Minister Says New Approaches Needed to Combat Human Trafficking
Not only is Slovenia a transit country for trafficking in human beings, it is also a country of origin and a destination country, Interior Minister Dragutin Mate has told a debate on the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings.
This type of crime is undertaken by organised gangs, so it is difficult to fight it, Mate told the CoE-organised debate in Ljubljana on Wednesday.
According to him, cruelty typically begins at the destination, so on the way there victims often fail to realise that they are the subject of trafficking.
Since the victims frequently cross borders legally, different approaches need to be adopted to tackle trafficking, he said.
The EU has been trying to tackle the problem especially in countries of origin, by informing the population there what awaits them on the path to what they believe is a better life, Mate explained.
The minister believes that law enforcement is not enough to crack down on trafficking in human beings; it is crucial to raise awareness on the main pitfalls of human trafficking.
Slovenia is carrying out certain projects in this field, among them the "Violet" programme to raise awareness among children.
More broadly, it is necessary to make trafficking in human beings socially unacceptable, Mate said, pointing to night clubs with "exotic dancers" who might be victims of trafficking in human beings.
Mate said Slovenia was doing its best to tackle trafficking, and it has been fully implementing the CoE convention although it is yet to ratify it.
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