Escort Business: Human Trafficking
Human trafficking is an issue everyone involved in the Irish escort industry should be aware of.
There are criminals gangs out there preying on vulnerable women and girls in foreign countries, duping them into travelling to Ireland with promises of good jobs and a better life, when all they really have in mind is prostitution, sexual exploitation and sex slavery. Underage girls have been brought to Ireland in these circumstances. Women have to travelled to Ireland believing they are going to work in a standard job, only to find out when they get here that they are to work as a prostitute. Other women have travelled to Ireland knowing to some extent that they are to work in the sex trade, but not realising that their passport is going to be taken from them upon arrival, they are going to be told they owe their traffickers a huge debt, they are going to be threatened, beaten and raped and forced to offer unsafe sexual services. It is inevitable that some victims of human trafficking to Ireland for the purposes of sexual exploitation end up in the escort industry.
If you are in any way involved in the Irish escort industry, please do anything you can to stand firmly against the horrific criminal industry that human trafficking for sexual exploitation is.
The Police
In February 2006 the UK Government announced the launch of Operation Pentameter, a major operation against human trafficking into the UK for the purposes of sexual exploitation. This new initiative involves all 55 police forces in the UK, including the PSNI in Northern Ireland, the travel industry and government and non-government agencies across the UK and Europe. Posters are going up and business cards are being handed out at major entry points into the UK appealing to possible victims of human trafficking. Clients availing of prostitution services and persons working in prostitution are also being asked to help. The message is, if you are worried about human trafficking to the UK for sexual exploitation personally, or if you have come in contact with someone that you believe may have been trafficked to the UK and is now being sexually exploited, you can call CrimeStoppers in confidence.
You can call CrimeStoppers Northern Ireland on 0800 555 111. The CrimeStoppers Northern Ireland website is www.crimestoppersni.com. The CrimeStoppers UK website is www.crimestoppers-uk.org and this website also has a form you can use to submit information to CrimeStoppers anonymously.
CrimeStoppers does not exist in the Republic of Ireland. However, there is a Garda (police) hotline you can call to leave information anonymously, the Garda Confidential Line. You can call the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111. See www.garda.ie/angarda/confidential.html for further information about the Garda Confidential Line.
UPDATE 20/04/06: Crimestoppers (UK) has released a new film about sex trafficking online, with the aim of raising awareness and encouraging more anonymous calls from punters to Crimestoppers. You can watch the video here on Escort-Ireland.com - Sex Slaves by Crimestoppers. For further information, visit the Crimestoppers (UK) website - www.crimestoppers-uk.org.
IMPORTANT NOTICE:
The Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings was opened for signature in Warsaw on 16 May 2005. This new Convention says trafficking victims should be given temporary residence permits if they will be in danger when returned to their country, or if they have to help with a prosecution. It also guarantees trafficked people a breathing period of at least 30 days during in which they can receive support such as housing.
So far, neither Ireland nor the UK have signed up to this new European Convention on trafficking. (Click here for up to date details of which countries have / have not signed up.)
Amnesty International believes this new Convention offers a vital opportunity to protect the rights of thousands of trafficked people and is asking UK citizens to write to their local MP about this issue. See www.amnesty.org.uk/svaw/trafficking.shtml for further information and a link to a sample letter. Republic of Ireland citizens could equally write to their local TD.
Northern Ireland:
Find your local MP - www.locata.co.uk/commons
Contact your Councillors, MP, MEPs, MSPs etc for free - www.writetothem.com
Republic of Ireland:
Find your local TD - www.oireachtas.ie/members-hist
Organisations / Other
The following organisations are working against human trafficking for the purposes of prostitution:
Republic of Ireland:
Amnesty International Ireland
Ruhama
Northern Ireland:
Amnesty International UK
Home Office: Tackling Human Trafficking
Europe / International:
Anti Slavery: Trafficking
Coalition Against Trafficking in Women (CATW)
Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others
Council of Europe: Action Against Trafficking in Human Beings
ECPAT International: End Child Prostitution, Child Pornography and Trafficking of Children for Sexual Purposes
European Commission, Justice and Home affairs: Human Beings (Trafficking)
Fair Fund - Trafficking
Free the Slaves
Human Rights Watch - Campaign Against the Trafficking of Women and Girls
HumanTrafficking.org
La Strada International: Prevention of Traffic in Women in Central and Eastern Europe
MTV EXIT Campaign
The Polaris Project
The Poppy Project, Eaves Housing - London research and development project working on exiting prostitution and counter trafficking. Also provides the only UK safe house for women trafficked into sexual exploitation in the UK
Prostitution Research and Education
The Protection Project
UNICEF Child Trafficking Research Hub
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime: Trafficking in Human Beings
U.S. Department of State: Human Trafficking
Stop Child Trafficking
Vital Voices
World Revolution: Human Trafficking
We would welcome any suggestions as to how we could improve this information on our website.
