Serbia urged to tackle human trafficking

BELGRADE, Serbia, June 17 (UPI) -- A U.S. State Department report suggests Serbia should vigorously and aggressively prosecute and punish people who run human trafficking rings.

In its report on human trafficking, the State Department placed Serbia among countries that do not comply with minimum standards to eliminate trafficking but have made significant efforts to do so.

The Serbian government, if it fails to intensify efforts to contain human trafficking, could be "negatively assessed" in the next account, the report said Wednesday.

It urged Serbia to prosecute and punish both traffickers and local government officials who facilitate trafficking.

Serbia is the crossroads for girls, women and men trafficked for sexual exploitation and forced labor within the country and abroad.

Victims from Central Asia and Eastern Europe are trafficked to Serbia via Macedonia and Kosovo while victims trafficked from Slovenia, Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina travel through Serbia on their way to Italy and other Western European countries.

In 2008, a majority of victims were women and girls trafficked for sexual exploitation. Children, most of them Gypsies, were trafficked for sexual exploitation, forced marriage and street begging, the report said.