Bulgaria is one of the top European Union countries in terms of human trafficking, according to Bulgaria’s National Committee for the Fight against Human Trafficking.
The group’s Chief Secretary Antoaneta Vasileva told Bulgarian National Radio Monday that 541 trafficking victims were recorded in Bulgaria in 2011, 90 of them men.
According to EC, Bulgaria and Romania are the main European Union (EU) trafficking source states. The report also states that 76 percent of trafficking victims in the EU are sexually exploited, and 14 percent are forced to work against their will. Domestic servitude, forced begging and various criminal activities account for the rest.
In June EC adopted a new anti-human trafficking strategy, to improve identification and protection of trafficking victims in Europe. And in partnership with the Bureau of the Dutch Rapporteur on Trafficking in human beings, the Bulgarian Interior Ministry announced Tuesday a new anti-trafficking initative as well.