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Sex and football pose a serious threat to Eastern European women
By Phillip Wellman
Posted: July 15, 2006
Sex and football are undoubtedly the favourite activities of many men around the globe. But several
human rights organisations have warned that the combination of the two could possibly pose a threat
to various women, especially those living in Eastern Europe.
In a recent report, the Council of Europe warned that women living in many former Soviet republics
were at a heightened risk of being trapped and illegally forced into sexual exploitation in Western
Europe. The impetus: The 2006 World Cup.
This year’s football tournament was held in 12 cities around Germany and experts estimate that in
addition to the three million visitors who travelled to watch the action, nearly 40,000 prostitutes went to
give some. Several non-government organisations say that they are certain that tens of thousands of
women went to provide sex involuntarily.
Joseph Blatter, the president of FIFA -- the governing body in charge of administering the World Cup,
says it is not up to the football world to combat the possible problem of human trafficking associated
with the tournament. He says it is a responsibility for German local authorities.
“I know this is not good for the image of football,” said Blatter. “The German government is alarmed
and alerted, also by FIFA about that. But we in FIFA cannot intervene in an internal matter…”
Prostitution is legal in Germany. One of the motives behind its authorisation in 2001 was to help
prevent trafficking. The idea was that legitimising the trade would make it safer and healthier. But in a
report issued this April titled, Trafficking In Person, Global Patterns, the United Nations listed Germany
as one of the top destinations for Eastern European women forced into sexual slavery.
With international concerns mounting and the county’s image tarnished, Germany’s local authorities
decided to step in. Prior to the World Cup, the German police raided hundreds of brothels, hotels and
bars used for prostitution, mainly to hunt down traffickers, but also to discern whether the women
working at the establishments were legally and willingly employed.
But no major trafficking arrests were made. To add to the complication, temporary brothels had been
constructed in all 12 World Cup host cities. In Dortmund and Cologne, drive-in huts known as
“verrichtungsboxen” or “action boxes” were built for the anticipated sex trade boom and were complete
with condom machines and a snack bar.
The huts have been described as “custom-built garages” as clients drive directly into them with their
cars. The design was implemented to provide anonymity for the customer. Some, however, fear that
they could provide just as much anonymity for traffickers.
Current statistics on human trafficking in Europe are bleak already. According to a report by the
European Parliament, around 500,000 people are smuggled illegally into the European Union every
year. Of that amount, nearly 90 percent are trapped into sexual exploitation.
The United Nations data show that nearly half of all trafficked individuals come from Eastern Europe.
Eight out of the eleven highest countries with reported trafficking in the world are located in this region.
They are: Albania, Belarus, Bulgaria, Lithuania, Moldova, Romania, Russia and the Ukraine; all are
described by the UN as having a “very high” level of trafficking. Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Poland and
Slovakia are also said to have a “high” level.
The main reason behind Eastern Europe’s vulnerability lies in its economic disparity. Organised
criminal groups prey on women in poorer countries who have a desperate need to make money. Often
the groups will act as a fake employment service and offer women the false opportunity to work abroad
and earn an income in a foreign currency much higher than their national one. The women then travel
voluntarily to the foreign destination, and when they arrive are told that they must have sex in order to
survive.
Criminal groups that traffic women have created elaborate routes linking countries in the East to those
in the West. One such path known as the “Eastern Route” through Poland and Germany is thought to
be the primary path for smuggling women from Russia and other Eastern European countries into the
European Union.
One country that has been particularly hit hard by sex traffickers is Moldova. After starting out at
independence in 1991 as a middle-income country, the small agriculture-based nation is now the
poorest in Europe. The average monthly income in Moldova is £30 and the unemployment rate for
women is around 65 percent. Sociologists point out that due to a hopelessness triggered by the
economic situation, domestic violence has become a major problem in the country; this adds to the
lure of leaving and at the same time increases the vulnerability of the women subjected to it.
Almost one-fifth of the Moldova’s 4.3 million people are believed to have gone abroad in search of a
better life. And in searching, tens of thousands of Moldovan women have been sold into prostitution. It
has also been reported that some of the country’s citizens are even beginning to go abroad to sell their
organs.
The proceeds from selling a kidney can be enough to purchase both a car and a house in a Moldovan
village.
In the capital of Moldova, Chisinau, billboards have been erected showing a terrified girl gripped in a
large clenched fist, being exchanged for dollars. The image is very different to the jovial billboards
across Germany celebrating the World Cup. But as the human rights organisations are pointing out, it
is exactly the smiling faces of football fans that trapped women will have to fear if more action is not
taken to help free them.
### ### ###
Phillip Wellman is a Global Affairs Intern, The Atlantic Affairs.
By Phillip Wellman
Posted: July 15, 2006
Sex and football are undoubtedly the favourite activities of many men around the globe. But several
human rights organisations have warned that the combination of the two could possibly pose a threat
to various women, especially those living in Eastern Europe.
In a recent report, the Council of Europe warned that women living in many former Soviet republics
were at a heightened risk of being trapped and illegally forced into sexual exploitation in Western
Europe. The impetus: The 2006 World Cup.
This year’s football tournament was held in 12 cities around Germany and experts estimate that in
addition to the three million visitors who travelled to watch the action, nearly 40,000 prostitutes went to
give some. Several non-government organisations say that they are certain that tens of thousands of
women went to provide sex involuntarily.
Joseph Blatter, the president of FIFA -- the governing body in charge of administering the World Cup,
says it is not up to the football world to combat the possible problem of human trafficking associated
with the tournament. He says it is a responsibility for German local authorities.
“I know this is not good for the image of football,” said Blatter. “The German government is alarmed
and alerted, also by FIFA about that. But we in FIFA cannot intervene in an internal matter…”
Prostitution is legal in Germany. One of the motives behind its authorisation in 2001 was to help
prevent trafficking. The idea was that legitimising the trade would make it safer and healthier. But in a
report issued this April titled, Trafficking In Person, Global Patterns, the United Nations listed Germany
as one of the top destinations for Eastern European women forced into sexual slavery.
With international concerns mounting and the county’s image tarnished, Germany’s local authorities
decided to step in. Prior to the World Cup, the German police raided hundreds of brothels, hotels and
bars used for prostitution, mainly to hunt down traffickers, but also to discern whether the women
working at the establishments were legally and willingly employed.
But no major trafficking arrests were made. To add to the complication, temporary brothels had been
constructed in all 12 World Cup host cities. In Dortmund and Cologne, drive-in huts known as
“verrichtungsboxen” or “action boxes” were built for the anticipated sex trade boom and were complete
with condom machines and a snack bar.
The huts have been described as “custom-built garages” as clients drive directly into them with their
cars. The design was implemented to provide anonymity for the customer. Some, however, fear that
they could provide just as much anonymity for traffickers.
Current statistics on human trafficking in Europe are bleak already. According to a report by the
European Parliament, around 500,000 people are smuggled illegally into the European Union every
year. Of that amount, nearly 90 percent are trapped into sexual exploitation.
The United Nations data show that nearly half of all trafficked individuals come from Eastern Europe.
Eight out of the eleven highest countries with reported trafficking in the world are located in this region.
They are: Albania, Belarus, Bulgaria, Lithuania, Moldova, Romania, Russia and the Ukraine; all are
described by the UN as having a “very high” level of trafficking. Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Poland and
Slovakia are also said to have a “high” level.
The main reason behind Eastern Europe’s vulnerability lies in its economic disparity. Organised
criminal groups prey on women in poorer countries who have a desperate need to make money. Often
the groups will act as a fake employment service and offer women the false opportunity to work abroad
and earn an income in a foreign currency much higher than their national one. The women then travel
voluntarily to the foreign destination, and when they arrive are told that they must have sex in order to
survive.
Criminal groups that traffic women have created elaborate routes linking countries in the East to those
in the West. One such path known as the “Eastern Route” through Poland and Germany is thought to
be the primary path for smuggling women from Russia and other Eastern European countries into the
European Union.
One country that has been particularly hit hard by sex traffickers is Moldova. After starting out at
independence in 1991 as a middle-income country, the small agriculture-based nation is now the
poorest in Europe. The average monthly income in Moldova is £30 and the unemployment rate for
women is around 65 percent. Sociologists point out that due to a hopelessness triggered by the
economic situation, domestic violence has become a major problem in the country; this adds to the
lure of leaving and at the same time increases the vulnerability of the women subjected to it.
Almost one-fifth of the Moldova’s 4.3 million people are believed to have gone abroad in search of a
better life. And in searching, tens of thousands of Moldovan women have been sold into prostitution. It
has also been reported that some of the country’s citizens are even beginning to go abroad to sell their
organs.
The proceeds from selling a kidney can be enough to purchase both a car and a house in a Moldovan
village.
In the capital of Moldova, Chisinau, billboards have been erected showing a terrified girl gripped in a
large clenched fist, being exchanged for dollars. The image is very different to the jovial billboards
across Germany celebrating the World Cup. But as the human rights organisations are pointing out, it
is exactly the smiling faces of football fans that trapped women will have to fear if more action is not
taken to help free them.
### ### ###
Phillip Wellman is a Global Affairs Intern, The Atlantic Affairs.
| (c) 2006 New Criterion Foundation, London |
| Security. Ideologies. Multiculturalism. |