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Human trafficking “is wrong, it is illegal, and it is sinful,” Irish Bishops said in a recent statement that highlighted increased forced migration from Great Britain to Ireland. They urged Catholic parishes to become better informed and to continue responding to and raising awareness of the issue.

U.S. Bishops have called on legislators to pass a proposed bill that would finance anti-human trafficking measures and support survivors. “It is incumbent upon all of us to unite in promoting efforts that prevent the evil of human trafficking,” said Episcopal migration lead Mark J. Seitz.

On the International Day of Prayer and Awareness against Human Trafficking on 8 February, Pope Francis urged Catholics to work to stop “this global scourge.” “It is a call to take action, to mobilize all our resources in combatting trafficking and restoring full dignity” to survivors, he said.

Services at borders, skills training, psychological support, housing, and education about migrant rights are some of the efforts by Episcopal Conferences in Southern Africa, Mozambique, Central Africa, and Thailand to respond to and end human trafficking highlighted in this Vatican News interview.

During the Angelus on Sunday, Pope Francis remembered the migrants who died in a shipwreck off Italy on 26 September and appealed for an end to the human trafficking that is taking the lives of many innocent people. “May the journeys of hope never again turn into journeys of death,” he prayed.

The Brazilian Episcopal Commission on human trafficking must listen to the voices of victims, its members concluded after meeting to plan actions for 2023. “It was a meeting of hope,” said Commission head Msgr. Evaristo Pascoal Spengler, including an advocacy visit to the Ministry of Human Rights.

As the Church in the Philippines marked its first national day against human trafficking, Episcopal vice president Bishop Mylo Hubert encouraged Catholics to “walk together” with trafficking victims. He called on the clergy to be “co-journeyers in dignity” in the fight to end the modern-day scourge.

The South African liaison Bishop for uprooted people urged the Church to dedicate the month of February to raising awareness about human trafficking. “South Africa is a hotspot for traffickers. We appeal especially to our youth to be vigilant,” Bishop Joseph Mary Kizito said in a recent statement.