The victim reception facility lacks everything
In the journey to support victims of human trafficking to reintegrate into the community, receiving and supporting facilities are considered the first and most important " supported" point.
Ms. Minh Hoa (name changed), 27 years old, rescued from a trading ring to Cambodia, shared the difficulties she had overcome. "Every night I dream of being caught by street vendors," Ms. Hoa shared.
However, at that time, the reception facility only had one psychological consultant who was in charge of both the dossier work, the reassuring chat, and the completion of initial verification procedures for the victim. The center staff had to work very hard to help Ms. Hoa and other victims.
According to statistics from the Department of Social Protection, Ministry of Health, this is a common situation in many localities across the country. For example, there is no dedicated area for victims. There is a shortage of commune-level cadres in many places, people working in social evil prevention work concurrently in many fields, not specialized, always changing, so it is difficult to propose and advise on implementation at the grassroots level...
According to the requirements of the Law on Prevention and Combat of Human Trafficking 2024, reception facilities need to ensure private consultation rooms, safe living areas, and a team of trained staff.
But in reality, many places are still operating in cramped conditions: Consulting rooms are just a corner temporarily divided by a mobile wall, or shared in a single space. For each rescue mission, a center had to receive 10-15 people in the same day. They need health check-ups, accommodation support, initial psychological consultation, records, verification, connection to interdisciplinary services... all take place in a very short time. However, the number of responsible employees is small, in many places only 5-7 people have to take care of all activities of the facility.
Need to establish an inter-sectoral coordination mechanism
Discussing this issue, the leader of the Department of Social Protection - Ministry of Health said: Currently, support facilities are carrying on the shoulders of two missions in both receiving emergency care and providing long-term services. To improve operational efficiency, resource problems need to be solved synchronously at many levels.
"First of all, we think that increasing the budget for supporting facilities is an urgent requirement. More abundant resources will help improve snail rooms, build child-friendly spaces, invest in standard consultation rooms, purchase equipment and expand in-depth intervention services," said the leader of the Department of Social Protection.
It is necessary to build a systematic human resource training strategy, from skills to support people affected by stroke, take care of specific children, to analyze risks and make personalized recovery plans for each group of victims. It is necessary to establish a smooth inter-sectoral coordination mechanism, with clear coordination points, a unified information sharing system and an effective referral process.
