Six countries in the Greater Mekong Sub-region yesterday adopted an action plan to better tackle human trafficking, forced labor and sexual exploitation.

 

The joint plan, passed at the Fifth Senior Officials Meeting of the Coordinated Mekong Ministerial Initiative Against Trafficking (COMMIT) in Beijing, covers prevention, legislation and enforcement, victim identification, protection and recovery, as well as international cooperation and program evaluation.

 

This is the second action guide by COMMIT, which involves China, Cambodia, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam and Laos. It will run from next year to 2010. COMMIT's first action plan, launched in 2005, expires at the year-end.

 

The highlight of the second plan is more emphasis on prevention, Matthew Friedman, regional manager of the United Nations Inter-Agency Project on Human Trafficking (UNIAP), the secretariat of COMMIT, said.

 

"Crackdowns, rescue and recovery are not enough. We should enhance measures to identify the vulnerable groups and help them protect themselves," he said.

 

The action plan also sets up a system for collecting and collating selected data on victims for use in prevention and other efforts.

 

In addition, it requires governments to develop and implement guidelines for labor recruitment and migrant protection to prevent trafficking.

 

Mass migration in the region has created opportunities for traffickers to lure people, especially women and girls.

 

Friedman said it is hard to estimate the number of victims in the region every year because of the secretive nature of the crime.

 

The United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund estimates that roughly 1 million children are bought and sold every year worldwide, mostly for sexual exploitation and forced labor.

 

Figures from China's Ministry of Public Security show that about 2,000 to 3,000 cases of women and children being sold are reported to police across the country every year, some of them transnational.

 

Vice-Minister of Public Security Zhang Xinfeng said the commitment made by the six governments to implement an anti-trafficking road map is a major step forward.

 

"Strenuous efforts have to be made to save more lives in the region, and we governments are willing to take more responsibility," Zhang said.

 

He said the Chinese government had stepped up publicity campaigns and opened border liaison offices, as well as built centers for those rescued from trafficking.

 

For example, transfer centers for repatriation have been opened in the southern region of Guangxi, which borders Vietnam, and Yunnan, which shares a long border with Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, according to the ministry.

 

Friedman said China is a very strong and active member within COMMIT, and a responsible leader within the process.

 

Subinay Nandy, United Nations Development Program's China country director, said the efforts set an example on how to jointly fight trafficking.

 

"It's also a model for the rest of the world on regional cooperation," he said.

 

Nandy said fighting trafficking also contributes to a broader fight against poverty, the exploitation of migrants, HIV/AIDS and gender discrimination.

 

(China Daily December 14, 2007)