[From the introductory text accompanying this report on the U.S. Department of State website: "In most cases, the Interim Assessment is intended to serve as a tool by which to gauge the anti-trafficking progress of countries that may be in danger of slipping a tier in the upcoming June 2010 TIP Report and to give them guidance on how to avoid a Tier 3 ranking. It is a tightly focused progress report, assessing the concrete actions a government has taken to address the key deficiencies highlighted in the June 2009 TIP Report. The Interim Assessment covers actions undertaken between the beginning of May – the cutoff for data covered in the June TIP Report – and November. Readers are requested to refer to the annual TIP Report for an analysis of large-scale efforts and a description of the trafficking problem in each particular country or territory."]

The Government of Gabon has demonstrated progress to combat trafficking in persons since the release of the 2009 Report. In October 2009, the Gabonese navy rescued 34 trafficked children from a vessel in Gabonese waters carrying illegal migrants from Benin to Equatorial Guinea. Government officials worked with UNICEF to identify the 34 victims among a group of 288 migrants and placed them in two shelters, one of which is government-operated. The ship's captain was arrested and taken back to Benin. Gabonese authorities are working with Beninese officials to uncover the trafficking network responsible for trafficking the victims.

The Government of Gabon did not report additional prosecutions or convictions of trafficking offenders. While the government ceased the practice of placing victims in jail, even temporarily, it has yet to develop formal procedures to identify trafficking victims among females in prostitution. The government developed and published a National Procedural Manual for Assisting Trafficking Victims and established regional anti-trafficking monitoring committees.

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