“Building a Network: The Prophetic Role of Women Religious in the Fight Against Trafficking in Persons”
October 15 – 20, 2007
The U.S. Embassy to the Holy See and the Italian Union of Major Superiors (USMI) are organizing a five-day Training Seminar which will by bring together more than 30 nuns from 25 different congregations already active in the field of human trafficking in more than 25 countries with the aim of:
1) launching an international, inter-congregational religious anti-trafficking network – the first of its kind;
2) significantly developing and strengthening networking mechanisms and communications skills among nuns addressing trafficking in persons (TIP) in countries of origin, transit and destination;
3) facilitating occasions for participants to share their best practices and country-specific TIP assessments through delivery of individual Country Reports;
4) developing internet procedures and structures to facilitate dissemination of Best Practices products;
5) strengthening participants’ national and international capacities to tackle TIP through multi-disciplinary, political and strategic approaches.
The five-day Training Seminar will include informative lectures by and discussions with leading TIP experts from the United States, the Holy See, the Italian government, religious congregations (women and men), and faith-based NGOs. Given the breadth of countries represented, this meeting presents a unique opportunity for strategic information-sharing and gathering. A critical element of information exchange will be the daily Country Reports, when each participant will present a 15-minute overview of the status of TIP in her respective country and the best practices used by women religious to combat it. Each report will highlight evidence of the need for the nuns’ engagement in their respective national and regional contexts, and urge for the development and strengthening of a global network comprised of both women and men religious.
In order to highlight and solidify results, the final day of the Training Seminar will feature a Public Session and Reception, to be attended by representatives of the U.S. Embassy to the Holy See, the Vatican, the Holy See Diplomatic Corps, religious congregations, the Italian government, Vatican media corps, as well as the non-governmental (NGO) and academic communities.
Embassy Vatican Combatting Trafficking In Persons
The U.S. Embassy to the Holy See is focused on combating the scourge of trafficking in human beings. We work actively to enhance awareness of this problem and to prevent and deter it through partnerships with faith-based organizations and with international organizations already committed to anti-trafficking work. For a number of years, we have been privileged to work with the Rome office of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), with the International Union of Superiors General (UISG), and with the Italian Union on Major Superiors (USMI) to coordinate programs to train female and male religious in anti-trafficking strategies and skills. The United States, through the Department of State 's Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration and the Office to Counter Trafficking in Persons is proud to fund these groundbreaking programs that have already proven their success.
Contact:
Amy Roth Turnley
Public Affairs Coordinator
U.S. Embassy to the Holy See
RothTurnleyAE@state.gov
