UN Security Council Condemns Human Trafficking

Council Unanimously Adopts Resolution 2331 (2016)

At a meeting held in December 2016 the UN Security Council strongly condemned human trafficking in areas of conflict.  The 15?member Council responsible for the maintenance of international peace and security, after hearing from 70 spekers, specifically condemned the sale of, or trade in, persons for purposes of sexual slavery, and exploitation and forced labour.  It stressed that human trafficking contributed to other forms of transnational organized crime, which could exacerbate conflict and foster insecurity and instability.

The then UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, described trafficking as a global problem, saying the most vulnerable people were those caught in conflict — women, children, internally displaced persons and refugees.  Emphasizing the importance of fighting trafficking for the sake of the victims, and of reducing funding for terrorists, he said countries should investigate and prosecute cases in which their own nationals committed such crimes abroad.  All perpetrators must be brought to justice, he said, stressing that only an international response could succeed in resolving an international problem like human trafficking.  Because the majority of trafficking victims were women and girls, the response must include special attention to their rights, and States must adopt gender-sensitive and rights-based migration policies, he said. Read more…