Human trafficking in Jamaica - watch the red light

Orville Taylor, Contributor

Slavery exists in Jamaica, and it is not of the mental type only. If that were so, the problem would be a humongous one, because hundreds of thousands of party faithful, wrapped incessantly in green and orange cloth, can't liberate themselves enough to realise that our leaders have kept them like sheep.

However, that is not the issue this time. I am actually talking about persons being held against their will, across national or parish boundaries. Last week, I hosted a forum at the UWI, and despite the existing knowledge and research that I have had at my disposal, the disgusting picture of human trafficking hit me in the face like the incriminating odour of stale jackfruit on one's fingers.

The transportation of living human flesh for the purposes of exploitation and sexploitation is big business. Globally, the illicit flow of goods, armaments, humans and natural resources is estimated to be worth some US$650 billion.

Illegal drugs account for more than half that figure, but as a source of blood money, at US$32 billion, people trafficking tops the illegal trade in wildlife, ivory and blood diamonds. Only the international arms dealers and drug smuggling earn more from criminal enterprises.

An estimated 20 to 30 million persons have been trafficked for exploitation worldwide. Of that number, only 46,570, a mere fraction of one per cent, were identified in 2012. The International Labour Organisation, my favourite UN body, estimates that around 68 per cent are kept under conditions of forced labour, while another 22 per cent are forced into various forms of sexual exploitation, and incredibly, 10 per cent of them are in situations of coerced labour, where the government is complicit or actually imposes it.

Women and girls comprise more than half of all those in forced labour and around 98 per cent of individuals transported for sex trafficking. More than a quarter of sexually exploited females are children under the age of 18. Last year, some 4,746 convictions for human trafficking were recorded globally, with the majority of those being for sexual offences.

THE BIGGER PICTURE

It might seem like a simple matter, but there is a problem with human trafficking in this country, the land of wood, water and now contraband people.

But let's start with the positive. Recently, Jamaica was upgraded by the US Department of State to Tier 2. This means that although the Government does not fully comply with the minimum standards, we are making significant efforts to achieve compliance with its standards.

Much work has been done by the police, with its specialised Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Intellectual Property Vice Unit. Last year, more than 200 raids led to the rescue of more than 24 children, including 21 Honduran boys. With more than 40 persons being rescued in recent times, victims range in nationality from Haitian, to Burmese, to Indians, among others.

Still, Jamaicans are also involved as both victims and perpetrators. True, Government had, in early 2007, enacted its Trafficking in Persons (Prevention, Suppression and Punishment) Act. It was amended in 2009 and has seen support in other legislation passed, including the Cybercrime Act 2010, and the Child Pornography (Prevention) Act, 2010.

Nonetheless, Sybil Ricketts and Leith Dunn, conducting a study in 2007, observed, "... Human trafficking is a serious issue and should not be taken lightly. It is not limited to females only, even though females constitute the greater number of victims."

Interestingly, many of the females did not consider themselves victims or exploited, and many of them were sometimes physically, emotionally and mentally abused. Most disturbing was that "girls as young as 13 years are full-fledged prostitutes. Some of them are living on their own, while others are taken to holding areas in the community and are used as dancers in the more popular nightclubs."

The numbers are unimportant, because even a single case is one too many. Shockingly, the persons who are the traffickers and exploiters have been reported by the police as being unanimously female. This suggests something about the victim cycle, as previous victims become victimisers.

Notwithstanding the research and the legislative steps being taken by the Jamaican Government, the United States Department of State placed the red mark against the country in 2012, declaring that "Jamaica is a source, transit, and destination country for adults and children subjected to sex trafficking and forced labour. The exploitation of local children in the sex trade, a form of sex trafficking, remains a problem."

It further argued that the Jamaican press, the freest media in the hemisphere, which digs out its own dirt, "... has reported that pimps are luring Jamaican children under age 18 into prostitution, especially in urban areas in Jamaica." Consequently, it penalised the country with a Tier 2 watch rating because it feels that Jamaica "does not fully comply" with the standards. Thankfully, we are better off in 2013 than we were last year.

While there is a self-acknowledged problem, it is with some irony that the Americans, who recognise that the "... United States is a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children - both US citizens and foreign nationals - subjected to forced labour, debt bondage, involuntary servitude, and sex trafficking", could make such a judgement.

Furthermore, the (American) National Center for Missing and Exploited Children reveals that "at least 100,000 children across the country are trafficked each year".

Doubtless, Jamaica is doing things to reduce the spread of this scourge and blight on the nation. Our Ministry of Labour has a unit that deals with the subject, and along with the justice ministry, it is spreading the information. However, there are some puzzling questions. For example, how does a person enter into Jamaica via immigration and get to work in store as a clerk or a wholesale worker when those skills are not in short supply or high demand? There are some loopholes in the system that must be plugged.

Evidence suggests that the Internet has become a feeding ground for the predators, who are so skilful they could probably balance the budget while giving interviews to the public on matters of national interest daily. A simple rule exists: if it sounds too good to be true, it likely is.

There are some basic guidelines I would like to share with the public. If you see an offer with a private recruiting agency, please check with the Ministry of Labour to see if it is registered. Also, research to see whether or not anyone you know has returned with good stories. Furthermore, if you notice strange persons in your neighbourhood who seem glued on to the house interior to the extent that their complexion turns aquamarine, call the cops. Pay also particular attention to those households with non-Jamaicans where persons are packed into small numbers of bedrooms like canned mackerel.

I am aware that this is a slight departure from the regular commentary, and the Jamaican numbers are small compared to other countries.. But imagine if the one or two persons being exploited are your missing relatives.

More anon.

Dr Orville Taylor is senior lecturer in sociology at the UWI and a radio talk-show host. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and tayloronblackline@hotmail.com.