US State Department Report on Human Trafficking
Bangladesh again blamed for non-compliance
For the third consecutive year, Bangladesh was placed at Tier 2 Watch List in the US State Department's annual Human Trafficking in Persons (TIP) 2011 report, which blamed non-compliance with the minimum standards to eliminate trafficking.
Immigration experts said Bangladesh might face economic sanctions from the US if the situation does not improve by 2012. But the government says it took strong efforts to improve legal systems and prosecute offenders and there is no chance for any sanction.
The report, released on June 27, analysed conditions in 184 nations in terms of effectiveness in fighting human trafficking. It identified 23 nations failing to meet minimum international standards to curb the scourge while 41 countries were placed on a "watch list".
The report said a significant share of Bangladesh's trafficking victims consists of overseas job seeking men recruited with fraudulent offers and exploited under conditions of forced labour or debt bondage.
It said most Bangladeshis rely on over 1,000 local recruiting agencies that are permitted by the government to charge workers up to US $1,235 for their services.
The agencies place workers in low-skilled jobs typically paying between US $100 and US $150 per month, but workers are sometimes charged US $6,000 or more, it added.
The report said, "High recruitment fees increase vulnerability to debt bondage and forced labour among transnational migrant workers.
“Women typically work as domestic servants. Some find themselves in situations of forced labour or debt bondage where they face restrictions on their movements, nonpayment of wages, threats, and physical or sexual abuse."
It said Bangladesh was not placed on Tier 3 considering that the government showed evidence of a credible and written plan to bring itself in compliance with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.
But it did not prosecute Bangladeshi government officials involved in human trafficking and report on law enforcement efforts against them, the report observed.
Workers ostensibly had several options to file complaints of labour recruitment violations and get compensation. But the process most often used did not provide sufficient financial compensation and rarely addressed the illegal activities of some recruiting agencies, it said.
On the report, Home Ministry Joint Secretary Kamal Uddin Ahmed yesterday said, "We drafted Human Trafficking (Prevention and Protection) Act, to be enacted soon."
Talking to The Daily Star yesterday, Supreme Court lawyer Dr Uttam Kumar Das said enacting a law is never enough unless the government has adequate resources and expertise to strongly enforce it.
"If the situation does not improve, it is likely that the US will place Bangladesh on Tier 3, leading to economic sanctions," he said.
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