With over 7,000 diplomatic posts worldwide – including embassies, high commissions and consulates – the foreign service is at the forefront of countering human trafficking.
Consular officers are often the first point of contact for a victim of trafficking, and they can play a critical role in supporting victims to return to their home countries and access the support they need.
Through a partnership with Vietnam’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the ASEAN-Australia Counter Trafficking program (ASEAN-ACT) supported a series of counter-trafficking in persons training for diplomats abroad and those who will take their posts in coming time.
Over 100 Vietnamese diplomats dialed in from selected posts around the world. ASEAN-ACT supported the Ministry to deliver in-person and virtual trainings held in April and May 2023. The training introduced Vietnamese diplomats to the definition and legal framework governing human trafficking and equipped officers with practical approaches for recognising signs of trafficking and identifying possible victims.
Importantly, the training focused on ‘doing no harm’ – as a first principle to apply when interacting with a possible victim of trafficking. Consular officers learned victim-centred and gender-sensitive interview techniques to avoid re-traumatisation of victims and their families. These techniques can be applied from the initial presentation of a possible victim at an embassy or consulate, to their return back to Vietnam.
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‘The training course is very useful for us who are diplomats working directly at representative agencies. It provided us the detail and guidance on how to handle the case when victims contact us for help. I appreciated the knowledge and practice on victim-centered approaches and how to work with victims to reduce re-traumatisation. I will apply the provided knowledge and skills to support for victims if any come to report his/her case with us.’
Mr. Long Do- Consular-Vietnam representative diplomatic agency in Lao PDR
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As part of the partnership with Vietnam’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ASEAN-ACT also supported the development of a new guideline for diplomats on identifying, supporting, and protecting possible victims of trafficking in persons.
This training and accompanying guideline are timely, as Vietnam and other countries in Southeast Asia are grappling with new patterns of trafficking in the region’s special economic zones.
Equipping diplomatic missions with stronger capacity to detect and respond to human trafficking is one among several interventions critical to combatting this complex crime.