Human trafficking in Eswatini

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forced labor in agriculture. Swazi girls, particularly orphans, are subjected to commercial sexual exploitation and involuntary domestic servitude in the cities of Mbabane and Manzini, as well as in South Africa and Mozambique.[2]

Swazi boys are trafficked within the country for forced labor in commercial agriculture and market vending. Some Swazi women are

Chinese organized crime
units transport some Swazi victims to Johannesburg, South Africa, where victims are "distributed" locally or sent overseas for subsequent exploitation.

Traffickers reportedly force Mozambican women into prostitution in Eswatini, or else transit Eswatini with their victims en route to South Africa. Mozambican boys migrate to Eswatini for work washing cars, herding livestock, and portering; some of these boys subsequently become victims of trafficking. Information on the full extent of trafficking in Eswatini is not yet available, as the government is still carrying out research into the scope and nature of the problem.[3]

The

U.S. State Department's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons placed the country in "Tier 2 Watchlist" in 2017.[4]

Prosecution

The Swazi government increased its capacity to conduct anti-trafficking

immunity from prosecution for immigration violations
.

The People Trafficking and People Smuggling (Prohibition) Act, 2009 became effective in December 2009. The legislation considers consent and past

trafficking children
for any purpose are also sufficiently stringent.

The government began educating officials and law enforcement officers on the provisions of the new law, and the media reported that officers had begun making inquiries into possible trafficking situations. Police investigated one possible trafficking situation, though no arrests were made in connection with the case and further information was not available. The government did not provide any specialized training in victim identification for law enforcement and immigration personnel, though it began planning for such future training.[3]

Protection

The

psychological services were not implemented during the reporting period. The Anti-Trafficking Task Force, however, began developing such procedures, as well as formal procedures on the proactive identification of victims for law enforcement, immigration, and social services personnel. The Task Force also investigated how it can best be prepared to provide assistance to repatriated
Swazi trafficking victims who had been identified in foreign countries.

Eswatini's new anti-trafficking law empowers the government, by notice in an official

civil redress are under development. The government did not offer foreign victims alternatives to their removal to countries where they may face danger or hardship.[3]

Prevention

During the year, the government increased its efforts to prevent trafficking. The Prime Minister created the Task Force for the Prevention of People Trafficking and People Smuggling in July 2009, which includes representatives from multiple government and law enforcement agencies,

victims of crime
, and other vulnerable populations. The Task Force met regularly, and began developing a national plan of action and various standard operating procedures. Government officials, accompanied by Task Force members, conducted seminars about what the nature of human trafficking and discussed the proposed legislation in all four regions of the country in 2009.

The Prime Minister launched Eswatini's branch of the regional "Red Light 2010 Campaign", building on publicity surrounding the 2010 FIFA World Cup soccer championship in South Africa, to mobilize trafficking prevention activities. All Swazi media covered the meetings extensively.

The Swazi government created an anti-trafficking

2000 UN TIP Protocol.[3]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Times Of Swaziland". www.times.co.sz.
  2. ^ "Rights – Southern Africa: Human Trafficking Stretches Across the Region". Inter Press Service. June 23, 2004.
  3. ^ a b c d "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. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  4. ^ "Trafficking in Persons Report 2017: Tier Placements". www.state.gov. Archived from the original on 2017-06-28. Retrieved 2017-12-01.
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