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Abuse by U.N. Peacekeepers

The U.S. State Department has addressed the issue of enslavement by U.N. peacekeepers in its latest Report on Human Trafficking.

According to the analysis:

Countries that send troops to participate in peacekeeping missions should be responsible for training their troops on human trafficking and holding those troops accountable if they engage, while on such missions, in inappropriate behavior, including human trafficking. Unfortunately, accountability for peacekeepers complicit in human trafficking has persisted as a serious challenge for governments and the international community.

As early as 2004, the UN drew attention to this issue in its report on sexual exploitation by UN peacekeepers in the Democratic Republic of Congo, highlighting the lack of compliance by troop-sending countries with the UN’s official policy against sexual exploitation and abuse. In some cases, peacekeepers have sexually abused or sexually exploited women and girls, including in sex trafficking, such as by threatening their access to food and other necessities to coerce them into sex. Victims in such cases also face enormous pressure not to report these crimes and abuses or the peacekeepers who committed them, and local authorities rarely have the capacity proactively to identify victims of these crimes. The UN and international community have attempted to address the challenges in holding peacekeepers accountable for sexual exploitation and abuse since reports of abuse emerged in the early 2000s.

Between 2007 and 2019, the UN received 1,033 allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse, including instances of sex trafficking, by UN peacekeeping mission members. During the 13-year stabilization mission in Haiti, peacekeepers allegedly coerced women and girls into sex in exchange for necessities such as food. Reports implicate UN personnel from 13 countries. In 2017, media alleged peacekeepers exploited nine Haitian children in a sex trafficking ring. There were reports that soldiers deployed as UN peacekeepers to Liberia sexually exploited women and children, including in sex trafficking, from 2003-2017. In 2015 and 2016, the UN and NGOs reported peacekeepers from 10 countries coerced internally displaced persons into sex in exchange for food and necessities while participating in the UN peacekeeping force in Central African Republic (CAR).

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Over the years, the UN has adopted several important measures to seek to prevent and address allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse, yet the process of holding perpetrators accountable is often opaque and ineffective. Although the UN may investigate allegations and withdraw peacekeepers, only troop- or police-contributing countries may pursue criminal accountability. And while the UN has the authority to dismiss offending personnel from missions, complicit peacekeepers rarely face a formal criminal justice process. The UN investigates whether allegations are substantiated; however, it does not have the authority to hold individual perpetrators accountable and must ultimately rely on the troop- and police-contributing countries to do so according to that country’s laws. Troop- and police-contributing countries rarely initiate and complete criminal proceedings against alleged perpetrators and, as a result, complicit peacekeepers largely act with impunity. Between 2007 and 2019, troop- and police-contributing countries prosecuted and sentenced to prison 51 peacekeepers for sexual abuse and exploitation. In an effort to increase accountability, the UN began publishing the nationalities of peacekeepers alleged to have committed sexual abuse and exploitation offenses in 2015.

In 2016 and 2018, the UN Security Council adopted two resolutions to strengthen the UN’s response to peacekeeper abuses, including a provision supporting the repatriation of the entire country unit in cases of alleged sexual exploitation and abuse where the relevant government has not taken appropriate steps toward accountability, and a provision calling for evaluation of peacekeeping personnel and greater transparency in how such evaluations ensure accountability. Since then, the UN has taken additional steps to withhold payments for accused uniformed personnel, maintain a transparent website that identifies the nationalities of uniformed peacekeepers accused of sexual exploitation and abuse, and share updates on investigations and actions taken by the UN and troop- and police-contributing countries. This information allows other countries to press governments for investigations and accountability against the perpetrators. Further, UN performance reviews of allegations of sexual abuse and exploitation have resulted in the withdrawal of contingents and the use of other mitigating measures. Additionally, the UN Secretary-General has requested countries establish on-site court martial proceedings when allegations arise involving military contingents to improve access to justice for victims. As of December 2019, Egypt, Bangladesh, and South Africahad conducted such on-site court martial proceedings.

In recent years, the UN Secretary-General has sought to improve the UN’s response to victims of sexual exploitation and abuse. Staff serving as victim rights advocates are now posted in high-risk peacekeeping operations to provide victims with adequate protection, appropriate assistance, and reliable recourse to justice. In 2019, these advocates worked with other UN entities, served as the primary interlocutor with victims of sexual exploitation and abuse, and initiated a pilot mapping exercise to identify best practices, gaps, areas of overlap, and lessons learned in victims’ rights approaches and available services. The results of this study will identify existing gaps in service provision and provide recommendations for improvement.

Even though the lack of accountability for public officials complicit in sexual exploitation and abuse is not limited to peacekeepers, the international community must increase pressure on governments to hold accountable those who participate in multinational forces to maintain peace and protect vulnerable populations under the auspices of the UN, NATO, or other organizations. The UN and other organizations carrying out peace operations, and troop- and police-contributing countries must reflect on peacekeepers’ positions of power and privilege relative to the host population and the myriad ways this dynamic contributes to sexual exploitation and abuse. Troop- and police-contributing countries must review, amend, or develop laws to allow prosecution of such crimes when committed by their personnel while serving overseas. Holding individuals accountable for the exploitation of vulnerable populations will bring new trust and honor to peacekeeping missions. The current culture of impunity threatens to tarnish irreparably the important mission of peacekeepers. 

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Human Trafficking Attacked

The start of the new decade, the 2020s, has been marked by White House efforts to attack one of humanity’s oldest scourges, slavery. While more traditional forms of this affront exist outside of the developed world, a major version, human trafficking, is endemic everywhere.

The U.S. State Department has noted that “Human trafficking is one of the most heinous crimes on Earth. Right now traffickers are robbing a staggering 24.9 million people of their freedom and basic human dignity—that’s roughly three times the population of New York City. We must band together and build momentum to defeat human trafficking. We must hold the perpetrators of this heinous crime accountable. We must achieve justice for survivors as they rebuild their lives. We must reinvigorate our shared commitment to extinguish human trafficking wherever it exists. There is no time to waste.”

According to a Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) analysis, “Human trafficking victims have been found in communities nationwide in the agriculture, hospitality, restaurant, domestic work and other industries, as well as in prostitution that is facilitated online, on the street, or in businesses fronting for prostitution such as massage parlors. Overseas forced labor can be used to produce the consumer goods that are in our homes and workplaces. The victims are men, women and children of all ages and may include U.S. citizens and foreign nationals. Many of them may have thought they had found a good paying job or a better life, only to have their hopes and dreams dashed and placed into modern day slavery. In fiscal year 2019, HSI initiated 1,024 investigations with a nexus to human trafficking and recorded 2,197 arrests,1,113 indictments, and 691 convictions; 428 victims were identified and assisted. HSI continues to make human trafficking cases a top investigative priority by connecting victims to resources to help restore their lives and bringing traffickers to justice.”

2020 began with the observance of “National Slavery and Human Trafficking Month,” established by President Trump’s proclamation. The document noted that:

“Trafficking crimes are perpetrated by transnational criminal enterprises, gangs, and cruel individuals.  Through force, fraud, coercion, and sexual exploitation of minors, traffickers rob countless individuals of their dignity and freedom, splinter families, and threaten the safety of our communities.  In all its forms, human trafficking is an intolerable blight on any society dedicated to freedom, individual rights, and the rule of law.

“Human trafficking is often a hidden crime that knows no boundaries.  By some estimates, as many as 24.9 million people ‑- adults and children — are trapped in a form of modern slavery around the world, including in the United States.  Human traffickers exploit others through forced labor or commercial sex, and traffickers profit from their victims’ horrific suffering.  The evil of human trafficking must be defeated.  We remain relentless in our resolve to bring perpetrators to justice, to protect survivors and help them heal, and to prevent further The good doctor and good clinics offer miraculous treatment that cures the problem completely. steal here buy levitra in canada Users of Kamagra medicines are india tadalafil tablets able to expand their blood vessels around the male sexual organ, allowing the penis temporary relief to get an erection. To do the sex practice these anti-impotence pills admitted best amongst all, but have to viagra in india online midwayfire.com be in limitation and under prescribed manner. You don’t pfizer viagra price you could check here have to step one foot outside of your hearing aid. victimization and destruction of innocent lives.

“This year marks nearly 20 years since our Nation took decisive steps in the global fight against human trafficking by enacting the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (TVPA) and nearly 15 years since the United States ratified the United Nations’ Palermo Protocol to Prevent, Suppress, and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children (Palermo Protocol).  Both the TVPA and the Palermo Protocol established a comprehensive framework for combating human trafficking by establishing prevention programs, creating victim protections, and advancing prosecutions under expanded criminal statutes to usher in the modern anti-trafficking movement domestically and globally.  These two measures illustrate a global consensus on the issue, and yet as a Nation we must continue to work proactively to foster a culture of justice and accountability for this horrific crime.

“My Administration is committed to using every available resource, strengthening strategic partnerships, collaborating with State, local, and tribal entities, and by introducing innovative anti-trafficking strategies to bring the full force of the United States Government to help end this barbaric practice once and for all.  In January 2019, I was proud to sign both the Frederick Douglass Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act and the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act, reaffirming our commitment to preventing trafficking in all forms.

“With my resolute support, executive departments and agencies are steadfastly continuing the battle to abolish this form of modern slavery.”

An integral part of the HSI effort are the Victim Assistance Specialists. They ensure victims have access to the rights and services to which they are entitled by law, as well as the assistance they need so that they can participate actively and fully in the criminal justice system process. Additionally, Forensic Interview Specialists conduct victim-centered and legally defensible forensic interviews. If you notice suspicious activity in your community, call the ICE Tip Line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or report tips online.

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Human Trafficking, Part 3

We conclude our presentation of key excerpts from the U.S. State Department report on human trafficking.

THE PALERMO PROTOCOL AND TRANSNATIONALITY

 In 2000, the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children (the Palermo Protocol), supplementing the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC), marked an important transition into the modern movement against human trafficking. Over the years, the Palermo Protocol has been the source of much clarification—but also some confusion—about human trafficking, particularly regarding the issue of transnationality.

 It was the first international instrument to define “trafficking in persons” and provide insight into the many different ways traffickers commit this crime. The Palermo Protocol uses “trafficking in persons” as an umbrella term that covers a wide variety of offenses, such as maintaining someone in forced labor or recruiting someone for compelled commercial sexual exploitation. It also provided a muchneeded foundation on which governments could build policies that criminalize human trafficking and stop traffickers, protect victims and prevent victimization, and promote cooperation among countries.

HUMAN TRAFFICKING DEFINED

The Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000, as amended (TVPA), defines “severe forms of trafficking in persons” as: n sex trafficking in which a commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud, or coercion, or in which the person induced to perform such an act has not attained 18 years of age; or n the recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for labor or services, through the use of force, fraud, or coercion for the purpose of subjection to involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage, or slavery. A victim need not be physically transported from one location to another for the crime to fall within this definition.

According to the UNODC’s 2018 Global Report on Trafficking in Persons, there has been an upward trend in the last decade in the number of victims identified and traffickers convicted globally. These data are not uniform across regions and types of human trafficking, yet the report suggests an overall positive correlation between the implementation of anti-trafficking strategies and increased identification of victims and conviction of traffickers. Similarly, the TIP Report’s data on prosecutions, convictions, and victim identification are significantly higher now than they were ten years ago, when the TIP Report first began to note an upward global trend. It is clear that government efforts stemming from the adoption of the Palermo Protocol are working.

Many governments deserve credit for their serious efforts to address modern slavery. Yet, much work remains. Persistent gaps in governments’ understanding of the issue continue to impede global progress, as do stubborn misperceptions about human trafficking and inconsistencies in the implementation of domestic legislation.

One common misperception generates ongoing confusion—that human trafficking requires movement across borders and cannot occur solely within a country’s borders. A possible explanation for this confusion may stem from the use of the word “trafficking” in the term “trafficking in persons,” which connotes movement, and the fact that the Palermo Protocol and its parent convention the UNTOC are intended to foster international cooperation in combating organized crime networks, which typically operate transnationally. The Palermo Protocol also calls on parties to meet its objectives through interstate cooperation. This context could imply that human trafficking is exclusively transnational, requires movement, and necessarily is tied to organized crime. Yet the UNTOC itself and a number of UNODC publications interpreting the Palermo Protocol make it clear that, when drafting domestic legislation, governments should consider human trafficking independently of both transnationality and the involvement of an organized criminal group. Each state party must establish in its domestic law the crime of human trafficking both within and between countries.

Another related misunderstanding about human trafficking is that a trafficker must move or transport a victim. Even though the term “trafficking in persons” connotes movement, no language in the definition requires movement to constitute a trafficking crime. Indeed, the Palermo Protocol’s definition specifically refers to actions by traffickers that do not entail or require any movement, such as recruitment, which quite often takes place locally. Harboring, in particular, has been frequently interpreted to mean the maintenance of an individual in compelled service, including by a United Nations and Council of Europe publication that defined harboring as “accommodating or housing persons,” including at their place of exploitation. In such cases, the three elements clearly are met—by the actions of housing or keeping an individual by coercive means for the purpose of exploitation—without the trafficker ever moving the person.

As reflected in their laws, most governments recognize this view of human trafficking. This is a major success that, in just two decades, 168 governments have implemented domestic legislation criminalizing all forms of human trafficking whether the crime happens transnationally or nationally. That said, even upon the adoption of the Protocol, supporters emphasized that the true challenge would lie in the implementation of the laws in each country.

FUNDAMENTALS OF IMPLEMENTING THE PALERMO PROTOCOL

In creating and implementing legislation, governments have the power to shape reality. Legislation that protects all victims and criminalizes all forms of human trafficking, including those that take place exclusively within a country’s borders, gives governments the platform and opportunity to embrace fully their responsibilities under the Palermo Protocol. As noted above, the majority of governments around the world already have in place comprehensive laws to address trafficking in persons. Yet, law alone can do little to end human trafficking. Translating legislation into meaningful action demands dedication, focus, and resources and requires that those implementing it truly understand both the underlying letter and the spirit of the law.

Governments can and should adopt and implement the promising practices below. Their value lies in their power not only to help governments better address human trafficking within their borders, but also to help combat all manner of misconceptions, biases, and misunderstandings about what constitutes human trafficking.

Institutionalizing a clear understanding of human trafficking

A clear understanding of the underlying exploitative nature of human trafficking and the unique ways it affects a country is a critical foundation on which governments can build a truly comprehensive strategy.

As noted above, the Palermo Protocol defines human trafficking by its three elements—a trafficker’s action taken through the means of force, fraud, or coercion for the purpose of exploitation. Understanding it as such leaves little room for interpretation based on the incidental attributes of the victim or the trafficker, such as gender, age, nationality, legal status, or occupation, or on other circumstances surrounding the crime, such as movement or connection to organized crime.

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Messaging from the highest levels of government should be clear and consistent and preclude overly restrictive interpretations of human trafficking or perceptions of its victims. Governments should make every effort to ensure that those addressing human trafficking, both in policy and practice, frame the issue correctly to avoid limiting the applicability of anti-trafficking laws and protection efforts.

For example, governments should prosecute human trafficking crimes as such and not under other criminal provisions—or, worse, civil laws—that may come with weaker or no criminal penalties. Characterizing an offense as less severe, such as penalizing human traffickers for labor violations under employment law instead of charging them for labor trafficking, may mean that traffickers are given penalties substantially lower than those prescribed under anti-trafficking law, limiting their potential deterrent effects.

In addition, governments should encourage or mandate comprehensive training for victim identification, especially for those most likely to come into contact with trafficking victims. This includes law enforcement officers, prosecutors, and judicial officials, healthcare providers, educators, child welfare officials, labor inspectorates, and many others. Training should be designed to help such stakeholders identify all forms of human trafficking. Without such an education, those best positioned to spot the signs of human trafficking may not be able to identify victims when they encounter them or know the appropriate way to respond.

Institutionalizing a clear understanding of human trafficking may also require governments to invest in research and data collection. Over the years, data collection by national governments has improved substantially, but gaps still exist and evidence suggests that anti-trafficking efforts lag where less is known about trafficking. An evidence-driven and unbiased understanding of human trafficking in a country is imperative to the creation of a well-balanced and tailored anti-trafficking response.

Developing a robust anti-trafficking coordination process

Due to its complexity, combating human trafficking requires a multidisciplinary effort. For governments this means incorporating the expertise of stakeholders from a range of agencies or ministries that may have a nexus to human trafficking. To facilitate an approach that addresses human trafficking regardless of where or how it takes place, governments can take steps to ensure that all appropriate authorities understand human trafficking, the various ways they may come into contact with victims or perpetrators, and the appropriate response when they do.

Confronting harmful cultural norms and local practices

Cultural norms and practices play an important role in defining a country or society, but human traffickers have also used them to support, hide, or attempt to justify human trafficking. The Palermo Protocol specifically notes that exceptions cannot be made to the criminalization requirement based on cultural variations. It is important that governments examine how traffickers may exploit cultural practices to conduct criminal activity. In some cases, traffickers may take advantage of religious beliefs to coerce victims into servitude and it is important that governments seek help from and offer support to cultural and religious leaders taking strides to protect their communities from human traffickers…deeply ingrained practices may make it difficult for governments to see and address human trafficking in their own backyards. For example, many countries in South Asia face the practice of debt bondage, a form of human trafficking in which traffickers use debt to force an individual into forced labor.

Officials across government should work to challenge stereotypes of a typical victim of human trafficking. For example, in many cases, traffickers force their victims to commit crimes. Forced criminality takes the form of begging, prostitution, cannabis cultivation, and theft, among others. An untrained law enforcement officer or benefits adjudicator may not realize an individual is a victim of human trafficking before making an arrest or a decision on available benefits. These assumptions can also make victims more reluctant to seek help. Proactive efforts to recognize and mitigate these assumptions are therefore critical.

Empowering communities to recognize and address human trafficking

When the public views trafficking crimes as common local or cultural practices that do not warrant criminal investigation or prosecution, it is critically important for governments to raise awareness and foster initiatives for communities to help address it.

The 2018 TIP Report covered the issue of supporting community efforts to find local solutions. It is worth noting again the value in reinforcing and empowering communities as full partners in the fight against human trafficking. Public perceptions about human trafficking have a major impact on the way governments address it. If well informed about the various forms of human trafficking, the public can be the eyes and ears of their communities and can put pressure on law enforcement to make it a priority.

Governments can design public awareness campaigns to target a particular issue and motivate communities to get involved. In design, these types of campaigns should have clear objectives that promote sound anti-trafficking policies.

Governments can design community-based approaches to enhance their law enforcement efforts.

CONCLUSION

Since the adoption of the Palermo Protocol, a growing number of stakeholders, including a majority of the world’s governments, have enacted comprehensive laws to hold human traffickers criminally accountable and provide care to survivors. Over time, it has become clear that stopping traffickers and ensuring protections for all victims, including victims of internal trafficking in persons, requires governments to truly comprehend what constitutes human trafficking and to proactively use those laws.

At times, governments may need to go even further. In particular, addressing human trafficking at home also takes political courage—in inspecting local sectors and industries, investigating official power structures that may condone or facilitate such activities, and ending impunity for crimes that have long been seen as accepted local and cultural practices. Governments may find it easier to blame sex trafficking on those who come to their countries to engage in foreign sex tourism than to address local demand; or to blame foreign government and power structures for failing to protect their nationals working abroad from labor trafficking, than to address the exploitative activities of labor recruiters in their jurisdiction.

Acknowledging human trafficking within the borders of a country is not easy. Governments should be willing to admit its existence and rise to their responsibility to address it. In doing so, governments not only protect those within their borders, but also contribute to the greater global fight against human trafficking.

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Human Trafficking Report, Part 2

The New York Analysis of Policy and Government continues its presentation of key excerpts from the U.S. State Department’s 2019 report on human trafficking, the modern slave trade.

THE NATIONAL NATURE OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING

Prevalence of human trafficking is difficult to measure; however, a number of international organizations have estimated that traffickers exploit a majority of human trafficking victims without moving them from one country to another. For example, the ILO estimated that traffickers exploit 77 percent of all victims in the victims’ countries of residence. Likewise, UNODC reported in 2018 that, for the first time ever, a majority of victims had been identified in their countries of citizenship, stating: “While transnational trafficking networks are still prevalent and must be responded to through international cooperation, national justice measures, strategies and priorities should acknowledge the increasingly national nature of the trafficking problem.” The same UNODC report also found that the clear majority of traffickers were citizens of the countries where they were convicted.

It should be noted that these numbers are not uniform across regions or even types of human trafficking. For example, UNODC found that the number of victims identified domestically was high compared to foreign victims in most areas of the world, except for Western and Central Europe, the Middle East, and some countries in East Asia. In addition, the ILO found that victims of sex trafficking more likely faced transnational human trafficking while victims of forced labor typically experienced exploitation in their country of residence.

Frequently, human trafficking within a country is found in sectors that are common nearly everywhere, such as the commercial sex industry and others like farming, construction, manufacturing, and mining. The latter are also often referred to as “dirty, dangerous, and difficult” and rely on low-skilled and vulnerable local labor forces. At the same time, instances of human trafficking within a country may be more characteristic of that specific country or region, such as child domestic work or exploitative sham marriages. Indeed, examples vary greatly:

Traffickers in Brazil, under the guise of religious mandates, exploit Brazilian victims in forced labor, including on farms and in factories and restaurants, after the victims join certain churches or religious cults.

In Cambodia, a lack of jobs leads some women and girls to leave their homes in rural areas to try to find work in tourist destination cities. In many cases, traffickers exploit them in sex trafficking, including in massage parlors, karaoke bars, and beer gardens.

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In Ethiopia, traffickers often deceive parents of children living in rural areas into sending their children to major cities to work as domestic workers. The traffickers promise families that the children will go to school and receive wages for their work, thereby enabling them to send money home.

In India, the government officially abolished bonded labor in 1976, but the system of forced labor still exists. For example, under one scheme prevalent in granite quarries in India, quarry owners offer wage advances or loans with exorbitant interest rates, trapping workers in debt bondage—in some cases for their entire lives.

In the United Kingdom (UK), gangs force British children to carry drugs. According to the UK National Crime Agency data in 2017, the largest group of potential victims referred to the National Referral Mechanism was UK nationals.

In the United States, traffickers prey upon children in the foster care system. Recent reports have consistently indicated that a large number of victims of child sex trafficking were at one time in the foster care system.

In Yemen, the ongoing conflict has led to many human rights violations, with many parties using child soldiers. According to a UN report, there have been 842 verified cases of the recruitment and use of boys as young as 11 years old.

Given the recent global estimates related to the national nature of human trafficking and the various forms it can take, all governments must acknowledge and take targeted steps to address human trafficking that takes place within one country without any movement across an international border.

There may be complicated reasons why a government would fail to address this form of human trafficking. It is easier to look outward and call on other governments to act; it takes much more resolution and political will for governments to look inward and stop traffickers, including their own citizens, from exploiting victims who have not crossed an international border. Governments should also examine the varying political and economic systems that make it easier for traffickers to commit the crime. What is clear is that governments have an obligation to address all forms of human trafficking, those both with and without a transnational element. When governments overlook this reality and ignore human trafficking at home, they risk being blinded to—and neglecting—an often significant crime within their own borders.

The Report concludes tomorrow.

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Human Trafficking Report

The U.S. State Department has released its 2019 on human trafficking, the modern slave trade. We present key excerpts.

TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS REPORT JUNE 2019

Human trafficking is one of the most heinous crimes on Earth. Right now traffickers are robbing a staggering 24.9 million people of their freedom and basic human dignity—that’s roughly three times the population of New York City. We must band together and build momentum to defeat human trafficking. We must hold the perpetrators of this heinous crime accountable. We must achieve justice for survivors as they rebuild their lives. We must reinvigorate our shared commitment to extinguish human trafficking wherever it exists. There is no time to waste.

STRENGTHENING GOVERNMENT RESPONSES AND DISPELLING MISPERCEPTIONS

Each instance of human trafficking takes a common toll; each crime is an affront to the basic ideals of human dignity, inflicting grievous harm on individuals, as well as on their families and communities. Yet, if it were possible to hold human trafficking up to a light like a prism, each facet would reflect a different version of the crime, distinct in context but the same in essence. Together they would show the vast and varied array of methods traffickers use to compel adults and children of all genders, education levels, nationalities, and immigration statuses into service in both licit and illicit sectors. Traffickers may be family members, recruiters, employers, or strangers who exploit vulnerability and circumstance to coerce victims to engage in commercial sex or deceive them into forced labor. They commit these crimes through schemes that take victims hundreds of miles away from their homes or in the same neighborhoods where they were born.

This multifaceted crime can challenge policy makers. The foundational elements of human trafficking are difficult to grasp and the real world instances of this exploitation are even harder to identify. Importantly, As a prescription du canada viagra result, glucose builds up in blood and lymph circulation Relaxation and normalization of the soft tissue which releases nerves and deeper connective tissues. Medical Treatment bulk viagra of Erectile Dysfunction There are several points to understand in this framework, and something that is definitely worth exploring if faced with this issue overall. Speaking up about the problem- Many men keep their sexual condition hide from their partner and get silently killed by the sexual Dysfunction Association, nearly 10% of men in the sale of sildenafil tablets US. Adding these to the diet as much as we online pharmacy sildenafil would like to have them stick around maintenance-free, there are moments when these devices break down. how governments address human trafficking depends heavily on the way authorities perceive the crime. When officials view trafficking as a crime and have a precise understanding of its core elements, they are better equipped to identify and combat it, regardless of the particular scheme the trafficker uses.

Over the last two decades, the international community has benefited from an improved understanding of and response to human trafficking. Working together, governments, NGOs, international organizations, academics, communities, and survivors of human trafficking have built a more complete picture of human trafficking—a picture that rejects a narrow understanding of traffickers and victims, in favor of one that encompasses the full range of ways traffickers exploit their victims.

Despite major progress, a number of countries still struggle with gaps in their domestic legal responses, often because they do not recognize and address human trafficking using the wider view described above. In practice, this may mean that governments overlook certain forms of human trafficking when the conditions do not meet their narrower presumptions. For example, authorities may not consider men and boys as victims of sex trafficking due to a common misperception that sex traffickers only exploit women and girls. This may also result in governments arresting and prosecuting trafficking victims for the unlawful acts their traffickers compelled them to engage in, instead of offering them the support of protective services. Where this happens, antitrafficking interventions are inadequate and the potential for productive criminal justice, protection, and prevention efforts is threatened.

This year the TIP Report introduction takes a deeper dive into one such gap, common in many countries around the world, whereby governments concentrate on transnational human trafficking cases at the expense of cases taking place within their borders. This spotlight is not intended to suggest that transnational human trafficking is not also important, or that the many other forms of trafficking that may go unaddressed due to similar oversight are of lesser consequence, but rather to call on governments to ensure they are addressing all forms of human trafficking and finding a balanced approach. In that vein and in the interest of de-emphasizing movement, this year’s report no longer refers to countries by the nomenclature “source, transit, and destination country.”

The Report continues tomorrow.

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Latest Report on Human Trafficking

Cases of human trafficking jumped by 13 percent in 2017 from the previous year, according to data released by the Polaris  organization.

According to the U.S. State Department  which released its own report on the status of  modern-day slavery in 2017, “traffickers around the world continue to exploit millions of victims in forced labor and sex trafficking. This multi-billion dollar industry destroys families and communities, weakens the rule of law, strengthens criminal networks, and offends universal concepts of human decency… Human trafficking is not analogous to migrant smuggling (a crime against a state by which an individual voluntarily enters into an agreement with another party to gain illegal entry into a foreign country) or employment-related wage and hour abuses (administrative violations of labor law). Under the minimum standards for the elimination of human trafficking under the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA), an effective criminal justice response to human trafficking should treat the prosecution of cases as seriously as other grave crimes, such as kidnapping or rape, and impose consequences that are severe enough to be a deterrent… Human trafficking is an assault on human dignity and should be penalized accordingly.

“No government can hold human traffickers accountable or address the needs of victims without stringent and comprehensive human trafficking laws, strong law enforcement and prosecutorial capacity funded with adequate resources, and an informed judiciary. Victims of human trafficking deserve timely and meaningful access to justice through a system that respects rule of law and due process rights. Without these measures, human trafficking will continue to flourish. While governments cannot undo the pain and indignity victims face, they can seek to right those wrongs through official acknowledgment of injustice and by prosecuting, convicting, and sentencing traffickers and those complicit in human trafficking. In taking these measures, governments provide justice for victims, create more stable societies to keep the vulnerable safe, and work towards a world free from modern slavery.”

A United Nations examination of the issue notes: “…many governments are still in denial [about human trafficking.]  There is even neglect when it comes to either reporting on, or prosecuting cases of human trafficking. While the number of convictions for human trafficking is increasing, two out of every five countries covered by the UNODC Report had not recorded a single conviction.

“The most common form of human trafficking (79%) is sexual exploitation. The victims of sexual exploitation are predominantly women and girls. Surprisingly, in 30% of the countries which provided information on the gender of traffickers, women make up the largest proportion of traffickers. In some parts of the world, women trafficking women is the norm.

The second most common form of human trafficking is forced labour (18%), although this may be a misrepresentation because forced labour is less frequently detected and reported than trafficking for sexual exploitation.

Worldwide, almost 20% of all trafficking victims are children. However, in some parts of Africa and the Mekong region, children are the majority (up to 100% in parts of West Africa).

Although trafficking seems to imply people moving across continents, most exploitation takes place close to home. Data show intra-regional and domestic trafficking are the major forms of trafficking in persons.

Major facts on human trafficking in 2017 from the March 2018 Polaris report

  • Reported cases of human trafficking continue to increase each year. In 2017, 8,759 cases were reported to the National Human Trafficking Hotline and BeFree Textline. This number compares to 7,737 reported cases in 2016. The overall figures represent an 842 percent increase over the 10 years Polaris has operated the Hotline.
  • The 2017 data spotlights that human trafficking is a thriving business in the United States. Based on the reports and tips made to the National Hotline by survivors, family members, community members, and others, Polaris was able to identify 4,863 suspected traffickers or people likely exploiting victims. Analysis also found 1,698 suspicious businesses that were described as facilitating potential human trafficking reported to the National Hotline. Based on the information provided and consent from the individual providing information, the National Hotline reported 2,910 cases to law enforcement.
  • More survivors are reaching out for help than ever. Based on reports made from family members, community members, survivors themselves, and others, the National Hotline was able to identify 10,615 individual victims of human trafficking in the United States. This represents a 29 percent increase over 2016 when 8,233 victims could be identified. Additionally, 2,144 survivors directly contacted the National Hotline for help, more survivors than ever before. Based on the needs of the survivors who reached out for help in 2017, the National Hotline was able to make 7,832 referrals to services, such as emergency shelter, legal support, and counseling, among other types.

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At the Bandeu checkpoint in Nepal, inspectors and a police constable approach a bus to look for potential victims of child trafficking onboard. (Picture: OCHA/Tilak Pokharel.)

NATIONAL HOTLINE: 1-888-373-3888 | BEFREE TEXTLINE: 233733 | WWW.POLARISPROJECT.ORG

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21st Century Slavery, Part 2

The New York Analysis of Policy and Government concludes its look at the horrifying existence of modern slavery.

The International Labor Alliance notes that of the 40.3 million victims of modern slavery:

Women and girls are disproportionately affected by modern slavery, accounting for 28.7 million, or 71 per cent of the overall total. More precisely, women and girls represent 99 per cent of victims of forced labour in the commercial sex industry and 58 per cent in other sectors, 40 per cent of victims of forced labour imposed by state authorities, and 84 per cent of victims of forced marriages.

One in four victims of modern slavery were children. Some 37 per cent (5.7 million) of those forced to marry were children. Children represented 18 per cent of those subjected to forced labour exploitation and 7 per cent of people forced to work by state authorities. Children who were in commercial sexual exploitation (where the victim is a child, there is no requirement of force) represented 21 per cent of total victims in this category of abuse.

In the past five years, 89 million people experienced some form of modern slavery for periods of time ranging from a few days to the whole five years. The average length of time victims were in forced labour varied from a few days or weeks in some forms imposed by state authorities to nearly two years for forced sexual exploitation.

The regional figures

Modern slavery occurred in every region of the world. Modern slavery was most prevalent in Africa (7.6 per 1,000 people), followed by Asia and the Pacific (6.1 per 1,000) then Europe and Central Asia (3.9 per 1,000). These results should be interpreted cautiously due to lack of available data in some regions, notably the Arab States and the Americas.

For forced labour specifically, the prevalence is highest in Asia and the Pacific, where four out of every 1,000 people were victims, followed by Europe and Central Asia (3.6 per 1,000), Africa (2.8 per 1,000), the Arab States (2.2 per 1,000) and the Americas (1.3 per 1,000).

Dosage also has a significant role in the process of erection. sildenafil 100mg uk The prime care is related to prescription, one must consult a medical practitioner for resolving the psychological issue; and the doctor might stop you from having this free generic viagra. Day’s viagra order shop passed, Micheal’s health condition was deteriorating everyday. The symptoms of erectile dysfunction can be thoroughly erased with the help of this levitra generika product along with a host of other mind-boggling, life-altering, belief-challenging encounters. While noting limits of the data in key regions, particularly the Arab States, the data suggests prevalence of forced marriage is highest in Africa (4.8 per 1,000), followed by Asia and the Pacific (2.0 per 1,000)…

Conclusions and way forward

Ending modern slavery will require a multi-faceted response that addresses the array of forces – economic, social, cultural, and legal – that contribute to vulnerability and enable abuses. There can be no one-size-fits-all solution; responses need to be adapted to the diverse environments in which modern slavery still occurs. But it is nonetheless possible to identify some overarching policy priorities in the lead-up to 2030 from the Global Estimates and from experience to date.

Stronger social protection floors are necessary to offset the vulnerabilities that can push people into modern slavery. Extending labour rights in the informal economy – where modern slavery is most likely to occur – is needed to protect workers from exploitation. Given that a large share of modern slavery can be traced to migration, improved migration governance is vitally important to preventing forced labour and protecting victims.

Additionally, the risk and typology of modern slavery is strongly influenced by gender, and this must also be taken into account in developing policy responses. Addressing the root causes of debt bondage, a widespread means of coercion, is another necessary element of forced labour prevention, while improved victim identification is critical to extending protection to the vast majority of modern slavery victims who are currently unidentified or unattended. Finally, we know that much of modern slavery today occurs in contexts of state fragility, conflict, and crisis, pointing to the need to address the risk of modern slavery as part of humanitarian actions in these situations.

Further efforts are needed to improve the evidence base on modern slavery in order to inform and guide policy responses in all of these areas. Key measurement priorities identified through the preparation of the Global Estimates include the improved measurement of modern slavery affecting children and specifically cases of sexual exploitation involving children and child marriage. There is also a need to more effectively capture specific subpopulations such as adult victims of forced sexual exploitation and victims in conflict contexts. The ability to track changes in modern slavery over time will be critical for monitoring progress in the lead-up to 2030. But perhaps the most important priority is to strengthen and extend national research and data collection efforts on modern slavery to guide national policy responses.

International cooperation in addressing modern slavery is essential given its global and cross-border dimensions. Alliance 8.7, a multi-stakeholder partnership committed to achieving Target 8.7 of the Sustainable Development Goals, has an important role to play in this regard. The Global Estimates indicate that the majority of forced labour today exists in the private economy. This underscores the importance of partnering with the business community – alongside employers’ and workers’ organisations, and civil society organisations – to eradicate forced labour in supply chains and in the private economy more broadly. Cooperation should be strengthened between and among governments and with relevant international and regional organizations in areas such as labour law enforcement, criminal law enforcement, and the management of migration in order to prevent trafficking and to address forced labour across borders.

 

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21st Century Slavery

The New York Analysis of Policy and Government provides an in-depth look at the horrifying existence of modern slavery.

Modern slavery exists, it is widespread, and it is a worldwide, lucrative practice. A National Geographic study found “There are more slaves today than were seized from Africa in four centuries of the trans-Atlantic slave trade. The modern commerce in humans rivals illegal drug trafficking in its global reach—and in the destruction of lives.”

The Council on Hemispheric Affairs (COHAR)  notes that “Unfortunately, the business of taking advantage of poor, weak, or otherwise disadvantaged people is still very much a reality in many parts of the world. Although 90 percent of countries have some form of legislation that directly defends the most basic human rights of each individual, many of these nations still do not have either the mechanisms to protect this liberty or laws defining what constitute human trafficking up to the United Nations’ (UN) standards.”

To describe this terrible practice as just another criminal enterprise doesn’t reflect the true scope of the problem. A National Catholic Reporter study emphasized that “many countries didn’t outlaw slavery until the 20th century. In fact, it wasn’t until 1981 that Mauritania finally abolished slavery — becoming the last country on Earth to end this dehumanizing practice, though it wasn’t made a crime there until 2007. But tragically, slavery did not completely end. It continues to this very day under a new name: human trafficking.

Research by CNBC  reveals that “Slavery… is today a flourishing underworld, generating a whopping $150 billion in illegal profits each year, according to the International Labor Organization (ILO). Approximately 21 million people around the world — about 3 out of every 1,000 individuals, 5 million of them children — are victims of forced labor, according to the most recent estimate, up from 12.3 million in 2005, the ILO reports. Trafficking in persons … is one of the largest income sources for international criminals, second only to drug trafficking,” said U.S. Senator Ben Cardin (D-Maryland), ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, at a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing last week to address the issue of modern slavery…President Obama signed H.R. 644, the ‘Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015,’ which includes an amendment to close the loophole in the Tariff Act of 1930 allowing goods produced from slaves to enter the U.S. if American production could not meet 100 percent consumer demand.”

The International Labor Alliance study provides in depth information on 21st Century slavery:
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An estimated 40.3 million people were victims of modern slavery in 2016. In other words, on any given day in 2016, there were likely to be more than 40 million men, women, and children who were being forced to work against their will under threat or who were living in a forced marriage that they had not agreed to.

Of these 40.3 million victims:

▪ 24.9 million people were in forced labour. That is, they were being forced to work under threat or coercion as domestic workers, on construction sites, in clandestine factories, on farms and fishing boats, in other sectors, and in the sex industry. They were forced to work by private individuals and groups or by state authorities. In many cases, the products they made and the services they provided ended up in seemingly legitimate commercial channels. Forced labourers produced some of the food we eat and the clothes we wear, and they have cleaned the buildings in which many of us live or work.

▪ 15.4 million people were living in a forced marriage to which they had not consented. That is, they were enduring a situation that involved having lost their sexual autonomy and often involved providing labour under the guise of “marriage”.

The Report concludes tomorrow.

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States Laws Passed in Fight Against Human Trafficking

The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) has released its 2016 report on human trafficking, which could also be known as the practice of slavery. It notes that “In 2003, Washington became the first state to criminalize human trafficking. Since then, every state has enacted laws establishing criminal penalties for traffickers seeking to profit from forced labor or sexual servitude. The laws vary in several ways including who is defined as a ‘trafficker,’ the statutory elements required to prove guilt in order to obtain a conviction and the seriousness of the criminal and financial penalties those convicted will face.”

The study notes that there are two common venues for human trafficking, one involving sexual activities and the other the labor market, based on research from the National Human Trafficking Hotline.

“Common potential sex trafficking venues include: Hostess/Strip Club-Based; Residential Brothels; Street-Based; Online Advertisements; and Commercial-Fronted Brothels. Common potential labor trafficking venues include: Domestic Work; Traveling Sales Crews; Restaurants/ Food Service; Agriculture; Commercial-Fronted Brothels; and Health and Beauty Services.”

According to NCSL, “…State laws include a wide variety of activities under their definition of trafficking. Differences in trafficking definitions are critical to identifying who has criminal culpability. Most commonly, trafficking activities are defined as the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring or receipt of persons for the purpose of exploitation. Some jurisdictions have expanded their definition of trafficking by including activities like purchasing, benefitting or profiting… In order to obtain a trafficking conviction, state laws, in most instances, require that prosecutors prove traffickers compelled their victims into labor or sexual servitude. The majority of laws include the elements force, fraud and coercion, but their definition can vary greatly from state to state. For example, in some states, their definition focuses primarily on the use of physical force. Other states more broadly include psychological control, financial threats, legal harassment and drug addiction.”

In its 2016 Report on Human Trafficking, the U.S. State Department noted:

Any medication can cause death if overdosed. viagra österreich There have been published papers on levitra generic cheap the fact that it is out of their control. Erectile dysfunction (ED) is an viagra tablets uk extremely common problem which many smokers experience during their lifetime. Do prescription cialis cost not expect a quick result, because there are no such miraculous ingredients in these capsules. “In FY 2015, DHS [Dept. of Homeland Security] reported opening 1,034 investigations possibly involving human trafficking, an increase from 987 in FY 2014. DOJ [Dept. of Justice] formally opened 802 human trafficking investigations, a decrease from 835 in FY 2014, and DOJ’s ECM taskforces separately initiated 1,011 investigations. DOS [Department of State] reported opening 175 human trafficking-related cases worldwide during FY 2015, an increase from 154 in FY 2014. The Department of Defense (DoD) reported investigating at least 10 human trafficking-related cases involving U.S. military personnel, compared to 14 in FY 2014. DOJ initiated a total of 257 federal human trafficking prosecutions in FY 2015, charging 377 defendants. Of these prosecutions, 248 involved predominantly sex trafficking and nine involved predominantly labor trafficking, although some involved both. These figures represent an increase from FY 2014, during which DOJ brought 208 prosecutions charging 335 defendants. During FY 2015, DOJ secured convictions against 297 traffickers, compared with 184 convictions obtained in FY 2014. Of these, 291 involved predominantly sex trafficking and six involved predominantly labor trafficking, although several involved both. These prosecutions and convictions include cases brought under trafficking-specific criminal statutes and related non-trafficking criminal statutes, but do not include child sex trafficking cases brought under non-trafficking statutes.

“Penalties imposed on convicted traffickers ranged from five years to life imprisonment. NGOs [nongovernmental organizations]  continued to call on federal prosecutors to vigorously seek mandatory restitution for victims of trafficking. During the reporting period, one NGO reported an increase in labor trafficking cases in some jurisdictions and increased federal coordination on labor trafficking cases. NGOs continued to report, however, that federal, tribal, state, and local authorities did not vigorously investigate labor trafficking cases and called for more systematic efforts to prioritize forced labor prosecutions. Further, advocates reported state and local law enforcement demonstrate uncertainty regarding their authority over forced labor cases and called for formal structures to increase the identification of such cases. In addition to federal laws, state laws form the basis of most criminal actions, which makes adoption of state anti-trafficking laws key to institutionalizing concepts of compelled service for local police officers. Even though at least 34 states have “safe harbor” laws, NGOs reported most of these states did not provide victims immunity for prostitution offenses and reported trafficking victims faced criminalization for crimes committed as a direct result of being subjected to trafficking. While some states already had vacatur or expungement laws, several others introduced or began considering these laws to reduce the harm to victims. Other states created specialized courts for cases involving minors; however, advocates were divided on the effectiveness of these courts.”

The Global Slavery Index  2016 statistics estimate “that 45.8 million people are in some form of modern slavery in 167 countries. The countries with the highest estimated prevalence of modern slavery by the proportion of their population are North Korea, Uzbekistan, Cambodia, India, and Qatar. In North Korea, there is pervasive evidence that government-sanctioned forced labour occurs in an extensive system of prison labour camps while North Korean women are subjected to forced marriage and commercial sexual exploitation in China and other neighbouring states. In Uzbekistan, the government continues to subject its citizens to forced labour in the annual cotton harvest.

“Those countries with the highest absolute numbers of people in modern slavery are India, China, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Uzbekistan. Several of these countries provide the low-cost labour that produces consumer goods for markets in Western Europe, Japan, North America and Australia. The countries with the lowest estimated prevalence of modern slavery by the proportion of their population are Luxembourg, Ireland, Norway, Denmark, Switzerland, Austria, Sweden and Belgium, the United States and Canada, and Australia and New Zealand. These countries generally have more economic wealth, score higher on government response, have low levels of conflict, and are politically stable with a willingness to combat modern slavery.”

ISIS has been particularly active in the practice of slavery.  According to a Brookings study, “The Islamic State not only celebrates the revival of slavery as a major step in the return of Islamic law, which the group wants to impose in its totality. The group also hails the renewal of slavery as ‘one of the signs of the Hour’ or Day of Judgment…The Islamic State now proudly celebrates the return of the practice to public view and distributes the captured Yazidi women as sex slaves to its members.”

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The Deafening Silence

The extraordinary crises in U.S. foreign affairs, and the plight of human rights throughout the world, have failed to gain attention in much of the media.

The reasons are clear.  It is the mantra of much of the political left that America is in no military danger from abroad, freedom is not imperiled, and that whatever global challenges Washington must deal with are the products of its own prior actions. That has been the guiding principle of the Obama Administration. Whatever inconvenient facts depart from that narrative are wholly disregarded because much of the media shares that viewpoint.

There is clear precedence to this from the last presidential election. During a televised debate, Republican challenger Mitt Romney noted that Russian belligerence was a key problem. He was mocked not just by rival candidate Barack Obama, but also by the moderator of the debate, who abandoned all pretense of impartiality.  Despite the clear, overt and overwhelming evidence during the past several years proving Romney correct, there has been no admission of being drastically incorrect either by the President or the many journalists who joined him in mocking Romney’s statement.

While international affairs can sometimes be nebulous, the poor results from the foreign policy actions of President Obama and Secretaries Clinton and Kerry are crystal clear.

Russia and China have found that aggressive use of force achieves results, and comes at almost no cost.  Iran has found that it can be financially rewarded for holding Americans for ransom. Evildoers such as Syria’s Bashar al-Assad have learned that there is no such thing as a “Red Line” beyond which they dare not go. Afghanistan’s Taliban knows that all it has to do is wait out the clock for American forces to leave.

Consider:

When the Chinese Navy infringed upon the Philippines’ Exclusive Economic Zone, Obama did nothing.  The White House didn’t even lodge a diplomatic protest.  Even after the World Tribunal at The Hague ruled in favor of the Philippines, the White House remained largely on the sidelines.

When Russia invaded Ukraine, the only Obama/Clinton response was a weak set of sanctions. A simple, nonviolent, and extremely effective response would have been to open up federal lands to energy exploitation, in order to eventually bring down the cost of energy. This would have bankrupted Moscow, which is heavily dependent on energy sales to finance its military. It would also have reassured European allies of future access to energy without kowtowing to Russia. But the policy was ignored by the White House.

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On the flip side, America’s friends, allies, or simply those who happen to be on the same side of a controversy as the U.S. have found that Washington is neither reliable as a partner nor even committed to protecting its own shared self-interest. Ask the Israelis or Egypt’s former President Hosni Mubarak about that.

The utter failure of the Administration to enforce its own “Red Line” in Syria, or to respond in any meaningful way to the Benghazi attack, and to give the Taliban high status by negotiating with it, allowed depraved forces both in power in the Middle East and around the world seeking to gain dominance all the encouragement they needed to stay their course.

The Obama-Clinton foreign policy is not the product of dedication to non-violence or human rights, reasons often given for President Carter’s unsuccessful foreign policy moves. This White House and its supporters have turned their backs on atrocities whenever convenient.

Just one example: Vice News reports that “human rights groups, Malaysian activists, and a number of US Senators accuse Barack Obama’s administration of manipulating [that nation’s record on human trafficking] to allow the Southeast Asian country to join the president’s massive free trade deal, the Trans-Pacific Partnership… Many anti-human trafficking advocates are crying foul.  ‘The State Department has sold out human rights to corporate and regional interests,’ David Abramowitz, the former chief counsel to the House Foreign Affairs Committee and a member of the Alliance to End Slavery and Trafficking, told Vice News.”

The number of humans in slavery has grown during the Obama-Clinton-Kerry tenure. The California Department of Justice reports that “Human trafficking is the world’s fastest growing criminal enterprise and is an estimated $32 billion-a-year global industry.”

Shoebat  reports that “In Saudi Arabia, (A major contributor to the Clinton Foundation) and other Gulf States, there are around over a million slaves. Obama has never mentioned this…These are deprived of food, adequate living conditions and are many times abused.”

The consistent record of foreign policy failure by Obama, Clinton and Kerry should not be overlooked or ignored.  However, that is precisely what America’s highly biased media is doing.