U.S. Department of State 2004 Trafficking in Persons Report - Sudan
| Publisher | United States Department of State |
| Author | Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons |
| Publication Date | 14 June 2004 |
| Cite as | United States Department of State, U.S. Department of State 2004 Trafficking in Persons Report - Sudan, 14 June 2004, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/4680d7f8c.html [accessed 8 June 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
Sudan (Tier 3)
Sudan is a source and destination country for trafficked persons; it also has a significant internal slavery problem. Sudan remains embroiled in civil war, with heavy fighting continuing in the western region. Government-sponsored militias and rebel groups have abducted thousands of Sudanese and Ugandan men, women, and children for use as sex slaves, domestic workers, agricultural laborers, and child soldiers. Women and children are also subjected to intertribal abductions for domestic servitude and sexual exploitation in southern Sudan. An estimated 17,500 persons have been abducted since 1980. The Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), a Ugandan rebel group, has conscripted many Sudanese children to serve as soldiers; 850 had been repatriated by December 2003. There are also reports of Sudanese boys trafficked to the Middle East as camel jockeys.
The Government of Sudan does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so. Government officials deny the existence of trafficking in Sudan; consequently, law enforcement and prevention efforts are non-existent. The government should expand its program to identify and return inter-tribal abductees and demobilize the thousands of child soldiers in Sudan.
Prosecution
No law specifically prohibits trafficking in persons, although criminal law (Shari'a law) and the current State of Emergency Law prohibit all forms of sexual and labor exploitation. No prosecutions took place under these laws during the past year.
Protection
The Committee for the Eradication of Abduction of Women and Children (CEAWC), a governmental organization and its 22 Joint Tribal Committees locate, identify, and facilitate the safe return of former abductees. Since 1999, approximately 3,500 persons have been released from bondage. CEAWC documented 764 abduction cases in 2003 and reunified 196 abductees with their families. CEAWC is working to return an additional 500 children to their families in rebel-controlled areas.
Prevention
The government does not conduct or support any trafficking prevention programs. In 2003, the government renewed a protocol allowing Ugandan armed forced to pursue the LRA within Sudanese borders.
