[ Country-by-Country Reports ]

BELGIUM (TIER 1)   [Extracted from U.S. State Dept Trafficking in Persons Report, June 2007]

Belgium is a transit and destination country for men, women and girls trafficked for the purposes of forced labor and commercial sexual exploitation. Trafficking for sexual exploitation is more prevalent than labor trafficking and the majority of victims are young women. Women and girls are trafficked for sexual exploitation to Belgium primarily from Nigeria, Albania, Bulgaria, Romania and People's Republic of China, and through Belgium to other European countries, such as the United Kingdom. Male victims are trafficked to Belgium for exploitative labor in restaurants, bars, sweatshops and construction sites. Increasingly, traffickers also force victims to beg in Belgium. In 2006, victim shelters in Belgium reported an increase in male victims and victims trafficked for forced labor.

The Government of Belgium fully complies with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking. The government continued its aggressive law enforcement approach and financed NGOs to provide victim assistance. Belgium expanded legal protections for victims in 2006. To further strengthen its response to trafficking, Belgium should consider allowing all victims who assist with law enforcement efforts against their traffickers to obtain residency status, regardless of the outcome of the prosecution. The government should also increase awareness-raising initiatives and improve efforts to collect precise trafficking law enforcement data.

Prosecution
The Belgian government continued to make substantial efforts to combat trafficking through law enforcement. Belgium prohibits all forms of trafficking through its 2005 amendment to its 1995 Act Containing Measures to Repress Trafficking in Persons. The law was strengthened in 2005 to meet international standards, to prohibit child sex tourism and forced begging, and to improve victim protection. The law's maximum prescribed sentence for all forms of trafficking, five years' imprisonment, is sufficiently stringent but less severe than penalties prescribed for rape. In 2006, authorities investigated 451 trafficking cases, prosecuting and convicting at least 45 traffickers, who received sentences from 1 to 10 years' imprisonment, with an average of 3 to 5 years. Belgian authorities enforce strict regulations on the employment of foreigners as au pairs, entertainers, and interns to combat labor violations. To combat trafficking, special ID cards are issued to diplomatic household personnel, whose employers can be tried in Belgium's system of Labor Courts.

Protection
The government continued to demonstrate strong efforts to provide care for trafficking victims during the year. Three local NGOs that rely largely on federal and regional government funding continued to provide victims with care. In 2006, these three NGOs assisted a combined 445 victims. However, the overall number of assisted victims decreased in 2006, with many victims of labor trafficking opting to find new jobs instead of accepting public assistance. The government also provides specific shelters for juveniles and victims at particular risk of harm by their traffickers. Police and customs officials continued to monitor motorways, airports, and seaports for trafficking victims. In 2006, lawmakers revised the 1980 Immigration Act to encourage victims to participate in trafficking investigations and prosecutions by providing short-term resident status to trafficking victims who assist authorities. Such victims may also obtain permanent residency after their traffickers are sentenced. If the trafficker is not convicted, however, Belgian law provides that victims may have to return to their countries of origin under certain limited circumstances, and only after rigorous review by immigration authorities. In practice, no one has ever been forced to return after a failure to convict a trafficker. Victims are not inappropriately incarcerated, fined, or penalized for unlawful acts as a direct result of being trafficked.

Prevention
Belgium demonstrated modest efforts to raise awareness about trafficking during the year. Government agencies continued to maintain agency Web sites providing information on trafficking and directing victims toward relief centers. A new awareness campaign funded by federal and regional authorities and sponsored by Child Focus and other activist organizations was started in February 2007.