According to the latest annual report of the Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (GRETA) in Europe, the Covid-19 pandemic is having “a worrying impact on this scourge” and Member States “should do more to prevent it”.
“Traffickers have made the most of the situation, exploiting the precarious financial situation of many of their victims. Furthermore, whilst the authorities are reporting increased sexual exploitation and criminal activity online, stretched resources and delays in the justice system are hampering efforts to bring traffickers to account and to provide justice and compensation to their victims”, said Helga Gayer, the German President of GRETA.
The report includes a series of examples, including: Germany, where the temporary closure of brothels has led to an increase in hidden prostitution and a worsening of violence and exploitative conditions; Spain, where traffickers are increasingly making use of digital platforms such as Airbnb to find places where sexual exploitation takes place and to hide victims from police investigations; Malta, where the first cases of Covid-19 led to the closure of reception centres for asylum seekers and prevented UNHCR and NGOs from providing information and legal assistance.
The report also contains new guidance notes to assist Member States in meeting their obligations under the Council of Europe’s ‘Anti-Trafficking Convention’ and reiterates its appeal to the Russian Federation to ratify the Convention, in the same way as the other 46 member states of the Council of Europe have already done so.
Link to the report: https://bit.ly/3t6tjmK (Original version in French by Véronique Leblanc)