South Korea, Indonesia determined to fight human trafficking

South Korea sets up a specialized agency to combat human trafficking while Indonesia takes a strong stance against cross-border traffickers.

Hàn Quốc tăng cường nỗ lực chống nạn buôn người

South Korea's anti-human trafficking agency will operate with a total of seven temporary staff within the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family. (Source: AP).

South Korea is preparing to establish a specialized anti-human trafficking agency responsible for supporting victims of human trafficking and establishing a comprehensive plan to prevent human trafficking, the Korea Herald reported.

The agency plans to provide educational support to victims of human trafficking, including minors, help victims reintegrate into society through vocational training, legal advice and health insurance; and support the repatriation of foreign victims.

With a total of seven temporary staff in the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, the anti-trafficking agency will operate temporarily for six months until the end of this year and can be extended until June 2024 if necessary.

The plan to establish the agency comes as the United Nations has recommended that the South Korean government build more effective systems to prevent human trafficking, as labor and sexual exploitation of foreign workers is a serious problem.

In January, the South Korean government implemented the Human Trafficking Prevention Act, which prohibits sexual exploitation and labor exploitation, and requires the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family to draw up a comprehensive plan every five years to prevent human trafficking.

Meanwhile, in Indonesia, authorities have pledged to take decisive action against cross-border human traffickers targeting Indonesian migrant workers.

Mr. Johanson Simamora said that the Central Java provincial police have handled 46 cases of human trafficking, the perpetrators being organizations and individuals who illegally recruited workers.

Antara news agency quoted the statement of the Senior Commissioner of the Central Java Regional Police's Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force, Mr. Johanson Simamora, saying that in the process of handling cases, this force coordinates with the Criminal Investigation Department of the National Police to detect human traffickers and thoroughly handle this dangerous criminal network.

To date, the provincial police have handled 46 human trafficking cases. The perpetrators are organizations and individuals who illegally recruit workers.

"The motive of the cases is still economic. The suspected perpetrators did not have a permit to send people to look for jobs," he stressed.

Mr Johanson added that in recent months, the anti-trafficking task force has been effective in enforcing the law. Police have arrested dozens of people on trafficking charges, all of whom were executives of illegal recruitment agencies.

Earlier, Indonesian President Joko Widodo, along with other ASEAN leaders, pledged to eliminate all forms of cross-border human trafficking crimes.

Cross-border cooperation involves not only information exchange but also efforts to improve law enforcement operations to apprehend perpetrators abroad.

Source