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Costa Rica is a source, transit, and destination country for many exports and imports along the seas. specifically forced prostitution. To a lesser but increasing extent, Costa Rica is a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children subjected to conditions of forced labor, particularly in the agriculture, construction, fishing, and domestic service sectors. Costa Rican women and children are forced into commercial sexual exploitation within the country, and to a limited extent, in Nicaragua and Mexico.[1] Women and girls from Nicaragua, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Colombia, and Panama have been identified in Costa Rica as victims of forced prostitution. Child sex tourism is a serious problem, particularly in the provinces of Guanacaste, Limon, Puntarenas, and San José. Child sex tourists arrive mostly from the United States, Germany, Sweden, and Italy. Young men from Nicaragua, Vietnam, China and other Asian countries are subjected to conditions of forced labor in Costa Rica: during the reporting period, nine Vietnamese men were found in conditions of forced labor in the fishing industry. Costa Rica serves as a transit point for foreign nationals trafficked to Mexico, Canada, the United States, and Europe.[2]

The Government of Costa Rica does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to do so. During the past year, the Government of Costa Rica continued to raise public awareness about human trafficking and trained many government officials, in addition to maintaining limited victim services. However, the government’s law enforcement efforts lagged with respect to holding trafficking offenders accountable for their crimes and in adequately addressing domestic cases of human trafficking.[2]

The U.S. State Department's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons placed the country in "Tier 2" in 2017.[3] In 2018, Costa Rica was labeled as a Tier 2 country. A Tier 2 country does not meet the minimum standards required to ending trafficking, but are making efforts. [4]

Costa Rica is located in Central America. The capital of Costa Rica is San José. The population includes people of European, Spanish, African, Chinese, and Indigenous descent totaling in 4.9 million people. Four fifths of population is of European decent while the other percentage is made up of the indigenous people Mestizos which is a mix of European and Indian decent. . The languages include Spanish, Limonese, Bribrí, Cabécar, Maléku Jaíka, Boruca, and Térraba. The major religion is Roman Catholic. The other religions are Protestant, Jewish, and Mennonite. [5]

Costa Rica's economy runs on the agriculture, forestry, and fishing industry. The important goods are sugar, coffee, bananas, pineapples, cut flowers, gourmet coffee, herbs, macadamia nuts, and palm oil. The fishing industry mostly includes tuna, shrimp, and tilapia. The agriculture is the most important natural resource for Costa Rica. One third of workers in Costa Rica are women. [5]

Costa Rica's government system includes a President, two Vice Presidents, and an unicameral Legislative Assembly. There are seven provinces in Costa Rica that are divided by districts. The governors are appointed by the President. In Costa Rica there is a single judge or a panel of judges. There are no juries and death penalty in Costa Rica. [5]

Slavery was abolished by the Federal Assembly of Guatemala in 1882. Slavery was abolished in Costa Rica on April 17, 1824. There were not many slaves when slavery was abolished because there were free slaves. Black slaves were brought to Costa Rica with Spanish conquerors. Slaves would work on cacao and banana plantations. Slaves were used in the construction of the railroad. Women were concubines. Children who were born while their mothers were concubines were set free. Free slaves owned their own farms, worked on building railroads, worked for banana companies, cleared the forest, and migrated to other places. However, they were not considered citizens so they did not have legal rights to their farms. Their lands were taken by White Ticos (Costa Ricans). [6]