UNODC is cosponsor of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS - UNAIDS
Goodwill Ambassador, Ms. Julia Ormond visits India (26 -29 May 2006 )
Goodwill Ambassador, Ms. Julia Ormond visted India during 26-29 May. During this mission she held discussions with the UNODC Representative, Mr. Gary Lewis and the team on human trafficking, Mr. P. Nair, Ms. Archana Khera and Mr. Ajit Joy in the UNODC Delhi office. She is visiting specific sites in the country to get a better appreciation of the nature and extent of human trafficking in India."
On 2 December 2005, Julia Ormond, British actress and activist, was appointed as UNODC Goodwill Ambassador by Executive Director Antonio Maria Costa. During her service, Ms. Ormond will focus on anti-human trafficking initiatives, raising awareness about this modern form of slavery and promoting efforts to combat it.
Ms. Ormond has been an advocate for human rights issues, both in her individual capacity and as the Co-Founder and Co-Chair of FilmAid International Inc., which seeks to promote health, strengthen communities and enrich the lives of vulnerable people. In September 2005, she worked on anti-human trafficking advocacy initiatives with UNODC in Moscow and presented the MTV Russian Music Award to a young activist fighting AIDS. She also co-hosted the UNAIDS event to commemorate World AIDS Day on 1 December.
At a United Nations headquarters press conference on the day of her appointment, Ms. Ormond stressed the ubiquity of human trafficking, and the need to
find specific, locally tailored solutions to this scourge.
"Travelling to the countries where human trafficking occurs would take me to every country in the world," she said. "And I think it's clear that the solutions that are working are very specific. They are very culturally appropriate."
Ms. Ormond also commented on the shift away from trafficking in arms, drugs and tobacco towards human beings, noting that, while the available statistics are probably not accurate due to the covert nature of trafficking, human beings seem to be trafficked in greater numbers every year.
"This shift has happened because we're not prioritizing human trafficking enough," she said. "It's easier than trafficking in arms, drugs or tobacco, it's more profitable, and it's easier to get away with."
Ms. Ormond is well known for her film roles in such films as
Legends of the Fall,
Sabrina and
The Barber of Siberia, as well as for her work in television and the theatre.
