UN.GIFT Joint Programme Serbia
12 February 2010 - The complex nature of human trafficking calls for coordinated efforts and cooperation among governments, international organizations and other stakeholders. UN.GIFT has identified Joint Programmes as a powerful means to assist countries in tackling human trafficking, drawing on the specific expertise of each of its partners.
Interview with Mr. Mitar Đurašković , Serbian Anti-Human Trafficking National Coordinator and Chief Police Inspector, on the UN.GIFT Joint Programme in Serbia.
The UN.GIFT Joint Programmes are a new approach to the fight against Human Trafficking. In Serbia this fight started 9 years ago, in 2001. After signing the Palermo Protocol, the Serbian government decided to establish a multidisciplinary team to enhance a joint approach. The team included international organizations, local and international NGOs, and relevant Serbian ministries. In addition, the first AHT coordinator was appointed. This early cooperation among relevant stakeholders soon proved its worth, as human trafficking cases could be solved and victims rescued. Shelters for victims of trafficking were established in 2002 and in the same year a study exchange to Vienna was organised to visit Austrian police units and NGOs (Lefoe) as well as relevant ministries and international organizations. To forge a link between NGOs and the Serbian police, a specialised agency for coordinated victim protection was established within the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy in 2004.
In 2006 the Serbian government adopted the Strategy for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings in the Republic of Serbia and established a national Team for Combating THB strategy. This Team, together with other stakeholders, developed in turn the National Plan of Action to Combat Trafficking in Human Beings, 2009-2011. Full implementation of the plan will require € 3 million over 3 years.
The UN.GIFT Joint Programme for Serbia both confirms and reinforces the existing excellent cooperation among Anti-Human Trafficking stakeholders in Serbia. Under the Joint Programme the Serbian government will provide focal points in the Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy, who will be responsible for national implementation of the Joint Programme activities and will establish relevant Anti-Human Trafficking policies in respective ministries. The Serbian government will also contribute premises for the Joint Programme project team to ensure a close relationship between the project team and national institutions.
The overall goal of the UN.GIFT Joint Programme is to operationalise the National Action Plan through its different components.. One component aims to enhance institutional cooperation and strengthen its sustainability. The Joint Programme will assist in filling in gaps identified by the NAP, such as the lack of a child-specific protection system and improvement of victim identification, including identification within the asylum channels. Currently, assistance to victims of trafficking is delivered only by NGOs; it should become part of governmental actions as well. Another programme component will work to build institutional capacity on trafficking issues (training police and law students), and another will work on awareness raising campaigns tailored specifically to vulnerable groups such as asylum seekers, refugees, internally displaced people, etc (Theatre of the oppressed) and targeting young job seekers through the internet and other technologies. Furthermore, awareness-raising for decision makers will play a key role in ensuring future commitment to the fight against human trafficking.