Jakarta – Today, on the World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, the U.S. State Department’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (TIP Office) and the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta are pleased to announce an award of $950,000 to the International Organization for Migration (IOM) to support “Advancing Measures to Prosecute Trafficking in Persons and Protect Victims of Trafficking.” Human trafficking deprives millions worldwide of their dignity and freedom, and this three-year project demonstrates U.S. commitment to supporting Indonesia in the fight against human trafficking.
IOM is working directly with Indonesia’s Supreme Court to strengthen its capacity to adjudicate human trafficking crimes, as well as to apply proper victim restitution and compensation in line with Indonesia’s human trafficking laws. IOM is partnering with the Center for Indonesian Law and Policy Studies to develop a training curriculum and trafficking-focused manual for judges in training. The project is also administering a Victim Assistance Fund to assist the government and civil society in providing services to victims and supporting the Ministry of Women Empowerment and Child Protection to update Indonesia’s national Standard Operating Procedures on victim services.
“The project is a milestone in the fight to end trafficking in Indonesia. It reaffirms the United States’ commitment to end modern slavery by supporting government institutions that prosecute those responsible for exploiting our society’s most vulnerable members,” said Heather Variava, Chargé d’Affaires ad interim at the U.S. Embassy Jakarta.
The United States is strongly committed to ending the horrific practice of human trafficking around the world. On June 25, as a part of our tradition of engaging foreign governments on human trafficking, Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo released the 20th annual Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report at a virtual event in Washington D.C. The report is the world’s most comprehensive resource of governmental anti-trafficking efforts and reflects the U.S. Government’s commitment to global leadership on this key human rights and law enforcement issue.
This year, Indonesia retained its Tier 2 ranking for the 20th annual report. The report includes 16 recommendations to further the Government of Indonesia’s anti-trafficking efforts over the next year, including increasing its efforts to vigorously investigate, prosecute, and convict traffickers under the 2007 law, as well as developing, finalizing, disseminating, and training all relevant officials, including law enforcement, foreign affairs, marine, and labor ministry staff, on comprehensive standard operating procedures (SOPs) for proactive victim identification.
Any country determined to be a country of origin, transit, or destination for victims of trafficking in persons must be included in the TIP Report and assigned to one of the four tiers. The 2020 TIP Report assesses the anti-trafficking efforts of 188 governments, including the United States. Countries assessed as fully meeting the minimum standards of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (TPVA) for the elimination of trafficking are placed on Tier 1. Countries assessed as not fully meeting the minimum standards, but making significant efforts to meet them, are placed on Tier 2. Countries assessed as not meeting the minimum standards are ranked Tier 3. The full 2020 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report can be accessed at https://www.state.gov/trafficking-in-persons-report/.
