Human trafficking: Iran on the list of possible US sanctions
The US State Department warned 17 countries, including Iran, that failure to combat human trafficking will be met with sanctions. Trafficking in women and girls, child soldiers, organ trafficking, and forced labor are examples of the annual report.
In the annual report of the US State Department, Iran is on the list of 17 countries that have taken the least steps to combat human trafficking. A number of allies and friends of the United States, such as Israel and Turkey, have also been called upon to take more seriously in this regard.
The report, which includes a review of the situation in 188 countries, said the coronavirus outbreak has exacerbated labor exploitation, the recruitment of child soldiers, or the spread of organ trafficking. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken stressed that governments' preoccupation with the pandemic has undermined efforts to confront "inhuman cycles of injustice and discrimination."
The US State Department's annual report categorizes different countries into levels one, two, and three based on how they combat human trafficking and meet standards.
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 on the US sanctions list for other reasons. Malaysia and Guinea-Bissau are the newest countries to be added to the list.
Trafficking in women and girls, trafficking in children and boys, trafficking in body parts, and forced labor are examples of the US State Department's annual report. The Islamic Republic is accused of recruiting child soldiers or abusing victims of human trafficking.
Previously, reports by human rights organizations stated that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps was sending Afghan youth to Syria as part of the "Fatemiyoun Division."
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that some 25 million people, including many women and children, are victims of a 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 annual report by the US State Department, six of the country's allies and friends, including Cyprus, Israel, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal and Switzerland, have been demoted from rank one to rank two. This means that international standards for combating human trafficking are not being properly applied in these countries, although these countries continue to make efforts.
Human trafficking includes examples such as cheap labor, child soldiers, sex workers, exploitation in crimes and crimes, or trafficking in body parts.
Every year, the US government publishes reports on human rights, terrorism, or human trafficking, and Iran is measured against the lowest standards in almost all of these reviews.
According to the "Human Trafficking Victims Protection Act," passed by the US Congress in 2000, Washington has the authority to impose sanctions and penalties against countries that do little to combat human trafficking.
Source: DW
