The U.S. State Department has released its latest Trafficking in Persons Report, citing China and Russia for lack of accountability in the global human trafficking scourge that subjects more than 27 million people to slavery.
The report ranks 188 countries throughout the globe based on a tier system. By downgrading China and Russia, the State Department removed them from the “watch list” and transferred them to what is known as the “bottom tier” of the ranking system — a position that could possibly result in U.S. sanctions against the nations.
“When we help countries to prosecute traffickers, we are strengthening the rule of law. When we bring victims out of exploitation, we are helping to create more stable and productive communities,” Secretary of State John Kerry said in a statement. “When we stop this crime from happening in the first place, we are preventing the abuse of those who are victimized as well as the ripple effect that caused damage throughout communities into our broader environment and which corrupt our global supply chains.”
Tier 1 governments are those that abide by the Trafficking Victims Protection Act standards, according to the U.S. Department of State. Tier 2 countries are those that are not yet complying but are showing signs of improvement.
On the lower end of the spectrum, countries on the Tier 2 “watch list” are those that aren’t complying and are making efforts, yet provide no evidence to prove their measures are working. Their status is solely determined by a commitment to do better, rather than actual evidence.
This is where China and Russia fell last year, but this year, they’re categorized as Tier 3, the lowest on the list. The category is defined by countries that are not making any efforts to combat human trafficking. Uzbekistan was also downgraded to Tier 3. In all, 27 countries received reviews that downgraded them a category.
Those already on the Tier 3 list include North Korea and Saudi Arabia, deemed the worst actors in the human trafficking trade. In all, 18 countries now make up the Tier 3 list.
China has already disputed the U.S. ranking, claiming the accusations are short-sighted.
“We are against irresponsible accusations against China on this issue,” China’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said, according to Bloomberg News. “The U.S. should treat China’s effort fairly and objectively, and stop making one-sided judgments.”
Russia also accused the U.S. government’s ranking of the country as one motivated by global politics, according to Bloomberg.
The United Nations estimates that illicit human trafficking trade generates up to $32 billion annually for individuals and organized crime.
The Polaris Project’s director of communication, Megan Fowler, welcomed the report “for again spotlighting the appallingly high rate of human trafficking around the globe, including here in the United States.”
The Polaris Project, an organization that addresses the growing problem of human trafficking within the U.S., received 21,000 calls to its national human trafficking hotline in 2012. This year, the hotline has experienced a 45 percent increase in calls.
According to The Washington Post, President Barack Obama has roughly 3 months to decide whether sanctions will be applied against those on the Tier 3 list, including China and Russia.
If Obama decides to move forward with sanctions, the actions could limit aid to the countries. Limiting U.S. funds through the World Bank and International Monetary Fund is one option the president could exercise.