Human Trafficking in [Chile Street Children in [Chile] [other countries]Child Prostitution in [Chile] [other countries] |
Human Trafficking & Modern-day Slavery Republic
of Chile [ Country-by-Country
Reports ] The Republic of
Chile is a source, transit, and
destination country for men, women, and children trafficked for purposes of
commercial sexual exploitation and labor exploitation. Most victims of sex
trafficking are Chilean women and girls who are trafficked within the
country. Chileans also are trafficked for sexual and labor exploitation to
neighboring countries such as Argentina, Peru, and Bolivia, in addition to
Europe, Japan, and the United States. Foreign victims from neighboring
countries and Asian countries such as the P.R.C. are lured to Chile with
false job offers and subsequently coerced into prostitution. Migrants from
Peru and Bolivia, including children, may be subjected to involuntary
servitude in agriculture in northern Chile. Chinese nationals are reportedly
smuggled through Chile en route to Mexico, Brazil, and the United States;
some may be trafficking victims. - 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 ***
FEATURED ARTICLE *** iAbolish
Country Report: Chile COUNTRY BACKGROUND - Slavery has a legacy in Chile.
In the 1980s, during the former dictatorship, "dignity colonies"
were operating. These were clandestine camps where many of the desparecidos
(the 'disappeared' people) were sexually exploited and trapped in a system of
forced labor. These were only recently discovered. The kinds of slavery that
exist in Chile today also hardly receive any immediate media attention. THE PROCESS OF ENSLAVEMENT - Chile is a destination for
Bolivian minors who are lured into the country under false pretenses and
promises of higher wages in a country economically more stable than Bolivia.
Chile is also a country where human traffickers facilitate and promote the
movement of people from Asia to American cities, such as Los Angeles and
Houston, for the purposes of debt bondage and sexual exploitation. ***
ARCHIVES *** U.S. Dept
of Labor Bureau of International Labor Affairs INCIDENCE
AND NATURE OF CHILD LABOR - In 2003, the Government of Chile estimated that there were approximately
3,700 children involved in some form of commercial sexual exploitation. Children are also trafficked internally for
the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation. Bur of Democracy,
Human Rights & Labor - Country
Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2005 TRAFFICKING
IN PERSONS – Within
the country victims reportedly were trafficked from rural areas to such urban
areas as Anecdotal reports suggested that
young women were the primary targets for trafficking to other countries.
Traffickers reportedly used newspaper advertisements for models and product
promoters to lure girls, ages 11 to 17, into prostitution. Law enforcement
agencies indicated that traffickers looking for children also targeted
economically disadvantaged families, arguing to the parents that they were
giving the child an opportunity for a better life. Men from less-affluent
rural areas may be recruited into abusive labor situations in deep-sea
fishing or ranching operations. Concluding
Observations of the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) - 2002 [49] The Committee, while noting
that the State party has ratified ILO Conventions No. 138 concerning Minimum
Age for Admission to Employment and No. 182 concerning the Prohibition and
Immediate Action for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour and
increased the minimum age for admission to work to 15, expresses its deep
concern at the large number of children, including those under 15, who are
exploited economically, especially in the farming sector, and the large
number who have to leave school because they cannot conciliate work and
school. Freedom
House Country Report - Political Rights: 1 Civil Liberties: 1 Status: Free Human Rights Overview by Human
Rights Watch – Defending Human Rights Worldwide U.S. Library of Congress
- Country Study iAbolish
Country Report: Chile COUNTRY BACKGROUND - Slavery has a legacy in Chile.
In the 1980s, during the former dictatorship, "dignity colonies"
were operating. These were clandestine camps where many of the desparecidos
(the 'disappeared' people) were sexually exploited and trapped in a system of
forced labor. These were only recently discovered. The kinds of slavery that
exist in Chile today also hardly receive any immediate media attention. THE PROCESS OF ENSLAVEMENT - Chile is a destination for
Bolivian minors who are lured into the country under false pretenses and
promises of higher wages in a country economically more stable than Bolivia.
Chile is also a country where human traffickers facilitate and promote the
movement of people from Asia to American cities, such as Los Angeles and
Houston, for the purposes of debt bondage and sexual exploitation. The
Protection Project - Human Rights Reports of The Americas - Chile [DOC] FORMS OF TRAFFICKING - One study reported that 50
percent of foreign women working in eastern Santiago’s late-night establishments
were victims of trafficking. Foreign women come to Santiago to look for work,
and from Santiago they are trafficked to other parts of the country. Bolivian women and children are trafficked
to Chile for prostitution and domestic work. A Chilean woman was allegedly
involved in a network that was suspected of trafficking young Chilean women
for prostitution in Japan. Known as
the “Chilean Geisha,” she made a fortune with her best-selling memoirs, her
music albums, and even a movie about her life. Corporación La Morada, one of
Chile’s leading women’s organizations, filed a lawsuit against the “geisha”
for trafficking in persons; in June 2004, the government’s Council for the
Defense of State joined the legal action against her. Child
trafficking projects in Central and South America INVOLVING THE GOVERNMENTS - All material used herein
reproduced under the fair use exception of 17 USC § 107 for noncommercial,
nonprofit, and educational use |
To be able
to protect young boys and girls from child trafficking, it is primarily
important to improve the basic legal framework. Thanks to the initiative of
DNI and Infante, partner organizations of terre des hommes in Bolivia,
amendments to laws making child trafficking a punishable offence are about to
be passed. Similarly, the Chilean organization, Raices, works closely with
the local police authorities. In addition, a commission with representatives
from Chile, Peru and Bolivia is working on a strategic and a more effective
approach against cross-border child trafficking.
Human Trafficking in [Chile Street Children in [Chile] [other countries]Child Prostitution in [Chile] [other countries]