Human trafficking networks in Cyprus have changed their methods to avoid detection, according to information held by police and the Office for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings. They have moved away from bringing in brides for paid sham marriages and from the sexual exploitation of workers in some bars, and now operate through messaging apps or use legal employment as cover.
Justice Minister Costas Fytiris told a conference on Friday that criminal networks’ use of the internet posed additional challenges.
Women from European countries who do not need residence or work permits come to Cyprus and declare that they will work in specific sectors. The networks use this as cover to exploit them sexually through advertisements and messages on apps. This form of exploitation is hard to detect, but the authorities carry out frequent checks at premises including bars and clubs, and at farms in connection with labour trafficking.
Another form of economic exploitation involves small groups of people brought to Cyprus to beg, with children also used. A limited number of human trafficking or labour trafficking cases have gone to court this year, while police operations have reduced trafficking incidents.
Cyprus has been in Tier 1 of the US State Department’s ranking of countries’ efforts against human trafficking for a fifth year, according to the police chief’s address at the conference.
Conference
The Ministry of Justice and Public Order organised the one-day conference ahead of EU Anti-Trafficking Day on Sunday. It focused on strengthening legislation, making the relevant services more effective, and identifying and protecting victims early.
Fytiris said combating human trafficking was a genuine government priority, as part of its policy against all forms of violence, coercion and exploitation. He referred to modern forms of trafficking, including sexual exploitation, forced labour and the exploitation of children.
He noted that the ministry had put out for public consultation an amending bill to transpose the new EU directive, with the aim of strengthening the legal framework against trafficking and protecting victims. He also stressed the importance of police operations, targeted checks at high-risk locations, staff training and cooperation with European and international authorities. He pointed to the need to trace criminal networks and deprive them of the illegal profits they make from exploiting people.
Despite the significant progress Cyprus has made, challenges remain, mainly in identifying victims early and giving them access to effective protection and support, Fytiris said. “The real success of our efforts is not measured only by arrests and convictions,” he said, but also by the ability to protect people who have been exploited and enable them to rebuild their lives in safety and dignity.
The police chief’s address was read by Assistant Chief of Operations Marios Agiotis. It said the first contact with police can be the turning point between continued exploitation and a person’s release from it. Police place particular emphasis on specialised investigation, the use of intelligence and modern questioning methods, and on building the capacity to detect forms of exploitation that may remain hidden, the address said.
