Proactively and consistently screen vulnerable migrant or undocumented populations and Dominicans of Haitian descent, including those in agricultural and construction industries, for trafficking indicators and refer them to care. * Ensure consistent and equitable screening for trafficking indicators prior to deportation. * Amend the 2003 anti-trafficking law to remove the requirement to prove force, fraud, and coercion in sex trafficking crimes involving victims younger than the age of 18, consistent with international law. * Fully implement Law 169-14 to issue nationality documents to eligible Dominicans of Haitian descent, to reduce vulnerability to trafficking. * Issue or renew identity documents to eligible migrant populations, including temporary workers, to reduce vulnerability to trafficking. * Finalize a NAP for 2025 and beyond. * Improve timeliness and accuracy of labor inspections and ensure consistent investigation of labor trafficking. * Expand consistent access to care and ensure capacity to address the specific and unique needs of male and female victims. * Increase the number of translators, especially in Haitian Creole, to assist in victim identification and referral to care and labor inspections. * Vigorously investigate and prosecute trafficking crimes and seek appropriate penalties for convicted traffickers, including complicit officials, which should involve significant prison terms. * Ensure potential child trafficking victims, including those involved in gangs and drug trafficking, are screened, identified, and referred to care and are not inappropriately penalized solely for unlawful acts committed as a direct result of being trafficked. * Provide adequate human and financial resources and training to law enforcement, prosecutors, and judges to combat trafficking, particularly in areas outside Santo Domingo.

The government maintained prosecution efforts but continued not to adequately investigate and prosecute trafficking crimes involving forced labor, and corruption remained a significant concern. Dominican law criminalized sex trafficking and labor trafficking. The 2003 Law on Human Smuggling and Trafficking (Law 137-03) criminalized all forms of labor trafficking and some forms of sex trafficking and prescribed penalties of 15 to 20 years’ imprisonment and fines. Inconsistent with international law, the law required a demonstration of force, fraud, or coercion to constitute a child sex trafficking crime and therefore did not criminalize all forms of child sex trafficking. Article 25 of the Child Protection Code of 2003 criminalized the offering, delivering, or accepting, without regard to means used, anyone younger than 18 years of age for the purpose of sexual exploitation, forced labor, or any other purpose that demeaned the individual, for remuneration or any other consideration, and prescribed a penalty of 20 to 30 years’ imprisonment and a fine. All these penalties were sufficiently stringent and, with respect to sex trafficking, commensurate with those prescribed for other grave crimes, such as rape. In 2020, the government drafted legislation to remove the provision requiring a demonstration of force, fraud, or coercion to constitute a child sex trafficking crime; the legislation remained pending at the end of the reporting period.

The government initiated 99 trafficking investigations involving 77 suspects (89 cases of 69 people for sex trafficking and 10 cases of eight suspects for labor trafficking, including three cases of forced begging), compared with 29 trafficking investigations involving 71 suspects (18 cases of 48 suspects for sex trafficking, eight cases of 19 suspects for labor trafficking, and three cases of four suspects for unspecified forms of exploitation) in 2022. Three new investigations involved suspected complicit officials from the police, public prosecutor’s office, and judiciary; the government investigated two police officers in 2022. The government continued investigating 18 sex trafficking cases involving 12 suspects, compared with continuing investigations in seven cases involving 28 suspects (five cases of 24 suspects for sex trafficking and two cases of four suspects for labor trafficking) in 2022. The government initiated prosecution of 40 alleged traffickers (24 for sex trafficking, one for sex and labor trafficking, six for labor trafficking, and nine for unspecified exploitation including pandering and irregular adoption), compared with 36 alleged traffickers (25 for sex trafficking, 10 for labor trafficking, and one for unspecified forms of exploitation) in 2022. The government continued prosecution initiated in previous reporting periods of five sex trafficking suspects. Among the new and ongoing prosecutions, the government prosecuted 43 suspects under Law 137-03, compared with 74 suspects in 2022. Courts convicted 20 sex traffickers (14 under Law 137-03 and six under other laws), including one police officer, compared with 23 traffickers (12 for sex trafficking under Law 137-03 and 11 for pandering under the penal code) in 2022. Courts acquitted two defendants, compared with one in 2022. The sentences for convicted sex traffickers ranged from one to 20 years’ imprisonment with fines; the police officer received 10 years’ imprisonment. Some investigations and prosecutions reported by the government likely involved cases of child pornography; the government did not disaggregate this data from trafficking cases. The government reported it enforced the anti-trafficking law equitably; however, an international organization previously reported the government sometimes chose not to pursue cases when victims were migrants or undocumented Haitian women. Observers also currently and previously reported the justice system was not equally accessible to underserved populations – in particular Haitian migrants and persons of Haitian descent – who limited their movements and activities because of a lack of identity documents and persistent threat of detention and deportation.

The Specialized Prosecutor’s Office against the Smuggling of Migrants and Trafficking in Persons (PETT) and the National Police Anti-Trafficking Unit (ATU) were the principal law enforcement bodies pursuing trafficking cases, with police units in Santo Domingo, Punta Cana, San Cristóbal, Puerto Plata, and Boca Chica. The PETT had liaisons in each of the 35 district attorney’s offices nationwide. The government did not have specialized trafficking courts. NGOs previously reported interagency coordination on trafficking cases had improved, but governmental funding and capacity, especially in the investigation and conduct of large-scale anti-trafficking operations, remained insufficient. An NGO previously reported authorities almost exclusively dedicated their anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts to addressing urban sex trafficking and did not make significant efforts or provide funding to combat rural labor trafficking. NGOs previously reported Dominican authorities lacked adequate training and technology to pursue cases and sometimes favored the rights of the defendant over those of the victim. Authorities continued work to create a joint PETT-ATU Cyber-Trafficking Unit and a Unit for Detection of Forced and Child Labor with high-tech equipment and an Electronic Investigation Module. The government credited the increase in open investigations to the use of undercover agents fluent in English, French, and Haitian Creole, as well as use of strategic alliances with digital service platforms to support investigative processes in cases of internet-facilitated trafficking. The National Police also reported improved cooperation with military intelligence.

Corruption and official complicity in trafficking crimes remained significant and increasing concerns, inhibiting law enforcement action. The Directorate-General of Migration reported it sanctioned or dismissed some migration officials for accepting bribes and threatening victims, leaking information, and illegally detaining victims in migrant smuggling cases that may have included elements of trafficking. Observers alleged immigration, police, and military officials frequently conducted illegal detentions with the purpose of deporting potential victims, personally extorting them, or refusing them due compensation for labor performed. Authorities frequently deprived potential victims of their identity documents and confiscated and occasionally destroyed them. Authorities also denied potential victims freedom of movement and access to food, water, and adequate sanitation facilities. Authorities sought bribes from vulnerable populations that likely included victims, including from migrants at border crossings and military checkpoints; bribes could include money up to $300, sex acts, or even marriage in exchange for border passage or identity documents. According to previous reports, ATU officers alerted traffickers of impending law enforcement actions.

The government cooperated with at least 17 international partners on 45 investigations, compared with 10 international partners on 11 trafficking investigations in 2022. For the first time, authorities reported cooperating with the government of Haiti on a number of trafficking cases. Authorities also seized assets in one joint investigation with French authorities. The government signed an agreement with an international organization and an international prosecutors’ network to increase information sharing, and it participated in various regional seminars for law enforcement, prosecutors, and Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials to share best practices on law enforcement and victim assistance. The government updated its Operational Investigation Protocol for the Crimes of Trafficking in Persons and Smuggling of Migrants, which instructed officials on investigating and prosecuting human trafficking and migrant smuggling, along with interacting with and identifying service needs of victims and victim-witnesses. The government extensively trained immigration officials, police, government social workers, members of the Attorney General’s Office, public prosecutors, child protection officials, labor officials including labor lawyers, and military personnel on various topics including detection of crimes such as trafficking, victim identification, victim services, and border security, among others.

The government maintained victim protection efforts but did not proactively and consistently screen vulnerable migrants or undocumented persons for trafficking indicators. Authorities reported identifying 74 confirmed victims (68 exploited in sex trafficking and six in labor trafficking) and two potential victims, a Haitian boy and girl in illegal adoption cases, compared with 99 victims (90 victims exploited in sex trafficking and nine exploited in labor trafficking) in 2022. Of the 65 sex trafficking victims identified domestically, 28 were women, including 10 Dominicans, 14 Colombians, four Venezuelans, and one Peruvian; two were Dominican boys; and 34 were girls, including 33 Dominicans and one Haitian. The six labor trafficking victims identified domestically included two Dominican children and four Haitian children. The government reported identifying two additional Dominican adult female sex trafficking victims and one Dominican adult male labor trafficking victim abroad. The government reported identifying no victims among Dominicans of Haitian descent.

The government referred all 76 potential and confirmed victims to government services or government-supported NGO services, compared with referring 88 victims to services in the previous reporting period; 73 accepted shelter. The government reported victims identified abroad received services from its embassies, the foreign government, and an international organization. The government finalized and began to implement SOPs on the Identification, Referral and Counter-Referral of Victims of Trafficking in Persons in Border and Border Provinces, designed to increase interagency cooperation and streamline the protection process. The government used a protocol to refer child migrants and trafficking victims to services and updated an existing protocol for service needs for victims and victim-witnesses; it also began to develop two additional protocols, one for adults and one for children, to streamline referral and service provision. The government also reported developing a “toolbox” for officials who may encounter victims at airports, including training for military personnel. In July 2023, the government, with the support of an NGO and a foreign donor, published a guide for service providers to establish a national, comprehensive approach to providing care to trafficking victims. In February 2024, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and a government social assistance body signed an MOU to support the reintegration of trafficking victims who return from abroad after identification by consulates or embassies overseas. The Attorney General’s Office and the Ministry of Health also established focal points of contact and exchanged liaisons to improve coordination on victim services. The government and NGOs reported potential and confirmed adult and child victims received services, including medical and psychological care, accommodations, food, legal assistance, and, in the case of foreigners, consular assistance and exemption from fees and taxes for migratory stay. Other available services included basic necessities including clothing and sanitary supplies, specialized health services, legal assistance including to obtain compensation, and translation services. Officials transferred victims who required specialized medical care to a competent health center with security personnel. The government also provided children with education, recreation and sports, and psychological support for eventual family reunification.

The Attorney General’s Office disbursed funds from the general budget, as needed, to PETT’s Victim Assistance Unit. The government reported the Ministry of Women provided services for adult female trafficking victims from its own budget, along with funding from an international organization and two foreign donors. The PETT operated a specialized shelter with space for 55 people with the ability to accommodate individuals with disabilities. The Ministry of Women also operated 16 domestic violence shelters – one with specialized services for up to 20 trafficking victims – that could accommodate female adult trafficking victims and their children up to age 14; the government referred children older than 14 to the Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) for assistance. The government allowed female adult victims to choose to stay in individual properties the public prosecutor operated. Victims could choose to stay in a shelter, but authorities did not allow most victims to leave shelters unchaperoned. The government reported it could house male or LGBTQI+ victims in the public prosecutor’s buildings in order to provide them specialized care; however, an NGO reported the government did not provide shelter to two identified male victims who, therefore, remained with traffickers. Observers noted victim service referral remained uneven, and NGOs previously reported law enforcement often referred victims to care provided by NGOs and international organizations as the government lacked the technical capacity and procedures to address victims’ needs, including at the specialized shelter. NGOs also reported underutilization of government-run shelters and uneven availability of government shelter space; NGOs reported the PETT shelter was not consistently staffed, leading to delays in services. Civil society organizations also had limited resources to provide for the large number of victims in country.

CONANI coordinated services for child victims. The Ministry of Labor used a protocol to refer child trafficking victims to CONANI. The tourism police agency arranged lodging for potential child victims in conjunction with CONANI and NGOs. CONANI operated 10 shelters for up to 450 child victims of all crime, including trafficking, but did not have a specialized trafficking shelter; one shelter provided care to children with disabilities. An NGO operated and solely funded two additional shelters that could support trafficking victims. CONANI provided shelter to all confirmed and potential child victims identified by authorities. However, one official reported only one shelter would accept child victims in practice, and its rural location delayed timely services for child victims who were frequently exploited in tourist centers. NGOs previously reported that CONANI occasionally struggled to provide an appropriate environment and specialized psychotherapeutic treatment for child victims.

The government reported screening at-risk populations, such as individuals in commercial sex and migrants, for trafficking and reported identifying victims through its screenings. However, government and outside observers previously noted authorities did not consistently or effectively implement existing protocols, particularly with regard to screening detained migrants; the government did not report specifically screening Haitian migrants and persons of Haitian descent for trafficking indicators. Officials sometimes perceived a trafficking victim as being a voluntary participant or complicit actor in a migrant smuggling operation; these victims may have remained unidentified in the law enforcement system. NGOs previously reported intervening on behalf of potential victims at border reception centers and crossings to prevent deportation and to refer the potential victims to municipal public prosecutors. Police may have penalized child trafficking victims, particularly those involved in robbery gangs or illicit narcotics, for crimes committed as a direct result of being trafficked. An NGO also previously reported the lack of interpreters, particularly in Haitian Creole, continued to hinder victim identification and referral efforts.

The government reported victims could obtain restitution under the law from defendants in criminal cases or bring civil actions against traffickers for compensation through PETT or the Ministry of Women, which could also provide criminal and civil legal assistance and public lawyers to represent victims; however, courts did not order restitution in any cases. Prosecutors reportedly did not always pursue restitution for victims, and without public legal assistance, victims were often unable to afford to pursue the case. The government institutionalized procedures in the Attorney General’s Office to allow victims to more easily seek compensation; one victim obtained compensation as a result of these procedures but had not yet received payment by the end of the reporting period. The government reported 68 victims identified by PETT cooperated with the investigation or prosecution of suspected traffickers, including through submission of written testimony and interviews in Gesell chambers. Psychologists supported victims in the judicial process, and the government reported victims had alternatives to speaking to law enforcement but did not report who the alternatives were. The government did not report implementing a judicial interview protocol previously developed in cooperation with an international organization specifically for child victims and witnesses of crimes of sexual violence, although officials used an existing protocol governing interviews for vulnerable populations, including children. Authorities reported all victims had access to government protection services, regardless of whether they chose to cooperate with judicial proceedings. Authorities provided victims with protection based on assessment of individual risk factors and did not require victims to remain in shelters to access protection services; authorities assigned 24/7 security for victims. An NGO reported judges could limit victims’ movement, disincentivizing their participation in judicial actions. The government reported it worked with the foreign missions of the countries of origin of foreign victims to provide consular and repatriation services and represent their interests as necessary. The government referred seven Colombian adult female victims to an NGO for repatriation and an international organization assisted with the repatriation of two Dominican adult female victims identified abroad; the government and a foreign government each paid for the airline ticket for one victim. Law enforcement officials continued domestic collaboration with a civil society organization that survivors, media, and anti-trafficking experts noted did not use a victim-centered and trauma-informed approach. The trafficking law did not provide immigration protections for foreign victim-witnesses. The government reported it did not deport identified trafficking victims; however, due to inequitable identification procedures and mass deportations of Haitian migrants, including those with legal status, and of Dominicans of Haitian descent, authorities almost certainly detained, arrested, and deported some unidentified trafficking victims. The government trained its psychologists and shelter staff on survivor assistance in cooperation with an international organization. The government held two virtual seminars for civil society members on victim identification and referral.

The government maintained prevention efforts but continued to take measures to actively obstruct the ability of Haitian migrants and Dominicans of Haitian descent to obtain or renew identity documents, which significantly increased these individuals’ vulnerability to trafficking. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs chaired CITIM, the interagency commission to combat human trafficking and migrant smuggling, which was the national body responsible for coordinating anti-trafficking efforts. CITIM finalized and used a new anti-trafficking NAP for 2022-2024 and met six times, including to discuss the draft law and the implementation of the NAP. The government did not allocate specific funds for anti-trafficking efforts or implementation of its expired NAP beyond the standard operating budgets for CITIM institutions. The government, in cooperation with an NGO, conducted a field study to consult survivors on the draft law. The Attorney General’s Office began to develop a geographical, digital map of the prevalence of trafficking to direct awareness-raising and research efforts. The Ministry of Women published a study carried out with a foreign donor on capacity-building for institutions responsible for preventing violence among women and girls, including trafficking. The government hosted a seminar for international partners on prevention strategies.

Government agencies carried out various awareness campaigns through social media, community awareness sessions in different parts of the country, and radio and digital media interviews, on topics including general trafficking awareness, victim identification, labor exploitation, and child labor. The government also produced informational materials, including through social media, on billboards, and on buses, in Spanish, Haitian Creole, and Braille. NGOs previously stated the government largely relied on international organizations for assistance with research and awareness campaigns. PETT operated a dedicated 24/7 national trafficking hotline and reported it received two calls that led to victim identification. Four other general hotlines, including one operated by an NGO, could also receive human trafficking calls in Spanish, English, French, and Haitian Creole. The government also maintained a website to report complaints.

In spite of the government’s obligations to enforce its labor laws under the Central American Free Trade Agreement, observers noted the lack of documentation faced by many workers in agriculture, construction, and other sectors left them at risk for abuse, including trafficking. Observers noted undocumented Haitian laborers remained largely unable to apply for and attain legal status, increasing their risk for trafficking. The government did not report efforts to provide Haitians in border areas with identification cards. The Ministry of Interior also refused to reopen the naturalization process for stateless beneficiaries of Law 169-14 or renew residence permits for more than 200,000 migrants and Dominicans of Haitian descent who obtained legal status under the National Plan for the Regularization of Foreigners. The government reported it signed naturalization certificates for individuals of Haitian decent previously granted Dominican citizenship under two presidential decrees; however, observers noted these claims could not be independently confirmed. Observers noted that barring residence permits to Haitians and their descendants – including those born in the Dominican Republic who had never been to Haiti – caused a lack of access to the formal labor sector, secondary and post-secondary education, and medical care and increased risks of deportation to Haiti at any time, leaving these populations vulnerable to trafficking. The government’s decision to close the border with Haiti in September 2023 and cease issuance and renewals of visas and residency permits for Haitian citizens continued to increase the vulnerability of Haitians to trafficking. In October 2023, the President signed the “National Pact on the Crisis in Haiti,” which established admission quotas for temporary workers in certain economic sectors; however, observers expressed doubt the plan would result in the issuance of temporary worker permits, and the government did not establish any official admission quota or temporary worker program by the end of the reporting period. The government made some efforts to address vulnerabilities among Venezuelan migrant populations. For example, it participated in a regional migration project in cooperation with other countries and an international organization to share information on migrant pathways and vulnerabilities, especially among Venezuelans. In 2023, the government issued 918 temporary work and 147 student visas to Venezuelans covered by a program started in 2021 to normalize their status in the country with the possibility to work or study and access social security, compared with 14,042 visas issued under the program in 2022. Observers noted the government did not otherwise generally offer temporary residence or work permits or regularize residency.

The labor code prohibited the charging of fees for the recruitment of workers; the recruitment of workers through fraudulent offers of employment; misrepresentation of wages, working conditions, location, or nature of work; and the confiscation or denial of workers’ access to identity documents. The government reported it strengthened its process to verify work visas and contractors for foreigners to ensure compliance with labor laws but did not specify how. Workers did not require a special permit to change employers. The government implemented a program in cooperation with an international organization on the border with Haiti to increase the effectiveness of labor inspectors to identify trafficking and quickly refer victims to care. The Ministry of Labor created a questionnaire to use during labor inspections to screen for vulnerability to labor exploitation, including trafficking. Labor inspectors also continued to use an existing inspection manual to ensure compliance with labor law. The Ministry of Labor employed 207 labor inspectors with an annual budget of 345 million Dominican pesos ($6 million), compared with 255 million Dominican pesos ($4.4 million) in 2022; the government provided ongoing training to the inspectors. Forty offices of the Ministry of Labor could receive complaints about child labor electronically, by telephone, or in person; however, the government reported receiving no such complaints. The government reported it conducted 53,294 labor inspections, compared with 62,478 labor inspections in the previous reporting period. Observers previously reported the Ministry of Labor failed to consistently identify labor trafficking; the Ministry of Labor and the Public Ministry also lacked investigative capacity, resources, and enforcement options to investigate and penalize labor trafficking. NGOs also previously reported authorities did not always conduct labor inspections in a timely manner and reports often contained errors and contradictions that undermined their credibility. Observers previously noted labor inspectors lacked sufficient Haitian Creole translators. The government maintained labor agreements with two foreign governments for Dominicans working abroad. The government did not make efforts to reduce the demand for commercial sex acts. In December 2023, the government joined the Regional Action Group of the Americas for the prevention of commercial sexual exploitation of children in travel and tourism. The government continued to participate in a multi-country operation to identify and investigate individuals traveling overseas who had been convicted of sexual crimes against children. The government reported it denied entry to an unknown number of individuals as being potential sex tourists, compared with 330 in the previous reporting period. Laws provided for the prosecution of Dominican citizens who engaged in extraterritorial child sexual commercial exploitation abroad; the government did not report any such prosecutions.

As reported over the past five years, human traffickers exploit domestic and foreign victims in the Dominican Republic, and traffickers exploit victims from the Dominican Republic abroad. Dominican women and children, particularly from impoverished areas, are exploited in sex trafficking throughout the Dominican Republic, the Caribbean, South and Central America, Europe, the Middle East, and the United States. A 2022 study found family networks; social media recruitment; domestic servitude, inequality, and gender-based violence; a lack of information and education; and corruption as the primary causes of trafficking of Dominican women and girls in Costa Rica, Spain, and Switzerland. Foreign trafficking victims especially from Haiti, Colombia, Venezuela, other parts of the Caribbean and Latin America, and Asia are exploited in the Dominican Republic. Migrant detentions and deportations tripled in 2022 compared with the previous year, likely resulting in more unidentified victims. The Dominican Republic has the largest stateless population in the Western Hemisphere; a 2014 law created a mechanism to provide citizenship papers or a naturalization process to stateless persons, but the law has not been properly implemented, leaving more than 100,000 Dominicans of Haitian descent effectively stateless and vulnerable to trafficking. The precarious legal situation often leading to deportation for Haitian migrants and Dominicans of Haitian descent – many of whom are unable to access identity documents and work permits – worsened after a canal border dispute and increased gang violence in Haiti; this further increased these populations’ risks for trafficking and labor abuses, including in the agricultural and construction industries. Illegal raids in which immigration and other authorities damage or destroy the homes of persons of Haitian descent further increase their vulnerability to trafficking. In 2020, the government reported baseball players recruited from Cuba to play in Dominican leagues may be vulnerable to trafficking. The Dominican Republic is a destination for sex tourists – primarily from North America and Europe – for child sex trafficking. A 2022 study found the incidence of child sex trafficking decreased from 10 percent in 2014 to 2.2 percent in 2022 with no identified child victims younger than 15 years of age; however, one in 45 individuals in the commercial sex industry that year were victims of child sex trafficking. Traffickers frequently exploit teenage girls in child sex trafficking in streets, in parks, and on beaches. NGOs noted a lack of regulations and enforcement in the tourism industry led to increased child trafficking victims. Traffickers operating in networks continue to employ methods to mask their activities, including the use of catalogs to sell victims to potential clients using private homes, rented private apartments, or extended stay hotels to house victims. The government’s research in 2021 showed that during the pandemic, traffickers increasingly used online platforms for recruitment and exploitation, a trend that continues post-pandemic. In cases of sexual exploitation of children, WhatsApp chats and social media are used to attract children and exploit them. Government officials and NGOs report an increase in traffickers recruiting Colombian and Venezuelan women to dance in strip clubs and later coercing them into sex trafficking. The pandemic forced many companies to idle workers at partial salaries or lay them off entirely, increasing their vulnerability to trafficking. The government offered unemployment benefits, but many households sought informal labor opportunities, also increasing their vulnerability to trafficking. The government reported an increase in child labor in 2021 because of the pandemic. Dominican officials and NGOs have documented cases of children forced into domestic service, street vending, begging, agricultural work, construction, robbery gangs, and moving illicit narcotics. In 2020, the government described an increase in Dominican trafficking victims, specifically children, brought from the interior of the country to coastal tourist areas. Adults are exploited in construction, agricultural, and service sectors. Haitian women report smugglers often become traffickers for the purpose of sexual exploitation along the border, and observers note traffickers operate along the border with impunity and sometimes with the assistance of corrupt government officials who accept bribes to allow undocumented crossings. Unofficial border crossings remain unmonitored and porous, leaving migrants – including children – vulnerable to trafficking. In December 2021, media reported statements by senators that the Haitian-Dominican border lacked official control, thereby facilitating trafficking. LGBTQI+ individuals experience high levels of violence, which may increase vulnerability to trafficking. An increased number of unaccompanied children at risk for trafficking were interdicted and returned from the high seas surrounding Puerto Rico during a previous reporting period. The government reported a lack of understanding of the nature of trafficking among the general Dominican population, although observers in 2023 noted increasing recognition of the problem among civilian authorities.