Yesterday (November 10, 2021), the RSO joined a two-hour program as part of a course for graduate students at the University of the South Pacific (USP). This program was organized by the RSO and Mr. Tevita Tupou of the USP and focuses on the countering of trafficking of human beings.
Key elements from the RSO’s Front-line Border Officer Curriculum on Trafficking in Persons, were taken and incorporated into this training program. The full curriculum is a week-long intensive and interactive training program on trafficking in persons for front-line border officials and will be available on the Bali Process website at a later date.
Topics covered during this training program include the international and domestic definitions of trafficking in persons (TIP) and the smuggling of migrants (SOM), the differences between TIP and SOM, different forms of exploitation and referral pathways. Bill Laidlaw – Programme Coordinator at the RSO – shared his views and experiences with investigating trafficking in persons cases throughout the program and made himself available to any questions that were raised during this time.
The 14 graduate students who joined the program yesterday will then use the information learned to develop responsive human trafficking policies as part of an assignment for their course.
The RSO is grateful for the opportunity from the USP to join and participate in this training program. We look forward to continuing to engage with the Pacific so that we can all move closer to our common goal of combating trafficking in persons, people smuggling and related transnational crime.
