The Blue Heart Campaign Against Human Trafficking
is an awareness raising initiative to fight human trafficking and its impact on society created by
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). The
Blue Heart campaign seeks to encourage involvement
and inspire action to help stop this crime.
The campaign also encourages people to show solidarity with victims of human trafficking
by wearing the Blue Heart. In November 2009, the
Government of Mexico adopted the Blue Heart Campaign
as its official human trafficking prevention campaign.
The Blue Heart Campaign maintains that human trafficking
is a crime that strips people of their rights,
ruins their dreams, and robs them of their dignity, and
that it is a crime that shames us all. Human trafficking
is a global problem and no country is immune. Millions of
victims are entrapped and exploited every year
in this modern form of slavery.
The Blue Heart symbol represents the sadness of those
who are trafficked while reminding us of the cold
heartedness of those who buy and sell fellow human beings.
The use of the blue UN colour also demonstrates the commitment
of the United Nations to combating this crime against human dignity.
In the same way that the red ribbon has become the international
symbol of HIV/AIDS awareness, this campaign aims to make the Blue Heart into an international symbol against human
trafficking. By "wearing" the Blue Heart people can raise
awareness of human trafficking and join the campaign to fight this crime.
The UNODC as guardian of the United Nations Convention
against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC) and
the Protocols thereto, assists States in their efforts to
implement the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish
Trafficking in Persons (Trafficking in Persons Protocol).
The Blue Heart Campaign seeks to raise awareness of the
problem and inspire those with decision-making power to
effect change.