Torture in [Bulgaria] [other countries]Human Trafficking in [Bulgaria] [other countries]Street Children in [Bulgaria] [other countries]Child Prostitution in [Bulgaria] [other countries] |
Human Trafficking & Modern-day Slavery In the early years
of the 21st Century gvnet.com/humantrafficking/Bulgaria.htm
Bulgaria is a source,
transit, and, to a lesser extent, a destination country for men, women, and
children from Ukraine, Moldova, and Romania trafficked to and through Bulgaria
to Germany, Belgium, France, Italy, Spain, Austria, Norway, the Czech
Republic, Poland, Greece, Turkey, and Macedonia for the purposes of
commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor. Ethnic Roma women and
children remain highly vulnerable to trafficking. Children are trafficked
within Bulgaria and to Greece and the United Kingdom for the purposes of
forced begging and forced petty theft. Around 15 percent of identified
trafficking victims in Bulgaria are children. Bulgarian women and some men are
trafficked internally, primarily to resort areas along the Black Sea coast
and in border towns with Greece, for the purposes of commercial sexual
exploitation and forced labor. - U.S.
State Dept Trafficking in Persons Report, June, 2009 [full country report] |
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CAUTION: The following
links have been culled from the web to illuminate the situation in ***
FEATURED ARTICLE *** Children from The Sofia Echo, Jun 28 2007 sofiaecho.com/2007/06/28/651263_children-from-bulgaria-victims-of-human-trafficking-most-often [accessed 24 January 2011] Bulgarian children
are most often the victims of trafficking and ***
ARCHIVES *** The Department of Labor’s 2004 Findings on
the Worst Forms of Child Labor www.dol.gov/ilab/media/reports/iclp/tda2004/bulgaria.htm [accessed 24 January 2011] CHILD
LABOR LAWS AND ENFORCEMENT - The Constitution prohibits forced labor. The Law on Combating Trafficking in Human
Beings, which entered into force in January 2004, includes measures for the
protection and assistance of child victims of trafficking, and created the
National Anti-Trafficking Commission to coordinate and construct policy on trafficking. Bulgarian law penalizes trafficking a minor
with 2 to 10 years imprisonment and fines. Inducement to prostitution,
which is often associated with trafficking, is punishable by 10 to 20 years
imprisonment, if the victim was a minor. Human Rights
Reports » 2005 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2005/61641.htm [accessed 24 January 2011] CHILDREN
– Widespread
poverty led many Romani children to turn to begging, prostitution, and petty
crime on the streets. There were reports of child smuggling rings paying
Romani women for babies that were later sold to couples in Western Europe.
Police launched 17 investigations in the Burgas and Peshtera areas in
connection with the reports, all of which were ongoing at year's end. TRAFFICKING
IN PERSONS
– Girls and young women were often approached by persons who gained their
trust, frequently other young women and acquaintances, who described
glamorous work opportunities abroad. Some were sold into bondage to
traffickers by relatives. Unaccompanied young women trying to cross the
border into Macedonia, Romania, or Turkey reportedly were at risk of being
abducted into trafficking. In larger cities, organized crime groups were
often responsible for trafficking, although they used various front companies
to pose as employment agencies, escort and intimate services businesses, or
tour operators. Small crime groups and freelance operators monopolized
trafficking in smaller cities and towns. According to AAF,
the process of transforming victims into prostitutes generally took place
before they left the country. Victims typically were taken to a large town,
where they were often kept for weeks, isolated, beaten, and subjected to
severe physical and psychological torture to make them more submissive before
they were transported to their destination points. Once the victims left the
country, their identity documents were routinely confiscated, and they found
themselves forced to work as prostitutes in cities across Europe. The victims
could be required to pay back heavy financial debts to the agency that helped
them depart the country, leaving them in indentured servitude. Traffickers
punished victims severely for acts of disobedience and threatened the
victims' families and family reputations to ensure compliance. Concluding Observations Of The Committee On
The Rights Of The Child (CRC) UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, 7
and 8 January 1997 www1.umn.edu/humanrts/crc/bulgaria1997.html [accessed 24 January 2011] [9] The Committee is concerned at the lack
of an integrated strategy on children as well as of a systematic mechanism to
monitor progress in all areas covered by the Convention, and in relation to
all groups of children in urban and rural areas, especially those affected by
the consequences of the economic transition. The Committee is also concerned
about the need to strengthen the State party's capacity to collect and
process data to evaluate progress achieved and to assess the impact of
policies adopted on children, in particular the most vulnerable groups of
children. Human Trafficking Scheme from Bulgaria
Busted in Greece Sofia News Agency, August 16, 2012 www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=142382 [accessed 17 August 2012] Police in Greece have
cracked a network for human trafficking from Bulgaria, in which Bulgarians
were forced to beg. The undisclosed
number of Bulgarians were held in an apartment in the central Greek city of
Larissa. The Bulgarians were
among the country's poor, and were lured with promises for work in
Greece. After that, they were
forcefully held, were made to beg in various European countries, and were
severely beaten at each attempt to escape. Greek police
discovered the network, after a 58-year-old male Bulgarian was hospitalized
after being abandoned outside the city following such a beating. Over One Billion Euros Per Year from Human
Trafficking for Bulgarian Mafia Bulgarian News Network, 4/7/2009 – Source
(restricted): www.bgnewsnet.com/story.php?lang=en&sid=23942 businesstravellers-org.web26.winsvr.net/Default.aspx?tabid=36&EntryID=1609 [accessed 24 January 2011] The annual profit from
human trafficking and prostitution for the Bulgarian mafia is over one
billion euros, a RiskMonitor report revealed on Tuesday. Every year the victims of human
trafficking in Bulgaria are around 10,000. The schemes for money laundry of
human trafficking profits include luxury boutiques, outlets and car
stores. It has also been revealed
that such criminals have started to invest in agriculture, where they could,
for example, file reports of producing far more than what they actually do,
thus laundering the money. According
to the report, 70 percent of the prostitutes in Belgium are of Bulgarian
origin. There is also a trend that has appeared recently - Bulgarian girls
are being trafficked to countries like the USA and South Africa. Sofia News Agency, December 4, 2007 www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=88170 [accessed 24 January 2011] Officials
have previously announced that the total number of people sentenced for human
trafficking for the first nine months of 2007 was 26. Bulgarian officials say legalizing
prostitution could spur human trafficking Associated Press AP, Sofia, October 9, 2007 At one time this article had been archived
and may possibly still be accessible [here]
[accessed 4 September 2011] Former foreign
minister Nadezhda Mihailova, whose Institute for Democracy and Stability in
Southeast Europe organized the conference last week, estimated that some
10,000 Bulgarian women are trafficked each year — mostly to Germany and the
Netherlands, where prostitution is legal. 10 000 Bulgarian Women Per Year Victims of
Human Trafficking Olga Yoncheva, news.bg, 05.10.2007 international.ibox.bg/news/id_867476283 [accessed 24 January 2011] Around 10 000 Bulgarian women per year become victims of trafficking
towards EU countries. For
the last two years, 32 organized criminal groups which deal with women
trafficking have been cracked down. 16 leaders have been caught. READING ROOM: Libby Gomersall, The Sofia Echo, Aug 13
2007 sofiaecho.com/2007/08/13/655260_reading-room-bulgarias-working-girls [accessed 24 January 2011] The dark side of prostitution
is not that it exists at all, but the fact that a pimp controls most girls
and that their exploitation is not just confined to roadside prostitution.
Bulgaria is one of the largest human traffickers in the world, providing
enslaved girls to brothels all over Europe. Currently, Bulgarian laws on
prostitution are unclear. Existing legislative provisions date back to before
1944. When communism came to Bulgaria, sleazy practices like this, along with
other such crimes against women like domestic violence, were considered to
exist solely in the Western world. Children from The Sofia Echo, Jun 28 2007 sofiaecho.com/2007/06/28/651263_children-from-bulgaria-victims-of-human-trafficking-most-often [accessed 24 January 2011] Bulgarian children
are most often the victims of trafficking and Shock human trafficking case Agence France-Presse AFP, www.iol.co.za/news/world/shock-human-trafficking-case-1.349584 [accessed 24 January 2011] Ten Bulgarians
involved in trafficking women to Between 2002 and
2005, the group transferred at least 105 Bulgarian girls to France and forced
them to work as prostitutes, Ivanova said. Bulgaria to extradite human trafficking
suspects to France Agence France-Presse AFP, www.expatica.lu/news/local_news/bulgaria-to-extradite-human-trafficking-suspects-38693_35294.html [accessed 24 January 2011] The five men were allegedly
part of an organised crime group involved in trafficking Bulgarian women to 80 human trafficking cases submitted to
National Security Service in 2006 www.focus-fen.net/index.php?id=n107358 [Last access date unavailable]] "Eighty cases
of trafficking in human beings from Bulgaria were submitted to the National
Security Service in 2006", NSS deputy director Rumen Georgiev said at a
press conference entitled “Action against Trafficking in Human Beings”, a
journalist of FOCUS News Agency reported. Twenty-two cases have already been
closed. “The number of human
trafficking cases is higher than the drug trafficking cases”, Georgiev
explained. Human Trafficking Epidemic In Make Way Partners, 27 Dec 2006 www.makewaypartners.org/Humantraffickingepidemicinbulgaria.htm [accessed 24 January 2011] Human trafficking
and drug smuggling were epidemic in Bulgaria, France Crash Human Trafficking
Channel Sofia News Agency, 2006 At one time this article had been archived
and may possibly still be accessible [here]
[accessed 4 September 2011] A channel for
traffic in people to Police in
Bulgaria's Russe and French Marseille acted in close cooperation in crushing
the channel. Six people were questioned in the Bulgarian city and 5 homes
were searched. A total of 20 cell phones, many personal belongings as well as
bank transfers documents were confiscated during the search. How the new Fagins are bringing child
slavery to Britain Olga Craig, Bojan Pancevski and David
Harrison, The Telegraph, 04/06/2006 [accessed 24 January 2011] Two years ago, when
she was 10, Dochka lost what was left of her innocence when she was sold to a
band of child traffickers by her mother and aunt in New arrests on charges of human trafficking
in Bulgaria The Sofia Echo, Jun 05 2006 sofiaecho.com/2006/06/05/642586_new-arrests-on-charges-of-human-trafficking-in-bulgaria [accessed 24 January 2011] The actions of
Bulgarian police were co-ordinated with Europe-Wide Human-Trafficking Ring Cracked Associated Press AP & Reuters, May 29,
2006 www.rferl.org/content/article/1068749.html [accessed 24 January 2011] Authorities across Corruption and Human Trafficking Hinder The Sofia Echo, May 17 2006 sofiaecho.com/2006/05/17/645186_corruption-and-human-trafficking-hinder-bulgarias-eu-entry [accessed 24 January 2011] According to the
article, the European Commission report from May 16 meant Revealed: kept in a dungeon ready to be
sold as slaves David Harrison in [accessed 24 January 2011] The women, aged 18 to 24, are from across eastern Europe, lured from Romania, Moldova, Ukraine and Bulgaria, with promises of good jobs as waitresses, au pairs and dancers. Instead, they have been forced into modern-day slavery in western Macedonia, locked in the dirty cellar and only summoned upstairs by their masters to perform sexual services for customers who are usually drunk and often violent. When they were found, the victims, some of whom had been "broken in" as prostitutes in other countries on the way to Macedonia, barely knew where they were. They had no idea what the future held but knew that it was beyond their control. Balkans Urged To Curb Trafficking Imogen Foulkes, BBC News, 31 March, 2005 news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4397497.stm [accessed 24 January 2011] Countries in Initiative to Help Fight Human Trafficking
in Three SEE Countries Robert Herschbach, Southeast European
Times, 05/04/05 www.setimes.com/cocoon/setimes/xhtml/en_GB/features/setimes/features/2005/04/05/feature-03?print=yes [accessed 24 January 2011] Atrocious Pimping Suspect Arrested In Sofia Sofia News Agency, Apr 29, 2005 www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=47227 [accessed 4 September 2011] At one time this article had been archived
and may possibly still be accessible [here]
A man suspected of kidnapping, abusing and forcing
women into prostitution has been arrested in The Protection Project - The www.protectionproject.org/human_rights_reports/report_documents/bulgaria.doc [accessed 2009] FORMS OF TRAFFICKING - According to a
recent study, among identified female victims of trafficking in Women are lured into
the industry through false job advertisements offering jobs as models,
dancers, and au pairs. Many of the girls recruited are orphans or come from
disadvantaged families, making them more vulnerable to the promises of
traffickers offering them work abroad.
Teenage girls are often kidnapped and, among the Roma minority,
frequently sold to traffickers by their families. – htcp Seduction, Sale
& Slavery: Trafficking In Women & Children For Sexual Exploitation In
Jonathan Martens, Maciej ‘Mac’ Pieczkowski,
Bernadette van Vuuren-Smyth, International Organization for Migration (IOM),
May 2003 At one time this article had been archived
and may possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 4 September 2011] EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - The major findings may be summarized as follows: Russian and Bulgarian mafias traffic Russian and other Eastern European women on South African visas fraudulently obtained in Moscow to upscale South African brothels. These Eastern European women are promised jobs as waitresses, dancers, strippers, and hostesses in South Africa, but are not told that they must pay a debt of US$2000 per month for six months or more as sex workers until they arrive in South Africa. If they refuse to cooperate, they and their families back at home are threatened with violence. Freedom House
Country Report - Political Rights: 2 Civil Liberties: 2 Status: Free 2009 Edition www.freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-world/2009/bulgaria [accessed 26 June 2012] Human Rights
Overview Human Rights Watch www.hrw.org/europecentral-asia/bulgaria [accessed 24 January 2011] Stop Violence Against Women – Country Page Liliya Sazonova, National VAW Monitor for [accessed 24 January 2011] Library of Congress Call Number DR55 .B724
1993 lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/bgtoc.html [accessed 24 January 2011] Miss Humanity Velina Nacheva, The Sofia Echo, Jan 15 2004 sofiaecho.com/2004/01/15/631113_miss-humanity [accessed 24 January 2011] Magi spends most of
her time in In conversations with children from orphanages and schools, Magi explains the dangers that children might encounter when talking to strangers who offer strange work opportunities. In response she is always greeted with much love and affection by the children in Blagoevgrad and said that these children do mean a lot to her. "They ask questions, share their dreams and are natural," she said. - htcp Face to Face Bulgaria FACE2FACE 2004-2006 At one time this article had been archived
and may possibly still be accessible [here]
[accessed 4 September 2011] The poor economy of a country is the main factor that makes these girls potential victims. They are trying to run away from poverty and to have a better future for them and for their families by accepting shady offers from unknown people and agencies. Once they choose this road, they rarely escape from this trap alive. It is proven that girls from orphanages and small towns and villages are most vulnerable because of uneducation and desire for quick earnings. Michael Cory Davis, Screenwriter of
Svetlana’s Journey film, based on true events American Chamber of Commerce in At one time this article had been archived
and may possibly still be accessible [here]
[accessed 4 September 2011] Many people are mis-educated about the forced prostitution industry, thinking that these young girls ask for this to happen to them, simply by their desire for money. In fact, many of the statistics show the initiation and involvement of young girls in this industry, comes from abductions, kidnappings, and out right lying by the sex peddlers. These peddlers use many tactics, usually finding girls in poor areas and promising them opportunities as secretaries, models, waitresses, and even schooling. Svetlana’s story is one of the thousands that pour into the office of Face to Face daily. Kosovo: Trafficked women and girls have
human rights BRAMA News, May 6, 2004 www.brama.com/news/press/2004/05/040506amnestyinternational.html [accessed 24 January 2011] Some 406 foreign
women were assisted by the IOM in Kosovo between December 2000 and December
2003. According to the IOM, 48 per cent of women who have entered its
repatriation program - enabling them to return to their home country -
originated from Moldova. Of the remainder, 21 per cent came from Romania, 14
per cent from Ukraine, six per cent
from Bulgaria, three per cent from Albania and the remainder from Russia
and Serbia proper. Susan Phillips, Z Magazine, June 2002 www.zcommunications.org/bulgaria-traffic-in-women-by-susan-phillips [accessed 24 January 2011] For young women
from small towns and smaller options, Minkova says they are often lured by
offers they find hard to resist. “They tell them, ‘you look great, you’re
very nice, I think you’d make a great baby-sitter,” says Minkova. Minkova
says that although some women go voluntarily, knowing they will be
prostitutes, none are prepared for the cruel working conditions. Few women
successfully escape from forced prostitution. But those who do, tell a grim
story. Both Human Rights Watch and Animus report of repeated rapes and
beatings by their captors. They are put through a process of psychological
torture designed to make them compliant towards, and dependent on, the pimp.
Traffickers confiscate their passports and papers. Often moved and sold, the
trafficked women become unaware of even the country in which they are
working. Former victims report being forced to work up to 20 hours a day.
They receive little, if any, payment and are told they are in debt to their
pimps. If they get pregnant, say the Animus volunteers, they are often left
by the side of a road. Of all the money that exchanges hands, the sex workers
themselves see little of it. All material
used herein reproduced under the fair use exception of 17 USC § 107 for
noncommercial, nonprofit, and educational use. PLEASE RESPECT COPYRIGHTS OF COMPONENT
ARTICLES. Cite this webpage as: Patt,
Prof. Martin, "Human Trafficking & Modern-day Slavery - |
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Torture in [Bulgaria] [other countries]Human Trafficking in [Bulgaria] [other countries]Street Children in [Bulgaria] [other countries]Child Prostitution in [Bulgaria] [other countries]