IJM Statement on the Nomination of Cindy Dyer as TIP Ambassador
Human Trafficking
Tuesday, May 24, 2022, WASHINGTON, D.C. — International Justice Mission (IJM) welcomes the recent nomination of Cindy Dyer to serve as Director of the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (TIP Office), with the rank of Ambassador at Large.
On April 22, President Biden nominated Ms. Dyer to serve in this vital leadership role at the State Department. IJM urges Senator Menendez, Senator Risch, and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to hold a confirmation hearing for the nominee and for the full Senate to approve the nomination swiftly thereafter.
As a former prosecutor, NGO leader, and federal civil servant, Ms. Dyer is eminently qualified to lead the TIP Office and serve as the top U.S. diplomat on human trafficking issues. As experts have predicted and the 2021 TIP Report confirmed, the pandemic has considerably increased the vulnerability of marginalized communities to exploitation, so it is particularly urgent that the Senate take action to position permanent leadership of the U.S. government’s response to human trafficking.
The work of the TIP Office is vital. The Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report, annually produced by the office, serves as the U.S. government’s principal diplomatic tool to engage foreign governments on their efforts to meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, as established under the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA). The grants from the TIP Office are irreplaceable as the U.S. government’s primary foreign assistance to combat trafficking and as a tool to help foreign governments meet the minimum standards and address the challenges identified in the TIP Report. The Ambassador-at-Large also provides leadership to the President’s Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, the Senior Policy Operating Group, and the U.S. Advisory Council on Human Trafficking.
With over two decades of experience at local, national, and international levels, Ms. Dyer is well-positioned to provide strong leadership for U.S. anti-trafficking efforts at this key juncture.
IJM urges the Senate to confirm Ms. Dyer with haste and looks forward to working closely with her and the team at the TIP Office to address the scourge of human trafficking around the globe.
