US Removes India from Human Trafficking Watch List

[SpArK]

US Removes India from Human Trafficking Watch List​

After a gap of six years, the United States has taken India off the human trafficking 'Watch List' for making significant efforts in combating the menace.

In its annual Trafficking in Persons report, the State Department has upgraded India to Tier 2 countries after keeping it on a 'Watch List' for six years.

The Watch List is for those countries where the number of victims of severe forms of trafficking is very significant or is significantly increasing and there is a failure to provide evidence of increasing efforts to combat it.

Tier 2 is for those countries whose governments do not fully comply with the minimum standards of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act's (TVPA) but are making significant efforts in this regard.

"The Government of India does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to do so," the State Department said in its report justifying its decision to upgrade India's position.

The report analyzed conditions in 184 countries and ranked them in terms of their effectiveness in fighting the human trafficking.

It has identified 23 nations as failing to meet minimum international standards to curb the scourge, which claims mainly women and children as victims. That's up from 13 in 2010. Another 41 countries were placed on the "watch list" that could lead to sanctions unless their records improve.

"All countries can and must do more," Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said while releasing the report. "More human beings are being exploited today than ever before."

"The Ministry of Home Affairs' launched the government's 'Comprehensive Scheme for Strengthening Law Enforcement Response in India', which seeks to improve India's overall law enforcement response to all forms of trafficking, including bonded labor, and established at least 87 new Anti Human Trafficking Units (AHTUs)," the State Department said.

"The government also ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol. The government took important law enforcement steps by convicting several bonded labor offenders with sentences between five and 14 years and improved rescue and rehabilitation efforts for bonded laborers.

"Overall law enforcement efforts against bonded labor, however, remained inadequate, and the complicity of public officials in human trafficking remained a serious problem, which impeded progress," it said.

As such it recommended the central and state government law enforcement capacity to fight against all forms of human trafficking; work towards ensuring that national legislation prohibits and punishes all forms of human trafficking; and increase intrastate and interstate investigations, prosecutions, and convictions on all forms of trafficking, including bonded labor, the report said.



FILED ON: JUN 28, 2011

news.outlookindia.com | US Removes India from Human Trafficking Watch List

 

[AZADPAKISTAN2009]

watch list ? is that like the terror watch list or only special countries make it to the list ... oh the sadness of being left out of american lists

 

[DV RULES]

This is not UN Human Trafficking Watch List. US has no rights adding or removing countries or making any world observation lists.

 

[AZADPAKISTAN2009]

What about the human trafficing going on in USA , like ppl coming and being part of gangs which list are they putting themselves on

 

[Avatar]

What about the human trafficing going on in USA , like ppl coming and being part of gangs which list are they putting themselves on

Definitely not the same list.

---------- Post added at 01:51 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:50 PM ----------

This is not UN Human Trafficking Watch List. US has no rights adding or removing countries or making any world observation lists.

Who needs rights to make an observation ?

 

[President Camacho]

It's a funny list.

Greater amount of human trafficking goes on in Europe and the Americas, but the map shows them green or yellow (Tier 1).

India is the newest buddy of the US, so gotta get its name out of the bad lists, one by one

 

[SpArK]

WASHINGTON — The United States on Monday put Estonia and Belarus on a human trafficking watchlist, alleging they failed in the last year to step up efforts to fight prostitution and forced labor.
In its 2011 annual Global Trafficking in Persons Report, the State Department also maintained Russia on the list for the eighth consecutive year for the same alleged failures.

The report said women and children are sold into the sex trade in Russia, Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic, Lithuania, Spain, Greece, Belgium, Turkey, Israel, Lebanon, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates.
There were also continuing reports of women from poor families forced into prostitution in the capital Minsk.
"Belarussian men, women, and children are found in forced begging, as well as in forced labor in the construction industry and other sectors in Russia and Belarus," it said.
The State Department also reprimanded Russia once again.

"Russian women were reported to be victims of sex trafficking in many countries, including in Northeast Asia, Europe, and throughout the Middle East," it said.
It said that because it had a written plan, Russia was not dropped to the lowest Tier 3 group, countries which are deemed not to be making significant efforts to meet the minimum standards of fighting trafficking.
"Russia is devoting sufficient resources to implement that plan," it said.

AFP: Estonia, Belarus put on human trafficking watchlist