According to a report that Lusa had access to today, the SEF noted 32 victims of human trafficking in Portugal last year, with labor exploitation continuing to rise.
The Immigration, Borders and Asylum (RIFA) Report with 2022 data indicates that the Aliens and Border Protection Service (SEF) reported 32 human trafficking-related victims, 22 fewer than in 2021, which is more total Colombians (7), Brazilian (5), Guinean and Moldovan (4), Timorese and Ukrainian (3).
The SEF notes that for the first time, victims of Timorese nationality have been identified, as well as suspected individuals of Timorese nationality in the trafficking of these potential victims.
According to the report, “in 2022, the crime of human trafficking related to labor exploitation appears to have stood out significantly from all other aspects of exploitation, not only in the protocols of new investigations launched by the SEF, but in all others sent by the prosecutor’s office.”
In addition to the 26 victims of human trafficking reported as labor exploitation, SEF identified three victims of sexual exploitation last year.
Last year, the Aliens and Border Guard Service also recorded 23 crimes of human trafficking out of a total of 918 crimes related to migration phenomena, of which the most significant are falsification of documents (625) and aiding illegal immigration (101).
The report also notes that the SEF recorded a 126.9% increase in document forgery detection compared to 2021, with a total of 910 fake IDs, travel and residence documents.
The passport was the most fraudulently used document in 2022, and most of them were found when leaving the country at air border posts, especially at the Lisbon airport.
RIFA also notes an upward trend (+198.2%) in passenger control at air and sea borders last year, to a total of 19,485,606 people, as well as in the number of controlled flights (+63.6%).
The SEF states that the number of passengers who passed control at air borders increased last year by 198%, amounting to 16,976,524 passengers, as well as at sea borders, where 2,509,082 people were controlled (+200%).
This body justifies this “surge” by the resumption of growth in border movements, mainly due to tourism, and by the fact that 2021 was also marked by the covid-19 pandemic.
Last year, the number of refusals to enter Portugal for foreigners who do not meet the conditions established by law for their admission to the country also increased by 52.1%, focusing in the majority (72%) on Brazilian citizens (1262 people).
According to RIFA, all entry denials in Portugal took place at air border posts, with Lisbon airport standing out with 1,487 entry denials (85% of the total).
Author: Portuguese
Source: CM Jornal
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