August 3, 2021
On this World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, my heart goes out to the victims and survivors of this crime. No one has the right to exploit anyone for any reason whatsoever; especially, in periods such as the health crisis caused by Covid-19, in which the world population is in a state of greater vulnerability.
The OAS member states, during the 6th Meeting of National Authorities on Trafficking in Persons, approved a series of recommendations under the title “Challenges in the fight against trafficking in times of pandemic” and recalled that the countries of origin, transit and destination of the victims of human trafficking should continue to work on the development of public policies, prevention programs, identification, assistance, protection, recovery, voluntary repatriation and reintegration, in a coordinated manner and using a comprehensive and multidisciplinary approach, focused on victims and sensitive to the effects of trauma, taking into account gender, sexual diversity, age, disability, language and culture, without neglecting the safety of the surviving victims, and respecting their human rights.
Regarding the persecution of criminal organizations dedicated to human trafficking, countries are urged to strengthen operational contacts for the expeditious exchange of information and, as far as possible, intelligence that allows for direct and timely communication between member states to contribute to the investigation of the crime of trafficking in persons, as well as to identify its modus operandi.
The recommendations also advocate the adoption of policies and measures that include the use of money and funds confiscated from trafficking networks to strengthen the capacities of institutions working on human trafficking and the justice sector and that promote parallel financial investigation of illicit monetary or financial flows arising from the crime of human trafficking, with a view to tracing, freezing and confiscating the product acquired through this crime.
It is my hope that these recommendations, as they resonate throughout the Americas, can be transformed into concrete acts, so that more people can be protected and that impunity for the crime of trafficking in persons ceases to be a reality.