Will Hawaii Finally Make Human Trafficking a Crime?

This week HB576 -- a bill which would give Hawaii it's first ever state law criminalizing human trafficking -- will be discussed at a hearing. You can help ensure Hawaii, the site of the largest human trafficking case in history, gets the laws it needs by supporting a grassroots campaign to make human trafficking illegal in Hawaii.

Currently in Hawaii, victims of sex trafficking are often criminalized and arrested, as there are no state laws which identify them as victims of a crime. For example, in most states a woman tricked into the commercial sex industry with the promise of a modeling job or other deception would be considered a victims of human trafficking and given support services. But since the definition of sex trafficking in Hawaii doesn't include "fraud," that same woman might be arrested instead of assisted. That's a big gap, considering that Hawaii has a significant sex trafficking problem, and was recently the site of the largest human trafficking case in the country.

HB 576 would amend the current prostitution statutes in Hawaii to include a definition of sex trafficking crimes involving forced or child prostitution and ensure children under 18 involved in commercial sex are treated as trafficking victims, not criminals. Currently, Hawaii doesn't even have a criminal statutory definition of human trafficking, making almost all other laws and regulations related to the act almost impossible. The new law would also increase penalties for human traffickers, allow for forfeiture of assets from convicted traffickers, and allow for more investigative tools for law enforcement investigating human trafficking cases.

Previously, this bill was committed by lawmakers to be included in the bi-partisan Women's Legislative Caucus package, but at the last minute was pulled from the package at the request of Rep. Marilyn Lee. The bill's proponents claim it was removed for political reasons and at the behest of  Keith Kaneshiro, a Honolulu prosecutor who has said that Hawaii doesn't need a human trafficking law. But now, the bill has a second chance, and with it, all the Hawaiian human trafficking victims who right now are being treated as criminals.

Support making human trafficking a crime in Hawaii by singing this petition started by local activists. Because human trafficking victims should never be treated as criminals.

Photo credit: Ken Lund