Peruvian justice operators updated their knowledge to punish traffickers and grant an effective remedy to the victims
The workshops were carried out in Loreto, Madre Dios, Cusco, Puno and Lima, which are the regions with the highest number of trafficking cases reported in Peru.
30 June 2023
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Lima - A total of 176 Peruvian judges and justice operators in charge of prosecuting in criminal courts cases of trafficking in persons and other forms of human exploitation, participated in the workshops on the “Application of the Operational Manual for the criminal prosecution of trafficking in persons and other forms of exploitation”, organized by the ILO.
The workshops were developed in Loreto, Madre Dios, Cusco, Puno y Lima, which are the regions with the highest number of trafficking cases reported in Peru. The justice operators reinforced their knowledge to identify crimes, determine the punishment for traffickers, carry out a proper evidence assessment, order the use of special investigation techniques and determine the civil remedy for victims.
As new technologies advance, traffickers create new forms and mechanisms to commit crimes; therefore, it is essential for justice operators to receive continuous training and to have technical tools to understand the complex characteristics of trafficking, sexual exploitation, slavery, forced labor and other forms of human exploitation that are brought to their jurisdictions, particularly those cases in which the victims are children and adolescents.
For Armando Huertas Mogollón, judge at the High Court of Justice of Callao, these workshops have left important lessons about how to address trafficking from the stage of preliminary investigation and how to assess the victims’ testimony.
In Peru, trafficking in persons is a crime with purposes that include other offenses, such as sexual exploitation, slaver, labor exploitation, forced labor and begging, besides other practices similar to exploitation.
Leonel Angulo Ávila, supra-provincial judge specialized in trafficking in persons at the High Court of Justice of Madre de Dios, acknowledged that this training allows him to know the difference between the crimes of sexual exploitation and trafficking in persons. “Generally, trafficking cases are reported when the sexual exploitation has already been committed, and that situation means that an aggravated circumstance should be applied”, he said.
In the opinion of Luis Hernández Cárdenas, judge at the High Court of Justice of Lima Este, the workshops also allowed judges to resolve some doubts about remedies for trafficking victims and the approaches that should be taken into account to determine those remedies. “In my court, we have seen many trafficking cases, and the workshops have showed us the importance of civil remedies for victims. We have really though about that aspect”, stated Hernández.
This training, as well as the edition and publication of the manual, were activities that resulted from the joint efforts of the ILO and the Justice and Gender Commission of the Peruvian Judiciary, within the framework of the interinstitutional partnership signed between both institutions in 2018, promoted by the project Partnerships in action to end child trafficking in Peru. Since that date, the ILO has been providing specialized technical assistance to the Judiciary, in order to enhance the capacities of the criminal justice system for an effective prosecution and punishment of trafficking in persons, particularly when it involves children and adolescents.
The workshops were developed in Loreto, Madre Dios, Cusco, Puno y Lima, which are the regions with the highest number of trafficking cases reported in Peru. The justice operators reinforced their knowledge to identify crimes, determine the punishment for traffickers, carry out a proper evidence assessment, order the use of special investigation techniques and determine the civil remedy for victims.
As new technologies advance, traffickers create new forms and mechanisms to commit crimes; therefore, it is essential for justice operators to receive continuous training and to have technical tools to understand the complex characteristics of trafficking, sexual exploitation, slavery, forced labor and other forms of human exploitation that are brought to their jurisdictions, particularly those cases in which the victims are children and adolescents.
For Armando Huertas Mogollón, judge at the High Court of Justice of Callao, these workshops have left important lessons about how to address trafficking from the stage of preliminary investigation and how to assess the victims’ testimony.
In Peru, trafficking in persons is a crime with purposes that include other offenses, such as sexual exploitation, slaver, labor exploitation, forced labor and begging, besides other practices similar to exploitation.
Leonel Angulo Ávila, supra-provincial judge specialized in trafficking in persons at the High Court of Justice of Madre de Dios, acknowledged that this training allows him to know the difference between the crimes of sexual exploitation and trafficking in persons. “Generally, trafficking cases are reported when the sexual exploitation has already been committed, and that situation means that an aggravated circumstance should be applied”, he said.
In the opinion of Luis Hernández Cárdenas, judge at the High Court of Justice of Lima Este, the workshops also allowed judges to resolve some doubts about remedies for trafficking victims and the approaches that should be taken into account to determine those remedies. “In my court, we have seen many trafficking cases, and the workshops have showed us the importance of civil remedies for victims. We have really though about that aspect”, stated Hernández.
This training, as well as the edition and publication of the manual, were activities that resulted from the joint efforts of the ILO and the Justice and Gender Commission of the Peruvian Judiciary, within the framework of the interinstitutional partnership signed between both institutions in 2018, promoted by the project Partnerships in action to end child trafficking in Peru. Since that date, the ILO has been providing specialized technical assistance to the Judiciary, in order to enhance the capacities of the criminal justice system for an effective prosecution and punishment of trafficking in persons, particularly when it involves children and adolescents.