Project to prevent human trafficking launched

Islamabad: The Global Action to Prevent and Address Trafficking in Persons and the Smuggling of Migrants (GLO.ACT), a four-year joint initiative by the European Union (EU) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), was launched here on Wednesday.

GLO.ACT is a coordinated response to trafficking in persons and the smuggling of migrants and aims to strengthen the criminal justice response in 13 strategically selected countries across Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe and Latin America   Belarus, Brazil, Colombia, Egypt, Kyrgyz Republic, the Lao People's Democratic Republic, Mali, Morocco, Nepal, Niger, Pakistan, South Africa and Ukraine.

The project, implemented in partnership with the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and the United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef), reaffirms that combating human trafficking and migrant smuggling is of the highest importance for the EU and the United Nations as a whole and UNODC as custodian of relevant convention of transnational organised crime which incorporates protocols of human trafficking and migrant smuggling.

On the same day, UNODC also launched a national awareness campaign against trafficking in persons and smuggling of migrants, co-funded by Australian Government Department of Immigration and Border Protection and United States Department of State. The campaign utilized different mediums and tools to engage general public and relevant stakeholders in a variety of ways. 

Speaking on this occasion, representative of UNODC Pakistan Cesar Guedes said that the need for international community to join efforts to combat the scourge of modern day slavery which is human trafficking, cannot be greater given the unacceptable loss of life.

“We have witnessed people trafficked in inhumane conditions by the traffickers across the world. The seriousness of the situation can be gauged by the fact that UN General Assembly and Security Council recently addressed these matters. Yet a lot remains to be done. Traffickers continue to benefit from weaknesses in our collective criminal justice response. That is why, today, I am pleased to launch GLO.ACT in Pakistan as it specifically aims to strengthen the criminal justice response to trafficking in persons and the smuggling of migrants, as well as launch Public Awareness Campaign to raise awareness about Trafficking in persons and Smuggling of Migrants with the general public,” he said. 

Adding to this, Additional Director General of the Federal Investigation Agency Dr. Muhammad Shafique said that: “Notwithstanding the critical importance of all forms of public interventions for curtailing the issue of TIP and SOM, it is crucial to have governments and civil society to work in close partnership in the fight against these crimes”.

The launching ceremony took place in the presence of Ambassador of the European Union Jean-François Cautain, Ambassador of the United States of America David Hale, Acting Deputy High Commissioner, Australian High Commission Nicole Guihot, as well as senior government representatives from provincial line departments, provincial police, academia, media and civil society.