23/01/2007 (Agence Europe) - Just after prime minister Tony Blair declared that his government announced his intention to sign the Convention of the Council of Europe on Human Trafficking, Liz Lynne MEP (ALDE, United Kingdom) declared on Monday that, “At long last the UK has recognised that human Trafficking is the modern form of slavery”. Ms Lynne deplored the fact that, “The women and children that are brought into Britain every year as sex workers have no choice whether they work as prostitutes or not. At the moment, these women have no guaranteed protection. They are treated as illegal immigrants and deported an in many cases are re-trafficked again”. The Convention on Human Trafficking began with its signature at the Warsaw Summit on 16 May 2005. It allows victims of the trafficking to obtain leave to remain for at least 30 days while establishing and considering the facts. It was also done in view of cooperating with the police to pursue those responsible for the trafficking. Among the 34 signatory countries, only three have so far ratified it (Moldova, Romania and Austria). In the EU, between 200,000 and 500,000 people become victims of the trafficking, according to Europol figures. (bc)