Sharon Keogan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I do not know what it is with Fine Gael and these free tickets. If its members are not looking for Kylie Minogue tickets, they are looking for Christy Moore tickets. The United Nations 16 days of activism begin on 25 November, which is International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, and end on 10 December, which is Human Rights Day. Human trafficking, which is a $150 billion global industry, is one of the greatest examples of violence against women and girls. In addition, millions of women and girls are forced to marry and to work in terrible conditions for little pay and no chance of education.

Ireland's Actions Against Trafficking in Human Beings, which is the submission of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, IHREC, to the Council of Europe Group of Experts on Action Against Trafficking in Human Beings, came out in October. According to that report, Ireland is both a destination and a transition country for trafficking in persons. Overall, more women than men are trafficked in Ireland, and almost all are migrants. Certain sectors, such as hospitality, fishing, agriculture and construction, may rely on a workforce of people in vulnerable situations. At the same time, victims of trafficking for sexual exploitation are almost exclusively migrant women. Trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation in Ireland is highly gendered. Based on the sources to date, it is established that at least 34 minors, mostly girls, have been trafficked in Ireland since 2013. The UN special rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children, including child prostitution, child pornography and other child sexual abuse material, visited Ireland in May 2018 and published a report on her visit in November 2019. In her report the rapporteur pointed to a lack of a dedicated and integrated strategy to respond to sexual violence against children. She further noted gaps in data gathering, barriers within the criminal justice system and the need for care and recovery services to be bolstered around the country in order that services available to child victims are timely and continuous. IHREC recommends that the State works with the Central Statistics Office to develop a methodology for collecting uniform and reliable data on the scale and different forms of sexual abuse and exploitation of children, in line with the recent recommendations of the UN special rapporteur's report on the sale and sexual exploitation of children. Perhaps we could get the Minister for Justice to come before the House for a debate on this very serious concern. It is awful to think that 34 children in our country have been trafficked since 2013.