Six countries in the Greater Mekong Sub-region yesterday adopted
an action plan to better tackle human trafficking, forced labor and
sexual exploitation.
The joint plan, passed at the Fifth Senior Officials Meeting of
the Coordinated Mekong Ministerial Initiative Against Trafficking
(COMMIT) in Beijing, covers prevention, legislation and
enforcement, victim identification, protection and recovery, as
well as international cooperation and program evaluation.
This is the second action guide by COMMIT, which involves China,
Cambodia, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam and Laos. It will run from
next year to 2010. COMMIT's first action plan, launched in 2005,
expires at the year-end.
The highlight of the second plan is more emphasis on prevention,
Matthew Friedman, regional manager of the United Nations
Inter-Agency Project on Human Trafficking (UNIAP), the secretariat
of COMMIT, said.
"Crackdowns, rescue and recovery are not enough. We should
enhance measures to identify the vulnerable groups and help them
protect themselves," he said.
The action plan also sets up a system for collecting and
collating selected data on victims for use in prevention and other
efforts.
In addition, it requires governments to develop and implement
guidelines for labor recruitment and migrant protection to prevent
trafficking.
Mass migration in the region has created opportunities for
traffickers to lure people, especially women and girls.
Friedman said it is hard to estimate the number of victims in
the region every year because of the secretive nature of the
crime.
The United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund
estimates that roughly 1 million children are bought and sold every
year worldwide, mostly for sexual exploitation and forced
labor.
Figures from China's Ministry of Public Security show that about
2,000 to 3,000 cases of women and children being sold are reported
to police across the country every year, some of them
transnational.
Vice-Minister of Public Security Zhang Xinfeng said the
commitment made by the six governments to implement an
anti-trafficking road map is a major step forward.
"Strenuous efforts have to be made to save more lives in the
region, and we governments are willing to take more
responsibility," Zhang said.
He said the Chinese government had stepped up publicity
campaigns and opened border liaison offices, as well as built
centers for those rescued from trafficking.
For example, transfer centers for repatriation have been opened
in the southern region of Guangxi, which borders Vietnam, and
Yunnan, which shares a long border with Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam,
according to the ministry.
Friedman said China is a very strong and active member within
COMMIT, and a responsible leader within the process.
Subinay Nandy, United Nations Development Program's China
country director, said the efforts set an example on how to jointly
fight trafficking.
"It's also a model for the rest of the world on regional
cooperation," he said.
Nandy said fighting trafficking also contributes to a broader
fight against poverty, the exploitation of migrants, HIV/AIDS and
gender discrimination.
(China Daily December 14, 2007)
