Category: Trafficking 
2009-05-08
Four Arab nationals have been charged with human trafficking and concealment of information in a case involving a 13-year-old Arab girl. The Dubai Public Prosecution has referred them to the Dubai Criminal Court.
Adviser Khalifa Deemas, head of the Technical Office of the Public Prosecutor, said three of the accused bought the victim from her mother in one of the Arab countries and brought her into the UAE claiming that she was their daughter. The three are then alleged to have coerced the girl into prostitution. The fourth accused learnt about the crime, but failed to report it.
Dr Anwar Gargash, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Federal National Council Affairs, said the 13-year-old has been referred to the Dubai Charity Establishment for Women and Children for mental, social and medical support. He was chairing a meeting to discuss a draft of the annual report on the UAE’s efforts to combat human trafficking.
Deemas had said earlier that it is the norm for the technical office of the attorney general to study and scrutinise all human trafficking cases and then coordinate with authorities and agencies concerned. Upon directives from adviser Essam Al Humaidan, Dubai public prosecutor, the victim was referred for social counselling and medical and psychological treatment. The public prosecution has called for the toughest punishment under the law.
The police obtained a legal arrest warrant when tipped off that the accused had decided to leave the country with fake passports. They also learnt that the victim was staying with people she did not know at the airport and was on her way to another GCC country.
On January 20, the combined squad of the Dubai Naturalization and Residency Department, in cooperation with the Dubai police, arrested the accused at the Sharjah International Airport while they were attempting to leave the country.
The victim reportedly told the investigation that she had been coerced into prostitution for Dh2000-3000 a night since she arrived in the country.
The meeting Dr Gargash chaired on Sunday approved various draft Memorandums of Understanding between the UAE and other countries, as part of a national strategy to combat human trafficking through global cooperation.
According to the draft report reviewed, UAE statistics show a low rate of human trafficking, but it is being viewed with seriousness.
Dr Gargash instructed the committee to speed up the launch of a media campaign at UAE airports: “The campaign is of great importance to limit the number of people who become victims of human trafficking.”
The minister also stressed the need to strengthen training programmes for those involved in the fight against human trafficking. Training is being provided by the International Training Centre for Human Trafficking Prevention in Belarus and other organisations.
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