Human Trafficking & Modern-day Slavery Poverty drives the unsuspecting poor into the
hands of traffickers Published
reports & articles from 2000 to 2025 gvnet.com/humantrafficking/Finland.htm
Finland is a transit
and destination country for women and girls trafficked from Russia, Estonia,
Lithuania, Latvia, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, the Caucasus, China, and
Thailand to and through Finland to France, Sweden, Italy, Canada, Spain, and
the United States for the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation. Finland
is a destination country for men and women trafficked from China, Pakistan,
and Bangladesh for the purpose of forced labor; victims are exploited in the
construction industry, restaurants, and as domestic servants. - U.S. State Dept Trafficking in
Persons Report, June, 2009 Check out a later country report here or a full TIP Report here |
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CAUTION: The following
links have been culled from the web to illuminate the situation in HOW TO USE THIS WEB-PAGE Students If you are looking
for material to use in a term-paper, you are advised to scan the postings on
this page and others to see which aspects of Human Trafficking are of
particular interest to you. Would you
like to write about Forced-Labor? Debt
Bondage? Prostitution? Forced Begging? Child Soldiers? Sale of Organs? etc. On the other
hand, you might choose to include precursors of trafficking such as poverty and hunger. There is a lot to
the subject of Trafficking. Scan other
countries as well. Draw comparisons
between activity in adjacent countries and/or regions. Meanwhile, check out some of the Term-Paper resources
that are available on-line. Teachers Check out some of
the Resources
for Teachers attached to this website. HELP for Victims Senior Officer Venla
Roth Emergency hotline ***
FEATURED ARTICLE *** Curbing Human
Trafficking news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/5103132.stm [accessed 24 January
2016] The Finnish
Parliament has approved new legislation aimed at curbing human trafficking in
the sex trade. Under the new law, a client of a prostitute could face six
months in prison if police and magistrates can prove the clients knew the
prostitute was forced to sell her services. ***
ARCHIVES *** 2020 Country
Reports on Human Rights Practices: Finland U.S. Dept of State Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor,
30 March 2021 www.state.gov/reports/2020-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices/finland/
[accessed 6 June
2021] PROHIBITION OF FORCED
OR COMPULSORY LABOR Men and women
working in the restaurant, cleaning, construction, and agriculture industries
were the most likely to face conditions of forced labor. The sexual services
sector, legal in certain circumstances, also saw incidences of trafficking
and forced labor. PROHIBITION OF CHILD
LABOR AND MINIMUM AGE FOR EMPLOYMENT The Ministry of
Economic Affairs and Employment effectively enforced child labor regulations.
There were no reports of children engaged in work outside the parameters
established by law. Freedom House
Country Report 2020 Edition freedomhouse.org/country/finland/freedom-world/2020 [accessed 23 July
2020] G4. DO INDIVIDUALS
ENJOY EQUALITY OF OPPORTUNITY AND FREEDOM FROM ECONOMIC EXPLOITATION? The authorities
generally uphold protections against exploitative working conditions. Asylum
seekers and migrants are most vulnerable to sex and labor trafficking.
According to the US State Department, the government actively prosecutes
trafficking offenses, and survivors have access to protection and assistance,
though alleged perpetrators often receive lighter charges and penalties due
to lack of specialized training for investigators. Minority Ombudsman:
Features of human trafficking in Roma begging yle Uutiset
News, Sweden, 17 June 2012 yle.fi/uutiset/minority_ombudsman_features_of_human_trafficking_in_roma_begging/6185105 [accessed 18 June
2012] According to the
Swedish-language daily Hufvudstadsbladet,
women Roma beggars in Helsinki have been seen turning over money to
apparently well-to-do men. According to the
paper, there have been incidents observed in which women Roma beggars have
been seen turning over money to well-dressed men driving expensive cars. In Biaudet's
view, these incidents present a classic picture of human trafficking. Helsinki police have long believed it
possible that that the street begging by foreign Roma in the city is tied to
human trafficking. Growing Number of
Human Trafficking Victims in Finnish Broadcasting
Company YLE News, October 7, 2010 www.yle.fi/uutiset/news/2010/10/growing_number_of_human_trafficking_victims_in_finland_2040697.html
[accessed 5 February
2011] A new study
challenges the belief that “The police
received a tip regarding a gardening company in Ostrobothnia. Ten Thai nationals
were working at the company for monthly salaries ranging between 200 and 290
euros. The workers were not allowed to leave the company premises, their
credit cards had been confiscated and many of them were going hungry.” Five Sentenced in
Human Trafficking Case Finnish Broadcasting
Company YLE News, December 9, 2008 gatesofvienna.blogspot.com/2008/12/finlandization.html [accessed 31 August
2011] [scroll down] Last summer the
group held an 18-year-old Kotka woman as their
prisoner for one week in south-east "The case was
unusual as the victim and the perpetrators knew each other and because all of
the events occurred within this country's borders," said Könönen. Finnish Broadcasting
Company YLE News, 2007-12-06 yle.fi/uutiset/finland_falls_short_in_helping_human_trafficking_victims/5811903 [accessed 29 August
2012] Police suspect some
Helsingin Sanomat,
Oct 10, 2007 www.hs.fi/english/print/1135230934102 [accessed 5 February
2011] [accessed 29 January
2018] Based on a detailed
investigation into the capital’s Thai massage businesses, the Helsinki Police
Department published its own report on Tuesday, confirming that sex services
are indeed generally offered at all Thai massage parlours
in the city. However, the
Helsinki Police Department did not find any evidence that would point to
human trafficking or professional operation. Hence there was no reason to
launch any preliminary investigations for the time being. Man remanded on
suspicion of aggravated human trafficking Helsingin Sanomat,
April 16, 2007 www.hs.fi/english/article/Man+remanded+on+suspicion+of+aggravated+human+trafficking/1135226601086 [accessed 5 February
2011] BORDER GUARD: VICTIM
THREATENED WITH VIOLENCE, AND PASSPORT TAKEN AWAY - The Finnish
Guard suspects that at least two men with an Indian background have forced
another Indian-born man to work without pay in Helsingin Sanomat,
April 12, 2007 www.hs.fi/english/print/1135226515923 [accessed 5 February
2011] migri.fi/en/residence-permit-for-a-victim-of-human-trafficking [accessed 5 February
2011] Finland's
Directorate of Immigration has granted a residence permit to a victim of
human trafficking. The purpose of the new type of residence permit is to help
victims of trafficking to disengage from the snares of traffickers, and to
fight trafficking more efficiently. Main defendant
unexpectedly admits to pimping in human trafficking trial Helsingin Sanomat,
Jan 9, 2007 www.hs.fi/english/article/Main+defendant+unexpectedly+admits+to+pimping+in+human+trafficking+trial/1135224176750 [accessed 5 February
2011] CHARGES
STEMMING FROM THE CASE
- The group is
suspected of having transported 15 Estonian women to Finnish Border
Guard holds leader of human trafficking ring Finnish News Agency
STT, 27 September 2006 -- Source: newsroom.finland.fi/stt/showarticle.asp?intNWSAID=13832&group=General [accessed 16 July
2013] The situation is
rare, for in past human trafficking cases Finnish authorities have been able
to bring to justice mostly only rank-and-file members. Lt Cdr Partanen said the trafficking of people from India to
Finland had grown to a huge scale in the summer, indicating the trafficking organisation might have been testing Finland as a transit
route. Key witness in
human trafficking case goes missing Helsingin Sanomat,
Jun 22, 2006 www.hs.fi/english/article/Key+witness+in+human+trafficking+case+goes+missing/1135220374479 [accessed 5 February
2011] shaan.typepad.com/shaanou/2006/06/key_witness_in_.html [accessed 27 April
2020] It is obvious that Viilip has not vanished on her own initiative, as she has
had a habit of contacting her family almost every day. Neither does she have
a lot of money with her. Moreover, she is reported not to have left the
country - at least not using her own name.
The police have also tried to trace her mobile phone usage - without
success so far. Working group
proposes system for helping victims of human trafficking Helsingin Sanomat,
June 15, 2006, www.hs.fi/english/article/Working+group+proposes+system+for+helping+victims+of+human+trafficking/1135220302817 [accessed 5 February
2011] A working group
established by the Ministry of Labour proposes that a system be set up in 13:48 Human
trafficking group had 1,000 customers in Finland –police Finnish News Agency
STT, May 30, 2006 uutiset.livejournal.com/18667.html [accessed 5 February
2011] [scroll down to
13:48] Finnish police believe
that as many as one thousand people availed themselves of services offered by
an organisation suspected of human trafficking.
According to a police statement Tuesday, the group is suspected of procuring
involving 15 women and 80,000 euro profits. Russian Officials
Surprised At Reports Of Human Trafficking Helsingin Sanomat,
16 March 2005 www.hs.fi/english/article/1101978846177 [accessed 5 February
2011] Fresh arrests at Vaalimaa border crossing - "The problem for the officials is that the illegal border crossings take place legally." He says that there are always people who will help in the acquisition of genuine travel documents. It is only after the borders are crossed that the activities become illegal. U.S. says human
trafficking still a problem Andris Straumanis,
Editor, Latvians Online, June 15, 2004 latviansonline.com/news/article/107/ [accessed 5 February
2011] latviansonline.com/us-says-human-trafficking-still-a-problem/ [accessed 27 April
2020] Women and children
from Latvia are trafficked for sexual exploitation to Finland, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Israel, Poland, Spain and the
United Kingdom, the report said. Sexual exploitation
of children rises in UN News Service, 6
May 2004 article.wn.com/view/2004/05/07/Sexual_Exploitation_of_Children_Rises_in_Gambia_Government_A/ [accessed 1
September 2014] Last year as many
as 100,000 tourists, mainly from Ensuring Human Rights
Protection in Countries of Destination: Breaking the Cycle of Trafficking [PDF] Conference Report,
Helsinki, 23-24 September 2004, compiled by the Organization for Security and
Co-operation in Europe OSCE's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human
Rights ODIHR, Warsaw Poland, 2005 www.humantrafficking.org/uploads/publications/ensuring_human_rights_osce.pdf [accessed 5 February
2011] www.osce.org/odihr/16201?download=true [accessed 18 September
2016] The conference took
place in Helsinki on 23-24 September 2004 and focused on the following
issues: • Protecting the
human rights of trafficked persons in countries of destination, with
particular attention paid to
identification; access to medical, psychological, and legal assistance;
reflection delays; and
residence permits; • National and
regional initiatives to improve victim protection in countries of
destination; • Implementation of
National Referral Mechanisms, i.e. models for co-operation between law enforcement and
civil society; and • Challenges and
opportunities regarding European and global instruments to strengthen the
rights of trafficked
persons. Helsingin Sanomat,
13.6.2003 www2.hs.fi/english/archive/news.asp?id=20030613IE2 [accessed 5 February
2011] The report
describes Finland as "a destination and transit country for women and
girls trafficked by organized crime syndicates into sexual exploitation,
including into enclosed prostitution camps in the northern part of the
country". Finland is the only
EU country to be placed in the second category, although Greece has handled
things in even more slovenly fashion and is in Tier 3. Finnish man faces charges
of human trafficking in Latvia Helsingin Sanomat,
19.2.2004 www2.hs.fi/english/archive/news.asp?id=20040219IE6 [accessed 5 February
2011] A Finnish man in
his 40s is suspected of human trafficking and pimping in Human trafficking
is not often encountered in the Nordic countries and for the time being the
Finnish penal code has no reference to this issue. However, this fault will
be corrected soon. The charges against
the man will be heard shortly and if found guilty he will be sentenced under
Latvian law. Any sentence is expected to be rather heavy - particularly as it
is suspected that some kind of pressure was used and an international
criminal organization was involved, and because one of the women was a minor
aged 17. Concluding Observations of the Committee on the Rights of the
Child (CRC) - 2005 UN Convention on the
Rights of the Child, 30-09-2005 sim.law.uu.nl/SIM/CaseLaw/uncom.nsf/0/e75b499842881be7c1257092002e4f76?OpenDocument [accessed 5 February
2011] www.refworld.org/docid/45377eab8.html [accessed 3 February
2019] [52] While
welcoming that recent amendments to the Penal Code introduced the crime of
trafficking in Finnish legislation, as well as the National Plan of Action
Combating the Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children of 2000 and the
National Plan of Action against Trafficking in Human Beings of 2005, the
Committee is concerned at the information that persons, including children,
continue to be trafficked to and through the country. The Protection
Project – Finland [PDF] The Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS),
The Johns Hopkins University www.protectionproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/Finland.pdf [accessed 24
February 2016] A Human Rights Report
on Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children ***
EARLIER EDITIONS OF SOME OF THE ABOVE *** 2017 Country
Reports on Human Rights Practices U.S. Dept of State Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and
Labor, 20 April 2018 www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/2017/eur/277163.htm [accessed 22 March
2019] www.state.gov/reports/2017-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices/finland/ [accessed 26 June
2019] PROHIBITION OF
FORCED OR COMPULSORY LABOR Men and women were
subjected to conditions of forced labor in the construction, restaurant,
agriculture, metal, and transport sectors and as cleaners, gardeners, and
domestic servants. PROHIBITION OF CHILD
LABOR AND MINIMUM AGE FOR EMPLOYMENT There were no
reports of children engaged in work outside the parameters established by
law. Human Rights
Reports » 2005 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices 2009-2017.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/2005/61647.htm [accessed 8 February
2020] TRAFFICKING
IN PERSONS
– Most trafficking involved women and girls from Some persons were
trafficked for labor, and most of these cases involved persons coerced into
restaurant work, in construction, and as maids. They were often forced to
work long hours for low pay, and were often reluctant to approach authorities
due to the cultural gap and fear of deportation or confinement. The government and
NGOs believed Russian organized crime syndicates to be the principle
traffickers of women and girls into the country. Although traffickers led
some of the women to believe that they would be employed as domestic servants
or waitresses, most were aware that they would be prostitutes. Economic
incentives for poor women seemed to play a larger role in trafficking than physical
coercion. Most trafficking victims entered the country with valid visas
obtained at Finnish consulates abroad. The Schengen Treaty, which allows
travelers already within EU borders to travel to any other EU country without
inspection, facilitated the transit of trafficked persons from All
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ARTICLES. Cite this webpage as: Patt,
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