Asian sex workers and male footballers trafficked to Malta, US government report says

The government of Malta is not fully meeting the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking despite significant efforts, the latest Trafficking In Persons report by the United State’s Department of State has said.

Malta remains on the Tier 2 level of protection despite increasing efforts to tackle trafficking, for failing to secure any trafficking convictions since 2012.

As reported over the past five years, Malta was described as a source and destination country for women subjected to sex trafficking and a destination for women and men subjected to labour trafficking.

And while authorities conducted 3,539 labour inspections in 2017, the government did not make efforts to reduce the demand for commercial sex acts or forced labour.

The report said women and children from Malta have also been subjected to sex trafficking within the country.

“Forced labour victims originate from China, Eastern Europe and Southeast Asia. Women from Southeast Asia working as domestic workers, Chinese nationals working in massage parlours, foreign male soccer players, and women from Central and Eastern Europe, Russia, and Ukraine working in nightclubs represent populations vulnerable to exploitation. The approximately 5,000 irregular migrants from African countries residing in Malta are vulnerable to trafficking in the country’s informal labour market, including within the construction, hospitality, and domestic sectors.”

Throughout 2017, an inter-ministerial anti-trafficking committee announced a new action plan and increased the government’s anti-trafficking budget from €20,000 to €35,000 in 2018, which excluded government funds provided to agencies for victim support provided elsewhere in the budget.

But the government did not conduct any awareness campaigns during the reporting period. The inter-ministerial anti-trafficking committee charged with implementing the national action plan convened several times throughout 2017. “However, NGOs reported that despite the meetings, the committee produced little to no tangible actions to coordinate improvements across the government.”

Police identified 30 foreign trafficking victims (35 in 2016). These included 24 Ukrainian labour trafficking victims (all from a single case) and six female victims (four Chinese nationals and two Hungarian nationals).

In the single large case, the police and national welfare agency joined coordination efforts during a forced labour investigation in order to prepare for a large number of victim referrals. The agency leased additional apartments on a three-year basis to temporarily shelter these victims and to build shelter capacity for future victims.

All 30 victims identified in 2017 received care services. Foreign victims who decided to assist police in prosecuting trafficking cases were entitled to a renewable six-month temporary residence permit, police protection, legal assistance, and the right to work. The government provided these temporary residence permits to the majority of the trafficking victims.

But NGOs reported a lack of coordination among the police, the national welfare agency, and immigration officials negatively affected victims’ ability to obtain residency and work permits, especially for victims of forced labour.

The police vice squad, responsible for trafficking, conducted seven investigations, compared to three in 2016. The government initiated the prosecution of one Maltese national and one Chinese national, both for forced prostitution, compared to four individuals prosecuted in 2016. The government has not obtained a trafficking conviction since early 2012.

But the government increased efforts to train police and prosecutors, brining in a British NGO to provide training to law enforcement personnel on child trafficking investigations.

Still, the slow pace of court proceedings continued to hamper prosecutions relying on victims to provide testimony in court. Although one police officer position is dedicated to trafficking crimes, civil society reported turnover within the position hindered effectiveness.

Maltese government's reaction:

Government says it has stepped up fight against human trafficking, but more needs to be done