Human trafficking and the preventative measures taken by the European Union

Abstract

The thesis discusses the current issue of human trafficking within the European Union. Human trafficking is a human rights violation, which takes place in almost every country in the world and the efforts to combat the crime continue to develop, but can also be endangered considering the changing pace of the global politics.

The thesis dwells on the definitions and its expansions within the current legal documents, as well as analyses the case law and country narratives of the countries that statistically show the largest amount of human trafficking. The thesis also analyses the country compliance with the current European legal framework and the national measures established thereof, especially the Council of Europe Convention against Trafficking, the Directive 2011/36/EU and the Current European Union’s strategy to combat human trafficking. The thesis discusses the legal developments of the issue and to what the focus is put when trafficking cases arise – such focus includes the protection of the victims, the prosecution of the criminals, and the prevention of the further development of the crime. Additionally, as the legal documents suggest, a fourth P (partnership) must be ensured to efficiently address the violations seeing that this continues to be a trans-national crime. The thesis also addresses the crime in terms of human rights violations and the development of the definition as addressed in the case law by the European Court of Human Rights.

Furthermore, the thesis addresses the question – to what extent has the European Union managed to eradicate human trafficking? After analyzing the compliance of the national and international measures, the author adds further recommendations for the European Union and its Member States in fighting human trafficking and finally, draws conclusions of the findings.