Governments and non-government groups should collaborate to educate people at risk of being tricked by human traffickers.
So says a collective of Catholic humanitarian groups, religious orders and coalitions of women religious who have been working with trafficking victims.
They say ideally, “safe, legal and responsible migration pathways” that make it easier for vulnerable migrants and refugees to enter countries are needed so the migrants do not feel forced to turn to smugglers to reach their destinations.
They are also calling for for more government and private collaboration to educate people at risk on the most common ruses used by traffickers.
This could involve visiting refugee camps to run programmes on the dangers of human trafficking and to advise migrants on how to protect themselves from the most common ruses used by traffickers.
Human trafficking occurs everywhere. Some are trafficked within local settings and others across international borders. They are used in domestic service, sexual and labor exploitation, begging, forced marriage, organ removal, to provide surrogate wombs and to commit criminal acts,” the collective said in a statement.
It also noted that while human trafficking victims are estimated on in the tens of millions, worldwide convictions of human traffickers are fewer than 10,000,”.
Caritas Internationalis, Australian Catholic Religious Against Trafficking in Humans, Dominicans for Justice and Peace, Franciscan International, Jesuit Refugee Service, Talitha Kum (the Worldwide Network of Religious Life against Trafficking in Persons) and the World Union of Catholic Women’s Organizations signed the statement.
It was distributed by the International Union of Superiors General, which is an organisation representing the heads of Catholic orders of women.
Source
- Crux
- Image: Human Trafficking Center
