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Ireland Transnational Issues Profile

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Disputes - international

Ireland, Iceland, and the UK dispute Denmark's claim that the Faroe Islands' continental shelf extends beyond 200 nm

Illicit drugstransshipment point for and consumer of hashish from North Africa to the UK and Netherlands and of European-produced synthetic drugs; increasing consumption of South American cocaine; minor transshipment point for heroin and cocaine destined for Western Europe; despite recent legislation, narcotics-related money laundering - using bureaux de change, trusts, and shell companies involving the offshore financial community - remains a concern
Refugees and internally displaced personsstateless persons: 106 (2020)
Trafficking in personscurrent situation: human traffickers exploit domestic and foreign victims in Ireland and Irish victims abroad; traffickers subject Irish children and foreign trafficking victims from Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, and South America to sex trafficking; victims are exploited in forced domestic work, the restaurant industry, waste management, fishing, seasonal agriculture, and car washing services; Vietnamese and Chinese nationals convicted for cannabis cultivation often report indicators of forced labor, such as document retention, restriction of movement, and non-payment of wages; undocumented workers in the fishing industry and domestic workers, particularly au pairs, are vulnerable to trafficking; women from Eastern Europe forced into marriage in Ireland are at risk for sex trafficking and forced labor; the problem of forced labor in the country is growing

tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — Ireland does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so; efforts included increasing prosecutions and funding to NGOs for victim assistance, increasing the number of police and immigration officers receiving anti-trafficking training, and reorganizing its anti-trafficking coordination unit; however, the government did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts; no traffickers have been convicted since the anti-trafficking law was amended in 2013; weakened deterrence meant impunity for traffickers and undermined efforts to support victims testifying against traffickers; systematic deficiencies in victim identification, a lack of specialized services for victims continued, and the amended working scheme for sea fishers increased their vulnerability to trafficking (2020)

Source: CIA World Factbook
This page was last updated on September 18, 2021

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