South Korea was classified as a Tier 2 country for the second consecutive year in the U.S. Department of State's 'Trafficking in Persons Report.' North Korea was named the 'worst trafficking country' for the 21st consecutive year.
On the 15th (local time), the U.S. Department of State released the '2023 Trafficking in Persons Report,' which evaluated South Korea's status as Tier 2 in relation to anti-trafficking efforts. After downgrading South Korea from Tier 1 to Tier 2 for the first time in 20 years in last year's report, the country has maintained this status for two consecutive years. The evaluation period for this report covers from April last year to March this year.
U.S. Department of State 2023 Trafficking in Persons Report. Screenshot of the report screen. [Image source=Yonhap News]
The Department of State assessed that "South Korea does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking in persons, but is making significant efforts to do so." Specific examples of failing to meet the minimum standards included ▲ some victims not being identified or receiving adequate services due to insufficient procedures ▲ the possibility of some victims being punished for illegal acts resulting from trafficking. The report also noted that the South Korean government's efforts to identify and report labor exploitation trafficking among migrant workers were insufficient.
The report also addressed the newly implemented anti-trafficking law in South Korea starting this year, stating that "the definition of trafficking was expanded to better align with the international community's definition in terms of government protection and prevention efforts," but added that "since the criminal law definition of trafficking was not amended, many NGOs remain skeptical that the new law will lead to increased prosecution and convictions for trafficking."
However, compared to the previous report's evaluation period, the report acknowledged an overall increase in the South Korean government's efforts. Examples of these efforts included ▲ the establishment of victim identification guidelines ▲ collection of statistics related to trafficking victims ▲ an increase in the number of traffickers sentenced to more than one year in prison ▲ installation of national-level trafficking-related hotline services.
In this year's report, besides South Korea, Japan, Switzerland, and New Zealand were also listed as Tier 2 countries. Vietnam, which was downgraded to Tier 3 last year, was included on the Tier 2 Watchlist. Tier 1 included 30 countries and regions such as the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Taiwan, and the Philippines.
North Korea has been classified as Tier 3, the lowest tier, for 21 consecutive years since 2003. The report stated, "North Korea is making no efforts to address trafficking issues," pointing to political repression systems including detention camps and labor training camps, large-scale mobilization of adults and children, and forced labor imposed on overseas workers. The report also estimated the number of political prisoners in North Korean camps to be between 80,000 and 120,000, and the number of North Korean workers in restaurants and factories in China to be between 20,000 and 100,000.
Tier 3 includes not only North Korea but also 24 countries such as China and Russia. The report mentioned China's Belt and Road Initiative, highlighting issues of debt-based wage exploitation, long working hours, and forced labor. It also criticized the repression and forced labor of ethnic minorities such as the Uighurs in the Xinjiang and Tibet regions.
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