The Sri Lanka Judges Training Institute, in collaboration with IOM
has organized a two-day residential programme on combating human
trafficking for a group of 50 High Court judges and magistrates
from across Sri Lanka.

The programme, which was funded by the United States Government
Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons was designed to
sensitize judges on general characteristics of human trafficking,
national and international legislation related to trafficking and
the protection of victims of trafficking.

According to Richard Danziger, Chief of Mission for IOM in Sri
Lanka, "The training of judges and magistrates is a crucial element
in combating human trafficking.  It is therefore gratifying to
see the engagement of the judiciary in Sri Lanka and their desire
to increase the number of prosecutions for this crime."

The programme included modules on local and international law,
human rights, differences between trafficking and smuggling, and
the provision of medical care for traumatized victims.

To date, IOM has also trained over 2,000 Sri Lankan law
enforcement officers in the areas of victim identification,
protection and prosecution of traffickers through a series of
nationwide workshops developed in close cooperation with the Sri
Lanka Police Department, the Attorney General's Department, the
Immigration and Emigration Department and the Sri Lanka Bureau of
Foreign Employment.

For more information please contact:

Anuradhi Navaratnam

IOM Colombo

Tel: +94.11.53325 300

E-mail: "mailto:pnavaratnam@iom.int">pnavaratnam@iom.int