Regional seminar, “Action against Trafficking in Human Beings: Criminal and Procedural Measures”

Paris, 27-28 September 2007

Speech by Sandra Barnes, Congress of Local and Regional Authorities Council of Europe

Mr Chairman,

Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Back in 2005, we called on European governments, parliaments, territorial authorities, civil society and NGOs – we called on all actors to rise and take their stand in the fight against trafficking in human beings, this cancer spreading across our continent and beyond, blighting our societies. We had been raising alarm for quite some time before about this modern form of slavery growing in an unprecedented manner, claiming millions of people, mostly women and children, as its victims.

Back then, in May 2005, the Warsaw Summit of Council of Europe Heads of State and Government opened for signature the Council of Europe Convention on action against trafficking in human beings, aimed at preventing trafficking, prosecuting the perpetrators and protecting the victims.

In June 2005, the Council of Europe’s Congress of Local and Regional Authorities, a representative body of 200,000 territorial communities of our continent, followed suit with the adoption of a recommendation and a resolution on the role of cities and regions in combating human trafficking.

This comes as no surprise as local and regional authorities have an important role to play in, on the one hand, carrying out national strategies and policies at the territorial level and, on the other hand, adapting them to the situation on the ground. It is at local and regional level that the drama of human trafficking is played out, whether it is the wholesale shipping out of women and children from disadvantaged areas in countries of origin or the sad, visible presence of large numbers of them on the streets of Europe’s towns in countries of transit or destination. 

Many of the problems related to trafficking are therefore felt at local and regional level. When it comes to finding solutions, local and regional authorities are best placed to react to their citizens’ concerns and to delimit and define the issues and then tailor-make policies to the specific needs and problems in their locality. This is why combating human trafficking requires not only international texts and national policy measures aimed at mounting pan-European and global action, but also a complementary, concerted and collective local and regional approach.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

We are here today because we understand the need not to lose the momentum gained in 2005, the need for more action to advance at all levels in our fight against trafficking. For their part, local and regional authorities can make a valuable contribution, using the specific competences and resources at their disposal, to help in achieving the objectives of the Council of Europe Convention.

The power of towns and regions to prevent trafficking may appear limited - much action of a legal or administrative nature cannot always be taken at local or regional level. The field of action for local and regional authorities in the fight against trafficking lies therefore largely in the social field. In this regard, the Congress has identified three main areas of activity as being not only generally within the scope of public authorities’ powers and competence but also the most effective at their level. 

In addition to such common-sense measures as the general pooling of resources, co-operation and exchange of best practices, these three areas are:

-          awareness-raising,

-          education and specialised training, and, in particular,

-          the protection, rehabilitation and reintegration of victims. 

Some of these categories of action are preventive and proactive in nature; others are aimed at rehabilitating and protecting the victims of this violation of human rights.  All apply to a greater or lesser extent to every member state of the Council of Europe.

A priority should be the creation of resource centres, support units, or departments at local and regional level specialised in assistance to trafficked human beings. With their grass-roots approach, these would constitute local and regional knowledge centres in this field and make regular policy recommendations to central government. These centres, in close co-operation with the relevant non-governmental associations, would co-ordinate all aspects of victim care through the provision of secure accommodation (walk-in shelters and longer-term refuges), medical and psychological assistance and information - via, for example, a dedicated web-site and a free, 24-hour emergency telephone hotline. They would provide education, especially language-training, free legal representation and translation/ interpretation services.

On the basis of this three-pronged approach, the Congress’ Commission on Social Cohesion held a hearing, in October 2005 in Mulhouse, France, on the role of local authorities in combating human trafficking, with the participation of victims of trafficking. Many participants of the hearing stressed the need for governments to treat victims of trafficking as such, before seeing them as illegal immigrants or people in an irregular situation. They also pointed to the need for more prevention, alongside with repressive measures. Repression alone cannot achieve the desired results, and we should bear this in mind when discussing criminal and procedural measures at this seminar.

In May 2006, the Congress launched a Declaration of towns against human trafficking, which was made available for signature online for all elected representatives, both members and non-members of the Congress, committing themselves to bringing the Declaration for adoption before their deliberative bodies. 

The declaration calls for mobilising all forces at local level in order to ensure that the message of the Council of Europe campaign against human trafficking is heard at both ends of the scale of governance, from the level of citizens and to the highest levels of state government.

By adopting the Declaration, local communities undertake to make the fight against the trafficking in human beings a top priority for their administrations.  This means: protecting victims and helping them to be rehabilitated and reintegrated into society, providing specialised training for actors in the field and increasing the professional opportunities for women in order to make them less vulnerable to the traffickers.

Up to date, the declaration has received 274 signatures from 27 countries[1].

I would like to add that I am currently preparing a report on the role of local and regional authorities in combating human trafficking. The report, with accompanying resolution and recommendation, will be presented to the Congress at its plenary session in May 2008.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

There is no excuse for human trafficking but there is an explanation. The difficult social and economic situation in the countries of origin sets people on the road in a search for a better life, for a dream which much too often turns into a nightmare for so many. It is only by addressing the social and economic roots of the problem that we can dry out the supply. It is only by raising awareness among our citizens that we can stomp down on the demand.

Let us join our forces at all levels of government, with the participation of all actors of society, to make sure that the slogan of the Council of Europe campaign – “Human being. Not for sale!” – not only rings true, but also comes true for each and every one on European soil.

Thank you.