UK envoy joins Vietnam’s war on human trafficking

During his visit on Monday and Tuesday, Patrick met with senior officials from the Ministry of Public Security to discuss and review the 2018 U.K. – Vietnam’s Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation in tackling human trafficking.

The review is an “essential step” towards the two countries’ continued partnership in tackling serious organized crimes, particularly human trafficking, the U.K. Embassy in Hanoi said in a statement.

The U.K. envoy also met with the Border Guard Commander of the Ministry of National Defense and the Director of the Department of Social Vices Prevention & Combat at the Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs to explore opportunities for further cooperation in supporting and protecting victims of human trafficking.

“Tackling illegal migration and modern slavery is one of the U.K. government’s top priorities. We are committed to working even more closely with Vietnam on preventing and fighting against illegal migration and modern slavery, particularly in boosting information sharing, prosecuting the criminals involved and protecting vulnerable people,” said Patrick, who was appointed Migration and Modern Slavery Envoy in February 2022.

In a meeting with the U.N. International Organization for Migration (IOM), Patrick highlighted the positive impacts rendered by the ongoing Tackling Modern Slavery in Vietnam Program. The project began in 2019 with support from the U.K. Government.

The program has helped raise the Vietnamese public’s awareness of the risks of illegal migration and it has also contributed to the implementation of the Vietnam National Action Plan on tackling human trafficking from 2021 to 2025, he said.

Vietnam ranks third in the top 10 nationalities that were referred into the U.K. National Referral Mechanism as suspected victims of human trafficking in 2021, which illustrates the dangers Vietnamese nationals may face as irregular migrants.