PHUKET: More than 60 officials from various agencies joined a training seminar today (June 22) that placed the focus of the recovery of victims of human trafficking squarely on human security and welfare.
The seminar, held at the Pearl Hotel in Phuket Town, was organised by the Phuket Provincial Office of Social Development and Human Security (MSDHS Phuket) to explain the “National Referral Mechanism” (NRM) ‒ a legal mechanism enacted to ensure that all relevant officials are involved in dealing with the problem of human trafficking.
Pariyat Khaepheng, Chief of the MSDHS Phuket office, explained, “Sharing referral information protects persons who are reasonably believed to be victims of human trafficking and victims of forced labour or services, and to help these people access early support services.”
“The NRM works as a referral mechanism at the national level in order to ensure that the process [of responding to the needs of human trafficking victims] complies with international standards,” she added.
“It was approved by the National Anti-Trafficking Commission (NRM) on March 23, 2022, and the National Referral Mechanism (NRM) Sub-Committee approved the NRM mechanism on September 8. 2022, and has established procedures and guidelines to raise the performance standards of officials working in the prevention and suppression of human trafficking to lead to solving the problem of human trafficking or forced labour or services.” Ma Pariyat continued.
The NRM was brought into effect in Phuket by the Phuket Sub-Committee of the Anti-Human Trafficking Operations Center, through the Phuket branch of the Integrated Center for the Identification of Victims of Trafficking, on March 13 this year.
The NRM is especially important “if there is a case where other laws must be used in consideration of welfare protection to provide homes for children and families in Phuket”, Ms Pariyat said.
“The objective [of the training seminar] is to allow personnel working on the prevention and suppression of human trafficking to receive training on ways to drive the implementation of the National Referral Mechanism (NRM), to promote and develop new knowledge of multidisciplinary teams to be able to work in the same direction in order to help and protect victims of human trafficking in accordance with the process,” she added.
There were two training sessions with 60 people attending each. Participants included police officers, officers from Phuket Immigration, personnel and officers from the Royal Thai Navy and ISOC (Internal Security Operations Command, the political branch of the Thai military, representatives from Srinakharinwirot University, and officials from the Ministry of Labor and the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security.
Expert speakers delivering the presentations included officials from the Office of the Attorney General, the Technology Crime Investigation Division, the Anti-Human Trafficking Division and the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security.
“Phuket is one of the provinces that have many forms of human trafficking problems,” said Phuket Vice Governor Amnuay Pinsuwan, who officiated the opening of the seminar.
Phuket’s problems with human trafficking and forced labour were two-fold, Vice Governor Amnuay said.
“The perpetrators use air and sea transport as a means of bringing victims of human trafficking into forced labour or services by using Phuket as a transit point,” he said.
“They bring victims from other places to Phuket airport or the ports, or by other natural routes, in order to travel to another country,” V/Gov Amnuay explained.
“Phuket is also a destination [for victims of human trafficking] because it is a province with economic prosperity. and tourism has a high demand for labour,” he said.
“The perpetrators lead victims to Phuket to seek benefits in various forms, such as seeking benefits from prostitution, forced labour as sea fishermen and to move them on as immigrants to migrate,” he added.
“Phuket Province [provincial government] therefore attaches importance to the development of personnel working in the prevention and suppression of human trafficking,” Vice Governor Amnuay said.
“It is important [for officers] to gain knowledge of the approach to drive the implementation of the National Referral Mechanism (NRM), for each agency to know their roles and responsibilities and operate in the same direction in the hope that the implementation of this project will promote and develop new knowledge of the working team so they are able able to work efficiently in carrying out work on prevention, suppression and help protect victims of human trafficking in accordance with the process,” he concluded.
