YOGYAKARTA, INDONESIA, 29-30 August 2017 – NEXUS Senior Researcher Rebecca Surtees presented at the Second AICHR-SOMTC Consultation on the Human Rights-Based Instruments Related to the Implementation of the ASEAN Convention against Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children (ACTIP). This meeting was jointly organized and hosted by the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) and the ASEAN Senior Officials Meeting on Transnational Crime (SOMTC), with support from British Embassy Jakarta, ASEAN-US Partnership for Good Governance, Equitable and Sustainable Development and Security (PROGRESS – a joint program of the US Agency for International Development and US Department of State), Embassy of Switzerland in Indonesia, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Indonesia.

The NEXUS presentation focused on victim identification, assistance and reintegration based on NEXUS’ extensive research with trafficking victims in the ASEAN region. The presentation also highlighted good practice and human-rights centered approaches to victim protection in ASEAN and internationally.

Seven countries have ratified the ACTIP (Cambodia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar, Philippines and Laos) and other countries are currently in the process of ratification. Therefore, this Consultation explored necessary schemes of cooperation for implementing a human-rights based approach in ACTIP, which should include instruments that can connect interagencies within countries and across countries, and those that can stimulate community members, civil society organizations, and survivors of trafficking to take part in prevention and rehabilitation of victims.

The First AICHR-SOMTC Consultation on a Human Rights-Based Approach in the Implementation of ACTIP and APA was held from 29-30 September 2016.