There was no human trafficking case in fiscal year 2013 for American Samoa, according to the U.S. Department of Labor’s 2014 report on human trafficking issues worldwide, which includes U.S. insular areas.

The report, released last week says that “American Samoa is believed to be a transit and destination location for human trafficking” but in FY2 013 there were no known human trafficking cases.

However, Samoa News should point out that there were no local human trafficking laws until this year (2014), when legislation was enacted.

According to the Attorney General’s Office, there was such a case early last year that it could have used human trafficking laws to prosecute. The case involved Hanipale Malae, who allegedly raped and assaulted three girls — including a 15-year-old — brought in from Samoa as house girls. The case drew immediate criticism from advocates against domestic violence, who said that this case is an extreme indication that the territory needs stronger laws against human trafficking.

The USDOJ report does note that in March this year, the territory’s Legislature passed American Samoa’s first anti trafficking law, which criminalizes human trafficking as a felony offense, with a penalty of five to 10 years’ imprisonment, and mandatory ten years imprisonment if a minor is involved.

American Samoa had no human trafficking cases recorded for FY2011 and FY 2012, according to the USDOJ.

The last — and only — human trafficking case that occurred in American Samoa which was prosecuted by the USDOJ was the case in 2001 against Kil Soo Lee, the South Korean owner of the now defunct Daewoosa Samoa garment factory. The victims in this case — mainly women — were from Viet Nam and had been brought here to work in a garment factory. The case resulted in a lengthy jail term for Kil Soo Lee.  

OTHER TERRITORIES

The USDOJ report said the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands is a “destination and transit location for men, women, and children subjected to forced labor and sex trafficking”. For example, in February this year, a federal court in CNMI accepted the guilty plea of a woman for child sex trafficking and, in a separate case, sentenced a defendant to 235 months in prison for the sex trafficking of a Chinese woman at a karaoke club. The defendant was ordered to pay almost $10,000 in restitution to the victim.

USDOJ also cites Guam as a “source and transit location for men, women, and children", who are subjected to forced labor and sex trafficking. For example, two Guam police officers were found guilty of local offenses for their involvement in a scheme relating to a human trafficking case that was federally prosecuted.

In FY 2013, USDOJ also conducted trafficking investigation training for officials in the Pacific region. In addition, the Guam Human Trafficking Task Force — which is composed of federal and local law enforcement agencies, victim and social service providers, faith-based organizations, and other community groups — conducted workshops for medical and health professionals and engaged in community outreach efforts.

According to the report, Puerto Rico is also a source, transit, and destination location for men, women, and children subjected to forced labor and sex trafficking; while the U.S. Virgin Islands is being used as a  transit location for human trafficking.