A/HRC/4/23 page 5 Special Rapporteur visited Chiang Mai, Thailand, from 27 to 29 August 2006, where she attended the CATW regional conference on “Addressing the Demand Side of Trafficking: Challenging States, Social Movements and the Media”. During this conference, Ms. Huda gave a presentation on the challenges and responses to the regional situation of human trafficking in the Asian-Pacific region. From 4 to 6 September 2006, the Special Rapporteur visited Seoul to attend an international conference on the “Linkages between Prostitution and Trafficking”, at the invitation of the Center for Women’s Human Rights. The Special Rapporteur gave a keynote presentation on “Unveiling the demand face of human trafficking: a critical overview of the United Nations definition and the role of States in addressing this issue”. 6. On 7 September 2006, the Special Rapporteur was in New York where she visited the Girls Education and Mentoring Society, an NGO working with survivors of prostitution. She also visited Sanctuary for Families, a legal aid, mentoring and counselling agency, where she met with survivors of domestic violence and victims of forced marriage. On 11 September 2006, the Special Rapporteur discussed her role and mandate during a meeting in Washington, DC with Congressman Chris Smith. She also met with the Secretary-General and other officers of the Organization of American States. She met with Dr. Lagon of the United States Department of State and other officers of the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons. The Special Rapporteur ended her visit in Washington, DC with a press statement in which she highlighted the steps taken to combat trafficking and the gaps that still exist. On 13 September 2006, the Special Rapporteur gave a presentation at the University of Iowa, United States of America, on the scope of her mandate. She then held meetings with activists and lawyers and visited shelters for rescued women and girls. On 16 September 2006, the Special Rapporteur addressed a rule of law seminar organized by the American Bar Association and the International Bar Association on women and child trafficking. 7. From 18 September to 6 October 2006, the Special Rapporteur visited Geneva to present her thematic report on the relationship between trafficking and the demand for commercial sexual exploitation (E/CN.4/2006/62) to the Human Rights Council as well as her reports on the missions to Lebanon (E/CN.4/2006/62/Add.3) and Bosnia and Herzegovina (E/CN.4/2006/62/Add.2). In her statement to the Council, she reiterated that the issue of demand is of crucial importance in addressing trafficking in persons, especially women and children, from a human rights perspective. She held several meetings with government delegations, NGOs and intergovernmental organizations. From 25 to 27 October 2006, the Special Rapporteur visited Minsk to attend a conference organized by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the Belarus Ministry of International Affairs, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) on “Cooperation between Source and Destination Countries in Combating Trafficking in Human Beings”. She made an opening statement on “International standard-setting and law enforcement in combating trafficking in persons: cooperation between source and destination countries”. While in Minsk, the Special Rapporteur met with government officials to discuss her possible official visit to Belarus in 2007 and also held discussions with NGOs on her mandate. In addition, she met with members of a delegation from Qatar and discussed with them the situation of human trafficking in Qatar prior to her visit there the following week.