Regional Guidelines on the Identification of Trafficked Persons: A Manual for South-Eastern and Eastern Europe

Abstract

the ArIAdnE network against trafficking in human Beings in South-Eastern and Eastern Europe is a regional network of 16 nGos from 12 countries. the network was established in 2005 with its seat in Athens, Greece, and has already completed three regional projects registering the actual situation of human trafficking in participating countries, disseminating good practice models for prevention, assistance and protection and raising awareness against human trafficking in the region. the mission of the network is to combat human trafficking through close and coordinated cooperation among countries of origin, transit and destination. the final beneficiaries of ArIAdnE are the victims and potential victims of trafficking, the nGos that enrich their ability for coordinated joint action and various state and non-state actors active in the fight against human trafficking. despite serious efforts, trafficking in human beings remains a serious problem in South-Eastern and Eastern Europe, with a significant proportion of victims originating from the Balkans. Efforts to combat the phenomenon in the region should be targeted towards guaranteeing assistance and protection of victims in countries of origin, transit and destination. Although progress has been made in most countries in the field of legislation, especially for the criminalization of human trafficking, there is still room for improvement in victim identification. numerous reasons have prevented a systemic, unified and consistent international approach to the identification of trafficked persons, e.g. differing legal systems, difficulty in allocating resources, different levels of institutional organisation, varying priorities in combating human trafficking etc. the result is that the identification of trafficked persons is often conducted on an ad hoc basis, putting at risk the protection of the rights of victims and compromising counter-trafficking efforts. furthermore, the clear shift in priorities in combating trafficking in human beings, from a crime centred approach to a human rights approach, makes proper identification of victims more necessary and relevant than ever.