On December 12 and 13, 2019, meetings of the National Anti-Trafficking Coordination Mechanism and the NGO Round Table took place to discuss domestic anti-trafficking activities. Mátyás Hegyaljai, Deputy State Secretary for European Union and International Affairs, National Coordinator of Hungary's Action Against Trafficking in Human Beings, reported on actions, experiences, professional developments over the past nearly six months, and also summarized trends, efforts taken and plans for their respective fields.
The Ministry of Interior, in cooperation with the National Institute of Criminology (OKRI), held a training course for police officers, prosecutors and judges in the counties most affected by the phenomenon of human trafficking (Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg county, Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén county, Heves county).
On 19 November 2019, the Crime Prevention Unit of the Győr-Moson-Sopron County Police Headquarters - with the co-ordination of the National Police Headquarters - held a round-table discussion on the shared tasks in the fight against human trafficking.
In the EU, vulnerable women may be offered money to travel abroad to be part of arranged marriages. Once in their new countries, however, they run the risk of being abused and forced into crime. These sham marriages are a form of human trafficking. Without the cross-border understanding and cooperation of different organisations, more victims could find themselves at the mercy of human traffickers.
On the initiative of Minister of Interior Sándor Pintér, a delegation of the United States State Department’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (TIP Office) visited Hungary between 28–30 October 2019 to assess progress on the recommendations of the TIP 2019 report and to provide mutual information.
Trafficking in human beings is one of the most serious cross-border crimes and one of the most complex human rights challenges of our time, and that is why it is particularly important that the European Commission declared the 18th of October the European Day Against Trafficking in Human Beings. Therefore that day is dedicated to raise awareness and to call for effective measures to eradicate trafficking in human beings and to protect victims at international, European, and national level.
Minister of Interior Dr. Sándor Pintér awarded Ministerial Recognition to Ms. Ágnes De Coll, the Anti-Trafficking Program Director of the Hungarian Baptist Aid. The Ministerial Recognition was presented by Deputy State Secretary for EU and International Affairs Mátyás Hegyaljai, the national anti-trafficking coordinator on 10 October 2019.
On 12 September 2019, Deputy State Secretary for European Union and International Affairs, and National Coordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings Mátyás Hegyaljai welcomed Marc D. Dillard, the newly appointed Deputy Chief of Mission of the United States Embassy in Budapest.
The European Commission Office of the EU Anti-Trafficking Coordinator has informed Member States that a call within which the topic “Support for victims of trafficking in human beings” has just been opened.
For the fourth time in as many years, a targeted training programme for consular officers was organized within the framework of cooperation between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the Ministry of Interior, on 6 August 2019 this year.