Ending Trafficking Begins with us. Das Ende des Menschenhandels beginnt mit uns. Terminarea traficului incepe cu noi.Dhënia fund e Trafikimit Fillon me NE. Az emberkereskedelem vége velünk kezdődik! It-tmiem tat-traffikar uman jibda minna stess. Ukončenie obchodovania začína od nás. Крајот на Трговијата започнува со нас. Terminar com o tráfico começa por nós. Fine tratta comincia da Noi. Oprirea traficului de persoane începe cu noi. Położenie kresu handlowi ludźmi zaczyna się od nas. Het einde van mensenhandel begint bij ons. Mettre fin à la Traite : à nous d’abord de nous y mettre. Konec trgovanja z nami. Припинення торгівлі людьми починається з нас. Kova prieš prekybą žmonėmis prasideda nuo mūsų. Acabar con el tráfico humano empieza con NOSOTROS. At gøre ende på menneskehandel begynder hos os. Cilēku tirdzniecības beigas sākas ar mums. KONEC OBCHODOVÁNÍ S LIDMI ZAČÍNÁ NÁMI! KRAJ TRGOVANJA POČINJE S NAMA! PRESTANAK TRGOVANJA LJUDIMA ZAPOČINJE S NAMA! Краят на трафика на хора, започва с нас
Vatican Hosts Mayors of World Cities, 21st – 22nd July, 2015 Mayors from around the world were invited to gather at the Vatican as guests of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences. They discussed how their respective cities can help contribute solutions to the growing concerns for Climate Change, Human Trafficking and Sustainable Development. Bishop Marcelo Sánchez Sorondo, Chancellor of the Academy, said the climate crisis and modern slavery were ‘interconnected emergencies’ stating that: “although the poor and the excluded have the least effect on climate change… they are the most exposed to the terrible threat posed by human-induced climate disruption.” For full details on the Conference, see: www.news.va
Adapted & compiled by Anne Kelleher, RENATE Communications Person
The Centre for European and International Policy Action (CEIPA) held a round-table discussion on ‘The new EU Agenda on Migration: challenges and opportunities.’ A copy of CEIPAs proposal for the establishment of a European Agency for Resettlement and Migration Management was issued to all present and is available here: Observations and Suggestions for EU Policy Makers
Ms. Anne Kelleher, RENATE Communications Person, attended on behalf of RENATE Network. The event was an open forum for opinion leaders, experts, academics and civil society to discuss and re-think the paradigms of short-term responses versus long-term strategies in migration management in light of the complexity of the new EU strategic approach adopted by the European Commission. Full Report available here: Report on the CEIPA Round Table Discussion_Brussels_30 June 2015
The July 2015 current issue of the Stop Trafficking ! Newsletter is now available at http://www.stopenslavement.org/index.html There are numerous articles of interest, including one on Forced Labour in Mineral Mining; Facts and Figures about Child Labour; and an Advocacy Good News section. Stop Trafficking! is dedicated exclusively to fostering an exchange of information among religious congregations, their friends and collaborating organisations, working to eliminate all forms of trafficking of human beings.
RENATE welcomes all website visitors to read the fourth edition of its newsletter. Your feedback will be very much appreciated. Thank you. Full text available here: RENATE Newsletter No.4_June 2015
Sr. Margaret Gonzi, RGS, RENATE Member, reports on her presentation and attendance at the June 12th, 2015 CODE Red International Conference on Human Trafficking Awareness in Malta, entitled “Now or Never – Act of Love” The Conference is the initiative of Mr Alec Douglas Bvumburah, the founder of the Cross Culture International Foundation Malta (CCIF). There is not much talk in Malta about Human Trafficking. So I was pleased that this conference took place. The fact that the Acting President of Malta, Ms. Dolores Cristina, opened the Conference showed the importance of tackling this issue. I am glad that I was invited to contribute by giving a presentation on, “What the Church is doing to stop the evil done by Human Trafficking.” I focused on Pope Francis’ plea to work together to end this evil and following on from this, I talked about RENATE and how this Foundation operates to bring people together, as well as its mission based on Gospel values. I included the work done by my Congregation, The Good Shepherd Sisters, in addition to various other organizations in Malta such as the Jesuit Refugee Services Malta, Caritas and the Diocesan Emigrants` Commission. Other speakers spoke on “Child Trafficking from a Maltese Perspective” where specialized training to help child victims was emphasized. A Police Inspector spoke on “Human Trafficking from a policing viewpoint and additional work to be done.” While a University of Malta Law student spoke on “The National Action Plan.” A representative from The Ministry for Home Affairs and National Security spoke on “Progress made inthe fight against Human Trafficking in Malta and the way forward”. In this talk the importance of research and compiling statistics was emphasized. The Conference ended on a positive note with the commitment of all present, to help combat human trafficking. Agenda of CODE Red Human Trafficking Awareness Conference in Malta
Adapted by Anne Kelleher, RENATE Communications Person.
World Refugee Day honours the strength and resilience of the more than 50 million people around the world who have fled war, persecution, and human rights abuses. It is a chance to renew the global commitment to end armed conflict, and to help the people who have been forced to flee their homes. Even one family torn apart by war is too many. Information is available at: www.un.org/en/events/refugeeday Advocacy resources are available at: www.tinyurl.com/Ib8r6mf Adapted and compiled by Anne Kelleher, Communications Person.
The International Labour Organization (ILO) launched the World Day against Child Labour in 2002 to focus attention on the global extent of child labour and the action and efforts needed to eliminate it. The World Day brings together governments, employers, and worker’s organizations, civil society, as well as millions of people from around the world to highlight the plight of child labourers and what can be done to help them. More information is available at: www.un.org/en/events/childlabourday Adapted and compiled by Anne Kelleher, Communications Person.
EU Civil Society Platform against Trafficking in Human Beings On the 5th April 2011 Directive 2011/36/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council was set up, to prevent and combat trafficking in human beings to protect its victims. This Directive establishes minimum rules in the European Union (EU) level concerning the definition of criminal offences and sanctions in the area of trafficking in human beings. It also provides measures aimed at better prevention of this phenomenon, and at improving the protection of victims. At the local, national, regional and international level, many organizations, NGOs, governmental organizations and groups, work to combat trafficking from various angles and disciplines, often in a non-coordinated way. Effective and efficient efforts to combat trafficking need a coherent multi-sectorial and multi-disciplinary approach. The strengthening of the network of National Rapporteurs or Equivalent Mechanisms is an essential part of such an approach at the EU level. The establishment of the rapporteurs or equivalent mechanisms in line with Article 19 of the EU Directive is crucial for such coherence at national levels and is therefore an important obligation for Member States. To further adjust activities and facilitate cooperation an EU Civil Society Platform against THB was established in May 2013, which is to meet twice a year. Over 100 organizations participate in the platform. On 31st May 2013, Cecilia Malmström, Member of the EC in charge of Home Affairs, announced during a press conference the launch of the new EU Civil Society Platform against trafficking in human beings, where over 100 European civil society organizations are joining forces. The Europe-wide Platform, started to serve as a forum for civil society organizations working at European, national and local levels, in the field of human rights, children’s rights, women’s rights and gender equality, migrants’ rights and shelters. Participants are able to exchange experiences and concretise ideas on how to best assist victims, expand their networks, and prevent others from falling victims to this crime. This platform is supplemented with an EU Civil Society e-Platform against Trafficking in Human Beings. In May 2014 the Commission organized a joint meeting for the Civil Society Platform and the National Rapporteurs or Equivalent Mechanisms. Since the second meeting, four neighbouring priority countries (Albania, Morocco, Turkey and Ukraine), working at the European and International level, were invited to the EU Platform, and since this time Sr. Mirjam Beike RGS attended on behalf of RENATE and MWL.
The Second Meeting of the EU Civil Society Platform against Trafficking in Human Beings gathered representatives of 98 civil society organizations from 27 Member States and four non-EU countries, and of NGOs working at the European and international level. After a Commission presentation on the latest developments related to trafficking in human beings at the EU level, the participants split into three working groups to discuss:
The involvement of civil society in the implementation of the Directive 2011/36/EU
The victims-centred approach stipulated in the Directive and
Demand reduction.
The Third Meeting of the EU Civil Society Platform against Trafficking in Human Beings took place in Brussels on 7-8 May 2014, and gathered representatives from over one-hundred civil society organisations from EU Member States and four neighbouring priority countries, working at the European and international level. The first day of the meeting was an occasion for NGOs participating in the Platform to meet with the representatives of the Informal Network of National Rapporteurs or Equivalent Mechanisms. On the second day of the meeting the importance of discussing the concrete proposals for the contribution of NGOs to the reporting processes as per Articles 19-20 of the THB Directive was stressed.
The Fourth Meeting of the EU Civil Society Platform against Trafficking in Human Beings took place in Brussels on 21-22 October 2014, and gathered representatives from 92 civil society organisations from EU Member States (MS) and four neighbouring priority countries (Albania, Morocco, Turkey and Ukraine), working at the European and International level. The first day of the meeting was the second occasion for NGOs participating in the Platform to meet with the representatives of the Informal Network of National Rapporteurs or Equivalent Mechanisms (NREMs). On the second day, 22 October 2014 three parallel Workshops took place:
Workshop I – Early identification of victims of THG
Workshop II – Assistance to and protection of victims of THB
Workshop II – Ensuring demand reduction.
The Fifth Meeting of the EU Civil Society Platform against Trafficking in Human Beings took place in Brussels on 21-22 May 2015. The main focus this time were three workshops, where the members could report about their experience in the member states according to the following topics. This was very interesting and fruitful, because a whole picture of Europe was exposed and the priority countries (Albania, Morocco, Turkey and Ukraine) also shared their experiences and were open to questions and discussion about their various challenges in the field.
Workshop 1: Children as high risk group of trafficking
Workshop 2: Emerging concerns (sham marriages, forced criminality, trafficking in human beings for the purpose of organ removal vs. organ trafficking)
Workshop 3: Prevention of trafficking in human beings.
RENATE Members with EU Anti-Trafficking Coordinator Myria Vassiliadou (second from right) and Katarzyna Cuadrat-Grzybowska (second from left)
Short evaluation for the four meetings with participation of RENATE/MWL Main objectives of this Platform: to be a forum for the civil society organizations to engage at the EU level, to facilitate partnerships and synergies between actors, to inform on the implementation of the EU Strategy, and for the European Commission, to be better informed about the challenges civil society organizations face. Achievement of these objectives: Sr Mirjam distributed the leaflets and brochures from MWL at the conference and made some contacts. A real co-working has not started because the services of the institutions at the EU Platform are specific to their country. RENATE is a network of networks and so we are there under the umbrella of MWL. Mirjam also distributed information about the shelter in Albania managed by Different and Equal (D&E). To hear about the EU Strategy was very interesting. Albania is not a member state of the EU, so when the members of the National Referral Mechanism were invited, twice, it did not make such a big sense for a country such as Albania to be present as Albania was not yet subject to EU Policy. What was most useful was to give actual information about the situation in Albania to the working groups. This is something that was also interesting for other countries. There was a good co-working with a representative from Greece, this representative is a native of Albania, so we could give some information about trafficking and the cross border trafficking. Living two years at the border of Greece, meant that this topic was shared with good information.
RENATE Members will be present at the 5th Meeting of the EU Civil Society Platform. This meeting takes place in Brussels 21-22 May 2015. More news on this will be coming soon.
The 49th World Communications Day was celebrated on Sunday, the 17th of May, 2015 –the Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord and the Sunday before Pentecost. The World Day for Social Communications was the only worldwide celebration called for by the second Vatican Council (Inter Mirifica, 1963). Pope Francis chose as this year’s theme; “Communicating the Family: A Privileged Place of Encounter with the Gift of Love.” In his message to the world, Pope Francis referred to Evangelii Gaudium 66, in stating “…the family is ‘where we learn to live with others despite our differences.” He spoke of the family as a community in which we all learn to communicate and to celebrate life. Pope Francis spoke about making use of modern technology to our advantage, as a means to “…share stories, to stay in contact with distant friends, to thank others or to seek their forgiveness and to open the door to new encounters.” RENATE Network, as a European ‘family’ of diverse countries, cultures and customs, shares the Gospel values in its effort to ‘free the oppressed’ from human trafficking and exploitation. For the full text of the Pope’s address: http://m.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/messages/communications/index.html Adapted and prepared by Anne Kelleher, RENATE Communications Person.
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