01 May 2016
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"EU member states should do more to protect victims of human trafficking, especially women, and take gender-specific prevention, assistance and support measures to help them, say MEPs in a resolution voted on Thursday. The text points out that EU legislation to protect victims of trafficking is not being properly enforced.
"Progress has been made in the fight against international trafficking gangs, but all too often victims are not being given the help they are entitled to under EU law, said rapporteur Catherine Bearder (ALDE, UK)."EU-wide measures to tackle this vile trade must be fully implemented by national governments, including the proper collection of statistics and identification of victims to give us a clearer view of the real picture", she added.
The resolution, approved by 391 votes to 43, with 53 abstentions, underlines that the European Commission has failed to keep to the timetable of assessment reporting required by the directive."
See: European Parliament press release: Human trafficking: MEPs call on EU member states to protect victims better (pdf)
According to Article 23 of the Directive (EUR-Lex, link), the Commission should have issued one report by 6 April 2015 on "the extent to which the Member States have taken the necessary measures in order to comply with this Directive," and another by 6 April 2016 on "the impact of existing national law, establishing as a criminal offence the use of services which are the objects of exploitation of trafficking in human beings, on the prevention of trafficking in human beings, accompanied, if necessary, by adequate proposals."
National laws implementing the Directive ('National Implementing Measures') can be viewed here (EUR-Lex, link).
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