Lithuania's Anti-Trafficking Policy (Human Trafficking Prevention) as a Comprehensive Strategy to tackle specific TYPES of Organised Crime

Lithuania faces international and domestic trafficking in human beings’ cases for sexual and labour exploitation. It is much affected by social, economic and legal differences among countries, the demand of prostitution and cheap labour, migration and criminal contacts abroad.
The state policy on the prevention of such a negative phenomenon in Lithuania is based on a long-term and integrated approach which started in 2002.
The present multidisciplinary actions of prevention of Trafficking in Human Beings are incorporated into the Action Plan of the National Programme for Crime Prevention and Control for 2013-2015. It has the objectives to improve the professional skills of responsible specialists in the field of service, comprehensive assistance to victims of trafficking and forced prostitution, provision and protection of their rights; cooperation in the fight against human trafficking assurance, pays particular attention developing international and regional cooperation. The activities of these programmes including the projects for rendering assistance to trafficking in human beings victims are financed from the state budget.
The national interdepartmental Commission coordinates this implementation. It is chaired by the Ministry of the Interior which is responsible for policy formation within the area. The investigations of trafficking in human beings are run and led by specialized police investigators and prosecutors. The most active NGO in assisting victims of trafficking in human beings in Lithuania remains The Lithuanian Caritas.

Prevention of trafficking in human beings, training of relevant specialists, assistance and protection for victims of trafficking, and development of sufficient international cooperation.

Caritas organised training for target groups in five towns with 24 participants. IOM organised 10 training courses in different municipalities involving 198 social service providers as well as training on THB for Vilnius county police officers (25 participants), future border guards (150 participants), and border guards in service (40 participants). There are regulations on providing support after identifying human trafficking victims: There is no system of what institutions, in which cases, to whom and in what period of time should provide any information on the victim, also how and what kind of information should be provided to the victim.

This national strategy is only transferable if the implementing country takes into consideration that this strategy has been tailored to the needs and nature of the Lithuanian country specifically. Any country interested in applying this strategy would need to first conduct an in depth-assessment regarding (a) its domestic human trafficking threat, (b) its various agencies’, institutions’ and organisations’ capabilities, (c) the potential for cooperation - for example, which mechanisms may prevent cooperation - between agencies and institutions, and (d) to understand which specific elements of the Lithuanian strategy is applicable to its needs and capabilities, either at a national or local level.

In September 2015, the Lithuanian National Audit Office published the audit report of the Human Trafficking – Prevention and Victim Support programme. The audit was conducted at the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Social Security and Labour and the Police Department under the Ministry of Interior.

There is no appropriate cooperation between state, municipality institutions and non-governmental organisations operating in the area of human trafficking prevention and control. Coordinative working groups of human trafficking prevention and control, which were supposed to ensure cooperation of the above-mentioned institutions, were created only in six municipalities and four of them are inactive. More than half of the municipalities in the period of 2011-2014 did not implement any human trafficking preventive measures, because they did not control the information on human trafficking statistics and risks, as well as preventive measures implemented in the territory of the municipality by other institutions.
In 2013–2015 the Lithuanian Caritas together with 4 partners (Oslo Criminal Police, ROSA project run by Oslo Crisis center, the Ministries of the Interior and of Social Security and Labor of the Republic of Lithuania) implemented the project “Lithuanian society against trafficking in persons: the systematic approach model”, which aimed at developing a model of sustainable assistance to victims of THB by teams composed of NGO representatives, police officers, prosecutors, social workers, child rights officers and representatives of municipalities.

In 2013 the implementation of the human trafficking prevention and control measures of the inter-institutional operation plan received 69 200 EUR, in 2014 - 56 200 EUR and in 2015 - 56 200 EURI (in total - 181 600 EUR).

National Audit Office. “HUMAN TRAFFICKING – PREVENTION AND VICTIM
SUPPORT.” VKONTROLE, National Audit Office, 14 Sept. 2015, www.google.gr/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ve
d=0ahUKEwiJwMHYuYnXAhWCqxoKHbdZA9sQFgglMAA&url=https%
3A%2F%2Fwww.vkontrole.lt%2Ffailas.aspx%3Fid%3D3470&usg=AOvV
aw3xvUXSUYpyJ2JeaakvvDoy.
“Lithuania - 3. IMPLEMENTATION OF ANTI-TRAFFICKING POLICY.” EC EUROPA, Oct. 2017, ec.europa.eu/anti-trafficking/member-states/lithuania-3-implementation-anti-trafficking-policy_en
“Lithuanian Policy on Prostitution and Trafficking for sexual exploitation.” EUCPA, 22 Oct. 2014, eucpn.org/document/lithuanian-policy-prostitution-and-trafficking-sexual-exploitation
“TEMPLATE POLICY PAGE.” EUCPA
eucpn.org/sites/default/files/content/download/files/po_lt_pt_0.pdf

Ministry of the Interior, e-mail: reda.sirgediene@vrm.lt (any questions);
Police Department under the MoI, e-mail: tomas.puskorius@policija.lt (for police activity questions);
Ministry of Social Security and Labour, e-mail: post@socmin.lt (for assistance to victims’ questions)
National organisations:
Caritas Lithuania
http://www.anti-trafficking.lt/ e-mail: caritas@anti-trafficking.lt
NGO Missing Persons' Families Support Centre
http://www.missing.lt/en/index.php e-mail: centras@missing.lt

In 2015, the Public security development program 2015-2025 was adopted, which includes objectives and procedures of the National Program for Crime Prevention and Control for 2013-2015, which expired in 2016. The main objectives of the new program were to increase national coordination fighting against human traffic, to improve human traffic prevention and investigation measures, support providing system for victims suffering from human traffic.
Seeking to create an efficient system of human trafficking prevention and control subjects and to ensure consistent and complex elimination of the major human trafficking reasons and conditions, it is necessary for the Ministry of Interior to:
create a list of institutions fighting against human trafficking, which would be used while gathering information about the results of control and prevention measures implemented in Lithuania and the preparation of the plans for the implementation of the task of the Public Security Development Program for 2015-2020 - to develop effective fight against human trafficking.

In 2012, the Lithuanian Government financed five projects for rendering necessary assistance to both identified and potential victims of trafficking implemented by NGOs. 152 different services were rendered for victims (55 of them for male victims) based on their needs.

The present multidisciplinary actions of prevention of Trafficking in Human Beings are incorporated into the Action Plan of the National Programme for Crime Prevention and Control for 2013-2015. It has the objectives to improve the professional skills of responsible specialists in the field of service, comprehensive assistance to victims of trafficking and forced prostitution, provision and protection of their rights; cooperation in the fight against human trafficking assurance, pays particular attention developing international and regional cooperation. The activities of these programmes including the projects for rendering assistance to trafficking in human beings victims are financed from the state budget.

Currently, various assistance and support measures are provided to victims of trafficking through several NGOs. In 2012, the Government financed five projects for rendering necessary assistance to both identified and potential victims of trafficking implemented by NGOs. 152 different services were rendered for victims (55 of them for male victims) based on their needs.
In 2014, 5 selected projects offered by specialised NGOs received funding. Necessary assistance (psychological, medical, housing, legal counseling, and etc.) was provided to 133 individuals (50 of them were men): 80 victims of human trafficking and 53 people under risk to become victims of this crime.

In 2013–2015 the Lithuanian Caritas together with 4 partners (Oslo Criminal Police, ROSA project run by Oslo Crisis center, the Ministries of the Interior and of Social Security and Labor of the Republic of Lithuania) implemented the project “Lithuanian society against trafficking in persons: the systematic approach model”, which aimed at developing a model of sustainable assistance to victims of THB by teams composed of NGO representatives, police officers, prosecutors, social workers, child rights officers and representatives of municipalities.
In 2013–2015, training activities on THB have also been organised by the IOM Office in Vilnius together with the Lithuanian Caritas and Save the Children Lithuania under the Operational Programme for the Development of Human Resources 2007-2013, funded by EU structural funds and run by the Ministry of Social Security and Labour. By way of example, Caritas organised training for target groups in five towns with 24 participants. IOM organised 10 training courses in different municipalities involving 198 social service providers as well as training on THB for Vilnius county police officers (25 participants), future border guards (150 participants), and border guards in service (40 participants).

The National Referral Mechanism includes state and private actors: ministries, departments, organizations. They work within their competence and under MoU. Recently consultations have been started with all responsible bodies on the development of the whole national combating trafficking in human beings system in Lithuania including the National Referral Mechanism.