Human Trafficking in  [Brazil]  [other countries]
Street Children in  [Brazil]  [other countries]
Child Prostitution in  [Brazil]  [other countries]
 

Human Trafficking & Modern-day Slavery

Federative Republic of Brazil                                                   [ Country-by-Country Reports ]

The Federative Republic of Brazil [map], a federation of 26 states, is large, occupying nearly half of the South American continent.  It is bordered by Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana (N), and Uruguay, Paraguay, and Argentina (S).  In the west it is bordered by Bolivia, Peru, and Colombia, and in the east by the Atlantic Ocean.  Brasília, is its capital city.  Possessing large and well-developed agricultural, mining, manufacturing, and service sectors, Brazil's economy outweighs that of all other South American countries and is expanding its presence in world markets.

Brazil is a source country for women and children trafficked within the country and transnationally for the purposes of commercial sexual exploitation, as well as a source country for men trafficked internally for forced labor. The Brazilian Federal Police estimate that 250,000 children are exploited for prostitution, although NGOs put the number as high as 500,000. Between 25,000 to 100,000 men are subjected to slave labor within the country. Approximately half of the nearly 6,000 men freed from slave labor in 2007 were found exploited on plantations growing sugar cane for the production of ethanol, a growing trend. A large number of Brazilian women and girls are trafficked for sexual exploitation to destinations in South America, the Caribbean, Western Europe, Japan, the United States, and the Middle East. To a lesser extent, Brazil is a destination for the trafficking of men, women, and children from Bolivia, Peru, and the People’s Republic of China (P.R.C.) for forced labor into factories in major urban areas of Brazil. Child sex tourism remains a serious problem, particularly in the resort areas and coastal areas of Brazil’s northeast, and mostly involves tourists from Europe and the United States.   - U.S. State Dept Trafficking in Persons Report, June, 2008   [full country report]

 

CAUTION:  The following links have been culled from the web to illuminate the situation in Brazil.  Some of these links may lead to websites that present allegations that are unsubstantiated or even false.  No attempt has been made to verify their authenticity or to validate their content.

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Forced Labor, Iraq War Take Center Stage at World Social Forum

The group praised Brazil's endeavor to eliminate the exploitation of workers, saying it was the only government successful in its efforts.  "The Brazilian model in fighting forced labor is exportable," said Luis Carlos Moro, of the Latin American Association of Labor Attorneys, which is part of the anti-forced labor network.  Brazilian ILO delegate Patricia Audi said Brazil, South America's largest nation, rescued in 2003 a record 5,100 people who were working in slave-liked conditions in the rural sector.

 

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U.S. Dept of Labor Bureau of International Labor Affairs

CURRENT GOVERNMENT POLICIES AND PROGRAMS TO ELIMINATE THE WORST FORMS OF CHILD LABOR - The primary program to assist child victims of commercial sexual exploitation is the Sentinel Program, which establishes local reference centers to provide victims with psychological, social, and legal services.  In addition, the government’s Global Program to Prevent Trafficking in Persons is working to establish a database on trafficking in persons, including the trafficking of children and adolescents, strengthen efforts to combat the practice, and develop pilot programs to assist victims.

[646] The program is being implemented with the support of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). Pilot programs are being launched in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Goiás, and Ceará. In May 2004, the program released a study on a number of trafficking cases and investigations in the four areas where the pilot programs are being implemented.

Bur of Democracy, Human Rights & Labor - Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2005

TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS – Although comprehensive government statistics on the problem were unavailable, authorities estimated that thousands of women and adolescents were trafficked, both domestically and internationally, for commercial sexual exploitation. NGOs estimated that 75 thousand women and girls, many of them trafficked, were engaged in prostitution in neighboring South American countries, the United States, and Western Europe. Women were trafficked from all parts of the country. The government reported that trafficking routes existed in all states and the Federal District. Young women and girls were trafficked overseas for prostitution, while young men and boys were trafficked internally as slave laborers.

Internal trafficking of rural workers into forced labor schemes was a serious problem, while trafficking from rural to urban areas occurred to a lesser extent. Union leaders claimed that nearly all persons working as forced laborers had been trafficked by labor recruiters (see section 6.c.). Labor inspectors found a small number of persons from other countries trafficked to work in urban sweatshops. Labor recruiters generally recruited laborers from small municipalities in the North and Northeast and transported the recruits long distances to ranches and plantations in remote areas in the central part of the country. Most internally trafficked slave laborers originated from Maranhao and Piaui states, while Para and Matto Grosso states received the highest number of internally trafficked slave laborers.

Concluding Observations of the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) - 2004

[46] The Committee welcomes the ratification by the State party of the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Cooperation in Respect of Inter-country Adoption of 1993. However, it regrets the lack of statistical data on domestic and inter-country adoption and it expresses its concern that the State party does not provide sufficient safeguards against trafficking and sale of children for the purpose of, inter alia, adoption.

[62] The Committee welcomes the decision of the State party’s President, to make the fight against child sexual exploitation a priority of his Government. However, the Committee is deeply concerned by the wide occurrence of sexual exploitation and related issues, as also noted in the report of the Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution, and child pornography following his mission to Brazil in 2003 (E/CN.4/2004/9/Add.2).

PORTUGAL-BRAZIL: Human Trafficking and Marriages - Another Link

Brazil’s influence in Portugal is not limited to music, television programming, football, cuisine and tropical beach vacations.

Today it is also the main source of victims of human trafficking to Portugal, women who fall into prostitution and sexual exploitation networks, as well as a source of large numbers of women who marry Portuguese men.  Brazil is the favourite country for traffickers who form part of the prostitution networks that have mushroomed in Portugal, which is a springboard to wealthier European Union destinations, according to studies presented at a seminar organised Monday and Tuesday by the governmental Portuguese Youth Institute (IPJ).

Brazil to launch campaign against human trafficking

Brazilians are the major victims of international human trafficking, according to the United Nations. Most victims are women aged between 18 and 30 with a low educational background. These women want to leave for Europe and believe they will have a better job and life there but end up being sexually exploited.

Brazil Tries to Stem Tide of Sex Slavery

Brazil is on a mission to end its status as Latin America's largest supplier of sex slaves. In recent months the government has joined international sting operations, passed a new law and launched a media campaign.

Spanish Police Arrest 14 in Crackdown on Immigrant Prostitution Ring

The group recruited hundreds of women coming mainly from Brazil. Gang members arranged passports and air tickets to Spain, where the women were persuaded and forced to work illegally as prostitutes in clubs in the southern regions of Andalusia and Extremadura and then to hand over their earnings, a police statement said.

The Price of a Slave in Brazil

Brazil is responsible for 15 percent of women trafficked in South America, a great majority being from the North and the Northeast.  Most of them are young—between 12 and 18 years old—have little schooling, and are of African descent. Currently, the "market value" of a Brazilian woman is up to US$ 15,000.

Forced Child Prostitution in Brazil

Twelve girls--among them, Ana Meire Lima da Silva, age 15, and Miriam Ferreira dos Santos, 14--make up part of the cargo. They were persuaded to go with promises of work in a restaurant or luncheonette.

"Foreigners in Our Own Country": Indigenous Peoples in Brazil

Amnesty International has documented and campaigned against human rights violations committed against indigenous peoples in Brazil, their leaders and those who defend them, for many years. In 2005, Indians(1) continue to be victims of attacks, killings and other forms of violence and discrimination, often committed with impunity

Forced Labor, Iraq War Take Center Stage at World Social Forum

The group praised Brazil's endeavor to eliminate the exploitation of workers, saying it was the only government successful in its efforts.  "The Brazilian model in fighting forced labor is exportable," said Luis Carlos Moro, of the Latin American Association of Labor Attorneys, which is part of the anti-forced labor network.  Brazilian ILO delegate Patricia Audi said Brazil, South America's largest nation, rescued in 2003 a record 5,100 people who were working in slave-liked conditions in the rural sector.

Report: Japan Sex Industry Ensnares Latin Women

When she arrived she was raped by all three men and sold to a Yakuza organized crime boss, who branded her across the chest with a 6-inch (15-centimeter) rose tattoo. He forced her to provide sexual services to up to 40 clients a day, she said.

Freedom House Country Report - Political Rights: 2   Civil Liberties: 2   Status: Free

Human Rights Overview by Human Rights Watch – Defending Human Rights Worldwide

U.S. Library of Congress - Country Study

Brazil slave inspectors shot dead

Three Brazilian officials were shot dead while investigating allegations that farm workers were used as slave labour, the Labour Ministry has said.  A spokesman said the officials and their driver were ambushed in the state of Minais Gerais.  But he said it was not clear whether the murders had anything to do with the investigations.

Latin America - Sexual Exploitation

The Crisis of Child Sexual Exploitation in Brazil.  Between 250,000 and 2 million children forced into prostitution in Brazil.  Short quotes and Links.

United Kingdom - trafficking

100 women were trafficked for prostitution from remote villages in Brazil to London over a 5-year period. The women were held under debt bondage. The trafficker made £5 million profit. (Superintendent Michael Hoskins "Trafficking in Women for Sexual Exploitation: Assessment of the Current Threat Within Central London" Metroploitan Police Service, June 1996).

Human Rights Overview - Brazil January 1, 2004

FORCED LABOR - The use of forced labor in Brazil's ranching and timber industries has long been an extremely disturbing problem. According to the Catholic Church's Pastoral Land Commission, at least 25,000 people were working under forced labor conditions in Brazil in 2002, often with the tolerance of local authorities.

New era of slavery exposed in Brazil's rainforest

A skeletal Geraldo da Silva was found sleeping under plastic sheets in a jungle camp with no running water or toilets, the deep bloody cuts on his hands and feet evidence that he had spent months clearing thick jungle vegetation.  Armed vigilantes watched over him as he worked and had threatened to kill him if he tried to flee.

Silva was among 32 slaves found by Brazilian labour ministry inspectors during a recent raid on remote cattle ranch in the Amazon owned by a right-wing senator - a find which has brought to the attention of the wider world an appalling violation of human rights.  More than 2,000 slaves have been freed in raids over the past year, and there are now thought to be more than 25,000 people living in inhumane conditions and working for nothing on cattle ranches, coffee farms and sugar cane fields across Brazil.

Brazil Abolishes slavery!

Most forced labor takes place on large estates called Fazendas. In its present-day version, slavery begins with labor contractors called Gatos, or cats. They lure uneducated workers, largely from the northeast, with the promise of decent wages. Once the laborers arrive, however, they find they have already run up un-payable debts to their employers for food, medicine, and lodging, even the use of tools. In many cases they work long hours in the hot sun in exchange for food or wages as low as 10 cents and hour. Armed guards patrol work areas to ensure nobody escapes until debts are paid.

The Price of a Slave in Brazil

Brazil is responsible for 15 percent of women trafficked in South America, a great majority being from the North and the Northeast. Most of them are young—between 12 and 18 years old—have little schooling, and are of African descent. Currently, the "market value" of a Brazilian woman is up to US$ 15,000. . - htcp

Dozens of slaves freed in Brazil

They said the sugar-cane cutters had been lured from the poor north-eastern region of Brazil with false promises and then made to work as bonded labour.  They had little to eat and some shacks where they lived had no ventilation.

iAbolish - Country Report: Brazil

Jobless and hungry, the Rocha family followed the promise of the gato (recruiter) and traveled by truck to the Minas Gerais region hoping for a better life. After arriving at the batteria (work camp), the gato informed the Rochas - at gunpoint - that they would be charged for travel, tools, food, and shelter. The family suddenly found itself trapped in forced labor, working 18-hour days to pay off an ever-accruing debt.

'Slaves' found on Brazilian ranch

Officials said they discovered 32 slave-workers on the ranch of right-wing Senator Joao Ribeiro in the northern state of Para.  They said the captives worked seven days a week without pay and had no running water or toilets.  Senator Ribeiro, of the Liberal Front Party, denies mistreatment.

Trapped: Modern-Day Slavery in the Brazilian Amazon

“Despite the clammy heat, I feel a cold shiver down my back as I sense something of Albertino's pain and terror. Lured into the jungle by false promises, treated with casual brutality, he was worked to the limits of endurance, forcibly held prisoner, and discarded as one might stamp on a cockroach” - from Trapped: Modern-day slavery in the Brazilian Amazon, by Binka Le Breton

Brazil's Prized Exports Rely On Slaves and Scorched Land

The recruiters gather at the bus station here in this grimy Amazon frontier town, waiting for the weary and the desperate to disembark. When they spot a target, they promise him a steady job, good pay, free housing and plenty of food. A quick handshake seals the deal.

But for thousands of peasants, that handshake ensures a slide into slavery. No sooner do they board the battered trucks that take them to work felling trees and tending cattle deep in the jungle than they find themselves mired in debt, under armed guard and unable to leave their new workplace.

''It was 12 years before I was finally able to escape and make my way back home,'' said Bernardo Gomes da Silva, 42. ''We were forced to start work at 6 in the morning and to continue sometimes until 11 at night, but I was never paid during that entire time because they always claimed that I owed them money.''

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Human Trafficking in  [Brazil]  [other countries]
Street Children in  [Brazil]  [other countries]
Child Prostitution in  [Brazil]  [other countries]