TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesia encouraged ASEAN to prioritize a more comprehensive approach to dealing with criminal acts of human trafficking given the increasing number of cases in the region.

Speaking at the ASEAN Political-Security Community meeting in Jakarta today, September 4, the Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi said the country had dealt with at least 700 cases of human trafficking since May.

Before May, the government recorded that it had handled 2,061 human trafficking cases involving online scams in the past three years.

“Concrete measures need to be taken,” Retno said in a statement at the ASEAN Secretariat. According to her, the measures include strengthening border management, regional cooperation on cybersecurity, as well as effective and efficient mutual legal assistance.

Retno stressed that Indonesia needs to prioritize a more comprehensive approach to tackling the matters, including finalizing the long-stalled ASEAN Extradition Agreement.

Citing an Interpol report, she said that the global cybercrime costs to grow by 15 percent each year until 2025.

At the ASEAN Summit in Labuan Bajo last May, leaders agreed to the Declaration on Combating Trafficking in Persons Caused by The Abuse of Technology. Recognizing the urgent need for collective action, the declaration outlines a comprehensive strategy to combat this complex and evolving challenge.

Indonesian Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs Mahfud Md said at the opening of the ASEAN Political-Security Community that ASEAN must promote the implementation of the declaration, which focuses not only on combating human trafficking but also other transnational organized crimes such as money laundering, illegal drug trafficking, and terrorism.

DANIEL A. FAJRI

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