Hong Kong rejects US criticism over human trafficking

Hong Kong rejects US criticism over human traffickingHong Kong - The Hong Kong government Thursday hit back at a US State Department report which claimed the former British colony was doing a worse job than last year in tackling human smuggling.

The annual US report "Trafficking in Persons" downgraded Hong Kong from a tier 1 to a tier 2 status, saying it did not fully comply with the minimum global standards for the elimination of trafficking.

The report described the city as "a transit point for illegal immigrants ... forced commercial exploitation, forced commercial sexual exploitation and forced labour."

It quoted an unnamed foreign consulate that identified seven trafficking victims who had been recruited to work as waitresses in Hong Kong then forced into prostitution.

Most women working as prostitutes and men involved in illegal labour in the wealthy city of 7 million come from neighbouring mainland China, or poorer south-east Asian countries.

A Hong Kong government spokesman described the criticisms as "unfounded and unfair" and said the city attached great importance to combating human trafficking.

He said the city government was "puzzled and disappointed" at the decision to downgrade its ranking.

"We do not see any difference, certainly no deterioration, in the trend of such crimes or effectiveness of our law enforcement in terms of number of arrests, prosecutions or convictions," he said.

The spokesman said the quoted case involving seven trafficking victims had "never been brought to the attention of our law enforcement agencies."

"We will continue to liaise with the US Consul-General with a view to taking strict and effective enforcement actions against any such cases, if substantiated," he said.

China was also given a tier 2 ranking in the annual report and warned it will be downgraded to tier 3 next year unless it improves its record against trafficking.

Hong Kong reverted to Chinese rule in 1997 under a 'one country, two systems' arrangement under which it maintains a degree of judicial and political autonomy. (dpa)