CSEC2008
Japan JP
The traffickers forced the victim, a 15-year-old, to have sex for money to cover her high phone bill. On one occasion in February 2008, the girl was forced to perform “an indecent sex act” with a man in a hotel room for 12,000 yen (£90). “Her mother was sentenced to three years and six months in prison along with a 100,000 yen (£750) fine, after being convicted of conspiring with the girl's stepfather to make the schoolgirl perform the sex act at the hotel.”
Forced Labor2022
Japan JP
Three Indonesian technical interns working for a Japanese casting company reported serious labor exploitation and unsafe working conditions. The workers performed dangerous metal-casting work and reported inadequate workplace protections, with workers suffering burns and other injuries. Their case highlighted vulnerabilities faced by foreign workers under Japan's Technical Intern Training Program. Accused: Japanese manufacturing SME and Indonesian broker.
Forced Labor2024
Japan JP
Foreign workers participating in Japan's Technical Intern Training Program (TITP), including workers from China, remained vulnerable to labor trafficking. Workers paid high recruitment fees to sending organizations for jobs including food processing, manufacturing, construction and other industries. Documented trafficking indicators included restricted freedom of movement and communication, confiscation of passports and other documents, wage garnishment, poor living conditions, threats of deportation or harm, and debt-based coercion. Accused: Japanese food processing companies and Chinese brokers.