Regional Thematic Training/Workshop “Combating Trafficking in Persons – Protection of Victims of Human Trafficking”, 4-6 April, 2016, Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
Regional Thematic Training/Workshop
“Combating Trafficking in Persons – Protection of Victims of Human Trafficking”
4-6 April, 2016, Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
IOM Sub-regional Coordination Office for Central Asia, Astana, Kazakhstan in cooperation with the IOM Mission in Kyrgyzstan organized a Regional Thematic Training/Workshop on “Combating Trafficking in Persons – Protection of Victims of Human Trafficking” for Government officials and non-government organizations, including community and religious organizations from Central Asia on 4th-6th April 2016 in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.
The purpose of the event was to provide relevant government officers with the knowledge and skills necessary to identify and refer victims of human trafficking in line with national legislation and international instruments.
The event was organized within the framework of the IOM program “Addressing Mixed Migration flows in Central Asia through capacity building” Phase II (2015-2016) funded by the Government of the United States (BPRM-PIM).
Participating at the meeting was government and non-government representatives, both long-standing partners and new stakeholders involved in combating human trafficking. Participating countries were Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
Participants were informed about and participated in discussions about the following topics: NGO experiences and the role of NGOs in combatting trafficking in persons; definitions and distinctions of the concepts “smuggling” and “trafficking”; international and national policies and standards on counter-trafficking; identification of victims of human trafficking; national mechanisms for referral as a response to trafficking; direct assistance and interviewing techniques of victims of human trafficking. Topics were also explored in a participatory manner, with group work on identifying stakeholders in the work against human trafficking, and discussions about the themes at the end of each day of the training.
Sessions also covered Central Asian states’ experience of combating trafficking in persons, with presentations from participating government representatives; international good practices with examples from Central America on how states can monitor their compliance with the Palermo Protocol and which indicators could be used; and IOM Policy and Programme Developments, including main achievements, challenges, good practices and lessons learned from IOM’s Counter Trafficking projects in Central Asia in the period 2010-15 and future plans. During the event, participants were trained on protection of VOTs, as well as had an opportunity to learn about international regional practices and processes followed in another region of the world i.e. Latin America, under the “Puebla Process".