“Quintana Roo’s Bold Plan to Combat Sexual Exploitation Unveiled!”

Quintana Roo has initiated a major strategy to combat commercial sexual exploitation. This initiative, supported by the International Labour Organization and funded by the United States Department of Labor with a total of 13 million dollars, was unveiled in Cancun. The strategy is part of a broader project aimed at preventing, combating, and eradicating child labor, forced labor, and human trafficking.

Governor Mara Lezama emphasized her administration's commitment to addressing these societal ills, particularly those affecting the most vulnerable sectors. The strategy aims to involve various sectors in bolstering government institutions, raising awareness among employers and workers, and launching a communication campaign.

The plan includes a diagnostic to identify reporting lines, such as 911 and 089, and their challenges. Additionally, meetings will be held to share best practices between state-level reporting and referral lines in Quintana Roo, Yucatan, and Chiapas.

"With the support of the Secretariat of Citizen Security of Quintana Roo, municipal and state police officers will be trained on these issues… prosecutors will also be trained to correctly prosecute cases of commercial sexual exploitation," said Antonio Benavides, the project's national coordinator.

The strategy also involves raising awareness among employers and workers in the hotel sector through both state and federal tourism secretariats. Training will be provided for entrepreneurs from Quintana Roo, Chiapas, and Yucatan, as well as operators of ADO bus lines and workers of Ultramar Shipping. A prevention video will be shown on all ferry routes between Cancun-Isla Mujeres and Playa del Carmen-Cozumel.

The strategy also calls for an exchange of experiences among major transportation companies in Quintana Roo, including Mexican airlines, LATAM Airlines, and ground transportation companies. The goal is to foster effective collaboration in the fight against human trafficking for commercial sexual exploitation.

The strategy also considers the participation of taxi drivers' unions from Quintana Roo, the Airline Pilots Union of Mexico (ASPA), and the Confederation of Mexican Workers, among others.