EU adopt rules giving more bite to anti-human trafficking law

Admin I Monday, May 27, 2024

 

BRUSSELS – The Council of the European Union today adopted a directive that adds the exploitation of surrogacy, forced marriage and of illegal adoption as forms of exploitation covered by the EU’s anti-trafficking law.

The modification reflects the gravity, as well as the prevalence and the relevance of these forms of exploitation.

According to the new rules, knowingly using the service provided by a trafficking victim will now become a criminal offence that is punishable by effective, proportionate and dissuasive penalties.

The new law also strengthens prevention measures as well as support for and assistance to victims.

The addition of forced marriage, illegal adoption and the exploitation of surrogacy to the EU’s anti-trafficking law was much needed since these crimes of human trafficking needed to be tackled with the full force of our criminal code, Paul Van Tigchelt, Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Justice and the North Sea said.

These new types of exploitation will now be punishable by a maximum penalty of at least five years of imprisonment, or of at least ten years of imprisonment in case of aggravated offences.

The agreement includes a new aggravating circumstance to take into account the amplifying effects of the dissemination of exploitative material, such as the dissemination of visual content of sexual nature involving the victim, through information and communication technologies (ICT).

Legal persons, such as companies, will also face more severe sanctions, that is the exclusion from access to public funding and the withdrawal of permits and authorisations to pursue activities which have resulted in committing the offence.