2007 Trafficking in Persons Report - Center for Women Policy Studies

DJIBOUTI (Tier 2 Watch List)
Djibouti is a source, transit, and destination
country for women and children trafficked for the
purpose of commercial sexual exploitation and
possibly for forced domestic labor. Ethiopian and
Somali girls reportedly are trafficked to Djibouti
for sexual exploitation; economic migrants from
these countries may also at times fall victim to
involuntary servitude after reaching Djibouti City
or the Ethiopia-Djibouti trucking corridor. A small
number of girls from impoverished Djiboutian
families may also engage in prostitution as a means
of income, and they may be victims of trafficking.
Ethiopian women and girls may be trafficked to
Djibouti for domestic servitude. Women and children
from neighboring countries reportedly transit
Djibouti en route to Middle Eastern countries or
Somalia for ultimate use in forced labor or sexual
exploitation.
The Government of Djibouti does not fully comply
with the minimum standards for the elimination of
trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts
to do so. Djibouti is placed on Tier 2 Watch List for
a second consecutive year for its failure to provide
evidence of increasing efforts to combat trafficking
in persons over the last year. To further its anti-trafficking
efforts, the government should pass, enact,
and enforce a comprehensive anti-trafficking statute;
improve documentation of cases of detained
minors; further educate all levels of government
and the general public on the issue of trafficking
in persons; and, in partnership with local NGOs,
establish a mechanism for providing protective
services to trafficking victims.
Prosecution
During the year, the government slightly improved
its law enforcement efforts against the commercial
sexual exploitation of children, although no traffickers
were punished. Djiboutian authorities conducted
increased patrols for children at risk of involvement
in prostitution and closed down establishments
facilitating prostitution. Djibouti does not have a
comprehensive anti-trafficking law, though its laws
explicitly criminalizing pimping, employing minors,
forced labor, and debauching of a minor could be
used to prosecute traffickers. During the reporting
period, the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Justice
and the National Assembly formed a working group
to begin drafting a national anti-trafficking law. In
2006, Djibouti’s Brigade des Meurs (Vice Police)
conducted nightly sweeps of the capital city after
dark and preventatively detained 192 Ethiopian
and Somali minors who they identified as at risk of
prostitution; most were held briefly and released or
deported. There were no prosecutions of traffickers
during the year; however, observing a flagrant case
of child prostitution, the police arrested and charged
the foreign client, who then fled the jurisdiction
after he was released pending trial. Djiboutian police
monitored bars in Djibouti City, enforcing alcohol
permits and detaining suspected pimps and females
in prostitution; specific information regarding
the punishment of pimps was unavailable. Police
reportedly closed down bars where child prostitution
was occurring; detailed information was not
provided about such closures. The government did
not provide any specialized training for government
officials in trafficking recognition or in the provision
of assistance to trafficking victims.
Protection
With few resources itself and a very small pool of
local NGOs, the government has few options for
meeting the needs of children used in prostitution.
In 2006, the government established two shelters for
at-risk Djiboutian and foreign women and children
that distributed food and clothing and provided
health care; educational opportunities are also
provided. During the reporting period, three boys
victimized by sexual exploitation were rescued from
a foreign pedophile and provided with psychological
counseling. After preventative detention of
street children believed to be at risk of prostitution,
police reportedly transferred some of them to the
care of NGOs. Other non-Djiboutian children were
deported to their country of origin, while Djiboutian
children were returned to the care of extended family
members. The government does not offer legal alternatives
to the removal of foreign trafficking victims
to countries where they face hardship or retribution.
Moreover, the government occasionally punishes
victims of trafficking for offenses committed as a
result of their being trafficked.
Prevention
There is growing understanding of human trafficking
within the Djiboutian political hierarchy. In
March 2007, the Ministry of Information began its
first anti-trafficking public awareness campaign by
prominently publishing in the nation’s most important
newspaper an article calling for awareness of
and action against trafficking, specifically involving
children prostitution. In addition, the President and
First Lady hosted a large event to educate the public
on violence against women, including explicitly
stopping the trafficking of women and children.
Police verbally warned bar and night club owners
that permitting child prostitution on their premises
would be punished.
D J I B O U T I
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