Human Trafficking in [Madagascar Street Children in [Madagascar] [other countries]Child Prostitution in [Madagascar] [other countries] |
Human Trafficking & Modern-day Slavery Democratic
Republic of Madagascar [ Country-by-Country
Reports ] The Democratic Republic of Madagascar [map] is an island nation located in the Indian Ocean, and
separated from E Africa by the Madagascar is a source country for women and children
trafficked within the country for the purposes of forced labor and sexual
exploitation. Children, mostly from rural areas, are trafficked for domestic
servitude, commercial sexual exploitation, forced labor for traveling
vendors, and possibly mining. Young women are also trafficked for domestic
servitude and sexual exploitation. A child sex tourism problem exists in
coastal cities, including Tamatave, Nosy Be, and Diego Suarez, as well as the
capital city of Antananarivo, with a significant number of children
prostituted; some were recruited in the capital under false pretenses of
employment as waitresses and maids before being exploited in the commercial
sex trade on the coast. The main source countries for child sex tourists are
France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Switzerland, Mauritius, and Reunion. Victims
are usually girls, but reports of foreign male tourists seeking sex with
underage boys have increased. Some internal child sex trafficking reportedly
occurs with the complicity of family members, friends, transport operators,
tour guides, and hotel workers. Some government officials reported
significant pressure from child victims’ parents to refrain from taking law
enforcement action so as not to impact the family’s source of income. - U.S. State
Dept Trafficking in Persons Report, June, 2008 [full country
report] |
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CAUTION: The following links have been
culled from the web to illuminate the situation in ***
FEATURED ARTICLE *** Gem industry in
need of regulation One of the most disturbing aspects
of Madagascar's gem industry has been the use of children to work in the
mines. A report by the International Programme for the Elimination of Child
Labour (IPEC), a branch of the International Labour Organisation, has warned
that children as young as eight are being used in mines - because they can
get into the cramped spaces in the mines more easily than an adult. ***
ARCHIVES *** U.S.
Dept of Labor Bureau of International Labor Affairs CHILD
LABOR LAWS AND ENFORCEMENT - Forced or bonded labor by children is prohibited under the Labor
Code. The Penal Code prohibit engaging
in sexual activities of any type with children under the age of 14, and the
production and dissemination of pornographic materials showing minors is
illegal. The government does not have
comprehensive legislation prohibiting trafficking in persons. Bur of Democracy,
Human Rights & Labor - Country
Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2005 TRAFFICKING
IN PERSONS – The law
does not specifically prohibit trafficking in persons, and there were reports
of trafficking in women and girls for prostitution between the country and
the neighboring islands of There were several cases of
kidnapping, and politicians from the south claimed that children were being
sold for up to $3,200 (16 million ariary) for overseas adoption or forced
labor. During the year the government
took several steps to combat trafficking. In May the government passed a new
adoption law, in part to protect children from being trafficked under the
guise of adoption. The government also continued to construct welcome centers
for the victims of trafficking and forced labor. The government listed the
fight against trafficking as one of its key objectives and created a strategy
during the year to address child labor and trafficking in each part of the
country. Concluding
Observations of the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) - 2003 [42] The Committee is concerned
that there is very little interest in simple adoption in the State party
leading to various types of informal adoption such as “god-parenting” that
are not conducive to full respect for children’s rights. The Committee further welcomes the
establishment of the inter-ministerial commission on inter-country adoption,
but remains concerned that inter-country adoptions are not properly followed
up. [61] While welcoming the adoption
of Act 98-024 of 25 January 1999 amending the Penal Code and other
efforts undertaken by the State party to combat child trafficking through
a national program, and in particular the adoption of a travel document
with five other countries of the region, the Committee is deeply concerned at
the number of trafficked children who are exploited in the State party and in
neighboring countries. Freedom
House Country Report - Political Rights: 4 Civil Liberties: 3 Status: Partly Free Human Rights Overview by Human
Rights Watch – Defending Human Rights Worldwide U.S. Library of Congress
- Country Study National birth
registration campaign launched The Madagascar government and aid
partners on Friday launched a national birth registration campaign to secure
full rights of citizenship for the country's children. The Indian Ocean island is one of
the poorest countries in the world, with most of its population surviving on
less than US $1 a day. "Not
having a birth certificate means that a person is not recognised by the
state. This limits access to education, employment opportunities and a host
of other social services," UNICEF communication officer, Misbah Sheikh,
told IRIN UNICEF
and world legislators urge action against child exploitation "More than two million
children throughout the world are victims of commercial sexual
exploitation," said UNICEF director Edwin Judd. "Children are bought, sold, traded,
and bartered or see no alternative but to sell themselves. The sex trade has
no borders. Children from rich as well as poor countries are exploited,"
he said. Judd said that, according to
UNICEF research, between 30 percent and 50 percent of prostitutes in
Madagascar are children. Madagascar
breaks child traffic ring Police in Madagascar have rescued
11 babies between the ages of three weeks and nine months who were in the
process of being sent abroad. The eight accused Malagasy men are
alleged to be part of an illegal adoption ring that offers financial
incentives of up to $800 for every young baby they find. Mr Rakotondravao said this can be partly
attributed to poverty as poor young single mothers are prepared to give up a
child in return for cash. Efforts to stop
child trafficking In the past year police have
reportedly smashed five networks dealing in the illicit adoption of children
aged between two months and 10 years, mainly destined for Europe, where they
were sold for about US $800 each. Madagascar
launches campaign to end child sex exploitation At the official launch of a
national campaign to end child sexual exploitation in Madagascar,
UNICEF and ILO presented the resumes of three studies that highlighted the
sexual exploitation of children in Madagascar. According to the
UNICEF-sponsored study, between 30 per cent to 50 per cent of all sex
workers in two of country's main cities, Nosy Be and Tamatave, were children
under the age of 18. Gem industry in
need of regulation One of the most disturbing aspects
of Madagascar's gem industry has been the use of children to work in the
mines. A report by the International Programme for the Elimination of Child
Labour (IPEC), a branch of the International Labour Organisation, has warned
that children as young as eight are being used in mines - because they can
get into the cramped spaces in the mines more easily than an adult. All material used herein
reproduced under the fair use exception of 17 USC § 107 for noncommercial,
nonprofit, and educational use |
Human Trafficking in [Madagascar Street Children in [Madagascar] [other countries]Child Prostitution in [Madagascar] [other countries]