DHS Launches Promising Campaign to Fight Human Trafficking

July 29, 2010 | Monique Marie DeJong

Last week, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano launched Blue Campaign, an agency-wide initiative strengthening anti-trafficking efforts through raising public awareness, offering victim assistance programs, and providing training for law enforcement officials. Focusing on the Four Ps, Protection, Public awareness, Prosecution, and Partnerships, DHS will be taking a “victim-centered approach,” said Alice Hill, Senior Counselor to Secretary Napolitano.

Collaborating with Governmental Agencies and NGOs
As Hill noted, “We believe this has to be a one-U.S.-government effort, and we must work closely with all departments to effectively forge a way to combat human trafficking,” but she also stressed the importance of innovation and collaboration with other governments and NGOs. Last year, DHS and the government of Mexico worked together for the first time on a human trafficking case, but more partnerships with other governments are needed to strengthen efforts. “We are building on the great work of other people,” she said, crediting NGOs as being the anti-trafficking foundation, and she welcomed continuous feedback from them on how DHS can improve.

Revving Up Prosecution
“We have come a long, long way,” said John Morton, Assistant Secretary, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Last year marked the largest-ever federal investigation of human trafficking, including 566 human trafficking cases, 358 arrests, and 165 convictions. Recently, on July 20, a Togolese man in Newark, New Jersey was sentenced to 24 years in prison for conspiring to smuggle girls and young women who were forced to work at hair braiding salons with no pay.

Alan Bersin, U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner (CBP), said, “We are proud to join forces with the NGO community [and] our partners in the federal government and in DHS to give an unequivocal message to those who would engage in the abhorrent practices of modern-day slavery: We will find you. We will arrest you. We will prosecute you, and we will free your victims.”

Protecting Potential Victims by Detecting Indicators
Blue Campaign emphasizes victim protection via training. “Law enforcement is really the backbone of our efforts at DHS to fight human trafficking,” said Hill. All too often, trafficked victims glide by first responders, undetected. But this year, the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center launched an interactive, computer-based training system for all law enforcement officers, as they need to be properly equipped to recognize human trafficking indicators. One drawback is that officers are not required to view the training system, but because it is free, it should reach a wider range of officers—an estimated 200,000 each year.

A ‘Don’t be Fooled’ Approach to Public Awareness
“Often the victims of human trafficking are not aware when they cross our borders that they are about to be enslaved,” noted Bersin. Many trafficked victims initially enter the U.S. under the impression that they are being smuggled into the country, but they instead are greeted with a horrific reality. In hopes of deterring foreigners from trusting smugglers, CBP launched the “No Te Engañes (Don’t Be Fooled)” initiative earlier this year, complete with disturbing videos and audio broadcast on TV and radio stations in Mexico, Guatemala, and El Salvador. At ports of entry, posters are displayed to warn potential victims, and tear cards and “shoe cards”—small enough to hide in a shoe—provide information for crisis support and social services for trafficked victims.

Concerned public members can also sign up for the DHS Open Source Enterprise “Daily Human Trafficking and Smuggling Report,” a source on current human trafficking issues, and in the coming months, will provide information at ports of entry on how someone can report suspected victims. To add your email address to the list, send a request for the report to: BlueCampaign@dhs.gov.

Public Concerns
During the Q&A, some individuals expressed concern over gaping issues that have yet to be addressed by DHS, or other governments, for that matter: child brides and diplomatic immunity.

During a phone interview with Lily Mazahery, an internationally recognized immigration lawyer, she said her on-the-ground sources in countries like Iran and Iraq have confirmed that there is a significant increase in child brides. “It’s becoming a widespread issue that no one wants to acknowledge,” she said. Via the United Arab Emirates, young girls are trafficked from countries like Iran and end up in the Gulf states, Europe, and even America.

Due to the tight-knit nature of embassy circles, specific details are not known, but as Mazahery noted, diplomats sometimes bring child brides to the U.S., and some diplomats are committing repeated human trafficking offences and abusing domestic workers. Unfortunately, due to diplomatic immunity, these criminals, living on Embassy Row in D.C., cannot be prosecuted, and it is nearly impossible for the U.S. government to deport them.

Mazahery criticized DHS materials for not being published in languages and dialects many of these girls speak, and in many cases, these victims are not educated enough to read or understand their rights. In a few cases, DHS has provided Mazahery’s clients with a humanitarian parole visa, but many more need to be issued to protect these girls and young women.

Progress Being Made
The Blue Campaign appears to be a robust initiative focusing on enhancing ways to address victims’ needs and actively collaborating with governmental agencies as well as NGOs, so a real possibility exists for this initiative to be largely successful. Although many challenges remain, because DHS is requesting feedback and suggestions from the public and NGO community, it is a good sign that we should begin to see changes within human trafficking in the coming months and years.

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Monique Marie DeJong currently works in Washington, D.C. as a freelance journalist and editor. Recently, she was the U.S. reporter for London’s Centre for Investigative Journalism, reporting on corporate corruption and human rights and environmental violations. Prior to reporting, she worked for two years as an associate editor for NBC’s TODAY show travel editor in Los Angeles, California.