Trafficking in Spain

MADRID 000720

This article was of interest to me because I have seen movies about human trafficking as well as studied some cases in school. Prior to studying abroad, we were shown parts of the movie Taken at my home university. I've seen the full movie and this contributed to my attention of this particular article.
The cable provided an overview of Spain's trafficking history and some of the reasons why women are at risk (low education and few economic resources being the main one). It also discussed the main areas of trafficking, Eastern Europe (Romania, Russia, Bulgaria, Ukraine), Latin America (Brazil, Columbia, Ecuador), and sub-Saharan Africa.
The reasons why victims are trafficked into Spain is for both sexual exploitation and labor exploitation. However, it was said that Spain is "generally not a country of origin for trafficking."
Combating trafficking is an issue because most victims are unwilling to press charges, due to a lack of witness protection program and availability of visas.
There are measures being taken to prevent trafficking in Spain, such as funding NGO groups that provide assistance to the trafficked victims.

http://wikileaks.ch/cable/2004/03/04MADRID720.html