Asylum-migration nexus / Trafficking in persons

The Court held that once the authorities had become aware of a credible suspicion that an individual had been trafficked, he or she should be assessed by a qualified person. Any decision to prosecute should follow such an assessment, and while the decision would not necessarily be binding on a prosecutor, the prosecutor would need to have clear reasons for reaching a different conclusion. In the case of both V.C.L. and A.N., the Court found that despite the existence of credible suspicion that they had been trafficked, neither the police nor the prosecution service had referred them to a competent authority for assessment; although both cases were subsequently reviewed by the prosecution service, it disagreed with the conclusion of the competent authority without giving clear reasons capable of undermining the competent authority’s conclusions; and the Court of Appeal limited itself to addressing whether the decision to prosecute had been an abuse of process. The Court therefore found that there had been a violation of Article 4 in both applicants’ cases. The Court found that, although the authorities had made some accommodations to the applicants after their guilty verdicts, the lack of any assessment of whether the applicants had been victims of trafficking may have prevented them from securing important evidence capable of helping their defence. As such the proceedings had not been fair, leading to a violation of Article 6 § 1.

16 February 2021 | Judicial Body: Council of Europe: European Court of Human Rights | Legal Instrument: 1950 European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) | Topic(s): Survivors of trafficking / Persons at risk of trafficking - Trafficking in persons | Countries: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland - Viet Nam

21 January 2016 | Judicial Body: Council of Europe: European Court of Human Rights | Topic(s): Asylum-seekers - Prostitution / Commercial sex work - Survivors of trafficking / Persons at risk of trafficking - Trafficking in persons - Women-at-risk | Countries: Greece - Nigeria

31 July 2012 | Judicial Body: Council of Europe: European Court of Human Rights | Topic(s): Evidence (including age and language assessments / medico-legal reports) - Freedom from torture, inhuman and degrading treatment - Trafficking in persons | Countries: Bulgaria - Italy

29 November 2011 | Judicial Body: Council of Europe: European Court of Human Rights | Topic(s): Trafficking in persons | Countries: France - Nigeria

28 June 2011 | Judicial Body: Council of Europe: European Court of Human Rights | Topic(s): Smuggling of persons - Trafficking in persons - Unaccompanied / Separated children | Countries: Somalia

14 June 2011 | Judicial Body: Council of Europe: European Court of Human Rights | Topic(s): Trafficking in persons | Countries: Albania - United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

27 July 2010 | Judicial Body: Council of Europe: European Court of Human Rights | Topic(s): Arbitrary arrest and detention - Criminal justice - Immigration Detention - Right to liberty and security - Trafficking in persons | Countries: Algeria - Malta

7 January 2010 | Judicial Body: Council of Europe: European Court of Human Rights | Topic(s): Contemporary forms of slavery - Forced labour - Freedom from torture, inhuman and degrading treatment - Right to liberty and security - Right to life - Trafficking in persons | Countries: Russian Federation