|
Smith Lauds DoD’s Anti-Trafficking Initiative
Memo from Dep. Sec. Wolfowitz sets zero-tolerance policy |
||
In the memo, Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz stated the DoD’s policy “that trafficking in persons will not be facilitated in any way by the activities of our Service members, civilian employees, indirect hires, or DoD contract personnel.” He went on to point out that trafficking “is a violation of human rights; it is cruel and demeaning; it is linked to organized crime; it undermines our peacekeeping efforts; and it is incompatible with military core values.” “I am very pleased to see the entire Department of Defense, under the direction of President Bush, Secretary Rumsfeld, and Deputy Secretary Wolfowitz, take a clear and uncompromising zero-tolerance stance against the brutal crime of human trafficking,” Smith said. “In his address to the United Nations last September, President Bush called on all nations of the world to work together to address this horrible crime. The DoD’s policy will give Smith, the author of our nation’s two laws on human trafficking, requested an investigation by the Pentagon’s Inspector General after watching a Fox News report in spring 2002 that showed “As Secretary Wolfowitz pointed out in his memorandum, trafficking is a gross abuse of human rights and is most incompatible with the core values of our military, which is a symbol of freedom to the world,” Smith said. The four objectives set forth by the DoD are:
“If properly implemented and followed, the objectives set forth by the Department of Defense will help prevent future instances of “Also, our nation owes a ‘thank you’ to reporter Tom Merriman and his team at WJW – Fox 8 in | ||
### | ||
For Immediate Release: February 4, 2004 Contact: Nick Manetto (202) 225-3765 |
||
| ||