Malta's efforts to combat human trafficking insufficient, US report reveals

Tista' taqra bil-
Malta.

The US State Department's 2024 Human Trafficking Report placed Malta on the Tier 2 Watch List, highlighting significant gaps in the country's anti-trafficking efforts despite some progress.

Malta has established new units and hotlines to combat human trafficking, but faces a decline in investigations and prosecutions, insufficient training of judges and inadequate identification of victims, particularly among vulnerable populations such as migrants and asylum seekers.

The report criticises Malta for not stepping up its anti-trafficking efforts compared to previous years. The country launched nine new investigations in 2023, compared to 12 in 2022 and 16 in 2021. Prosecutions have also declined, with only two initiated in 2023 compared to six in 2022. Despite some efforts to create specialised units, there was only one conviction for labour trafficking in both 2022 and 2023.

Victim identification remains a critical weakness, with 18 victims identified in 2023, 6 officially and 12 as potential victims, compared to 14 in 2022. Over the past three years, no Maltese nationals or Maltese children have been identified as victim of trafficking.

To improve the identification and support of victims, the report underlines the importance of increased collaboration with civil society as well as better training of front-line agents. Furthermore, the lack of compensation or restitution for victims remains a significant gap.

Prevention efforts have seen a significant decrease in funding, with allocations falling from €300,000 in 2022 to €50,000 in 2023. This reduction has hampered the country's ability to effectively raise awareness and implement comprehensive control strategies. against trafficking.

Although Malta has made efforts to combat human trafficking, the U.S. report finds that much remains to be done in terms of law enforcement, victim assistance and overall government coordination.