On the main square in Novi Sad, activists of the Association of Roma Novi Becej and Association of Women Vukovar on July 30th, 2024, marked the World Day against Human Trafficking with the public action. The action is the part of the project "Support to victims of human trafficking - strengthening the capacity of experts“, which is funded by the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Croatia unter the framework of cross-border cooperation.

According to EUROSTAT data, 63% of all identified victims of human trafficking are women, including girls, and the most frequent form of exploitation is sexual exploitation, which is a gender-specific crime and a violation of the human rights of women, including girls, and at the same time a threat to international peace and security. According to the data of the Ministry of Interior, 21 victims of human trafficking were identified in Croatia in 2023. Out of the 21 identified victims of human trafficking, 14 of them are women (66.6%), and 50% of them were sexually exploited. Half of the total number of identified women are girls.

According to data from the report of the Government's Center for the Protection of Victims of Human Trafficking, 168 new reports of human trafficking were recorded in Serbia in 2023, which is 30 more than a year earlier. Formally 66 victims of human trafficking were identified, which represents an increase of 6.5 percent compared to the 2022. The majority of identified victims are women, as much as 72 percent, which indicates that human trafficking has a component of gender-based violence. For the first time, sexual exploitation is not the most dominant form of human trafficking, but the most frequent form in 2023 was forced begging with a share of 29.3 percent, followed by labor exploitation 22.7 percent, sexual exploitation occurring in 20 percent of cases, forced marriage in 14.7 percent, and coercion to commit criminal acts in 13.3 percent of cases.

According to the United Nations, inequalities within and between countries, increasingly restrictive immigration policies and a growing demand for cheap labor are among the root causes of human trafficking. People facing poverty, violence and discrimination are more vulnerable to human trafficking.

With this action, we wanted to highlight this crime and show solidarity with the victims.

Each of us can become a victim!

Get informed, seek help and support!

☎️ Croatia Assoication of Women Vukovar phone no.: 032/ 421 -191

☎️ Serbia Association of Roma Novi Becej phone no: 063/ 819 4451