CASE EXAMPLE

Sexual exploitation and transactional sex of young persons

THE CRIMINAL ACTIVITIES in question were committed in 2021 in Latvia, in Riga, Jelgava and Saulkrasti. The perpetrators were men of various nationalities, aged between 35 and 60, who approached 12–15-year-old girls through acquaintances or simply on the street, inviting them to go somewhere together and proposing sexual contact in exchange for money or other benefits. Later, they asked the girls to bring their female friends, and engaged also them in sexual activities. The men who recruited the girls also exploited them, but sometimes acquittances of the men took part as well.

ALL OF THE girls were from vulnerable families or State social care institutions. The authorities disagreed on the classification of this case. It was finally classified as the involvement of a person in prostitution and use of prostitution, more specifically, Section 164:4 of the Criminal Law, which refers to a person who induces or compels a person who has not attained the age of sixteen years to engage in prostitution.

THE INCREASED USE of Internet platforms has also influenced new forms of sexual exploitation. In recent years, so-called “sugar dating” has become a notable phenomenon in different countries. Sugar dating can be described as a form of compensated dating, in which the client – usually an older male – pays another person, most often a young female, for their company (Yle 21.11.2018). Sugar dating can be consensual, but it has also been associated with sexual exploitation and other kinds of criminal activity. According to specialists interviewed by the Finnish broadcasting company Yle, sugar dating is popular among young people who are in a vulnerable position and thus more exposed to victimization. (Ibid.) The exploitation of children via webcam and social media also seems to be increasing, and it has been suggested that perpetrators have started using online games to approach potential victims (GRETA 2022).

In addition to children who are victims of trafficking themselves, underaged children of trafficking victims are often in need of support, since the environment in which they have been brought up may have been unstable, or the child may have had to witness the exploitation of their parent (National Assistance System for Victims of Human Trafficking, n.d.b.).

4.6 Forced marriage

FORCED MARRIAGE REFERS TO A SITUATION in which a marriage is established without the free and full consent of one or both parties, or where one or both parties are unable to leave the marriage. The person(s) may be threatened, deceived or coerced, or be under strong societal or family pressure (European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights 2014). Child marriage can also be considered forced marriage, since children cannot give consent to marriage. Most victims of forced marriage are women and girls, but men and boys have also been identified as victims (UNODC 2020).

In Europe, forced marriages often take place within migrant or minority communities. Authorities do not always see the link between forced marriage and human trafficking (e.g., UNODC 2020; Viuhko et al. 2016) although the means of exploitation are similar. In Latvia, forced marriage has rarely been detected in recent years, but cases of sham marriages between Latvian and third country nationals, mainly from Pakistan and Bangladesh, have been reported to some extent. However, these cases have not been classified as trafficking.

There has recently been a noteworthy increase in the number of cases of forced marriage in Finland. In 2022, it was the most common form of trafficking faced by women and girls (37 %, 72 persons) admitted to the National Assistance System for Victims of Trafficking. Almost two thirds had become victims of forced marriage in another country, mainly in the country of origin of the victim. (National Assistance System 2023.) It is estimated that this type of exploitation is not often reported to the police, and it rarely results in criminal justice proceedings (Roth & Luhtasaari 2021, 20, 51). Also children or young persons may become victims of forced marriage. The cases may involve daughters sent to their parents’ country of origin to be wed, or men traveling abroad in search of an underaged bride. Both types of cases have been identified in Finland. Some migrant victims have been married in their country of origin before moving to another country. (Kervinen & Ollus 2019.)