More than 39,000 cases of human trafficking were recorded in Europe during 20 years. War and displacement, especially in Ukraine, are exacerbating the crisis, while victims suffer forced labor and sexual exploitation.
According to the latest data from the International Organization for Migration (IOM), between 2002 and 2022, more than 39,000 cases of human trafficking were recorded in Europe. Of these, 85 percent of the victims were adults, mostly between the ages of 30 and 38, while 15 percent were children.
Globally, the number of victims of human trafficking has increased to more than 125,000 adults and 30,000 children.
IOM experts believe the real number is much higher due to under-reporting and disclosure gaps. In Europe, victims came mainly from nine countries, with more than 19,000 victims from Ukraine, followed by Moldova (10,464) and Belarus (4,286).
“War always creates fertile ground for the spread of crimes against humanity,” wrote Julia Sachenko, an expert on combating human trafficking and child protection, in a LinkedIn post after the Council of Europe meeting.
“Recent findings show that at least 13 people have been trafficked in countries neighbouring Ukraine during the last four years of the war,” she added.
Women made up more than three-fifths of all victims, around twice as many as men. 27 transgender victims were also identified.
Victims of human trafficking were recorded in 69 different European countries, with the highest numbers in Ukraine (8,413) and Moldova (5,866).
Almost half of the victims were exploited for a year or less, while 35 percent were exploited for between one and two years.
Half of the victims were forced to work, especially in construction (52 percent) and agriculture (29 percent).
Meanwhile, 48 percent were subjected to sexual exploitation, mostly forced into prostitution. Victims were also forced to produce pornography.
Traffickers used psychological, physical and sexual abuse as the main tactics to control victims.
Restricting access to money, restricting freedom of movement, and denying necessary medical care are also common tactics to maintain control. Only ten percent of the perpetrators were friends of the victims, while the vast majority were not close to them.
The largest share of perpetrators were labor brokers, contractors, formal employers and smugglers, according to IOM data.
Intimate partners accounted for one percent, while family represented two percent.
