Call for action plan to curb human trafficking

The Maltese Association of Social Workers (MASW) has called for a national action plan to curb violence and trafficking of persons, with structures to protect victims and tougher penalties against perpetrators.

Christine Borg, MASW chairman, yesterday expressed concern that the number of persons trafficked for commercial or sexual exploitation was on the increase.

Ms Borg was addressing the media on Social Work Action Day 2004, which centred around the theme Violence and Trafficking: Social Workers against Exploitation.

"Local legislation, with the aim of prosecuting traffickers and protecting victims, should be kept abreast to tackle the problem," Ms Borg said.

Worldwide, various estimates placed the number of trafficked women and children at up to four million annually for purposes of forced prostitution, labour and other forms of exploitation.

Recent research in Europe showed that the rate of violence and trafficking was much higher in families living in poverty, where there is a conflict with adults who are alcoholics or drug addicts, and where unemployment is rife.

In this context, social workers, who promote social justice and human rights by giving a service to their clients, were professionally committed to eliminate violence and trafficking, the MASW said. Ms Borg said it was not the first time that social workers suffered violence or manhandling while on duty and said the association condemned such incidents.

Asked if the social workers' association considered the exposure of vulnerable people in the media as abusive, Ms Borg said the MASW condemned the exposure of gullible victims in the media for the purpose of increasing audience ratings and hence, advertising revenue. This was detrimental to the individuals themselves and also to the public's sensitivity. Ms Borg said the association had drawn up a set of guidelines for wider protection of individuals who are exposed on television and was asking the Broadcasting Authority to adopt them.

Sonia Camilleri, Commissioner for Children, said violence and trafficking in all their different expressions were no longer a private problem.

"In Malta, we are waiting for the law on domestic violence to be enacted. While this will be a step in the right direction, it would also be wise to consider signing The Hague Convention on the protection of children."

Doris Bingley, general secretary of the National Council of Women, pointed towards the need to collect and publish data on violence to show the extent of the problem, with systematic recording of incidents from general practitioners, hospitals, the police and relevant agencies.