Human trafficking: Binoga wants a national agency
Apr 06, 2016
"Thirteen agencies handle issues of trafficking in persons and because there is no central commander, some of them do not give priority to human trafficking issues yet the vice is real and persistent," he said
Government should set up a national agency that will act as a one stop centre to address all human-trafficking related issues.
The call was made by Moses Binoga, a coordinator of the anti-human trafficking task force in the ministry of internal affairs.
He noted that there are about 13 agencies and several civil society organizations in charge of overseeing human trafficking issues in the country, but there has been a challenge of prioritizing action because no single organization that is directly responsible.
He explained that if a national unit is put in place, it will be easier to carry out investigations, research, retrieving victims in foreign countries in bad conditions, easy coordination and protection of victims until investigations are complete and they are compensated, then sensitizing communities about the vice.
"Thirteen agencies handle issues of trafficking in persons and because there is no central commander, some of them do not give priority to human trafficking issues yet the vice is real and persistent," he said
Adding: "We need a national agency that will be tasked to handle trafficking in persons issues only. This will also ease access to information other than moving from one agency to another in search for information. The proposal to have a national agency in charge of human trafficking was first made by the late Gen. Aronda Nyakirima and I would like to pursue it'.
He made the remarks during the closure of a two-day National Women's Conference held at Hotel Africana in Kampala where he presented a paper on labour rights and trafficking in persons.
Some of the agencies that deal with issues of trafficking in persons include; Ministry of Internal Affairs, Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Ministry Of Labour, Gender and Social Development, the Criminal investigations and Intelligence Directorate(CIID), the Special Investigations Unit(SIU), the International Organization and coalition of Civil Society Organizations against trafficking in Persons(UCATIP) among others.