The European Parliament approved the reform with 563 votes in favour, 7 against and 17 abstentions, but it still needs the formal approval of the Twenty-Seven and after its publication, governments have two years to transfer it to the respective national legislations.
Last Tuesday, the European Parliament’s plenary session approved the agreement between institutions last January, which will classify forced marriage, illegal adoption and surrogacy “for exploitative purposes” as crimes of human trafficking, that is, when the woman is forced or tricked into becoming pregnant.
The reform, adopted by 563 votes in favor, 7 against and 17 abstentions by the plenary meeting in Strasbourg (France), still needs the formal approval of the Twenty-Seven and after its publication the governments two years to transfer it to the respective state legislatures.
The new rules aim to provide judicial and police authorities with stronger tools to investigate and prosecute new forms of exploitation, including those taking place on the internet.
One of the speakers, Unidas Podemos member María Eugenia Rodríguez Palop, emphasized that human trafficking becomes ‘more sophisticated’ while the means to combat it are ‘rudimentary’. For this reason, the MEP believes, the reform will help “quickly locate, protect and support victims”.
Brussels presented in December 2022 This revision of common standards should strengthen the fight against sexual and labor exploitation of people and adapt a regulation that is more than twenty years old to current realities.
Together with the new definitions of the crime, another key to the new standard is that clients who contract prostitution services with a person, despite being aware that it is a person, will be criminally prosecuted in all states of the European Union if victim of human trafficking.
In this context, the European Parliament defended during the negotiations that “surrogacy for reproductive exploitation in the context of human trafficking” should also be pursued.or addresses the general problem of ‘surrogacy’ but rather focuses on the crime when it results from the ‘exploitation’ of women.
Authorities should also ensure that victims of human trafficking who are also in need of international protection receive adequate support, advice and protection to ensure that their right to asylum is respected.
Source: EITB
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
