CW: sexual violence
Håfa adai,
Where there is more military, there is more human trafficking and gendered violence. Demilitarizing our homes across Oceania is crucial to protecting our peoples.
Human trafficking, including sex and labor trafficking, and violence against women, girls, and 2-spirit relatives are pervasive problems in the U.S. military, affecting Indigenous and local populations as well as our relatives in the service. Instances of human trafficking often increase in places with a high U.S. military presence, matching the demand placed by soldiers stationed there. In 2021, DOD reported 108 human trafficking in persons cases, including 77 sex trafficking incidents. Nearly 1 in 4 service women report being sexually assaulted in the military. LGBTQ+ servicemembers are disproportionately sexually assaulted in the military. According to a FY23 DOD report, 91 victims of sexual assault identified as American Indian and 339 as Asian/Pacific Islander.
In our latest Instagram post, we highlight how DOD and its current expansion in the Indo-Pacific Region threatens to exacerbate violence against women and the MMIWG2S crisis in the Pacific. The military often interferes and requests jurisdiction over cases where military personnel are accused of misconduct. Subsequent administrative and military court proceedings are not subject to the same public access requirements as civilian legal proceedings. This limits accountability and visibility of these pervasive harms.
We share four case studies: Hawai‘i, Okinawa, Guåhan, and Korea. In all these places, DOD personnel have contributed to human trafficking and increasing sexual violence against women and girls. Below are some excerpts from our recent post.
Hawai‘i: survivors of sex trafficking have said they were forcibly prostituted the most during military paydays. 38% of those arrested for soliciting sex from a thirteen-year-old online through Operation Keiki Shield are active-duty military personnel.
Okinawa: U.S. soldiers have murdered, r*ped, or otherwise sexually assaulted hundreds of women and girls. Long-standing protests exploded in 1995 (following the beating and gang-r*pe of a 12-year-old girl) and 2016 (following the r*pe and murder of a 20-year-old woman). Now, the vast majority of locals are calling for the reduction of U.S. military presence in Okinawa; 26% of the population is calling for complete removal.
Guåhan: the island is bracing for the thousands of incoming U.S. marine the U.S. and Japan have agreed to move out of Okinawa. The local population experiences massive spikes in sexual assault and human trafficking when U.S. submarines and naval ships come to our shore.
Korea: the South Korean and U.S. government conspired to force Korean women into sexual slavery for the benefit of U.S. soldiers. U.S. soldiers have also trafficked Korean women to the U.S. and forced them into sexual slavery.
What you can do:
Share: Share our post on Instagram or Facebook. Education is powerful to shedding light on these systemic issues.
Donate: Ensure that WPLC and the organizations we mention below can continue this work by supporting our work. www.waterprotectorlegal.org/donate
Locate and assist organizations that provide support to survivors of human trafficking and other forms of violence.
Continue to educate ourselves and our communities. Some suggested resources:
Watch:
Kalei Grant, Combating Trafficking in Persons, DoD Office Survivors of Human Trafficking
Listen:
Read:
Choe Sang-Hun, A Brutal Sex Trade Built for American Soldiers, The New York Times (2023).
Henrietta McNeill, Building knowledge about human trafficking in the Pacific, East Asia Forum (2022).
Hiroshi Higa, Okinawa scourged by storm of sexual violence under post-WWII US rule, The Mainichi (2022).
Holoi ā nalo Wāhine ‘Ōiwi: Missing and Murdered Native Hawaiian Women and Girls Task Force Report (2022).
Jon Mitchell, NCIS Case Files Reveal Undiscloed U.S. Military Sex Crimes in Okinawa, The Intercept (2021).
Lindsey Posmanick-Cooper and Holly M. Rustick, An Analysis of Human Trafficking Indicators on Guam, Pacific Asia Inquiry, Volume 6, Number 1 (2015).
Matt Hill, Marine Veteran Arrested for Drugging and Prostituting Hundreds of Women, SOFREP (2021)
Meghann Myers, LGB troops are much more likely to be sexually assaulted than their heterosexual peers: study, MilitaryTimes (2021).
Montse Reyes, A family says the Marine Corps covered up sex trafficking case involving their Native teen. Here are the details. Reckon (2023).
Molly Boigon, et al., 'Working in fear': Some private contractors are accused of abusive labor practices on U.S. military bases, NBC News (2022).
Olivia Tasevski, Okinawa’s vocal anti-US military base movement, The Interpreter (2022).
Tina Ngata, Sexual Violence and The Doctrine of Discovery
Too few resources are allocated to combatting and documenting human trafficking and the MMIWG2S crisis in the Pacific. Traffickers use our islands for hunting grounds, transit, and destinations. In some instances, victims are taken thousands of miles away from their homelands to various U.S. states. These acts cannot be divorced from U.S. imperialism, environmental degradation, and the pervasive misogynistic culture of the U.S. military and country.
Stay tuned for our next post on RIMPAC: The Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC)--the world’s largest international maritime war games exercise–will take place in Hawai‘i again this summer. Not only does RIMPAC’s influx of military personnel lead to a regular increase in sex trafficking and gendered violence in the islands but routinely destroys sacred lands, waters, marine life, and cultural resources. Israel, whose military has received training during RIMPAC and used it to commit genocide against Palestinians, and Indonesia, whose military has been committing genocide in West Papua, will be two of the 29 nations returning this year.
We must decolonize and demilitarize the Pacific.
In Solidarity,
Kyra Blas
WPLC Legal Fellow
Join us for an in-person and virtual critical discussion on the intersection of militarization, Indigenous rights, environmental justice, and feminism. This event will bring together community leaders, activists, and scholars to bring awareness to the threat of militarization on the health and safety of Native Hawaiian women, children, and mahū and draw parallels with the occupation of Palestine. We aim to help build a community safety network and foster connections between two sites of militarization and occupation: Hawai'i and Palestine. Register: bit.ly/demiloceania
Speakers:
Opening Oli: Alakaʻi Kapanui, Hui Aloha ʿĀina o Hilo, Kona 4 Palestine, & Huliau o Na Wahi Kapu
Makanalani Gomes, Kamawaelualani & MMNHWG Report
Ihilani Lasconia, Af3irm Hawai'i
Natali Segovia, Esq., Water Protector Legal Collective
Laulani Teale, Ho'opae Pono Peace Project
Healani Sonoda-Pale, Ka Lāhui Hawai'i & O’ahu Water Protectors
This event will be recorded.
In-person participation: Halau 'Inana
Rim of the Pacific (June 26-August 2, 2024) exercises are so-called “war games” that are hosted biannually in the Hawaiian Islands and occupied Kumeyaay and Diegueno lands (San Diego). It is an international event in which the United States, Israel, Peru, and 26 other countries participate. The U.S. Navy says “they provide an opportunity to develop cooperative relationships that are important for the security of the world's oceans.” During RIMPAC 2024, it is estimated that over 25,000 foreign active duty military personnel will occupy Hawaiian lands, waters, and air space in the name of “security.”
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