In November 2018 Tearfund New Zealand hosted the first Integral Alliance Anti-Trafficking and Exploitation Collaboration (IAATEC) conference in Bangkok, Thailand …
All the 44 participants from 13 different countries were passionate about addressing human trafficking, and came together to learn, share and connect. There were representatives from seven Integral Members present – CEDAR Fund, Food for the Hungry, Tear Australia, Tearfund Ireland, Tearfund New Zealand, Tearfund UK and World Concern, as well their partners and other organisations such as Cornerstone Trust and Interact Asia.
Participants heard from regional keynote speakers Helen Sworn, the founder and International Director of the anti-human trafficking organisation Chab Dai, and Jared Davis, Independent Researcher based in Cambodia. Helen emphasised the power of partnerships in addressing human trafficking and Jared highlighted the vulnerability of men to sexual exploitation and the frightening gap in statistics and programmes for male survivors.
Programme specialists from across a wide range of Integral Alliance’s anti-trafficking responses shared knowledge on orphan care, trauma informed care, strengthening justice systems, mobilising the church, and community development approaches to prevention. Together they mapped where they worked in the world and shared information about online resources, toolkits and networks. Groups were formed around prevention, prosecution and aftercare. These groups identified different responses and gaps, connections, resources, research, and networks/partnerships.
“The group session really pulled Members and partners together”
Barbara Anne Lewis, Senior International Programme Specialist at Tearfund New Zealand, says “The group session really pulled Members and partners together and you could feel the excitement and energy in the room as like-minded professionals engaged in deep discussion. Participants were keen to swap contact details following the conference to stay in touch and add each other to their support networks.”
She continued, “One lesson Tearfund New Zealand learned was that it takes a lot of planning and work to organise a conference! So next year we are piggy-backing off the Asia Regional Anti-trafficking Conference 2020. This conference aims to develop multi-sector learning and partnerships to improve responses to the issues of human trafficking and slavery in Asia. It also brings together all sectors involved in anti-human trafficking, including the private sector, non-government organisations, academia, and government.”
Tearfund New Zealand would like to invite interested Integral Members and their partners to join them at a pre-conference workshop on Monday 20 July 2020 in Bangkok, to continue the great discussions and strengthen connections started at the IAATEC Conference 2018. To register your interest in the pre-conference workshop please contact Barbara-Anne Lewis or Phil Newman .
Click here to see the Integral Anti-Trafficking and Exploitation Collaboration Map
