Public Security Minister, Khemraj Ramjattan believes that an important aspect of combating trafficking in persons (TIP) would be revoking licenses of Hotels once they are found guilty of committing the act.
“We to must not only do damage to the profit making, even if it comes to that taking away their hotel licenses, when you get the evidence or not granting hotel licenses and business licenses and so on,” he posited.
Ramjattan said that although persons may argue that those jobs and businesses create employment, the repugnance of that type of employment is important to the Government, which wants to be civil.
In addition, the minister alluded to the fact the more collaboration among countries are needed in order to tackle the scourge of Trafficking in Persons (TIP).
Ramjattan noted that the relevant authorities of countries should be alerted once someone who is suspected to be involved in TIP is travelling.
“Hitting the networks hard, getting the information as to who are some of the suspects, let’s say in Trinidad or Tobago that are the culprits and forewarning us when they are coming to Guyana, red flagging, all of these are very important things that we would like to see happen so that we can nab them a nip in the bud, long before they start their operations in any country”, the Minister stated.
He was at the time addressing the participants at the opening ceremony of a three-day workshop for stakeholders. He however, noted that implementing such a technique would be difficult, but is hopeful.
Earlier this month it was revealed that some 243 persons were trafficked locally.
“There were 243 victims and on one occasion they [officials] went to a club…39 were found in small rooms, obviously the presumption [was] that they were being trafficked, and of course alleged victims under 18, you have 11 out of that 243. The suspects involved, if I may breach some confidentiality of the police here, you have 57 of them,” the Minister divulged at a previous event.
