Child Trafficking

Trafficking in human beings (THB) is one of the identified crime priorities of the current EU Policy Cycle 2018-2021. This Europol report, published in October 2018, for the first time at EU level, analyses and clearly describes the features of criminal networks involved in one of the most ominous crimes of all. It is oriented towards explaining the current crime situation providing an overview of all relevant factors (OCGs, criminal markets, and geographical dimension).

Migrant and refugee children and youth trying to reach Europe face appalling levels of human rights abuses, with 77 per cent of those traveling along the Central Mediterranean route reporting direct experiences of abuse, exploitation, and practices which may amount to human trafficking - IOM, the UN Migration Agency and UNICEF say in a new report "Harrowing Journeys" (September 2017).

In the report GRETA admits that the Polish authorities have taken a number of important steps to prevent and combat trafficking in human beings. The social assistance, aliens' and labour legislation have been developed since 2007 to provide for a number of rights for victims of human trafficking. The criminalisation of trafficking in human being, as defined in the Convention, took effect in September 2010.

Protect my future

The widespread failure to protect children is a global crisis, with 0.5-1.5 billion children experiencing violence each year (Pinheiro 2006), 150 million girls and 73 million boys who are raped or subject to sexual violence (WHO 2000), and 115 million children engaged in extremely harmful forms of work (ILO 2010). This global crisis represents a major violation of children's rights; an unacceptable situation, which must be remedied urgently, no matter what the costs.