US Trafficking in Persons Report: Georgia only EaP state ‘fully meeting’ trafficking elimination standards
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The US Department of States has released its Trafficking in Persons report for 2020 in which Georgia remains in Tier 1, along with the US, UK, Switzerland and others, for fully meeting minimum standards for the elimination of human trafficking.
Georgia is the only Eastern Partnership state in Tier 1.
By the US Department of State.
The Georgian government continued to demonstrate serious and sustained efforts during the reporting period; therefore Georgia remained in Tier 1. These efforts included increasing overall prosecution and victim protection efforts. The government prosecuted more suspects, identified more victims, and provided more comprehensive victim assistance,” said the report.
The report says that the Georgian government increased the number of mobile identification groups from four to six and continued proactive identification efforts.
The report states that although the Georgian government meets the minimum standards, the government requires foreign victims to remain in-country through the end of the trial, likely hindering victim cooperation, particularly from foreign victims wanting to repatriate, due to slow court proceedings.
Today, @JTIP_State released the annual Trafficking in Persons Report. This year’s TIP Report celebrates 20 years of progress and paves the way for advancement in the fight to #EndTrafficking. https://t.co/MOQQc1yZHQ
— Department of State (@StateDept) June 25, 2020
The government did not provide adequate public assessments or information on its efforts and at times lacked transparency. In addition, obtaining official victim status through the Permanent Group, a five-member board of nongovernmental and international organization representatives, was increasingly difficult,” said the report.
The report also says that the Georgian labor inspectorate did not have the staff, resources, and training to conduct labor oversight responsibilities fully.