Torture in [The Bahamas] [other countries]Human Trafficking in [The Bahamas] [other countries]Street Children in [The Bahamas] [other countries]Child Prostitution in [The Bahamas] [other countries] |
Human Trafficking & Modern-day Slavery In the early years of the 21st Century gvnet.com/humantrafficking/Bahamas.htm
The Bahamas is a destination country for
men and women trafficked from Haiti and other Caribbean countries primarily
for the purpose of forced labor, and women from Jamaica and other countries
trafficked for the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation. In situations
that, for some workers, may constitute forced labor, employers coerce migrant
or temporary workers -- legal and illegal -- to work longer hours, at lower
pay, and in conditions not permitted under local labor law by changing the
terms of contracts, withholding travel documents, refusing transportation
back home, threatening to withdraw the employer-specific and employer-held
permits, or to turn the employee over to immigration. For the past three
years, The Bahamas was included in the Report as a Special Case due to
limited data. - U.S. State Dept Trafficking in Persons Report, June, 2009 [full country report] |
||
|
CAUTION: The following links
have been culled from the web to illuminate the situation in the ***
FEATURED ARTICLE *** Human Trafficking Concerns Persist www.jonesbahamas.com/?c=45&a=8979 [accessed 20 January 2011] The ***
ARCHIVES *** Human
Rights Reports » 2005 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2005/61714.htm [accessed 20 January 2011] TRAFFICKING
IN PERSONS
– Although there are no laws that specifically address
trafficking in persons, the law prohibits prostitution and the procurement of
persons for purposes of prostitution either in or outside the country by
force, threats, intimidation, or the administering of drugs. There
were no specific reports that persons were trafficked within, to, or from the
country, but concerns were increasing. The
lack of a legal prohibition may have obscured trafficking within the
vulnerable illegal migrant communities. In June the International
Organization of Migration (IOM) issued a report on human trafficking
suggesting a link between irregular migration and forced labor for domestic
servitude, agriculture, and construction. In March IOM hosted an
anti-trafficking meeting and training that included government and civil
society participants. Concluding Observations of the Committee on
the Rights of the Child (CRC) UN Convention on the Rights of the Child,
31 March 2005 www1.umn.edu/humanrts/crc/bahamas2005.html [accessed 20 January 2011] [61]
The Committee notes that the State party has not yet ratified the Optional
Protocols to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the sale of
children, child prostitution and child pornography, and on the involvement of
children in armed conflict. Gov’t To Bring Human Trafficking Bill Vanessa C. Rolle, The Bahama Journal, June
20, 2007 www.jonesbahamas.com/?c=45&a=13065 [accessed 20 January 2011] He said, "Such
legislation would provide specific protections for trafficking victims. These
are essential because only with those protections will victims feel comfortable
coming forward to identify employers who may have victimized them and to
assist in prosecution of traffickers." Gov’t Considers Human Trafficking
Legislation Macushla N. Pinder, The Bahama Journal,
August 31, 2006 www.jonesbahamas.com/?c=45&a=9849 [accessed 20 January 2011] In its analysis on
The Bahamas, the IOM concluded that overall, findings indicate that while
there are cases of trafficking in persons in The Bahamas, "in the
strictest sense fulfilling all aspects of the legal definition of human
trafficking, these are few." "For
instances, although irregular migrants may embark on their trip to The
Bahamas voluntarily, the vulnerabilities that motivate them in doing so
render them susceptible to exploitation in employment and living arrangements
upon arrival in The Bahamas," the report read. "In
quantitative and qualitative terms, a picture emerges inferring that The
Bahamas is fertile for facilitating the criminal activity of trafficking
human beings." Immigration Officials Call Human Trafficking
Report “Exaggerated” www.jonesbahamas.com/?c=45&a=9161 [accessed 20 January 2011] The Bahamas
Department of Immigration has weighing in on the ongoing human trafficking
discussion, conceding that, "The Bahamas may be viewed as a transit
nation unwittingly facilitating such criminal activity." IOM Official Says www.jonesbahamas.com/?c=45&a=9069 [accessed 20 January 2011] "I definitely
believe that there are individual cases where persons have been trafficked
and exploited in The Bahamas. We saw anecdotal evidence of that when we
conducted our exploratory assessment," Ms. Garrett said. "To then extrapolate that and quantify
that on any grand scale, we wouldn’t be able to do, however, www.jonesbahamas.com/?c=45&a=9054 [accessed 20 January 2011] Mr. Rood said,
"All we’re saying is that it may exist. All this report is saying is
that we don’t know if there is a trafficking issue in the Bahamas, but
there’s a potential for it and there’s a potential for it because of the
large numbers of undocumented people in the country that don’t have legal
standing here." Human Trafficking Concerns Persist www.jonesbahamas.com/?c=45&a=8979 [accessed 20 January 2011] The The Protection Project - The www.protectionproject.org/human_rights_reports/report_documents/bahamas.doc [accessed 2009] FORMS
OF TRAFFICKING - Women and girls as young as 10 and 12 years
of age are reportedly targets for sex tourism in the Bahamas Trafficking in
women and children for sexual exploitation is a growing concern in the entire
US Looks For
Human Trafficking In www.bahamasb2b.com/news/wmview.php?ArtID=8124 [accessed 20 January 2011] "All
we’re saying is that it may exist. All this report is saying is that we don’t
know if there is a trafficking issue in the www.jonesbahamas.com/?c=45&a=9050 [accessed 20 January 2011] The IOM says the
protocol does create common ground for counter-trafficking activities, but
"lacks any form of enforcement or monitoring mechanism, so it is
difficult to gauge its real effect upon the actions of signatory
countries." Trafficking – a gateway into the sex trade www.panosinst.org/productions/panoscope/trafficking_sextrade.php [access date unavailable] “The experience was terrible,” Denise said. “I would not go back and I would not tell even my worst enemy to go. I had sleepless nights. I cried night and day when I was there and prayed that I could get back my money so I could come back home.” Freedom House Country Report - Political Rights: 1 Civil Liberties: 1 Status: Free 2009 Edition www.freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-world/2009/bahamas [accessed 26 June 2012] All
material used herein reproduced under the fair use exception of 17 USC § 107
for noncommercial, nonprofit, and educational use. PLEASE RESPECT COPYRIGHTS OF COMPONENT
ARTICLES. Cite this webpage as: Patt,
Prof. Martin, "Human Trafficking & Modern-day Slavery - |
Torture in [The Bahamas] [other countries]Human Trafficking in [The Bahamas] [other countries]Street Children in [The Bahamas] [other countries]Child Prostitution in [The Bahamas] [other countries]