NCCTHB held official meetings with the Office of the Special Representative and Coordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings of the OSCE and the Secretariat to the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings | Natio
The Secretariat of the National Commission for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings (NCCTHB) held a series of official meetings. The participants include the Chairman of the Commission, the Deputy Prime Minister, and the Minister of the Interior Ivan Demerdzhiev. On behalf of the international institutions, the meetings were attended by Valiant Ritchie, Special Representative and Coordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (O…
NCCTHB held official meetings with the Office of the Special Representative and Coordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings of the OSCE and the Secretariat to the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings
The Secretariat of the National Commission for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings (NCCTHB) held a series of official meetings. The participants include the Chairman of the Commission, the Deputy Prime Minister, and the Minister of the Interior Ivan Demerdzhiev. On behalf of the international institutions, the meetings were attended by Valiant Ritchie, Special Representative and Coordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), and Ms. Petya Nestorova, Executive Secretary of the Council of Europe (CoE), Ms. Tarana Bagirova, OSCE Country Visits Officer, Mr. Yuri Paltsev, Administrator at the Secretariat of the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings, Mr. Kevin Hyland, Consultant to the Council of Europe, and representatives of the Secretariat of the National Commission on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings.
The topic of discussion was the findings and recommendations of the report of the Third Evaluation Round of GRETA on Bulgaria's progress in the implementation of the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings and the monitoring report of the OSCE Special Representative and Coordinator on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings. The participants also discussed key issues related to the implementation of national policies to combat trafficking in human beings and the protection of victims.
The meetings were attended by the members of the NCCTHB, as well as representatives of the responsible institutions such as the Deputy Prosecutor General of the Republic of Bulgaria Daniela Masheva, and the Director of the National Investigation Service Borislav Sarafov, as well as the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly, Mr, Kristian Vigenin and representatives of the Parliamentary Committees on Internal Security and Public Order, Foreign Policy, Legal Affairs, Human Rights, Religion and Citizens' Complaints and the Ombudsman of the Republic of Bulgaria Diana Kobacheva.
"Bulgaria is one of the first countries to ratify the UN Palermo Protocol and the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings. Our country is among the few that have regulated these issues in a specific law - the Law on Combating Trafficking in Human Beings. Bulgaria declares its determination to continue to make the necessary efforts for the effective and long-term counteraction - both of the crime itself and of its consequences," said Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior and Chairman of NCCTHB Mr. Ivan Demerdziev.
The participants in the meetings also talked about the progress of our country after the monitoring visit of Valiant Ritchie in July 2021 and the Third Round of evaluation in the implementation of the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings. The possibility of establishing an independent national rapporteur on trafficking in human beings was also discussed. The issue of the lack of sufficient and sustainable funding for anti-trafficking activities, particularly in the area of victim protection, was raised, as well as the possibilities of legislative changes to ensure the increase of effective penalties, proactive investigations of trafficking cases the improvement of mechanism for the collection and analysis of data related to the crime, access to legal aid and financial compensation for victims and the possibilities for the overall consolidation of the national policies, through the necessary legislative changes.
Deputy Prime Minister Ivan Demerdziev noted the consistent efforts of the caretaker to strengthen the capacity of the National Commission for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings. He recalled that due to the lack of a National Assembly, our country does not have a new budget, but a way of funding within the existing possibilities is being sought.