Ireland is going to war against evil human traffickers after being branded one of the worst countries in the world at tackling the scandal.
Justice Minister Helen McEntee announced new measures to stop the slave trade gangs will be brought in by the end of May.
She was responding to new figures that show only 192 people were prosecuted for human trafficking here in the last 12 years and 1,155 related offences were dealt with by the court.
Read more: Gardai arrest two as part of human trafficking and money laundering probe
Of these a shocking 1,011 cases related to the sexual exploitation of a child.
It is understood the majority of the cases were in the circuit courts but only three people were convicted in the district courts during that time.
Garda figures from the Pulse system also show that from January 1, 2012 until December 2021 there were a total of 194 charges brought before the courts under human trafficking legislation.
However, there were another 377 human trafficking incidents reported during that time that are still under investigation or charges pending.
The UN Office on Drugs and Crime has consistently branded Ireland one of the worst countries in western Europe for its anti-human trafficking response.
Both it and the US State Department have highlighted the under-reporting of cases in Ireland and claims it is 50% higher than what is recorded with victim identification remaining a key issue.
Their critical observations were a serious embarrassment to the Irish Government.
But Minister McEntee said: “Human trafficking is a particular heinous crime based on deception and exploitation of vulnerable people.
“This Government is serious about preventing and prosecuting for human trafficking. We are confident that the victim centred policy approach we are now taking will encourage more victims to come forward which will in turn strengthen prosecutions and convictions.”
This will be based on a new legalised National Referral Mechanism to identify victims by getting all state agencies involved, not just gardai.
The minister added: “We want to ensure that every victim of trafficking is identified and helped.
“We are drafting a new National Action Plan to be approved by the Government by the end of May.”
Sign up to the Dublin Live Newsletter to get all the latest Dublin news straight to your inbox.
Read more: Knife crime soars by almost 50% during lockdown, shocking new figures reveal
Read more: Dublin shooting survivor has a lucky escape following brutal stabbing
