Nearly half the people illegally trafficked into Ireland last year, mostly for sexual exploitation, were children according to the Immigrant Council of Ireland. Speaking on anti-trafficking day today (18^th October) the Council said 23 of the 48 people officially identified as victims of trafficking were children. Thirty-nine of the victims were sexually exploited.

The Immigrant Council is calling on the Government to act on growing evidence that sex-trafficking is going undetected. Its chief executive Denise Charlton said: “As shocking as the latest trafficking figures are, the Immigrant Council of Ireland fears that many more have not been found and may never be found.”

Last night, campaigners launched a successful social media 'Thunderclap' campaign, delivering the Turn Off the Red Light (TORL) anti-trafficking message to over 85,000 people with a call to action. Today, you can support the TORL campaign HERE.

The Immigrant Council wants the Government to:

• Improve the identification of victims by involving specialised NGOs
• Provide support to all victims on a statutory footing, regardless of their nationality or immigration status
• Provide specific accommodation for victims, rather than using direct provision asylum seekers’ centres
• Appoint an anti-trafficking Czar, and
• Implement the recommendations of the Oireachtas Justice Committee, which called for laws against sex buyers.