The victims of human trafficking in the Dominican Republic they are adolescents, young people, from rural areas, marginalized and poor neighborhoods, and with a low educational level revealed a study Citizen participation.
The research was carried out in 11 municipalities of the Dominican Republic and revealed that towns in tourist areas such as Higüey, La Romana, Puerto Plata and Boca Chica, located east of the Dominican capital, the human trafficking it is sharp.
Tahira Vargas, a member of the research team entitled “Fight Against the Tide,” explained that all forms of trafficking converge in the municipalities studied: exploitation sex, forced labor, forced begging, and domestic servitude.
Vargas, a social anthropologist, stressed that the victims of trafficking are not only Dominicans, but also migrants from Haiti, Venezuela, Colombia and, to a lesser degree, from Ecuador.
“It is an issue that reveals a harsh reality, a problem that is intimately linked to poverty, the commodification of human beings, discrimination, inequality, marginalization, violence and corruption,” said Leidy Blanco, coordinator of Citizen participation.
The study criticized the weak judicialization of trafficking cases in the Dominican Republic, which affects prevention and detection because “it increases the fear of reporting and distrust in the prosecution of the crime.”
The qualitative research was carried out in the municipalities of Sosúa, San Felipe de Puerto Plata, Santiago, San Francisco de Macorís, Higüey, La Romana, San Pedro de Macorís, the National District, Boca Chica, Santo Domingo Este and Santo Domingo Oeste.
