MEMORANDUM OF JUSTIFICATION
CONSISTENT WITH SECTION 110(b)(2)(D)
OF THE TRAFFICKING VICTIMS
PROTECTION ACT OF 2000, AS AMENDED (TVPA)
Section 110(b)(2)(D) of the TVPA (22 U.S.C. § 7107(b)(2)(D)) requires a country that has been included on the Tier 2 Watch List for two consecutive years and has not been upgraded to “Tier 1" or “Tier 2" to be included in the following year’s report as “Tier 3." The governments of Tier 3 countries are those governments that do not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and are not making significant efforts to do so. Section 110(b)(2)(D) authorizes the President to waive application of this automatic downgrade the following year if he determines and reports credible evidence to the Committees on Foreign Relations of the Senate and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives that such a waiver is justified because - “(i) the country has a written plan to begin making significant efforts to bring itself into compliance with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking; (ii) the plan, if implemented, would constitute making such significant efforts; and (iii) the country is devoting sufficient resources to implement that plan." On Sept. 20, 2010, the President delegated the waiver authority under this provision to the Secretary of State.
This memorandum provides the justifications for a waiver from the automatic downgrade from Tier 2 Watch List to Tier 3 for Azerbaijan, Barbados, Belize, Brunei, Cambodia, Curaçao, Marshall Islands, Romania, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, and Vietnam for the 2021 TIP Report. Because each of the countries listed below has a written plan to begin making significant efforts to meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is devoting sufficient resources to implement the plan, a waiver for each of the eight listed countries is justified under Section 110(b)(2)(D) of the TVPA. With the waivers, all 11 countries will remain on Tier 2 Watch List for one additional year.
Explanations of the determinations for each of these 11 countries
Azerbaijan
The Government of Azerbaijan adopted the National Action Plan for 2020-2024 on Combating Trafficking in Human Beings in July 2020, which tasks relevant ministries and government institutions with prevention, protection, and prosecution efforts. These efforts include acceding to relevant international conventions; strengthening cooperation between law enforcement agencies; increasing proactive investigations; establishing new shelters and assistance centers; increasing resources to organizations providing victim assistance; improving policies for repatriation and reintegration of victims; training relevant first responders on victim identification; conducting research on internal trafficking; creating new partnerships with the private sector and civil society; and organizing awareness campaigns. The government has devoted staff and funding to relevant ministries and the National Coordinator for combating trafficking in human beings. Because implementation of the written plan would constitute making significant efforts to bring Azerbaijan into compliance with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, and because the Government of Azerbaijan has devoted sufficient resources to implement the plan, a waiver is justified under section 110(b)(2)(D) for Azerbaijan in the 2021 Trafficking in Persons Report.
Barbados
The Government of Barbados finalized and implemented a new national anti-trafficking action plan for 2021-2023. The plan primarily directs the government to conduct a study to determine the nature and extent of trafficking in the country, which will guide the government’s efforts to combat trafficking.
The plan also includes public awareness efforts; the development of minimum standards of victim care; training for police, judicial authorities, and service providers on trauma centered victim care, victim participation in the judicial process, and money laundering; an institutional review of the anti-trafficking police unit; a study to identify trafficking routes, methods, and traffickers; updates to trafficking legislation to bring it in line with international standards; the identification of civil society partners for a more coordinated, effective response; engagement with the U.S. government; and improved collection and review of data. The government has allocated 125,000 Barbados dollars ($61,881) to implement the plan over the two years. Because implementation of the written plan would constitute making significant efforts to bring Barbados into compliance with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, and because the Government of Barbados has devoted sufficient resources to implement the plan, a waiver is justified under section 110(b)(2)(D) for Barbados in the 2021 Trafficking in Persons Report.
Belize
The Government of Belize finalized and implemented a new national anti-trafficking action plan for 2021-2023. Through the Anti‑Trafficking in Persons Council, the plan included public awareness efforts; training for frontline workers in trafficking legislation and victim identification and care; training for police; the establishment of a monitoring and evaluation framework; improved data collection; research; the revision of victim standard operating procedures; improved victim care; expanded regional cooperation; amendments to the trafficking legislation; and improved operations against smuggling rings. The government has devoted staff to the implementation of the plan, to include three sub-committees of the Council whose work was directed by the plan.
Because implementation of the written plan would constitute making significant efforts to bring Belize into compliance with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, and because the Government of Belize has devoted sufficient resources to implement the plan, a waiver is justified under section 110(b)(2)(D) for Belize in the 2021 Trafficking in Persons Report.
Brunei
The Government of Brunei adopted the National Plan of Action against Trafficking in Persons, 2019-2022. Through relevant government agencies, including the National Committee on Trafficking in Persons, the plan addressed identifying victims, protecting victims, building dedicated trafficking shelters, raising awareness, increasing investigations and prosecutions, and strengthening interagency coordination. The government has devoted staff and funding to an interagency committee, which is responsible for the implementation of the action plan. Because implementation of the written plan would constitute making significant efforts to bring Brunei into compliance with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, and because the Government of Brunei has devoted sufficient resources to implement the plan, a waiver is justified under section 110(b)(2)(D) for Brunei in the 2021 Trafficking in Persons Report.
Cambodia
The Government of Cambodia continued to implement a national anti-trafficking action plan for 2019-2023. Through relevant ministries, including the National Committee for Counter Trafficking (NCCT), the action plan focused on four priorities: strengthening inter-ministerial cooperation in the formulation and implementation of laws, policies, and legal standards to combat trafficking; promoting efforts to prevent of all forms of human trafficking; strengthening the criminal justice system to combat trafficking; and increasing protection services for trafficking victims.
The government has devoted staff and funding to the NCCT, which is responsible for implementing the plan, as well as to other ministries and to police officers that work full-time in the national-level anti-trafficking and juvenile protection unit. Provincial governments have also allocated additional resources to anti-trafficking efforts through provincial-level anti-trafficking committees and law enforcement units. Because implementation of the written plan would constitute making significant efforts to bring Cambodia into compliance with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, and because the Government of Cambodia has devoted sufficient resources to implement the plan, a waiver is justified under section 110(b)(2)(D) for Cambodia in the 2021 Trafficking in Persons Report
Curaçao
The Government of Curaçao maintained the Action Plan on Trafficking and Smuggling of Human Beings, which laid out objectives to combat trafficking in persons and human smuggling for 2017-2021. The plan outlined activities to improve understanding of the trafficking crime, interagency communication on trafficking issues, and quality of care for identified trafficking victims. These activities included development of a new victim referral system, creating a new trafficking database, and producing materials for new awareness-raising campaigns. For each objective, the government designated a lead agency responsible for its completion. Because implementation of the written plan would constitute making significant efforts to bring Curaçao into compliance with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, and because the Government of Curaçao has devoted sufficient resources to implement the plan, a waiver is justified under section 110(b)(2)(D) for Curaçao in the 2021 Trafficking in Persons Report.
Marshall Islands
The Government of Marshall Islands finalized its National Taskforce on Human Trafficking National Action Plan (NAP) for 2021. The NAP, involving a multiagency approach, addressed prevention, protection, prosecution, and partnership efforts. These efforts included creating victim identification curriculum for law enforcement officials and conducting trainings; developing the national referral mechanism and associated standard operating procedures; organizing awareness campaigns and developing data collection procedures; and scheduling regular taskforce meetings and tracking the progress of the action plan. The government has devoted funding and specific lead agencies to the implementation of these objectives. Because implementation of the written plan would constitute making significant efforts to bring Marshall Islands into compliance with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, and because the Government of Marshall Islands has devoted sufficient resources to implement the plan, a waiver is justified under section 110(b)(2)(D) for Marshall Islands in the 2021 Trafficking in Persons Report.
Romania
The Government of Romania adopted a national action plan as part of the 2018-2022 National Strategy to Combat Human Trafficking. The plan established a framework for the government’s anti-trafficking efforts and proposed activities that build on existing commitments and introduce new structural changes and amendments to legislation, including authorizing government funding for nongovernmental organization assistance services; devoting more resources toward building capacity; developing tools to allow victims to receive online counseling services; and regulating businesses employing foreign workers. The plan also assigned financial and operational responsibility to various government agencies and ministries and allocated approximately 41.2 million Romanian lei ($10.4 million) toward the proposed activities.
Because implementation of the written plan would constitute making significant efforts to bring Romania into compliance with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, and because the Government of Romania has devoted sufficient resources to implement the plan, a waiver is justified under section 110(b)(2)(D) for Romania in the 2021 Trafficking in Persons Report.
Sri Lanka
The Government of Sri Lanka adopted the National Strategic Action Plan for Monitoring and Combating Human Trafficking for 2021-2025. The plan established a framework for the government’s antitrafficking efforts in the areas of prevention of human trafficking, holistic protection of trafficking victims, prosecution of traffickers, partnership and cross-country legal assistance, as well as monitoring and evaluation. The document includes input from non-governmental organizations, academics, and other antitrafficking experts. The government has devoted staff to an inter-ministerial task force, which is responsible for implementation of the plan. Each member of the National Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force is responsible for funding implementation of tasks for which they are the lead. Because implementation of the written plan would constitute making significant efforts to bring Sri Lanka into compliance with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, and because the Government of Sri Lanka has devoted sufficient resources to implement the plan, a waiver is justified under section 110(b)(2)(D) for Sri Lanka in the 2021 Trafficking in Persons Report.
Tanzania
The Government of Tanzania continued to implement the National Anti-Trafficking in Persons Action Plan for 2018-2021. The plan established a framework for the government’s antitrafficking efforts in the areas of prevention of human trafficking, holistic protection of trafficking victims, prosecution of traffickers, partnership with key stakeholders to screen vulnerable populations, and monitoring and evaluation of trafficking trends internally.
(SBU) The Government of Tanzania devoted staff, funding, and other resources to the inter-ministerial Anti-Trafficking Committee, the Anti-Trafficking Secretariat, Ministry of Home Affairs, National Prosecutions Services Office, and National Management Information System, to implement the plan. Because implementation of the written plan would constitute making significant efforts to bring Tanzania into compliance with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, and because the Government of Tanzania has devoted sufficient resources to implement the plan, a waiver is justified under section 110(b)(2)(D) for Tanzania in the 2021 Trafficking in Persons Report.
Vietnam
The Government of Vietnam approved and implemented a new national anti-trafficking action plan for 2021-2025. Through relevant ministries - including two newly added ministries - the plan prioritized data collection, combating forced labor in the fishing industry, assisting and providing medical care to trafficking survivors, capacity building for frontline workers, and legal framework reforms. The government has devoted staff and funding to the Ministry of Public Security (MPS), which is responsible for implementation of the plan, as well as to other relevant ministries specified in the plan. Because implementation of the written plan would constitute making significant efforts to bring Vietnam into compliance with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, and because the Government of Vietnam has devoted sufficient resources to implement the plan, a waiver is justified under section 110(b)(2)(D) for Vietnam in the 2021 Trafficking in Persons Report.
Source: U.S Department of State, Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs
