Police launch human trafficking awareness campaign aimed at hospitality and transportation industries

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Human trafficking and sexual exploitation can happen in communities of all sizes and unfortunately, our province is not immune to their impact. In an effort to increase awareness around these issues, Partners in Policing are introducing Say Something if you See Something, an education and awareness campaign aimed at employees in the hospitality and transportation industries.

“We know that human trafficking and sexual exploitation can take place in all kinds of properties from budget motels to luxury hotels and resorts, and that air and ground transportation is often used to carry out these criminal acts,” says Constable Tammy Lobb, an investigator in the VICE Unit of the Integrated Criminal Investigation Division. “We believe that employees in the hospitality and public transportation industries can play a positive role in preventing these offences by reporting their concerns to police.”

Say Something if you See Something was originally launched in the United Kingdom and versions of the campaign have since been rolled out in communities in Canada and the United States. The campaign is aimed at local businesses and is supported by a free resource kit that includes posters advising people that human trafficking/sexual exploitation is a crime, as well as brochures that outline what employees should look out for and how they should respond if they believe human trafficking/sexual exploitation is occurring at their workplace.

“It’s our hope that by increasing awareness about these important issues, we can ultimately help victims get out of situations in which they haven’t willingly put themselves,” says Cst. Lobb. “A simple observation or call can make all the difference in the world to someone being sexually exploited or trafficked.”

For more information on the Say Something if you See Something campaign, please visit http://halifax.ca/police/saysomethingifyouseesomething.php.