The UAE joins the world in memorising the World Day against human trafficking on July 30. The UAE has had many achievements in the area, exerted clear efforts on both the national and international levels to fight human trafficking and take the needed measures to fight this crime. In a short time it was able to make giant strides in fighting it. It will continue to move forward to enhance its plans and measures, cooperate with other governments and government organizations to contribute to the eradication of human trafficking.
Colonel Dr. Mohammed Khalifa al Hamoudi, president of the anti-human trafficking committee at MoI, member of the national anti-human trafficking committee, deputy director of the human rights division, said on this occasion that the MoI, as part of the UAE anti human trafficking efforts, has greatly contributed to the supervision, coordination and followup of human trafficking cases.
He added that It has also developed plans and policies to fight this crime, based on studies put in place by looking at closed cases. It also strives to offer strategic solutions to fight this crime, and submit recommendations to enhance prevention. He also indicated that the MoI put in place several initiatives and programs that helped achieve the goals in all relevant plans.
Al Hamoudi added that the ministry is raising awareness among different segments of society about the risks of this crime and is training staff to build their capabilities and skills to recognize human trafficking and protect victims. The MoI, over the last 3 years, implemented 257 programs including training, lectures and workshops that reached 26340 of its employee.
He stressed that the Ministry of Interior believes in the necessity of concerted international efforts to combat the crime of human trafficking, which requires action at the bilateral or multilateral level, and from this standpoint, the Ministry has worked to sign a number of memoranda of understanding over the years in this field.
He explained that the Ministry of Interior participated in three international operations during the past two years to combat human trafficking crimes, including the international (Liber Terra) operation concerned with combating migrant smuggling and human trafficking, in coordination and cooperation with the International Criminal Police Organization "Interpol" with the participation of (47) countries.
He stated that the Ministry of Interior continues its efforts in combating human trafficking crimes since the issuance of Federal Law No. 51 of 2006 regarding combating human trafficking crimes and its amendments, and the state's ratification of the "United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime" and the "Palermo Protocol since 2004."