[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 14 (Thursday, February 10, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1307-S1308]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  SENATE RESOLUTION 48--EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF THE SENATE REGARDING 
                         TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS

  Mr. LUGAR submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 
the Committee on Foreign Relations:

                               S. Res. 48

       Whereas an estimated 600,000 to 800,000 people are 
     trafficked annually;
       Whereas approximately 70 percent of trafficked persons are 
     female and 50 percent are children;
       Whereas approximately 250,000 people are trafficked in, 
     out, and through the South East Asia region each year;
       Whereas the tsunami that struck South East Asia, South 
     Asia, and East Africa on December 26, 2004, killed more than 
     160,000 people, affected 5,000,000 people, and left an 
     estimated 35,000 children orphaned;
       Whereas these orphaned children are particularly vulnerable 
     to being trafficked for sexual exploitation, forced labor, or 
     to be child soldiers;
       Whereas governments of countries affected by the earthquake 
     and tsunami in the Indian Ocean have taken measures to 
     prevent the trafficking of children and other vulnerable 
     persons;
       Whereas President Susilo Bambang Yudhyono of Indonesia has 
     ordered that immigration and police officers not allow 
     children from Aceh to be removed from the country;
       Whereas Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi of Malaysia 
     undertook measures to prevent child trafficking by directing 
     immigration enforcement officials at entry points in Malaysia 
     to be on the alert for child trafficking and by imposing a 
     temporary ban on the adoption of foreign children;
       Whereas, in India, the State Government of Tamil Nadu 
     opened shelters to protect orphaned or separated children and 
     pledged that it would provide orphans of the tsunami support 
     and education;
       Whereas the Royal Thai Government has placed all tsunami 
     orphans in that country in the protective custody of extended 
     family members and has awarded boarding school scholarships 
     to children affected by the tsunami;
       Whereas, in Sri Lanka, the National Child Protection 
     Authority (NCPA), UNICEF, and nongovernmental organizations 
     have mobilized teams to identify and register all children 
     who have been separated from their immediate families;
       Whereas the United Nations Convention Against Transnational 
     Organized Crime (hereafter in this resolution referred to as 
     the ``Organized Crime Convention'') and the Protocol to 
     Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, 
     Especially Women and Children, a protocol to the Organized 
     Crime Convention (hereafter in this resolution referred to as 
     the ``Trafficking Protocol''), require countries to enact 
     laws to criminalize trafficking in persons, punish 
     traffickers, and assist victims;
       Whereas the United States, on December 13, 2000, signed, 
     but has not yet ratified, the

[[Page S1308]]

     Organized Crime Convention and the Trafficking Protocol;
       Whereas ratification by the United States of the Organized 
     Crime Convention and the Trafficking Protocol would enhance 
     the ability of the United States Government to render and 
     receive assistance on a global basis in the common struggle 
     to prevent, investigate, and prosecute trafficking in 
     persons; and
       Whereas, like the United States, most countries affected by 
     the tsunami disaster have signed, but not yet ratified, the 
     Organized Crime Convention and the Trafficking Protocol: Now, 
     therefore, be it
       Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that--
       (1) combating trafficking in persons should continue to be 
     a priority of United States foreign policy;
       (2) the United States should ratify the United Nations 
     Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime and the 
     Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in 
     Persons, Especially Women and Children;
       (3) the President should commend the efforts of the 
     governments of those countries affected by the December 26, 
     2004, tsunami to protect their children from the dangers of 
     trafficking; and
       (4) the President should urge all countries to ratify the 
     United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized 
     Crime and the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish 
     Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, 
     particularly those countries that have been most affected by 
     the tsunami and in which children face the resulting 
     increased risk of being abducted and trafficked.
  Mr. LUGAR. Mr. President, I rise to submit a resolution expressing 
the Sense of the Senate regarding the trafficking in children following 
the Asian tsunami.
  The recent tsunami in the Indian Ocean region was a natural disaster 
unlike anything in recent human history. It is estimated that the 
tsunami claimed the lives of more than 160,000 people throughout the 
region and displaced more than 1 million.
  This disaster has taken an incredible toll on children. The United 
Nations Children Fund, UNICEF, estimates that children comprise more 
than one-third of all deaths. Tens of thousands of children have lost 
family members and friends and are coping with unspeakable trauma. 
Nearly 35,000 children have been orphaned, and many more have been 
separated from their families. These children are in need of food, 
water, and shelter. They face the imminent threats of hunger, disease, 
and diarrhea.
  In addition to these dangers, these children are also vulnerable to 
being trafficked for sexual exploitation, forced labor, or to be child 
soldiers. According to the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in 
Persons at the Department of State, an estimated 600,000 to 800,000 
people are trafficked every year, some 50 percent of whom are children. 
In South East Asia alone, nearly 250,000 people are trafficked in, out, 
and through the region. Without their families, the children orphaned 
by the tsunami lack protection from predators who would profit from 
their tragedy.
  My resolution acknowledges this uniquely vulnerable group and urges 
the United States and other countries to ratify the Protocol to 
Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women 
and Children and the underlying U.N. Convention Against Transnational 
Organized Crime. The Protocol requires countries to enact laws to 
criminalize trafficking in persons, punish traffickers and assist 
victims. In addition, the Protocol would enhance our ability to give 
and receive assistance on a global basis in the common struggle to 
prevent, investigate and prosecute trafficking.
  On December 13, 2000, the United States signed these international 
agreements. Last June, the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations held a 
hearing on these very important law enforcement treaties. At the 
earliest opportunity, I intend to schedule a vote on the Convention 
Against Transnational Organized Crime and the Protocol to Prevent, 
Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons at a business meeting of the 
Committee. By ratifying the Trafficking Protocol, and urging other 
countries to do the same, we would send a strong message to the world 
that this modern-day form of slavery must be stopped and that the 
United States is committed to ensuring that perpetrators are punished 
and that victims are helped.

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