New UN report underscores problem of human trafficking in south-eastern Europe

An estimated 90 per cent of foreign migrant sex workers in the Balkans are victims of trafficking, according to a report released today by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).

Because the problem is largely viewed as an issue of migration or national security and not as a human rights violation, most victims “are not recognized as such and are treated as criminals,” according to the report.

While governments have begun to give priority to anti-trafficking initiatives, numerous obstacles remain, including the lack of reliable data, the absence of clear human rights standards for the treatment of trafficked women and children, and inadequate prevention measures.

“The attempts to come to grips with the problem of human trafficking have so far been toothless and without much success,” the report states, emphasizing that human trafficking “is first and foremost a violation of human rights.”