While information on the status of human trafficking in the Solomon Islands is very limited, reports show growing trends of trafficking in girls and women for sexual exploitation to logging camps and local fishing boats. Women from Southeast Asia and China are reportedly transported to the capital, Honiara, for forced prostitution, and the U.S. Department of State has expressed concern about child-sex tourism. ABA ROLI launched a program in the Solomon Islands in September 2010 to help prevent and reduce human trafficking by strengthening the country’s legal mechanisms. With support from the U.S. Department of State’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, ABA ROLI worked with local partners in the Solomon Islands to:
- develop a legislative framework to prevent and deter human trafficking
- bolster policies that increase access to quality services for human-trafficking survivors
- enhance witness and victim protection
- develop a cadre of young lawyers to serve as human trafficking experts within government and non-governmental institutions
- raise awareness about the threat of human trafficking and about prevention.