MP Viersen In Washington to Advocate on Human Trafficking and for Alberta

December 07, 2022

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Ottawa, ON — This week, Peace River – Westlock MP Arnold Viersen headed to Washington D.C. after being invited to speak on human trafficking at the 23rd Parliamentary Intelligence-Security Forum (PISF) – the leading international security forum providing expertise and collaboration to Parliamentarians and government officials. MP Viersen serves as a Member of the PISF’s Parliamentary Task Force on Human Trafficking.

The 23rd PISF included sessions on global supply chains, energy security, rare earth minerals, adversarial foreign investments, and trade-based money laundering. MP Viersen presented on the panel on human trafficking alongside politicians and survivors from the US and France. The session can be viewed here starting at the 7hour 40min mark: https://youtu.be/hu0ihKJpW_c.

“Today there are over 50 million people are enslaved in some form of human trafficking, many through the brutal injustice of sex trafficking. We see it in Canada, with young women being sex trafficked across our country – through our communities. Sex trafficking is profitable, it’s brutal and it’s growing,” said MP Arnold Viersen. “However, we can do something about it. The world must tackle the demand for sex trafficking by confronting the demand for paid sex, elevating the voices of survivors and standing up for the dignity of human life. Through concerted action, we can prevent other young women and youth from being sex trafficked.”

While in Washington D.C., MP Viersen met with US Senators and Representatives to advocate on behalf of Alberta interests.

“As we have seen over the past few years, the Liberals have avoided standing up for Alberta’s oil and gas sector in Washington, and Alberta has suffered greatly as a result,” said MP Viersen. “I take every opportunity to advocate and stand up for Alberta’s interests in Washington and I was encouraged by the conversations I had.”

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