Prostitution in Panama
Encyclopedia
Prostitution in Panama is legal and regulated. Prostitutes are required to register and carry identification cards.
However, the majority of prostitutes are not registered; 2,650 sex workers were registered with the government in 2008, but there was no accurate information regarding the total number of persons practicing prostitution in the country.
The principal traffickers
in the country are owners of houses of prostitution, and most transnational trafficking occurs using valid travel documents and is conducted through official ports of entry. The PNP Sex Crimes Unit reported that most victims trafficked into the country came from Colombia
, the Dominican Republic
, and Central America. The primary destinations for people trafficked from the country are Jamaica
and Europe.
However, the majority of prostitutes are not registered; 2,650 sex workers were registered with the government in 2008, but there was no accurate information regarding the total number of persons practicing prostitution in the country.
The principal traffickers
Human trafficking
Human trafficking is the illegal trade of human beings for the purposes of reproductive slavery, commercial sexual exploitation, forced labor, or a modern-day form of slavery...
in the country are owners of houses of prostitution, and most transnational trafficking occurs using valid travel documents and is conducted through official ports of entry. The PNP Sex Crimes Unit reported that most victims trafficked into the country came from Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
, the Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
, and Central America. The primary destinations for people trafficked from the country are Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
and Europe.