Jordan: Second Mock Trial on Trafficking in Persons in the MENA Region

13th March 2018 - Jordan

For the second time in the Middle East and North Africa region, UNODC conducted a mock trial session on trafficking in persons based on a staged case scenario. The event took place at the Dead Sea in Jordan from 13 to 17 March 2018.

The UNODC Regional Office for the Middle East and North Africa teamed up with the UNODC Office Colombia, and the Human Trafficking and Migrant Smuggling Section (HTMSS) at UNODC Headquarters to deliver a second mock trial on trafficking in persons in Jordan. UNODC in Colombia has been delivering mock trials in different countries for many years and has gathered a wealth of experience in this field.  

Jordan has been the first MENA country to participate in this very practical training with the following objective: 

 

- increase the number of investigations, prosecutions and convictions in trafficking cases; 

- strengthen the capacity of law enforcement officers and criminal justice practitioners to prosecute in accordance with national legislation; 

- and enhance inter-agency coordination as well as to improve the work-flow of individual cases. 

The mock trial simulated a modern-day case of human trafficking, unfolding the story of a young Bangladeshi woman who traveled to Amman to work as a garment worker in a textile factory. As soon as she arrived, her employer withheld her passport and the payment of wages and subjected her to degrading working conditions. Following the call of a local NGO to the Counter-Trafficking Unit (CTU), labor inspectors visited the factory with the CTU and were required to identify, investigate and refer the case to court, whereby criminal justice practitioners (training participants) proceeded to prosecute and adjudicate the case. 

Based on the participants' feedback, UNODC is committed to support the organization of further mock trials to respond to national needs.

A special thanks to the Government of the United States and Austria for funding this activity and to the UNODC Office in Colombia for their support in implementing the mock trial.