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[ Country-by-Country Reports ] THE BAHAMAS
(not rated) [Extracted from U.S. State Dept Trafficking in
Persons Report, June 2008] Limited data
suggest a possible labor trafficking problem in The Bahamas. The Bahamas
remains a special case for a third consecutive year because the presence of
large numbers of undocumented migrants in the country continues to raise
concerns that there may be a significant number of trafficking victims in
need of assistance. While the government has been pro-active by collaborating
with IOM on a draft anti-trafficking bill and engaging in anti-trafficking
training efforts, a more effective government response would include
enactment of national anti-trafficking laws and greater efforts to protect
victims, particularly development of a pre-deportation mechanism to identify
possible trafficking victims among undocumented migrants and detainees.
Increased anti-trafficking training for government officials also would
assist the government’s efforts. Scope and
Magnitude. The Bahamas may be a destination and transit country for
men, women, and children trafficked for the purposes of forced labor and
commercial sexual exploitation. A large proportion of the country’s population
consists of undocumented Haitian immigrants, with estimates ranging from
30,000 to 60,000, some of whom may be subjected to conditions of involuntary
servitude. Although most of these migrants arrive voluntarily in The Bahamas
to work as domestic servants, gardeners, construction workers, and
agricultural laborers, many are reported to be exploited by Bahamian
employers who can coerce them to work long hours for no pay by withholding
documents or threatening arrest and deportation. Past media reports indicate
that a limited number of women and girls from Jamaica and other countries may
be trafficked to The Bahamas for commercial sexual exploitation. Government Efforts. Official
recognition of human trafficking concerns and the need to enact anti-trafficking
legislation increased in The Bahamas last year, in addition to awareness of
the need to balance vigorous enforcement of immigration laws with protecting
undocumented migrants from exploitation. To further advance its
anti-trafficking efforts, the government should investigate the potential
scope of the problem and continue to work with its legislature to pass a
comprehensive law criminalizing all forms of human trafficking, including
forced labor and domestic servitude. Under current Bahamian law, Title X of
its Statute Law can be used to prosecute traffickers for sexual exploitation
offenses. These provisions carry penalties up to eight years’
imprisonment, which are sufficiently stringent and commensurate with
penalties for other grave crimes, such as rape. Trafficking for forced labor
is not prohibited. While The Bahamas has well developed civil labor laws that
guarantee workers a minimum wage, maximum working hours, and other legal
benefits, migrant workers usually do not have access to these protections,
which makes them more vulnerable to coercive practices. Current Bahamian law
also provides that a legal work permit is issued directly and exclusively to
a local employer, who has the ability to cancel the permit and require a
migrant to return home – an area of reported abuse and concern about
labor trafficking activity. Last year, the government did not investigate or
prosecute any trafficking cases. |