The
International Organization for Migration (IOM) Mission
in Ukraine hosted
its Third Annual Counter-Trafficking Awards Ceremony on October 18th
2007. The Ceremony, which took place at the Diplomatic Academy of the Ministry
of Foreign Affairs (MFA), honoured individuals and organizations that have
distinguished themselves with dedication and courage in the fight against human
trafficking. The
event was organized in partnership with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of
Ukraine and the Ministry of Family, Youth and Sports of Ukraine, and with the
financial support of USAID/Ukraine and the Swedish International Development
Cooperation Agency (Sida).
Mr. Jeffrey
Labovitz, Head of the IOM Mission in Ukraine, delivered the
evening's keynote speech. He highlighted the efforts of the awardees who have
each done their part to put an end to this deplorable phenomenon. Mr. Labovitz ended his speech with an
impassioned appeal: "Please take inspiration from our heroes and take an extra
moment ....to think about, big or small, what you can do to end human
trafficking."
Mr. Ian Boag,
Head of the Delegation of the European Commission to Ukraine, spoke about the
role of individuals in combating human trafficking and presented an award for "Personal contribution in countering human
trafficking" to Zoya Antonovna, an extraordinary woman who assisted an
elderly lady who was trafficked and forced to beg by the people who enslaved her
for 16 years. For two years Zoya brought the woman food and made every effort
to help her escape this dreadful existence.
Zoya displayed indescribable mercy and courage and eventually was able
to persuade the elderly woman to turn to the district militia and IOM for help.
Ms. Liudmyla
Lukinova, Deputy Minister of Family, Youth and Sports, talked about the salient
role played by non-governmental organizations (NGO) and the national referral
framework in joint efforts with the Ministry of Family, Youth and Sports to
tackle human trafficking. Ms. Lukinova handed over awards for "Partnership and
cooperation in countering human trafficking" to Natalia Sivitskaia from Faith, Hope and Love NGO in Odesa and Captain Oleksandr Lisakovskyi
of the Odesa branch of the State Border Guard Service (SBGS) of Ukraine. "Faith,
Hope and Love" and the SBGS developed mechanisms for the identification of trafficking victims who arrive to Ukraine
through sea port or international airport in Odesa and for further referral of
the victims to other organizations for reintegration assistance, such as
shelter, medical services and treatment and legal advice. Since the inception
of this partnership, 731 victims of trafficking have received assistance.
Mr. William
Taylor, Ambassador of the United States
to Ukraine,
emphasized the importance of faith-based groups in putting an end to
trafficking in human beings. The Ambassador
honoured Father Ioan, who represents a different All-Ukrainian Charitable Foundation
also named "Faith, Hope and Love" for the organization's tireless work over the
past several years to enlist the capacity of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and
develop a strategy for the fight against human trafficking in Ukraine. The Foundation helped with establishment of
two successful church resource centers for countering human trafficking and with
organization of educating seminarians about the problem.
Mr. Borys Bazylevskyi,
Head of the Consular Service Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stressed
the fruitful cooperation between the private sector and the Ministry. More specifically,
he noted the government initiative that entails sending text messages to mobile
phones of Ukrainian citizens traveling abroad that provide information on how
to get in touch with Ukrainian Embassies and consulates if trouble were to
arise. Mr. Bazilevksyi presented awards
for "Corporate social responsibility in countering human trafficking" to
representatives of Astelit - life:), Kyivstar and MTS for their launch of
a toll-free number-"527"--that
Ukrainians can use to receive reliable information on migration and rights of
Ukrainian nationals abroad. Since its launch, close to 3,000 Ukrainians, mostly
young people, have called "527" seeking information, and 34 victims of trafficking have been identified.
Mr. John-Christer
Ahlander, Ambassador of Sweden to Ukraine, spoke about efforts
undertaken by the Ministry of the Interior (MOI) to fight human traffickers and
the criminal groups that fund and drive these despicable processes. The
Ambassador presented awards to 5 law-enforcement officers that have exerted personal
efforts to stop human trafficking in Ukraine. Colonel Pavlo Bevzenko,
the Deputy Head of the Main investigative directorate
of the MOI, initiated the creation of a special investigative unit under the
Main Investigative Department in 2007. MOI special investigative officer in
Volyn Oblast, Major Anatoliy Vichynyuk, was involved in breaking up 5 organized
criminal groups and rescued 70 victims of trafficking. The Deputy Head of the
Department for crimes related to human trafficking, Captain Oleksandr
Mel'nykov, has solved 20 criminal cases related to trafficking in human beings.
The Head of the Department for crimes related to human trafficking in Mykolaiv
Oblast, Lieutenant-Colonel Igor Bloshko, has eliminated 2 organized criminal
channels and contributed to the development of fruitful cooperation with law
enforcement agencies of other countries. The Head of the Department for crimes
related to human trafficking in Donetsk oblast,
Colonel Oleg Poplavs'ky, helped eliminate 20 criminal channels and returned 101
victims of trafficking to Ukraine.
People's
Artist of Ukraine Olexiy Bohdanovych and actress Ms. Iryna Bardakova were the
Masters of Ceremony at the event. The "New Era Orchestra" Chamber Orchestra and
the tenor trio "Solov'yi Ukrainy" enchanted guests with their performances.
Numerous media outlets, including several
national television stations, covered the awards ceremony. In all, more than 35 media organizations were
represented at the ceremony, ensuring that anti-trafficking messages will be
spread across Ukraine.
An estimated 100,000
Ukrainians have been trafficked since independence in 1991. While 78% of
the Ukrainian population is aware of the existence of human trafficking and 66%
of the population considers it a problem for Ukraine, only 30% believe it can
happen to them. Informing citizens about dangers of human trafficking should be
topping the government's agenda in order to reduce scope of this violent crime.
Coordinated and targeted efforts of government, NGO and business sector are
necessary to terminate human trafficking and protect Ukrainian citizens.
Photo report of the event
19.10.07
