District State Administrations of Chernihiv Region will promote information campaigns to prevent human trafficking

On August 15, 2014, a training on combating human trafficking was held in Chernihiv for employees of departments and sectors of information activities and public communications of district state administrations of Chernihiv region.

The trainers of the event were representatives of the International Women’s Human Rights Center “La Strada – Ukraine”

Kateryna Levchenko

and

Lisa Rai

. In particular,

Ms. Levchenko

told the participants of the training some stories of victims of human trafficking.

― In many cases, no matter how wild it may sound, close friends, acquaintances, and even relatives become the reason why a person becomes a victim of human trafficking. Mothers, brothers, and other relatives drag their relatives into this process. And sometimes there are simply absurd cases. For example, a mother who herself “sold” her daughter receives monetary compensation for her child, who received the status of “victim of human trafficking” because the mother’s guilt was not proven. In order to prevent such cases, we must join in studying this problem

, ― said

Kateryna Levchenko

.

She also introduced the participants to the main provisions of the Law of Ukraine “On Combating Human Trafficking”, spoke about the situation in Ukraine surrounding this problem, and the role of non-governmental organizations in this area.

― In the conditions of a difficult socio-economic situation, the Ukrainian population is increasingly likely to suffer from human trafficking. That is why it is necessary to conduct information campaigns aimed at preventing this problem through joint efforts of the authorities and public organizations. The work of departments and sectors of information activities and communications of local administrations is especially important in this regard.

It was precisely on the features of planning and conducting preventive work and effective information campaigns among representatives of risk groups and broad segments of the population regarding the danger of becoming a victim of human trafficking that

Lisa Rai

emphasized during a separate training module.

The training was organized by the Chernihiv Public Committee for the Protection of Human Rights with the support of the Democracy Promotion Foundation of the US Embassy in Ukraine.