The United States issued a stern warning to China on Tuesday over its record on human trafficking, downgrading the country’s status to a “tier three” country on its annual trafficking report.
The report listed China as one of the worst human trafficking offenders. The Global Slavery Index estimates over 3 million Chinese citizens are living in “modern slavery”, though this number does not account for non-Chinese citizens living under forced labor in China.
China and other tier three countries such as Iran and North Korea, risk losing humanitarian aid and may face economic sanctions or be barred from participating in US cultural and educational exchange programs. However, it is possible for US presidents to waive these repercussions.
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Although it may seem like a sudden change, China has been under scrutiny for human trafficking previously. Just last year, the report named China a “tier two watch list” country, meaning they did not meet minimum US standards, but were making efforts to improve the human trafficking in their nation.
Since then, however, China has not made enough improvement.
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson says China “has not taken serious steps to end its own complicity in trafficking, including forced laborers from North Korea that are located in China”.
Both Tillerson and the report agree that North Koreans in China are one of the groups at greatest risk. According to the BBC, Tillerson estimates that there are between 50,000 and 80,000 North Koreans forced to work overseas, mostly in China and Russia, and send their wages back to the capital of Pyongyang.
Lu Kang, spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, says it opposes the downgrade and that the nation’s “commitment to fighting human trafficking has been resolute” and the results have been “obvious for everyone to see”.
The report says that China failed to properly screen North Koreans for signs of trafficking, and has also convicted fewer sex traffickers over the past year.
Chinese law does not criminalize all forms of human trafficking, such as prostitution of children under the age of 18, meaning forced labor laws do not meet international standards.
Annually, forced labor and sex trafficking generates $150 billion in illegal profits, according to the International Labor Organization (ILO), and governments can reap economic benefits of the labor.
Still, trafficking and forced labor can also be harmful to a country, in addition to the victims.
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Forced labor and human trafficking victims are denied access to basic health care, education, and legal rights. Lack of basic human necessities means more illnesses and diseases will spread. Without access to education, larger portions of society will be illiterate or undereducated, leaving gaps in the legal workforce.
“Forced labour is bad for business and development and especially for its victims”, ILO Director-General Guy Ryder says, and that the international community must work to “eradicate this fundamentally evil, but hugely profitable practice as soon as possible.”