investigate and prosecute trafficking offenders and ensure those convicted receive “sufficiently stringent sentences,” it said.

  Taiwanese authorities, the report said, made progress in anti-trafficking last year, but failed to ensure that the Labor Standards Act (勞動基準法), which prohibits forced labor, covered the nearly 160,000 foreign workers employed as private caregivers and domestic workers — about half of Taiwan’s migrant workforce.

  “There were continued reports some local officials took bribes to turn a blind eye to trafficking and allegations some legislators attempted to influence local Bureau of Labor Affairs’ mediation sessions between employers and migrant workers to the employer’s favor,” the report said.

  It said the authorities did not investigate or prosecute any officials for trafficking-related corruption during the year.

  “Taiwan is a destination and to a much lesser extent, source and transit territory,” the report said.

  “Most trafficking victims in Taiwan are workers from Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines, employed through recruitment agencies and brokers to perform low-skilled work in Taiwan’s manufacturing industries and as home caregivers and domestic workers,” it said.

  Many of these workers, the report said, fall victim to labor trafficking by unscrupulous brokers and employers who force them to perform work outside the scope of their contract and often under exploitative conditions.

  “Some women and girls from China and Southeast Asian countries are lured to Taiwan through fraudulent marriages and deceptive employment offers for purposes of commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor,” it said.

  “Taiwan is a transit territory for Chinese citizens who enter the United States illegally and may become victims of debt bondage and forced prostitution,” the report said.

  Last year, Taiwanese authorities “greatly improved” efforts to protect victims of trafficking and during the year, 329 victims were placed in shelters — up from just 65 victims the year before, the report said.

  The report said “some observers” believe victim identification in Taiwan was inconsistent and should be further improved.

  Significantly, the report said that Taiwan’s efforts to combat trafficking abroad were hampered by a lack of formal diplomatic relations and an inability to participate in regional and international organizations.

  “Authorities did not make efforts to reduce the demand for commercial sex acts during the year,” the report said.

  “While Taiwan has a law with extraterritorial application criminalizing the sexual exploitation of children by Taiwan passport holders traveling abroad, authorities have not prosecuted anyone for child sex tourism abroad since 2006,” it said.

  Asked why Taiwan had been moved from the “Tier 2” to the “Tier 1” category, US Ambassador-at-Large Luis CdeBaca, who is in charge of the US program to fight trafficking in persons, said it was because of an improvement in victim protection.

  He said that Taiwan had addressed the “victim-services side” and implemented a new comprehensive law allowing victims to legally work in the country while their cases were being investigated.

  In Taipei, officials from the Ministry of the Interior, the Ministry of Justice, the National Immigration Agency, the Council of Labor Affairs (CLA) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs held a press conference to respond to the report.

  “It’s hard-earned recognition and we think it was mainly because of legislation found in the Human Trafficking Prevention Act (人口販運防制法) enacted last year,” Minister of the Interior Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺) said.

  Discussing impediments to progress in fighting human trafficking, Deputy Minister of Justice Wu Chen-huan (吳陳鐶) said prosecutors often face problems in tracking down criminals involved in human trafficking in other countries.

  “Because of Taiwan’s political situation, we have signed judicial cooperation agreements with very few countries — only the US and China,” Wu said.

  Lin San-quei (林三貴), director-general of the Bureau of Employment and Vocational Training, said the government would step up efforts to include caregivers and domestic workers in the law to ensure their protection.

  Lawmakers and civic groups, meanwhile, urged government officials to improve efficiency across local governments and government agencies.

  Lawmakers and civic groups gave the thumbs-down to the justice ministry, the National Police Administration, local prosecutors’ offices, the CLA, the Judicial Yuan and local social welfare departments.

  ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY SHELLEY HUANG

  Also See: US puts Singapore, Thailand on watch list
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