Amnesty International and Anti-Slavery International issued a public statement today urging greater transparency in the drafting of a European Convention Against Trafficking in Human Beings. In September 2003, the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers began the process of drafting this convention with the intention of focusing on human rights and victim protection and incorporating a gender perspective. The Committee of Ministers created an Ad Hoc Committee on Action Against Trafficking in Human Beings (CAHTEH) charged with drafting the convention. CAHTEH has held four meetings to date and plans to meet at the end of this month to discuss provisions relating to the protection of the human rights of trafficking survivors. The Amnesty/ Anti-Slavery statement includes requests for (1) the public distribution of the draft text of the convention so that NGOs may provide CAHTEH with comments; (2) the invitation of relevant NGOs and experts to address CAHTEH; and (3) COE Member State consultation with NGOs and experts serving trafficking survivors in their countries.
For more information, please see this statement available on the Amnesty International website here. Please see also the Council of Europe website that has been created to cover developments related to this drafting process: www.coe.int/trafficking.