Victims of trafficking in women and children – CHR Special Rapporteur report – Communication with Governments

INTEGRATION OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS OF WOMEN AND A GENDER PERSPECTIVE

Report of the Special Rapporteur on the human rights aspects of the victims of trafficking in persons,

especially women and children, Sigma Huda

Addendum

Summary of cases transmitted to Governments and replies received*

*The report is being circulated as received, in the languages of submission only, as it greatly exceeds the word limitations currently imposed by the relevant General Assembly resolutions.

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Introduction

1. This addendum to the report of the Special Rapporteur contains, on a country by country basis, summaries of the Special Rapporteurs’ urgent appeals and other communications to governments on individual cases and general situations of concern to her mandate. The report also summarizes government replies received.

2. The Special Rapporteur identifies individual cases of concern to her mandate with reference to the definition of trafficking in persons contained in the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (Trafficking Protocol). Article 3 of the Protocol defines trafficking in persons as follows:

Use of terms

For the purposes of this Protocol:

(a) “Trafficking in persons” shall mean the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation. Exploitation shall include, at a minimum, the exploitation of the prostitution of others or other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labour or services, slavery or practices similar to slavery, servitude or the removal of organs

(b) The consent of victim of trafficking in persons to the intended exploitation set forth in subparagraph (a) of this article shall be irrelevant where any of the means set forth in subparagraph (a) have been used;

(c) The recruitment, transportation, trans, harbouring or receipt of a  child for the purpose of exploitation shall be considered “trafficking in persons” even if this does not involve any of the means set forth in subparagraph (a) of this article;

(d) “Child” shall mean any person under eighteen years of age.

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Occupied Palestinian Territory

Communications sent by the Special Rapportuer

109. By allegation letter dated 3 June 2005, the Special Rapporteur, jointly with the Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography, brought to the Palestinian Authority’s attention information received concerning the recruitment and use of children for armed conflict by Palestinian armed groups.

110. According to the information received, A.N., a 15-year-old Palestinian boy from Askar refugee camp was arrested by the Israeli army on May 22, 2005 at the Huwara military checkpoint, at the entrance to the town of Nablus in the West Bank. At the time of arrest, the child reportedly carried two pipe bombs concealed on his body seemingly with the intent to detonate them at the checkpoint.  One report indicates that another 15-year-old Palestinian child carrying explosives was arrested only two days later, on May 24, 2005, at the same military checkpoint.

111. On February 3, 2005, a 17-year old Palestinian boy was reportedly arrested at the Huwara military checkpoint while carrying explosives and bullets.

112. On April 27, 2005, two 15-year-old Palestinian boys who had explosives and bullets on them were reportedly arrested at a military checkpoint at the entrance of the West Bank town of Jenin.

113. While in the above-mentioned cases the Special Rapporteurs received no information on who recruited the children involved, reports indicate that several Palestinian armed groups, including the al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades, Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and the Palestinian Front for the Liberation of Palestine, have recruited children in the past to transport explosives and munitions. In some cases, reports indicate, these groups have even sent children to carry out suicide attacks. According to the information received, the Palestinian Front for the Liberation of Palestine claimed responsibility for a suicide attack that was carried out in a Tel Aviv market by a 16-year-old Palestinian from the West Bank town of Nablus on November 1, 2004 and resulted in the deaths of three Israeli civilians.

114. The Rapporteurs appealed to the Palestinian Authority to take all necessary measures to prevent that children are recruited and used for activities directly linked to armed operations. In this regard they drew the attention of the Palestinian Authority to the Trafficking Protocol according to which the recruitment of any person under eighteen years age for the purpose of exploitation constitutes an act of trafficking even if the recruitment does not involve the means of the threat or the use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, or deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payment of benefits or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person (Article 3 (a), (c) and (d)).

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