Mongolian woman rescued from forced prostitution in Japan in 2017

A Mongolian woman was rescued from forced prostitution or forced labor in Japan last year along with 45 other victims of human trafficking, according to a report by the Japanese government released last Friday.

The number of victims assisted last year is 50 individuals fewer than the previous year’s, the Japanese government stated.

The majority of those rescued was Japanese nationals. In particular, a record high of 28 Japanese individuals were liberated from forced prostitution or labor, followed by eight Thai nationals and seven Filipinos. There were one Vietnamese, one Brazilian and one Mongolian victims as well.

The victims were all female except for one Japanese boy. The Japanese boy, five Japanese girls and one Filipino girl were aged 17 or younger, according to the report.

Many of the Japanese victims were sexually exploited. Foreign nationals were also largely forced to work as prostitutes or hostesses.

“Human trafficking is a serious human rights violation and a grave international problem,” said Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga.

The report is based on an action plan compiled by the government in December 2014 that calls for the reinforcement of immigration controls and improved support for trafficking victims.