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Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Prime Minister and Minister for National Security, Tillman Thomas has pledged his governments full backing and support to the fight against human trafficking. Addressing the opening of a two day OAS sponsored conference on human trafficking at the Grand Beach Resort last week Thursday, Prime Minister Thomas told participants that their task is to end the practice of forcing men, women and children into dirty, difficult and dangerous situations, for material gain.
Prime Minister Thomas called on local social agencies to investigate reports circulating that some parents are exploiting their own young girls, by allowing them to participate in sexual practices with older men, for money.
Estimates from the US State Department and the UN on the number of people moved across international borders range from 700,000 to 4 million persons per year. The training initiative in Grenada was organised by the Department of Public Security (DPS) of the Organisation of American States, with funding from the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA).
The programme sought to train police and immigration officials as well as prosecutors and judges, from 13 English-speaking Caribbean countries, in order to increase awareness and support the efforts of law enforcement agencies in combating human trafficking. Under the initiative, participants will be trained in areas such as the distinction between trafficking and smuggling; crime scene management; victim identification, assistance and protection; and standard operating procedures for immigration control.
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