Human trafficking in the Central African Republic
The
Human rights observers reported that opposition militia groups in the north of the country continued to
The
U.S. State Department's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons placed the country in "Tier 3" in 2017.[2]
Prosecution
While the government failed to investigate, prosecute, or convict trafficking offenses during the reporting period, it made efforts to strengthen its anti-trafficking legal statutes. In September 2009,
Protection
The government provided minimal protective assistance to trafficking victims during the reporting period. An extreme shortage of resources leaves responsible Central African officials unable to implement many basic victim protection services. While the Ministry of Family and Social Affairs continued operation of a shelter (the Center for Mothers and Children) in Bangui for children in distress, some of whom may have been trafficking victims, the shelter often did not have space available to take on additional clients. The government did not establish a system for identifying victims of trafficking among vulnerable populations, and they lacked capacity to provide funding or in-kind support to local or foreign partners for services provided to victims. The government sustained its partnership with UNICEF and UNICEF's two program implementers for the latter’s protection of demobilized child soldiers, some of whom had likely been subjected to unlawful conscription. For example, during the reporting period, the Sous Prefets of Paoua and Bocaranga facilitated communication between two international NGOs and the APRD, which enabled the effective demobilization of 623 child soldiers from the rebel group. The Ministry of Education’s local representative in Bocaranga welcomed the demobilized children into the school, despite local suspicions. In September 2009, the Minister of Interior traveled to Paoua, in partnership with police, and convinced local citizens to peaceably allow the continuation of one NGO’s program to demobilize and rehabilitate child soldiers, including those unlawfully conscripted, from the APRD. In January 2010, the Deputy Minister of Defense tasked a senior gendarmerie official with investigating the situation of the recruitment and use of child soldiers in government-supported self-defense militias, with an eye to ending the practice immediately; the outcome of this investigation is unknown.[1]
The Ministry of Justice ensured that identified victims were not penalized for unlawful acts committed as a direct result of being trafficked. It claimed to encourage victims to assist in the investigation and prosecution of traffickers, and to file suits against them for damages; these options do not appear to have been used during the reporting period. The government does not provide legal alternatives to the removal of foreign victims to countries where they face hardship or retribution, and does not offer assistance to its own nationals who are repatriated as victims of trafficking.[1]
Prevention
The government acknowledged that human trafficking is a problem in the country, and undertook few anti-trafficking prevention efforts during the reporting period. Most visibly, officials launched a human trafficking awareness campaign in June 2009 to coincide with the annual
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f g "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 2023-02-17. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ "Trafficking in Persons Report 2017: Tier Placements". www.state.gov. Archived from the original on 2017-06-28. Retrieved 2017-12-01.