Human Trafficking; Iran on List of Potential US Sanctions
The US State Department warned 17 countries, including Iran, that negligence in combating human trafficking will be met with sanctions. Trafficking of women and girls, child soldiers, organ trafficking, and forced labor are examples included in the annual report.
In the US State Department’s annual report, Iran is on a list of 17 countries that have taken the least action in combating human trafficking. Some US allies and friends, such as Israel and Turkey, have also been called upon to show greater commitment in this area.
This report, which reviews the situation in 188 countries, identified the COVID-19 pandemic as a factor in exacerbating labor exploitation, recruitment of child soldiers, and expansion of organ trafficking. Antony Blinken, US Secretary of State, emphasized that governments’ preoccupation with the pandemic has weakened efforts to combat “the inhumane cycle of injustice and discrimination.”
The US State Department’s annual report categorizes different countries based on how they combat human trafficking and meet international standards at tier one, two, and three levels.
Afghanistan, Iran, Algeria, Myanmar, China, Comoros, Cuba, Eritrea, Nicaragua, North Korea, Russia, South Sudan, Syria, Turkmenistan, Venezuela, Malaysia, and Guinea-Bissau have been warned. Most of these countries, with authoritarian structures, are already on the US sanctions list for other reasons. Malaysia and Guinea-Bissau are the newest countries on the list.
Trafficking of women and girls, trafficking of children and boys, organ trafficking, and forced labor and exploitation of human labor are examples included in the US State Department’s annual report. The Islamic Republic is accused of recruiting child soldiers or persecuting human trafficking victims.
Previously, human rights organizations reported that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps sent Afghan teenagers to Syria under the banner of “Fatimiyoun Legion.”
Antony Blinken, US Secretary of State, stated that approximately 25 million people, including a large number of women and children, are victims of the cycle of discrimination and oppression: “This is a global crisis and a symbol of immense human suffering… It is an affront to human dignity and human rights.”
In the US State Department’s annual report, six US allies and friends, including Cyprus, Israel, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, and Switzerland, have been downgraded from tier one to tier two. This means that international standards for combating human trafficking are not properly implemented in these countries, although their efforts continue.
Human trafficking includes forms such as cheap labor, child soldiers, sex workers, exploitation in criminal activities and crimes, and organ trafficking.
The US government publishes reports annually in the fields of human rights, terrorism, and human trafficking, and Iran is tested against the lowest standards in almost all these assessments.
According to the “Trafficking Victims Protection Act” passed by the US Congress in 2000, Washington has the authority to impose sanctions and penalties against countries that fall short in combating human trafficking.
Source: DW
