Trafficking in Persons

Trafficking in Persons is increasingly one of the largest transnational organised crimes, with far reaching impact for those who have been victims. The Office of the Children’s Registry is a member of the National Task Force Against Trafficking in Persons and therefore, is always on the look-out for reports that contain within them, details that indicate that a child is a victim of trafficking or is vulnerable to be trafficked.

Registration Officers at the OCR were engaged in a training seminar on child trafficking on Wednesday July 13. The seminar was delivered by Deputy Superintendent of Police Carl Berry, Head of the anti-Trafficking in Persons Unit at the Counter Terrorism and Organised Crime Investigation Branch (CTOC) of the Jamaica Constabulary Force. 

The session sought to have Registration Officers sharpen their skills in assessing reports for elements of child trafficking within the context of Jamaican legislation. DSP Berry, who said the training was timely, indicated that the Registration Officers were a part of law enforcement and were therefore integral in interviewing reporters to gather information with as much detail that can aid in the investigation of a trafficking matter.

Registration Officers also indicated that they were appreciative of the workshop as it would help them in better determining if a report was indeed a child trafficking report or another crime akin to trafficking such as child selling.
The training session comes on the heel of the June 17 conviction of two persons in the Home Circuit Court for the 2010 trafficking of a teenaged girl, and in anticipation of the National Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Week which is observed July 24th – 30th this year.