Brunei Sex

Discouraging Sex Tourism. The Government of Brazil is fighting sex tourism by asking hotels to be active in discouraging child prostitution on their premises. Hotels participating in the program receive an extra "star" in their quality rating. Brazil also distributes brochures to visiting tourists making them aware of the penalties associated with exploiting minors. The Government of The Gambia asks visitors to give information to the police about sex tourists and the sexual exploitation of children through a special tip system. The government requires fingerprints before residence permits are issued to foreigners in order to check criminal records to prevent known exploiters from operating in the country. The Tourism Bill before the National Assembly provides protective measures for children against sex tourists. The Gambian Government and the Government of The Netherlands set up a special police unit to monitor and track Dutc ... [Read More]

Country Narratives -- Countries H through P

Trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation is specifically prohibited and subject to punishment in The Netherlands. But while the punishment for rape is twelve years, the punishment for trafficking for sexual exploitation is six years with more severe penalties for aggravating circumstances, such as trafficking of a minor. The average sentence for trafficking for sexual exploitation alone is even lower: eighteen months. A law to prohibit and punish other forms of trafficking, such as forced labor and protection of victims of forced labor was introduced but was not adopted as of April 2003. There is a national public prosecutor for sex trafficking and an anti-trafficking coordinator in each district court. Sex trafficking is reportedly a high priority for police in many regions of the country. Approximately 217 cases were prosecuted last year, showing an increase from the previous year. While there were no reported convictions, the proportion of cases resulting in sentences ... [Read More]

V. Country Narratives - Tier 3

The Government of Belarus does not meet the minimum standards due to a lack of resources and corruption. The new Criminal Code, which went into effect January 1, 2001, penalizes trafficking in persons for the purpose of sexual or other kinds of exploitation, as well as the hiring of persons for sexual or other exploitation. The penalty for trafficking is substantially less than that for rape or forcible sexual assault. At the time of this report, there was one open criminal case, and 12 cases had been proven. In theory the Government has programs to assist victims of trafficking and provide witnesses; however, in practice this does not occur. Victims are detained and/or jailed until the investigation identifies them as victims, and can be prosecuted for violations of other laws. The Ministry of Internal Affairs conducted one seminar on trafficking in October 1999 and another in April 2000. ... [Read More]

I) Southeast Asia and the Pacific

The GVN took another important step in 2001 concerning HIV/AIDS prevention by signing an agreement with the United States whereby the USG’s Centers for Disease Control will assist the Ministry of Health with the first stage of a U.S. $10 million grant to expand the country’s HIV/AIDS prevention and care program. The funds will be used to support a wide range of HIV/AIDS programs and activities, including peer education, voluntary counseling and testing, and prevention and treatment of other sexually transmitted infections. ... [Read More]

Brunei

Under the PROTECT Act of April 2003, it is a crime, prosecutable in the United States, for a U.S. citizen or permanent resident alien, to engage in illicit sexual conduct in a foreign country with a person under the age of 18, whether or not the U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident alien intended to engage in such illicit sexual conduct prior to going abroad. For purposes of the PROTECT Act, illicit sexual conduct includes any commercial sex act in a foreign country with a person under the age of 18. The law defines a commercial sex act as any sex act, on account of which anything of value is given to or received by a person under the age of 18. ... [Read More]

Brunei

Brunei has been a destination country for persons trafficked for labor and sexual exploitation. A statute outlaws sexual exploitation and trafficking of women and girls, and a variety of other laws, primarily those related to prostitution and the protection of minors, could be applied against sex traffickers. However, authorities only rarely investigated and prosecuted sex traffickers, particularly when the victims were foreigners. Immigration, labor, and religious regulations could deter trafficking, but were unevenly implemented. The Government has tightened regulations and enforcement to deter labor traffickers and improved its record in protecting foreign trafficking victims. ... [Read More]

Brunei

The Constitution does not contain specific provisions prohibiting discrimination based on race, sex, disability, language, and social status. ...

The civil law, based on English common law, provides citizens with a fair and efficient judicial process. Shari'a (Islamic law) supersedes civil law in some areas, including divorce, inheritance, and some sexual crimes. Shari'a law is not applied to non-Muslims. In September the first group of lawyers trained in both civil and Shari'a law graduated and were expected to assist in the proposed alignment of the two legal systems into a comprehensive legal code. The country does not have a "Law Society" (bar association) to promote lawyers’ public accountability. The law lacks provisions to allow companies or individuals to sue the Government, which traditionally resolves disputes with generous, non-negotiable settlements, or, in some cases, simply refuses to settle. There is no legal provision to provide affordable legal counsel for poor defendants, except in capital cases. Such defendants may act as their own lawyers in court. ... [Read More]

Brunei

A statute outlaws sexual exploitation and trafficking of women and girls. In addition, a variety of other laws, primarily those related to prostitution and the protection of minors, could be applied against sex traffickers. The country has been a destination for a small number of persons trafficked for sexual exploitation from China and within the region. There were very few identifiable cases of trafficking, and the majority of women who entered the country as sex workers were considered to have done so voluntarily. Immigration, labor, and religious regulations that criminalize prostitution also served to deter trafficking. There were reports of foreign household laborers who worked under harsh conditions and whose freedom of movement was restricted (see Section 6.e.). ... [Read More]

Country Narratives -- Countries A through G

Belarus’ criminal code includes specific penalties for trafficking for the purposes of sexual or other kinds of exploitation, but the government continues to group trafficking crimes with sexual assault or rape. Investigations are hampered by lack of expertise, but improved due to training by the NGO community and foreign governments. The Interior Ministry opened 90 cases of trafficking women abroad for prostitution and 20 cases of recruitment for sexual exploitation and abduction of minors. A total of 35 defendants reportedly were convicted for trafficking in persons. Belarusian police participated with German police in a criminal investigation involving the trafficking of more than 160 Belarusian women and terminated the operations of 10 organized criminal groups operating in Belarus. The Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare works to regulate and monitor newspaper ads to ensure each entity is licensed. Belarus has law enforcement agreements with Turkey, Israel, Bulgaria, Romania, ... [Read More]