|
Trafficking in human
beings is the most profitable business of transnational organised
crime. Seven billion US dollars, much more than the selling of arms
and drugs, are yielded. Victims of trafficking are sexually exploited,
forced into slave or bonded labour, into marriages, or having organs
forcefully removed. An estimated 700.000 women and girls are trafficked
every year; half a million women are trafficked into EU member states
alone every year.
International cooperation
of the judiciary and the police has to be strengthened in order
to fight organised crime. At the same time attempts have to be made
to improve the economic situation of women in the countries of origin.
Economic independence of women would ensure they are not easy prey
for traffickers. Enhanced political and economic cooperation with
the affected states is needed. Support and help for victims of trafficking
in the countries of destination must be accelerated by implementing
the relevant EU directive by 6 August 2006.
Socialist International
Women therefore:
calls on international
organisations to initiate cooperation with NGOs in order to draft
international action plans serving as a guideline for binding legislation
and international action and taking into account the recently adopted
action plan of the Council of the European Union which should now
be implemented;
calls on governments
and international organisations to provide the necessary funds for
the implementation of such action plans;
calls on its member
organisations to initiate cooperation with other NGOs and government
authorities in order to draft a National Action Plan, which will
serve as guideline for binding legislation and institutionalised
action;
stresses the need
for a national coordinator to be appointed by the respective governments
to be responsible for the development and implementation of the
National Action Plan. The necessary legislative measures must be
taken to equip the coordinator with ample logistic and political
support of the relevant ministries;
demands that a
national rapporteur be appointed who has the legal right to collect
and evaluate data and information on trafficking in human beings.
All relevant facts, data and other information shall be collected
and presented to the parliament. This will constitute a move from
reactive to proactive measures;
urges governments
to grant women victims of trafficking a stabilisation period of
30 days during which they are not forced to give testimony and must
be informed by the authorities of their rights and be covered by
social security;
underlines that
at the end of the stabilisation period those women who are prepared
to cooperate with the authorities should be given a residence and
work permit;
notes that measures
must be taken for witness and victim protection programmes for those
involved in lawsuits and during court proceedings. The name of the
victim should not be made public to the accused or their lawyer,
nor should the home address and location of witness protection facilities
be mentioned at the time of the proceedings. The victim should be
informed of the possibility of being questioned separately;
stresses that
in criminal law the notion of aiding and abetting of trafficking
must be extended and made a punishable offence;
calls for sentencing
clients of victims who knowingly and intentionally exploit the predicament
of a trafficked woman to either charitable work - definitely not
in victim support institutions - or to a fine, which should be earmarked
for such institutions;
calls for the
presence of specially trained personnel during police and judicial
questioning. To this end training of judges, prosecutors and police
staff must be improved. Furthermore specially trained interpreters
should be made available;
underlines that
the dimension of the fight against trafficking of human beings and
their sexual exploitation must be given greater attention and consideration.
Support for those wishing to voluntarily return and re-integrate
in their countries of origin must be provided as 80% of victims
wish to return to their countries. This must be done in cooperation
with local NGOs or authorities;
calls on governments
to sign and ratify the UN Palermo Protocol to Prevent, Suppress
and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children,
supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational
Organised Crime and the Council of Europe Convention on Action against
Trafficking in Human Beings.
In conclusion Socialist
International Women calls for relevant political measures beyond
the judiciary to end violence, stop trafficking in human beings
and simultaneously support the economic independence of women. Therefore,
a widely publicised campaign against trafficking of women on national
and European level is urgently needed.
|
