Undersecretary of State Henryka Mościcka-Dendys outlined the actions taken by the MFA and declared the Ministry’s willingness to continue its collaboration with the diplomatic missions. The deputy foreign minister reassured the ambassadors and consuls of Latin American states of Poland’s unchanging zero-tolerance policy to violations of their citizens’ laws, especially to crimes classified as trafficking in human beings.

Deputy Minister Mościcka-Dendys reiterated it is essential to report each instance of such crimes and called on the missions to collaborate with the Polish authorities. She underlined that Polish services check each report and act accordingly to protect the rights of citizens of Latin American countries without discrimination.

The deputy foreign minister also emphasised how important the visa procedure is for a proper verification of terms of foreigners’ employment in Poland. She asked the gathered members of the diplomatic corps for their support in providing precise information about the Polish migration laws to citizens of Latin American countries.

The meeting held at the MFA is the fruit of the cooperation between its Department of the Americas and the Consular Department. Their joint actions include internal endeavours at the MFA and Polish missions abroad. Besides that, the departments have organised a series of meetings with the participation of consuls of countries most concerned with the matter and representatives of Polish authorities and institutions (the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy, the National Public Prosecutor’s Office, the National Police Headquarters, the Border Guard, and the Office for Foreigners). The main goal of the MFA’s undertaking is to raise awareness of the rights and obligations of foreigners coming from Latin America who are interested in taking up employment in Poland and to better coordinate the actions of diplomatic missions in Warsaw with Polish services and authorities.

 

Photo: Gabriel Piętka/MFA Poland