Human Trafficking in [Suriname Street Children in [Suriname] [other countries]Child Prostitution in [Suriname] [other countries] |
Human Trafficking & Modern-day Slavery In the first
ten years of the 21st Century
- 2000 to 2009
Suriname is a destination and transit country for men,
women, and children from the Dominican Republic, Brazil, Guyana, Colombia,
Haiti, Indonesia, Vietnam, and China trafficked for the purposes of commercial
sexual exploitation and forced labor. Suriname is also a source country for
women and children trafficked within the country for sexual exploitation and
forced labor, as well as women trafficked transnationally
for forced labor. Foreign trafficking victims are exploited in illegal urban
brothels and the western district of Nickerie.
Guyanese women and girls are forced into street prostitution and are
trafficked into the sex trade near both legal and illegal gold mining camps
in the Amazon jungle. At least one criminal network traffics Brazilian women
among gold mining sites in both Suriname and French Guiana. Women from urban
areas are recruited for domestic work at these mining camps and subsequently
coerced into sexual servitude. Some Chinese men are subjected to forced labor
in the construction industry, while some Chinese women are forced into
prostitution in massage parlors and brothels. Chinese men and women are
forced to labor in grocery stores. Some Haitian migrants transiting Suriname
are forced to work in agriculture. - U.S. State Dept Trafficking in
Persons Report, June, 2009 [full country report] |
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CAUTION: The following links have been culled
from the web to illuminate the situation in ***
FEATURED ARTICLE *** BACKGROUND - Sex sells in Suriname. An
impoverished population and anti-prostitution laws that go unenforced make this former Dutch colony a popular
destination for sex industry traffickers. A 1997 UN report noted that
Suriname is one of the few countries that also issues temporary work permits
for migrant prostitutes allegedly en route to other countries. With 70 percent of the population
living below the poverty line, parents struggling to survive have been known
to sell their children in Suriname's various gold mining towns, according to
anti-slavery organizations. In all cases, the set-up story is
similar: Promised a decent job as a waitress or other position, women
unwittingly sign up with a trafficker for assistance in coming to Paramaribo
or Suriname's mining towns, only to find themselves caught in a trafficking
ring upon arrival. Suriname
police detain alleged human trafficker Preliminary investigations have
revealed, said prosecutor Garcia Paragsingh,
that the four Vietnamese nationals working on the boat, were forced to hard labour on the vessel without payment, proper medical care
and food. For over a two year period, two of ill-treated crew members did not
receive payment for their work, while the remaining two fishermen told police
that for over one year they did not receive salaries and were not
allowed to leave the boat. The captain, a Korean national,
allegedly refused to allow them to see a doctor when they became sick,
while they were forced to work long hours under very poor conditions even
when they were physically unable to do so. According to police sources, the
worker who committed suicide apparently got sick and asked to be taken to
shore to seek medical treatment. After his requests were rejected by the
captain, the man hung himself. ***
ARCHIVES *** U.S.
Dept of Labor Bureau of International Labor Affairs INCIDENCE
AND NATURE OF CHILD LABOR - Commercial sexual exploitation of girls and boys is allegedly
increasing in Bur of Democracy, Human
Rights & Labor - Country
Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2005 TRAFFICKING
IN PERSONS – The
extent of trafficking of women and girls to, through, and within the country
for prostitution was difficult to estimate. Several commercial sex trade
establishments reportedly recruited Brazilian, Colombian, Dominican,
Guyanese, and Chinese women for prostitution. Victims in commercial sex trade
transited the country and were routed to the The police had informal agreements
with many brothel owners allowing them to proceed with their business.
However, police conducted random checks to ensure that women were not
mistreated, that no minors were present, and that owners did not keep the
women's airline tickets and passports. During the year there were fewer than
10 reports of brothel owners retaining passports and airline tickets to
uphold contract obligations. In such cases the police assisted these women to
return to their country of origin at their own expense. Concluding
Observations of the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) - 2000 [37] While the Committee notes
that the State party has instituted a foster care program, it is concerned at
the insufficient monitoring and follow-up of placements in the program and
the widespread use of the program as a "first step" in the
inter-country adoption process rather than as a domestic fostering program.
Concern is also expressed at the unregulated nature of the practice of the
"kweekjes system" which allows parents
facing economic difficulties to give up their children to another family or
person who may be in a better financial situation to care for the child. [57] The Committee expresses its
concern about the increasing number of child victims of commercial sexual
exploitation, including prostitution and pornography, involving both boys and
girls. Concern is also expressed at the insufficient programs for the
physical and psychological recovery and social reintegration of child victims
of such abuse and exploitation Suriname
police detain alleged human trafficker Preliminary investigations have
revealed, said prosecutor Garcia Paragsingh,
that the four Vietnamese nationals working on the boat, were forced to hard labour on the vessel without payment, proper medical care
and food. For over a two year period, two of ill-treated crew members did not
receive payment for their work, while the remaining two fishermen told police
that for over one year they did not receive salaries and were not
allowed to leave the boat. The captain, a Korean national,
allegedly refused to allow them to see a doctor when they became sick,
while they were forced to work long hours under very poor conditions even
when they were physically unable to do so. According to police sources, the
worker who committed suicide apparently got sick and asked to be taken to
shore to seek medical treatment. After his requests were rejected by the
captain, the man hung himself. Suriname
police dismantle human trafficking ring It is alleged that numerous
Chinese immigrants who entered the country either legally or illegally are
victims of human smugglers and traffickers. Chinese nationals transiting
Suriname risk debt bondage to migrant smugglers; men are exploited in forced
labor and women in commercial sexual exploitation. Human
trafficking in Barbados and six other Caribbean countries Human trafficking is a reality in The
Protection Project - Suriname [DOC] FACTORS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO THE
TRAFFICKING INFRASTRUCTURE - Seventy percent of Suriname’s population lives below the poverty
line. An increase in child prostitution
in Suriname has been reported; both boys and girls are involved. Many
Surinamese believe that the chance of contracting HIV/AIDS from a child is
much lower than the chance of contracting it from an adult, a belief that
fuels underage prostitution. Suriname
is an ideal transit country for trafficking because it is one of the few
countries that issue temporary work permits for migrants in prostitution
allegedly en route to other countries.
FORMS OF TRAFFICKING - Child prostitution has reportedly
increased in Suriname. Poor parents increasingly bring their children into
mining towns to work in the sex trade.
Child labor is also considered a growing problem in Suriname. Women are reportedly recruited from Brazil
as temporary wives to provide sex to miners in Guyana and Suriname. Women are also promised waitress or other
jobs in Paramaribo or Suriname’s mining towns, only to find themselves caught
in trafficking rings. Traffickers can receive US$500 from club owners for a
Brazilian woman. Many of the women come from Brazil’s poor northern regions.
Women and girls who are sold to club owners must pay off large debts. The
club owners confiscate the victims’ passports until the debts are paid off. Freedom
House Country Report - Political Rights: 2 Civil Liberties: 2 Status: Free BACKGROUND - Sex sells in Suriname. An
impoverished population and anti-prostitution laws that go unenforced make this former Dutch colony a popular
destination for sex industry traffickers. A 1997 UN report noted that
Suriname is one of the few countries that also issues temporary work permits
for migrant prostitutes allegedly en route to other countries. With 70 percent of the population
living below the poverty line, parents struggling to survive have been known
to sell their children in Suriname's various gold mining towns, according to
anti-slavery organizations. In all cases, the set-up story is
similar: Promised a decent job as a waitress or other position, women
unwittingly sign up with a trafficker for assistance in coming to Paramaribo
or Suriname's mining towns, only to find themselves caught in a trafficking
ring upon arrival. Suriname
Country Report [PDF] [page 5] IDENTIFICATION - REASONS FOR
INVOLVING CHILDREN IN CSW - The Sex Workers were able to describe many reasons for involving their
children in Commercial Sex Work (CSW). Several accounts below are taken
directly from the questionnaires: 1. Most cited money (or lack
thereof) as reason for involving children in sex work. Because clients were
found to pay more for sex with children, the temptation to involve them in
sex work is very strong 2. Some women allowed a neighbor to
have sex with their child to cover the utilities/rent. Often the mothers
found themselves with no food, no electricity, or no water. Regional Governmental
Congress on Sexual Exploitation of Children 3. “Business is slow”: (clients no
longer want to be with aging mother) and clients offered a lot more money for
a child. One mother sold her 8 year old daughter because clients were no
longer Interested in her (quite a few expressed anger and hurt that clients
no longer found them desirable). 4. In many cases, the Commercial
Sex Work (CSW) stated that it was the partner’s idea to increase income. The
Commercial Sex Work (CSW) generally denied involvement in any part of the
decision making. 5. The pimp/concubine/father sold
children (to friends or at gold mine) without the permission or knowledge of
the Commercial Sex Workers (CSW). In Place
of Slavery: A Social History of British Indian and Javanese Laborers in
Suriname OVERVIEW - Rosemarijn
Hoefte explores the rise of indentured servitude on
the sugar plantations of Suriname after the end of slavery in that Dutch
Caribbean colony in South America. In this first study ever of bonded labor
in Suriname, she discusses and compares the social, cultural, and economic
consequences of migration and plantation life and offers insights into the
system of indentured immigration in general. Globalization of sex trade www.socialwatch.org/en/informesTematicos/40.html THE TRADE OF PEOPLE - The case of Club owners pay traffickers 500
dollars for every Brazilian woman they provide. All material used herein
reproduced under the fair use exception of 17 USC § 107 for noncommercial,
nonprofit, and educational use |
Human Trafficking in [Suriname Street Children in [Suriname] [other countries]Child Prostitution in [Suriname] [other countries]