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Human Trafficking & Modern-day Slavery In the early years of the 21st Century gvnet.com/humantrafficking/Ghana.htm
Ghana
is a source, transit, and destination country for children and women
trafficked for the purposes of forced labor and commercial sexual
exploitation. Trafficking within the country is more prevalent than
transnational trafficking and the majority of victims are children. Both boys
and girls are trafficked within Ghana for forced labor in agriculture and the
fishing industry, for street hawking, forced begging by religious instructors,
as porters, and possibly for forced kente weaving.
Over 30,000 children are believed to be working as porters, or Kayaye, in Accra alone. Annually, the IOM reports
numerous deaths of boys trafficked for hazardous forced labor in the Lake
Volta fishing industry. Girls are trafficked within the country for domestic
servitude and sexual exploitation. To a lesser extent, boys are also
trafficked internally for sexual exploitation, primarily for sex tourism. - |
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CAUTION: The following
links have been culled from the web to illuminate the situation in ***
FEATURED ARTICLES *** The Protection Project - The www.protectionproject.org/human_rights_reports/report_documents/ghana.doc [Last accessed 2009] FORMS OF TRAFFICKING - Children from Preventing Child Trafficking in Voice of www.voanews.com/english/news/africa/a-13-2007-08-22-voa5.html [accessed 6 February 2011] The International
Organization for Migration (IOM) says child trafficking is rampant in fishing
communities along “They are not being
held against their will, but as a child they have no consent. What happens is
that some of these children have uncles or relatives who come to these poor
parents in fishing area, in the village to take them to go and stay with.
When they go there, they in turn give the children to fishermen and collect
some money from the fisherman, and the children go and work for the fisherman
instead of going to school,” Peasah said. Kerry Kennedy Cuomo, Camera Works: Speak
Truth to Power, The www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/photo/onassignment/truth/st/09.htm [accessed 6 February 2011] Juliana Dogbadzi, enslaved in a shrine in her native ***
ARCHIVES *** Three Chinese jailed for human trafficking www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/artikel.php?ID=164179 [accessed 6 February 2011] Summing up its
judgment, the court noted that the prosecution had been able to prove its
case beyond reasonable doubt. It held that James and Sam engaged in human
trafficking by obtaining tickets and other travelling documents for the
victims and through deceits, lured them to According to the
court the victims on their arrival had their passports and other travelling
documents confiscated by James who in turn threatened, deceived and exploited
their vulnerability. According to the court proceeds of the sex trade were
used to purchase contraceptives, douches and other materials to facilitate
their trade. It dismissed claims by the convicts that the victims and other
Chinese nationals meet at the restaurants to sing. "During the singing
that was when the men selected the victims for sex," the court noted. It therefore
concluded that the convicts through their intentions induced the victims into
sex trade and declined to give them their travelling documents as well as
proceed from the sex trade. Human trafficking: The faces and sorrow at
the heart of a UN report UN News Centre, 13 February 2009 www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=29907&Cr=&Cr1= [accessed 6 February 2011] And Kwame’s young
life embraced a dream when his parents were told he would join a sales
business. Instead, he was trafficked to the infamous fishing region around After eight years
of backbreaking labour and heartbreaking abuse, Kwame was freed by an
anti-slavery group in The Growing Menace Of Child Trafficking newtimesonline.com - The Ghanaian Times, 21
Jun 2008 www.modernghana.com/news/170908/1/the-growing-menace-of-child-trafficking.html [accessed 6 February 2011] The latest report
that 390 child slaves are locked up at Krachi in
the Volta Region, published in this paper yesterday, is indeed disturbing, if
not disconcerting. According to our
correspondent, these children are under bondage, labouring
for fishermen on five islands in the vicinity of Kete
Krachi in the They have lost all
their rights and freedoms for which reason their survival and development are
severely jeopardised. Human trafficking is a national disgrace Stop Trafficking, 2008-04-09 www.antitraf.net/home.php?mode=more&id=18&lang=en [accessed 6 February 2011] In Ghana Police set up anti-human trafficking
Unit The Crusading Guide, 30 Oct 2007 www.modernghana.com/news/146313/1/ghana-police-set-up-anti-human-trafficking-unit.html [accessed 6 February 2011] On the welfare of
the 17 rescued girls, ACP Yeboah said that he had
liaised-with the Ministry of Women and Children's Affairs to find a temporary
shelter to accommodate them until further notice. Committee on child labour, trafficking
inaugurated mobile.ghanaweb.com/wap/article.php?ID=130307 [accessed 6 February 2011] A 21-member
steering committee for an International Labour Organisation (ILO) project on
combating child labour and trafficking was inaugurated in Dr. Slyvester Sakyiamah, Executive
Director of the Social Research Associates, said the Kumasi Metropolis had
become the destination for most of the children trafficked from the Upper
West, Upper East, Northern regions and other parts the country. He said the
children were found to be cart pushers, bar-keepers, head porters, hawkers
and domestic servants among other exploitative jobs. Dr. Sakyiamah
said due to the nature of the work they engaged in, the lack of shelter and
better conditions of life, some of them become street children, who were
easily lured into robbery, drug peddling, child prostitution resulting in
socio-economic problems. Preventing Child Trafficking in Ghana's
Fishing Communities Voice of www.voanews.com/english/news/africa/a-13-2007-08-22-voa5.html [accessed 6 February 2011] The International Organization
for Migration (IOM) says child trafficking is rampant in fishing communities
along “They are not being
held against their will, but as a child they have no consent. What happens is
that some of these children have uncles or relatives who come to these poor
parents in fishing area, in the village to take them to go and stay with.
When they go there, they in turn give the children to fishermen and collect
some money from the fisherman, and the children go and work for the fisherman
instead of going to school,” Peasah said. Brave policewoman rewarded The Mirror, 7-Jul-2007 At one time this article had been archived
and may possibly still be accessible [here]
[accessed 5 September 2011] The report said in
December 2005, one Razak Mohammed asked his wife,
Joyce Kruwaa, to allow his stepson, Kwadwo Kwafo, aged nine, to
accompany him to visit his parents at Kintampo in
the Brong Ahafo
Region. She gave her consent because
that had been the usual practice whereby every December, Mohammed went to his
parents for items for the Christmas celebration. The report said this time around, instead
of going to Kintampo, Mohammed took the boy to Man jailed 30 years for human trafficking At one time this article had been archived
and may possibly still be accessible [here]
[accessed 5 September 2011] The audience in the courtroom were stunned when Abebrese, resident of Brepro Nkwanta near Bawdie in the Wassa Amenfi East District of
the Western Region admitted to attempting to sell one Joseph Narh, a carpenter of the same village for ritual purpose. But, Inspector Adzadza said on June 19, 2007, the complainant received a
call from Tekpey who informed him (the complainant)
that he lied when he said he wanted him to assist him secure a kiosk, rather
he wanted him (the complainant) to assist him sell one Narh
in the Sewfi area where a human head could be
exchanged for a KIA vehicle. Trafficking of African women is
thriving Francois Tillinac, Agence France-Presse AFP, May
10 2007 www.iol.co.za/news/africa/trafficking-of-african-women-is-thriving-1.352453 [accessed 6 February 2011] In January Italian
police smashed several human trafficking rings involving African and eastern
European females and netted some 800 suspects. Outside Human Trafficking Act is too broad [accessed 20 April 2012] A lawyer has
described the Human Trafficking Act, 2005, as "too broad" and as
such raises a number of concerns that need to be addressed to ensure its
effective enforcement. He said, for
instance, the meaning of trafficking in the Act has been so defined as to
make it ambiguous to determine what is meant by "force",
"deception", "harbouring" or
"exploitation of vulnerability." Qatar recruitment is human trafficking -
says Legal Centre Gilbert Boyefio,
The Statesman, 24/02/2007 At one time this article had been archived
and may possibly still be accessible [here]
[accessed 5 September 2011] After the arrival
of the first batch of Ghanaians to the oil-rich Qatar three months ago,
several disgruntled workers complained of conditions there, resulting in a
Government fact-finding mission to investigate the allegations. Workers claimed that housing and food was
poor, that they had not been paid and that their passports had been taken
from them by their employers. High human trafficking profits increases
practice in Ghana www.modernghana.com/news/124311/1/high-human-trafficking-profits-increases-practice-.html [accessed 6 February 2011] High profits from
human trafficking, rated the world’s third illicit business has led to
increased number of children being trafficked and transported from Fighting human trafficking: At one time this article had been archived
and may possibly still be accessible [here]
[accessed 5 September 2011] However, in this
era of civilisation and development, Ghanaian
children, through no fault of their own, are still being given out or sold to
people, being deprived of their rights to enjoy life to the fullest. People give out
their children to these fishermen in return for monthly, quarterly or annual
compensation. Media urged to sensitize people on child
trafficking www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/artikel.php?ID=110995 [accessed 6 February 2011] Mrs Hagan said the
estimated population of children between 5 years and 17 years in Mrs Sylvia Hinson-Ekong, Executive Director of Rescue Foundation Media urged to educate public on human
trafficking www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/artikel.php?ID=110861 accessed 6 February 2011] According to her
most parents ignorantly gave their children out to persons forgetting about
the dangers that they could go through. She said the enactment of the law on
human trafficking was in the right direction but called for more
collaboration between security agencies in combating it. Integrated Regional Information Networks
IRIN, www.irinnews.org/report/59518/west-africa-children-in-danger-war-on-trafficking [accessed 6 February 2011] Rejoice says she
was 10 years old when she was sold and taken from her home to an unfamiliar
fishing village on the banks of For the next seven
years Rejoice washed, scrubbed, cooked and cleaned alongside two other girls
bought by Human Trafficking Law, Act 694 explained Click [here]
to access the article. Its URL is not
displayed because of its length [accessed 15 July 2013] Mrs. Sweetie Sowah, Western Regional Director of the Legal Aid Board,
has said parents who offer their child for trafficking commit an offence
under the Human Trafficking Law, Act 694. She was speaking at
a community puppetry sensitisation programme on the Human Trafficking Law organised by the Department of Children at Sekondi. Workshop On Child Trafficking Ends In Bawku www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/artikel.php?ID=77427 [accessed 6 February 2011] The Bawku Municipal
Chief Executive, Mr. Abdul-Rahman Gumah, has called
for effective networking between the security services and community opinion
leaders to address the high incidence of child trafficking in the
Municipality and to step up surveillance on child smugglers in the area. Let's Take a Collective Stance Against
Child Trafficking From the Editor, Public Agenda ( Click [here]
to access the article. Its URL is not
displayed because of its length [accessed 15 July 2013] According to the
report, the country was a source and a destination country for trafficked
persons in 2004. WAJU reported that
there were 190 cases of abduction and 19 cases of child stealing during the
year. Freedom House
Country Report - Political Rights: 1 Civil Liberties: 2 Status: Free 2009 Edition www.freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-world/2009/ghana [accessed 26 June 2012] U.S. Library of Congress - Country Study Library of Congress Call Number DT510 .G44
1995 lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/ghtoc.html [accessed 6 February 2011] GHANA-GAMBIA: Sex slave children trafficked
by Ghanaian fishermen Integrated Regional Information Networks
IRIN, www.irinnews.org/report/48765/ghana-gambia-sex-slave-children-trafficked-by-ghanaian-fishermen [accessed 24 February 2015] According to the
Gambian National Intelligence Agency, the girls were smuggled into the
country without official papers to work as sex slaves for their Ghanaian
masters. Ceesay confirmed this. She
said the girls were forced to “satisfy the sexual desires of older men” and
some were working full-time as prostitutes within the 5,000-strong Ghanaian
community. The Gambian
authorities said that the girls were also made to work long hours smoking
fish and selling gari, a popular Ghanaian staple
made from cassava. Some boys smuggled into the Vocational Center for Freed Slave Girls in GlobalGiving Foundation www.globalgiving.org/projects/support-freed-slave-girls/ [accessed 6 February 2011] SUMMARY - Girls, freed
from slavery, are gaining valuable skills by attending a vocational center
that was built with help from GlobalGiving donors. Worst Forms of Child Labor / Modern Child
Slavery Youth Advocate Program International
YAPI, 7/26/2004 yapi.org/child-labor-and-slavery/ [accessed 24 January 2016] WHERE SLAVERY EXISTS
TODAY
- Industries in which child slaves are used exist in all parts of the world.
Children are enslaved in the cotton fields of India, fishing industry in Ghana, charcoal production in Brazil, gold
mines in Peru, brick producing kilns of Nepal, stone quarries in south Asia,
as camel jockeys in the United Arab Emirates, and as domestic servants and
sex slaves all over the world, including in the United States and other
developed countries. Because they are more easily manipulated, children are
typically given work in the most unhealthy and dangerous conditions. The Protection Project - Ghana [DOC] The www.protectionproject.org/human_rights_reports/report_documents/ghana.doc [Last accessed 2009] FORMS OF TRAFFICKING - Children from Children engaged in hazardous labour www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/artikel.php?ID=58004 [accessed 6 February 2011] A National Child
Labour Survey by the Ghana Statistical Service indicated that out of the over
six million children in Integrated Regional Information Networks
IRIN, www.irinnews.org/report/41408/ghana-trafficked-children-registered [accessed 9 March 2015] "We met on a
one-to-one basis with 96 of the 136 fishermen who are known to employ underaged labour in Brong Ahafo region,"
Ernest Taylor of IOM Ghana said. "All of them promised to free the
children. We told them that in exchange they would receive training and
modern fishing equipment, so they won't have to employ children in future." "We will continue to register all
cases of trafficked children in the region. We will then start tracing
families with the help of the traditional leaders and the fishermen. Once the
families have been identified, we will contact them and provide enough help
to ensure that the return of the children is sustainable," U.S. Labor Secretary Visits with Victims of
Child Trafficking in Bureau of International Information
Programs, [accessed 18 January 2015] During Secretary
Chao's visit, she met with nearly 50 children who have been victims of
trafficking. In addition to children from Kokrobite,
Secretary Chao also visited with students from five schools in nearby
villages. The children were trafficked hours away from their home to the The Tragedy of Female Slavery in Brian Carnell, EquityFeminism,
February 12, 2001 aconspiracyofhope.blogspot.com/2010/10/slaves-of-god.html [accessed 25 August 2014] [Monday, October 25,
2010] According to the American
Anti-Slavery Group, until the 18th century the offering typically took the
form of livestock or other gifts, but that began to change and priests began
demanding, and receiving, virgin girls as atonement for the sins of their
relatives. Girls, often under the age
of 10, are brought to the priest, ritually stripped of all their possessions,
including clothes, and told they have to do anything the priest tells them.
Most girls are raped repeatedly. Ghana - Juliana Dogbadzi
- Sex Slavery Kerry Kennedy Cuomo, Camera Works: Speak
Truth to Power, The www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/photo/onassignment/truth/st/09.htm [accessed 6 February 2011] Juliana Dogbadzi,
enslaved in a shrine in her native Former Child Slave James Kofi Annon, Bringing Children from Slavery to Salvation Grahame Turner, wellesley.patch.com/articles/former-child-slave-james-kofi-annon-bringing-children-from-slavery-to-salvation [accessed 6 February 2011] "Of the six of
us who were trafficked together, three of us are alive," began Kofi Annon. Work began
at 3 a.m. for the children. The day's work included tending and casting nets,
diving, hauling, and countless other challenging tasks. The day ended at 8 p.m. Kofi Annon
added, "During that typical day, I'd have one meal." "When you
attempt to escape, the consequences of that are brutal," Kofi Annon explained. "Chance of being caught was
high." This is because the
slaves could go days without seeing more than one vehicle, often the same
boat used by traffickers. That isn't to say he never tried. After being
caught on one occasion, his captors tied a noose around his neck and dragged
him through the community, making an example to other would-be flight risks. The Department of Labor’s 2004 Findings on
the Worst Forms of Child Labor www.dol.gov/ilab/media/reports/iclp/tda2004/ghana.htm [accessed 6 February 2011] INCIDENCE
AND NATURE OF CHILD LABOR - There are reports of children being given away,
leased, or sold by their parents to work in various sectors. Children were also reportedly sold into
involuntary servitude for either labor or sexual exploitation. Human Rights
Reports » 2005 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2005/61572.htm [accessed 6 February 2011] TRAFFICKING
IN PERSONS
– From January to May there were 105 cases of child abduction and 131 cases
of child stealing, according to the DOVVISU. On September 4, the
Immigration Service reported its largest interception of traffickers to date
when Kulungugu border officials arrested a woman
for attempting to traffic 17 children, ages 5 to 17, to Trafficking was
both internal and international, with the majority of trafficking in the
country involving children from impoverished rural backgrounds. The most
common forms of internal trafficking involved boys from the Northern Region
going to work in the fishing communities along the Children between
the ages of 7 and 17 also were trafficked to and from the neighboring
countries of Much of the
recruitment of children was done with the consent of the parents, who
sometimes were given an advance payment or promised regular stipends from the
recruiter and were told the children would receive food, shelter, and often
some sort of training or education. Some parents sent their children to work
for extended family members in urban areas. Treatment of children sent to
work in relatives' homes varied. Many children were given to professional
recruiters, usually women, who placed the children with employers in cities.
A child in these circumstances usually was paid between $2.20 and $3.30 (20
thousand to 30 thousand cedis) per month. In many
cases, the children never received the education or vocational training the
recruiters promised. Girls could be forced into prostitution and were
sometimes sexually abused by their employers. Women also were
trafficked to Western Europe, mostly to Concluding Observations of the Committee on
the Rights of the Child (CRC) UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, 6
June 1997 www1.umn.edu/humanrts/crc/ghana1997.html [accessed 6 February 2011] [18] The Committee
further notes with concern the inadequacy of existing laws in protecting
children who are "adopted" - a situation which has led to abuses
such as exploitation through domestic labor, particularly of girls. 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 - |
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Torture in [Ghana] [other countries]Human Trafficking in [Ghana Street Children in [Ghana] [other countries]Child Prostitution in [Ghana] [other countries]