Kuwait participates in first regional conference on human trafficking

A total of 12 Arab nations including Kuwait, besides several labor exporting countries gathered in Amman to take part in the first regional conference on human trafficking. They stressed on the importance of concerting effort to apply national regulations and abide by international standards that help in fighting the human trafficking and forced labor phenomena. The participants included representatives of governments, as well as workers and workers' unions. They called for establishing a fund dedicated to supporting victims of forces labor, and to covering legal costs for those who get involved in court cases to help them defend their rights. Kuwait was represented by Kuwait General Labor Union Secretary General Fares Al-Sawwagh in the two-day conference, which concluded its activities Wednesday night. The conference, organized by the International Labor Organization, is a great chance to exchange expertise and visions, and present the Kuwait General Labor Union views, besides explaining the Kuwaiti regulations related to human trafficking, Al-Sawwagh told KUNA. The participants discussed the results of a study prepared by the International Labor Organization regarding the relation between labor migration and human trafficking, he said. They shed light on the challenges hampering the protection of workers' rights in the Middle East, he added.