The United States ambassador in the Dominican Republic, James Brewster has called on the community to unite to tackle the scourge of people trafficking.
He was speaking at a seminar on Best Practices in Investigation and International Cooperation to Combat Child Sex Tourism and Human Trafficking yesterday, Tuesday 25 March. The event was attended by Attorney General Francisco Dominguez Brito, National Police Chief Major General Manuel Castro Castillo and Armada (Navy) Chief Vice Admiral Edwin Dominici Rosario.
The workshop at the Hotel Jaragua in Santo Domingo, sponsored by the US Embassy, sought to contribute to train local investigators in specialized forces in combating sex tourism, trafficking in persons and child exploitation.
Brewster highlighted the work carried out by the Dominican Public Prosecution service to combat these crimes, as well as the work of international organizations.
He went on to say that the United States had invested more than US$800 million internationally to help a range of countries in their fight against human trafficking.
Brewster said that over the past four years, the Dominican Republic had made significant progress in prevention work and victim protection as well as the judicial process, and pledged the support of the United States Embassy.
Speaking at the seminar, Dominguez Brito said that the flow of people trafficking from the Dominican Republic was the greatest in the Caribbean, according to the latest United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Global Report on Trafficking in Persons. He announced that a new temporary home has been prepared for children who are exploited as beggars on city streets, as reported in Diario Libre.
www.diariolibre.com/noticias/2014/03/26/i542341_los-nios-pedigeos-explotados-por-tratantes-personas-sern-rescatados.html
www.listindiario.com/la-republica/2014/3/25/315711/Embajador-de-EEUU-pide-a-comunidad-aunar-esfuerzos-para-enfrentar-la-trata
www.unodc.org/unodc/en/human-trafficking/global-report-on-trafficking-in-persons.html