2007 Trafficking in Persons Report - Center for Women Policy Studies

C A N A D A
76
CANADA (Tier 1)
Canada is principally a transit and destination
country for women and children trafficked for the
purpose of commercial sexual exploitation. Women
and children are trafficked mostly from Asia and
Eastern Europe for sexual exploitation, but victims
from Latin America, the Caribbean, Africa, and the
Middle East also have been identified in Canada.
Many trafficking victims are from Asian countries
such as South Korea, Thailand, Cambodia, Malaysia,
and Vietnam, but some victims are trafficked from
Romania, Hungary, and Russia. Asian victims are
trafficked more frequently to Vancouver and Western
Canada, while Eastern European and Latin American
victims are more often trafficked to Toronto and
Eastern Canada. A significant number of victims,
particularly South Korean females, transit Canada
before being trafficked into the United States. Some
Canadian girls and women are trafficked internally
for commercial sexual exploitation.
The Government of Canada fully complies with the
minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.
Over the last year, Canada strengthened victim
protections by providing foreign trafficking victims
with temporary residency status and immediate
access to health benefits and services. In the coming
year, the government should intensify efforts to make
effective use of its recently-enacted anti-trafficking
laws to increase investigations and prosecutions of
suspected traffickers. The government also may wish
to direct more anti-trafficking training to local law
enforcement personnel, who are more likely to come
in contact with trafficking victims.
Prosecution
The Government of Canada sustained law-enforcement
efforts against human traffickers during the
reporting year. Canada prohibits all forms of human
trafficking through Law C-49, which was enacted in
late 2005, and which prescribes a maximum penalty
of 14 years’ imprisonment, a penalty that is sufficiently
stringent and commensurate with those for
other grave crimes. Transnational human trafficking
is specifically prohibited by Section 118 of Canada’s
Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA),
which carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment
and a $1 million fine. Law C-49 also prohibits
a defendant from receiving a financial or material
benefit from trafficking; this offense is punishable by
up to 10 years in prison. Withholding or destroying a
victim’s identification or travel documents to facilitate
human trafficking is punishable by up to five years
in prison. Canada also prohibits child sex tourism
through a law with extraterritorial application. During
the reporting period, the government opened 10
trafficking investigations under the IRPA and Law
C-49, reflecting a decrease overall from 2005. The
government in 2006 secured five trafficking-related
convictions, resulting in sentences of up to eight years
in prison. Nine trafficking prosecutions are ongoing.
Most trafficking cases are prosecuted on the provincial
level.
In November 2006, the Royal Canadian Mounted
Police (RCMP) organized anti-trafficking training
in Eastern Canada for law enforcement, victim
service providers, and NGOs. The RCMP also has
developed anti-trafficking videos, pamphlets, and
posters, which are distributed widely. Canada works
closely with foreign governments, particularly the
United States and Mexico, on international trafficking
cases. There have been no reports of official
complicity with human trafficking.
Protection
The government expanded protections for trafficking
victims during the reporting period. In May 2006,
Canada authorized issuance of renewable temporary
residency permits for foreign trafficking victims,
in addition to guaranteed access to essential and
emergency medical care, dental care, and trauma
counseling. Trafficking victims are not required
to testify against their traffickers to maintain their
temporary immigration status. Victims’ rights are
generally respected, and victims are not penalized for
crimes committed as a direct result of being trafficked.
The government encourages victims to assist
in the investigation or prosecution of their traffickers.
Canadian law provides for formal victim assistance
in court and other services, and victims may submit
a victim impact statement for the court to consider
when sentencing an offender. Canada has a witness
protection program, although no trafficking victims
have utilized this service yet. Canadian officials,
especially border agents, pro-actively screen for trafficking
victims among vulnerable populations, such
as persons detained for immigration violations.
In general, victim support services are administered
on the provincial or territorial level. While each
province or territory provides services for crime
victims, including trafficking victims, they do not
all follow the same model, sometimes leading to
uneven services across the country. However, most
jurisdictions provide access to shelter services,
short-term counseling, court assistance, and specialized
services, such as child victim witness assistance
and rape counseling. Canada funds NGOs through
a Victim’s Fund, which makes monies available