Trafficking Bulletin Issue No. 26 - December 2016

In this issue: Ontario names director of human trafficking office, CCR responds to government report on TFWP, CCR National Forum on Trafficking a success, new research and resources on trafficking, and more…
 

Issue No. 26 - DECEMBER 2016



E-BULLETIN CONTENTS


Policy developments on trafficking

CCR responds to HUMA report on Temporary Foreign Worker Program
In September 2016, the Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities (HUMA) released its review of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP). The CCR welcomed the report and encourages the Canadian government to act quickly to address the serious shortcomings of the TFWP as indicated in the committee’s recommendations, as well as other critical issues inadequately covered in the report.

Read the CCR brief to the Standing Committee as well as the CCR response to the HUMA report here: http://ccrweb.ca/en/ccr-response-huma-report

CCR Recommendations: Immigration and Refugee Protection

Refugee reform, including mandate to protect trafficked persons
As the government considers modifying some of the 2012 changes to Canada’s refugee determination system, the CCR has made a series of key recommendations for reform. These include changes to rules related to making a refugee claim, eligibility, designated country of origin, and the protection of refugees. The CCR also reiterated one of its core demands for a legislative amendment to bring a permanent and fundamental change in policy so that trafficked persons in Canada are protected. This would effectively expand the protection mandate of the Immigration and Refugee Board to cover trafficked persons.

Read all of the CCR recommendations.

Proposed elimination of Conditional Permanent Residence
More recently, the CCR welcomed the government proposal to eliminate conditional permanent residence. The stipulation that a sponsored spouse or partner live with their sponsor for two years in order to maintain their permanent resident status in Canada places refugees, women in particular, in a vulnerable position and at potential risk of human trafficking.

Read the CCR comments on the proposed amendments to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations.
 

Resources & announcements

CCR National Forum and Workshop on Trafficking in Persons a success
The CCR successfully held its National Forum on Trafficking in Persons on 23 November 2016 in Montreal, welcoming some 60 advocates, service providers, policy makers, and social justice groups working on trafficking across Canada.

The workshop "Introduction to Human Trafficking and Collaborating with Human Rights Allies" was also held in the context of the CCR Consultation. The main objectives of the workshop were to debunk myths about trafficking, raise awareness about the continuum of exploitation, and promote a survivor-centred approach to service provision.

Several presentations from the Trafficking Forum and Workshop are currently available on-line.

A summary report will be available soon on the CCR anti-trafficking campaign page at trafficking.ca.

Don’t forget to plan early to attend the next forum in Niagara Falls, Ontario on 29 November 2017, a pre-event to the CCR Fall Consultation.

Ontario names director of human trafficking office
Ontario named Jennifer Richardson as the Director of the new Provincial Anti-Human Trafficking Coordination Office. She will be responsible for coordinating the implementation of Ontario's Strategy to End Human Trafficking. Ms. Richardson has spent over 22 years combating human trafficking, and has lived experience as a trafficking survivor.

Read more information about the appointment.

Community needs assessment on human trafficking in New Brunswick
Partners for Youth Inc., an alliance of public, private and non-profit groups published a report on the issues and challenges linked to human trafficking in New Brunswick.

The report, The Partnership Development to Address Human Trafficking for Sexual Exploitation in New Brunswick: Community Needs Assessment, was the result of a 12-month research project across the province.

Read the summary of the project.

Forefront of Human Rights Issues: Integrating Human Trafficking into the Social Work Curriculum
Authors Neely Mahapatra, Monica Faulkner, and Mona C. S. Schatz make the case for integrating human trafficking into social work curriculum. In their article, Forefront of Human Rights Issues: Integrating Human Trafficking into the Social Work Curriculum, they provide curricular models and teaching tools for embedding human trafficking into core undergraduate and graduate social work courses. Their goal is enable future practitioners to serve and advocate for survivors as well as examine human trafficking policies at national and global levels.

The article can be found on-line in Critical Social Work, an interdisciplinary journal dedicated to social justice.

Publications
Labour Trafficking in Edmonton
The study, Labour Trafficking in Edmonton: Holding Tight to a Double-Edged Sword was recently released by The Action Coalition on Human Trafficking (ACT Alberta), a member of the CCR Anti-Trafficking Committee.

The study found that the Temporary Foreign Worker Program is the main way labour trafficking occurs in Edmonton. The study can serve as advocacy tool in order to close gaps in government policy that leave migrants vulnerable to exploitation/trafficking.

You can also find the report here: http://www.actalberta.org/newsfeed.php?newsfeed=72

BC Office to Combat Trafficking releases Third Year Status Report (April 2015 to June 2016)
This fall, the British Columbia Office to Combat Trafficking in Persons (OCTIP) released its third year status report outlining the actions it implemented in collaboration with partners and stakeholders. The report marks the end of a three-year B.C. Action Plan to Combat Trafficking (2013-2016). The BC OCTIP reports it will continue to address human trafficking as a priority issue in its strategy to address violence against women.

International developments

The UN Special Rapporteur on Trafficking visited the U.S. in December 2016 to assess the situation of trafficking for labour and sexual exploitation, with special attention to the rights of trafficked persons, including from a gender and child-rights perspective.


In the news

  • Ontario: Animals force victims into sex trade, cop, Toronto Sun, 12 December 2016 – http://bit.ly/2htTpPm
  • Ontario: Meet Ontario's new anti-human trafficking director, TVO, 2 December 2016 – http://bit.ly/2gJk5Mk
  • Ontario: Contextualizing sex trafficking of Aboriginal women and girls, The Argus, 1 December 2016 – http://bit.ly/2hlZ6Ox
  • Ontario: Peel leading the way with human trafficking protocol, Brampton Guardian, 30 November 2016 – http://bit.ly/2gJm1V4
  • Ontario: Northern Spotlight Charges 25 With Human Trafficking Offences, Kitchener Waterloo Ontario Community News, 1 November 2016 – http://bit.ly/2hFufxE
  • Ontario: Man who sued Ottawa police over racial profiling faces human trafficking charges, Ottawa Citizen, 30 October 2016 – http://bit.ly/2dURemW
  • Ontario: Fighting to eliminate Ontario’s dirty little sex secret, 680 News, 6 October 2016 – http://bit.ly/2gBgJWB
  • Ontario: Action needed to help victims of human trafficking, Niagara Falls Review, 29 September 2016 – http://bit.ly/2dddE0j
  • Ontario: Man charged with human trafficking, Toronto Sun, 23 September 2016 – http://bit.ly/2gJiPJf
  • Ontario: Sex trafficking survivors have new Toronto transition house, CBC News, 22 September 2016 – http://bit.ly/2cX99Yb
  • Manitoba: Winnipeg sex trade booms online as street-level operations decline, CBC News, 1 December 2016 – http://bit.ly/2hwUPG4
  • Manitoba: Meeting on human trafficking previews cutting-edge border technology to nab traffickers, Winnipeg Free Press, 9 September 2016 – http://bit.ly/2hm05OI
  • Manitoba: Winnipeg holds cross-border human trafficking conference, CTV News, 9 September 2016 – http://bit.ly/2c4m5aJ
  • Manitoba: Hotline to report human trafficking in Canada in the works, CBC News, 9 September 2016 – http://bit.ly/2bYqsnG
  • Alberta: Labour exploitation enabled by temporary foreign worker program, report says, CBC News, 2 December 2016 – http://bit.ly/2h0VO08
  • Alberta: Report blames temporary foreign worker program for making employees vulnerable to exploitation, Edmonton Journal, 2 December 2016 – http://bit.ly/2hO6Rd6
  • B.C.: Franco Orr gets three-month sentence in nanny trafficking case, Global News, 12 October 12 2016 – http://bit.ly/2gBcc6y