1. REGIONAL FRAMEWORKS AND INITIATIVES
DATIN PADUKA INTAN KASSIM
BRUNEI COMMISSIONER FOR WOMEN TO ACWC
PRESENTED AT
Regional Consultation on the Right to an Effective Remedy for Trafficked Persons
Friday, 27 September 2013,
Meeting Room “A”, the United Nations Building, Rajadamnern Avenue,
Bangkok 10200, Thailand

2. REGIONAL INITIATIVES
ASEAN Declaration Against Trafficking in Persons Particularly Women and Children (2004)
The document was adopted by ASEAN heads of state at the 10th ASEAN Summit in Vientiane, Laos PDR on 29 November the Declaration lays the groundwork for a regional approach to preventing and combating trafficking in persons.  Member Countries reaffirmed their commitment to intensify regional coordination and cooperation among immigration and law enforcement personnel, while respecting and safeguarding the dignity and human rights of victims of trafficking.  .

3. Strengthening border control and monitoring mechanisms,
Key commitments in the declaration include the following:
Establishing a regional focal network to prevent and combat trafficking in persons, particularly women and children;
Adopting measures to prevent the fraudulent use of passports, official travel documents, identity documents and other documents;
Undertaking regular exchanges of views and information on relevant migratory flows, trends and patterns;
Strengthening border control and monitoring mechanisms,

4. Enacting applicable and necessary legislation;
Intensifying cooperation among immigration and other law enforcement authorities;
Distinguishing between the victims of trafficking and the perpetrators;
Ensuring the victims are treated humanely, and provided with essential medical and other assistance including prompt repatriation;
Undertaking actions to respect and safeguard the dignity and human rights of victims of trafficking;
Undertaking coercive measures against those engaged in trafficking in persons, and offering the widest possible assistance to punish these activities; and
Taking measures to strengthen regional and international cooperation to prevent and combat trafficking in persons.

5. Work Plan to implement the 2004 Declaration.
Work Plan to implement the 2004 Declaration
commits SOMTC and other parts of ASEAN to a broad programme of activities in four areas:
Regional and international cooperation;
Law enforcement cooperation in the investigation of trafficking cases;
Prosecution and adjudication of trafficking cases; and
Victim and to strengthen their criminal justice responses within and between ASEAN Member States protection and support.
The Work Plan encourages Member States to develop common standards to prevent and combat trafficking in persons

6. ASEAN DECLARATION ON THE PROTECTION AND PROMOTION OF THE RIGHTS OF MIGRANT WORKERS (2007).
calls for improved migrant worker rights and welfare, as well as taking steps to combat human smuggling and trafficking.
identifies a number of key principles relating to migrant workers as well as commitments on the part of receiving States, sending states and the ASEAN community as a whole. 

7. ASEAN Committee on the Implementation of the Declaration
Established in 2007, by ASEAN Foreign Ministers
This Committee is responsible for ensuring the effective implementation of the commitments made under the Declaration and facilitating the development of an ASEAN instrument on the protection and promotion of the rights of migrant workers.

8. Criminal Justice Responses to Trafficking in Persons: Guidelines (2007) Criminal Justice Responses to Trafficking In Persons : ASEAN Practitioner Guidelines (2007)
- provide detailed guidance to criminal justice practitioners on international cooperation as it relates to trafficking in persons cases. These guidelines cover the major areas of investigatory / prosecutorial / judicial responses to TIP including evidentiary issues, mutual legal assistance and extradition.

9. Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (2004)
improves working relationships between security and law enforcement agencies to enhance the regional response to transnational crime. The MLAT establishes procedures for requesting and providing assistance in the collection of evidence for criminal investigations and proceedings.

10. To strengthen cooperation at the regional level;
ASEAN Declaration on Transnational Crime (1997)
emphasizes the importance of a unified regional approach to combating transnational crime. The Declaration affirms the agreement of all ASEAN Member States to take ‘firm and stern measures’ to combat transnational crime, including the trafficking of women and children. 
Member Countries agreed to the following measures to combat transnational crime:
To strengthen cooperation at the regional level;
To expand the scope of their efforts;
To convene an ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Transnational Crime, as the Peak ASEAN body to coordinate activities on transnational crime; and
To hold discussions with other Member Countries about bilateral and regional agreements on issues such as mutual legal assistance.

11. The ASEAN Guidelines for the Protection of the Rights of Trafficked Children
was developed by Asia ACTs to put in place mechanisms that would prevent victims of child trafficking from further exploitation.
This NGO initiative was adopted by the ASEAN Senior Officials on Social Welfare and Development in 2007.

12. COUNTRY/COUNTRIES INITIATIVES
1. Prevention and awareness campaign
Formation of website – cooperation with others
eg Asia Regional Cooperation to Prevent People Trafficking (ARCPPT) website
ARCPPT is a three year Project funded by the Australian Government and managed by ACIL Australia. Its goal is to contribute to the prevention of people trafficking in South East Asia. The Project is working in four ASEAN countries: Thailand, Lao PDR, Myanmar (Burma) and Cambodia
e.g The Asia Foundation website
multi-lingual anti-trafficking in persons Web site for Cambodia and Thailand . It is intended to serve as a consolidated access point for counter-trafficking NGOs, government officials, and other organizations in Cambodia and across the region to find and share critical information on human trafficking.

13. Cooperation efforts
Mou between Thai Government and NGO
MoU on Common Guidelines and Practices for Government Agencies Concerned with Cases of Trafficking in Women and Children
MoU on the Procedural Cooperation between Government and Non-Government Agencies working with Cases of Trafficking in Women and Children
MoU on the Operational Guidelines of Non-Governmental Agencies Concerned with Cases of Trafficking in Women and Children
Mekong sub-region initiatives
Ministerial meeting and senior official meetings

14. Mekong Governments Agreement on Human Trafficking
On 29th October 2004, in Yangon, the COMMIT (Coordinated Mekong Ministerial Initiative Against Trafficking) Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was officially signed by Ministerial representatives from Cambodia, P.R. China, Lao P.D.R, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.
The Philippine Government works with international NGOs and foreign governments to combat human trafficking in the Philippines and of Filipino migrants abroad.

15. Anti-trafficking Agreement Signed between Vietnam and Thailand
The agreement signed is a move towards adopting a standard operating procedure for victim identification and repatriation, which includes the adoption by all regional legal systems of the UN's definition of trafficked persons

16. REGIONAL STATUS Some ASEAN countries are source and transit
men, women, and children are trafficked for sexual and labor exploitation within ASEAN countries itself and to other region.
Some countries are destination country - men, women, and children who are subjected to conditions of forced labor, and women and children subjected to sex trafficking
Some ASEAN countries are major source country for women, children, and men who are subjected to sex trafficking and forced labor

17. ACWC Work Plan
ACWC has only been in existence for 3 years-inugerated in 2010.
Trafficking is one of the areas identified in the Work Plan o]f ACWC]
Children’s rights:
review existing practices on treatment/ management of victims
of trafficking (i.e. rescue, recovery, repatriation, rehabilitation,
reintegration, referral system, and assistance) of victims of trafficking
in women and children among country of origin, transit countries,
and receiving country to strengthen the assistance mechanism for
victims of trafficking

18. Women’s rights:
Promotion of “access of justice” among victims of VAW, focusing on victims of trafficking by
Formulation of gender sensitized modules on comprehensive aspects of handling trafficking cases (e.g. referral system, repatriation, services to victims, etc)
followed by capacity building programmes for criminal justice officials and social services providers. f

19. CHALLENGES Political differences in approach and National priorities
Cost issues – trans border cooperation.
Differences in the legal system
Lack of awareness and knowledge on issue
Corruption