On the occasion of the World Day against Trafficking in Persons, the European Union and the Council of Europe, in co-operation with the Directorate General of Migration Management organised a two-day “Summit on combatting human trafficking” on 29 and 30 July 2021.

The summit took place in Ankara and gathered 125 participants on the first day, 95 persons on the second day, representing 25 institutions. The event was also broadcasted on YouTube channel in English and Turkish.

The summit gathered an important number of panellists, and focused on essential subjects when it comes to the combat against trafficking in human beings.

During the first day, opening speeches by Ramazan Seçilmiş, Deputy Director General for Migration, Verena Taylor, Director of the Office of the Directorate General of Programmes in the Council of Europe and André Etienne Lys, Head of Co-operation in the Delegation of the European Union to Turkey welcomed the initiative and highlighted that trafficking in human beings remains one of the most crucial human rights challenges of our time and encouraged co-operation and co-ordination when it comes to the combat against the many forms of human trafficking such as labour exploitation, sexual exploitation and child trafficking.

Subsequently, projects and actions led in the field for the purpose of combatting trafficking in human beings as well as the past and current efforts of Turkey on the fight against human trafficking were presented during the first day. During the second day, sessions focused on the Human Trafficking Crime in Turkish Criminal Code, the Article 80 of the Turkish Penal Code, the Framework of the National Action Plan on Human Rights and the Victims of Human Trafficking in the Context of Irregular Migration.

To conclude the first day, Helga Gayer, president of the GRETA, reminded that to be effective, and given the nature of the trafficking in human beings phenomenon, the approach to combating it must be based on a comprehensive strategy, following a co-ordinated and multidisciplinary approach which incorporates prevention, protection of victims’ rights and prosecution of traffickers.

A wide range of panellists included representants of the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, the Directorate General of Security, the Coast Guard Command, the Gendarmerie General Command, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Family and Social Services, the IOM, the Antalya Family Counsellors Association the Horizontal Facility action team, the UNHCR, the ICMPD as well as the President of Human Rights and Equality Institution of Turkey.

This multisectoral approach created the grounds for a strong co-ordination and an occasion for open discussion among institutions and enhanced dialogue when it comes to the combat against human trafficking in Turkey.

The summit was organised within the action “Strengthening the human rights protection of migrants and victims of human trafficking in Turkey”, as a part of the joint European Union and Council of Europe programme “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Turkey 2019-2022”.