At the RENATE assembly in Rome in 2016, Dr. Anna Rowlands presented us daily with Theological Reflections, rich in content and profound in making their mark as each day’s presentation remained with us, to ponder over and reflect upon.
As war continues in Syria and the lives of innocent people are forever traumatised and changed, Anna again presents us with much food for thought in her article entitled ‘’Turkey- Crossroads for the Displaced.’’
The poignancy of her interview with Mohammed allied to the fragile economic profile of a country playing ‘host’ to refugees, is made all the more so as the final paragraph does not yield any closure.
Full article at: http://www.thetablet.co.uk/features/2/12579/turkey-crossroads-for-the-displaced
Anna is Associate Professor in Catholic Social Thought and Practice at Durham University. Her research is funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council and Economic and Social Research Council. Further details, including a project blog, can be found at Refugee Hosts. Follow her on Twitter @AnnaRowlands1.
Prepared by Anne Kelleher, RENATE Communications Person.
 

This year’s Prayer Guide features 31 days of prayers, from contributors across six continents. In addressing themes such as Human Trafficking, Child Marriage, Gender Discrimination, Gender-Based Violence, the prayers seek to the good health, empowerment, safety and well-being of women and girls worldwide.
Download the Prayer Guide here (32 pps, PDF). (Published by the Lott Carey Global Christian Missionary Community, MD, USA).  
Prepared by Anne Kelleher, RENATE Communications.  

 
RENATE member, Sr. Pilar González Cano, shares with us her PowerPoint presentation she prepared for the Vigil in honour of St. Bakhita’s Day, 2018, which was held at her local Parish church. There are accompanying photographs of the event, which took place on 10 February.
Prepared by Anne Kelleher, RENATE Communications.

Sr. Gabriella Bottani, coordinator of Talitha Kum, and head of the committee organizing the World Day of Prayer and Awareness Against Human Trafficking, 8 February, spoke with Sr. Bernadette Reis, fsp, U.S. Catholic Sisters Against Human Trafficking, praising the efforts of her fellow women Religious, expressing her hope for an international policy and explaining ways that all of us can get involved in the anti-trafficking movement.
More at: https://www.sistersagainsttrafficking.org/2018/03/01/migrants-risk-human-trafficking/
Prepared by Anne Kelleher, RENATE Communications.

The second Vienna Migration Conference in October 2017 focused on sustainable migration partnerships, operational cooperation and crisis management with a view to managing migration flows and prevent exploitation and human trafficking.
The Conference report presents the core statements of all 24 speakers and summarises discussions, findings and conclusions.
You can also watch the interviews conducted with participants during the conference, outlining a couple of recommendations to strengthen migration partnerships as frameworks for “safe, orderly and regular migration”.
The quotes and photos of each panellist allows you to get a quick overview of the discussions and participants’ main points.
Of particular interest is the presentation by Julie Okah-Donli, Director General of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, Nigeria.  
Pdf. Copy of the Report available at: https://www.icmpd.org/fileadmin/1_2018/Downloads_VMC2017/ICMPD_VMC_Digital.pdf?utm_source=ICMPD&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=23-02-2018+VMC+2017+-+Special+Issue+2018&utm_content=Mailing_10760278
Adapted by Anne Kelleher, RENATE Communications.

On 27 February 2018,  High-level government representatives from Ukraine, along with representatives of NGOs, the OSCE and of the international donor community met in Kyiv to present annual achievements in combating trafficking in human beings and to set the strategies for the upcoming year.
At the event, Ms. Tetyana Kovalchuk, Deputy Minister of the Interior, announced that 2018 will be officially designated as the year of combatting trafficking in human beings and stated that “The Ministry of Interior and the National Police of Ukraine have invested significant efforts into uncovering and investigating the cases of trafficking in human beings. In 2017, the number of recorded criminal cases tripled compared to 2016. However, we further need to strengthen the investigation of trafficking in human beings cases and the prosecution and conviction of human traffickers.” 
Of particular interest to the stakeholders were trafficking prevention, how best to improve interagency co-operation and devising strategies on how to strengthen responses to counter trafficking in human beings.
Jeffrey Erlich, Senior Project Officer of the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine said: “Along with the other 56 participating States of the OSCE, Ukraine has committed to a multi-disciplinary and comprehensive approach to address human trafficking. It is the task of field missions like the Project Coordinator in Ukraine, to support national efforts, and I am pleased to note that in 2017, the government sought out substantive and meaningful cooperation in a wide range of areas.”
Log on to the RENATE website for forthcoming news of RENATE’s launch of its Mapping exercise on Child Trafficking in seven member countries, including the UKRAINE.  
Adapted by Anne Kelleher, RENATE Communications