An international conference organised by the Churches' Commission for Migrants in Europe (CCME) and Caritas Europa on 4^th March in Brussels will review the progress made over the last 18 months in the fight against trafficking in women. The conference is part of the launch of phase II of the European network, "Christian Action and Networking against Trafficking" (CAT). The activities of the network are co-funded by the EU AGIS programme and the World Council of Churches.

The public conference will examine the conclusions and consequences of the "Brussels Declaration". The "Brussels Declaration" - result of a European conference in September 2002 - contains highly relevant conclusions and recommendations on preventing and combating trafficking in human beings.

Practitioners from Churches, NGOs and public officials from more than 15 European countries will exchange their experiences in the fields of prevention of trafficking, assistance to trafficked persons and discuss ways forward. A particular focus will be on the cooperation between Churches, NGOs and public institutions - one of the central conclusions of the "Brussels Declaration".

Four prominent members of the European Parliament will chair the different sessions of the conference and offer their reflections. Representatives of the European Commission as well as of the EU "Expert Group on Trafficking in Human Beings" will present their recent activities in the field.

Torsten Moritz, coordinator of the CAT project, commented: "18 months ago, the Brussels Declaration summarised central recommendations for combating trafficking. Since then, a lot of progress has been made in the fight against this criminal human rights violation. It is now time to make visible how different actors are joining forces to combat trafficking. The conference will also point out where progress is slow and more efforts need to be made."

The conference will be held in the European Parliament, rue Wiertz 47, 1000 Brussels