Protection and Assistance to Victims of Human Trafficking in Serbia: Recent Developments
| Author | Biljana Simeunovic-Patic,Sanja Copic |
| Published date | 01 January 2010 |
| Date | 01 January 2010 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/1477370809347942 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
Article
Corresponding author:
Biljana Simeunovic-Patic, Institute for Criminological and Sociological Research, Gracanicka 18, Belgrade
11000, Serbia
Email: biljasp@gmail.com
Protection and Assistance to
Victims of Human Trafficking in
Serbia: Recent Developments
Biljana Simeunovic-Patic
Institute for Criminological and Sociological Research, Serbia
Sanja Copic
Institute for Criminological and Sociological Research and Victimology Society of Serbia, Serbia
Abstract
The paper reviews recent developments in the system of protection, assistance and support
of victims of human trafficking in Serbia. The establishment of the Agency for Co-ordination of
Protection of Victims of Trafficking in Human Beings in 2003, the issuing of the Instruction on
Conditions for Obtaining Temporary Residence Permit for Foreign Citizens – Victims of Trafficking
in Human Beings by the Minister of Interior in 2004, and the adoption of the Strategy to Combat
Trafficking in Human Beings in the Republic of Serbia in 2006 are important steps forward. Notable
improvement has been achieved in the protection of victims as injured parties/witnesses in
criminal proceedings. However, despite the respectable efforts made so far, further improvements
to the system and mechanisms of victim protection in Serbia are still needed, particularly in terms
of developing support for and protection of child victims.
Keywords
Assistance, Human Trafficking, Protection, Serbia, Victims.
Trafficking in human beings (THB), as correctly observed by some authors, ‘(re-)appeared
on the political agenda in Western Europe in the early 1990s, when the political transitions
in Eastern Europe, and the wars in the former Yugoslavia, led to mass migration of persons
from Eastern Europe and the Balkans’ (Tyldum et al. 2005: 9). The collapse of commu-
nism marked the beginning of social, political and economic transition in Europe
(Hajdinjak 2002). This collapse resulted in the development of political pluralism, civil
society and a market economy, as Central and East European countries became more open
European Journal of Criminology
7(1) 45–60
© The Author(s) 2010
Reprints and permission: http://www.
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DOI: 10.1177/1477370809347942
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46 European Journal of Criminology 7(1)
to western influences (Surtees 2008). The process was interrupted by civil wars, ethnic
conflicts, profound socioeconomic crises and forced migration, which affected all the
countries of the former Eastern bloc. Consistent with the theoretical model of the impact
of ‘push and pull’ factors, these impoverished, politically unstable countries, directly
affected by wars or other conflicts, became suitable breeding grounds for the recruitment
of new victims of human trafficking (Tyldum et al. 2005; Antonopoulos and Winterdyk
2006; EUROPOL 2006).
In the late 1980s, THB developed in two ways. Owing to political factors and the
opening of state borders, there was a significant flow of trafficked victims from East and
Central European countries to the West (Lehti 2003; Surtees 2008). During the initial
sociopolitical transitions, human traffickers benefited from the restrictive immigration
policies in western countries, which hindered legal entry (Salt 2000; Mrvic-Petrovic
2002). During the 1990s, a second major wave of human trafficking emerged, establish-
ing a ‘market’ first in the Balkan countries, then in other South East European countries:
Romania, Moldova, Bulgaria and Albania (IOM 2004; Morawska 2007).
By the end of 1990s, the Balkans had increasingly become the destination for traffick-
ing victims, not simply a transit zone. This situation benefited from a lack of adequate
legal regulations, corruption, the war and militarizing of the region, and the heavy con-
centration of foreign (peacekeeping) forces in Kosovo and in Bosnia and Herzegovina
(Lindstrom 2004). The presence of foreign forces saw an increased demand for sex work
services, a pull factor. The demand resulted in a large number of victims, primarily from
the East European countries, ending up in forced prostitution. ‘Push’ factors for a number
of victims from the Balkans included poverty, war, masses of refugees and unemploy-
ment. Many victims ended up in trafficking rings in the West (Nikolic-Ristanovic 2002).
Because of its geographical position, Serbia, a part of the Balkan Peninsula, became
an important transit zone: a crossroads of routes and home to a variety of forms of illegal
trafficking, including human trafficking (Hajdinjak 2002). At the beginning of the 1990s,
Serbia was predominantly a destination country, particularly for women from the former
Soviet Union (Limanowska 2002). During the 1990s, under a worsening economic situ-
ation, Serbia gradually turned into a country of transit, but still received foreign victims
(Nikolic-Ristanovic et al. 2004; Surtees 2008). Finally, there are indications that Serbia
is becoming a country of origin for either transnational or internal trafficking (Surtees
2005, 2008; US Department of State 2008).
In the late 1990s, THB came to the attention of Serbian non-governmental organiza-
tions (NGOs), which started to develop a protection, assistance and support system for
trafficked persons. After political changes in 2000, numerous anti-trafficking initiatives
and campaigns were launched as a result of pressure from the international organizations
active in the field of anti-trafficking activities in the Balkans (Lindstrom 2004). NGOs
and international organizations facilitated the development of support services, initiatives
for the establishment of a cooperative framework of key governmental and non-govern-
mental actors, and the implementation of a legal framework in line with international
standards, known as the 3Ps – prosecution, protection and prevention.
Upon the ratification of the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized
Crime and the United Nations Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in
Persons, especially Women and Children in 2001 (the UN Anti-Trafficking Protocol),
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