Peru has interinstitutional guidelines for the identification and referral of cases of forced labor and trafficking in persons
The mechanism is the result of the joint efforts of the National Coordination of Specialized Prosecution Offices for Trafficking in Persons, with technical assistance from specialized agencies of the United Nations: ILO, and UNODC
15 March 2024
Content also available in:
español
Lima – Peru now has coordination guidelines for the identification and referral of forced labor and/or trafficking in persons for labor exploitation purposes, a significant milestone in the fight against this crime.
The preparation and validation process of this instrument was led by the National Coordination of Specialized Prosecution Offices for Trafficking in Persons (FISTRAP), with the participation of the Ministry of the Interior (MININTER), the National Police of Peru (PNP), the National Superintendence of Migrations (MIGRACIONES), and the National Superintendence of Labor Inspection (SUNAFIL).
Juan Carlos Villena Campana, Attorney General, highlighted the relevance of having these guidelines to improve interinstitutional coordination. "It is imperative that we recognize the complexity and severity of the challenges we face. We need to optimize our capacity for the adequate identification and referral of cases requiring a response from the criminal justice system. That is why the implementation of these guidelines is a crucial step towards a more effective and coordinated response," he stated.
The guidelines were perfected thanks to coordinated technical assistance from two United Nations agencies: the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) with the support of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) under the project "Response to trafficking for forced labor cases in Latin America"; and the International Labour Organization (ILO).
Collaborative work with public sector entities was highlighted by Thomas Wissing, Deputy Director of the ILO for the Andean Countries. "These guidelines will allow coordinating case identification and referral under the mandate of each institution to produce case law, bring perpetrators of these crimes to justice, and send a clear and strong message stating that forced labor and trafficking are not tolerated in Peru," Wissing said during the official presentation event that gathered around 60 people, including justice operators and officials from the entities mentioned above.
Gilberto Zuleta, Regional Officer of the UNODC Global Programme against Trafficking in Persons, emphasized that in the latest UNODC Global Report on Trafficking in Persons, for the first time, forced labor (38.8%) surpassed sexual exploitation (38.7%) as the main purpose of trafficking. "An irregular migratory status is another vulnerability factor in trafficking due to lack of ID documents and formal livelihoods," Zuleta noted.
In Peru, the number of trafficking cases for labor exploitation and forced labor has been gradually increasing, according to figures from the National Observatory of Citizen Security of MININTER, between 2020 and 2022. However, between January 2019 and August 2021, 24 complaints of forced labor have been identified, according to figures from the Prosecutorial Work Information System (SIATF) and the Prosecutorial Management System (SGF) of the Public Ministry. Additionally, as of July 2021, the National Institute of Prisons (INPE) had not identified any individuals prosecuted or sentenced for this crime.
In this context, it was necessary to have guidelines that improve intergovernmental coordination between institutions of the criminal justice system and administrative entities carrying out labor inspection actions, as well as migration control and verification, to identify and refer suspected cases of forced labor and/or trafficking in persons for labor exploitation purposes.
It is important to note that these guidelines will be implemented under a pilot plan that will last for about 6 to 9 months. This process will seek, in the medium term, the consolidation of joint efforts to adopt an intersectoral tool, as specified by the Attorney General.
The preparation and validation process of this instrument was led by the National Coordination of Specialized Prosecution Offices for Trafficking in Persons (FISTRAP), with the participation of the Ministry of the Interior (MININTER), the National Police of Peru (PNP), the National Superintendence of Migrations (MIGRACIONES), and the National Superintendence of Labor Inspection (SUNAFIL).
Juan Carlos Villena Campana, Attorney General, highlighted the relevance of having these guidelines to improve interinstitutional coordination. "It is imperative that we recognize the complexity and severity of the challenges we face. We need to optimize our capacity for the adequate identification and referral of cases requiring a response from the criminal justice system. That is why the implementation of these guidelines is a crucial step towards a more effective and coordinated response," he stated.
The guidelines were perfected thanks to coordinated technical assistance from two United Nations agencies: the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) with the support of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) under the project "Response to trafficking for forced labor cases in Latin America"; and the International Labour Organization (ILO).
Collaborative work with public sector entities was highlighted by Thomas Wissing, Deputy Director of the ILO for the Andean Countries. "These guidelines will allow coordinating case identification and referral under the mandate of each institution to produce case law, bring perpetrators of these crimes to justice, and send a clear and strong message stating that forced labor and trafficking are not tolerated in Peru," Wissing said during the official presentation event that gathered around 60 people, including justice operators and officials from the entities mentioned above.
Gilberto Zuleta, Regional Officer of the UNODC Global Programme against Trafficking in Persons, emphasized that in the latest UNODC Global Report on Trafficking in Persons, for the first time, forced labor (38.8%) surpassed sexual exploitation (38.7%) as the main purpose of trafficking. "An irregular migratory status is another vulnerability factor in trafficking due to lack of ID documents and formal livelihoods," Zuleta noted.
In Peru, the number of trafficking cases for labor exploitation and forced labor has been gradually increasing, according to figures from the National Observatory of Citizen Security of MININTER, between 2020 and 2022. However, between January 2019 and August 2021, 24 complaints of forced labor have been identified, according to figures from the Prosecutorial Work Information System (SIATF) and the Prosecutorial Management System (SGF) of the Public Ministry. Additionally, as of July 2021, the National Institute of Prisons (INPE) had not identified any individuals prosecuted or sentenced for this crime.
In this context, it was necessary to have guidelines that improve intergovernmental coordination between institutions of the criminal justice system and administrative entities carrying out labor inspection actions, as well as migration control and verification, to identify and refer suspected cases of forced labor and/or trafficking in persons for labor exploitation purposes.
It is important to note that these guidelines will be implemented under a pilot plan that will last for about 6 to 9 months. This process will seek, in the medium term, the consolidation of joint efforts to adopt an intersectoral tool, as specified by the Attorney General.