Representatives from Brentwood, Nottingham, Southwark and Westminster dioceses, ethnic chaplaincies, religious orders, the Conference of Religious, the National Board of Catholic Women, the Apostleship of the Sea, Ten Ten Theatre, and the Specialist Crime Directorate of the Metropolitan Police came together for the first in a series of training days focused on human trafficking this week.
The training days are being run by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales in conjunction with the International Organisation for Migration, UK. They are designed to offer both a theoretical and practical approach to Combating Human Trafficking through case studies, group work and real examples of instances of trafficking in the UK. Participants are equipped with the knowledge to be able to identify potential victims of trafficking and/or vulnerable individuals through general and specific indicators and to facilitate referrals into appropriate care and support facilities.
The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales has established a very successful partnership with the Metropolitan Police to help in the fight against the scourge of human trafficking. With its global networks, the Church can help raise awareness of this heinous crime and provide care and support to the victims of trafficking.
Training modules include:
• What is trafficking?
• The causes driving this crime
• The legal framework
• The Palermo Protocol
• Trafficking and Smuggling – similarities and differences
• Signs and symptoms of human trafficking
• The challenges of recognising, fighting and preventing trafficking
Sr Vitalis Cibo, from the Daughters of Mary, Mother of Mercy: “We have sisters in Benin in Nigeria who work specifically in the area of trafficking and that’s the reason why I came to the training today. I now know that there is help available and that we can do something. My intention after today’s training is to tell my sisters and to look at ways in which we can do more.”
Pearl Clarke, representing the Diocese of Nottingham, the Armed Forces and the National Board of Catholic Women: “Today I came to get a little bit more information so that we can be more effective. I’ve learned a lot more about the process which is what we needed.”
Roger Stone, Port Chaplain for the Apostleship of the Sea, based in Southampton: “It’s particularly useful to meet other people who are involved in helping people who are victims or potential victims of human trafficking and also to have the concrete contact details for the relevant government agencies.”
Cecilia Taylor-Camara, Senior Policy Adviser – Office for Migration Policy: “This training marks the beginning of a journey in our dioceses and parishes of England and Wales as we embrace the challenge of learning more about this modern day slavery in all its forms and as we begin to fight for its eradication in our communities.”
The next training day will be in the Spring of 2013 and is open to Diocesan Coordinators with responsibility for migration and for agencies working with victims of trafficking.
Photos from the training day are available on www.flickr.com/catholicism – please credit Mazur/catholicnews.org.uk
