News

Legal Workshops to strengthen Local Authorities Capacities on Addressing Human Trafficking cases

On 2^nd – 4^th March 2010, Acting for Women in Distressing Circumstances (AFESIP) and the Anti-Trafficking Department (ATD) organized legal workshops on case analysis and technical discussion for Anti-Trafficking Units (ATU), Provincial Labor and Social Welfare Departments (PLSW), Provincial Prosecutors and the Lao Women Union (LWU) in three main provinces of the south of Laos: Savannakhet, Saravan and Champasak.

More than 20 participants attended the workshops supported by AFESIP. The objective was to have discussions between AFESIP, ATD, ATU, PLSW, LWU and Provincial Prosecutors on legal issues related to human trafficking and sexual exploitation: case analysis, follow-up of case processing related to victims of human trafficking and prosecution of traffickers and exploitative employers.

The workshops were held at the different provincial offices. In each province, AFESIP had a good collaboration and cooperation with ATUs, Provincials Prosecutors, LWU and PLSW. The discussions had good results ending in propositions and amendments to improve and develop the legal activities.  On the other hand, the information provided by AFESIP Legal Advisor, Mrs. Lithnarong Pholsena, will also be useful for the authorities:  “they can use the ideas and information provided to implement them at their authority level”, she said.

In Savannakhet province, human trafficking for both labor and sexual exploitation is a serious crime and a growing issue. The authorities are therefore putting in place a policy and strategy plan to fight this problem. At the moment, there are more than 8 cases of human traffickers who are being prosecuted.  One of them has been condemned: he was the owner of an entertainment place proposing sexual services where a victim rescued by ATU Savannakhet and AFESIP used to work and was being forced into sexual exploitation.

In Saravan and in Champassack provinces, 6 suspected cases of human trafficking and illegal migration were discussed during the workshops (3 in each provinces). To better understand skills and techniques needed to analyze a human trafficking case, the workshops proposed to illustrate the theory by different existing cases. Awareness raising, experience sharing and discussions about the concepts of Human Trafficking, illegal migration and repatriation were the topics of the workshops; especially in Champassak province where the main repatriation border checkpoint is located.

AFESIP Legal Consultant also met with Lao officials that are about to attend the annual Lao-thai meeting on Human Trafficking. She made suggestions on possible amendments that could be made regarding repatriation rules for Lao illegal migrants.

Human trafficking is a growing issue in those 3 provinces as they are located right next to the Lao-Thai border. Crossing the border to Thailand is easy and the illegal migrants have then to face the risk of being trafficked for labor or sexual exploitation.

The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on human trafficking and illegal migration signed by the 2 countries aims at discouraging illegal migrants from crossing the border to decrease the number of Laotians lured into trafficking and sexual exploitation in Thailand.

Laos is also part of the COMMIT which brings together 6 Mekong sub-region countries to combat human trafficking. The six countries have put in place legal and cooperative frameworks to prevent human trafficking, prosecute traffickers and exploitative employers, and protect victims, helping them returning home safely and with dignity.  

Another legal workshop will be organized in about two months at central level which will bring together authorities from four provinces: Vientiane, Savannakhet, Champasak and Saravan to follow-up the cases and the problems addressed, and to report the progress in the prosecution of traffickers and exploitative employers.