THE facts, secrets and the untold stories of human trafficking in the Solomon Islands have been revealed in a workshop in Honiara yesterday.
A
workshop organised by the American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative (ABA
ROLI) attended by lawyers, police, Ports Authority officials and Government
officials were kept silent when Sister Doreen from the Christian Care Centre
presented her exclusive experience with human trafficking in the
country.
"Human trafficking is real and it happens in the Solomon Islands,"
she said.
Sister Doreen said the issue of human trafficking has been
overlooked as a problem only experienced in other countries but Solomon
Islanders must realise that it is happening in the country.
Human trafficking
is the illegal trade of human beings for the purposes of reproductive slavery,
commercial sexual exploitation, forced labour, or a modern-day form of
slavery.
Although this has been denied to be occurring in the country, Sister
Doreen has come out publicly to share her experience regarding the
problem.
Sister Doreen who hails from the Makira/Ulawa Province revealed her
experiences with the situation on our logging camps around the country
particularly the camp in Arosi, Makira/Ulawa Province.
She said she had
interviewed, witnessed and encountered human trafficking on the camp not only
young girls but young boys as well.
She said they vary from ages 6-13 years
old.
She revealed a story of nine boys aged between 9-13 who were taken
onboard by foreigners at the logging camp as sex slaves who used to travel from
province to province on boats.
She also told of a story of a young female who
was a victim of sexual abuse that have been treated as a sex slave for years
which resulted in her became mentally ill.
"The woman came to the care centre
and revealed all the stories of how she was ill-treated on one of the foreign
boats. Sometimes, because of what she went through she will just burst out crying, telling us that she wanted to go back to the shore."
"She has been
traumatised because she was kept like a slave," Sister Doreen said.
Sister
Doreen also revealed a story of four girls aged 13 years who shared their
experience with her about their experience with the foreigners and how they were
treated.
"I actually encountered a foreigner who tried to transport some
primary school students whom stated he loved kids and wanted to take them for
lunch in the middle of the bush," she revealed.
Doreen also tried to sue a
couple who willingly attempted to send their 9 year old daughter away with a
foreigner for holidays overseas in exchange for money.
She managed to talk
the parents out of sending their daughter away after warning them that they
would be sued.
Sister Doreen told participants at the workshop that these
problems were evident all around the country and not only in some
provinces.
"The Government must stop turning a blind eye on the issue and
accept the fact that this problem is here," she said.
Meanwhile, a
representative from the Royal Solomon Islands Police Force (RSIPF) Florence Taro
told participants that although they were aware of such cases, they face a major
difficulty in gathering evidence to prove these cases.
"Victims fear that
they may be prosecuted if they tell the story so therefore police can't really
compile a solid evidence to prove such cases although it is really happening,"
Mrs Taro said.
She said they had one case in the past but the court threw it
out because there was lack of evidence.
The workshop was also told that
cultural barriers are also hindering efforts to try and tackle the issue in
which victims especially young girls are not allowed to publicly speak about
their experiences.
"Victims or even women get bashed up for revealing such
stories," she said.
"This leads to another issue and that is the safety and
risks of victims trying to reveal their stories."
Ports Authority chief
executive officer William Barile said Ports has been cracking down on boats that
used to transport these victims at the main wharf but since then they have moved
to other spots around the town as access spots.
"It's a problem of livelihood
that needs urgent Government attention," Mr Barile said.
He said all
stakeholders including the Government need to work together to address and plan
on how best to tackle what he described as a 'social illness'.
The workshop
which was held at the Heritage Park Hotel aims to increase awareness among
stakeholders from the government, civil society and the legal community about
trafficking in persons (TIP).
By DOUGLAS
MARAU
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