The European Crime Prevention Award (ECPA) and Best Practice Conference (BPC) will focus on the trafficking in human beings for the purpose of labour exploitation and other kinds of exploitation.

At a conference today, the European Commission proposed new legislation to prevent and fight migrant smuggling and also launched a call to action for a Global Alliance to Counter Migrant Smuggling.

For the EU Anti-Trafficking Day, the European Commission is launching an awareness-raising campaign to inform citizens on the reality of this crime. The European Commission invites every citizen to help raise awareness by becoming part of the ‘End human trafficking. Break the invisible chain’ campaign. 

On the occasion of the European Anti Trafficking Day (on 18 October), PAG-ASA organizes the second Human trafficking awareness week in Brussels! A series of events from 16 to 20 October will give you the opportunity to learn about the issue, better understand its impact on victims and gain insight into the Belgian protection procedure.

As part of an investigation into acts of trafficking in human beings, 30 brothels in the northern district of Brussels have been placed under judicial seal. 25 people were subject to judicial arrest and 23 others were administratively deprived of their liberty.

Today, the Minister of Justice, Mr. Vincent Van Quickenborne, officially launched the campaign in Liège. On this occasion, he inaugurated the new telephone number - 078 055 800 - of the Belgian helpline for victims of human trafficking.

With this awareness campaign entitled "Working together in the fight against human smuggling – Help save lives!", the Police want to encourage both nautical equipment dealers and citizens to report suspicious purchases or movements on the beach to the police via 112, via the 112 app or directly via the 101. 

Today, in the Committee on Justice of the Belgian Chamber of Representatives, Minister Vincent Van Quickenborne announced that Mr. Klaus Vanhoutte, former director of Payoke and one of the experts of the Special Committee on Trafficking in Human Beings and People Smuggling, had been recruited and appointed as national coordinator for the fight against human trafficking and smuggling.

The special parliamentary Commission tasked to assess the Belgian legislation and policy on trafficking in and smuggling of human beings adopted today 100 recommendations dealing with various forms of exploitation such as economic exploitation, sexual exploitation, the exploitation of begging, forced criminality, illegal adoption, and forced marriage.

During a press conference at the maritime police in Ostend, the Minister of Justice, Vincent Van Quickenborne, said that the strong approach towards human smugglers has led to a 90% drop in transit migrants to the UK.

The UNODC Global Report on Trafficking in Persons 2022 was published today. It shows inter alia that climate change increases vulnerability to trafficking and that armed conflicts are another breeding ground for trafficking.

On 12 December 2018, the Belgian contact point of the EMN organized its annual asylum and migration policy event in which recent national and EU developments in the field of international protection, legal migration and integration and irregular migration, human trafficking and return were discussed. 

Europol launched a new report about child trafficking. It provides a comprehensive view on who the victims are and who the criminal networks are that trafficking the children in and into the EU. 

On the 31st of May and 1st of June, the Bulgarian Contact Point of the EMN - in the framework of the Bulgarian Presidency of the Council - organized the EMN Annual Conference. The conference was dedicated to  challenges and success factors in managing migration flows. 

Two United Nations agencies are joining forces to combat migrant smuggling. They organized an event centering on a Joint Platform on Countering Migrant Smuggling.

Today, the Belgian Minister of Home Affairs, the Belgian State Secretary for Asylum Policy and Migration met with the British Home Secretary in London to discuss the issue of transit migration.

Today, Frontex published its Risk Analysis for 2018, which concentrates on the scope of Frontex operational activities and, in particular, on irregular migration at the external borders of the EU and Schengen Associated Countries.