Although the growing demand for cheap labor in Portugal has created opportunities for migrant workers, it has also increased the risks of exploitation and human trafficking. A group of experts has called on Portuguese authorities to do more to tackle the problem.
Portugal has been trying to tackle the problem, but the Council of Europe group of experts on human trafficking (GRETA) says it needs to do more, especially when it comes to asylum seekers. From 2016 to 2020, there were more than 1,150 victims of such crimes in Portugal, according to a report from GRETA published this week. Most recently, the majority have come from India, and almost all have been subject to labor exploitation. These are just the known victims, the people who are able to escape or who feel that they can report that they have been trafficked.
Yet as GRETA's investigation revealed, among asylum seekers in Portugal, the number of reported cases of trafficking was zero, in spite of the fact that asylum claims are on the rise. "GRETA has some concerns about this lack of identification [of victims of trafficking among asylum seekers], says Daniela Ranalli, a member of the Group's secretariat.
Source: infomigrants.net