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Violence Against Women: 10 Reports / Year 2003victims in the large population flows. Additionally, women and childrenare perceived as objects owned by the male members of the family, inwide ranges of society. In order to escape poverty, young and uneducatedCameroonians especially seek to go abroad and are easy prey for traffickers.62 5.2.1 Cameroonian and International Laws Dealing withTraffickingAccording to Article 293 (1) of the Penal Code “(a) Any person whoreduces a person to or maintains a person in slavery, or (b) engages, evenoccasionally, in trafficking in human beings, shall be punished withimprisonment of ten to twenty years.”Moreover, procuring is criminalized under article 294 which provides that“(1) Any person who causes, aids, or facilitates the prostitution of anotherindividual or who shares, even occasionally, in the proceeds of the prostitutionof another individual or receives subsidies from a person engagingin prostitution shall be punished with imprisonment of six months to fiveyears and fine of 20.000 (US$ 34.24) to 1.000.000 francs (US$ 1712.21).(2) Any person who lives with an individual engaging in prostitution andwho cannot provide proof of sufficient resources to enable him to providefor his own needs shall be presumed to be receiving subsidies.”Also prostitution is a punishable offence. Article 343 states, “(1) Any personof either sex who habitually engages, for compensation, in sexual actswith others, shall be punished with imprisonment for six months to fiveyears and a fine of 20.000 (US$ 34.24) to 500.000 (US$ 856.11) francs(2) Any person who publicly recruits individuals of either sex throughgestures, words, writings or any other means, for purposes of prostitutionor debauchery shall be punished with the same penalties.”Additionally, Article 292 criminalizes forced labour. It states that “anyperson, who in order to satisfy his personal interests, imposes on anotherperson any work or service obligation for which that person has not freelyapplied shall be punished with imprisonment of five to ten years and/or afine of 10.000 (US$ 17.12) to 500.000 (US$ 856.11) francs.”Cameroon has ratified the ILO Convention on the Abolition of ForcedLabour and the UN Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of136