The Portuguese Association for Victims’ Assistance identified four cases of possible human trafficking among 30 requests for assistance received during World Youth Day (WYD), which took place in the first week of August in Lisbon.
According to information contained in the report of the Portuguese Association for the Support of Victims (APAV) on the protocol of cooperation with the World Youth Day Foundation, the association received 30 requests for assistance related to WYD.
Among the 30 requests for assistance, APAV identified four suspected cases of human trafficking that were allegedly “carried out by subconcessions of other companies contracted to work for WYD.”
“This situation, received after the end of WYD, was immediately reported to the judicial police for investigation,” APAV said.
30 requests for assistance came through both the Victim Helpline, which was open 24 hours a day in those days, and the APAV team on site.
“During the extension of the Victim Helpline, 45 calls were recorded,” six of which related to situations in the context of WYD, and the remaining 39 related to other situations, the report says.
On the other hand, the APAV team at WYD received a further 31 requests for assistance, “of which 24 related to situations that occurred in the context of WYD.”
“In short, APAV supported 30 situations in which requests for help were related to World Youth Day,” the victim support association said.
In 12 of these situations (40%) there were no crimes, on the other hand there were five cases of fraud (16.7%), four cases of theft (13.3%), three cases of sexual harassment (10%) and two cases. situations of coercion/harassment (6.7%), in addition to the remaining four cases of possible trafficking.
According to APAV, among the 30 requests for assistance, five concerned citizens of Portugal, 11 – citizens of other European countries, two – countries of Africa, six – South America, three – Asia, and there were also three cases where it was impossible to determine the nationality of the person.
The association adds that in response to 30 requests for assistance, more than 50 face-to-face, telephone or written consultations were held with the people assisted or with other relevant organizations.
It also states that mobile victim support teams in Santarem and Setúbal have not received any complaints.
APAV also reports that it is “expected that there may be more requests for support in the near future as victims do not always feel comfortable seeking help or even taking action immediately after being affected by crime or violence.”
For this reason, “communication channels established within this protocol remain open and available for additional support requests.”
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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