State panel to fight human trafficking
By Vicki Viotti
Advertiser Staff Writer
An international conference on human trafficking ended here yesterday with the establishment of a Hawai'i task force, modeled after one the state of Washington created, to battle the problem of forced labor, sex trafficking and other human rights violations.
Additionally, state Rep. Marilyn Lee, D-38th (Mililani, Mililani Mauka) and House majority leader, announced plans to introduce legislation protecting potential spouses in foreign matchmaking services from abuse.
The local measures were the culmination of an international review of these issues at the Human Trafficking Conference held at the Hawai'i Conference Center and sponsored by the Globalization Research Center at the University of Hawai'i at Manoa.
"The whole idea of the task force is to address the invisibility of this issue and to make people aware that it is a global issue, but it's also a local and national one," said Barry Gills, the center's director.
The task force will be composed of representatives of the Immigration and Naturalization Service as well as law enforcement, judicial and social service agencies in Hawai'i and should begin meeting in about a month, Gills said. Among the social service representatives are Judith Clark of Hawai'i Youth Services Network, Nancy Kreidman of the Domestic Violence Clearinghouse and Legal Hotline and Kelly Hill of Sisters Offering Support, a nonprofit organization helping prostitutes escape the sex trade.
"Most of the relevant stakeholders are not conversant with the dynamics of human trafficking," said conference director Nancie Caraway. "So we wanted to form a coalition that will actually be guided by the U.S. attorney's office, and they are going to provide a leadership role in training."
Specifically, Caraway cited the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 as a measure that, among many other provisions, offers a form of asylum for people who otherwise may be deported to their home countries.
"The way the INS deals with trafficking victims now is detain them and deport them, and it doesn't allow for the traffickers to be penalized," she said. "You don't have any prosecution.
"Under the new law, something called a 'T-visa' allows the victim to be recognized not as illegal immigrants but be given access to social services and, more importantly, they can stay in this country for three years so they can testify against the traffickers."
This task force, as well as Lee's planned legislation, is being patterned after prototypes launched this year in Washington state. Lee said she is preparing her bill to be part of the Women's Legislative Caucus 2003 package.
The measure would require multinational matchmaking companies to provide information to the foreign-born potential spouse, who are usually women, about the Hawai'i client with whom they're considering marriage, Lee said.
"This would help the potential foreign spouse to know situations such as the potential spouse's arrest record and marriage history," she said. "Most women come from rural areas, and they may be very poor."
Lee, who once lived in the Philippines, said she knew a woman who did domestic work for her family and years later became a mail-order bride.
"She married someone who became very abusive," Lee said. "It's sort of a tradition in Hawai'i — we had mail-order brides here — but times have changed."
The Globalization Research Center plans to consider other new laws that may help combat human trafficking, Gills said.
"While research and discussion is important, we want to be a catalyst for actions that will make Hawai'i and the world a better place," he said.
Reach Vicki Viotti at vviotti@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8053.
