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Singapore conviction a first under law to stop human trafficking

FORUM Staff

Singapore vowed to take strong action against anyone who participates in human trafficking after authorities convicted a couple in mid-November 2019 of exploiting migrant Bangladeshi women who were recruited to dance in nightclubs.

The conviction of a married Indian couple in Singapore marked the island nation’s first court success under a 2015 anti-trafficking law, Reuters reported. The couple, according to court records, subjected the women to oppressive conditions, including verbal abuse, confiscation of their passports and control of their movement.

“The conviction of the first labor trafficking case underscores our commitment to combat human trafficking,” said Shirley Lim, a director at Singapore’s Ministry of Manpower, adding that two other labor trafficking cases were pending in court. “We will continue to take strong actions to detect, deter and prosecute trafficking-in-persons cases.”

With a total population of about 5.6 million, Singapore is home to about 1 million migrant workers from countries such as Bangladesh, Burma, China and Indonesia. The migrants work in sectors that range from construction to service industries.

Human trafficking is not unique to Singapore in the Indo-Pacific region. A recent international report said that 26% of the child labor used in global supply chains — the highest percentage for any region in the world — emanated from East Asia and Southeast Asia. The report, penned for G20 employment ministers by the International Labour Organization, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the International Organization for Migration and the United Nations Children’s Fund, said human trafficking was apparent in industries that include raw mineral extraction and agriculture. The report underscored the critical role states play in filling gaps in legislation and law enforcement to stop human trafficking.

In the Singapore case, Priyanka Batthacharya Rajesh, 29, and Malkar Savlaram Anant, 49, promised the Bangladeshi women jobs as dancers in nightclubs along Singapore’s Boat Quay with a monthly salary of 60,000 Bangladeshi taka, or U.S. $706. All three of the women were not allowed to keep the tips they earned, and two were not paid their monthly salaries, according to a report by Channel NewsAsia.

The women shared a six-bedroom apartment with the couple and two club DJs and were not allowed to leave on their own and were not given keys to the apartment. Their employers made them surrender their passports and didn’t give them work permits. One of the women eventually was forced into prostitution, according to the court records.

Sentencing for the couple is scheduled for December 19, 2019. Each faces up to 10 years in jail and a fine under Singapore’s Prevention of Human Trafficking Act. Human rights activists urged Singaporean authorities to raise awareness among migrant workers so they will report future violations, Reuters reported.

“Employers should not think they can get away with exploiting another human being,” said Michael Chiam, executive director of Hagar International, a nonprofit humanitarian organization based in Switzerland.

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