The Honorable Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State of the United States invited international inspirational survivor-advocate Harold Henry D’Souza at the release of the 2022 Trafficking in Persons Report at Washington D.C. on Tuesday, July 19, 2022.
It was an honor for an Indian American Harold Henry D’Souza, former member on the United States Advisory Council on Human Trafficking appointed by President Barack Obama and President Donald J. Trump at the White House to be present during the release of the 2022 Trafficking in Persons Report.
Honorable Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State message was, Survivors of human trafficking know — through deeply painful experience — the tactics that traffickers use, the obstacles that survivors face as they get free, the support that can help them most as they work to rebuild their lives. So, what the report emphasizes and what I want to emphasize today is that need for us to listen — listen to them, empower them, partner with them at every level of our work.
Harold D’Souza is the Co-Founder of Eyes Open International focused on prevention, education, protection, and empowerment of victims, survivors, vulnerable populations and community members world-wide from human trafficking.
Dr. Kari Johnstone, Acting Director, Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons at Department of State said, For the last few years, the TIP report has increasingly highlighted the importance of governments engaging with survivors and implementing trauma-informed approaches when doing so. The Department of State is committed to integrating survivors’ expertise and applying trauma-informed approaches, and the TIP Report is stronger for it. This year’s introduction highlights and emphasizes the importance of meaningful survivor engagement and shares context, lessons learned, and guidance to governments, international organizations, civil society, private sector entities, and other stakeholders who wish to further their survivor engagement efforts. Hopefully, this report’s introduction will serve as a resource for our global partners seeking to improve their anti-trafficking efforts by integrating survivors’ expertise.
This high-profile release of the 2022 Trafficking in Persons Report was held at The Benjamin Franklin Room in Washington, District of Columbia. U.S. Department of State show-cased the video of Harold D’Souza at this auspicious event during the release of the 2022 Trafficking in Persons Report.
Harold D’Souza spoke to the press; Engaging survivor-leaders expertise and experience to combat human trafficking is a huge step to eliminate human trafficking from the roots.