Children being trafficked to live in slavery in Ireland as survivors call Ireland a ‘haven’ for traffickers

SURVIVORS of human trafficking have described Ireland as a “haven” for traffickers, with a “huge number” of them exploiting women, children and men.

Child trafficking is not just confined to migrant children — Irish kids have been trafficked within the country for exploitive and criminal purposes.

Earlier this week, Tusla — the Child and Family Agency — announced a partnership with Mercy Efforts for Child Protection Against Trafficking with the Hospitality Sector to provide training for frontline professionals associated with the protection of children.

Founded in 2013, MECPATHS works to raise awareness around the issue of child trafficking and how to report concerns.

Writing in The Irish Sun on Sunday today, ANN MARA, left, Education Manager at MECPATHS says the State isn't doing enough to root out this heinous crime.

CHILD trafficking is regarded as a form of modern-day slavery and is defined as the “recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt” of a child for the purpose of exploitation.

Children of all ages, nationalities and cultures can be victims of human trafficking and children do not need to be moved across borders to be trafficked. They can be trafficked within their own country, city, town or village.

Children are trafficked for all types of exploitation, including forced labour, sexual exploitation, forced begging, organ harvesting, forced criminality, domestic servitude and forced marriage.

They are particularly vulnerable to trafficking and account for one third of all identified victims globally, despite the Irish State not successfully identifying any of these children in the past two years.

Identification is very important to delivering responses, interventions, supports and ensuring children have access to their rights.

Identification in our own communities around Ireland can begin with being aware of what indicators to look out for.

Members of the public may notice a child who doesn't appear to be in school, appearing to be in the company of older children without a parental or guardian figure.

They may be dressed inappropriately for the weather or their age — they may appear malnourished or have unexplained access to large amounts of money.

Some children may appear to be gang-linked or to be in the company of adults who are not family members.

The indicators of trafficking may appear in everyday life situations, and members of the public with any suspicions are encouraged to contact their local Garda station or the Garda Confidential Hotline on 1800 666 111.

To learn more about indicators, I would urge people to visit our website, mecpaths.com.

The topic of child trafficking in Ireland has garnered little political or public attention, and there is a high-level of misunderstanding in relation to it.

In 2021, the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission found that there has been limited research carried out in child trafficking and that it remains even more hidden and unknown than trafficking in adults.

In recent years, the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe declared Ireland is “not screening for victims of child trafficking”.

The US Government addressed the fact that “Irish children are being subjected to sex-trafficking within Ireland” — claims which the Government has neither disproved nor addressed sufficiently well.

Awareness of child trafficking, where it does exist, is confined to discourse on sexual exploitation only and most often within a context of immigration.

Child victims of trafficking are not being identified in Ireland and as a result, are not receiving the specific interventions and supports they require and are legally entitled to.

As a result of its hidden nature, the extent of child trafficking in Ireland is very difficult to determine — and more increasingly difficult when it is dissolved from the political agenda.

From 2013-2021, the State only formally identified 34 child victims of trafficking in Ireland, 26 girls and eight boys, representing nine per cent of all victims. This percentage is significantly lower than the European Union average of 22 per cent.

Despite legislative amendments, Department of Justice efforts and calls from the anti-trafficking community of Ireland for a child-centred approach to anti-trafficking efforts, it appears that the issue remains mostly ignored.

MECPATHS was founded in 2013 in response to the emergence of child trafficking as a growing human rights and social justice issue in Ireland.

It is the only organisation in the country which focuses specifically on the issue of child trafficking.

It collaborates closely with private, statutory and non-statutory agencies and organisations working to counter human trafficking.

It works to raise awareness on child trafficking and educates frontline and emerging professionals on how to recognise indicators and report their concerns to the authorities.

MECPATHS was recently invited by the Child and Family Agency, Tusla, to begin facilitating online workshops for child protection and welfare social workers in 17 regions across Ireland.

This training initiative will see Tusla management and staff educated on what child trafficking is and what specific indicators to look out for.

It is the first of its kind to be rolled out to social workers — who are among those professionals most likely to encounter a child victim of trafficking.

MECPATHS invites frontline and emerging professionals working in hospitality, ­airlines, security, social work, universities, and healthcare to get in touch at [email protected] if they would like to learn more about the in-person or e-learning workshops currently available.