US Puts Barbados And St Lucia On 2025 Trafficking In Persons Tier 2 Watch List Cuba And Venezuela Tier 3, Haiti Designated A Special Case

WASHINGTON, USA – The US State Department on Monday positioned Barbados and Saint Lucia on the 2025 Trafficking in Persons Report, Tier 2 Watch List. Cuba and Venezuela were classified as Tier 3, and Haiti, designated as a special case.

The Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (TVPA), Pub. L. No. 106- 386, in 2000, equipped the US Government with new tools and resources to mount a comprehensive and coordinated campaign to eliminate modern forms of slavery domestically and internationally. Critically, the TVPA established the framework for the“3 P's” of the fight against human trafficking: protection, prevention, and prosecution.

“Human trafficking is a horrific and devastating crime that also enriches transnational criminal organisations and immoral, anti-American regimes. The 25th edition of the Trafficking in Persons Report pushes countries to take serious action against forced labor and sex trafficking and ensures that those who fail to act face consequences. The Trump administration is dedicated to upholding American values, protecting American workers, and defending our communities,” said US Department of State.

Executive Order 14161 of January 20, 2025 (Protecting the United States From Foreign Terrorists and Other National Security and Public Safety Threats), ... to fully restrict and limit the entry of nationals of the following 12 countries: Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti , Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen . Partially restrict and limit the entry of nationals of the following seven countries: Burundi, Cuba , Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela .

Tier 1: Indicates that a government has made efforts to address the problem, such as demonstrating appreciable progress each year in combating trafficking, and met the TVPA's minimum standards. Tier 1 represents a responsibility rather than a reprieve.

Countries whose governments fully meet the TVPA's minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.

Tier 2: Countries whose governments do not fully meet the TVPA's minimum standards but are making significant efforts to bring themselves into compliance with those standards.

• Saint Lucia 2024 Tier 2: Trafficking in persons report is available here .

Saint Lucia 2025 Tier 2 Watch List – Trafficking in persons report is available here.

“ The government of Saint Lucia does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking. Despite making significant efforts to do so, it did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts compared to the previous reporting period. Therefore, Saint Lucia was downgraded to Tier 2 Watchlist .

“ Significant efforts included conducting awareness-raising campaigns, initiating the repatriation process for two Saint Lucian victims, and implementing the 2023-2026 NAP. However, the government did not initiate any trafficking investigations or prosecutions, nor did it identify any victims. The government has never convicted a trafficker. Penalties under the Counter Trafficking Act, as amended, were not commensurate with those for other grave crimes. The government did not prohibit worker-paid recruitment fees. “

• Barbados 2024 Tier 2 – Trafficking in persons report is available here .

Barbados 2025 Tier 2 Watch List – Trafficking in persons report is available here .

“ The government of Barbados does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking. Despite making significant efforts to do so, it did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts compared to the previous reporting period. Therefore, Barbados was downgraded to Tier 2 Watch List .

“ Significant efforts included continuing to screen potential victims for trafficking indicators among vulnerable populations and continuing awareness-raising campaigns to prevent trafficking. However, the government did not initiate any trafficking investigations or prosecutions and has never convicted a trafficker under the anti-trafficking law. The government also did not identify or provide services to any trafficking victims. The government did not report providing anti-trafficking training to first responders, including law enforcement. The government did not make efforts to draft or implement an updated anti-trafficking NAP after its previous plan expired in 2023. “

“Tier 2 Watch List,” meaning they must demonstrate greater efforts on the issue or face possible US sanctions.

Tier 2 Watch List: Countries whose governments do not fully meet the TVPA's minimum standards but are making significant efforts to bring themselves into compliance with those standards (with certain exceptions set forth below), and for which:

• The estimated number of victims of severe forms of trafficking is very significant or is significantly increasing and the country is not taking proportional concrete actions; or
• There is a failure to provide evidence of increasing efforts to combat severe forms of trafficking in persons from the previous year, including increased investigations, prosecutions, and convictions of trafficking crimes, increased assistance to victims, and decreasing evidence of complicity in severe forms of trafficking by government officials.

Tier 3: Countries whose governments do not fully meet the TVPA's minimum standards and are not making significant efforts to do so.

2025 Trafficking in Persons Report: Haiti (Special Case)

Haiti remains a Special Case for the second consecutive year. Civil society has broken down in the capital city Port-au-Prince, which experienced increasing levels of gang-related violence that prevented officials and ordinary citizens from moving freely inside and outside Port-au-Prince.

Gangs increased control over other parts of the country, although some regions remain safer than others. Law enforcement agencies experienced a significant reduction in their workforces. Gang activity has led to the closure of several court buildings, and in many instances gangs overpowered law enforcement, critically decreasing their access to adequately cover all of Haiti's departments. This security crisis and lack of political stability hampered overall anti-trafficking efforts.

A Multinational Security Support mission, authorized by the UN, assisted the Haitian police in countering gangs. A transition government was responsible for restoring security, upholding the law, and preparing for elections planned for 2026.

Conclusion

” Global efforts to combat trafficking are far stronger in 2025 than they were in 2000, strengthened by the number of laws passed, traffickers prosecuted, victims protected, and potential crimes prevented. Each of these victories is not just a data point – they are a parent paid for their hard work, or a child protected online. Each of these stories represents safer communities, stronger rule of law, and more prosperous nations, with the recognition that there is more to do.

” Sustainable achievements in prosecution, protection, and prevention efforts are only possible when governments, civil society, the private sector, international organisations, and survivor leaders work together in partnership against the vast array of trafficking threats and malign actors that continue to operate throughout the world. These partners may not always agree on how to combat trafficking threats. Yet, even where there is disagreement on the best approach, constructive debate that acknowledges and responds to multiple viewpoints can help inform more effective and tailored policies.

“ Looking forward, the anti-trafficking community must embrace this debate and seize opportunities to advance the movement. Traffickers are creative and determined. The anti-trafficking community must continue to be even more creative, drawing on the determined spirit of those who launched the anti-trafficking movement as it presses onward into the next quarter century. “

• • Please see the 2025 Trafficking in Persons Report

The post US puts Barbados and St Lucia on 2025 Trafficking in Persons Tier 2 Watch List; Cuba and Venezuela Tier 3, Haiti designated a special case appeared first on Caribbean News Global .

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