Official flies to Dublin for talks against backdrop of inquiry into murder of Roma woman
AN INTERNATIONAL expert on human trafficking flies into Dublin for talks today as the horrific fate of Romanian teenager Marioara Rostas stokes concern for vulnerable foreigners in Ireland.
Maria Grazia Giammarinaro, the special representative on human trafficking for the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), will meet senior officials including Minister for Justice Alan Shatter and members of civil society groups.
Giammarinaro will offer advice on how the State can crack down harder on human trafficking and labour exploitation, and will encourage officials to make it easier for victims to remain in Ireland rather than send them home to countries where their personal safety could be threatened.
The talks will take place as gardaí investigate the murder of Rostas, who is believed to have been abducted while begging in central Dublin and kept prisoner and sexually assaulted for several days in a flat in the city before being shot dead and buried in the Wicklow mountains.
Her body was found in a shallow grave last week, just over two years after she was last seen alive. The 18-year-old had been in Ireland for only three weeks when she disappeared. She and her relatives had lived in a derelict house in Donabate with several other Roma families, and made money by begging in the city centre.
Though Rostas was not smuggled into the country, her fate highlights what Giammarinaro says is a need for authorities to combat not only human trafficking but labour exploitation and forced begging among vulnerable migrants to Ireland. "Very often trafficking occurs through informal channels – people from the same community who migrated a few years ago coming back to the village and saying 'Come with me, you can make a lot of money'," the Sicilian-born judge told The Irish Times.
“There is a particular social vulnerability of trafficked persons and traffickers take advantage of that, whether the victim is very young, from a dysfunctional family, from extreme poverty or has a very poor education.” Ireland has made the fight against human trafficking a priority of its year as chair of the OSCE, whose 56 member states include many from which trafficked people and irregular migrants originate, and also many to which they travel.
“All EU members are preferred destinations for people from a broad range of countries, including eastern Europe and Africa – particularly Nigeria – for those involved in sexual exploitation,” Giammarinaro said.
“A new trend involving Ireland is trafficking of people from Bangladesh and Pakistan for labour exploitation, particularly in agriculture, construction and hotels and restaurants.”
Ireland is taking up its OSCE role at a time when “the economic crisis exacerbates all the factors that lead to trafficking”, Giammarinaro warned.
“A lack of employment will be a ‘push’ factor for many people in poverty, and more will be ready to migrate in unsafe conditions – and in destination countries there will be more pressure to reduce workforce costs. The trend to increase exploitation of workers will only be worse in future.”
Giammarinaro said she will seek ways to help the Garda and social services to recognise and intervene in cases of trafficking and labour exploitation more quickly, and encourage changes to procedures that would allow more victims to be identified and receive prompt help.
She also argued that, while victims’ home countries should protect those who return from possible retribution and “retrafficking”, destination states like Ireland should also do more for those who take desperate measures to improve economic prospects for themselves and their families.
“Trafficked persons should be seen first and foremost as victims of human rights violations, and not just irregular migrants or as potential witnesses, as tools to help investigate and punish perpetrators,” Giammarinaro emphasized.
“A victim of trafficking should be assisted and supported – but not only that. An alternative for life is needed.
“When a person stays in a destination country for a while and can find a gainful job, I think this person should have an opportunity for social inclusion. I’m aware this is difficult and few countries allow it, but it is definitely something I will advocate in Ireland.”
