Alberta government and organizations act against human trafficking, including at Edmonton Airport

The province developed the Alberta Human Trafficking Task Force, as part of the government’s platform commitment to implement a nine-point Action Plan to Combat Human Trafficking. Officials say all nine points of the Action Plan have been implemented or are ongoing.

The Task Force submitted its final report in August 2021 containing five primary recommendations for government to assist in combatting human trafficking.

The first recommendation was to create an Alberta Office to Combat Trafficking in Persons to facilitate the implementation of the remaining recommendations. The $4 million investment is scheduled to be allocated over two years.

“We can’t afford to close our eyes to the problem of human trafficking. And we can’t afford to ignore those who are at risk of being trafficked or those who have been trafficked. I’m proud that our government is creating this Office to Combat Trafficking in Persons to keep fighting this scourge on society,” said Premier Danielle Smith.

Operation of the Alberta Office will be led in partnership by Calgary’s #NotInMyCity, Native Counselling Services of Alberta (NCSA) and REACH Edmonton Council for Safer Communities to connect survivors and victims of human trafficking to important supports and services.

NCSA, which has a branch in Red Deer (207-4814 Ross St.) has operated in the province for more than five decades with a focus on fair and equitable treatment for Indigenous people across Alberta with supports for family and youth, restorative justice, and the active pursuit of reconciliation.

“We are advocating for Indigenous people in Alberta and committed to educating others on the important issues of exploitation and human trafficking. Understanding the Indigenous worldview and the resilience of Indigenous individuals, families and communities is a gift of learning. We are here to help and hear the people,” said Marlene Orr, NCSA Chief Executive Officer.

The Office is also being tasked to enhance public awareness and establish a more effective data collection process to monitor the effectiveness of service delivery and help close gaps in tracking cross-jurisdictional trafficking incidents.

“The first step to fighting human trafficking is to raise awareness of the issue and its presence right here in Alberta. We are grateful to have strong partnerships with organizations that have proven to be effective in this, along with directly supporting survivors and victims. Every investment made into the combating of human trafficking is helping restore the humanity and freedom that every individual deserves,” said Mike Ellis, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Services.

With community partners now selected, the provincial government says work is underway to set up, organize and staff the office, sharing updates on the progress in the coming months.

It was also announced on Friday that the Edmonton International Airport (YEG) is the first Canadian airport to sign on to a new initiative led by Action Coalition on Human Trafficking (ACT) Alberta that provides translated materials to Canadian newcomers about their rights in Alberta.

This summer, QR code stickers with access to materials in English, French, Spanish, Punjabi, Chinese and Tagalog will be installed in washrooms at YEG and materials will also be provided to all its transportation partners.

“YEG is always looking for progressive and innovative ways to increase safety measures for every single person who comes through our airport. As the prevalence of human trafficking in our communities grows, we know that as an international airport, we have an important and unique opportunity to help prevent it,” said Steve Maybee, Vice President of Infrastructure, Facilities and Airside Operations at the airport.

Since 2021, YEG has partnered with ACT Alberta to provide industry-specific human trafficking awareness training to RCMP, CBSA, Security and leadership staff at the airport. As a continued response to the widely attended “Human Trafficking Airport Training” hosted by YEG, ACT Alberta and YEG are expanding the collaborative learning for new airport staff at all points of contact, as well as annual refresh learnings. To date, officials say almost 2,000 airport workers have gone through the training program.

The expansion of the program includes the rollout of ACT Alberta’s newly translated materials, including Temporary Foreign Workers Rights in Alberta, What is Human Trafficking, Have you been Labour Trafficked and Have you been Sex Trafficked.

“”We consistently hear from survivors that language is one of the biggest barriers in understanding their rights and knowing if their situation is ok or if there is something off. This partnership with YEG is a monumental step towards allowing individuals access to their rights in Alberta in their own language. Our hopes are that by knowing these rights from the onset, the signs of a trafficking situation will be clearer to potential victims,” said Kate Price, Executive Director of ACT Alberta.

She says the importance of these translated documents for potential victims of human trafficking cannot be understated as, often, traffickers falsify information about what the victims’ legal rights are, what is required of them to work in Canada and more.

by rdnewsNOW Staff

Alberta government and organizations act against human trafficking, including at Edmonton Airport

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