July 27, 2015
In response to the release of the U.S. State Department’s 2015 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report, David Abramowitz, Vice President of Policy and Government Relations at Humanity United, said:
“We are very disappointed with the State Department’s Trafficking in Persons report for this year. Several decisions by at the State Department, including upgrades of Malaysia, Uzbekistan, and Cuba, suggest that regional experts got the upper hand in fights with a weakened Trafficking in Persons Office at the Department. Malaysia’s upgrade in particular is of concern, with the State Department’s own narrative suggesting that no legal reform had occurred and an actual decrease in convictions of human traffickers during the 2014 reporting period. It will be now up to the State Department to ensure that acts such as the passage of a new law on victims assistance are actually implemented and real change occurs on the ground. Anything else will make a true mockery of the State Department’s decision on Malyasia.
“While we are gratified that such countries as Thailand had more accurate assessments of their records, Secretary Kerry’s decisions will undermine the integrity and effectiveness of the report which he rightly pointed to as a powerful tool in the global fight against human trafficking.”
For more on the relationship between trade and the Malaysia upgrade, see David Abramowitz’s July 14 piece in The Hill and today’s reaction from the Alliance to End Slavery and Trafficking, a project of Humanity United.