Premier Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) welcomed attendees to the International Workshop on Strategies for Combating Human Trafficking on Wednesday. The workshop, held by the interior ministry, will last for two days. Representatives from ministries and civil society organizations around the world will discuss issues including human trafficking and global telecommunications fraud.
The workshop comes after the latest 2023 Trafficking in Persons Report was released by the U.S. Department of State in June. It aims to strengthen protection measures for vulnerable groups such as migrant domestic workers, migrant fishermen, and foreign students who are prone to labor exploitation.
Chen says that the COVID-19 pandemic led to an increase in criminal groups using new means, like technology, to deceive people into going abroad, trapping them, and forcing them to engage in fraud or money laundering operations.
Chen says that the government is taking human trafficking issues very seriously and that it is working hard to build a tougher system to tackle the changing methods. Chen adds that the government has launched version 1.5 of the Action Plan for Fisheries and Human Rights, as well as version 1.5 of next-generation anti-fraud strategy guidelines.
Chen says that the government has invested in more manpower and is continuously upgrading the software and facilities of various ministries to deal with these types of crimes.