Ylitarkastaja Venla Rothin puhe marjanpoimintaan liittyvässä kokouksessa

[Saippuakupla]

PUHE: Ylitarkastaja Venla Roth Bangkokissa marjanpoimintaan liittyvässä kokouksessa

Senior Adviser Venla Roth, PhD in law, Office of the Ombudsman for Minorities / National Rapporteur on Trafficking in Human Beings, Finland
Speech in Bangkok 21st May 2014

Ladies and gentleman,

First of all, I want to thank for the kind invitation of the Ms Special Rapporteur to present the work of the Finnish National Rapporteur on Trafficking in Human Beings in this panel on "Fostering partnership".

The Finnish Ombudsman for Minorities, who monitors the prohibition of ethnic discrimination in Finland, was appointed as a National Rapporteur in 2009. As we know, the idea of appointing national rapporteurs arises from the international arena. In Europe, the Council of Europe Convention on the Action Against Trafficking in Human Beings, adopted in 2005, recommends States Parties to consider appointing National Rapporteurs of other mechanisms for monitoring the anti-trafficking activities of state institutions and the implementation of national legislation requirements. The 2011 European Union directive specifically obligates Member States to establish national rapporteurs or equivalent mechanisms. The tasks of the rapporteur include carrying out assessments of trends in trafficking, the measuring of results of anti-trafficking action and reporting. The National Rapporteurs transmit the information they have to the Anti-Trafficking Coordinator of the European Commission, which reports on the progress made in the European Union. The mandate of the national rapporteur is different from the evaluation and monitoring expert bodies of international human rights conventions and treaties, as the National Rapporteur has a domestic mandate within one country. They, thus, do not compete but complete each other, as the national rapporteurs and their reports can add to the information received from the state and non-governmental organizations.

Under the law, the duties of the National Rapporteur are manifold. First, the national rapporteur monitors the fulfilment of international obligations and the effectiveness of national anti-human trafficking legislation; second, drafts and issues recommendations and advice relevant to combating human trafficking and to implementing the victims' human rights; third, keeps in contact with international organizations; fourth, provides legal advice and assist victims as necessary; and five, drafts reports regularly to the Government and, most importantly, directly to the Parliament on human trafficking and related phenomena. I myself have worked at the office from the beginning and basically developed the working methods and processes of the National Rapporteur together with my colleagues.

The Finnish National Rapporteur is an independent public authority, who evaluates comprehensively the implementation and the implications of the anti-human trafficking legislation and practices from a human rights perspective. The National Rapporteur brings out drawbacks and deficiencies in the anti-human trafficking action to the attention of the politicians and governmental officials. The outsider's perspective - often also with a critical tone - allows us to understand the problematic of human trafficking in depth and give comprehensive and concrete legislative and other recommendations for improvement. Our purpose is to highlight the victim's perspective, and the impact of measures taken or non-intervention of state authorities on victims and the implementation of their legal protection. The National Rapporteur seeks to identify gaps between the ideal situation and the real world or between the legal obligations - whether international or national of their nature - and practice. The Finnish National Rapporteur also seeks to address the demand for services provided by victims of human trafficking, as Finland is mainly a country of destination for trafficked victims.

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http://www.ofm.fi/fi/ajankohtaista/1/0/puhe_ylitarkastaja_venla_roth_bangkokissa_marjanpoimintaan_liittyvassa_kokouksessa_54094