G.GANBAYASAKH AWARDED U.S DEPARTMENT'S PRIZE

Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, /MONTSAME/ The U.S Embassy in Ulaanbaatar says the State Department of the USA has honored Ms. G.Ganbaysakh, a founder and director of the Gender Equality Center (GEC), for her extraordinary efforts to combat trafficking in persons.
Former Secretary of State Madeleine K.Albright and U.S. Ambassador to Mongolia Mr. Jonathan Addleton presented the plaque which includes the citation, "United States Department of State 2010 Hero Acting to End Modern-Day Slavery Award", to Ms. Ganbayasgakh before her peers in the NGO community as well as her partners in the Mongolian government.
One of eight heroes from around the world honored with this award in 2010, Ms. Ganbayasgakh founded the Ulaanbaatar-based Gender Equality Center in 2002 to provide shelter, psychological and legal counseling, rehabilitation and advocacy for victims of sex and labor trafficking. Under her leadership, the GEC has become the foremost NGO in the struggle against human trafficking in Mongolia and a pioneer in urging the government to recognize and address the crime.
The organization has assisted more than 300 trafficking victims to date. Ganbayasgakh has designed university curricula, textbooks, and pamphlets on the nature of human trafficking. She has organized more than 400 trainings for government officials, police, border forces, social workers, doctors, teachers, and members of civil society. The trainings have focused public awareness on prevention, victim protection, and other means of combating human trafficking.
Ms. Ganbayasgakh is the second Mongolian TIP Hero to be named. In 2008, Superior Officer of the Criminal Division in the border city of Zamyn-Uud, Major Tumenbayar, was also selected as a TIP hero. He was chosen for his vital role in the battle against cross-border trafficking, says the Embassy.
The U.S. Government currently administers two grants to combat trafficking in persons in Mongolia through The Asia Foundation and the American Bar Association. Together, these programs have increased public awareness of human trafficking and improved local capacity to investigate and prosecute such crimes.
B.Khuder