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European Anti-trafficking Day: Human trafficking will not be tolerated

In the scope of the 14th European Anti-Trafficking Day (18 October), the Council of Europe’s Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (GRETA) calls for full respect for the rights of victims of trafficking in human beings during the restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

GRETA President Davor Derenčinović said: “Under the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings, states are obliged to make sure that victims of trafficking are identified as such, provided with assistance and protection, and given effective access to justice and remedies. Our monitoring of the implementation of the Convention shows worrying signs of reduced numbers of identified victims, gaps in the provision of services to victims, and delays in criminal proceedings.”

In the face of the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, GRETA has maintained its efforts to ensure that the thousands of women, men and children who are victims of trafficking in human beings, while being out of sight, do not slip out of mind. There has been a significant increase in online child sexual abuse and exploitation during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many NGOs are doing their best to prevent the exploitation of children through the development of digital-media literacy and online safety skills. Human trafficking is flourishing on the Internet and States must actively fight this challenge, in co-operation with civil society and the private sector.

“The European Anti-trafficking Day presents an ideal occasion to remind…legal and moral obligation not to cut corners on the rights and protection of victims of human trafficking”, added GRETA’s President. “All of us involved in the fight against human trafficking must sustain and increase our efforts to ensure that victims receive appropriate assistance and support to vindicate their rights, and that perpetrators are punished for this heinous crime.”

The pandemic is likely to have long-term socio-economic impacts, increasing inequalities and poverty globally. The heightened risks of exploitation of vulnerable groups call for doubling prevention efforts, in particular through social and economic initiatives addressing the structural causes of human trafficking.

Pristina 19 October 2020
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Fifty practitioners to enhance skills in provision of occupational therapy

Following the adoption of the Guidelines for Occupational Therapy (OT), as well as the Training of Trainers (ToT) on OT that took place in January 2024, three 2-day cascade training sessions were organised in the course of February and March 2024.  Fifty professionals, mainly from the Prison Health Department, along with representatives from the Correctional Services, Institute for Forensic Psychiatry, and the Special Institute for Persons with Mental and Physical Disabilities, were trained on this important form of therapy.

To complement the theoretical aspects and provide the trainees with practical knowledge, some of the sessions were conducted in the Dubrava Prison, in a section which houses prisoners with both mental and somatic problems. This on-site training allowed the participants to observe and understand the application of OT principles in a real-life setting, thus enhancing their learning experience by connecting theory and practice.

These cascade training sessions allowed the participants to further improve their skills in applying the OT Guidelines and tools in prisons and other closed institutions, a concept which was thus far not utilised in a structured manner. Furthermore, training healthcare and correctional professionals together helps them further strengthen the inter-institutional cooperation in the treatment and rehabilitation of some of the most vulnerable members of the society.

Each of these sessions were facilitated by two trainers who had participated in the ToT in January and were supervised and mentored by a Council of Europe consultant who has been involved in the process since the very beginning, thus further strengthening institutional capacity to provide training.

The activity was conducted under the auspices of the Council of Europe project “Improvement of the treatment of persons deprived of liberty”.

 

 

*All references to Kosovo, whether to the territory, institutions, or population, in this text shall be understood in full compliance with United National Security Council Resolution 1244 and without prejudice to the status of Kosovo.

Istog/ Istok 26 March 2024
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