A delegation of the Council of Europe’s Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (GRETA) carried out an evaluation visit to the Republic of Moldova on 22-26 April 2024, as part of the fourth evaluation round of the Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings.
This new evaluation round of monitoring the implementation of the Convention focuses 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.
Prior to the visit, the Moldovan authorities provided a reply to GRETA’s questionnaire for the fourth evaluation round. In addition to the new thematic focus, GRETA examined how the main recommendations made in its third evaluation report on the Republic of Moldova have been implemented.
During the visit, the GRETA delegation met representatives of the Directorate of Permanent Secretariats under the State Chancellery, which supports the work of the National Committee for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, the Ministry of Internal Affairs (including the Centre for Combating Trafficking in Persons, the General Inspectorate of the Border Police, the General Directorate for Migration, and the Cybercrime Investigation Directorate), the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection (including the State Labour Inspectorate and the National Employment Agency), the Ministry of Justice (including the Interdepartmental Commission for State Financial Compensation), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Education and Research. Meetings were also held with representatives of the General Prosecutor’s Office, the Prosecutor’s Office for Combating Organised Crime and Special Cases, the Superior Council of Magistrates, Chișinău District Court, the National Council for State-guaranteed Legal Aid, the National Institute for Justice, the National Administration of Penitentiaries, the Public Services Agency, the Diaspora Relations Bureau, the Agency for Interethnic Relations. Further, discussions were held with the Office of the Ombudsman.
At local and regional level, the GRETA delegation met representatives of the territorial anti-trafficking commissions in Chișinău, Cahul and Comrat.
The GRETA delegation held separate meetings with non-governmental organisations. It also met representatives of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), the International Organization for Migration (IOM), and the Delegation of the European Union in Chișinău.
The visit provided an opportunity to visit four state shelters which can accommodate victims of human trafficking (in Chișinău, Cahul and Hîncești), including the new shelter for men who are victims of human trafficking, the Regional Centre for Rehabilitation of Victims of Domestic Violence in Chirsova, an accommodation centre for children in difficulty in Cahul, and a temporary accommodation centre for refugees in Chișinău. The GRETA delegation also visited the Family Justice Centre for Victims of Domestic Violence and Sexual Offences, run by the Police in Chișinău.
The visit was carried out by Ms Svala Ísfeld Ólafsdóttir and Ms Dorothea Winkler, members of GRETA, who were accompanied by Mr Mesut Bedirhanoglu of the Secretariat of the Anti-trafficking Convention.
Following the visit, GRETA will prepare a draft report, which will be sent to the Moldovan authorities for comments. GRETA will subsequently adopt a final report, which will be made public.
