2007 Trafficking in Persons Report - Center for Women Policy Studies

provide data for its overall conviction record; at least
six traffickers were convicted and sentenced to life
imprisonment in December 2006 in Anhui Province.
Involuntary servitude of Chinese nationals within
China and abroad persisted, though the extent
of the problem is undocumented. The government
did not report any investigations, arrests, or
prosecutions for this offense. According to reports
in China’s official media, in at least four cases,
China imposed prison sentences and fines against
employers who restricted the freedom of migrant
workers. Over the reporting period, the Ministry of
Labor increased its force of full- and part-time labor
inspectors to strengthen efforts to address coercive
work practices. Although the Chinese Government
has cracked down on general corruption, it did
not demonstrate concerted efforts to investigate
and punish government officials specifically for
complicity in trafficking.
Protection
China made modest progress during the reporting
period to protect victims of trafficking, focusing
particular attention to its vulnerable southern
border provinces. The Ministry of Public Security
(MPS) reported opening two Border Liaison Offices
(BLO) along the border with Burma and Vietnam
in the fall of 2006. The BLOs provide short-term
shelter and can provide medical care. With assistance
from the All-China Women’s Federation
(ACWF), a government-funded and directed nationwide
social organization, victims are then assisted
with repatriation. MPS officers in these BLOs have
reportedly received training to help them better
identify trafficking victims. Additionally, the ACWF
reports to have opened shelters in Guangxi, Jiangsu,
Yunnan, and Sichuan Provinces. Provincial authorities
in Guangxi also established a Border Trafficking
Aid Center in February 2006 that provides shelter,
medical care, and short-term rehabilitation for up
to 30 victims. The Women’s Federation and NGOs
have set up national and regional hotlines that can
help women obtain legal advice and assistance.
Protection services remain temporary and inadequate
to address victims’ needs; for example, in
Yunnan Province, victims of commercial sexual
exploitation are not offered psychological assistance
and are generally sent home after a few days. The
government relies on organizations such as Save
the Children to safely repatriate victims. China has
taken steps to improve intra-governmental coordination
and cooperation with organizations outside
of government in the most vulnerable provinces.
China has taken some steps to better identify and
protect some foreign and domestic trafficking
victims, particularly through enhanced cross-border
cooperation. Nevertheless, some trafficking victims,
including some mainland Chinese victims repatriated
from Taiwan and trafficking victims from North
Korea, have faced punishments; or, in the case of
North Koreans whom China considers economic
migrants, systematic deportation. The government
does not provide foreign victims with legal alternatives
to removal to countries in which they may face
hardship or retribution. Women found in prostitution
are, in many instances, automatically treated
as criminals without adequate efforts to identify
whether any are victims of trafficking. The MPS
states that Chinese trafficking victims returning from
abroad were not punished or fined, but the ACWF
reports that protection from punishment is only on
an ad hoc basis with intervention from ACWF staff.
Prevention
China increased efforts to prevent trafficking in
persons this year. The government cooperated with
neighboring countries to dismantle several crossborder
trafficking networks trafficking women and
children. Yunnan Province authorities held a media
outreach seminar to raise awareness among journalists
of anti-trafficking strategies, victim protection,
and relevant legislation. Other public awareness
programs included: a campaign by the Sichuan
authorities targeting major labor markets with
informational posters, public service announcements
on large television screens in the markets;
and the distribution of pamphlets explaining legal
protections, resource information, and hotline
numbers for migrant workers who are at risk of
being trafficked. Though it took some steps forward,
China still has not adopted its draft national action
plan to combat trafficking in persons. China has
not ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.
COLOMBIA (Tier 1)
Colombia is one of the Western Hemisphere’s
major source countries for women and girls trafficked
abroad for the purpose of commercial sexual
exploitation. Colombian women and girls are
trafficked throughout Latin America, the Caribbean,
Western Europe, East Asia, the Middle East, and the
United States. Within the country, some Colombian
men are trafficked for forced labor, but trafficking
of women and children from rural to urban areas
for sexual exploitation remains a larger problem.
Internal armed violence in Colombia has displaced
many communities, making them vulnerable to
trafficking, and insurgent and paramilitary groups
have forcibly recruited and exploited thousands of
children as soldiers. Organized criminal networks
— some connected to terrorist organizations — and
local gangs also force displaced men, women, and
children into conditions of commercial sexual
exploitation and compulsory labor.
C O L O M B I A
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