A hard look at efforts of the governments of China and Russia to fight human trafficking in their countries, and whether they should be demoted to Tier 3 in the State Department’s 2013 Trafficking in Persons Report (TIP), will be the topic of a hearing to be held Thursday by Congressman Chris Smith (NJ-04), Chairman of the House congressional panel that oversees Africa and international human rights.

    Russia and China, along with Uzbekistan, Iraq, Azerbaijan, and the Republic of Congo, must, by U.S. law, be moved off the Tier 2 Watch List this year, and promoted to Tier 2 or downgraded to Tier 3.

    Worldwide, the TIP Report has become the gold standard of anti-trafficking accountability and an effective diplomatic tool.  Smith maintains the continued credibility of the TIP Report and its impact to help trafficking victims is dependent on fair and accurate rankings of a government’s actions to combat trafficking. Smith, is chairman of the Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights and International Organizations, as well as co-chairman of the Congressional Human Trafficking Caucus.

Who:      Chairman Smith, and other members of the human rights subcommittee, and witnesses:

• Former Ambassador-at-Large for Trafficking in Persons, U.S. Department of State, Mark Lagon, International Relations and Security Chair, Georgetown University
• Dr. Nguyen Dinh Thang, Ph.D., Executive Director, Boat People SOS
• Suzanne Schulte, President, North Korea Freedom Coalition
• Brian Campbell, Director of Policy and Legal Programs, International Labor Rights Forum

What:     “Tier Rankings in the Fight Against Human Trafficking”

When:     Thursday, April 18 @ at 1 p.m.

Where:    Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2172 (on first floor)