Foreign Minister participates in event on end forced labour, modern slavery, human trafficking

New York, Sep 24 (BNA): The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Shaikh Khalid bin Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Khalifa, participated in a high-level event on "Stepping Up Action to End Forced Labour, Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking", hosted by the Kingdom of Bahrain, the United Kingdom, Canada, Bangladesh, and Nigeria. The Minister of Foreign Affairs affirmed that the Kingdom of Bahrain has achieved considerable progress in its efforts to end forced labour, modern slavery, and human trafficking. He also reviewed the efforts and initiatives done by the Kingdom of Bahrain in this field, including the ratification of international conventions relevant to this matter, namely the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and its supplementing Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children (one of the three Palermo Protocols), as well as the implementation of the anti-trafficking legislation prohibiting all forms of trafficking and the establishment of the National Committee to Combat Trafficking in Persons, which has developed effective mechanisms to help ensure the safety of victims and provide means for their protection, and many other initiatives. The Minister of Foreign Affairs also pointed out that these efforts resulted in elevating the Kingdom of Bahrain to reach Tier 1 in the US Department of State Trafficking in Persons (TiP) Report in June 2018, becoming the first country in the Middle East and North Africa to reach this rank. In addition to that, the Director of the Labor Market Regulatory Authority (LMRA), who is also the Chairman of Bahrain’s National Committee to Combat Trafficking in Persons has been recognized and honored by the US Department of State for his efforts in protecting victims of trafficking and reducing the vulnerability of expatriate workers. The Minister of Foreign Affairs stressed that the Kingdom of Bahrain will remain committed to cooperating with the international community and supporting all efforts at the multilateral level to end forced labour, trafficking in persons and modern slavery.