embassy events 2009
La Strada Video Conference with Georgetown University Students
3 March 2009
On Thursday, February 26, the U.S. Embassy in Warsaw hosted a DVC between Stana Buchowska, the founder and president of the NGO La Strada, and a group of 30 U.S. students enrolled in a seminar with Georgetown University Professor Elzbieta Gozdziak. The DVC discussion focused primarily on the role of NGOs in addressing the phenomenon of human trafficking in Central and Eastern Europe. Stana Buchowska described the phenomenon of human trafficking in the region, pointing out the dynamic changes and challenges over the last decade and the evolving role of NGOs, and discussed victim identification and assistance in Poland. The DVC discussion focused primarily on the role of NGOs in addressing the phenomenon of human trafficking in Central and Eastern Europe.
NGO La Strada is the lead organization on trafficking victim assistance in Poland. Professor Elzbieta Gozdziak of Georgetown University is also a Research Director at the Institute for the Study of International Migration. Stana Buchowska described the phenomenon of human trafficking in the region, pointing out the dynamic changes and challenges over the last decade and the evolving role of NGOs. Buchowska explained that in the 1990s the majority of victims were women and girls trafficked into the sex industry from countries of Central and Eastern Europe to Western Europe. Since early 2000 and Poland's accession to the EU, there has been a large-scale employment migration, trafficking to new countries of destination, and new forms of trafficking, particularly for forced labor. The NGOs have focused on direct victim assistance and public awareness, and working with governments and law enforcement agencies to improve identification and handling of victims. Stana Buchowska presented information on the work of La Strada, which operates the only shelter in Poland providing specialized assistance to trafficking victims. She also discussed the main problems related to the situation of TIP victims in Poland, including victim identification process and the implementation of standard operating procedures by law enforcement officials. The students called the DVC an "excellent forum" for exchange of information and expressed hope that there will be similar seminars organized in the future.
More information on Trafficking in Persons is available here.
