United States accuses Barbados of “Minimal efforts” in fighting Human Trafficking
UPDATED May 16, 2010
Barbados Free Press has written a follow-up article to this story. See What happened with the Caribbean Child Sex Trafficking Ring mentioned online by BANGO Secretary General, Roosevelt O. King?
Original article published Sept 8, 2009…
United States accuses Barbados of “Minimal efforts” in fighting Human Trafficking
The US Attorney’s Office and Federal Bureau of Investigation recently announced increased efforts to prosecute of human traffickers in American offshore territories. Guam and the Northern Marianas are of particular concern because the reported incidents of human trafficking doubled over the course of two years, according to the early 2008 statistics. The Caribbean is also being given special attention as an end destination in the distribution of sex and domestic workers who are at risk – some of whom are coming from far away in the Pacific, as reported in news stories sourced from the US Department of State.
Barbados came off badly in the 2009 Trafficking in Persons Report released by the United States when the country was placed in the “Tier Two” list of “countries considered to be making minimal efforts to satisfy the United Nations’ anti-trafficking in persons’ requirement”. Our Minister of Youth, Family and Sports, Dr. Esther Byer Suckoo, dismissed the United State’s concerns that our country is not doing enough to combat human trafficking, but the published allegation by the US State Department of Barbados’ “minimal efforts” has the ring of truth to citizens who know how things work ’round this place.
Will Barbados Act?
Bajan Citizen makes public allegations of Human Trafficking from USA into The Caribbean
BANGO Secretary General Roosevelt O. King
The US statement that Barbados does not do enough to combat human trafficking is now being put to the test as a prominent Barbados citizen recently posted information on a public website that he knows the identities of young girls being trafficked from the USA into the Caribbean – and that he is aware of current trafficking into Jamaica.
Writing under his own name on a local blog where he is a frequent contributor and featured author, Roosevelt O. King described how the young girls are brought from the USA to the Caribbean where they are prostituted to local men. According to Mr. King, who is Secretary General of the Barbados Association of Non-Governmental Organisations, the organisers of the trips also make pornographic movies for commercial purposes.
Although the story received heavy coverage and discussion on the Bajan internet, the mainstream Bajan news media have not reported the incident even though Mr. King’s allegations are still posted online under his own name. Certainly thousands in the Barbados online community are waiting to see if the Royal Barbados Police Force will launch an investigation or if the U.S. statement of “minimal efforts” will be proven true.
Further Reading
eTurbo News: Prosecute human traffickers
Philstar.com: Human trafficking prevalent in Caribbean islands
Human Trafficking.org: Barbados Dismisses Human Trafficking Allegations
Barbados Free Press: (Article removed by WordPress.com after complaint from BANGO – Barbados Association of Non-Governmental Organisations. Stay tuned for a further statement from Barbados Free Press.)
Thanks guys. Looks like you are doing a wonderful job.
It used to be the case in the US that “I found it on teh internets” meant that the main stream media felt free to ignore it. If Roosevelt King had made his allegations on TV, there would be an international outcry. But since he posted his swill on a website, everybody is writing it off, apparently.
Apart from the obvious – keeping tourists from getting hassled by pimps, protecting women & children – I’m also hoping this issue will force an improvement of media practice on your island.
Thank you BFP for highlighting that it matters what people say.
I matters what people do too. Roosevelt knew about the 14 year old girls and their names and he let it pass by.
Any of you ever been in a rum shop? Mr.King sound like a fella in a rumshop bragging that he know “tings dat wunna doan know nutten bout.”
In all likelyhood International police agencies already know all about what Mr.King wrote.
Why he would want to attract negative attention to himself is beyond me.
Instead of posting on a blog, he could have called the Police or emailed the information to the FBI.
Trafficking human beings of any age is repulsive and any evidence should be given to the Police.
Read what roosevelt said, Mr. Hants. He has a lot of specific knowledge and it was foolish for a well known person like him to spout off but he did and now it is there.
read what I wrote above Ptwo and here again.
“Instead of posting on a blog, he could have called the Police or emailed the information to the FBI.”
It seems like people here want to shoot the messenger. The porn industry is rife in America and young women want to be porn stars and are addicted to sex and easy
money. Some hotels in Jamaica are nothing more than
orgies for tourists.
Roosevelt isn’t the messenger. He is a protector and an enabler if what he wrote about his involvement is true. Did he destroy the emails and photos that would have told police who the victims are? Roosevelt says so.
Hants, not Roosevelt “could have called the police”, he SHOULD have called the police.
It never stops to amaze me how the mighty USA through their state Dept passes judgement on all countries in the World, but nowhere does the USA appear on the list….not for drug trafficking, nor for human trafficking, even though its well documented how much of this goes on there.
PS …same thing goes for Money Laundering.
What sauce for goose ain’t sauce for agander!
Looka Shona/rhonda showing she face. wunnuh see wunnuh see.
You fellas are as stupid as RO KING, to take this jackass seriously.
He is obviously someone seeking attention for himself.
He is best ignored
Mr King made it clear that he destroyed the emails and didn’t save the photos the girls sent him so the police would not get them. That is not acceptable.