US funds program to combat human trafficking in Sri Lanka

Colombo, Oct 19 (UNI) The United States has said it will fund all the programmes to train Sri Lankan government officials to combat human trafficking in the island nation.

The US State Department and the US Agency for International Development are funding a 500,000 dollars programme that will train the officials to fight against the problem of human trafficking prevaling in Sri Lanka, the US Ambassador Robert Blake announced yesterday at a press conference.

The programme will be implemented by the International Organization on Migration (IOM).

The ambassador was quoted as saying by Colombo Page that a recent US State Department report found Sri Lanka to be a country of source and origin for men, women and children trafficked for domestic labour and sexual exploitation.

Commending the Sri Lankan government for amending its penal code last year to criminalize trafficking, Mr Blake said Sri Lanka needed a better trained network of law enforcement professionals to establish legal grounds to identify and prosecute the traffickers.

The programme will provide funds to train about 500 law enforcement and government officials to combat human trafficking. It will also develop collaboration and coordination among governmental organizations and NGOs to share experiences, establish joint work plans and develop national policies to combat trafficking in Sri Lanka.

UNI