Emphasis on Children During Trafficking in Persons Week

Children are the focus of this year’s Trafficking in Persons Week, as the National Task Force Against Trafficking in Persons (NATFATIP) strives to bring awareness to the issue.

Coordinator of NATFATIP, Audrey Budhi, told a Jamaica Information Service (JIS) Think Tank on July 29, that a series of activities have been planned for the Week, which began on July 28 and will end on August 3.

“We strategise because the theme for World Day Against Trafficking this year from the United Nations and also for the countries across the world is ‘Leave no child behind in the fight against human trafficking’,” Miss Budhi said.

A service was held at St. Luke’s Anglican Church in Cross Roads, St. Andrew, to commence the observation.

“The service was pretty interesting and touched on the fact that human trafficking is modern-day slavery… it really dealt with enslavement and we really got a history lesson but within a biblical sense,” Miss Budhi noted.

She pointed out that sensitisation sessions will be held at the airports in Kingston and Montego Bay to educate persons about trafficking in persons.

“We want to get more out in the community and also to get into the airlines and those other places where people really move up and down… Jamaicans and foreigners. We’re going to be at the Sangster International Airport for about three or four days this week and at Norman Manley two days this week,” Miss Budhi said.

“We’re going to be having what we call pop up. We’re going to be giving out flyers, talking to people at the Sangster International Airport, we’re also going to be having some animation videos put up there,” she added.

World Day Against Trafficking in Persons is observed globally on July 30.

The NATFATIP, which is housed at the Ministry of National Security, will stage a youth symposium at the University of Technology (UTech) Jamaica on the day, to highlight the importance of the issue.

“We’re going to be having youth themselves talking about the subject, going through the different aspects of the subject and wanting to be advocates to talk about what is happening to them in the world,” Miss Budhi said.

“It is going to be really exciting. The format is we’re going to be having three sessions… we’re going to be dealing with sexual exploitation, domestic servitude and bondage. This is to increase awareness among some youth and the broader community about the realities of human trafficking,” she added.

She explained that the symposium is meant to empower students so that they can bring attention to the issue in their schools and their broader community.

To close out the week, Ms Budhi indicated that the Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA) will be showing films close to the subject matter in some of the children’s homes to spread awareness.

In addition, the Secretariat will be handing over tablets made available from international agencies to some of its partners.

“On Friday, as well… we got gifts from one of our international partners, and we will be doing a handover to particular agencies that work with and for trafficking in persons. We will also be handing out to the Victim Support Division some food baskets for victims of trafficking, particularly children,” Miss Budhi noted.

The NATFATIP was established in 2005 as a multi-agency approach by the Government of Jamaica to strengthen Jamaica’s legislative, institutional and operational capacity to combat TIP.

NATFATIP’s core functions are the prevention and suppression of trafficking in persons, the prosecution of offenders, and the protection and provision of assistance to victims.