IOM & Lebanon’s Directorate General of Internal Security Forces join forces to build capacity on investigating Human Trafficking

Lebanon’s Directorate General of Internal Security Forces and the UN Migration Agency (IOM) Lebanon, with the support of Netherlands Embassy in Lebanon, launched on the 6th of March, an initiative aiming at improving the capacity of the Human Trafficking Repression and Morals Protection Bureau in the Directorate.

The initiative aims at increasing the Bureau’s abilities to effectively respond to cases of trafficking in persons and enhance victims’ protection, through a specialized training on how to investigate cases of human trafficking and identify tools for specialized investigations. The latter revolve around exploring the three aspects of human trafficking, mainly action, means and purpose, as well as the various types of exploitation including begging, organ trafficking, labor exploitation in addition to sexual exploitation.

This initiative goes in line with IOM’s efforts to prevent human trafficking, rescue and restore human dignity through the amendment of counter-trafficking Law (164) and the development of policies that ensure proper identification and protection of victims of all forms of exploitation. 

Through its efforts to counter-trafficking, IOM reaffirms the importance of cooperation between the specialized governmental and non-governmental actors concerned in combating this crime and protecting victims. 

Such an approach, according to IOM, allows to improve policies related to counter-trafficking in order to ensure prevention of this crime, the proper identification of victims of trafficking in persons and their referral to protection and assistance, as well as ensuring prosecution of traffickers.