Malaysian NGOs Launch The First Ever Anti-Human Trafficking App In Southeast Asia
It took two years to develop the 'Be My Protector' app.
By Jia Vern Tham — 19 Apr 2018, 06:45 PM
Earlier today, local human rights organisations Tenaganita and Change Your World (CYW) unveiled the 'Be My Protector' (BMP) app at the CO3 Social Office in Puchong
theSun reported Tenaganita director Aegile Fernandez as saying that the app is essential for both the victims and members of the public to report cases of human trafficking through a proper channel.
"We have enforcement, but that is a different level. That's when the idea of the app came about," Aegile said.
"It took us two years of sitting down, brainstorming, and testing," she added.
Idea for the app was born following an anti-human trafficking campaign by Tenaganita and CYW in cooperation with the Selangor state government in 2015
CYW co-founder Kelvin Lim told Malay Mail Online (MMO) that the campaign was conducted with more than 200 volunteers.
Kelvin also stated that the campaign engaged with more than 30,000 people in over 11 locations. It also reached over 500,000 people through social media platforms. However, it could not be expanded to more areas due to a lack of funds.
According to Aegile, this was the moment they had the idea for BMP.
BMP allows anyone who has identified a potential victim of human trafficking to make a report
Users can attach pictures, choose the nature of the situation, and also mark the severity of the scenario. One can also choose to make the reports anonymously.
Authenticity of reports will be investigated by Tenaganita, before being handed over to the authorities in order for action to be taken.
Apart from the report feature, the app also comes with a "Current News" tab
Users can keep up with news related to BMP in this section. Both Tenaganita and CYW also make announcements through this tab.
CYW is targeting 100,000 downloads for the app by the end of this year, and 1 million by 2023
MMO reported that the app is available in eight different languages to cater to the Southeast Asia region.
The app is now live on both Apple App Store and Google Play Store.