Over the last three years, Lesotho’s government has drastically improved how they handle and prevent human trafficking. The country was once ranked Tier 3 US State Department’s Trafficking in Persons report, but they moved to Tier 2 watch last year. In 2022, they officially improved to Tier 2 (2022 Trafficking in Persons Report).
How trafficking risk ranking works
The Department categorizes each country into four tiers, as outlined by the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA). A country with Tier 1 ranking has minimal trafficking risks because the government has put proper protections in place. A country with Tier 3 ranking has little to no protections in place, and they are not making an effort to do so.
Countries move from Tier 3 to the Tier 2 Watchlist once they start making efforts, and then they improve to Tier 2 once they comply with some TVPA standards. Lesotho has risen through the rankings, and we hope they will one day reach Tier 1.
BDS participated in the World Day Against Human Trafficking
Beautiful Dream Society recently participated in a government-sponsored commemoration of World Day Against Human Trafficking. The event was held in the Butha Buthe district of Lesotho. Government and non-government dignitaries and local groups of traditional dancers, singers, poets, artists, and school children gave presentations about human trafficking.
BDS Founder Jennifer Crow was invited to address the crowd to share about Beautiful Dream Society and our work to help trafficking victims. She spoke about how we help women and children recover from the physical and psychological trauma they’ve experienced.
The final guest was the Honorable Minister of Home Affairs Motlalentoa Letsosa, who leads the government’s partnership with BDS and Lesotho’s fight against human trafficking.
Special stories from human trafficking survivors
Among the speakers were two former BDS clients. They shared their heartbreaking experiences of being trafficked from Lesotho to South Africa. The women were imprisoned in sex slavery and forced marriage before they eventually made it to the BDS Crisis Care Shelter program.
They said they are no longer victims but survivors. We are so proud of their strength and determination and were touched to be part of their journey.
Other BDS survivors set up a table to sell great-smelling, organic cosmetics they learned to create through a BDS skills-training program. All proceeds go to the survivors who have now started their own businesses.
Beautiful Dream Society can help these women and children in need because of your contributions. Thank you so much for giving them access to life-changing rescue and healing!