This country’s Permanent Representative to the United States, Ambassador LaCelia Prince has written to the US State Department to address the 2014 trafficking in persons report in which St. Vincent and the Grenadines is listed as a Tier 2 country, Watch List country.
In her letter dated June 25th, Ambassador Prince said SVG is once again forced to not only defend its good name against the unjustifiable and unsubstantiated classification as a Tier 2 Watch List country, but must also question the methodology of the United States research and analysis in compiling these reports.
The report claims that NGOs and local Government Officials have reported 8instances of third-party prostitution of children under the age of 18.
The letter states it is curious what authority of the government of SVG provided the United States with this information.
It added that the appropriate authorities of the government were not requested by the United States nor afforded the opportunity to supply government informati9on for the US Trafficking In Persons report.
The letter ended by calling on the United States to conduct open and transparent investigations with a view to providing annual Trafficking in Persons reports which are substantiated, fair and accurate.
