American Samoa’s acting Governor Lemanu Peleti Mauga has signed into law legislation that criminalises human trafficking and involuntary servitude.
In a letter to the Fono (legislative Assembly) leaders Lemanu said, “We found that there have been past incidents of human trafficking in American Samoa.”
“Victims of human trafficking are not limited to a certain age, gender, ethnicity or nationality or isolated to certain villages.”
He added, “Human trafficking has gone on too long. It is time that American Samoa comes together and moves forward in eliminating modern slavery from our islands.”
There are four principles contained in the bill:
- Prevention through public awareness, education, outreach and professional training to identify, report and respond to incidents of human trafficking
- Protection for victims of human trafficking
- Prosecution to ensure that traffickers are brought to justice and their sentences reflect the severity of the inhuman treatment of others
- Partnership with villages, agencies, government and organisations that fight human trafficking.
Source
- Samoa News
- Image: globallabourrights.org
