Imagine yourself in the position of a victim of trafficking. You
heard about an opportunity – a job that would pay more, a
chance to go to another country, a start towards a better life.
Perhaps someone you trusted – a family member, a neighbor, a
friend of a friend – offered to help you get there. Imagine
that when you arrived your travel documents were taken, your every
movement controlled and monitored. Imagine that you were forced to
work in dangerous conditions for little or no pay. What if you
realized that your transport, food and shelter had become a debt
that was increasing every day that you could never pay off?

What would it be like to be physically, emotionally and sexually
abused while being trapped in this situation? What would it be like
to have no passport or other legal documents and no money, in a
country where you don’t speak the language and know no one,
and are too scared or don’t know where to look for help? What
would it be like to be treated like a commodity, to be bought and
sold?

President Moreno, Mr. Ricky Martin, ladies and gentlemen,

To lose control over your own life is an unimaginable situation.
As we sit here this evening, people all over the world are being
recruited, bought, sold and transported by traffickers who earn
billions through their exploitation.

It is an honor to be here today sharing this podium with
individuals and institutions who have decided to make a difference
in the lives of men, women and children who have fallen prey to
human trafficking. People like Alexa, a 17 year old Dominican,
lured with an offer of housekeeping work in Buenos Aires that
turned into a year in captivity and sexual exploitation. Her ordeal
inspired one of the many stories included in a series of radio
programs disseminated by IOM and The Radio Netherlands Training
Center.

Human trafficking is a rapidly expanding global phenomenon that
impacts countries and communities throughout the world. Though
governments and non-governmental organizations are increasingly
responding to this problem, much remains to be done. We heard from
President Moreno the staggering numbers around this illicit
“business”. Indeed, trafficking in persons is one of
the most lucrative crimes in the world and money is the main
objective for traffickers and their criminal networks.

Many countries do not have counter-trafficking legislation, a
fact that limits the possibilities of prosecuting or punishing
traffickers. Often even if legislation is present, law enforcement
and judicial bodies are not trained sufficiently to properly
implement it, again minimizing the risks for traffickers.

To help train those involved in fighting this crime, IOM staff
from all over the world with years of field experience contributed
in the development of a series of training modules , one of them on
how to design, implement, and evaluate an information campaign. In
addition, performance indicators were developed to really gauge the
success of counter-trafficking programs.

IOM has been involved in combating human trafficking for over a
decade. We are currently carrying out more than 150
counter-trafficking projects in some 70 countries. While much of
the focus of our work is on capacity building and information and
prevention campaigns, IOM has provided direct assistance to over
10,000 persons in all parts of the world.

For example, in Ghana IOM is working with local NGOs and elders
to rescue children who have been sold by impoverished parents for
some 100 dollars to fishing lords in communities on the northern
shores of Lake Volta. We have successfully rescued 592 children and
are now reunited with their families. The youngest child to be
rescued was six years old. The children work long hours casting or
retrieving fishing nets that are caught at the bottom of the lake
with little food and no medical care. One little boy told us that
he had been trafficked three times to different fishermen before
being rescued. These children are now enrolled in school or in
vocational training programs, and their parents or guardians
receive income generation support from IOM in order to prevent the
children from being re-trafficked. The fishermen receive training
and micro-credits to help them improve their fishing techniques or
engage in other income-generating activities.

Prevention activities, like the Llama y Vive campaign, are
extremely important in combating trafficking. Our experience in
fighting trafficking in persons confirms that countries of origin
should work to provide alternatives to those who may be vulnerable
to trafficking. Transit countries should work on strengthening
border control and on providing training to officials to enable
them to identify trafficked persons, so that they are not treated
as irregular migrants. Destination countries should look at
exploitation taking place within their borders, and work to
strengthen the labor rights of migrants, or creating legal
migration opportunities to lessen the demand for irregular migrant
workers.

In the US, IOM runs the only program of its kind that assists
foreign national victims of trafficking. This program facilitates
the voluntary return and reintegration of victims of trafficking,
facilitating their safe and humane return home. The program also
helps reunite victims who have been granted permission to remain in
the U.S. with their immediate family members who have been awarded
T visas. It was developed at the request of the U.S. Department of
State, Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration in support of
the Trafficking Victims Protection Act.

With our partners, we have assisted 44 persons from Mexico,
Thailand, Philippines, Ukraine, Ghana, Ecuador, El Salvador,
Honduras, India, Cameroon, Indonesia, and Vietnam to return home or
to reunite with family members in the U.S.

The victims have been men, women, and children forced to work as
domestic servants, prostitutes, skilled laborers, and in the
agricultural and restaurant sectors. Many of those who have been
reunited with their family member here have been children, often
young, who have not seen their parents in years. Recently, IOM was
able to facilitate the reunification of an African man with his
wife and five children. They had been separated for almost 6 years.
A young Asian boy was recently reunited with his mother, who had
been trafficked twice—first to the Middle East and then to
the U.S. Another 50 persons are currently being assisted.

President Moreno already spoke about the successful campaign our
organizations are carrying out in Peru. In Colombia, IOM, IDB and
the Ricky Martin Foundation began their alliance last March with
the information campaign “Que nadie dañe tus
sueños”, Don’t Let Anyone Shatter your Dreams.
The number of calls to the hotline increased dramatically after the
launch of the joint campaign. In early 2007 the Llama y Vive
campaign will be also launched in Colombia.

Negotiations are underway between IOM, IDB and the Ricky Martin
Foundation in Argentina, Ecuador, Central America and Mexico to
spread the campaigns throughout the hemisphere. And we must not
forget the Caribbean, a region where IOM has trafficking projects
and where a similar partnership could be explored.

Another important aspect in the fight against human trafficking
is collaboration with the private sector. In Ukraine, Romania,
Hungary, Moldova, Portugal, and Spain, IOM worked with the Swedish
International Development Agency (SIDA) and the MTV Europe
Foundation on awareness-raising and prevention efforts directed at
youth. In India, IOM works closely with businesses to provide
reintegration assistance to former victims of trafficking. The IOM
Business Advisory Board is active in focusing attention on
trafficking in persons.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The most successful strategies are those that address the root
causes of human trafficking, strengthen the legal framework in
place to prosecute traffickers, and sensitize relevant actors to
ensure that victims are at the center of counter-trafficking
activities. Though responding to human trafficking is a daunting
task, it is a challenge that the global community must continue to
address through increased and improved counter-trafficking
measures, and enhanced cooperation. IOM is proud to be associated
in the worldwide effort to end human trafficking, an effort that
tonight takes another important step forward.

Thank you.