Human trafficking in Djibouti
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commercial sexual exploitation after reaching Djibouti City or the Ethiopia-Djibouti trucking corridor. An unknown number of migrants – men, women, and children – are subjected to conditions of forced labor and forced prostitution after reaching Yemen and other destinations in the Middle East. Djibouti's large refugee population – consisting of Somalis, Ethiopians, and Eritreans – as well as foreign street children remain vulnerable to various forms of exploitation within the country, including human trafficking. Older street children reportedly act, at times, as pimps for younger children. A small number of girls from impoverished Djiboutian families may engage in prostitution with the encouragement of family members or other people in prostitution. Members of foreign militaries stationed in Djibouti contribute to the demand for women and girls in prostitution, including trafficking victims.[1]
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. Senior officials have identified combating human trafficking as an important priority, sought increased partnerships with other governments and international organizations over the past year, and demonstrated a growing awareness of the distinction between human trafficking and smuggling. The government, however, remains unable to effectively implement all of the protection, prevention, and prosecution components of its anti-trafficking law given its lack of resources. Addressing migrant smuggling and daunting refugee flows remained a main concern, diverting government attention and limited law enforcement resources that might otherwise have been devoted to detecting and responding to forms of trafficking occurring within the country's borders. It is believed, however, that the government's efforts to reduce migrant smuggling to Yemen will ultimately serve to reduce the overall number of such migrants who are vulnerable to situations of human trafficking in the Middle East.[1]
The
U.S. State Department's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in people placed the country in "Tier 3" in 2023.[2]
Prosecution
The government made significant efforts to bring migrant smugglers to justice during the reporting period, but failed to take law enforcement action against forced labor or
prosecution. The Ministry of Justice reported its use of Law 210 in the one year period since the law came into motion to prosecute, convict, and sentenced well over 100 illegal migrant smugglers and their accomplices, including Djiboutian citizens. It is unclear whether any of these cases involved human trafficking. The Ministry of Justice reported no investigations or prosecutions of offenses involving forced labor or commercial sexual exploitation. The Brigade des Moeurs (Vice Police) conducted regular nighttime sweeps of the capital's bars and streets and preventatively detained Ethiopian, Somali, and Djiboutian children suspected to be engaged in prostitution. In 2009, police apprehended, but did not charge, 408 girls between the ages of 10 and 18 years in such sweeps; the brigade did not indicate whether it detained the exploiters of these girls. In November 2009, the government requested human trafficking be added to the agenda for regular Djibouti-Ethiopia bilateral talks and proposed a draft memorandum of understanding on the subject. The 15-article agreement commits specific government entities to liaise on trafficking issues, proposes regular meetings, and provides a framework for partnership with Ethiopia on judicial cooperation.[1]
More recently, in 2016, the government passed Law No. 133, "On the Fight Against Trafficking in people and Illicit Smuggling of Migrants, criminalized sex trafficking and labor trafficking". This piece of legislation prescribed penalties of five to ten years of prison with aggravating circumstances such as forcing a victim or a child into
penal code used by some judges that was out of date and did not include the 2016 anti-trafficking law; therefore, in practice, most judges did not use the 2016 anti-trafficking law to convict alleged traffickers and instead relied on older provisions from the 1995 penal code, such as kidnapping or abuse of power. Observers reported police did not always pursue reports with potential trafficking indicators. Severe resource and capacity limitations continued to impede officials’ ability to comprehensively investigate trafficking crimes.[1]
Protection
With few resources itself and a very small pool of tiny, underfunded
Puntland administrations, and international organizations discussed efforts to improve protection for migrants crossing from Somalia and Djibouti to Yemen.[1]
Prevention
The government's efforts to prevent trafficking increased during the reporting period. Beginning in May 2009, the government provided IOM office space within the Ministry of Labor as part of an overall effort to prevent unsafe migration, including human trafficking. Addressing concerns for migrants who depart Djiboutian shores illegally for Yemen, the government forged a partnership with IOM to erect billboards throughout the country warning migrants of the dangers of irregular migration, including the risk of becoming a victim of trafficking or labor exploitation. In 2009, the National Office for Refugees and Disaster Stricken People (ONARS) and
vice squad. The government did not take any known measures to reduce the demand for forced labor.[1]
References
- ^ a b c d e f "Trafficking in Persons Report 2010 Country Narratives -- Countries A Through F". US Department of State. 2010-06-17. Archived from the original on 2010-06-17. Retrieved 2023-02-12.
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ "2023 Trafficking in Persons Report". www.state.gov. Archived from the original on 2023-09-11. Retrieved 2023-09-11.
