UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for redoubling efforts to detect, protect, and support survivors and leave no trafficking victim behind. "Together, let us build a world where no one can ever be bought, sold, or exploited," he said in a message marking World Day against Trafficking in Persons. Human trafficking is a heinous violation of fundamental human rights and freedoms. "It preys on vulnerability and thrives in times of conflict and instability," said the UN chief. Amidst growing inequalities, worsening climate emergencies, and record displacement – more and more people are left vulnerable to traffickers, he said. North Korea calls UN's Guterres 'puppet of US' after launch The majority of detected victims are women and children, many of whom suffer brutal violence, forced labour, and horrific sexual exploitation and abuse. "Yet traffickers continue to operate with impunity. Their crimes are receiving not nearly enough attention. This must change," Guterres said. Guterres to meet Putin, Zelenskyy next week "We must invest much more in detection and protection. We must strengthen law enforcement to bring criminals that commodify human beings to justice. And we must do more to help survivors rebuild their lives," he said. Guterres hopes Bangladesh to continue support to UN peace operations

International Organisation for Migration (IOM) has said the World Day Against Trafficking in Persons is a timely reminder of the problems and risks faced by over 700,000 Bangladeshis who choose to migrate abroad every year.   "Vulnerable migrants are often the target of traffickers and find themselves in situations that can result in debt bondage, forced labour, sexual exploitation, forced marriages and other forms of modern slavery," said IOM Chief of Mission in Bangladesh Giorgi Gigauri in a message marking the Day. Read:Deaths on maritime migration routes to Europe soar in first half of 2021: IOM Gigauri said they are working very closely with the government of Bangladesh, and are redoubling their efforts and looking at not only the whole of government but also the whole of society. "As the Bangladesh UN Network on Migration (BDUNNM), we are also bringing together civil society and UN agencies to do our utmost to assist these migrants in need," he said.   The Covid-19 situation has further aggravated problems, and migrants have become even more vulnerable as some have lost their jobs.   Read:IOM’s emergency director urges durable solutions to Rohingya Crisis Some are more desperate, looking for new jobs and new opportunities to feed their families. "Trafficking affects everyone. It affects people on an individual level, on a family level, and the level of society. And it’s our job to do something about it," said the IOM Mission chief in Bangladesh.   This year’s theme of World Day Against Trafficking in Persons is “Listening to the Victims”.   Read:IOM ramps up health response as 2nd wave of COVID-19 hits Cox’s Baza "We must listen to the people who have been affected so that we can assist them better. We must listen to the survivors of trafficking to hear about their experiences, their stories, and not only learn from them but use that knowledge to improve our interventions and our response to stop trafficking," he said. "So please join me, and let’s come together to battle this heinous crime so that we can eradicate human trafficking in Bangladesh and beyond," he added.

Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the UN Ambassador Rabab Fatima has underscored the need to have close partnership at the local, bilateral, regional and international levels to deal with the trans-border and trans-national nature of the crime like trafficking. "Bangladesh has a zero tolerance policy against trafficking in persons", she said while speaking at the UN High Level Virtual Event for the Observance of World Day Against Trafficking in Persons (TIP) on Thursday.

Bangladesh government, civil society actors, and private sector partners have been urged to collectively support a rights-based approach to combat human trafficking.