For the fourth year straight, Barbados is in the Tier 2 ranking of the United States’ (US) Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report.
Attorney General Adriel Brathwaite yesterday chided the United States government for continuing to rank Barbados based on a lack of prosecutions.
He was speaking at a workshop by US company Warnath Group on human trafficking in the Caribbean at the Baobab Tower in Warrens, St Michael.
“It does annoy me, in all seriousness, that someone sits in Washington, writes a report every year, changes very little in the report and then determines the fate of 300 citizens here by a stroke of a pen,” Brathwaite said.
“So we’re not compliant because we have not prosecuted anyone. It does not make a lot of sense.”
According to the 2017 TIP ranking, Barbados did not meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, but due to Government’s increased effort to do so, the country remained in Tier 2.
The report also noted Barbados did not initiate new prosecutions for human trafficking and had difficulty obtaining victim cooperation to prosecute traffickers amongst other issues.
To date, Barbados has never convicted someone for human trafficking and one person has been awaiting trial since 2013.
As a result, the US recommended Barbados take a number of steps to convict traffickers, reduce the dependency on victim testimony and apply more stringent sentences to deter future traffickers.
Still, Brathwaite noted the day’s workshop was important as it had the potential to impact the lives of many.
Meanwhile, Warnath Group Expert Karen Rigby explained the two-day conference was important as human trafficking was a crime that was taking root in individual countries across the region.
“A concerted effort must therefore be made to make training and educational programmes available to all the stakeholders and actors in the public and private sectors, non-governmental and faith growth organisations as well as the public at large about the crime,” Rigby declared.
During the workshop, participants from Barbados andSt Vincent and the Grenadines will engage in discussions on several areas such as standard operating procedures and interviewing and identifying traffickers and victims. (AD)