Regional women work to combat human trafficking

Source: VNA

The trafficking of women and children within the Greater Mekong Sub-region was at the top of the agenda at a forum in Ha Noi on July 12-13.

Ha Thi Khiet, President of the Viet Nam Women’s Union and Chairwoman of the National Committee for the Advancement of Women, stressed at the forum that human trafficking has now moved beyond a national or a regional issue to one that holds global significance.

The trafficking of women and children is an action that violates basis human rights, shatters the family unit, affects social order and impedes the development of each country, she said.

Khiet said her organisation is continuously introducing new methods to educate the community in a bid to combat the crime.

At the Mekong Women’s Forum, participants from Cambodia, China, Laos, Thailand and Viet Nam shared their experiences in preventing the trafficking of women and children, as well as in assisting victims who had been previously traded for sexual and labour exploitation to reintegrate into the community.

Sachiko Yamamoto, Regional Director for the International Labour Organisation (ILO)’s Asia and Pacific Office, said the work against human trafficking and discrimination cannot rest solely in the hands of governments, but all societies and citizens, particularly women and women’s organisations, should play a greater role.

During the forum, organised by the Viet Nam Women’s Union in coordination with the ILO, the participating countries are expected to put forth recommendations to boost cooperation between regional women’s organisations as well as between member countries to be implemented in the future.