President calls for mass awareness to curb human smuggling

ISLAMABAD: As the global community observes World Day Against Trafficking in Persons on Wednesday, President Asif Ali Zardari called for international cooperation, effective mass awareness and concerted efforts to do away with the serious global challenge.

The president, in his message on the Day, said that Pakistan was implementing strict laws and effective measures to prevent human trafficking as its agencies were making every effort to dismantle human smuggling networks and bring criminals to justice.

He also reiterated the country’s commitment to continue to work with global partners to eliminate human trafficking and establish a world free from human exploitation.

He said that the Day was observed to raise awareness about protecting vulnerable individuals and addressing that severe violation of human rights.

Calling the human trafficking a serious global challenge affecting millions of people, he said that 2025 theme, “Human Trafficking is Organized Crime – End Exploitation,” highlighted that the offence was perpetrated through organised networks.

President Zardari said that the poverty, conflicts, ignorance, and unsafe migration were the root causes of human trafficking with women, children, and marginalized communities being the most affected groups.

He said that the human traffickers used unsafe migration routes, leading to the loss of hundreds of precious lives every year.