[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 3 (Monday, January 6, 2020)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 633-635]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-00065]



[[Page 631]]

Vol. 85

Monday,

No. 3

January 6, 2020

Part IV





The President





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Proclamation 9975--National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention 
Month, 2020
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  Federal Register / Vol. 85 , No. 3 / Monday, January 6, 2020 / 
Presidential Documents  

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 Title 3--
 The President

[[Page 633]]

                Proclamation 9975 of December 31, 2019

                
National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention 
                Month, 2020

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                Human trafficking erodes personal dignity and destroys 
                the moral fabric of society. It is an affront to 
                humanity that tragically reaches all parts of the 
                world, including communities across our Nation. Each 
                day, in cities, suburbs, rural areas, and tribal lands, 
                people of every age, gender, race, religion, and 
                nationality are devastated by this grave offense. 
                During National Slavery and Human Trafficking 
                Prevention Month, we reaffirm our unwavering commitment 
                to eradicate this horrific injustice.

                Trafficking crimes are perpetrated by transnational 
                criminal enterprises, gangs, and cruel individuals. 
                Through force, fraud, coercion, and sexual exploitation 
                of minors, traffickers rob countless individuals of 
                their dignity and freedom, splinter families, and 
                threaten the safety of our communities. In all its 
                forms, human trafficking is an intolerable blight on 
                any society dedicated to freedom, individual rights, 
                and the rule of law.

                Human trafficking is often a hidden crime that knows no 
                boundaries. By some estimates, as many as 24.9 million 
                people--adults and children--are trapped in a form of 
                modern slavery around the world, including in the 
                United States. Human traffickers exploit others through 
                forced labor or commercial sex, and traffickers profit 
                from their victims' horrific suffering. The evil of 
                human trafficking must be defeated. We remain 
                relentless in our resolve to bring perpetrators to 
                justice, to protect survivors and help them heal, and 
                to prevent further victimization and destruction of 
                innocent lives.

                This year marks nearly 20 years since our Nation took 
                decisive steps in the global fight against human 
                trafficking by enacting the Trafficking Victims 
                Protection Act of 2000 (TVPA) and nearly 15 years since 
                the United States ratified the United Nations' Palermo 
                Protocol to Prevent, Suppress, and Punish Trafficking 
                in Persons, Especially Women and Children (Palermo 
                Protocol). Both the TVPA and the Palermo Protocol 
                established a comprehensive framework for combating 
                human trafficking by establishing prevention programs, 
                creating victim protections, and advancing prosecutions 
                under expanded criminal statutes to usher in the modern 
                anti-trafficking movement domestically and globally. 
                These two measures illustrate a global consensus on the 
                issue, and yet as a Nation we must continue to work 
                proactively to foster a culture of justice and 
                accountability for this horrific crime.

                My Administration is committed to using every available 
                resource, strengthening strategic partnerships, 
                collaborating with State, local, and tribal entities, 
                and by introducing innovative anti-trafficking 
                strategies to bring the full force of the United States 
                Government to help end this barbaric practice once and 
                for all. In January 2019, I was proud to sign both the 
                Frederick Douglass Trafficking Victims Prevention and 
                Protection Reauthorization Act and the Trafficking 
                Victims Protection Reauthorization Act, reaffirming our 
                commitment to preventing trafficking in all forms.

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                With my resolute support, executive departments and 
                agencies are steadfastly continuing the battle to 
                abolish this form of modern slavery. In October 2019, 
                the 19 members of my Interagency Task Force to Monitor 
                and Combat Trafficking in Persons convened to highlight 
                significant accomplishments in our sustained, whole-of-
                Government fight against human trafficking. The Anti-
                Trafficking Coordination Team (ACTeam) initiative, led 
                by the Department of Justice, more than doubled 
                convictions of human traffickers in ACTeam districts. 
                Additionally, the Department of Homeland Security 
                initiated more than 800 investigations related to human 
                trafficking and the Department of State launched its 
                Human Trafficking Expert Consultant Network, comprised 
                of survivors and other subject matter experts, to 
                inform its anti-trafficking policies and programs. The 
                Department of Health and Human Services continues to 
                provide funding for the National Human Trafficking 
                Hotline, and in Fiscal Year 2018 it funded victim 
                assistance programs that provided benefits and services 
                to more than 2,400 victims. For the first time, the 
                Department of Transportation committed $5.4 million in 
                grants to the prevention of human trafficking and other 
                crimes that may occur on buses, trains, and other forms 
                of public transportation. The Office of Management and 
                Budget also published new anti-trafficking guidance for 
                Government procurement officials to more effectively 
                combat human trafficking in Federal contracting.

                The inherent dignity, freedom, and autonomy of every 
                person must be respected and protected. Despite the 
                progress we have made and the momentum we have built 
                toward ending human trafficking, there is still more to 
                be done. This month, we renew our resolve to redouble 
                our efforts to deliver justice to all who contribute to 
                the cruelty of human trafficking, and we will 
                tenaciously pursue the promise of freedom for all 
                victims of this terrible crime.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the 
                United States of America, by virtue of the authority 
                vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the 
                United States, do hereby proclaim January 2020 as 
                National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention 
                Month, culminating in the annual observation of 
                National Freedom Day on February 1, 2020. I call upon 
                industry associations, law enforcement, private 
                businesses, faith-based and other organizations of 
                civil society, schools, families, and all Americans to 
                recognize our vital roles in ending all forms of modern 
                slavery and to observe this month with appropriate 
                programs and activities aimed at ending and preventing 
                all forms of human trafficking.

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                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                thirty-first day of December, in the year of our Lord 
                two thousand nineteen, and of the Independence of the 
                United States of America the two hundred and forty-
                fourth.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2020-00065
Filed 1-3-20; 11:15 am]
Billing code 3295-F0-P