The National Committee to combat Human Trafficking launches unique awareness campaign

Muscat: As part of its continuous endeavour to combat types of crimes against humanity, the National Committee to Combat Human Trafficking announced the launch of its second awareness campaign. Through the campaign, it seeks to promote and spread awareness among various segments of society about human trafficking crimes, the means to detect them and ways to support governmental efforts to deal with these cases.

The details of the campaign, titled ‘Insan’, were revealed during a ceremony organised by the Committee, under the auspices of His Excellency Nasr Khamis Al Sawai, Attorney General and Deputy Chairman of the Committee. Also in attendance were a limited number of Their Excellencies members of the Committee, residing ambassadors in the Sultanate and media representatives, taking into account the current precautionary measures. The event was also broadcast live through a link for those wishing to know more details.

The ‘Insan’ campaign, will run over a period of three months, starting from March 1, 2021 until May 31, 2021. It will include various messages in several languages, targeted at different segments of society, including citizens and expatriates. This is to ensure that these messages reach the target audience, specifically vulnerable groups who are most likely to fall victim to human trafficking, which is condemned as per Omani law.

Why Insan?

The Committee selected the slogan ‘Insan’ to convey a clear message to all, which focuses on human values, regardless of race, colour or religion. Being human means that everyone should be treated and respected, equally.

From his side, His Excellency Nasr Al Sawai stated, “The Sultanate believes in the necessity of its role to support global efforts in combating human trafficking, which is a danger to society, both in the short and long term. The Sultanate is also one of the first countries to issue special legislation to eliminate this criminal act, which is the Anti-Trafficking Law, issued by Royal Decree No 126/2008. Article (22) of this law states the formation of a national committee, with members from several government institutions, responsible for creating a high-level national plan to combat human trafficking.”

Highlighting the achievements of the Committee, he said, “The National Committee to Combat Human Trafficking was able to achieve several successes such as the ratification of international agreements. The most recent of which is the Royal Decree No 46/2020, which endorses the Sultanate of Oman joining the international Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. This covenant is concerned with granting individuals, including workers, their rights and preventing them from being subjected to any violation. Another milestone is the reforming of the sponsorship system, by canceling the No-Objection Certificate (NOC) and granting the expatriate worker the right to move from one employer to another who has a license to recruit workers. Other achievements include the allocation of a shelter for victims of human trafficking, implementing awareness programmes in various media such as the Insan campaign that the Committee is launching today, organisation of internal and external programmes to train those in charge of implementing the Anti-Trafficking Law and forming a national team for quick intervention in reports of human trafficking.”

‘Insan’ builds on the successes of the first campaign, ‘Ehsan’, launched by the committee in 2017. It is a reflection of the Sultanate’s strategy to combat human trafficking through a wide range of measures, undertaken to eliminate these criminal practices. This campaign will also contribute towards enhancing community awareness about the mechanism for detecting and reporting these incidents, by familarising people with its indicators, negative effects and legal consequences. The campaign looks to promote the participation of all members within the society in combatting Human Trafficking.

The ceremony also included the launch of the new website for the Committee, which is available in both Arabic and English. Through the website, victims of human trafficking can request help in 12 international languages. The website can be visited through the link: www.nccht.om.

Sayyid Ammar Abdullah Al Busaidi, First Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Supervisor of human trafficking in the committee, said, “Combatting human trafficking is not just a task for a specific entity, but it depends on the collective efforts of all parties, including individuals and institutions. I would like to extend my thanks and appreciation to everyone who has been a part of the Insan campaign. I thank Muscat Municipality, bp Oman and Oman Airports for their efforts in supporting this campaign and enabling it to achieve its strategic objectives. This is in line with Oman’s vision 2040 to encourage partnership between the public and private sectors, work together towards the sustainable development goals of the nation and raise the position of the Sultanate on an international level. I would also like to thank the partners of our campaign, including media representatives and social media influencers, who were all integral in promoting the campaign to the widest segment of society.”

The Sultanate’s government, represented by The National Committee to Combat Human Trafficking is working to combat human trafficking crimes by legislating preventive laws for perpetrators, providing care and protection for victims, as well as organising campaigns to educate various segments of the society. The National Committee to Combat Human Trafficking was established as per the Royal Decree No. 126/2008, issued on November 23, 2008 and is currently chaired by His Excellency Sayyid Badr Hamad Albusaidi, Minister of Foreign Affairs and includes representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Justice and Legal Affairs, Ministry of Information, Ministry of Social Development, Ministry of Labour, Royal Oman Police, Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Oman Human Rights Commission, Council of Administrative Affairs for the Judiciary, Public Prosecution and General Federation of Oman Workers, as members.

-Ends-

© Press Release 2021