The movement to end human trafficking is not just a question of human rights, but one of global security as well. Reem Leila reviews the US State Department's critical assessment of Egyptian efforts to stem the tide A report released by the US State Department has cited Egypt as a transit point and destination country in the trafficking of human beings, either for sexual exploitation or forced labour. Entitled Trafficking In Persons (TIP) the report says, "virtually every country in the world is affected by the crime of human trafficking." Annually, approximately 600,000 to 800,000 people are trafficked across international borders and millions more are enslaved in their own countries. The common denominator of trafficking scenarios is the use of force, fraud or coercion to exploit a person for commercial sex or for the purpose of subjecting a victim to involuntary servitude, debt bondage or forced labour. Some 3,000 men and 5,000 women have been smuggled into countries which lie on Egypt's eastern borders, through the Sinai Desert to work as prostitutes. The report described how women are sold and forced to work up to 18 hours a day. On average, women receive only three per cent of the money they earn from prostitution, the report said. Many are raped and beaten. According to the report, Egypt is a transit point and destination country for women trafficked from Eastern Europe to Israel and Gulf countries for the purpose of sexual exploitation. The women generally arrive in Egypt by air and seaports as tourists, and are subsequently trafficked through the Sinai Desert by Bedouin tribes. In addition, some Egyptian children from rural areas are trafficked within the country to work as domestic servants or labourers in the agriculture industry. TIP believes Egypt is not fully complying with the minimum standards of elimination of trafficking, but adds that it is taking significant steps to do so. Gayatari Patel, reporting officer for the Middle East for the State Department International Office, says the creation of both the National Council for Women (NCW) and National Council for Childhood and Motherhood (NCCM) were among the efforts being made by the government to protect women and children. The report nevertheless still places Egypt on its Tier 2 watch list for what it deems to be its failure to show evidence that the government has increased efforts to address trafficking over the past year, particularly in the area of law enforcement. "The government has failed to conduct an assessment of the trafficking situation or to draft a planned comprehensive anti- trafficking law, and had few trafficking prosecutions during the year," Patel says. In 2005, however, Egypt improved training for border security officials regarding the approaches adopted in order to prevent smuggling and trafficking, and incorporated innovative tools to interdict traffickers as they travel through the Sinai Desert. The report underscores the fact that trafficking in people is a sizeable business, bringing from $5 billion to $22 billion a year to the sex industry's tycoons. It also emphasizes that the risks are lower and the profits higher than from drug smuggling. A woman can be resold and utilised until she escapes, "goes mad" or even dies, which is often the case, says Patel. The TIP report reveals that Egypt has taken some modest measures to protect victims of trafficking. The government does not have a systematic mechanism to connect trafficking victims with organisations providing assistance, but does generally refer victims to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and their embassies to aid in their care and repatriation. Egypt also provides food, healthcare and lodging to some victims on an ad hoc basis to ensure that trafficking victims are not detained along with illegal migrants or deported without receiving assistance. The Egyptian government, according to the report, does not offer legal alternatives to the removal of victims to countries where they face retribution or hardship. The report, which was based on credible sources including government documents, research by national criminal justice organisations, Interpol, research institutes and news agencies, suggests: "The best way to address trafficking human beings is to demolish the markets generating profits to the criminals. This would require identification of traffickers in order to be able to investigate trafficking cases, and prosecute and convict offenders. Unfortunately, relatively few cases are prosecuted successfully, resulting in a very small number of convictions." The TIP report confirms that during the past year, Egypt has made significant progress in preventing trafficking through the Sinai Desert to other destinations. In particular, the government made a concerted effort to increase security in Sinai, especially with regard to alleged illegal activities by the Sinai Bedouin tribes, including trafficking of persons. Border officials have participated in training aimed to improve their skills in interdicting traffickers. They also employed Bedouin trackers and sophisticated technology such as night-vision goggles to enhance their ability to capture Bedouin traffickers in the desert. Egypt has also increased scrutiny at major airports to prevent traffickers from entering the country. The report recommends that the Egyptian government institute a public awareness campaign to educate employers on the rights of women and children working in houses, or in agriculture.
