Dr Lloyd Eubank-Green (left), past president of the Rotary Club of St Andrew, has the attention of Sir Kenneth Hall (second left), former governor general, Merline Bardowell (second right), and Lady Hall, the club's president. The club was having its weekly luncheon at the Jamaica Pegasus hotel on Tuesday, where Sir Kenneth Hall was the guest speaker. - Contributed
Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Senator Dorothy Lightbourne, has said plans are well advanced for the establishment of a shelter for victims of human trafficking.
Senator Lightbourne made the announcement during her opening address on Wednesday at the Organisation of American States (OAS)-sponsored seminar on 'Human Trafficking in Jamaica' at the Jamaica Pegasus hotel, New Kingston.
"The Ministry of Justice has started to refurbish three shelters, we have come up on some financial constraints but we are going ahead with one, which is almost complete and ready," Senator Lightbourne revealed.
Key criterion
The shelter will provide a number of services. These include accommodation, social services grief counselling through the Victim Support Unit of the Ministry of Justice.
Senator Lightbourne said the availability of a shelter was a key criterion for Jamaica's full compliance with the United States (US) standard and the recently published US Department of States 9th Annual Trafficking in Persons Report.
Lightbourne
She recommended that Jamaica increase funding for shelter services and other assistance to victims in order to improve its tier rating from two to one.
Senator Lightbourne also commended the Jamaica Constabulary Force for its role in reducing human trafficking.
According to Lightbourne, over the last two years, eight suspected cases of trafficking in persons were successfully investigated and placed before the courts.
Prevention measures
Since the start of the year there have been five raids, resulting in 22 persons being interviewed and four arrests.
In November 2008 two men were convicted and sentenced to 12 months' imprisonment for conspiracy to traffic persons, involving a 14-year-old girl.
They were the first persons to be charged in Jamaica under the Trafficking in Persons Act, enacted in 2007.
The two-day seminar examined areas of international human rights law and the Inter-American System, root causes of trafficking in persons, prevention measures and investigation and prosecution techniques.