A raid on Wednesday night by the Counter-Trafficking in Persons Unit of the Ministry of Social Protection has led to the detention of 11 women, including one Guyanese, who are suspected to be victims of human trafficking.
Stabroek News was told that the women were held at the Rio Inn nightclub, where they worked as strippers. It is understood that ten of the women are from the Dominican Republic.
They remained in custody up to late yesterday afternoon to assist with investigations, police sources said.
It was yet to be determined if the women were indeed victims of trafficking and a source told this newspaper that checks were being made to determine if they were legally in Guyana.
In the latest US State Department Trafficking in Persons Report, Guyana received a better ranking, moving from the Tier Two Watch List to Tier Two, with the finding that although the country still does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, it is making significant efforts to do so.
However, the report criticised the government, among other things, for not allocating additional personnel to the “severely understaffed” anti-trafficking unit and its failure to increase protection and services for victims outside the capital or those participating in investigations against their traffickers. It was also noted that the state continued to prosecute and punish suspected trafficking victims for crimes committed as a result of being subjected to trafficking.
