[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1412 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 1412

   Congratulating the Government of South Africa upon its first two 
             successful convictions for human trafficking.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 27, 2010

 Mr. Smith of New Jersey (for himself, Ms. Granger, and Mrs. Maloney) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
                           on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
   Congratulating the Government of South Africa upon its first two 
             successful convictions for human trafficking.

Whereas from June 11, 2010, through July 11, 2010, the 2010 FIFA World Cup will 
        be hosted by South Africa and include games played in stadiums across 
        the country, including Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, Durban, Bloemfontein, 
        Rustenburg, Pretoria, Johannesburg, Nelspruit, and Polokwane;
Whereas the 2010 FIFA World Cup is likely to attract an estimated 2,700,000 
        local spectators and 350,000 to 500,000 visitors to the country;
Whereas the influx of tourism is likely to lead to an increase in demand for 
        sexual services and create demand for the commercial sexual exploitation 
        of women and children;
Whereas the preparations for the 2010 FIFA World Cup have resulted in an influx 
        of foreign workers, some of whom have gone on strike for nonpayment of 
        wages;
Whereas the hospitality industries may be particularly susceptible to labor 
        trafficking during the 2010 FIFA World Cup;
Whereas the Government of South Africa has invested in media campaigns and the 
        training of law enforcement to detect and prevent human trafficking;
Whereas the Government of South Africa has ordered schools to be closed during 
        the 2010 FIFA World Cup, raising concerns that children will be 
        unattended during a period of high trafficking potential;
Whereas the United States Department of State has reported that, ``South Africa 
        is a source, transit, and destination country for trafficked men, women, 
        and children. . . . Children are largely trafficked within the country . 
        . . to urban centers like Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban, and 
        Bloemfontein--girls trafficked for the purposes of commercial sexual 
        exploitation and domestic servitude; boys trafficked for forced street 
        vending, food service, begging, crime, and agriculture . . .'';
Whereas women and girls have reportedly been trafficked into South Africa from 
        as far away as Russia, Thailand, Pakistan, Philippines, India, China, 
        Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Angola, 
        Burundi, Ethiopia, Senegal, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya, Cameroon, 
        Nigeria, and Somalia; and
Whereas civil society in South Africa has invested tremendous energy and 
        resources into preventing human trafficking at the 2010 FIFA World Cup 
        through Cape Town Tourism, Leadership Conference of Consecrated 
        Religious and the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference of the 
        Catholic Church, the Salvation Army, the Tshwane Counter-Trafficking 
        Coalition for 2010, and many other nongovernmental and religious 
        organizations: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) congratulates the Government of South Africa upon its 
        first two successful convictions for human trafficking;
            (2) calls on the Government of South Africa to move quickly 
        to adopt the Prevention and Combating of Trafficking in Persons 
        Bill in order to facilitate future prosecutions;
            (3) calls on the Government of South Africa to increase 
        awareness among all levels of relevant government officials as 
        to their responsibilities under the trafficking provisions of 
        the Sexual Offenses and Children's Acts;
            (4) calls on the Government of South Africa to prioritize 
        anti-trafficking law enforcement during the 2010 FIFA World Cup 
        through expanded law enforcement presence, raids, and other 
        measures in areas where trafficking for labor and sexual 
        exploitation are likely to occur;
            (5) calls on the Government of South Africa to divert all 
        prostituted persons under the age of 18 from the criminal 
        system into rehabilitative care;
            (6) calls on the Government of South Africa to ensure 
        shelters and rehabilitative care are available to all human 
        trafficking victims for the 2010 FIFA World Cup and beyond;
            (7) calls on the Government of South Africa to adopt 
        measures to protect vulnerable children, including those 
        children unattended because of school closures and refugee 
        children, as well as other potential victims, from sexual and 
        labor exploitation; and
            (8) urges the Government of South Africa to detain and 
        prosecute tourists participating in commercial sexual 
        exploitation of women and children during the 2010 FIFA World 
        Cup.
                                 <all>