Support victims of human trafficking in Serbia

Besides the direct victim assistance, the important function of ASTRA SOS Hotline is prevention of human trafficking and violation of workers right.

More and more citizens are contacting ASTRA on different and suspicious job offers for work in Germany, Slovakia, Czech, Croatia, Slovenia, China. Based on these calls, ASTRA has sent many written notifications to the labour inspectorate in order to check work of the agencies for mediation in employment and business entities, portals and Facebook page which are advertising job offers abroad. In many cases, these mediators were unregistered, and based on ASTRA warnings, Market Inspectorate and the Ministry of Labour, Employment, Veteran and Social Police started a procedure before the misdemeanor courts against these companies for violation of the Law.

Recently, ASTRA SOS Hotline received calls from two workers who complained against a local agency offering allegedly legit job abroad to a larger group of workers from Serbia. However, due to the difficult and hazardous working conditions, without any protection and poor accommodation, workers have developed serious health problems. They contacted the employer, but unfortunately, they were not provided with health care. Wanting to return, they asked for their salaries, but the employer threatened them with migration service and detention if they do not leave in 24 hours.

ASTRA informed immediately the Serbian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to take measures with relevant diplo-consular institutions regarding the safe return of workers, as well as to organize/provide adequate services to the workers upon their safe return.  Shortly after returning to the country, workers gave a statement to the police and prosecution, as well as to the market inspection. They were pleasantly surprised and grateful that all relevant sectors with their services were immediately and jointly reacting to the problem.

This case is a good practice that shows that without closer inter-state cooperation and cooperation with civil society organization there is no effective fight against trafficking in human beings for the purpose of labor exploitation or degradation of workers’ rights. ASTRA is very proud that after long and consistent advocacy activities, such joint cooperation is happening more often. The ultimate goal is to provide quick and adequate support to victims and with valuable support of many people who cares and help us with funding of these lifesaving activities, we will continue our fight against trafficking and labour exploitation. 

March was an important month for us, as we launched the portal 'Labour exploitation is real' https://www.radnaeksploatacijajestvarna.com/  . This site is created as an initiative for informing and protecting young people and citizens generally from abuse and labor exploitation. Another purpose of this portal is to help in a situation where the rights of workers are violated or if workers were exploited. We invite you to take a look and to contact us if you have questions. We will be happy to advise you, to check your contracts and help you, as exploitation is not a story – it is real and it can happen to all of us!

Ana contacted ASTRA in July 2018 and ask for help. Her story is shocking: she was still a girl of 13 when she was sold for the first time by her family for a forced marriage, to a family in a foreign country. She was in addition exposed to sexual abuse, psychological and physical violence by other family members and their friends, and during the several years of exploitation, she was forced into begging. She was never able and too frightened to talk to anyone. She was ashamed and thought that she is worthless: „...I  thought that I was guilty and that I deserve it, it became my way of life,  didn’t know for any better...“

 After several years of starving and fighting for bare life, she managed by the occasion to escape the torture she had gone through. She met Bojan, a young man who was also a victim of trafficking. Together, Ana and Bojan, becoming her husband, managed to escape. They returned with their children in Serbia. But this was not the end of their suffers.

 Upon return, Ana reported her case to the police. When she and her husband tried to apply for assistance at the social welfare center, an institution in charge of providing long-term assistance to victims, they were thrown out of the office! And then Ana found ASTRA.

 ASTRA immediately provided food and hygiene packages and clothes to Ana’s family and their children. In addition, ASTRA then contacted local Red Cross to arrange other assistance such as soup kitchen. Another obstacle – Red Cross was not permitted to include Ana’s family on the list of beneficiaries without the assessment of the social welfare center! ASTRA’s case manager complained to the National Center for Protection of Victims of Trafficking, and the local center for social welfare finally scheduled an assessment meeting with Ana’s family. When they came, they were told to come the day after. ASTRA’s case manager then accompanied Ana’s family to the social welfare center in order to prevent further victimization and maltreatment. In spite of the interventions from a Center for human trafficking victims protection, the social welfare center did not contact Ana’s family for several months! Finally, Ana got one-time assistance -it took six almost months from the first contact with the public social welfare center until this family received even one-time assistance and entitled long-term financial assistance. 

Half a year without an answer and any assistance by a public institution – imagine how long is this period for someone who has survived human trafficking and who is not yet integrated into society, who is unemployed and have no basic means for the living! What is the possibility of reintegration of victims of trafficking in human beings, when the social protection system does not recognize the urgency of the situation or when the basic needs of the users are not met?  Ana told us: „ I cannot think of what could happen to my children if you didn’t help us. We were starving. You returned my hope for life.“  This is motivation to us to continue our work and never to give up! Each little step in this process, every little victory and every assistance is important to change someone life for the better!

 Many nice things happened in the previous period:

• We are proud to tell you that ASTRA and her employee, Ms Ivana Radovic received the US State Department Trafficking in Person (TIP) report as the Hero of 2018!. This is the first time that this award comes to Serbia, and we would like to thank you all for your support!
• On the national level, ASTRA SOS Hotline received the license for the National SOS phone from the Ministry of Labor, Employment, Veterans' Affairs and Social Affairs of Serbia. This is the first and the only licensed, free of charge Hotline for victims of trafficking in Serbia. A little shadow on this success is that the Hotline expenses will not be supported by the national budget for a while.
• In cooperation with partners in local communities and artists, ASTRA organized the "Painting the Freedom" campaign aimed at informing as many citizens in local communities, about various forms of trafficking in human beings that everyone can be exposed to. Art caravan went to the cities of Gornji Milanovac, Zrenjanin, Cacak, Kraljevo and Belgrade.
• ASTRA organized a seminar "Trafficking in human beings - a complex trauma. A review of the complex relationship between victims (survivors) and caregivers" where 10 direct collaborators, were exchanging experience and examples of practice related to working with clients who survived trafficking, discussed on the various and innovative ways of supporting victims and on the prevention of secondary victimization. It was important to list the good practices and see that ASTRA initiative led to some positive steps in victim’s protection and respect of their right. Bad practices, on the other hand, are reminding us what else in the system does not work and what we can do to find a solution.

 Without your support, many Ana and Bojan would not succeed! Thank you for being a part of the change, making a life better for someone who survives human trafficking. Stay with ASTRA and follow our actions!

Links:

• The video about Imagining freedom action
• Redesign of the ASTRA's video Naked facts