Eminent faculty lecturers, Mr Elmedin Muratbegović, Mr Denis Pajić, Ms Sunčice Hajdarović ,and Ms Hajrija Hadžiomerović Muftić, former federal prosecutor and CEST educator, enabled this group of students to gain additional knowledge about:

• the phenomenon of trafficking in human beings and related criminal offenses, criminal elements, forms, and applicable legal provisions on trafficking in human beings in BiH and related criminal offenses, with reference to international standards and European instruments related to trafficking in human beings;
• victim profiles, victimization and secondary victimization, psychological and health impact of trafficking on victims;
• procedural elements and actions – court and other proceedings in cases of trafficking in human beings and related criminal offenses, as well as codes of ethics of judicial institutions and procedures on confidentiality and data protection that must be observed during trial monitoring.

Each student will receive the certificate.

• Review the state of anti-trafficking activities in each of the partner countries and wider;
• Present findings from the five national pilot reports;
• Enhance advocacy for the establishment of the National Rapporteur on Trafficking in Human Beings;
• Present the developed national mechanisms of monitoring of policies and treatment of the THB victims by governmental and non-governmental
• actors in each of the partner countries.

BIH BAN III Project delegation, which will present the state of play and sit-rep on the project implementation and pertinent findings, consists of: Ms Amela Efendić – MFS-EMMAUS Sarajevo Office Manager, Ms Hajrija Muftić Hadžiomerović- National Working Group Coordinator, Mr Eneid Hasanović National Working Group Member – Expert/MA Political science, and Mr Elmedin Muratbegović – National Working Group Member and author of the Pilot Report /the University of Sarajevo, Faculty of Criminalistics, Criminology and Security Studies- Criminology Department.

Balkan Act Now III

Mrs. Glick commended the work of IFS-EMMAUS as a civil society organization that has been active on the suppression of trafficking in persons for over 20 years now, not only in providing direct assistance and protection to TIP victims, but also implementing policy actions, capacity building and awareness raising activities on TIP in BiH.

Read more: Visit of the USAID DA Glick and US Ambassador Nelson

The government penalized victims for unlawful acts committed as a direct result of being subjected to trafficking, in part due to inadequate victim identification practices. Law enforcement and social workers justified cases of potential forced child begging, forced labor, and forced marriage involving Roma as traditional cultural practices. The government lacked victim protection, including victim-centered prosecutions and access to assistance outside of NGO-run shelters, and the strike force was ineffective due to a lack of participation among relevant actors. Therefore Bosnia and Herzegovina was downgraded to Tier 2 Watch List.

As reported over the past five years, Bosnia and Herzegovina is a source, destination, and transit country for men, women, and children subjected to sex trafficking and forced labor. Bosnian women and girls are subjected to sex trafficking within the country in private residences, motels, and gas stations. Economically marginalized Romani children are subjected to forced begging and involuntary domestic servitude in forced marriages. Foreign women and girls from European countries are vulnerable to sex trafficking within the country.

This year, Bosnia and Herzegovina has been moved from Tier 2 to Tier 2 Watch list.

“The 10th annual Trafficking in Persons Report outlines the continuing challenges across the globe, including in the United States. The Report, for the first time, includes a ranking of the United States based on the same standards to which we hold other countries. The United States takes its first-ever ranking not as a reprieve but as a responsibility to strengthen global efforts against modern slavery, including those within America. This human rights abuse is universal, and no one should claim immunity from its reach or from the responsibility to confront it.” – Hillary Clinton.

On the first day of the Conference, the participants, amongst whom Amela Efendic on behalf of the International Forum of Solidarity EMMAUS, were introduced, approaches and experiences were exchanged (tour de table) and activities of the Project were presented by the project coordinator.

Following that, two presentations were held, one on victim centred approach, rights and needs of the victim of trafficking in human beings and other, on the topic of awareness of the impact of the trauma on the victim’s attitude towards support and support providers.

After a coffee break, the NGO Atinas’ experience on trafficking in human beings in the context of refugee and migration was shared with the participants and a victim centered approach regarding assisting humans in migration, as well as practical experiences regarding victims’ experiences before, during and after the trip.

In the second part of the first day of the Conference, participants have also discussed the ecosystem p0erspective of the understanding of the THB victims’ traumas, on skills of establishing contacts and communications with the victims (the ones NGO Atina applies). Also, one of the topics for discussion was the language barrier and the necessity of the adequate service of interpreting the communication with the victim of trafficking in human beings.