International Cooperation Essential to Curb Human Trafficking: Brazilian Minister

15 October 2007 - Working together with various stakeholders and organizations across borders is crucial to succeed in the fight against human trafficking, the Brazilian minister of justice, Tarso Genro, stressed when opening a regional UN.GIFT event in his country's capital on October 3.

"International collaboration, such as our project with UNODC, sharing experiences and technical cooperation are essential in this work," said the minister at the conference organized by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).

The seminar, taking place on 3-4 October and focusing on the "Challenges in Tackling Human Trafficking in Brazil: Protecting the Vulnerable Population", was held at the Foreign Relations Palace in Brasilia.

The implementation of the new National Programme of Public Security with Citizenship (Pronasci) is directly linked to human trafficking and is intended to tackle this crime, he pointed out.

Mr. Genro stressed the importance of coordinated networks - among the public sector, NGOs and international organisations - in combating human trafficking, raising awareness of the crime and protecting its victims, as set out by the programme.

"One example can be seen at the office created at the São Paulo International Airport to receive potential victims who have been deported or denied entrance in other countries. This NGO-government-international organizations partnership is key for this successful instrument," added Mr. Genro.

The Brazilian foreign minister, Mr. Celso Amorim, stressed that UN.GIFT is "of great interest to the country, also because of the increasing number of Brazilians who are living abroad."

Some of the topics addressed were the relationship between migration and trafficking with a focus on gender, and the problems of trafficking in children and adolescents, while a special panel discussed the relationship between HIV and human trafficking. An important issue raised was the need to curb demand for trafficked persons in Brazil, in other countries of the region as well as in rich countries.

Barbara Campos, from the National Secretariat of Justice, presented to the conference the historical development of the National Policy and Plan of Trafficking in Persons (PNETP), constituting commitments made by the Brazilian government for the next two years focusing on prevention, repression/accountability and victim support. The plan was under public consultation for three months.

Furthermore, the seminar dealt with different forms of exploitation and forced labour, while other panels dealt with research and data collection on human trafficking in the country.

Among the senior officials attending the UN.GIFT Brazil event were the President of the Federal Supreme Court, Minister Ellen Gracie; Minister of Foreign Relations Celso Amorim; Minister of the Special Secretariat for Women's Policies (SPM) Nilcéia Freire; Minister of Justice Tarso Genro; Minister of the Special Secretariat for Human Rights Paulo de Tarso Vannuchi, and Sandra Valle representing UNODC headquarters in Vienna. In total, some 200 high-level officials and experts took part in the two-day seminar. 

Its results will be brought to the Vienna Forum held in the Austrian capital in February, 2008, which addresses human trafficking on a global level.

The aim of UN.GIFT is to promote a joint effort in Brazil with the government, civil society and business partners to tackle the problem of human trafficking, which involves recruitment, transportation for sexual exploitation or forced labour.

In addition to UNODC, UN.GIFT Brazil is a partnership among ILO (International Labor Organization); UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund); UNIFEM (United Nations Development Fund for Women); UNICEF (United Nations Fund for Children) and IOM (International Organization for Migration).