•
In the meantime, before ratification of the Protocol and implementation of the
legislation consequent upon that, National Human Rights Institutions should
encourage their respective States to use existing criminal laws and procedures as
well as appropriate welfare measures to deal with various aspects of trafficking
and help the victims thereof.
•
These institutions have a lead role to play in monitoring the implementation of
various existing legal and administrative measures and also the implementation of
the Trafficking Protocol 2000, when ratified. Reports based on such monitoring
and other experiences gained by these institutions, if shared with their respective
States and with the public, would go a long way towards raising awareness as
well as ensuring that anti-trafficking measures do not have adverse, unintended
consequences for individual rights and freedoms.
•
The Council also recommends that member institutions embark on the
development of a regional legislative model which could be adopted by States in
order to address more effectively the criminalisation of trafficking and the
protection of trafficked persons. The Council recommends the endorsement of
any model legislative projects undertaken by the United Nations which may
provide useful and appropriate guidance for the region.
3. ENFORCEMENT
•
Trafficking proliferates when there is no serious challenge by law enforcement
officials and agencies (and in some cases corruption of border officials and police
aids traffickers). There must be more aggressive enforcement of laws – both
existing and future – to combat trafficking. In such enforcement all judicial and
administrative authorities must actively co-operate. Fear of apprehension,
prosecution and conviction on the part of traffickers and their agents and
supporters is the best disincentive; once adequate enforcement measures are
upheld there should be social support and mobilisation programmes to maximise
their impact.
•
Innovative ways need to be devised to identify the victims of trafficking and
encourage them (and others with whom they come into contact) to come forward
to report traffickers, and co-operate with enforcement agencies as available
witnesses. It is here that Non-Government Organisations (NGOs) who operate at
the ‘grass-roots’ level would be able to provide vital information, motivation and
support. At the same time, law enforcement authorities should develop proactive
mechanisms and processes which decrease their reliance on victim or witness
testimony.
•
Needless to say, enforcement agencies must have due regard to the rights of both
victims and accused persons and in particular the right of accused persons to due
process.
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