Call for collective action to safeguard victims' rights

Speakers at a national dialogue on Wednesday called for collective action to combat trafficking in persons and safeguard the rights of victims.
They said trafficking in persons and the smuggling of migrants remains the pervasive organised crime.
These are recognised as crimes against humanity and they continue to thrive in situations of vulnerability.
The Covid-19 pandemic has pushed trafficking further underground and increased the dangers to victims by making the crime less likely to come to the fore.
According to the UNODC Global Report on Trafficking in Persons-2022, overall 41 per cent of victims who manage to escape their ordeal reach out to the authorities on their own initiative, another clear sign that anti-trafficking responses are falling short.
On the occasion of World Day against Trafficking in Persons, the Public Security Division of the Ministry of Home Affairs with support from the Counter-Trafficking in Persons Technical Working Group (CTIP-TWG) of the Bangladesh UN Network on Migration (BDUNNM) hosted the dialogue in Dhaka city.
Themed 'Reach every victim of trafficking, leave no one behind', the event emphasised the need for a holistic approach to addressing trafficking in persons, committing to comprehensive measures to protect victims and preventing these rights violations.
Addressing the dialogue as the chief guest, home minister Asaduzzaman Khan said, "We should not only care for rescue, repatriation and rehabilitation, but we need to make a comprehensive awareness programme so that nobody becomes a victim of trafficking." Md Mustafizur Rahman, senior secretary, Public Security Division, Ministry of Home Affairs, chaired the dialogue.
He said, "We're committed to strengthen our National Authority for Prevention of Human Trafficking to be more operational and we will work hand in hand with all stakeholders for this."
Ambassador Masud Bin Momen, foreign secretary, in his remarks as the special guest reiterated Bangladesh's strong commitment and coordinated action to combat organised crime like trafficking in persons.
Gwyn Lewis, United Nations Resident Coordinator in Bangladesh, said, "…I encourage the government to ensure that all survivors of trafficking, including the Rohingya, have access to national protection services and continue to build capacities of law enforcement agencies and other relevant authorities to identify and refer trafficking victims, while also conducting investigations and ensuring perpetrators are brought to justice."

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