Group fears slavery in Hawaii
A task force will gather data on
the trafficking of exploited laborers
Hawaii could be a site for modern-day slavery and other human trafficking, a task force says.
While there are no current data on human trafficking here, members of the Hawaii Anti-Trafficking Task Force say the state's location, major tourism industry and large military bases makes it a likely transit or destination for it.
Trafficking in persons involves the recruitment, transport and sometimes sale of individuals exploited for their labor as prostitutes, sweatshop workers, agricultural workers, maids and garment workers.
"Trafficking is a labor problem, a public-health problem, a gender issue, a migration problem and a global criminal problem," said Dr. Nancie Caraway, director of Women's Human Rights Projects at the Globalization Research Center at the University of Hawaii-Manoa, which created the task force.
"It is essential to address the 'push' factors of poor, developing countries that lead people into modern-day slavery, but also the 'pull' factors of the demand in the developed countries of the world," she said, adding the country's own consumer habits can fuel global slavery.
The task force met for the first time last month after it was formed last fall following an international conference on sexual exploitation held in Hawaii.
The group's goal will be to collect data about the extent of trafficking in the region, public awareness and the training of law enforcement officers and others to recognize and deal with such cases.
The task force is currently composed of researchers, immigrant service providers, law enforcement and women's rights advocates, but it wants to add representatives from the business, labor, military and religious communities. Call Caraway at 945-1450, ext. 106, for more information.
Hawaii drew international attention on human trafficking because of a U.S. District Court case last February in which the court found the owner of an Pago Pago, American Samoa, garment factory guilty of holding 200 Chinese and Vietnamese immigrant workers in involuntary servitude.
The Daewoosa Samoa case was the largest human-trafficking case investigated by the FBI and prosecuted by the U.S. Department of Justice.
Prosecutors argued that Daewoosa owner Kil Soo Lee controlled the lives of workers and decided when they would work, eat and get paid. He threatened workers with arrest, beatings and deportation if they complained or did not comply.
In one instance, prosecutors said, a young Vietnamese worker had her eye gouged out with a plastic pipe. The company made garments for J.C. Penny Co. and other retailers. Lee faces 15 to 18 years in prison when he is sentenced next month.
Caraway said if someone is being forced to work or is being held against their will, their human rights are being violated. She said it is illegal to use force or threats to make someone work to pay off a debt.
Those who think they are being exploited can call the U.S. Justice Department hot line at 888-428-7581.