This Monday, May 22, 2023 marked the launch of Ho-Chi-Minh-Ville district officers' awareness of child trafficking and exploitation. Between May and July 2023, 570 officers will take part in 19 training sessions (1 per district) to inform them and facilitate the reporting and referral of children to the appropriate services.
With its participative approach, this half-day training course equips local agents with the knowledge they need to take action and alert the relevant authorities: how are trafficking crimes punished under Vietnamese law? What are the signs that could indicate that a person is a victim of trafficking? The training content also includes the pain and suffering endured by victims of trafficking, and how we can talk and work with them to help.
One of the course participants has already said that he found the training very informative and useful, and that he hopes we can extend it to other participants, such as the local police officers who receive and deal with criminal cases.
PE&D is organizing this training program with its two local partners: CSWC and CTSE. The training also promotes the latter's 1900 54 55 59 hotline. The hotline operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and receives reports of child abuse, exploitation and trafficking.
Neighborhood officers in Vietnam play a key role in children's policy. They are involved in issuing legal documents such as birth certificates, registering new arrivals in a district, managing public and private nursery schools, monitoring disadvantaged children from poor families or orphans, etc.
The aim is to enable them to apply and share this new knowledge to improve care for children who are victims of trafficking and exploitation.
