It has been 26 years of struggle to include the issue of human trafficking in the human rights agendas and to build a culture of support for the survivors of this crime
Leer la entrevista en español aquí.
ASBRAD is a civil society organisation based in Brazil, a member of GAATW for 18 years. Vivian from the GAATW International Secretariat interviewed Dalila Figueiredo, Founder and President of ASBRAD, in April 2023 to better understand the organisation's work, history, and context. The original interview was in Spanish and translated into English.
Vivian: Thank you very much, Dalila, for taking the time to join me today. Can you please share a little about yourself, and when was ASBRAD founded and why?
D: I am a feminist woman, a defender of human rights, a lawyer, and a social worker. I am the founding president of ASBRAD, an NGO made up of lawyers and social workers. Since 1997, we have been fighting to defend the rights of women, children, migrants, refugees, and survivors of human trafficking.
For more than two decades, ASBRAD has been a driving force behind social transformations in Brazil. Our institutional characteristic is multidisciplinary, the result of a history of struggles for the recognition of human needs and the role of civil society in promoting public policies on human rights. Our story began in the city of Guarulhos, State of São Paulo, at a time when laws and institutions did not guarantee individual or collective rights, and Brazilian laws have failed to protect women victims of domestic violence, including those assassinated by their partners. The accusation of the crime of "legitimate defense of honor" was widely accepted by the Brazilian justice system and the attackers did not answer for their crimes.
Displeased with this social reality, we were pioneers in advocating for the defense of women victims of domestic violence, and the creation of laws and policies with a gender-based approach. And, in a short time, after advocating for feminist causes, the scope of our actions increased to the broad defense of human rights, with greater emphasis on the fight against human trafficking. Over the years, we have responded to society's call to address other complex issues. In that sense, we were one of the first civil society organisations to discover the phenomenon of human trafficking.
Vivian: Could you tell us more about how you began your work on the issue of human trafficking?
We started our work in 1998 by providing support to Brazilian men and women who were returning from Europe after suffering sexual and labor exploitation. We were stationed at the Guarulhos International Airport as requested by the Infraero and the Federal Police. We have been operating here for the last 11 years, providing assistance to Brazilians and other migrants. That was the beginning of a story against one of the cruelest violations of human rights in Brazil and in the world - human trafficking. You should keep in mind that our work with this issue predates the enactment of the Palermo Protocol, and therefore, the issue was out of social understanding at that period.
Our operations at the Guarulhos airport (São Paulo) generated a humanized care methodology which led to the development of Advanced Posts for Humanized Care for Migrants, as incorporated in public services of states and municipalities and installed in 17 airports in Brazil. The aim is to assist migrants in the process of mobility and support the victims of human trafficking.
Since then, our work has become a model for humanised care work and immediate assistance for survivors, and the prevention of human trafficking by using a human rights based approach.
Vivian: You have seen the progress since you started working on human trafficking. How does ASBRAD's work look like today?
We are currently an NGO with 89 employees, and approximately 90% of us are women. We serve citizens through the development of projects and political advocacy actions on issues such as the fight against gender-based violence, where we provide legal and psychosocial assistance for women survivors of GBV and intrafamily violence. We also provide shelter to women at risk of death in the Reflorescer Shelter, a public-private partnership with the Guarulhos prefecture. And we carry out courses, trainings and campaigns for the prevention of domestic violence and political advocacy on the rights of women and the LGBTIQ+ population.
We also provide direct and indirect care to migrant victims of feminicide and slave labor. Through our Mundo Plural Project, we offer legal and psychosocial support to victims of human trafficking. ASBRAD has another project in conjunction with the Public Ministry of Labor, called Liberdade no Ar (Freedom in the Air) which aims to promote nationwide actions for the prevention of human trafficking through information dissemination at the main airports of the country.
We also create content for our web series on human trafficking in Brazil. An action that takes place throughout the month of July, through the Liberdade no Ar project. The live discussion series engages network actors to combat human trafficking across the country. Together with Latam Airlines, through the Avião Solidário (Solidarity Plane) program, we supported the issuance of air tickets for the safe return of victims of human trafficking who wish to return to their countries or cities of origin.
In line with the promotion of human rights of migrants and refugees, through the Mundo Plural project, we offer legal and psychosocial support for migrants in vulnerable situations in the city of Guarulhos and throughout the country. We work in partnership with other institutions to strengthen laws and policies to defend the rights of migrants and refugees. Similarly, we develop campaigns and informative materials against xenophobia, and guidance on access to public policies and accommodation in Brazil.
Finally, we support Brazilians deported and returned from abroad. We act as a humanitarian response agent for migrants and refugees in vulnerable situations, by supporting the actions of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) for safe and voluntary return. Likewise, in partnership with the Government of the State of São Paulo, we managed the Passagem Terra Nova shelter in Guarulhos, with space for 50 migrants and refugees in vulnerable situations. This was initially created as a humanitarian response for Afghan population who were at the Guarulhos International Airport.
Vivian: Can you share with us the main challenges to addressing human trafficking in Brazil.
Currently, Brazil has a General Law to Combat Trafficking in Persons that is aligned with the minimum standards of protection for victims of human trafficking in the Palermo Protocol. However, there are still difficulties in the application of the law, especially in the execution time of criminal cases, which take an average of 10 years to be completed. Many trials are considered expired, due to slow judicial system. Another relevant point is the absence of a national policy with comprehensive actions for social assistance and the generation of work and livelihood, which supports victims in post-rescue processes.
Finally, another point of concern is the need to go beyond the approach of border militarisation, in order to establish a national culture of protection of human rights, and actions that guarantee access to public policies for the victims of human trafficking as well as their families. ASBRAD does not only work with migrants and refugees but also with the host community.
Vivian: Could you tell us the other aspects of ASBRAD’s work and how you incorporate these lessons into your work?
We work in the promotion of peace and justice for young people in conflict with the law. Thanks to our Gaia project, we have an interdisciplinary team that is made up of socio-educational counselors, social workers, and psychologists, with whom we promote support for compliance with socio-educational measures.
Also, we promote the health and well-being of elder people, through the development of support and guidance for those in a situation of family abandonment. We support actions to strengthen sociability, avoiding isolation and strengthening the social bond.
Finally, as ASBRAD, we work towards strengthening our political advocacy, network building, and social participation to combat human trafficking. We support the need for social debate in a technical, ethical and non-partisan way, in favor of the defense and promotion of human rights.
We support and demand the formulation of institutional responses and support actions between institutions in South America and the Caribbean. We are members of 14 collegiate bodies for social participation, at the municipal, state, national and international levels.
Vivian: Thank you for this conversation, Dalila. I have no more questions. It was a pleasure to learn more about ASBRAD.