Outcome of the Tokyo workshop on inter-agency coordination

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Outcome of the Tokyo workshop on inter-agency
coordination

• Yasuhiro Ogawa
• Deputy Director
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs JAPAN

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Developing a Coordinated Inter-Agency National
Action Plan (NAP) to Eradicate Trafficking in
Parsons workshop 27-28 June 2005, Tokyo JAPAN

• Background
• The issue of trafficking in persons is complex
  and broad-ranging.
• It is important to take integrated and
  comprehensive measures, including the prevention
  and elimination of trafficking, and the
  protection of and assistance to victims.
• Objective
• Assist Bali Process participating countries to
  develop their own Coordinated Inter-Agency
  National Action Plan to Eradicate Trafficking in
  Persons

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Co-chairs Summary Paper 27-28 June 2005, Tokyo
JAPAN

• International Legal Frameworks
• Roles of individual agencies
• Coordinated Inter-Agency National Action Plans
• Thematic areas based on 3Ps Principle
• A Ten Point Pan
• SAMPLE Agenda
• Sharing country experiences
• Regional Activities to eradicate trafficking in
  persons

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Role of individual agencies Protection
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Role of individual agencies Protection

• Immigration/border control
• Provide visas for witnesses appropriate to their
  circumstances eg allowing for temporary stay or
  in some cases permanent stay, depending on their
  situation.
• Provide flexibility (eg within visa regimes) to
  allow witnesses to return home for short periods
  of time.
• Implement a personal interview for visas so
  immigration officers can see the person.

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Role of individual agencies Protection

• Ministry of Justice
• Ensure that there are laws criminalizing people
  trafficking.
• Ensure those laws provide a sufficient deterrent.
• Provide witness/victim protection to get victim
  cooperation for prosecution.
• Provide protection of defendants from trafficking
  organisers.
• Consider sentence mitigation for smaller
  players to get to bigger players.
• Work out if there are other frameworks that might
  be useful eg protocols between agencies.
• Ensure timely court process for victims.

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Role of individual agencies Protection

• Law Enforcement
• Go after the organisers of trafficking.
• Provide victims with an immediate response.
• Enforce the laws to make them strong enough to be
  a deterrent.
• Make procedures sensitive to victims eg using
  /training female police.
• Coordinate effective reporting and referral
  systems between agencies.

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Role of individual agencies Protection

• Gender/welfare/victim support provider
• Provide essential support services to victims
  (safe accommodation, medical services,
  rehabilitation, counseling, etc.).
• Provide opportunities to learn new skills through
  training and vocational guidance.
• Help raise public awareness especially to address
  the issue of stigma.
• Establish helplines/hotlines for victims.
• Need effective and reporting and referral systems
  between agencies.
• Cooperate with return countries to protect
  victims after return.
• Empower victims to help themselves eg educate
  them on the prosecution process.

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Thematic areas NAP Protection Recovery (1)

• Develop multi-disciplinary response to victim
  assistance and recovery
• Victim/child friendly procedures and systems
• Establish procedures for victim Identification
• Establishment of safe shelters and referral
  systems
• Provisions for stay
• Access to mother-tongue legal/social assistance

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Thematic areas NAPProtection Recovery (2)

• Access to psycho-social/health care support
  counseling
• Training of Police, Immigration, Social Health
  Services
• Establish new class of visas
• Arrange visits to home country if victim requests
• Access to repatriation/ reintegration support on
  return to source country

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Getting Started on developing a NAP A (sample)
Ten Point Plan

• Essential Ingredient high level political
  support. Ministers want a NAP!!
• Identify a lead/coordinating agency
• Identify all other relevant agencies
• Establish inter-agency meetings
• NGO/welfare service provider/civil society
  consultations
• Working out the NAP
• Drafting the NAP
• Ministerial approval process
• Launching the NAP
• Implementing the NAP
• Monitoring the NAP

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Getting Started on developing a NAP A (sample)
Ten Point Plan (1)

1. Identify a lead/coordinating agency and a senior
   level official
2. Identify all other relevant agencies and a focal
   point
3. Establish inter-agency meetings and Identify
   terms of reference
4. NGO/welfare service provider/civil society
   consultations to gain an understanding of what is
   needed in the NAP

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Getting Started on developing a NAP A (sample)
Ten Point Plan (2)

• Working out the NAP
• Inter-agency meetings to refine the details of
  the NAP and get agreement by officials.
• Ensure Productive meetings (focused agendas,
  efficient chairing, minutes of meeting, etc.)
• Drafting the NAP and get agreement by relevant
  agencies
• Ministerial approval process to get agreement by
  all Ministers

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Getting Started on developing a NAP A (sample)
Ten Point Plan (3)

• Launching the NAP
• Implementing the NAP
• Monitoring the NAP
• Periodic Inter-agency meeting
• Assessment of revision

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NAP Inter-Agency Meeting SAMPLE AGENDA

• Setting the scene (background/purpose)
• Objectives of each Agency
• Consideration of key issues to establish a common
  understanding of the problem
• Definition of trafficking in persons
• Identification, investigation and prosecution of
  trafficking related offences
• Adequacy of existing legislation
• Evaluating the current capacity of agencies to
  identify training needs
• Dealing with victims of trafficking
• Consideration of how to engage civil society /
  NGOs in the development of a NAP

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NAP Inter-Agency Meeting SAMPLE AGENDA

• Possible solutions (world best practice, sample
  MOU)
• Future Action (Reporting to Ministers, follow-up
  meting, etc.)
• Other Business
• Establish a communication mechanism
• Set up a consultation mechanism
• Establish a public awareness forum, etc.

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Japans Measures of Combating Trafficking in
Persons

• Taskforce of combating Trafficking in Persons

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Overview of the Action Plan of Measures to Combat
Trafficking in Persons
I. Importance of Measures to Combat Trafficking
in Persons
? Consider victims to be entitled to protective
custody and respond carefully ? Establish penal
regulations and tighten control ? Prevent
trafficking in persons, including revising
various systems that have failed to prevent
trafficking in persons
?Trafficking in persons is a grave violation of
human rights and requires a prompt and
appropriate response from a humanitarian
perspective ?Formulate an action plan for taking
general and comprehensive measures as quickly as
possible
II. Thorough Grasping of the Current Situation of
Trafficking in Persons
III. General and Comprehensive Measures to Combat
Trafficking in Persons
1. Conclusion of the Protocol to Prevent,
Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons,
Especially Women and Children
5. Points to be considered
? Cooperate with domestic and international
agencies concerned, etc. (foreign agencies, NGO,
etc.) ? Raise social
awareness and conduct PR activities ?
Implement training for officials involved in
measures to combat trafficking in persons ?
Examine and review the action plan
4. Protect victims of trafficking in persons
2. Various measures to prevent trafficking in
persons
3. Various measures to eradicate trafficking in
persons
?Identify victims ?Provide shelters Use
Womens Consultation Offices Entrust private
sector shelters, etc. to offer temporary
protective custody ?Conduct counseling and
consultation activities, etc. ? Provide
protection to victims who have sought shelter at
police boxes, etc. ?Handle residence status of
victims (give special permission for
residence) ?Ensure the safety of victims ?Offer
repatriation assistance to victims (repatriate
victims at government expense and through IOM)
?Strengthen immigration control ?Ensure security
of travel-related documents ?Review residence
status and visas for entertainers Eliminate
the standard which states that the condition will
be fulfilled if foreign organizations provide
certification of eligibility ?Countermeasures
against false marriages ?Measures to prevent
illegal employment ?Measures to prevent
prostitution
?Revise criminal laws Criminalize trafficking
in persons by revising the Penal Code ?Implement
thorough crackdown ?Promote information exchange
on travel documents, etc. ?Enhance coordination
with and promote information exchange among the
investigating authorities, etc. of foreign
countries
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Immediate Priority Policies in the Action Plan of
Measures to Combat Trafficking in Persons
Prevent trafficking in persons
? Strengthen immigration control ? Review
residence status and visas for entertainers
Eliminate the standard which states that the
condition will be fulfilled if foreign
organizations provide certification of
eligibility
Eradicate trafficking in persons
Protect victims of trafficking in persons
? Provide shelters Use Womens Consultation
Offices Entrust private sector shelters, etc.
to offer temporary protective custody ? Handle
residence status of victims Revise the
Immigration Control Law, including giving special
permission for residence ? Repatriation
assistance Repatriation assistance programs for
victims through the International Organization
for Migration (IOM)
? Revise criminal laws Criminalize trafficking
in persons by revising the Penal Code ? Implement
thorough crackdown
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Process of Protecting Victims of Trafficking in
Persons
Victims of Trafficking in Persons
Consultation
Identifying the victim at contact points and
control
Request for protection from the victim, etc.
(seeking shelter at police boxes, etc.)
Protection by the Police, Immigration Bureau,
Womens Consultation Offices, NGOs, Embassies in
Japan
Temporary protection by Womens Consultation
Offices
Temporary protection by private-sector shelters,
etc.
Conduct counseling and consultation activities
Conduct flexible operation of immigration
control-related procedures Rescue victims
through flexible operation of special permission
for residence Ensure the safety of victims
Assistance for repatriation of victims
Repatriation assistance through the IOM
Repatriation assistance by repatriating victims
at government expense Repatriation assistance
through coordination with agencies concerned
Social reintegration of victims in their home
countries
Japans international cooperation for victims
support
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Grasping of the Current Situation of Trafficking
in Persons (1)
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Grasping of the Current Situation of Trafficking
in Persons (2)