Western Standard - Public Safety Minister Ellis Launches Anti-Human Trafficking Initiatives

00:00:00.000 Thank you.

00:00:30.000 Thank you.

00:01:00.000 Thank you.

00:01:30.000 Thank you.

00:02:00.000 Thank you.

00:02:30.000 I am Deputy Premier and Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Services, Mike Ellis.

00:02:41.000 I want to first acknowledge that we are gathered today on the traditional territory of Signatories

00:02:45.000 of Treaty 7.

00:02:46.000 I also want to acknowledge the Métis people of Alberta who of course have a deep connection

00:02:49.000 to this land.

00:02:50.000 I'd also like to acknowledge my colleague Minister of Children's Services, Cyril Turton,

00:02:53.000 who is here with us today, and Canadian country music superstar Paul Brandt, who is also here

00:02:59.000 also here with us today for this announcement. Paul, of course, is the co-chair of the Alberta

00:03:03.200 Center to End Trafficking in Persons. I'd also like to personally thank him, of course, for his

00:03:08.240 continued advocacy against human trafficking. And today I'm very proud to announce that up to

00:03:14.020 $5.5 million in funding is now available under the Alberta's Combating Trafficking in Persons

00:03:20.040 grant. This brand new grant is a critical part of Alberta's ongoing efforts to tackle the serious

00:03:25.300 crime of human trafficking and support survivors in our province human traffickers prey on the

00:03:30.100 most vulnerable members of our society stripping individual freedoms dignity and safety and

00:03:36.500 fighting human trafficking requires a multi-faceted approach involving prevention and protection and

00:03:41.780 prosecution alberta's government is committed to ending all forms of human trafficking including

00:03:46.900 labor and sex trafficking and in 2022 alberta committed to more than 20 million dollars over

00:03:52.260 four years to fight human trafficking and to date this has included funding to create the Alberta

00:03:58.260 Center to End Human Trafficking of which Paul has done an incredible job in co-chairing as well as

00:04:04.500 the targeted support of more than 20 community organizations which I announced in February.

00:04:10.100 These efforts have already supported countless victims and survivors providing them with the

00:04:15.620 care and resources that they need to heal and rebuild their lives and the Combating Trafficking

00:04:21.220 in persons grant builds on this momentum. With 5.5 million in funding available for 24 and 25,

00:04:28.180 this program reflects our commitment to addressing trafficking at all levels,

00:04:31.940 prevention, victim protection, and of course survivor empowerment. The goal of this grant

00:04:38.900 is to provide specialized trauma-informed supports for victims of survivors of human trafficking,

00:04:43.620 increased awareness of the challenges faced by victims, and reduce the risk of re-exploitation

00:04:49.460 of survivors funding can be used to support victims and survivors along with the continuum of

00:04:55.380 services this can include immediate emergency support to help victims exit trafficking as well

00:05:01.620 as supports for survivors as they rebuild their lives and navigate long-term challenges we know

00:05:07.540 that indigenous people are disproportionately impacted by human trafficking and that's why 1.00

00:05:12.020 this grant prioritizes projects that are, of course, Indigenous-led or that we meaningfully

00:05:20.900 engage with Indigenous communities and survivors and, of course, elders within the community.

00:05:25.140 By ensuring Indigenous voices are essential to the solution, we're fostering culturally

00:05:30.740 appropriate responses that are going to build strong and resilient communities to organizations,

00:05:36.180 nonprofits and community leaders all around. So please take this opportunity to apply for this

00:05:42.660 funding. Your work of course is critical to preventing trafficking, protecting those at risk

00:05:47.620 and of course empowering survivors to rebuild their lives. Applications are going to be open

00:05:52.180 from now right up until January the 20th and in closing I just want to say thank you. I want to

00:05:57.060 say thank you to all those individuals and organizations who continue to dedicate themselves

00:06:01.540 as to combating trafficking in our communities. Your tireless efforts inspire us all and of course

00:06:08.180 they serve as a reminder as to what is possible of course as we work together. So thank you and

00:06:13.540 I'd like to now invite Mr Turton up to the podium to say a few remarks. Thank you.

00:06:20.980 Well thank you very very much Minister Ellis and good morning everyone. I'd like to begin

00:06:25.860 by thanking my colleague as well as country music icon Paul Brandt and every organization

00:06:31.140 in the prevention of violence and human trafficking space for all of your efforts to raise awareness

00:06:36.500 prevent and put an end to human trafficking as well as to help survivors move forward

00:06:41.380 in their healing journey i'm so pleased today that we're taking further steps to help address

00:06:46.580 this urgent and important issue by investing in the combating trafficking in persons grant

00:06:52.340 for so many albertans it is still hard to imagine that human trafficking occurs here in our province

00:06:58.740 it happens quietly taking different forms including sexual exploitation it infiltrates our

00:07:04.980 communities our places of work our schools and even our homes before we or its victims have a

00:07:11.940 chance to recognize it many of us may not know that our next door neighbor a co-worker a classmate

00:07:19.300 a spouse or our very children may have been victims of human trafficking we may not want to

00:07:25.940 see it because it's so unfathomable to think that someone would commit such a vicious crime that

00:07:32.580 violates another human being's basic human rights and strips them of their dignity sadly as minister

00:07:39.380 of children family services these are stories that i hear far too frequently for many individuals

00:07:44.900 and organizations who work with survivors of sexual violence and abuse including those who

00:07:50.420 have been trafficked it is not their fault but trauma isn't easy for survivors to navigate and

00:07:55.860 overcome it can have long lasting impacts on survivors well-being affecting their ability

00:08:01.140 to trust form healthy relationships and feel safe in fact i've learned that children in government

00:08:07.060 care are 60 percent more likely to be trafficked and that's a staggering stat that we cannot afford

00:08:13.140 to act on and that's exactly why it's so important that we continue to build a fulsome network of

00:08:18.180 supports to help and empower survivors and prevent this in the future the combating trafficking and

00:08:23.620 persons grant will do just that survivors deserve peace of mind that access to vital supports they

00:08:30.100 need are available that give them peace of mind that justice will be done and the government is

00:08:34.980 making every effort to ensure that no one has to experience human trafficking sexual violence or

00:08:40.340 exploitation we are proud to support sexual assault centers women's shelters as well as well as child

00:08:47.060 youth advocacy centers and organizations like little warriors who are already doing great work

00:08:52.020 to support survivors in their healing journey we know that there is still more work to do which is

00:08:58.420 why we're working to support alberta's organizations non-profits and community leaders throughout this

00:09:03.540 grant working together to learn about the signs of human trafficking where to report it and how

00:09:09.540 to support survivors can help us end it together and i encourage in eligible organizations to apply

00:09:15.220 by january 20th for this important grant and i thank you again for your critical work together

00:09:22.180 we can build a safer better and brighter future for all to anyone who may be currently experiencing

00:09:27.940 human trafficking or sexual violence help is available through alberta's one line for sexual

00:09:32.820 violence at 1-866-403-8000 or the 24 7 family violence info line at 310-1818 thank you very

00:09:43.940 much and i now like to invite my good friend paul brandt up to the podium

00:09:50.660 thank you ministers and thank you so much for being here today thanks to the continued commitment

00:09:55.380 of the government of alberta frontline agencies and albertans are being empowered to work

00:09:59.700 collaboratively to implement a coordinated response to support survivors of human trafficking

00:10:05.460 exit their trafficking situations and have rapid exit to specialized human trafficking specific

00:10:10.900 supports and to even prevent it from happening in the first place. The Alberta Centre to End

00:10:16.180 Trafficking in Persons envisions a future free from human trafficking and its devastating effects

00:10:21.700 on Albertans. It works to unite and empower communities in Alberta to disrupt and prevent

00:10:27.220 human trafficking and to support those who've been impacted by any form of trafficking to exit

00:10:33.300 and build into the lives that they were intended to live. The Alberta Centre is community-led and

00:10:38.660 works alongside government to disrupt and prevent human trafficking, ensuring that there's a unified

00:10:43.620 province-wide wraparound community response model which works on behalf of human trafficking

00:10:48.740 survivors, victims, and those at risk. The average age of first being trafficked in Canada is 13

00:10:55.540 years old. Traffickers make over $280,800 per year per victim. 94% of victims in Canada are Canadian

00:11:05.460 and 93 percent are women and girls. Many trafficking victims know their traffickers

00:11:10.820 and do not realize that they're victims of force, fraud, and coercion. This requires that data

00:11:16.980 sharing, awareness, best practice training, and coordinated efforts are implemented in order to

00:11:21.860 counter this horrific crime. The Alberta Centre looks forward to working with the Government of

00:11:27.140 Alberta to ensure that this $5.5 million in funding is allocated to community-based organizations

00:11:33.060 fostering a consistent, coordinated response to human trafficking in Alberta with a focus

00:11:38.340 on enhancing services and strengthening interagency collaboration. Through our collective

00:11:43.380 efforts, we will ensure that victims and survivors of all forms of trafficking have access to

00:11:49.060 essential wraparound support services as we empower partners and the public to recognize the

00:11:54.500 signs of trafficking, intervene appropriately, and connect survivors with the services that they need.

00:12:00.180 Thank you. This now brings us to the question and answer portion of our announcement. I would ask

00:12:09.860 any reporters in the room to take the mic, just state your name and your outlet, and we'll have

00:12:13.940 one question and one follow-up. Hi, Minister Ellis. My name is Jen Hodson from the Western Standard.

00:12:25.300 so recently the cbsa union head mark weber came out and said that less than one percent of all

00:12:32.020 imports coming into canada are searched and zero are searched when they're coming in by rail

00:12:38.180 so this also he said includes products or people could be smuggled into the country so how can

00:12:45.540 canada hope for secure borders with a record like that including the alberta initiatives for human

00:12:51.220 trafficking and what can be done to fix this problem well the statistics you just gave me

00:12:57.460 are extremely concerning quite frankly um but this is why we're not sitting idly by this is why we

00:13:03.140 made the announcement that we did yesterday this is why we continue to do what we're doing with

00:13:06.580 the center to combat human trafficking um look we're we're doing our part to try to secure the

00:13:12.420 border um you know we certainly encourage the federal government to uh um let us know what

00:13:19.540 your plan is again i have had conversations i indicated the other day with the cbsa

00:13:24.980 along with the the rcmp certainly in the conversations i i had with them i certainly

00:13:30.420 felt as though that you know the augmenting and supporting and assistance that we'll be able to

00:13:35.700 provide them was welcome news to them okay good and the criminal code indicates that uh traffic

00:13:43.300 trafficking convicts get between four years to life sentence when they're caught with human

00:13:49.460 trafficking so if all of these vessels coming into canada aren't being checked what do you think

00:13:56.660 would actually be a deterrent to these criminals who are participating in human trafficking

00:14:02.900 well maybe paul might want to supplement that i know he's done a lot of a lot of work on that

00:14:06.420 but i'm just going to say this on a very high level look the soft on crime policies that have

00:14:10.260 been put forward by this federal government um have not worked um we have seen organized crime

00:14:17.060 not only in this province but throughout Canada, be able to thrive in an environment with little

00:14:23.060 to no consequences. This is why we're seeing not small gangs, we are seeing large cartels,

00:14:30.420 international cartels that are setting up shop not just here in Alberta but right throughout Canada.

00:14:36.580 This is why we continue to support our Alberta law enforcement response team and that coordinated

00:14:40.900 effort this is why we are doing what we can to secure the border uh but um look i mean there

00:14:46.980 has to be consequences for your actions and uh i would argue um and welcome quite frankly any

00:14:53.380 changes the criminal code that would add a bit of a deterrent to especially people who are uh

00:14:58.500 smuggling uh humans and and taking advantage of of um typically young people or vulnerable people

00:15:06.660 uh that there should be consequences for their their actions but maybe i'll have paul

00:15:10.420 supplement this. I know he's done a lot of work on this. Thank you. Thank you, Minister. Thank you

00:15:13.940 for your thoughtful questions too. One survivor sprang to mind when you were talking. I'm speaking

00:15:18.740 to survivors every day now, very regularly, and because of the damage inflicted on her through

00:15:24.660 trafficking in her experience in life, she's a recipient of a double lung transplant. It was

00:15:30.900 just absolutely devastating and it has lifelong impacts. I had the privilege of joining the Alberta

00:15:37.380 law enforcement response team on an undercover operation recently and we had the uh honestly

00:15:43.700 the privilege of being able to go and proactively intervene on behalf of a trafficking survivor

00:15:49.300 and she decided that she didn't want to go with us because she was such a victim of force fraud 0.73

00:15:54.980 and coercion this is a relational crime a lot of trafficking victims know their traffickers and i

00:16:01.700 I want to explain the dynamics of of her bondage. She had her traffickers picture on her cell phone

00:16:09.700 believing it was her boyfriend and he was controlling her from prison with his cell phone.

00:16:16.740 We got to do better. We got to do better for victims of this crime who are bearing the

00:16:21.300 consequences of lifelong trauma as a result of people using force fraud and coercion for profit

00:16:28.900 in Canada. And I think that through working together and working together with law enforcement

00:16:36.160 frontline agencies across jurisdictions and across provincial borders and also the border in the

00:16:42.220 south is very important. That's one of the reasons, you know, as mentioned by Minister Ellis, that

00:16:46.540 we're fostering our relationships with law enforcement across Canada, with our American

00:16:51.940 governmental and law enforcement and border security partners, in order to foster coordination

00:16:57.900 and collaboration. Human trafficking doesn't always happen across borders, but the most recent

00:17:02.940 recent statistics show that 25% of trafficking inflows in North America are cross-border

00:17:09.900 trafficking situations. So it's important for us to focus on this. When we started this work

00:17:15.100 with Not In My City seven years ago, we were often met from different agencies across the province

00:17:21.580 with the idea that human trafficking doesn't happen here. And we're seeing an awakening

00:17:25.900 happening in this province now and you know the the the dismal statistics that you brought um

00:17:31.740 i think what it actually does is provide an opportunity for education and awareness

00:17:35.900 and that's a part of what the alberta center uh intends to be doing so thank you for that thank you

00:17:44.300 hi my name is jenny and i'm with the calgary herald um my question i think is probably suited

00:17:49.820 for paul um you know i just wanted to ask you about where the government is in terms of tracking

00:17:55.420 routes uh for human trafficking um can you talk about some of the measures taken by the government

00:18:01.020 agencies this year to uh shed light on that and maybe even fill gaps through which a lot of these

00:18:05.900 people are entering uh the province yeah the so the acronym they use is at ngo so anti-trafficking

00:18:12.700 ngos and and i i think that um aside from the work of of the government the the frontline agencies and

00:18:18.860 anti-trafficking um uh not-for-profits are are starting to get to the point where we're doing

00:18:24.540 better work at collecting the data and actually telling the full data story of what's happening

00:18:30.780 with human trafficking, specifically with human trafficking inflows and the direction that

00:18:37.900 traffickers are moving victims. The Alberta or sorry, the Canadian Centre to End Trafficking

00:18:43.980 has done some excellent work in their corridors report that came out a couple of years ago that

00:18:49.020 shows the routes that are often taken and the modes of transportation that are taken

00:18:54.380 when victims are being moved by traffickers. It's also important to state that human smuggling and

00:19:00.060 human trafficking are two different things. Trafficking specifically, which we're talking

00:19:04.940 about today, is force, fraud, and coercion facilitated by a third party. And the reason

00:19:09.340 that we know that traffickers are moving victims, in part it's to elude law enforcement, but it's

00:19:14.540 also to find different areas that they can go to to actually make more money so you know traffic

00:19:19.740 traffickers are often moved from eastern canada into alberta because often they can make more

00:19:24.940 money with victims in alberta and and there are predictable routes and we're doing some great work

00:19:30.300 i think primarily um recently here in alberta through our partners in um at the alberta sorry

00:19:37.900 at the yyc at calgary international airport just in this last few months we've been able to intervene

00:19:44.540 and work with and support human trafficking victims and get them back connected with their

00:19:49.340 families again and transport them back because of this rapid community wraparound that's happening

00:19:54.220 but but the the important part i guess to address your question is knowing that victims are being

00:20:01.020 moved by traffickers we're aware of that and we know the routes now it's about creating that

00:20:05.740 rapid community response and i think that the sector is doing a really good job of that and

00:20:10.060 And we've had some great statistics.

00:20:12.420 The most recent yesterday that came out, a UN report on the issue of trafficking shows that 25% of trafficking in North America is actually cross-border trafficking that's happening.

00:20:23.820 And we know of incidences that are going south and coming north into Alberta.

00:20:29.500 I have a follow-up, but before that, you mentioned that in the last month you had intercepted or at least helped victims.

00:20:36.460 Do you have a number of how many victims did you actually support?

00:20:39.460 There is, in the last few months, I would say the last two and a half months, there have been four individuals.

00:20:45.000 Okay.

00:20:45.520 And at the airport.

00:20:48.200 One of the things that is missed in terms of talking about trafficking is labor trafficking.

00:20:53.480 I'm curious, you know, what the government is doing in terms of addressing this big issue.

00:20:59.800 Well, addressing it, I would say, is very important to us.

00:21:03.700 we know that the majority of human trafficking victims in Canada are victims of sex trafficking.

00:21:11.940 The international statistic is at 69%. There is obviously a concern for labour trafficking as

00:21:19.620 well and that's something that the Alberta Centre is also addressing. I think that when it comes to

00:21:25.700 the issue of sex trafficking, labour trafficking, organ trafficking, there are over 21 different

00:21:30.660 types of trafficking that have been identified. And there are new forms of trafficking being

00:21:35.940 invented almost every day. The important thing to focus on is that this is a degradation of human

00:21:43.060 dignity. It's forcing people to do what they normally wouldn't do. And I think that it's

00:21:51.060 incredibly important for society to address this issue because what we're doing is we're putting

00:21:56.020 of value on human life and so from a labour standpoint this is something that we're also

00:22:03.220 engaging with our operational advisory council within the Alberta Centre, engaging all the

00:22:08.980 different frontline agencies that are specifically focusing on the issue of labour trafficking to

00:22:13.860 ensure that that doesn't fall through the cracks either. Thank you.

00:22:17.060 question from mike ellis i'm todd from ctv i thought the uh current chair of the edmonton

00:22:26.100 police commission is retiring to portugal john mcdougall's term expires december 31st 2026

00:22:34.980 is it okay that he will continue to serve on the commission while living overseas

00:22:40.020 uh i think i vaguely had heard that he was moving overseas i know his partner had moved overseas i

00:22:48.980 was not aware that he would be forming performing his duties while overseas so it's the first time

00:22:54.340 hearing of this my uh my information that's been provided to me i'm happy to get some corrections

00:23:00.900 if that is not the case but my understanding is that he will be in edmonton uh while performing

00:23:06.500 the duties and that only when he is done and retired will he be moving to Portugal where his

00:23:11.940 partner lives. Thank you. Do we have any more questions from the room? Operator, do we have any

00:23:21.160 questions on the line? No question at this time. Okay, thank you everyone. This concludes today's

00:23:28.200 announcement. Thank you.

00:23:36.500 You

Western Standard - December 14, 2024

Public Safety Minister Ellis Launches Anti-Human Trafficking Initiatives

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