More needed in fighting human traffic

TIRANA, March 30 – Despite successes Albanian authorities were convinced that fighting human trafficking needs more efforts, capacities and funding.
Interior, foreign, Labor ministries and the National Coalition of Anti-Traffic Shelters held a conference in the capital Tirana to discuss better coordination of their efforts in fighting such a calamity.
Authorities have shown their determination in fighting human trafficking, including their new laws which confiscate the properties of the people involved.
They have also improved the witness protection law and increased efforts and financing of the rehabilitation centers.
They say all such measures have decreased the number of the vulnerable children to trafficking. Last year they had registered 7,000 endangered children.
They also say Albania is not any more on the map of countries considered as a transit point for human trafficking.
There is no data that is supported by different sources concerning the number of trafficked people.
The authorities usually tend to lower that number while the non-governmental organizations tend to increase it.
It is important that all levels of the society are involved in fighting such a phenomenon as it is present in post-communist Albania
Much remains to be done, Interior Minister Lulzim Basha said, adding more was needed in preventing the phenomenon and protecting the traffic victims, especially children.