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[13 June 2007] - Despite the enormous scale of trafficking of women and girls for forced prostitution in Greece, the government has failed to guarantee them protection and justice, said Amnesty International in a new report Many women and girls are denied protection in Greece because help is conditional upon them agreeing to testify against their traffickers, which they are often too terrified to do - meaning their traffickers escape justice. Thousands more are never identified as trafficked, are simply treated as 'illegals' and are even deported. Trafficking for forced prostitution in Greece is believed to have increased tenfold from 1990 to 1997. According to non-governmental organisations (NGOs), in 2000 alone, up to 90,000 people are believed to have been trafficked into Greece from central and eastern Europe, a large number of whom were women trafficked for prostitution. The new Amnesty International report, 'Greece: Uphold the rights of women and girls trafficked for sexual exploitation', looks at the scale of trafficking into Greece for forced prostitution, and points to gaps in Greek law and practice on trafficking that undermine the efforts to help trafficked women and girls. Case study It includes the case of 'Aleksa', who comes from eastern Europe. She was taken to Greece and forced into prostitution. She was detained by the Greek authorities because she did not have the necessary documents. Aleksa was offered protection by the Greek authorities only if she cooperated in bringing her traffickers to trial. Now she dreads testifying against them in court because the police protection she is offered is not adequate and she is afraid her attackers or their associates will come after her. Nicola Duckworth, Europe and Central Asia Programme Director at Amnesty International, said: "In the face of this modern form of slavery, continued protection for trafficked women is made conditional on their willingness to testify in court against their traffickers. Some are silenced by threats of reprisals from their traffickers. As a result, traffickers escape justice while their victims do not get assistance. "An effective witness protection programme is not on offer, nor is relocation to another country where trafficked women might escape reprisals." Governments are obliged to prevent, investigate and prosecute trafficking and to ensure protection to those who have been subjected to it. New laws not enough Although the Greek government has introduced a series of new laws since 2002, and has signed up to but not yet ratified the European Convention Against Trafficking, it has failed to correctly identify most trafficked women and only a few have received limited protection or other assistance. Ratification of the European Convention would require Greece to grant protection to victims without obliging them to agree to testify in court. The UK has also still to ratify this Convention. Further information
pdf: http://web.amnesty.org/library/index/eng/eur250022007