Improving assistance to victims of trafficking in persons belonging to minorities focus of OSCE workshop

On 30 October 2024, the OSCE Transnational Threats Department and the Office of the Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings hosted a workshop on “Addressing trafficking in persons belonging to minorities through strengthened police-public partnerships.” The event aimed to deepen understanding on specific challenges victims of trafficking belonging to minorities face when accessing protection services, assistance and legal remedies.

The event brought together over 60 participants, including representatives of OSCE field operations, participating States delegations, law enforcement and criminal justice actors, representatives from civil society and survivors.

Discussions focused on how human rights-based police responses can ensure that victims of trafficking belonging to minorities can access protection and justice on an equal basis with others.

Experts emphasized the importance of strengthening police-public partnerships to effectively identify, prevent and respond to trafficking, noting how community policing approaches can increase trust between law enforcement and minority communities.

In her opening remarks, Dr Kari Johnstone, OSCE Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, underlined that “human trafficking is not just a crime of exploitation but also one of profound inequality. We know that traffickers deliberately target and exploit those with increased vulnerabilities, and there is perhaps no more vulnerable population than minorities - whether defined by ethnicity, race, religion, or legal status.”

Sami Ryhaenen, Head of the Strategic Police Matters Unit, highlighted that “human rights-based police responses can play a pivotal role in ensuring that victims of trafficking belonging to minorities are able to access protection and justice on an equal basis with others. Fostering dialogue among institutions and strengthening police-public partnerships have a crucial role to play in building stronger bonds with communities and preventing crime.”

In his opening remarks, Ambassador Marek Szczygiel, Director and Officer-in-Charge of the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities emphasized that “given the multifaced dimension of human trafficking, a cross-institutional approach is essential to effectively address the many different layers of this serious crime.”

Peter Mossop, Special Adviser and Director’s Representative in Vienna of the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, added that “discrimination or negative experiences with law enforcement, secondary victimization, fear of reprisals, and lack of information about legal rights may result in reduced reporting of crimes, making victims belonging to minorities less visible in the systems meant to protect them.”

The event drew on the findings of the recent report Addressing the Dynamics of Trafficking in Persons Belonging to Minorities, Including National Minorities, published by the Office of Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings and the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, as well as the OSCE guide on Good Practices in Building Police-Public Partnerships, published by the Strategic Police Matters Unit.