The Secretariat of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) onAugust 24 made public the Progress Report on Criminal Justice Responsesto Trafficking in Persons in the ASEAN Region.

Thereport highlighted achievements made by ASEAN during the past decade inthe fight against human trafficking and its forthcoming challenges inthe near future.

It also underlined the need to perfectthe legal system on transnational crimes, promoting regionalcooperation, raising efficiency of verifying, prosecuting and convictinghuman trafficking criminals as well as protecting and helping victims.

Addressing the ongoing 11 th Senior Officials Meetingon Transnational Crime (SOMTC) in the Indonesian capital city ofJakarta, ASEAN Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan said that the reportwill provide a cooperation model for countries as well as other regions.

ASEAN must be a community free of humantrafficking, and every man, woman and child in the region has the rightto live in freedom and with dignity, he added.

Thereport was made by a group of experts of the Asia Regional Traffickingin Persons project at the request of SOMTC with the support of theAustralian Agency of International Development./.