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Honduras joins the Blue Heart campaign

Tegucigalpa, 23 September 2019. Honduras joined the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Blue Heart Campaign against Trafficking in Persons.

The launch was attended by more than 150 people from different institutions, members of the Inter-institutional Commission against Commercial Sexual Exploitation and Trafficking in Persons of Honduras, international organizations, civil society organizations and academia.

In this event, Karla Cueva, Secretary of Human Rights of Honduras, highlighted the importance of preventing this crime and coordinating the implementation of the campaign. For his part, Lourdes Gutiérrez of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime for Central America and the Caribbean (UNODC ROPAN) pointed out that this work reinforces the fulfillment of the Sustainable Development Objectives of Agenda 2030, in particular the 5 on Gender Equality and the 16 on Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions.

Jorge Ramos, from the United Nations Coordination Office in Honduras, Dr. Adonis Andonie, President of the Board of Directors of CICESCT and José Guadalupe Ruela, representative of civil society, also addressed the attendees.

Rosa Corea, Executive Secretary of CICEST, reported that so far in 2019, 194 people have been assisted in Honduras, 66% women, 22% girls, 7% boys, 4% men and 1% members of the LGBTTTI community, 80% are victims of sexual exploitation, who were provided with psychosocial assistance, legal advice, medical assistance, with support, when required, in maintenance, family reintegration, housing and educational and/or professional training. It also pointed out that to date there are 31 judicial cases and 26 sentenced traffickers.

At the end of the launch of the Blue Heart campaign, attendees signed the pact with the heart of UNODC and wore the heart pin as a symbol of their commitment to the cause.

After the launch, on 25 September, CICEST organized an awareness-raising day in the Central Plaza of Honduras to call for reflection on the need to prevent and combat this crime, while promoting the Blue Heart Campaign against Trafficking in Persons.

With the participation of government institutions, civil society, academia and private enterprise, an educational-artistic and cultural program was developed, which was aimed at alerting the general population about this crime that mainly affects girls and women in the country.

The Blue Heart Campaign will generate social mobilization at the national level through the 24 local committees, through workshops, forums, diplomas, training, specialized courses, exchanges of experiences, publications in indigenous languages, cultural and sports activities, in addition to strengthening the institutional response, encouraging denunciation and discouraging demand.