View From the Legislature

Thanks to dedicated individuals and organizations, human trafficking, most often for the purpose of sexual exploitation, is understood and recognized more today than it has been in the past. Even so, for the vast majority of Canadians it is something that they are rarely confronted with in their day to day lives despite the fact that it occurs in every province and in communities big and small.

For that reason, efforts continue to assist police and support agencies in both understanding and identifying human trafficking. This often takes the form of training professionals and ensuring they are connected with each other to support those who are victims of this crime. It also comes in the form of education in schools, so that young people can learn about something that is prevalent, but rarely spoken about. This awareness is particularly important because young girls and women are the most at risk of sex trafficking.

One of the organizations that has, for many years, been at the forefront of combatting human trafficking is the Joy Smith Foundation. As a Member of Parliament, Joy Smith was a leader in the advancement of knowledge and legislation to reduce human trafficking. Following her political life, she continued on in this cause through the creation of the Joy Smith Foundation and has been recognized across Canada and around the world for her efforts.

Earlier this month, I was pleased to announce that the Manitoba Government is partnering with the Joy Smith Foundation in support of the recently launched “See the Trafficking Signs” national campaign designed to inform Canadians about the potential signs of sexual trafficking. Together with Joy Smith and Foundation president and CEO Janet Campbell, we announced a $100,000 contribution in support for this awareness campaign. It is just one part of an ongoing effort to educate Canadians about human trafficking and how to stop it from happening. More information about the campaign can be found at traffickingsigns.ca.

In addition to these measures, Manitoba is supporting law enforcement through the establishment of an integrated missing persons police unit in the province. Because so many of those who are reported missing are vulnerable to exploitation, this integrated policing unit will be on the front lines of combatting sexual trafficking.

As well, I have been working with officials in Canada and the United States in an effort to both bolster the information that is maintained by law enforcement regarding sexual predators but also ensure that it can be shared across the border so that law enforcement officials in both Canada and the United States have timely and accurate information about predators who may be looking to enter their jurisdiction. This information is not currently available to law enforcement in the robust way that it needs to be to ensure that proactive measures can be taken when a sexual predator is crossing an international border.

Human trafficking remains a very serious but not fully understood or recognized crime in society. We are committed to working with law enforcement and organizations like the Joy Smith Foundation to help support victims, educate our community, and prosecute those who are responsible.