MECPATHS

Address: 13/14 Moyle Park, Clondalkin, Dublin 22, Ireland
Tel: +353-1-467-3737
facebook www.facebook.com/MECPATHS/ twitter @MECPATHS_ire
Specialist areas of work and services:
  • Campaigns & Awareness

Description:
MECPATHS collaborates with the hospitality sector in Ireland to raise awareness around child sex-trafficking and to empower hotel management and staff to help prevent this crime. Hotel staff are amongst those professionals likely to encounter a victim of sex trafficking as traffickers can seek to take advantage of the privacy and anonymity of hotels. While the hotel industry is in no way responsible for this exploitation, hotel staff can play a key role in the fight against this form of slavery. When staff are trained to recognise possible signs of this abuse, hotels are in a position to alert the authorities to suspected cases and play their part in countering sex trafficking.

Experience, Background and Services:
In Ireland, as in the many other countries throughout the world where we live and minister, human trafficking is a growing activity and a major justice issue. The importance of anti-trafficking training is currently being recognised and implemented across the country for frontline professionals working in the areas of health, social work, law-enforcement and immigration.

Between 2009 and 2016, 512 victims of trafficking were identified, in Ireland. 334 of these victims were trafficked for sexual exploitation – 71% were female and 28% were children. The majority of these children were Irish. The Gardaí and those working to support victims believe these figures represent only the very tip of the iceberg of this hidden criminal activity.

We have developed a short programme of awareness which we deliver to hotel staff groups on-site. The training programme takes less than 1 hour and may make the difference for those caught in trafficking. We are conscientious, passionate and professional. We seek to work in partnership with hotels and strengthen all opportunities for vulnerable people to be rescued. Following our training presentation, we offer staff and management the opportunity to ask any questions and help to answer any queries they may have about trafficking. We work in partnership with The Gardaí and The AHTU to educate and grow capacity. There is no financial cost for our education and awareness raising activities.