The Ontario Native Women’s Association is making fourteen recommendations aimed at helping survivors of human trafficking.
They are contained in a survivor and community led report entitle Journey to Safe SPACES: Indigenous Anti- Human Trafficking Engagement Report.
ONWA spoke directly with survivors and those most directly impacted by human trafficking.
“Together, we have been able to look deeply at what is needed to safely exit Indigenous women and girls from human traffickers and gangs” says ONWA Executive Director Cora –
McGuire-Cyrete.
The Fort Frances Tribal Area Health Services was among agencies who assisted.
Jessica Wilson, Special Projects Coordinator at Tribal Health, feels the recommendations in this report will make a difference for those being trafficked.
Some of the recommendation include;
• Survivor- centred and survivor informed services that are culture and gender based and delivered in a trauma-informed approach.
• Prevention through education, training and public awareness campaigns, both in print and in person, targeting those who are most at risk and those who can respond first to the signs, namely peers, parents and educators.
• Access to safe and respectful spaces at service delivery agencies that offer women only programming so women can speak openly and without fear about their experiences.
• Core supports for transitioning to a new life, including emergency funding for immediate relocation, which is delivered in an expedient and efficient manner to ensure women and girls have no wait times to safety.
• Evidence-based policy and system reform informed by survivor expertise and the successful extraction of Indigenous women by ONWAs multi-partner collaborative network that works across government, disciplines and professions.
• Streamlined supports offered through a barrier free simplified process.
A link to the Journey to Safe Spaces report can be found here.
