Trafficking in human beings - Manual for Lawyers
- Document number
- 3088
- Date
- 2012
- Title
- Trafficking in human beings - Manual for Lawyers
- Author/publisher
- ASTRA
- Availability
- View/save PDF version of this document
- Document type(s)
- Guidelines/Recommendations, Research/Study/Analysis,
- Keywords
- human trafficking, human rights, exploitation, abuse, Serbia, access to justice, compensation, legal aid
- Summary
- This Manual for Lawyers is the crowning achievement of the triennial project Promotion of the Rights of Trafficked Persons in Serbia with Emphasis on Legal Support – A Human Rights-Based Approach. From 2009 to 2012, this project has been implemented by ASTRA - Anti Trafficking Action in partnership with the Netherlands Helsinki Committee, and in cooperation with a great number of experts, both from the Netherlands and from Serbia. The project was financed by the MATRA programme of the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The primary aim of the project was to ensure that trafficked persons in the Republic of Serbia are informed in a timely manner about their rights as victims and witnesses, and are properly represented in criminal and civil proceedings, from the very beginning. The crucial activity to achieve these goals was the establishment of a network of 27 attorneys who, over a period of three years, attended a basic training programme and participated in expert meetings on human trafficking and the protection of the rights of victims of human trafficking. The expert meetings covered access to compensation, the practice of the European Court of Human Rights in regard to human trafficking, and the health and psychological consequences of human trafficking. During the project period the attorneys provided legal aid and representation in 191 cases.
This Manual represents the collected principles of work and modi operandi of the network of lawyers. It is primarily made for those attorneys who provide legal advice to, or represent, victims of human trafficking as injured parties in judicial proceedings. The focus of this Manual is on the protection of the rights of victims, the promotion of international standards in this area, legal options in the Republic of Serbia, and positive experiences and practices. The Manual will therefore also be useful to other professionals that may encounter human trafficking victims and victims of other types of violence in their work. The Manual is published in Serbian and in English.