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Coalition created to combat rise of human trafficking
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Firm stance -- Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi speaks to journalists at the Foreign Ministry in Jakarta. (The Jakarta Post/-)
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ix government institutions have united to form an anti-trafficking coalition in response to the rising trend of Indonesians who fall victim to trafficking abroad, with 266 cases having been detected so far this year, a minister has said.
"Looking at the data we have, 188 human trafficking cases occurred in 2013, followed by 326 cases in 2014 and 548 in 2015," Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi said during the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the establishment of the coalition in Jakarta on Tuesday.
In her speech, Retno stressed the importance of institutional cooperation to prevent, combat and protect victims of human trafficking.
The signing of the MoU marked the beginning of the collaboration between the Foreign Ministry, the Law and Human Rights Ministry, the Women's Empowerment and Child Protection Ministry, the Social Affairs Ministry, the National Police, the Attorney General's Office and the Agency of Placement and Protection of Indonesian Migrant Workers (BNP2TKI).
The coalition is set to work on the prevention and handling of Indonesians indicated to be involved in or falling victim to trafficking in persons abroad.
Retno asserted the government was committed to prosecuting perpetrators and would not allow them any room to find more victims. She further said the government would also provide coordinated, structured and integrated protection for the victims.
The ministry’s protocol and consular affairs director general, Andri Hadi, said the MoU, which had been discussed since December 2014, covered six areas of cooperation: data and information exchange, victim identification, trafficking prevention, law enforcement and capacity building and repatriation and rehabilitation of victims. (ebf)
