U.S. Department of State 2002 Trafficking in Persons Report - France

France (Tier 1)

France is a destination country for trafficked victims, primarily women, from Africa, Central and Eastern Europe, and the former Soviet Union. To a lesser extent, France is also a transit country for trafficked women from Africa, South America, and Eastern and Southern Europe. Women are trafficked into prostitution and domestic servitude. There are some reports of Chinese and Colombian men trafficked into bonded or forced labor.

The Government of France fully complies with minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, including making serious and sustained efforts to eliminate severe forms of trafficking with respect to law enforcement, protection of victims, and prevention of trafficking. France does not yet have a law specifically against trafficking, but has several criminal laws against trafficking-related offenses, including laws that allow prosecution in the case of domestic slavery, domestic or sexual exploitation, pressuring someone into prostitution, pimping, and abusing a person's economic and social dependency. The government rigorously investigates and prosecutes cases of trafficking, as seen by the creation of special brigades to combat pimping, the dismantling of trafficking rings, the prosecution of trafficking cases around the country, and the convictions handed down by French courts. The government cooperates with other countries to dismantle trafficking networks. In 2002, France created with Switzerland a joint customs and police center in Geneva to combat cross-border crime. The government protects victims on a case-by-case basis by transferring victims to safe houses, and by granting temporary residence and other social benefits while victims apply for asylum or pursue cases against former employers. In 2001, the government designated an "ad hoc" administrator to protect unaccompanied minors, and the state social services branch for childcare, Aide Sociale a l'Enfance, assists victims under 18 by providing social workers who help these victims get access to social care services, legal representation, and asylum procedures. The government works with countries in Central and Eastern Europe and sub-Saharan Africa on prevention and reintegration programs. France funds European Union programs and other programs through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to combat trafficking globally. A Parliamentary Commission was created in April 2001 to provide recommendations and proposals to tackle trafficking. This Commission consulted with NGOs. Their recommendations and proposals were published in December 2001. The government has taken action on some of these recommendations, notably through the drafting of a specific penal code to fight trafficking. This bill was introduced in Parliament in January 2002 and is still being considered.