Human Trafficking and Smuggling Report

Source: DHS Open Source Enterprise, 

Daily Human Trafficking and Smuggling Report 

12 August 2011 

West Van Woman Accused Of Human Trafficking A No-Show In Court [Canada]:  The West Vancouver millionaire who faces human trafficking and human smuggling charges was a no-show in Vancouver Provincial Court Wednesday morning.  Mumtaz Ladha — who had an outstanding warrant since May 12 — was arrested at Vancouver International Airport on July 19 after returning to Canada from Tanzania. … A lawyer attended the Wednesday morning appearance in her place and the case was put over to Sept. 19.  Mounties allege the 55-year-old woman hired a 21-year-old African woman in 2008, promising her a work visa and job at Vancouver-area hair salon.  An RCMP investigation asserts that Ladha took the young woman's passport and forced her to work long hours at Ladha's West Vancouver home with no pay.  [HSEC-3.10; Date: 10 August 2011; 

Source: http://www.theprovince.com/West+woman+accused+human+trafficking+show+court/5235956/story.html#ixzz1UeDOzxAN]  

Border Guards Thwart Attempt To Smuggle Egyptians To Italy:  Egypt's border guards stopped an attempt by smugglers to help 18 Egyptians illegally immigrate to Italy by sea.  Security forces received information that a group was smuggling illegal migrants through the Mediterranean, choosing Abu Khashaba and Kafr al-Sheikh as center points for their activities.  Security sources said they prepared ambushes along the coastal area before storming it and arresting 18 people from the governorates of Sharqiya, Fayoum and Qalyubiya.  The arrested migrants told interrogators they had agreed to pay LE30,000 [$5,026] to smugglers in return for helping them to travel to Italy.  [HSEC-3.10; Date: 9 August 2011;

 Source: http://www.almasryalyoum.com/en/node/484746]  

Human Trafficking Into China Rising:  Smuggling of women and children from neighboring nations into China is increasing despite efforts to fight human trafficking, a senior police official said.  Chen Shiqu, head of the Chinese government agency dealing with the problem, said cross-border human traffickers remain a serious scourge and called for greater international cooperation to stop them, China Daily reported Friday.  Most of the victims are from Vietnam, Myanmar and Laos, he said. … Chen said 1,500 cross-border cases involving about 2,000 kidnapped women and infants have been handled since 2009. … Many rescued children had been trafficked in Guangdong and Guangxi for illegal adoption, with boys fetching as much as $6,000 and girls much less.  [HSEC-3.10; Date: 12 August 2011; 

Source:  http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2011/08/12/Human-trafficking-into-China-rising/UPI- 

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Thailand Registers Migrants In Bid To Crack Down On Traffickers:  This week is the final deadline for a migrant worker registration program in Thailand that logs foreign workers and the businesses that employ them.  The program is aimed at cracking down on human trafficking gangs that make a lucrative profit from foreign workers and employers who take advantage of them.  Nai is a 25-year-old Burmese man who came to Thailand six years ago to try to pay off debts from a failed shrimp business in southern Burma.  Like many other Burmese, he chose a criminal gang to help him find work.  Such gangs traffic thousands of Burmese into jobs in factories, agriculture labor, domestic help or as sex workers. … The Thai government says about one million migrant workers have registered with the government program since it began in June. … After the deadline passes, employers could be fined for hiring unregistered workers.  And illegal workers could also face fines or jail.  [HSEC-3.9; Date: 11 August 2011; 

Source: http://www.voanews.com/english/news/asia/southeast/Thailand-Registers-Migrants-in-Bid-to-Crack-Down-on-Traffickers---127514583.html]  

Alarming Rise In Human Trafficking [Pakistan]:  A latest media report has highlighted the growing menace of human trafficking and the urgent need to take measures to check it through a coordinated and firm approach.  According to the report, human traffickers threw 10 Pakistanis in sea on not getting money from them.  Bodies of three of them, who were going for greener pasture to Greece, reached Gujrat sending shock waves among people while the alleged trafficker and his accomplices have gone underground. … Three main frequent routes used by traffickers in Pakistan include Makran Coast, Thar and porous border with Afghanistan besides the sea routes of Karachi, Ormara, Pasni Gwadar and Jiwani to get to the Gulf.  According to a study carried out by a reputed NGO, illegal recruiting agents, corrupt officials, parents, family, friends, relatives and the community are main actors involved in trafficking process, adding, the public departments that can aid or abet this process may include immigration authorities, travel agents and passport issuing authorities.  [HSEC-3.6; Date: 11 August 2011; 

Source: http://pakobserver.net/detailnews.asp?id=108073]