DOJ Takes Action Against Traffickers in Human Beings
Posted May 04, 2001

As part of our ongoing efforts to share important newsworthy items on U.S. immigration matters in our MurthyBulletin, we share this article on the action being taken against trafficking in human beings.

U. S. Attorney General John Ashcroft has launched an effort to stop human trafficking. The Attorney General's plan encourages cooperation among agencies within the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), including the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the DOJ's Civil Rights Division. There is now a toll-free hotline for victims of trafficking, and two new attorney positions will be created at DOJ to identify trafficking victims and train prosecutors. Training will include familiarizing the prosecutors with the recent Trafficking Victims Protection Act, enacted in October of 2000, and assistance in pursuing criminal cases against traffickers and protecting victims.

The hotline number is 1-888-428-7581, available 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday. Services are offered in a variety of languages. Additional outreach projects include distribution of information packets and joint efforts with community organizations including victims' and immigrants' rights organizations and shelters.

INS has also issued a fact sheet about trafficking, which it describes as a type of slavery. INS estimates that about 50,000 persons a year are illegally trafficked into the U.S. Victims end up working under deplorable conditions in garment factories, or are forced into the sex trade. The fact sheet provides descriptions of several egregious cases of slavery and exploitation.