Police on Monday issued a wanted bulletin for a man in relations to human trafficking and forgery at the Central Immigration and Passport Office, Camp Street.Kirk Errol Paton is wanted by the police for questioning in relation to ‘Trafficking in Person and Forgery’ on November 06, 2014 and anyone with information that may lead to his arrest is asked to contact the police.
Human trafficking remains a major problem here and only last week Social Protection Minister, Volda Lawrence urged Amerindian leaders to play their part in eliminating TIP. During an interactive session at the just concluded National Toshaos Conference Lawrence was asked what follow- up services are being offered by the ministry to young people who have been sexually assaulted or trafficked.
The minister in her response pointed out that counselling is provided, however the Ministry is faced with a shortage of Probation Officers. To address the problem, the Ministry is currently re-assigning the task of these officers to facilitate more time and focus on following-up on pending cases and support for victims, she explained. Further, Minister Lawrence noted that she recently returned from Kwakwani, Region 10, where she saw a ‘child holding a child.’ “It was a 13- year old child, who is the mother of a one-year plus son, and nobody said anything, not the police, not the Community Health Worker, nobody,” she stressed.
The United States in its 2016 TIP report called on the Guyana Government to vigorously investigate and prosecute sex and labour trafficking cases here and hold convicted traffickers accountable- including complicit officials by imposing sentences that are commensurate with the severity of the crime. Guyana was taken off the watchlist for TIP, moving from Tier 2 on the Watch List to Tier Two. Guyana was placed on the Tier Two Watch List three years ago and has since mounted numerous efforts to improve its rating. In addition to calling for holding TIP offenders accountable, the US is recommending the denying of bail and ordering restitution, where appropriate. It also called on the Guyana Government to finalise and issue written procedures to guide and encourage front-line officials, including police, health, immigration, labour, mining, and forestry personnel to identify and protect victims of forced labour and sex trafficking.
The United States also wants Guyana to train law enforcement, judiciary officials, and front-line responders, especially those working outside the capital, on victim identification, referral to services, and victim-centered investigations. “Allocate additional staff to the inter-ministerial anti-trafficking unit and provide sufficient funding and resources for it to investigate trafficking in the mining sector and conduct awareness campaigns; provide additional protection for victims to enable them to appear in court and testify against traffickers in a way that does not further endanger them,” the US Government recommended. Washington called on Guyana to increase funding for NGOs that identify and assist victims; take efforts to ensure victims are not summarily deported without the opportunity to assist in a trial against their traffickers; and also that they are not penalised for crimes committed as a result of being subjected to trafficking.