Human Trafficking in [Hong Kong ] [other countries]Street Children in [Hong Kong] [other countries]Child Prostitution in [Hong Kong] [other countries] |
Human Trafficking & Modern-day Slavery Hong Kong [ Country-by-Country
Reports ] Hong Kong [map] is a special
administrative region (SAR) of China adjacent to Guangdong Province in SE
China, on the estuary of the Pearl River, 40 mi E of Macao and 90 mi SE of
Guangzhou (Canton). The region
comprises Hong Kong island, the Formerly a British crown colony, China has
promised that, under its "one country, two systems" formula, China's
socialist economic system will not be imposed on Hong Kong and that Hong Kong
will enjoy a high degree of autonomy in all matters except foreign and
defense affairs. Following two
recessions in a six-year period, a boom in tourism from the mainland, a
return of consumer confidence, and a solid rise in exports has resulted in
the resumption of strong growth in late 2003 and in 2004 The Hong Kong Special Administrative
Region (HKSAR) of the People’s Republic of China is
a destination and transit territory for men and women trafficked for the
purposes of commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor. Hong Kong is
primarily a transit point for illegal migrants, some of whom are subject to
conditions of debt bondage, sexual exploitation, and forced labor. To a
lesser extent, Hong Kong is a destination for women from the Chinese mainland
and Southeast Asia who travel to Hong Kong voluntarily for legal employment
in restaurants, bars, and hotels, but upon arrival are coerced into
prostitution under conditions of debt bondage. Some of the women in Hong
Kong’s commercial sex trade are believed to be trafficking victims. Although
Hong Kong continues efforts to regulate the thousands of foreign domestic
workers from the Philippines and Indonesia currently working in Hong Kong,
there appears to be a growing number of Indonesian workers who are subject to
exploitation and conditions of involuntary servitude. Many Indonesian
domestic workers earning the minimum wage are required to repay to their
Indonesian recruitment agency $2,700 within their first seven months of
employment, amounting to roughly 90 percent of a worker’s monthly salary.
Such high levels of indebtedness assumed as part of the terms of employment
can lead to situations of debt bondage, when unlawfully exploited by
recruiters or employers. Additionally, the confiscation of passports by some
Hong Kong employment agencies restricts the ability of migrant workers to
leave their employer in cases of abuse, and places them under further control
of their employment agency, leaving them vulnerable to trafficking. - 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 *** Action
for REACH OUT - Hotline 852 2770-1002 NATURE OF SERVICES: OUTREACH -As a client driven organization
we are constantly creating, adding and/or modifying our services, based upon
what our clients have expressed as helpful and/or necessary. Presently, we
are helping women with the following: q
information on HIV/AIDS q
limited legal advice q
accompanying women through the police and legal system q
giving information on support groups in women's home countries We have a Hotline that is open two
nights a week for three hours a night, staffed by trained volunteers. The
Hotline is open to all women working in the commercial sex industry (CSI) who
need advice, counselling or just an open,
non-judgmental person to talk to. Additionally a pager is held by a trained
volunteer 24 hours a day to handle any emergencies. We organize face-to-face outreaches with
the women in Mong Kok, Shamshuipo, Tsim Sha Tsui and other districts. ***
ARCHIVES *** Bur of Democracy,
Human Rights & Labor - Country
Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2005 Nearly all foreign prostitutes
came to Traffickers have used forged or illegally obtained travel
documents to attempt to smuggle persons through the During the year there were no known reports of persons
being trafficked into the SAR to work as domestic workers 2
Filipinas convicted of trafficking in HK FACTS ARE CLEAR - “The facts are very clear. You
arranged for the five women to be brought to Hong Kong from the Philippines
for the purpose of prostitution,” she said. The women—aged 24 to 39—were made
to work as prostitutes because they owed the traffickers P60,000 for their air fare and accommodations. The victims sought the help of the
Philippine consulate and the police because, contrary to the traffickers’
promises, they were not adequately fed and were housed in cramped apartments. Judges
asked to clamp down on trafficking "Malawian women are sold by
Nigerian syndicates... to Germany, Italy and Belgium, and this all happens
via South Africa." She said South
Africans themselves were being trafficked to Hong Kong and Macau.
Chinese traffickers were using Johannesburg as a transit point for
Swaziland, Lesotho and Mozambique, Majokweni said.
Russian and Bulgarian women were exploited in private clubs and venues in
Johannesburg. Freedom
House Country Report - Political Rights: 5 Civil Liberties: 2 Status: Partly Free Action
for REACH OUT - Hotline 852 2770-1002 NATURE OF SERVICES: OUTREACH -As a client driven organization
we are constantly creating, adding and/or modifying our services, based upon
what our clients have expressed as helpful and/or necessary. Presently, we
are helping women with the following: q
information on HIV/AIDS q
limited legal advice q
accompanying women through the police and legal system q
giving information on support groups in women's home countries We have a Hotline that is open two
nights a week for three hours a night, staffed by trained volunteers. The
Hotline is open to all women working in the commercial sex industry (CSI) who
need advice, counselling or just an open,
non-judgmental person to talk to. Additionally a pager is held by a trained
volunteer 24 hours a day to handle any emergencies. We organize face-to-face outreaches with
the women in Mong Kok, Shamshuipo, Tsim Sha Tsui and other districts. Filipinas are sweet-talked into
accepting what are promised to be good-paying jobs in Hong Kong as
“receptionists” and “entertainers.” But right at bat, they are made to
understand that there is going to be some sleight of hand in bringing them to
their destination. Their working visas will be handed to them only after
their plane has left the Philippines to prevent some nosy immigration officer
from asking questions about their purpose of going to Hong Kong. The desperate and the naïve readily agree
to the conditions, not knowing they have just signed up as the latest victims
of human trafficking. There are times when being a
“receptionist” or “entertainer” entails more than just engaging customers in
small talk and sharing drinks with them. Once they render such intimate
services, the women switch labels. They will join the segment of the working
class sociologists refer to as sex workers.
Those who can’t stand the rigors of work and opt to cut their contract
short are asked to reimburse the plane fare and other expenses incurred in
bringing them over. Plus rent. Afraid, confused and with little or no money
at all, the poor Filipinas are left with no choice, but to stay on Gonzalez
Orders Crackdown on Human Traffickers The report further stated that the
girls in Hong Kong are brought to boarding houses where they are given
“orientations” or “lectures” and are also asked to take drugs. Their work
starts at 6 p.m. in the bars and they are required to entice at least seven
(7) customers a night. They are brought inside small dark rooms where
anything can happen. Some girls have abandoned their work, and those who refuse
to cooperate are asked to pay some Php40,000.00 before they are allowed to
go. The Hong Kong Consulate reports that on a daily basis, ten (10) to twenty
(20) Filipinas enter Hong Kong based on this scheme. ACTION PLAN OVERVIEW
- There is no
official Action Plan in Hong Kong to combat trafficking. Hong Kong
welcomes US report on human trafficking "Hong Kong is not a
destination for human trafficking. Nor is it a place of origin for exporting
illegal migrants. We disagree that Hong Kong is a point of transit and
destination for persons trafficked for sexual exploitation and forced labour. But we will continue to be vigilant and work
closely with the relevant authorities to prevent such activities. "We will continue to
cooperate with our law enforcement partners in the region and overseas. The
Government will also continue to allocate sufficient resources to support
this important area of work," he added. Centre
for Comparative and Public Law - Research Projects and Issues >
Trafficking Project q
Occasional
Paper on Trafficking of Women into Hong Kong for the purpose of prostitution
q
Round Table on Trafficking of Women into Hong Kong for
the Purposes of Prostitution q
Migrant Nightclub/Escort Workers in Hong Kong: An
Analysis of Possible Human Rights Violations [PDF] Part IV: DeLay's Unregulated Pacific "Paradise" For Asian sweatshop operators, the
Marianas became the Promised Land incarnate. Since the islands were
officially U.S. territory, garment factories there were able to tag their
products with the coveted "Made in the USA" label. No rules, no
regulators, no inspectors, no health and safety laws. What more could a
sweatshop operator ask for? The opportunity was quickly
recognized by Asian sweatshop operators like Hong Kong's Tan Holdings, run by garment mogul Willie Tan. Deep
in the lush jungles, far from the island's white beaches and luxury hotels,
garment factories quickly set up shop. They staffed their factories with
workers from China and the Philippines with promises of work in the US. But,
workers soon discovered that the work contracts they signed consigned them to
near-indentured servitude deep in the Marianas steamy jungles. Wages were
low, hours were long. The companies docked workers' pay for housing, food,
medical treatments and other charges. The low wages and high deductions made
it nearly impossible for workers to save enough money to return home. Forced
Prostitution of Filipinas in Hong Kong Domestic helpers pay the
equivalent of two-and-a-half months salary for their jobs. Before they leave
the Philippines, a list of debts are incurred for pre-employment expenses.
Normally, it takes one-and-a-half years of working abroad to service personal
debts. After that, earnings are usually spent on the education of their
children and on the latest appliances available on the market. The
Protection Project - Hong Kong [DOC] FORMS OF TRAFFICKING - Women from China’s southwestern
region are trafficked to Hong Kong for commercial sexual exploitation. Women
from Guizhou are lured from rural areas with
promises of high-paying jobs in Hong Kong, where they are instead forced into
prostitution. One 19-year-old victim
from Guizhou province claimed she was forced to
entertain more than 400 customers over a 26-day period and as many as 28 in a
single day. Another woman claimed that she had been forced to service 130
clients in a 1-month period. Both women claimed that they were also forced to
make pornographic films. Thai and Filipino women are
brought into Hong Kong on the pretense of being given jobs as entertainers;
instead, they often find themselves locked in apartments during the day and
forced to work as hostesses in bars at night, providing sex to customers. All material used herein
reproduced under the fair use exception of 17 USC §
107 for noncommercial, nonprofit, and educational use |
Human Trafficking in [Hong Kong ] [other countries]Street Children in [Hong Kong] [other countries]Child Prostitution in [Hong Kong] [other countries]