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

Human Trafficking & Modern-day Slavery

Republic of Kiribati [ Country-by-Country Reports ]

Kiribati [map], consists of 33 scattered coral atolls with few natural resources. Located in the Pacific Ocean near the equator, it includes 8 of the 11 Line Islands, including Kiritimati (formerly Christmas Island), as well as the Gilbert and Phoenix groups and Banaba (formerly Ocean Island). Its capital is Tarawa. Commercially viable phosphate deposits were exhausted at the time of independence from the UK in 1979, with copra and fish now representing the bulk of production and exports. Economic development is constrained by a shortage of skilled workers, weak infrastructure, and remoteness from international markets.

Scope and Magnitude. International organizations and NGOs expressed concerns that internal trafficking of underage girls for the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation among crews of foreign and local fishing vessels takes place in Kiribati. Hotels, bars, boat owners, and occasionally family members, who provide or arrange transportation out to the fishing vessels profit by facilitating child prostitution. Foreign fishing vessels from Taiwan and Korea were highlighted as frequently taking young girls on board for sexual exploitation. - U.S. State Dept Trafficking in Persons Report, June, 2007 [full country report]

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

U.S. Dept of Labor Bureau of International Labor Affairs [PDF]

CHILD LABOR LAWS AND ENFORCEMENT - Part IX, Section 84 of the Employment Ordinance, Employment of Children and Other Young Persons, sets the minimum age for employment at 14 years, and children under 16 years are prohibited from industrial employment or jobs aboard ships. Although there is no law specifically prohibiting the worst forms of child labor in Kiribati, there are statutes under which the worst forms can be prosecuted. The Constitution prohibits forced labor.

Bur of Democracy, Human Rights & Labor - Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2006

TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS – The law does not prohibit trafficking in persons, but there were no reports that persons were trafficked to, from, or within the country.

The Protection Project - Kiribati [DOC]

TRAFFICKING ROUTES – Despite a lack of specific evidence on trafficking, Kiribati is believed to be a transit country for trafficking in persons from China en route to the Marshall Islands, Australia, Canada, and the United States.

Freedom House Country Report - Political Rights: 1 Civil Liberties: 1 Status: Free

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

All material used herein reproduced under the fair use exception of 17 USC § 107 for noncommercial, nonprofit, and educational use

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