Alberta announces $20.8M to fight human trafficking
Alberta is committing $20.8 million over the next four years to fight human trafficking.
The funding will be used to implement the Alberta Human Trafficking Task Force’s five recomendations to stop the exploitation of victims at the hands of traffickers.
“Too often we think of human trafficking as something that happens in the developing world, places different from here,” said Premier Jason Kenney. “The reality is that this scourge of modern slavery happens right here in our own backyard.”
Specifically, the funding will be used to:
- Create an Office to Combat Trafficking Persons and a centre of excellence for research and data collection.
- Create a grant for coordinated community support and Indigenous-led, culturally appropriate services.
- Create civilian positions through the Alberta Law Enforcement Response Teams to support victims and survivors of human trafficking through the investigation process.
- Implement other task force recommendations.
“Today’s announcement from the Government of Alberta comes at a time when human trafficking is now one of the fastest growing crimes in Canada,” said taskforce chair Paul Brandt. “From the standpoint of prevention and for survivors, this $20.8 million and the acceptance of these Alberta taskforce recommendations come not a moment too soon.”
According to the government, police services in Canada reported 2,977 incidents of human trafficking between 2010 and 2020.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
Mountain guide dies after falling into a crevasse in Banff National Park
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
2 teens charged in Halifax homicide: police
Two teenagers have been charged with second-degree murder in connection to an alleged homicide near the Halifax Shopping Centre earlier this week.
'Deep ignorance': Calls for Manitoba trustee to resign sparked after comments about Indigenous people and reconciliation
A rural Manitoba school trustee is facing calls to resign over comments he made about Indigenous people and residential schools earlier this week.
12-year-old hippo in Japan raised as a male discovered to be a female
When Gen-chan arrived at a zoo in Japan in 2017, no one questioned whether the then-five-year-old hippopotamus was a boy. Seven years later, zoo staff made a surprising discovery: Gen-chan, now 12, was female.
Here's why Harvey Weinstein's New York rape conviction was tossed and what happens next
Here's what you need to know about why movie mogul Harvey Weinstein's rape conviction was thrown out and what happens next.
Legendary hockey broadcaster Bob Cole dies at 90: CBC
Bob Cole, a welcome voice for Canadian hockey fans for a half-century, has died at the age of 90. Cole died Wednesday night in St. John's, N.L., surrounded by his family, his daughter, Megan Cole, told the CBC.
Humanist group threatening to sue Vancouver over council prayers
The B.C. Humanist Association has threatened legal action against the City of Vancouver for allowing prayers at council, following a similar warning issued earlier this month to a smaller community on Vancouver Island.
LHSC performs a Canadian first in robot-assisted direct lateral spine surgery
Spine surgery may never be the same for people with chronic back pain and other physical ailments.