Good afternoon, Madam Chair, honourable members of the committee. Thank you for the opportunity to participate in today's hearing.
My name is Ken Lamontagne. I am director within the Enforcement Branch of the Canada Border Services Agency. I am pleased to be representing the agency today in order to discuss our role in the prevention and interception of human trafficking cases.
CBSA is working to ensure the security of Canadians and foreign visitors. Our goal will be to prevent and intercept human trafficking incidents prior to and during the Olympic Games. Dealing with trafficking in persons falls under our mandate of managing Canada's borders and fighting cross-border crime. We work with overseas partners to prevent the irregular movement of people which may include trafficking in persons.
A multiple borders strategy is used to combat human trafficking both internationally and domestically. Our commitment to fighting human trafficking includes: working with overseas partners to combat irregular migration, which may include human trafficking victims; detecting and intercepting fraudulently obtained travel documents to help prevent the bringing of potential human trafficking victims into Canada; assisting potential victims; providing assistance in the investigation and prosecution of trafficking offenders.
Many partnerships exist within and outside of the CBSA for dealing with human trafficking, such as with Citizenship and Immigration Canada, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, local police agencies and non-government organizations. We work with these key partners to ensure that victims are provided with protection.
As of April 2007, all new border services officers undergo a “People at Risk“ workshop as part of their port of entry recruit training course, which will assist them in dealing with vulnerable persons including human trafficking victims and missing children. Currently 1,550 border services officers have participated in this workshop.
As of May 2009, field immigration training program participants, which includes inland enforcement officers, also undergo this workshop. Currently, 55 officers have participated in this program.
Migration integrity officers receive extensive specialized training in the following areas, which will assist them in preventing or intercepting human trafficking cases: passport and document fraud, intelligence collection and reporting, identifying inadmissible persons and threats to national security, and detecting migrant smuggling and human trafficking.
The Pacific region recently rolled out human trafficking awareness sessions in the summer of 2009. Currently, 26 human trafficking awareness sessions have been delivered to approximately 248 border services officers at Vancouver international Airport, Douglas, Pacific Highway, Aldergrove, Huntingdon, and Prince Rupert. A CBSA subject matter expert provided a presentation at the Royal Canadian Mounted Police national human trafficking workshops. From 2008 to the present, CBSA officers have participated in these RCMP workshops in 17 Canadian cities.
Our Olympic preparations commenced over two years ago. Our Olympic and Paralympic task force was created in October 2008 to respond to and anticipate operational issues at the Olympics.
Information gathered does not indicate an increase in human trafficking at the Olympics. Regardless, measures are in place to ensure that we are prepared.
To protect the integrity and security of our Canadian border, the CBSA, in collaboration with security partners, uses a variety of risk assessment tools and programs. The advance passenger information program and the integrated primary inspection line are examples of programs at our disposal that are used to screen persons seeking admission to Canada. Participants in the Olympics and their family members will be required to participate in the accreditation program.
We participate in the Interdepartmental Working Group on Trafficking in Persons as well as the working group on trafficking in persons and the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. The Olympic and Paralympic task force has allocated additional funding to the migration integrity officer program to enhance prevention efforts with regard to trafficking in persons. The RCMP's posters on trafficking in persons were distributed to the MIOs in November 2009 in an effort to raise awareness overseas.
The CBSA national human trafficking network, comprising regional intelligence officers, participates in monthly conference calls to share information and build expertise across Canada. RCMP tool kits were distributed to members of this network in an effort to raise awareness across Canada.
The CBSA published a policies and procedures manual on human trafficking in February 2009. The manual is available to all CBSA officers.
In September 2009 the CBSA published human trafficking information sheets for the public that also describe CBSA's role in fighting human trafficking and provide contact information.
In November 2009 CBSA met with the Canada Fights Human Trafficking organization to discuss potential collaborative opportunities. A future prospect for the CBSA will be to cooperate with this organization as an important contact in the protection and support of potential victims.
Finally, the CBSA has increased its operational capacity to perform activities and impact the ports of entry in the Pacific region. Additional resources have been allocated to Vancouver marine operations in order to increase vessel rummages and crew/passenger verifications prior to and during the Olympics. The increased presence of intelligence officers in the Pacific region will expand our intelligence capacity. Approximately 100 border security officers will be reallocated to impact the Pacific region, and additional staff will be placed at Pearson International Airport in Toronto.
In conclusion, the risk of human trafficking will be mitigated by CBSA's increased vigilance. CBSA remains committed to preventing irregular migration, which includes trafficking in persons, at its source. The CBSA will work to detect and intercept fraudulent travel documents to prevent the transportation of human trafficking victims to Canada. The CBSA will adopt a victim-centred approach when dealing with potential victims and work with its partners to ensure that victims are provided with the necessary referrals and assistance.