Ukraine

Organisation

The International Women's Rights Center "La Strada Ukraine" was registered with the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine in 1998. Next to the president of La Strada Ukraine, the organisation employs 17 staff members as project coordinators, project managers, office assistants and hotline consultants.

La Strada Ukraine was the first organisation in Ukraine to work on the problem of trafficking, starting in 1997. Despite the difficult working conditions in Ukraine, marked by political and economic instability, La Strada has extended its campaigns, improved their quality as well as geographical scope in the past years, and has laid a firm basis for an independent, specialist Ukrainian NGO against trafficking in people. La Strada Ukraine continually strives towards professionalisation and independence and develops new topics and forms of activity in the field. La Strada’s work field comprises prevention of trafficking in persons, especially women and children, the elimination of all forms of discrimination and violence in society, human rights promotion and protection, gender equality and children’s rights protection. The organisation has developed special expertise and knowledge on trafficking in children in the past years and cooperates closely with child rights organisations on the realisation of activities to prevent children’s rights violations (trafficking in children, violence, child exploitation).

The work programme of La Strada Ukraine cover prevention, information, lobby and direct assistance, which comprise the following activities:

Information Campaign

• Cooperation with mass media and implementing information campaigns.
• Conducting round table discussions and conferences on the problem of trafficking in people and related human rights issues.
• Providing information on the above-mentioned issues on the website and publicise background information and specific problems.
• Publishing a regular newsletter and information bulletins.

Lobby Campaign

La Strada Ukraine is actively involved in the monitoring the State Anti-Trafficking Program (2007-2010) realisation. It contributed much to drafting the National Plan of Action of Realisation of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child for 2006-2010 and lobbied for its adoption. Other specific issues for lobby anti-trafficking activity comprise working on social anti-trafficking standards, ensuring compensation for trafficked persons, and strengthening sustainability of civil society initiatives in Ukraine. La Strada Ukraine also contributes to development and adoption of the complex anti-trafficking law. Finally, La Strada:

• Conducts research on trafficking, sexual exploitation of children, violence, discrimination and human rights issues
• Cooperates with governmental and non-governmental organisations in Ukraine and abroad as well as with international organisations

Prevention and Education Campaign

• Conducting educational activities among youth on prevention of trafficking and other human rights violations.
• Preparing, publishing and disseminating educational and methodological guidelines.
• Developing, publishing and distribution information materials.
• Cooperating with national and international governmental and non governmental organisations in Ukraine and abroad to prevent trafficking in persons.

Social Assistance Campaign

La Strada Ukraine is involved in the development of a National Referral Mechanism for trafficked persons and is lobbying for an active involvement of state institutions in providing social assistance to trafficked persons. La Strada Ukraine also works on the development of new ways to identify trafficked persons, such as identification in the points of arrival, the creation video spots, leaflets and posters for trafficked persons. Activities in the Social Assistance campaign include:

• Offering social assistance to trafficked persons (medical, psychological and legal support, short-term shelter, accompanying and referring clients).
• Organising and providing assistance to children who suffered from trafficking, sexual exploitation and violence.
• Promoting the La Strada model of providing assistance to non-governmental organisations in the field.
• Assisting in searching for missing Ukrainian citizens who have disappeared abroad and assisting them in returning to Ukraine.
• Strengthening the network of international, governmental and non-governmental organisations providing assistance to trafficked people.
• Preparing, publishing and distribution information materials for trafficked persons and those who have suffered from violence.

Helpline

• Running the National Toll Free Hotline on trafficking in persons and that of the hotline on violence prevention and children’s rights protection.
• Providing consultation (by phone and online) on, for example, work or study abroad, marrying foreigners, safe migration, violence issues and children’s rights protection.
• Providing psychological assistance for trafficked persons and those who suffered from violence.
• Running and updating a database for consulting on the problem of trafficking in persons.
• Cooperation with diplomatic institutions of foreign countries in Ukraine and diplomatic Ukrainian institutions abroad on providing assistance for trafficked people.
• Organising and conducting round table discussions, seminars and conferences for hotline consultants, and conducting trainings on organising and running hotlines.

Organisation
International Women's Rights Center "La Strada Ukraine" was registered by the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine in 1998. Next to the national coordinator of La Strada Ukraine, Kateryna Levchenko, the organisation employs 16 staff members, including four project managers, two office assistants, a hotline coordinator and seven hotline consultants.

La Strada Ukraine was the first organisation in the Ukraine to work on the problem of trafficking in 1997. Despite the difficult working circumstances in Ukraine, La Strada has extended its campaigns, both in quantity, quality and in geographical areas in the past year and it has laid a firm basis for an independent, specialist Ukrainian NGO against trafficking in people. In future, La Strada Ukraine will further elaborate its activities and work towards professionalisation and independence and the development of new forms of activity on all three campaigns. The organisation has developed a special expertise and knowledge on trafficking in children in the past years and cooperates closely with child rights organisations on the realisation a national referral system for providing assistance to child victims of trafficking for sexual purposes.

Information & Lobby
La Strada Ukraine is actively involved in the drafting of the new Comprehensive Program on Counteraction Trafficking in People (2006-2010) and continues to lobby for adoption of this Programme. La Strada Ukraine was also actively involved in drafting the National Plan of Action of Realisation of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child for 2006-2010. It particularly contributed to the positions on counter action regarding trafficking in children and exploitation of children and lobbies for the adoption of this plan.

Prevention & Education
The methodological supply for preventive and educational campaigns remains to be an important element of La Strada's work and a new training manual "Prevention of trafficking in children and commercial sexual exploitation of children" has been published in 2006. La Strada Ukraine is also working with new target groups, such as teachers-to-be (both to train and to warn them, since there is also high unemployment among teachers), future nurses (high unemployment) and young people living in orphanages. New locations where educational materials can be distributed and lectures can be provided are continuously sought out. A new project is to establish an Information Consultation Database, which will provide reliable information on (the lack of) legal job opportunities abroad, trustworthy job agencies (e.g. au-pair agencies) and which will also collect video-, audio- and publishing materials.

Social Assistance
La Strada Ukraine is involved in the development of a National Referral Mechanism for trafficked persons and is lobbying for an active involvement of state institutions in providing social assistance to trafficked persons. La Strada Ukraine also works on the development of new ways to identify trafficked persons, such as identification in the points of arrival, the creation video spots, leaflets and posters for trafficked persons.