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Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29) - Myanmar (RATIFICATION: 1955)

Articles 1(1), 2(1) and 25 of the Convention. Trafficking in persons. The Committee previously noted that according to sections 24 and 25 of the Anti Trafficking in Persons Law of 2005, persons found guilty of trafficking women, children and youth shall be punished with imprisonment from a minimum of ten years to life imprisonment and a fine, while those who are found guilty of trafficking other persons shall be punished with imprisonment from a minimum term of five years to a maximum term of ten years, and may also be liable to a fine. It also noted that a Central Body for Suppression of Trafficking in Persons (CBTIP) was established with three working groups functioning under it; an Anti-Trafficking in Persons Division was created under the CBTIP; bilateral cooperation on cross-border trafficking was concluded with Thailand and China; and a third five-year National Plan of Action (NPA) to Combat Human Trafficking for 2017–21 was adopted. The Committee requested the Government to provide information on the concrete measures taken within the framework of the third five-year NPA to combat trafficking in persons, the activities undertaken by the three working groups and the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Division under the CBTIP, as well as the actions carried out through bilateral cooperation with neighbouring countries.

The Committee notes the Government’s information in its report that in 2018 the CBTIP conducted: 67 awareness-raising talks on trafficking in persons in the various regions and states; 273 awareness-raising talks in various departments attended by over 25,000 participants; 1,081 such talks in schools which were attended by over 375,000 participants; 3,386 such talks for the public which were attended by over 411, 000 participants; and disseminated over 888,000 pamphlets on trafficking in persons. The Government also indicates that within the framework of the NPA, the National Task Force Secretary, the Police Brigadier and the Head of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Division drafted an Annual Work Plan, 2019, for combating trafficking of persons. Following the implementation of this Work Plan, the Department of Fishery established and implemented a pilot project for preventing trafficking in persons in the fishing industry; carried out awareness-raising measures for fishing business men, private factories, and fishing boat and factory owners; and took measures to cancel the business licences of business men who committed labour exploitation in domestic fishing industries. According to the statistical information provided by the Government, from 2018 to 2019, 46 persons were arrested in 29 cases involving 67 victims of trafficking in persons for forced labour, of which 17 persons were victims of trafficking on fishing boats. Of these, 13 cases were related to trafficking of persons to Malaysia (2), Thailand (3) and to China (8). In 20 cases action was taken under the Anti-Trafficking Law. Furthermore, from 2018 to July 2019, 2,615 reports of trafficking of persons were received by the hotline telephone and in seven cases action was taken under the Anti-Trafficking Law. The Committee also notes the detailed information provided by the Government on the various activities undertaken by the Government in cooperation with other countries in its fight against trafficking in persons, in particular various training courses and workshops on strengthening the capacity and coordination on prevention and investigation of trafficking in persons for law enforcement officials conducted in India, China, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and Viet Nam.

Furthermore, according to the information contained in a report on the official website of the President of Myanmar, the country observed the 7th Anti Trafficking in Persons Day in September 2019. This report indicates that the country’s human trafficking cases were found to be 75.24 per cent in forced marriages and 13.59 per cent for forced prostitution and 8.74 per cent for forced labour. By countries of destination, 79.61 per cent were related to China, 1.46 per cent to Thailand and 18.93 per cent within Myanmar. The Committee also notes from this report that since the 6th ceremony of Anti-Trafficking in Persons day in 2018, a total of 210 cases of trafficking in persons occurred, of which about 156 cases were brought to courts, and legal actions were taken against 152 men and 334 women. Money and properties related to cases were confiscated in accordance with the Money Laundering Eradication Law of 2014. The Committee further notes from a 2018 report of the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) that the Myanmar’s Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement, with the support of the IOM launched a manual of standard operating procedures for case management, repatriation and reintegration of victims of trafficking from Thailand. To date, Myanmar and Thailand have coordinated for the safe and dignified return of 500 victims of trafficking from Thailand to Myanmar. The Committee strongly encourages the Government to continue taking effective measures to combat trafficking in persons and to ensure the protection and reintegration of victims of trafficking. It requests the Government to continue to provide information on the concrete measures taken to combat trafficking in persons, including within the framework of the NPA 2017–21, the activities undertaken by the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Division under the CBTIP, as well as the actions carried out through bilateral cooperation with neighbouring countries. The Committee also requests the Government to continue providing information on the application of sections 24 and 25 of the Anti-Trafficking Law in practice, including the number of investigations, prosecutions and convictions, as well as the specific sanctions imposed. It further requests the Government to continue providing information on the number of victims of trafficking that have been identified and provided with appropriate protection and assistance.