Report: Despite DoD Crackdown, Illegal Labor Practices in Iraq Persisted

Critics say the second inspection demonstrates that these efforts are ineffective. “It's not enough to get language into the contracts,” said Sarah Mendelson, who is the director of the Human Rights and Security Initiative at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies. “There has to be a more robust regime at DOD to implement the policy.”

Mendelson said eliminating instances of trafficking in persons is especially important in counterinsurgency operations in Iraq and Afghanistan because human rights violations committed by contractors working for the U.S. military reflect badly on DOD's efforts to establish the rule of law in those countries.

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