The United States has placed China on its list of worst offenders in human trafficking and forced labour.
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has dropped China to tier three, the lowest category in the annual report published by the State Department's Office to Monitor and Combat trafficking.
Kate Fisher reports from the US State Department...
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China's reprimand here at the state department puts them in the same category as the likes of Syria, Zimbabwe and north korea. It's the first time that the trump administration has made any public rebuke of China's human rights record and it comes at a time when they're' trying to get Beijing's help to rein in North Korea. Well secretary of state Rex Tillerson singled out both countries for criticism in his opening remarks.
<< SOT: Rex Tillerson, US Secretary of State >>
"The North Korean regime receives hundreds of millions of dollars per year from the fruits of forced labor. Responsible nations simply cannot allow this to go on, and we continue to call on any nation that is hosting workers from North Korea in a forced labor arrangement to send those people home. China was downgraded to Tier Three status in this year's report in part because it has not taken serious steps to end its own complicity in trafficking – including forced laborers from North Korea that are located in China.
The president's daughter and special advisor Ivanka Trump was also present. She says that she's made human trafficking one of her key causes to champion during her time in the white house.
<< SOT: Ivanka Trump, Advisor to the President >>
"On a personal level, as a mother, this is much more than a policy priority. It is a clarion call to action in defense of the vulnerable, the abused, and the exploited."
But today was about honouring those, those whose work, whose tireless work, has made a lasting impact against the scourge of modern day slavery. Eight people from across the world were singles out for special recognition today and one of them was Boom mosby for her work for in combatting child trafficking in Thailand.
<<SOT: Boom Mosby, Founder HUG Project>>
"I always talk to our victims that you guys are actually heroes. If you stand up you can actually save other children who are in the same situation. So they are actually our true heroes.'
Well Secretary of State Tillerson says it is America's hope that the 21st century is the last century with human trafficking but he acknowledges that with more 20 million victims worldwide, there's still a lot of work to do.
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