| Hakim Hayat |
EVERYBODY in the community plays an important part in identifying victims of human trafficking and should raise a red flag to the relevant authorities should they feel someone they know, or even themselves, is being exploited.
This was stated by Acting Head of Human Trafficking Investigation Unit, Criminal Investigation Department of the Royal Brunei Police Force (RBPF) Assistant Superintendent Ivy Han at the first plenary session of the ‘Combating Trafficking in Persons’ conference (CTIP 2018) hosted by Bruneian youth initiative Youth Against Slavery Brunei (YAS Brunei) yesterday.
In a session that focussed on identifying human trafficking victims, she shared that people should always be on the lookout for indicators of human trafficking such as forced labour including sexual servitude and prostitution, slavery as well as denial of basic rest, food and shelter.
Han said that many of the victims are trapped and being forced to work as well as face threats that also extend to family members of the victims. She further explained that human trafficking can be identified firstly through an “act” of recruitment and pre-planning, followed by the “means” of forcing, threatening and promise of money and cheating and finally “exploitation” where a victim is forced into labour, sexual services and even selling organs.
“We as a civil society should always be on a lookout, and if we feel or see that something is not right, we should raise them to the authorities, be it the police, the Labour Department or even the Community Development Department (JAPEM),” Han urged, while stressing that the police here take a very serious stance against human trafficking that can be brought up to the High Court for conviction.
Although human trafficking is not rampant in Brunei Darussalam, Han said that the multi-billion dollar industry is rampant worldwide, and is very common in lower-income countries and among lower educated and even highly educated individuals who are being tricked or just simply fall into the trap, and this poses a mounting challenge to law enforcement in the global landscape today.
Its prevalence, Han said, is mainly due to its highly profitable gains that require very minimum capital, which typically involves the movement of humans who are easily accessible. In “modern-day slavery,” she said there are cases of individuals being forced to work and exploited in industries such as fisheries and clothing manufacturing with low pay and squalid conditions, denying them their basic rights.
Many of these human trafficking victims are trapped because they have to pay off debts, support their family members, but in the process, they are being tricked, she added.
Han said this is why it is imperative for the public to be aware of human trafficking traits and always be wary of the legitimacy of job offers and they should check such offers through authoritative channels.
Over the last few years, a number of individuals, including locals, have been convicted for human trafficking crimes in the country – mostly for trafficking of individuals from outside the country to work in the country illegally or for denying their wages.
Han shared that in the Sultanate, several cases classified by the police as human trafficking crimes have not been charged in the court as the cases do not satisfy the requirement, or has not enough evidence to be charged under the Human Trafficking Order, or fall under other legislations such as the Penal Code, Labour Violation Order and Women and Girls Protection Act.
The conference is aimed at strengthening the network’s ability to combat trafficking in persons, including protecting the youth from exploitation and preventing Brunei from becoming a destination for trafficking in person and travelling sex offenders, easy access to online pornography, misuse of the Internet as well as other forms of human exploitation.
The conference puts particular attention to the importance of working with those most likely to come into contact with trafficking victims such as medical practitioners, national security forces, border patrol agents, teachers and those in the transportation and hospitality industries.
YAS Brunei said they are placing special recognition on the important role they can play in sharing their first-hand experience to strengthen the effectiveness of anti-trafficking policies.
YAS Brunei is a Bruneian youth initiative which is a product of Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative (YSEALI) – a US government endeavor.