‘M’sia Airport’ in Bangladesh a base for human trafficking | Free Malaysia Today

‘M’sia Airport’ in Bangladesh a base for human trafficking | Free Malaysia Today:

Migrants kidnapped in Bangladesh and trafficked to Thailand | Free Malaysia Today

PHANG NGA: People-smugglers kidnapped dozens of Rohingya refugees living in Bangladesh after duping them with fake job offers, and trafficked them to a rubber plantation in southern Thailand, officials said Sunday.


Read more:
Migrants kidnapped in Bangladesh and trafficked to Thailand | Free Malaysia Today:

Prevent migrant smuggling to reduce human trafficking

http://www.unodc.org/eastasiaandpacific/en/2012/11/bali-process/story.html

SOURCE:UNODC

 

Bali (Indonesia), 12 November 2012 - Today, the Bali Process on People Smuggling, Trafficking in Persons and Related Transnational Organized Crime celebrated its 10 years of existence at the Tenth Anniversary Commemorative Conference that took place in Bali. 

Covering 46 countries in Asia and the Pacific, the Bali Process is a unique forum bringing states together in response to human trafficking and migrant smuggling.

Speaking at the inaugural session, Gary Lewis, UNODC Regional Representative for East Asia and the Pacific, called on Bali Process members to "end impunity and put the criminals out of business." 

In his scene-setting speech Mr. Lewis focused on human trafficking in Southeast Asia - specifically the Greater Mekong Sub-region - and the challenges posed by the related crimes of human trafficking and migrant smuggling. 

 

Mr. Lewis noted that "migrant smuggling has become a major driver in the process of irregular migration. As such, it makes people vulnerable to human trafficking. But the flip side is this, if you prevent migrant smuggling you can contribute to preventing human trafficking." 

Mr. Lewis concluded with nine practical recommendations to tackle human trafficking and migrant smuggling in the region. 

Background: 
With respect to human trafficking and migrant smuggling, UNODC's mandate is to promote global adherence to the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and its protocols against migrant smuggling andhuman trafficking, and to assist states in implementing these instruments. UNODC is already engaged with many countries in the regions covered by the Bali Process and is providing practical support to the development of intelligence-led policing practices, specialist investigative skills, and victim-centered approaches to combating human trafficking. 

For example, in Southeast Asia, UNODC's PATROL Project facilitates cross border law enforcement cooperation through Border Liasion Offices and providing hands-on training to the border guards, police and immigration officers posted to equip them with knowledge and skills to better detect and respond to human trafficking and migrant smuggling. 

Another example of UNODC's work is the Voluntary Reporting System on Migrant Smuggling and Related Conduct (VRS-MSRC) in support of the Bali Process. The VRS-MSRC is an internet-based, secure system to collect, share and analyse data on irregular migration and migrant smuggling.

Living Safe: Human smuggling, trafficking are criminal enterprises, not border issues

http://www.yourhoustonnews.com/bellaire/living/living-safe-human-smuggling-trafficking-are-criminal-enterprises-not-border/article_ce978852-0783-11e2-a9fa-001a4bcf887a.html

Souce: Your Houston News

'Thursday, September 27, 2012 4:00 am | Updated: 9:42 pm, Tue Sep 25, 2012.

By Katherine Cabaniss Crime Stoppers

This week, more than 80 human smuggling victims were rescued in a raid by law enforcement officials.

Unfortunately, those rescued represent only a tiny fraction of the modern day slaves who remain in captivity.

Houston is a hub for human smuggling and trafficking, yet our knowledge of this issue is only recently beginning to scratch the surface. Public awareness of the existence of human trafficking, and the magnitude of this scourge, has only just begun to materialize.

Recent cases

Last Tuesday, police received a call from a mother who was frantic that her daughter was being held against her will. Smugglers — “coyotes” — were holding her 16-year-old daughter in lieu of a ransom payment of thousands of dollars. Law enforcement investigated.

Their investigation ultimately resulted in a raid that discovered 83 persons being held against their will. Inside the home, captives were clothed only in underwear; they had no shoes nor food.

This rescue illustrates some common characteristics of human trafficking, including the difficulty in locating and rescuing these victims, and the victimization experienced by the persons who are trafficked.

Smuggling vs. Trafficking

Persons who are engaged in illegal human smuggling are generally paid a fee to facilitate the clandestine transfer of a person across our border. Conversely, human traffickers lure their victims into forced labor or prostitution through threats, fraud, or coercion. Often, victims of human smuggling and trafficking have similar characteristics. They find themselves in captivity in a foreign country with no resources, support or means of escape.

The case highlight this week illustrates a different outcome for these victims only because law enforcement received a report. In the case of the 16-year-old victim who was being held for ransom, her mother called the police. Because her mother had the courage to call police and report the extortion by the smugglers, more than 80 victims were ultimately rescued.

Unfortunately, this outcome is rare. Usually those who have engaged in illegal border crossing refuse to contact police, even in the face of their own victimization. In the mother’s case, she likely struggled with admitting to the police that she paid a smuggler to bring her daughter into our country illegally. However, when faced with her daughters’ continuing captivity and the ransom demands, she reached out.

Her courage is admirable, though unfortunately atypical. More often, these captives live in fear of their captors. They refuse to contact law enforcement for fear of their own prosecution for wrongdoing.

As a result, the traffickers force them to work off their “debt” through labor or prostitution. As time passes, their “debt” only grows. Smugglers and traffickers demand payments for transportation, food, housing, and other expenses. Captives remain at the mercy of their captors, forced into situations that they never intended nor expected.

Rescues

Most often, trafficking victims are discovered during law enforcement’s investigation of some other type of criminal activity. Raids of prostitution rings are the most common example; bars and massage parlors that are fronts for prostitution often result in the discovery of women and children who are forced into this criminal activity.

Rather than a rescue situation, however, these trafficking victims are often treated as criminals. They may be arrested for the prostitution or another criminal offense.

Our traditional methods of law enforcement have not kept up with the changes in criminal activity in our community. Our new understanding of trafficking recognizes that these women are victims, not perpetrators.

Based on the new understanding of modern day slavery, we must focus our efforts to fight crime on the traffickers. Traffickers must be prosecuted, and victims must be rescued.

Human smuggling and trafficking are not issues of illegal immigration or even border security. They are criminal enterprises, second in the world in profit only to the drug trade. Fighting illegal immigration and securing our borders are wholly different issues from recognizing and rescuing victims of human trafficking.

As public awareness increases, so also will the safety of our community. Those who are victimized and held in captivity will find rescue and resources to facilitate their recovery. As victims emerge, public awareness comes to light. Modern day slavery will be eradicated in our jurisdiction. Lives will be saved.

Katherine Cabaniss is a former prosecutor in the Harris County District Attorney’s Office, and currently the Executive Director of Crime Stoppers, a nonprofit organization. She can be contacted at cabanissk@yahoo.com.

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EU police crack down on human smuggling network

Apr. 19, 2011 11:23 AM ET

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Police in Europe have arrested 98 people as they cracked a smuggling network that brought thousands of Vietnamese to Europe, sometimes as slave labor for secret British marijuana plantations.

The smugglers even set up their own travel agency in Hungary to facilitate their trafficking, Lt. Col. Zoltan Boross of Hungary's National Investigation Office said Tuesday, adding that several of those arrested were counterfeiters who prepared fake documents for the migrants.

"Their main target was Britain, but the Vietnamese were also being smuggled into France and Germany," Boross said Tuesday, adding that once migrants enter the EU, passport-free travel within most of the 27-nation bloc made it difficult to detect them.

Andre Baker, deputy director of Britain's Serious Organized Crime Agency, said the illegal immigrants paid as much as euro20,000 ($28,500) to be smuggled into Europe, and those who can't pay the full amount were often forced into slave labor.

There are an estimated 35,000 illegal Vietnamese immigrants in Britain, while 40,000 live there legally, Baker said.

The arrests — as well as the discovery of 114 smuggling victims, some of whom have been sent back to Vietnam — came after British authorities began an EU law enforcement project called Vietnamese Organized Immigration Crime in 2009.

While British police discovered 6,900 marijuana plantations last year — up from over 2,000 in 2008 and over 4,000 in 2009— the number of Vietnamese working at them is now shrinking, Baker said.

"Vietnamese 'gardeners' can turn a cannabis plantation around in two months and one 'gardener' can run six premises," Baker said, adding that British, Jamaican and Polish criminals were playing an increasing role in the U.K, marijuana business.

Baker said the financial rewards for the illegal Vietnamese immigrants were substantial, as their annual earnings in Britain could feed a family of 10 for 10 years in Vietnam.

"Still, we want to send them the message that the streets of London are not paved in gold," Baker said, pointing to the risks of illegal migration, including beatings, forced labor and killings.

Source: Associated Press

Human trafficking a big concern for the region expert - Channel NewsAsia

Posted: 30 March 2011 2231 hrs 

	Photos 1 of 1 World map showing the countries blacklisted for human trafficking, based on a new US State Department report.
	Video Human trafficking a big concern for the region: expert

SINGAPORE: Human trafficking is a big concern in Southeast Asia; and Singapore, despite its tight security, proved unexempt in the recent case of two auxiliary police officers who were jailed for their role in human trafficking.

Two former auxiliary police allowed travellers with fake passports, to board flights out of Singapore late last year.

The mastermind was a Sri Lankan "travel agent", who is said to be part of a wider human smuggling network.

A security expert has warned that human trafficking is big business for organised crime networks in Southeast Asia.

Agents can earn up to US$40,000 for each illegal migrant who uses this region as a transit point to go to western countries.

Observers said thousands of migrants, use the region as the transit point to Australia, Europe and Canada.

Most traffickers are believed to come from South Asia, who are looking for a better life in another country.

However, such economic migrants are not the only ones involved in human trafficking.

"They have also smuggled terrorists, people who have conducted human rights violations, bombings, killings, assasinations. And we have seen a number of terrorists who have used these human smuggling routes to travel to Canada, Europe and Australia," said Professor Rohan Gunaratna, head of Security Studies at Rajaratnam School of International Studies.

The solution calls for a joint effort by different governments.

"It is very important for courts to give very severe punishments for human smuggling. Unfortunately that is not the case, and unfortunately southeast asian police agencies they have not taken human smuggling seriously," said Professor Gunaratna.

Professor Gunaratna added that while most economic migrants travel by air, a small percentage would try to use sea routes as well.


[TRAFFICKING MONITOR: CLICK ON THE TITLE OF THE POST TO GET TO THE VIDEO MENTIONED ABOVE.]





SOURCE:  CNA/cc

BERNAMA - Malaysia Strives To Deny Human Traffickers A Transit Point - Najib

March 03, 2011 15:04 PM

From Leslean Arshad

CANBERRA, March 3 (Bernama) -- Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said here Thursday all necessary measures are being taken to prevent the use of Malaysia as a transit point for human traffickers and people smugglers.

"We will do our part to make sure Malaysia is never a transit point for these people," he said.

Najib said Malaysia recognised the importance in addressing human trafficking and people smuggling, which is a big issue in Australia.

He said it was an issue that Malaysia could identify with because, many years ago, it had to handle the issue of Vietnamese "boat people".

On Australia's proposal to set up a regional detention centre in Timor-Leste to process refugees, Najib said the issue would be discussed at the forthcoming Bali Process Ministerial Meeting.

"We need a bit of time to study the Australian proposal, but we will be as positive as we can," he told a joint press conference with Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard at the Prime Minister's office courtyard here.

Najib said that since it was a regional initiative, Malaysia would like to get some regional outlook first.

During their meeting earlier both Najib and Gillard had noted that people smuggling was a regional problem requiring a regional solution.

The two leaders welcomed the outstanding cooperation between their law enforcement agencies in counter-terrorism and in curbing transnational crimes, including people smuggling.

Gillard expressed appreciation for Malaysia's regional leadership and effectiveness in the areas and the leaders reiterated their commitment to work side-by-side in addressing the crimes.

An Australia-Malaysia joint statement issued after the meeting said the two leaders looked forward to the signing of a memorandum of understanding on civil maritime law enforcement operations as a means of further strengthening bilateral cooperation.

Gillard, at the press conference, lauded Malaysia's recent amendment to the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007 that also criminalises the offences relating to people smuggling.

On education links between Australia and Malaysia, Najib said Malaysia would like to see more Australian students study in Malaysia, adding that their number was relatively small at the moment.

He said there should be some understanding for Australians to be encouraged to study in Malaysia, for example an arrangement that required Australian students to undergo one semester of study in Malaysia.

Najib and Gillard welcomed the signing of a memorandum of understanding here to further strengthen cooperation in education and sports.

-- BERNAMA

BERNAMA - Malaysia Strives To Deny Human Traffickers A Transit Point - Najib

Asia Sentinel - Stop Abusing Asia’s Victims

Written by Catherine Wilson

Wednesday, 22 December 2010

Greater protection of trafficked people the key to reducing exploitation Whether they find themselves forced to work in factories, domestic labor, prostitution or construction and agriculture, victims of human trafficking are exploited by high-profit, low-risk organized crime syndicates. These syndicates shift billions of dollars around the world through globalized financial systems and are adept at reshaping their strategies to circumvent criminal investigation and changing migration laws. According to the International Labor Organization, as many as 2.4 million people are in forced labor worldwide as a result of human trafficking. The reality is that trafficking thrives in a world where the poorest are being driven into greater destitution and marginalization and avenues to legal migration are diminishing. The human cost of slavery can be devastating for individuals, families and communities, with victims exposed to potential blackmail, theft of passports, torture, rape, drug addiction and starvation. In the Asia Pacific region, trafficking, which is different from people smuggling of migrants, is commonly associated with debt bondage, sexual servitude and contract slavery, where people are lured by guarantees of employment, but find themselves enslaved on arrival at their destination. While regional initiatives such as the Asia Regional Trafficking in Persons Project aim to strengthen national criminal justice systems to increase prosecutions, investigations are long, complex, often transnational and very time- and resource-intensive. At the same time, governments and non-government organizations in the region are renewing a call for greater protection of victims at the prevention, support and prosecution stages, and empowering their role in the wider process of combating the cycle of exploitation. According to Jennifer Burn, Director of the Anti-Slavery Project at the University of Technology in Sydney, one of the first challenges is that the characteristics of trafficked people are diverse and changing. “Recent research and our knowledge of case law shows us that the old stereotypical image of the trafficked person is no longer valid, if it was ever valid,” Burn explained, “Any person of any visa status could be subject to trafficking. What that means practically is that the indicators of trafficking become much more complex because the trafficked person may not be unlawful, may not be hiding away.” Indeed, they may hold valid working visas for the country concerned. Australia is a destination for vulnerable women and men trafficked from Southeast Asia. At the National Roundtable on People Trafficking, held at Parliament House, Canberra, on Nov. 24, anti-trafficking groups, unions, industry bodies and cabinet ministers discussed improvements to Australia’s counter-trafficking strategy, including new criminal charges to target slavery, forced marriages and exploitative labor practices in Australia. Also compensation to victims of trafficking and an improved framework of victim protection was proposed, which may include suppression of witnesses’ identities and more sensitive means of their providing evidence in court. “Currently, each of the states in Australia has its own victim compensation scheme; each state has its own legislation,” Burn said. “But in no state is there a specific category for a person who has been a victim of trafficking. Rather, you have to be able to show that the claimant is a victim of some other kind of crime, like sexual assault, for example.” Nina Vallins at Project Respect, a community-based organization working to support women trafficked into the sex industry in Australia, added: “A really important step in recovery is compensation, because a lot of these women have been made financially worse off by the experience of being trafficked, but also in terms of giving them that recognition from the state of the pain and suffering that they have experienced.” Last year, Project Respect and other Australian community service organizations assisted 109 women trafficked from South Korea, China, Thailand, Malaysia and Taiwan. For Vallins it is also crucial to stop the exploitation, rather than the movement of people. “The real prevention is actually trying to stop exploitation here in Australia, and that is about reducing demand for trafficked women and then also better enforcement of laws and reducing the impunity of traffickers,” she said. Trafficking is inherently a cross-border issue and any country in the region can be a source, place of transit or destination. According to the United Nations Inter-Agency Project on Human Trafficking, Burma’s Anti-Trafficking Unit reported 155 cases in 2009 involving forced marriage, labor and prostitution. In Thailand, 530 people trafficked from Cambodia, China, Laos, Burma and Vietnam received assistance from the Bureau of Anti-Trafficking in Women and Children in 2009, while 103 Thai victims were returned from 12 countries including Bahrain, Singapore, Malaysia, United Kingdom and the United States. Malaysia is a destination for people trafficked from countries including Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, Cambodia, India and Pakistan, while Indonesia has identified trafficked people from China, Thailand, Hong Kong, Uzbekistan, the Netherlands, Poland and Venezuela. Regional co-operation is therefore vital to protecting victims. Examples include the inauguration this year of the Asean Commission on Women and Children’s Rights, the Bali Process on People Smuggling, Trafficking in Persons and Related Transnational Crime and the Co-ordinated Mekong Ministerial Initiative Against Trafficking, as well as many bilateral and multilateral agreements that currently exist between governments in the Asia Pacific. At the Seoul International Conference Against Trafficking in Migrant Women held in June, the Asia Pacific Forum emphasized the importance of a human-rights based approach to empower victims in the justice process. “Victims of trafficking who are protected and supported are in a better position to co-operate in the prosecution of their exploiters,” their report said. “Protecting and supporting victims can therefore help to end the cycle of exploitation.” According to APF, National Human Rights Institutions have a significant role to play in providing human rights training to law enforcement officers, public education and awareness, monitoring counter-trafficking initiatives, advocating for comprehensive birth registration and the right of victims to employment or government-funded education, as well as ensuring safe and voluntary repatriation. Jennifer Burn believes there could be more research into the most effective ways of supporting those who return home to their country of origin, and there could be more than one model of repatriation. “What happens is that there will be a government or church run shelter, but anybody who goes there is immediately identified as being a trafficked person,” she explained, “Some people don’t want to go to the shelter, because then everybody will know what happened to them. That’s why I’m thinking that there could be more work around identifying the best practices for return and repatriation. But the best scenario is when the exploitation of people is prevented before it begins. In Thailand, the Development and Education Programme for Daughters and Communities is a non-profit NGO working for community-based freedom from trafficking and slavery, especially in northern Thailand and the Mekong Sub-Region. Working closely with teachers, monks, police, community and village leaders, DEPDC identifies women and girls at risk, providing them with safe accommodation, a secure education and life skills training. This year alone, the Thai organization has given shelter to 116 children, provided education to 447 children and community members, and conducted awareness workshops on human trafficking, safe migration, nationality and citizenship, HIV/AIDS and domestic violence to more than 6000 children and community members in five countries of the Greater Mekong Sub-Region. According to the Thai NGO, nationality and citizenship play an important role as statelessness is a primary risk factor for trafficking and exploitation. “The percentage of stateless, migrant children that we serve varies from 48% in the prevention-oriented shelters to 62% in the Community Learning Centre,” said a DEPDC spokesperson, “Stateless and undocumented status affects ethnic minority children the most with more than 97% of children in our primary school for vulnerable children coming from one of seven different minority ethnicities.” By ensuring children know their rights and have real opportunities for safe and legitimate employment, DEPDC claims to have prevented thousands from falling prey to sex trafficking and forced labor. The NGO now has more than 4000 ‘former daughters’ who represent success stories in the battle against trafficking. Catherine Wilson is an Australia-based freelance writer.

Source: Asia Sentinel
Asia Sentinel - Stop Abusing Asia’s Victims

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More to be done on human trafficking

Stephen Lunn, Social affairs writer | September 04, 2009

Article from: The Australian

AUSTRALIA might have been a key player in the decade-long effort to stamp out human trafficking in Asia, but the problem is worse and the criminal networks more sophisticated than ever, a new Unicef report finds.

Australia's anti-trafficking agreements with Laos, Cambodia, Burma and Thailand and its role as co-founder of the Bali Process on people-smuggling and human trafficking are laudable but Unicef believes it could be doing more.
In its report Child Trafficking in East and Southeast Asia, released yesterday, Unicef finds that while countries are willing to introduce laws on human trafficking, implementation and enforcement have been thin on the ground. It also argues Australia should be supporting preventive programs to protect vulnerable children in greater measure across the Asian region as a way to beat the criminal networks.
"We have a situation now where there are dozens of child trafficking programs in the region, but there are also dozens of child labour, sexual exploitation, child violence and neglect, and juvenile justice programs as well," the report says.

Image by Puff's Daddy via Flickr

"The core vulnerabilities that put children at risk in these situations should really be addressed together rather than separately."
Unicef says child trafficking, where children are either bought or taken from their families and sold for cheap labour or sexual servitude, is one of the fastest-growing, and most lucrative, criminal activities in the world.
Children and their families are often unaware of the dangers of trafficking, believing better employment opportunities and safer lives lie in other countries.
It notes some estimates put the number of people trafficked worldwide as high as 4 million a year.

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,26023845-5013871,00.html

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