In a statement to WAM, Al Juwai’ed said the two-day meeting was devoted to discussing remarks made by some Arab states over the proposed protocol. The committee endorsed some of the remarks, he added.

He underlined the importance of the protocol and the agreement for combating human trafficking crimes and protecting victims, women and children in particular, in all spheres, through aggravated punishment, finding various ways of countering the crime as well as intra-Arab cooperation.

He stressed that the UAE was at the forefront of the fight against trafficking in persons and issued a law to combat human trafficking in 2005 and amended it in 2015. The law, he noted, reflects the UAE’s efforts in fighting this crime, protecting victims and witnesses and giving privileges to victims. He further noted that the UAE cooperates with other states and that the NCCHT is exerting efforts at the domestic, regional and international levels to fight the crime.

On her part, Dr. Widad Al Qabsi, chair of the meeting, stated that the meeting of the pan-Arab committee for developing a pan-Arab protocol on combating trafficking in persons discussed remarks from Sudan, Morocco, Egypt, Jordan and Tunisia proposing changes to the wording of the protocol. She explained that these remarks were endorsed in line with the agreement.