Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

is a source and transit country for men, women, and children trafficked for purposes of commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor. Most victims are women, girls, and some boys trafficked within the country to border and tourist areas for sexual exploitation. A government agency has found that families had facilitated the exploitation of many children in prostitution. Impoverished parents reportedly turn over their children for domestic and agricultural servitude in rural areas. Some Uruguayan women have been trafficked to Spain and Italy for sexual exploitation."Uruguay"
''Trafficking in Persons Report 2008''

U.S. Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other ...

(June 4, 2008). ''This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the

public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work to which no exclusive intellectual property rights apply. Those rights may have expired, been forfeited, expressly waived, or may be inapplicable. Because those rights have expired, ...

.'' U.S. State Department's

Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons The Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (J/TIP) is an agency within the United States Department of State charged with investigating and creating programs to prevent human trafficking both within the United States and internation ...

placed the country in "Tier 2" in 2017.

Prosecution

The Government of Uruguay increased anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts in 2007. In December 2007, Uruguay enacted an anti-trafficking statute as part of a comprehensive immigration reform package. Article 78 of this new law prohibits all forms of trafficking in persons, and prescribes penalties of four to 16 years' imprisonment. Uruguayan law also criminalizes trafficking of minors and child pornography, prescribing penalties ranging from six months' to 12 years' imprisonment—penalties which are commensurate with those for other grave crimes. Forced labor is prohibited under Section 1 of Title XI of the Uruguayan penal code, and punishable by six to 12 years' imprisonment. During 2007, the government secured three criminal convictions for

child pornography Child pornography (also called CP, child sexual abuse material, CSAM, child porn, or kiddie porn) is pornography that unlawfully exploits children for sexual stimulation. It may be produced with the direct involvement or sexual assault of a ...

. The government inspects legal

brothels A brothel, bordello, ranch, or whorehouse is a place where people engage in sexual activity with prostitutes. However, for legal or cultural reasons, establishments often describe themselves as massage parlors, bars, strip clubs, body rub ...

and other locations for the presence of minors. No victim rescues had been reported as of 2008. The government cooperates with foreign authorities on international trafficking cases. There is no evidence of official complicity with human trafficking.

Protection

Due to limited resources, the Uruguayan government's efforts to protect trafficking victims have been limited. While the government has provided some assistance to

NGOs A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in ...

working in the area of trafficking, the availability of victim services is uneven across the country, especially outside the capital. The government does not have a formal system for identifying trafficking victims among vulnerable populations, such as women in prostitution or undocumented migrants. The government encourages but does not force victims to assist in the investigation and prosecution of their traffickers.

Victims' rights Victims' rights are legal rights afforded to victims of crime. These may include the right to restitution, the right to a victims' advocate, the right not to be excluded from criminal justice proceedings, and the right to speak at criminal jus ...

are generally respected, and as of 2008 there were no reports of victims being jailed, deported, or otherwise penalized. Uruguayan law provides legal alternatives to the removal of foreign victims to countries where they face hardship or retribution. In 2007, the government assisted IOM with the repatriation of three Uruguayans trafficked abroad.

Prevention

In 2007, the government modestly increased its efforts to raise public awareness about the dangers of human trafficking, and collaborated with IOM to combat trafficking in tourist and border areas. The

Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

produces anti-trafficking commercials for national television, and has a program of including anti-trafficking segments in its sex education curriculum. The government also has sponsored anti-trafficking workshops with participants from the region. Uruguayan troops deployed on international peacekeeping missions have received anti-trafficking training at UN-certified training centers. In 2007, there were no reported government efforts to reduce consumer demand for commercial sex acts.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Human Trafficking In Uruguay

Human rights abuses in Uruguay Crime in Uruguay