Rabat – The Spanish Police and Civil Guard released 1,180 victims of human trafficking for the purposes of labor or sexual exploitation in 2022. Among those victims were Moroccan males between the ages of 23 and 32.
El Pais reported on Monday that Spain’s police and civil guard arrested 693 people and dismantled 78 criminal groups involved in forced labor or sexual exploitation.
The Spanish police released 89 victims of trafficking networks linked with labor exploitation, four of whom were minors, the report detailed.
The majority of the victims were males aged between 23-32, hailing from countries such as Morocco, Ukraine, Romania, Colombia, and Senegal, suggesting that the police have identified a pattern of victimization based on age, gender, and nationality.
Meanwhile, 516 people were rescued from forced labor without the involvement of human trafficking networks, one of whom was a minor, and the majority were Moroccan, Colombian, or Senegalese men aged 23 to 27.
The Spanish authorities also intervened in two cases of forced criminal exploitation, resulting in the release of nine victims, six of whom were minors, from Morocco and Vietnam.
Of the 1,180 released victims, 229 had been recruited by criminal human trafficking networks, while 951 had been subjected to sexual exploitation and forced labor under conditions that restricted or violated their rights.
While the number of victims is concerning, the rescue of these individuals demonstrates that law enforcement is taking effective measures to identify and rescue those who have been exploited.
Spain is a destination country for migrants, many of whom come from Africa, Latin America, and Eastern Europe. Some of these migrants are victims of human trafficking for the purposes of forced labor and sexual exploitation.
Undocumented or irregular migrants are considered more susceptible to exploitation because they may be afraid to report abuse or seek assistance from the police.
The Spanish government has in recent years reaffirmed its commitment to efforts seeking to eradicate immigration and human trafficking. In October 2022, Spain granted Morocco €30 million in aid funding to help the North African country combat human trafficking and irregular migration.
Read also: Irregular Migration: Spain to Grant Morocco €30 Million
