U.S. and Bahamian Government Officials Recommit to Combating Trafficking In Persons

From left: Mr. Jack Thompson, Ms. Cleola Hamilton, Ambassador Luis CdeBaca,The Hon. Fred Mitchell, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Immigration, Ms. Missouri Sherman-Peter, Mr. Philip Miller, and U.S. Chargé d’Affaires John Dinkelman (Photo State Dept)

On Monday, August 13, 2012, U.S. Ambassador-at-Large Luis CdeBaca visited Nassau, The Bahamas, to hold high level bilateral meetings with senior government officials on Trafficking In Persons (TIP) issues.  Ambassador CdeBaca was appointed by President Obama to coordinate TIP-related activities for the U.S. government and serves as a Senior Advisor to the U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.  Ambassador CdeBaca directs the State Department’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking In Persons, which assesses global trends, provides training and assistance, and advocates internationally for an end to modern slavery.

 During his one-day official visit, Ambassador CdeBaca met with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, The Hon. Fred Mitchell; Minister of National Security, The Hon. Dr. Bernard Nottage; Attorney General, The Hon. Allyson Maynard-Gibson; Members of The Bahamas’ TIP Committee and representatives from various local NGO’s including the Crisis Center and  HOPHAS, (Haitian Organization for the Prevention of HIV/and AIDS). The meetings gave the officials an opportunity to candidly address the TIP concerns facing the region and discuss multiagency joint-strategies aimed at ending all forms of modern slavery, which knows no borders. 

 Each year, the U.S. Secretary of State submits an annual Report to Congress with the goal of creating partnerships around the world in the fight against Trafficking In Persons. This year’s TIP Report includes 186 countries and territories including The Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands.  

 The 2012 TIP Report on The Bahamas covers activities undertaken by the government of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas from April 2011 – March 2012.  The Bahamas’ ranking in the report remains unchanged from last year. 

 The U.S. Department of State’s 2012 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report  was released publicly by Secretary of State Hillary R. Clinton on Tuesday, June 19, 2012 and is available on the U.S. Department of State’s website at http://www.state.gov/j/tip.