Report on actions of public institutions on human trafficking in Peru

Written on 14 October 2022.

CHS Alternativo and the Peruvian Ombudsman presented the VIII Alternative Report, a document that analyses the actions of public institutions against human trafficking during the 2020-2021 period.

It shows that the budget for combating trafficking has been substantially reduced in the last eight years, reaching just 0.12 Sol per person, which is minimal. "In terms of practicality, this means that the State invests less per person than what a piece of bread currently costs," said the Ombudsman Eliana Revollar Añaños. The document also points out that the COVID-19 pandemic and the political crisis have had an impact on human trafficking. Traffickers have innovated in their recruitment methods and have moved to the digital space, through social media networks. In addition, they have taken advantage of the vulnerability of those who have lost their jobs, live in situations of violence, or require urgent economic assistance.

On the other hand, during the state of emergency, state services that were not considered essential were left neglected, which is why arrests, investigations, prosecutions, and convictions for trafficking were postponed, leaving a climate of impunity that allowed criminals to operate with lower risk of detection and sanction.

The report pointed out that there is no single registry of victims with information on the complaints, legal status of the persons under investigation, protection measures, sentences, methods of recruitment, transit and destinations, and it is not known what happens to the victims when they are rescued. This is information of vital importance to generate the appropriate measures to combat exploitation. Another point of concern that the report highlights is that the channels for reporting cases of human trafficking are not known to the public or the victims.

The VIII Alternative Report also indicates that there are a large number of male victims of labour exploitation or forced labour, apart from young women trafficked for sexual exploitation.