Warning on people traffickers

Ireland is likely to be at particular risk of being targeted by people traffickers, Europol's First Officer in Trafficking has said.

Steve Harvey also said trafficking was the one crime that must be combated with a human rights focus rather than a law enforcement one.

Addressing senior members of the Garda National Immigration Bureau as well as representatives from the Attorney General's office and the Chief State Solicitor's office, he said: "The victim must be at the top of the list. In every case the victim of trafficking should be referred to all the agencies that have an obligation to support the victim. I'm talking about NGOs, the health authorities, social services.

"I cannot emphasise enough that the only way to really stop this bloody awful crime is for it to be a multi-agency approach."

Addressing a meeting of the Justice and Home Affairs Committee of the Institute of European Affairs, he was asked about the impact of a country not having an explicit law against trafficking.

"The trafficker will always look to operate in a low-risk environment," he said. "If the response of the law enforcement agency is restricted because of a lack of legislation, that has to make a definite contribution to the trafficker deciding where to operate."

The Republic does not have legislation defining trafficking as a crime, though a Bill is expected on the issue before the end of the year. While he did not name the Republic explicitly, Mr Harvey said best practice from across Europe recommended that victims be provided with supports including safe accommodation and a reflection period to give them time to decide whether to give evidence in a prosecution.

"The best evidence and intelligence we can get is from the victim. We must ensure the best evidence is supported and packaged from day one.

"The needs of the victim and not the needs of the cops have to be the priority. Yes it would be wonderful if she would agree to go through the journey of confronting the perpetrator in court, but that is not the priority. It goes against the grain for the police, I know."

He said training and awareness were vital for police officers of all ranks on the issue. "We want to see an automated default response. If a police officer is confronted with illegally trafficked drugs or firearms he'll know how to respond. If they are confronted with a trafficking victim they should also have a default response: 'This is a victim of trafficking. I know what to do, know who to call, know I'm trained to interview them or know that I shouldn't even think of interviewing them because of the reflection period.'"

A contributor from the Garda immigration bureau said a new module on trafficking was being introduced in Templemore from July 3rd, initially to 50 members of the force who would then go to regional divisions to deliver the same training.

Mr Harvey and his colleagues are due to hold a private meeting with members of the Garda immigration bureau this morning.