Child Trafficking in Europe

Box 3
Child TraffiCking daTa in gErManY: shEdding lighT on a hiddEn issuE 12
The German Federal Criminal Office has published
statistics on trafficking in human beings for sexual
exploitation since 1999. Data on victims are
disaggregated by age and nationality; additional
data are available on the modus operandi of
traffickers, trafficking routes, and some aspects of
assistance and repatriation. Initially these statistics
considered only foreign victims of trafficking
who had been identified in Germany. Since 2003,
however, the statistics have included data about
German nationals – adults and children – who
have been trafficked. The statistics are primarily
intended to support national law enforcement
in addressing human trafficking but are also an
invaluable source of information for researchers,
practitioners and policymakers. The statistical
reports note that there are a number of biases and
limitations of the data and analysis. This reveals
that systematic data collection on trafficking and
the comparability of data over several years are
major challenges, even at the national level. 13
Annual reports are published online in German
and English.
key statistics on internal child trafficking for
sexual exploitation 2003−2006:
registered child victims of trafficking
The number of children (aged 14-17) identified
as victims of trafficking for sexual exploitation in
Germany increased from 60 children in 2003 to
79 children in 2004. After 2004, there was a decrease
in the registered numbers of child victims of traffick-
ing, which may be related to the fact that statistics
included only cases concerning court proceedings
that had concluded during the year. Data registration
methods have been revised since 2005, to include
child trafficking victims aged 0−14. The registered
number of child victims of trafficking was 51 children
in 2005, and 62 children in 2006. Three children under
age 14 were identified in 2005.
internal child trafficking: Children of german
nationality
Among all children registered as victims of
trafficking in Germany, the number of children of
German nationality increased between 2003 and
2004, and then remained stable until 2006. But the
percentage of German children among all registered
child victims of trafficking increased during this
period: 14 children in 2003 (23 per cent), 26 children
in 2004 (33 per cent), 28 children in 2005 (55 per
cent) and 28 children in 2006 (45 per cent).
nationalities of registered child victims
of trafficking
Children of German nationality are by far the
largest group among the identified nationalities of
child victims of trafficking. The other predominant
nationalities of registered children – though in much
lower numbers than German children – are Bulgarian,
Polish, Romanian, Slovakian and Ukrainian.
Child vs. adult victims of trafficking
Among registered German victims of trafficking,
the percentage of children is considerably higher
than the percentage of child trafficking victims of
other nationalities: Among German nationals over
the period 2003–2006, the percentages ranged from
a low of 11 per cent (2003) to a high of 24 per cent
(2005). Among other nationalities, only 4 per cent
to 6 per cent of trafficking victims were children.
nationalities of perpetrators
Most of those involved in trafficking of German
nationals were found to be of German nationality.
The information available on the recruitment of
German victims indicates that pretended love
affairs and financial dependency play a role in the
recruitment process. (Also see Box 2, page 10.)
Trafficking patterns and routes 11