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“Azerbaijan is doing a serious job to fight against human trafficking,” an Azerbaijani MP told the spring session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) in Strasbourg.
“Azerbaijan is firmly committed to combating trafficking in human beings,” said Sahiba Gafarova as she made remarks on “Prostitution, trafficking and modern slavery in Europe” report presented by Portuguese MP Jose Mendes Bota.
“In Azerbaijan, the National Action Plan for the Fight against Human Trafficking was approved by a presidential decree dated May 6, 2004,” said Gafarova.
“Under the Plan, a national coordination department for the fight against human trafficking was established. The department is carrying out comprehensive work to prevent and combat trafficking in human beings,” she added.
The Azerbaijani MP urged the Council of Europe member countries to “combine efforts in preventing the violation of women`s rights and tackling trafficking in human beings”.
In his report submitted to the Assembly`s Committee on Equality and Non-Discrimination, Mendes Bota said: “As transnational trafficking represents the greatest part of this phenomenon, harmonisation of legal standards and effective international co-operation in criminal matters are crucial to succeed in the fight against human trafficking.”
“The lack of reliable and comparable data on prostitution and trafficking in Europe is a major barrier to making and implementing effective policies against trafficking for purposes of sexual exploitation. Creating a Europe-wide data collection system on prostitution and trafficking is therefore crucial. As a pan-European organisation, the Council of Europe has an important role to play in promoting such a data collection system,” he said.
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