Anti-human trafficking app launched
PETALING JAYA: The fight against human trafficking will be intensified following the launch of an anti-human trafficking mobile app in Southeast Asia.
The “Be My Protector” app, which took two years to develop, was created by human rights organisations Tenaganita and Change Your World (CYW).
Tenaganita director Aegile Fernandez said the app allows the public and victims to report cases of human trafficking.
“We have enforcement, but that is a different level. That’s when the idea of the app came about and today, this dream has become a reality,” she said at the launch yesterday.
Also present were CYW chairman Datuk Pee Kang Seng, its co-founder Kelvin Lim, incumbant Subang Jaya assemblyman Hannah Yeoh, incumbent Kinrara assemblyman Ng Sze Han and several human trafficking survivors.
The free app went live on both App Store and Google Play yesterday and is available in eight languages, allowing foreign nationals in Malaysia to report cases.
Reports can be made anonymously in five easy steps, with details such as the location, type and severity, and information on the alleged perpetrator.
Tenaganita will then verify the authenticity of the case before reporting it directly to the authorities.
Fernandez also urged the authorities, especially the police and Immigration Department, to be more aggressive in the battle against human trafficking, noting that a number of cases involved their personnel working with agents of such syndicates.
Pee said the launch of the app was timely, considering the high number of human trafficking cases each year.
He said CYW targets at least 100,000 app downloads by year-end, and one million within the next five years.
“I have personally seen many cases, and it really touched my heart. Which is why we have developed this app, so that the public and victims have a platform to report their case to the authorities.”