Ahead of the EU Anti-Trafficking Day on Wednesday, 18th October, it has been revealed that Irish women accounted for the highest number of prostitution victims in the country last year.
That’s according to Ruhama, the charity which offers support to women impacted by the illegal sex trade, who launched its Annual Report today- showing a 35% increase in the level of service use in 2022.
The largest number of women human trafficked in Ireland in that time frame were from Nigeria, followed by Zimbabwe.
Joint Task Force – Cross Border Operation
To coincide with the EU’s Anti-Trafficking Day, Gardaí from the Garda National Protective Services Bureau and the Garda National Immigration Bureau, assisted by colleagues from the Workplace Relations Commission led a targeted operation which involved the search of a number of business premises on Monday 16th October.
The Joint Task Force operation took place along the border counties and involved the searching of a number of premises with a focus on rural crime and human trafficking.
Assistant Commissioner Cliona Richardson, North Western Region, and Co-chair of the JATF Operations Coordination Group stated, “It is envisaged that our Human Trafficking operation will raise awareness amongst the community and encourage people to come forward should they be affected by or have any information in relation to this type of criminality”.
Wexford Councillor reveals the shocking numbers
Aontu Councillor, Jim Codd, who has been vocal about the figures involved in Human Trafficking and told South East Radio that he welcomes the work of the charity Ruhama and the Joint Task Force.
However, he says that worryingly there have been 1200 cases since 2010 that have been before the courts but that only two people have been convicted in that time.
“Its nothing short of shocking to see the figures since 2010 and even more shocking is that over 90% of these cases related to the sexual exploitations of children. Court services have confirmed to Aontu only this week that only three people have been convicted since 2010. In the first six months of this year there were 53 offences before the court that’s a significant rise from 17 last year. In 2019 it hit a high of 333. This is a very worrying set of figures.”
FBI Human Trafficking Watchlist
Ireland had been on the FBI Human Trafficking Watchlist – having been taken off in 2022 – and remains on Tier 2 which means that:
“The Government of Ireland does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so,” according to the United States Department of State.
There are concerns for the safety of those displaced by war – with an increase in risk following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The number of unaccompanied children in the care of Tusla at the end of last year was double that of 2021. The child and family agency says demand for its services significantly increased because of the war in Ukraine.
Its annual report also found a marked increase in the numbers of unaccompanied and separated children seeking international protection – the team had 597 referrals in total.
