Reflection and History of World Anti-Human Trafficking Day

The whole world commemorates the Anti-Human Trafficking Day every July 30. The commemoration theme of this year was “Use and Abuse of Technology”.

The act of human trafficking includes several aspects such as process, method, purpose of delivery and exploitation

The ministry of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection of the Republic of Indonesia explains that human trafficking is a type of transnational crime which has an important effect on life on its website. Therefore, the World Anti-Human Trafficking day is commemorated in order to solve the social problem (human trafficking).

Based on the article on sumaterapost.co, the history of establishing a world anti-human trafficking day is reported on the United Nations’ website. The United Nation and Crime (UNODC) had recorded 225.000 human trafficking cases since 2003 and the cases increase time by time.

The United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) asked the people all over the world to help the countries with the human trafficking cases technically in 2006. The Japanese government held international coordination and collaboration to fight against the criminal act of human trafficking at the same time. Several organizations which attended to the meeting were ILO, IOM, UNICEF, UN Women, and UNODC. They formed the Anti-Human Trafficking group.

The Inter-Agency Coordination Group Against Human Trafficking (ICAT) formed in March 2007. The United Nations General Assembly planned to fight against the criminal act of human trafficking by forming the United Nation-Voluntary Trust Fund. In 2013, the General Assembly made the resolution with the number A/RES/68/192 and determined the July 30 is the World Anti-Human Trafficking Day.

The resolution aims to increase awareness to the situation of human trafficking victims, seek the progress of the victims and protect the victims’ rights.

Indonesia is one of the sources, transit place, and destination of the human trafficking. The victims were mostly women and children. They were exploited in various sectors such as domestic sector, entertainment sector, contraction, tourism, sex, forestry, fisheries, mining and many more.

The practice of human trafficking in Indonesia still happens due to poverty, unemployment, gender inequality, and document falsification. The practice is being massive because the societies’ poor condition such as lack of education, lack of job vacancy and less wages, and the less government’ protection to its people.

Hopefully, the commemoration of Anti-Human Trafficking Day on July 30, 2022 can be our reflection that the practice of human trafficking in Indonesia is in an emergency stage. All element of society must work together to fight against it especially the government. It must provide protection and optimize it to make its people safe.

The government has important role in both regulation and execution. The regulation states clearly to protect the people. However, in fact there are still many people of the government who are involved in practicing of the human trafficking syndicates such as supporting to the document falsification making. (Roudhol Jannah)