Sat, Jun 21, 2014 page3

• Fight human trafficking harder: US

  NOT ENOUGH: Although Taiwan is in the top tier of Asian countries fighting human trafficking, the US gave Taipei a long list of recommendations to intensify the battle

  • By William Lowther / Staff reporter in WASHINGTON
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  Washington is calling on Taiwan to increase efforts to prosecute and convict those guilty of human trafficking.

  “There is no greater assault on basic freedom than the evil of human trafficking,” US Secretary of State John Kerry said as the US released its annual report on the subject.

  While Taiwan was ranked among the 31 best countries in the world for combating human trafficking, the US Department of State still had plenty of recommendations for improvement.

  Among the top recommendations to Taipei were: Vigorously investigate and prosecute the owners of Taiwan-owned or flagged fishing vessels who commit abuse and labor trafficking on board long-haul fishing vessels; increase efforts to reduce exploitation of migrant workers by brokers — including Taiwanese recruiters and employers; provide permanent resident visas to victims of trafficking instead of fining and deporting them; sentence convicted traffickers to sufficiently stringent punishments; continue to train law enforcement personnel on victim identification measures and the anti-trafficking law; increase efforts to investigate and prosecute child sex tourism offenses committed by Taiwanese; and continue efforts to increase public awareness of all forms of trafficking.

  “Whether it comes in the form of a young girl trapped in a brothel, a woman enslaved as a domestic worker, a boy forced to sell himself on the street, or a man abused on a fishing boat, the victims of this crime have been robbed of the right to lead the lives they choose for themselves, and trafficking and its consequences have a spillover effect that touches every element of a society,” Kerry said.

  “We each have a responsibility to make this horrific and all-too-common crime a lot less common,” he said.

  Kerry said that 44,000 “survivors” had been identified worldwide and helped in the past year, while an estimated 20 million people remained as victims of trafficking.

  In Asia, only Taiwan, Australia, New Zealand and South Korea were in the top tier of countries fighting human trafficking. China was ranked in the second tier among countries making a significant effort to reach the minimum acceptable standards.

  The report said that Taiwan was a “destination territory” for men, women and children subjected to forced labor and sex trafficking, and to a much lesser extent a “source territory” for women subjected to sex trafficking.

  “Most trafficking victims in Taiwan are migrant workers from Indonesia, mainland China, the Philippines, Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam and to a lesser extent Bangladesh and India,” the report said.

  “Some women and girls from mainland China and southeast Asian countries are lured to Taiwan through fraudulent marriages and deceptive employment offers for purposes of sex trafficking,” it added. “Women from Taiwan are recruited through classified ads for employment in Japan, Australia, the United Kingdom and the US. After their arrival in these countries some are forced into prostitution.”

  The report said that Taiwanese authorities fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.

  According to the report, Taiwan prosecuted 130 suspected traffickers and convicted 39 of them under the Human Trafficking Prevention and Control Act (人口販運防制法). Sentences imposed on the majority of the traffickers ranged from six months to less than one year in jail.

  Under the Child and Youth Sexual Transaction Prevention Act (兒童及少年性交易防治法), authorities prosecuted 59 alleged offenders and convicted 41 of them.

  Taiwanese authorities identified and assisted 366 trafficking victims last year, down from 462 in 2012. Last year the victims were 319 women and 47 men, of which 121 were sex-trafficking victims and 245 forced labor victims.

  “To date, Taiwan authorities have not granted any permanent residency visas to foreign trafficking victims who faced retribution or hardship if returned to their country of origin,” the report said.

  It added that authorities have not prosecuted any Republic of China passport holder for child sex tourism offenses committed abroad since 2006.

  “Authorities funded 37 campaigns to raise awareness on child sex trafficking, but did not report any sex tourism investigations, prosecutions or convictions,” the report said.
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