NGO Promotion of Economic and Social Development (PDES) drew attention during the 63rd session of the Human Rights Council on Friday in Geneva to vulnerability factors linked to situations of prolonged displacement, particularly in the Tindouf camps in southwestern Algeria.
Speaking on behalf of PDES during the interactive dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery and trafficking in persons, human rights activist Aicha Duihi stressed that the risks of human trafficking and contemporary forms of slavery cannot be dissociated from marginalization, poverty, displacement, discrimination, and barriers to access to justice.
This issue is of particular importance in North Africa and the Sahel-Sahara region, where migration and situations of prolonged displacement may compound multiple vulnerabilities, including economic dependency, restrictions on freedom of movement, inadequate access to essential services, and weak protection mechanisms, she said, noting that women and children remain particularly exposed to these risks.
Duihi specifically drew attention to situations of prolonged displacement, particularly in the Tindouf camps in southwestern Algeria, and raised the question of how independent identification of risks and potential victims can be ensured when access to affected populations, complaint mechanisms, and effective remedies may be subject to institutional constraints.
She recalled that the Human Rights Committee had previously underscored, with regard to the Tindouf camps, the importance of ensuring effective remedies for persons falling under the State’s jurisdiction.
Duihi therefore asked the Special Rapporteur what measures her mandate could promote to ensure, in situations of prolonged displacement, independent access to vulnerable populations, early identification of potential victims, and genuinely accessible mechanisms for complaints, protection, and effective remedies, particularly for women and children.
