On Sunday, Prime Minister Jason Kenny announced that the county had fully accepted or accepted “in principle” 18 of the calls for action, including setting up an anti-trafficking office, updating and harmonizing legislation, and improving access to services for the victims. “There is no more heinous crime in our society than the scourge of human trafficking,” Kenney said. “This modern form of slavery traps countless people and makes them victims of exploitation and tragedy.” “This horrific practice continues unabated, not only in remote corners of the world, but here in Canada, right here in Alberta,” he added. In May 2020, the county announced the task force, led by anti-trafficking advocate and Canadian star Paul Brandt, to guide Alberta’s work to prevent human trafficking. This came after the passage of a law in the province to protect survivors of trafficking in human beings, which extends the definition of sexual exploitation, allows survivors to sue traffickers and facilitates survivors’ protection orders. According to the province, the task force worked with nearly 100 experts and survivors to brief their recommendations to the government. Their final report was submitted to the province in August 2021. The panel noted that between January and May 2020, the province’s Integrated Child Exploitation received 63 percent more files compared to the same period in 2019, and that nationwide, trafficking reports in 2019 increased by 44 percent. from the previous year. In 2019, police reported 511 cases of human trafficking in Canada, including 31 in Alberta. Justice Minister Tyler Shandro said human trafficking was one of the fastest growing crimes in Canada and the second largest source of criminal income in the world. “Despite being so prevalent, despite being so lucrative, human trafficking is a well-hidden crime,” Shandro said. Sandro added that the recommendations of the task force would allow justice to be done, give law enforcement authorities more tools to fight crime, and better empower survivors. Work is under way to develop the new Office for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, Sandro said, with more details, including its scope, expected to be made public later this year. Asked which of the panel’s recommendations the county did not accept, Shandro said the recommendation was for the county to move to an exemption model for organ donation to ensure that Alberta is not a jurisdiction that is an organ trafficking destination. “This is something we have looked at in the past,” Sandro said, adding that the province has a low rate of organ donation per million. “It is a matter of not having a large enough donor pool or it is an internal process that could actually allow us to access those who have chosen,” he added. Other recommendations include setting up a center of excellence in Alberta to better investigate and track human trafficking data, create better training programs and protocols for Alberts and victims, and that there are specific prevention and support initiatives for health and well-being. wellness by the natives. Services. “I decided to share my story as an Indigenous Sexual Survivor with the Alberta Trafficking Team to reach out to other survivors,” said April Eve Wiberg, a member of the 8 Mikisew Cree First Nation and an indigenous survivor and advocate of exploitation. “I want people to know that they do not have to suffer alone and to encourage them to step out of the shadows, shed light on the very real and serious threat of exploitation and trafficking, and embark on their healing journeys.” Rebecca Schultz, Minister for Child Services, said 90 to 95 percent of human trafficking cases now start on the Internet. “Given what we see, (human trafficking) does not look like it used to,” Schultz said. “We need new ways to deal with this horrific crime.”
