An IOM study in Turkey revealing the impact of human trafficking on children
and families is the backbone of a major IOM information campaign getting
underway today in Turkey to raise awareness of the issue.
More than
one third of women trafficked to Turkey are mothers, according to the study
“2005: Turkey, Trafficking and Trends”. The report also found that illegal
profits from trafficking to Turkey top more than US$ 1 billion each year.
The centrepiece of the nationwide information campaign is a
television advertisement to be broadcast on channels through the country.
Entitled “Have You Seen My Mother?”, the advert is focused on four children from
the former Soviet Union in search of mothers trafficked to Turkey. A nationwide
print campaign is also being launched.
“Trafficking takes an
enormous toll not just on the women and girls who have been trafficked to
Turkey, but on the children and families they are forced to leave behind,” said
Marielle Sander Lindstrom, IOM Turkey chief of mission. “Children are becoming
social orphans, more vulnerable to victimization in the future and whole
families are breaking up. This is a huge price for communities to pay. But in a
way, the greater tragedy is the poverty that forces some women to be trafficked
in order to provide for their children, despite their desperation at not wanting
to be separated from them.”
Four hundred and sixty nine individuals
were identified as being trafficked to Turkey in 2005. But this number is
believed to be just a fraction of the overall number or as little as 10 percent
of the caseload. The vast majority of women and girls come from the former
Soviet Union, with 60 per cent of all cases coming from two countries, Moldova
and Ukraine.
Media sponsors include Turkish broadcaster Kanal D,
film distributor FIDA FILM, and the cinema company Sinefekt. Other official
campaign sponsors include airports authorities in Istanbul, Trabzon and Antalya,
Istanbul's municipal bus company and local governments in Ankara, Antalya,
Izmir and Trabzon.
Today’s announcement is in the framework of a
Turkish-government coordinated and IOM-implemented campaign to combat human
trafficking. The campaign includes increased public awareness activities,
stepped up training for law enforcement and medical, psychological and direct
assistance to trafficked individuals. The project is funded by the US and
Turkish governments while major support for IOM counter-trafficking programmes
is also provided by the Italian and Swedish governments.
The
report can be downloaded from the following site: http://www.countertrafficking.org/pdf/2005_turkey_trafficking_and_trends.pdf
For further information, please contact:
Allan Freedman
Tel: + 90 533 482 2049
Email: afreedman@iom.int