Third Committee of the 69th Session of the United Nations General Assembly

Intervention on Agenda Item 27a: Advancement of Women,

by Ms. Shiruzimath Sameer, Representative of the Maldives Delegation

New York, 24 October 2014

Thank you Madam Chair,

The Maldives congratulates Ms. Maria Grazia Giammarinaro on her appointment as the Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially women and children. The Maldives also thanks Ms. Joy Ngozi Ezeilo for her report and the invaluable work in this area.

Madam Chair,
As the Special Rapporteur noted while awareness of trafficking and of relevant rights and obligations has improved, children, women and men still continue to be victims of this heinous crime across the globe. Despite the progress, few victims obtain redress and fewer traffickers get apprehended. No country is exempt from the effects of human trafficking. Enforcing of international instruments and strengthening of national legislation on anti-trafficking are crucial to the fight against human trafficking.

The Maldives Constitution guarantees the protection of fundamental human rights. In recent years, human trafficking has been identified as a concern in the Maldives. In response to these reports, the Maldives took decisive and firm measures, including enacting legislation on anti Human Trafficking in 2013. With the creation of shelters for female victims of trafficking, legal protection and avenues of redress, the Maldives was upgraded this year from a Tier 2 Watchlist country in the US State Department's Trafficking in Persons Report.  However, taking into account the incredibly porous borders of the Maldives, our efforts in combatting trafficking will always remain a challenge. Given this to be an issue that can be either helped or hindered by regional factors, what role does the special rapporteur see with regards to regional organizations in addressing Human Trafficking? What measures are especially important at the regional level and what mechanisms would most effectively aid cooperation?

Thank You.