Citizen and foreign victims are sex trafficked into and out of the municipalities of East Timor. They are raped and physically and psychologically harmed in locations within these administrative divisions.

Sex trafficking in East Timor is human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation and slavery that occurs in the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste.[1]

East Timorese citizens, primarily women and girls, have been sex trafficked within the country and to other countries in Asia. Foreign victims are sex trafficked into the country. Children,[2] persons in poverty, and migrants are particularly vulnerable to sex trafficking. Victims are deceived,[2] threatened, and or forced into prostitution.[3] They suffer from physical and psychological trauma[3] and are typically guarded and or locked up in poor conditions. A number contract sexually transmitted diseases from rapes. Traffickers are often members of or facilitated by crime syndicates and gangs.[2]

The government of East Timor has been criticized for its inadequate anti-sex trafficking initiatives. Officials and police have been complicit in sex trafficking.[2]

United Nations Integrated Mission in East Timor

In the 2000s and 2010s, men in the peacekeeping force of the United Nations Integrated Mission in East Timor, which assisted police and took part in prostitution raids, were accused of taking part in prostitution[4] It was alleged they frequented brothels, including those using trafficked women.[5] UN vehicles were used to pick up street prostitutes.[5] There were also allegations that a ship chartered by the UN was being used to traffic children for prostitution in the country.[6]

References

  1. ↑ "10 FACTS ABOUT HUMAN TRAFFICKING IN TIMOR-LESTE" (PDF). IOM. 2018.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "2019 Trafficking in Persons Report: Timor-Leste". U.S. Department of State. 2019.
  3. 1 2 "Putting a Face on Pain: Innovative Training to Fight Trafficking in Timor Leste". International Organization for Migration. July 19, 2016.
  4. ↑ Bowcott, Owen (25 March 2005). "Report reveals shame of UN peacekeepers". the Guardian. Retrieved 22 January 2018.
  5. 1 2 "UN under fire for turning a blind eye to peacekeepers' misconduct". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 11 April 2012.
  6. ↑ Tanonoka Joseph, Whande (29 January 2007). "Peacekeepers as Predators: UN Sex Crimes". Sunday Standard. Retrieved 26 April 2018.


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