Activities of Gérard DEPREZ related to 2015/2118(INI)
Plenary speeches (1)
Preventing and combating trafficking in human beings (A8-0144/2016 - Catherine Bearder) FR
Amendments (18)
Amendment 12 #
Draft opinion
Recital A a (new)
Recital A a (new)
Aa. whereas under Directive 2011/36/EU the following intentional acts are punishable: the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or reception of persons, including the exchange or transfer of control over those persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation; whereas the own-initiative report on which this opinion is based is limited to an analysis of the implementation of Directive 2011/36/EU;
Amendment 13 #
Draft opinion
Recital A b (new)
Recital A b (new)
Ab. whereas trafficking in human beings is transnational in nature; whereas a European approach, both in monitoring the phenomenon and in coordinating responses to it, is needed in order to effectively tackle this type of organised crime;
Amendment 22 #
Draft opinion
Recital D a (new)
Recital D a (new)
Da. whereas the exploitation of others for sex shows should be considered trafficking in human beings;
Amendment 23 #
Draft opinion
Recital D b (new)
Recital D b (new)
Db. whereas new technologies and the internet can facilitate the recruitment of victims and the advertising and selling of services connected with trafficking in human beings on a global scale;
Amendment 50 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Calls on the Member States to establish asmake it a criminal offence theo knowingly use of trafficked services and exploitation; in accordance with Article 2(3) the term exploitation covers, as a minimum, sexual exploitation or the exploitation of the prostitution of others, forced labour or services (including begging, slavery and exploitation of criminal activities) and the removal of organs;
Amendment 58 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Stresses that the cumulative effect of different types of discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity makes LGBTI people particularly vulnerable to trafficking in human beings; calls on the Member States to address the unique needs of LGBTI people; calls on the Commission to promote the exchange of best practices in this regard;
Amendment 61 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 b (new)
Paragraph 2 b (new)
2b. Stresses that forced marriage can be seen as a form of trafficking in human beings if it contains an element of exploitation of the victim, and calls on all Member States to include this dimension; stresses that exploitation may be sexual (marital rape, forced prostitution and pornography) or economic (domestic work and forced begging), and that the ultimate aim of trafficking can be forced marriage (selling a victim as a spouse or entering a marriage under duress); stresses that it is difficult for the authorities to detect such trafficking as it takes place in the private sphere; calls on the Member States to provide appropriate refuge services for these victims; calls on the Commission to strengthen the exchange of best practices in this regard;
Amendment 64 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 c (new)
Paragraph 2 c (new)
2c. Is concerned at the growing phenomenon of sexual grooming; points out that the victims are often in a state of emotional dependence, which hinders investigative work as they are less easily identified as victims of trafficking in human beings and often refuse to testify against the person grooming them; calls on the Commission to strengthen the exchange of best practices in this regard; calls on the Member States to provide a specific refuge for these victims and to ensure that law enforcement and judicial services recognise their status as victims, in particular if they are minors, so as to avoid stigmatising them for ‘deviant behaviour’;
Amendment 66 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 d (new)
Paragraph 2 d (new)
2d. Stresses that many victims of sexual exploitation are drugged for the purpose of keeping them in a state of physical and psychological dependence; calls, therefore, on the Member States to provide specialised support programmes for these victims and to recognise this as an aggravating circumstance in their criminal justice response to trafficking in human beings;
Amendment 68 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 e (new)
Paragraph 2 e (new)
2e. Recalls that Regulation 2015/2219/EU on the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Training (CEPOL) provides for CEPOL to promote, in its training activities, common respect for, and understanding of, fundamental rights in law enforcement, such as the rights, support and protection of victims, including safeguarding the rights of victims of gender-based violence; stresses the importance of these provisions in the context of trafficking in human beings, given the vulnerability of the victims, and calls on CEPOL to take full account of this dimension in the development of all future training;
Amendment 76 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. CNotes that Directive 2011/36/EU prohibits the criminalisation of victims of trafficking in human beings; calls on the Commission to come forward with proposals that create consistency in EU legislation, to ensure that victims of THB are entitled to proper support and assistance; calls on the Commission to strengthen the exchange of best practices on protection of victims;
Amendment 81 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Calls on all Member States to effectively guarantee the rights of victims, in particular by providing access to legal aid, legal assistance and psychological and medical support, including the right to an abortion for victims of sexual exploitation; notes that Directive 2012/29/EU lays down minimum standards on the rights, support and protection of victims of crime and that the implementation of Directive 2011/36/EU should be analysed in the light of the provisions of Directive 2012/29/EU;
Amendment 84 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 b (new)
Paragraph 3 b (new)
3b. Calls on the Commission to assess the effectiveness of cooperation between the Member States and Europol in combating trafficking in human beings; stresses the importance of systematic exchange of data and of all Member States contributing to the European databases used for this purpose, including the Europol databases Focal Point Phoenix and Focal Point Twins; stresses the need for border guards and coast guards have access to Europol databases;
Amendment 87 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 c (new)
Paragraph 3 c (new)
3c. Calls on the Commission to investigate further, in the light of Directive 2011/36/EU, the role of the internet, social networks and new technologies in trafficking in human beings, in particular with regard to sexual exploitation on pornographic sites and sites offering online sex shows;
Amendment 89 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 d (new)
Paragraph 3 d (new)
3d. Calls on Europol and the Member States to strengthen their action against recruiters, whether via a proactive approach or on the basis of a victim’s testimony in accordance with Article 9 of Directive 2011/36/EU; stresses that recruiters use a variety of channels, including social networks and internet sites (online recruitment agencies); calls on the Commission to expand the mandate of Europol’s EU IRU (EU Internet Referral Unit) in the fight against trafficking in human beings;
Amendment 90 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 e (new)
Paragraph 3 e (new)
3e. Calls on the Commission to develop a privileged partnership with the major internet companies and to keep Parliament duly informed;
Amendment 93 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Calls for better implementation and monitoring of Article 8 of the directive, so as to ensure the non-prosecution and non- application of penalties to victims of THB, and emphasises that this includes the non- application of penalties for persons in forced prostitution and non-punishment for irregular entry or residence in countries of transit and destination;
Amendment 107 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Calls on the Commission to assess the need to review the mandate of the future European Public Prosecutor’s Office to include powers, once established, to tackle trafficking in beings;