Agency helped 4 women trafficked in Cork

An organisation dedicated to helping women affected by prostitution and trafficking says it dealt with four new suspected victims of trafficking in Cork last year.

Of 22 new referrals to Ruhama, four suspected victims of trafficking were located in Cork, according to its annual report released yesterday. The highest number was in Dublin where Ruhama helped nine women. 

The group saw numbers seeking help increase by 18 per cent last year. 

Overall the 200 women assisted by the group came from 36 different countries. Of the 22 referrals, 15 came from Nigeria, with two from Albania and one form Peru, Liberia, Brazil, South Africa and Romania. 

The number of new referrals of trafficking victims was slightly lower than last year, but chief executive Sarah Benson thinks the scale of the problem is greater.

“The changing methods of control used by traffickers are making it more difficult for authorities to identify the hard edge of trafficking,” she said.

“The over reliance on the immigration system to detect victims of trafficking and the fact that most victims are forced to make their own escape from traffickers, if they are to access help, results in a relatively low number of victims receiving assistance in Ireland.”