Launched on 30 June 2023

 Focus: Vulnerabilities to human trafficking and measures taken by States Parties to prevent them, detect and support vulnerable victims, and punish the offenders, including a focus on the use of information and communication technology

GRETA decided that the fourth evaluation round of the Convention will focus on vulnerabilities to human trafficking and measures taken by States Parties to prevent them, detect and support vulnerable victims, and punish the offenders. This includes a focus on the use of information and communication technology (ICT), which brings structural changes to the way offenders operate and exacerbates existing vulnerabilities.

The concept of “vulnerability” appears in Articles 4 (definitions), 5 (prevention of trafficking in human beings) and 12 (assistance to victims) of the Convention. According to paragraph 83 of the Explanatory report to the Convention, “by abuse of a position of vulnerability is meant abuse of any situation in which the person involved has no real and acceptable alternative to submitting to the abuse. The vulnerability may be of any kind, whether physical, psychological, emotional, family-related, social or economic. The situation might, for example, involve insecurity or illegality of the victim’s administrative status, economic dependence or fragile health. In short, the situation can be any state of hardship in which a human being is impelled to accept being exploited. Persons abusing such a situation flagrantly infringe human rights and violate human dignity and integrity, which no one can validly renounce.” 

GRETA's questionnaire for the 4th evaluation round is structured as follows:

Part 1 – Addressing vulnerabilities to trafficking in human beings

I. Prevention (Articles 5, 6 and 7)

II. Identification of victims and protection of their rights (Articles 10, 11, 12, 14 and 16)

III. Investigation, prosecution, sanctions and measures (Articles 4, 18, 19, 23, 24, 27, 28 and 30)

Part II – Country-specific follow-up questions

Part III - Statistics on THB