Immigrant Council of Ireland Welcomes Commitment to Criminalise the Purchase of Sex
The Immigrant Council of Ireland welcomes the commitment by the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice, Frances Fitzgerald to bring forward the Sexual Offences Bill to criminalise the purchase of sex as a means of ending the demand for victims of human trafficking. The commitment was one of 65 detailed in the National Action Plan (NAP) to Prevent and Combat Human Trafficking in Ireland which was launched today (17.10.2016) in Dublin.
Speaking at the launch, Brian Killoran, CEO of the Immigrant Council of Ireland, said: “We welcome the Tánaiste’s decision to bring forward legislation to criminalise the purchase of sexual services. Through our work in the provision of legal advice and representation to victims of trafficking - primarily for sexual exploitation - we know that the prevalent profile of victims is female and a significant number of children are trafficked for sexual exploitation. This will send a message to those who choose to pay for sex and contribute to the exploitation of trafficking victims, that their behaviour is abhorrent and will no longer be tolerated.”
In her speech today, the Tánaiste recognised the important contribution that NGOs have made by working with the Department of Justice and Equality to develop their response to trafficking. As part of this work, the Immigrant Council of Ireland made a submission on the NAP last year and last week were part of a study visit to the UK with Department officials to look at their approach to victim identification.
Mr Killoran said: “In our submission on the NAP, we recommended ending the use of direct provision for accommodation of victims of trafficking for sexual exploitation among other recommendations on victim identification. The decision to review the formal identification process is a welcome first step but must be completed as speedily as possible. We hope the review will address the current failing of the identification process to identify EEA nationals, who make up the majority of victims as well as investigating emerging trends such as human trafficking involving exploitative sham marriages.
“The decision to proceed with the National Action Plan honours a commitment given by Government three-years ago and is an opportunity to ensure that the shortfalls in Irish laws, policies and procedures are corrected. If implemented in a timely way, the new measures will ensure that Ireland is not perceived as a soft target by the organised gangs which run prostitution and sex trafficking and that there is a sea change in the approach to victims which will put their needs to the fore.”
ENDS