Victim of sex trafficking could just be the tip of the iceberg

THE scale of Scotland's sex trafficking problem is under-reported in the same way as race hate crimes, a leading human rights organisation said last night.

The claim came as it was reported yesterday that a woman from Eastern Europe had been moved to a safe house after she said she had been smuggled into Scotland and forced to work as a prostitute.

A major inquiry into human trafficking in Scotland with a particular focus on commercial sexual exploitation, which was launched by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) in February and headed by Baroness Helena Kennedy QC, is due to report shortly.

It will also examine whether trafficking for sexual exploitation is being treated merely as an asylum and immigration issue.

Despite a number of reports of women being forced into the sex industry, police in Edinburgh, where the woman turned up at a sexual health clinic begging NHS staff for help, have yet to record a single confirmed case of human trafficking.

The woman who asked for help also claimed that her partner had murdered a woman in the past and that she feared for her life at his hands.

Council officials placed the woman in emergency accommodation before support workers for the Migrant Helpline charity took her to a "safe house".

Last night, a spokesman for Lothian and Borders Police confirmed that detectives were investigating an alleged case of human trafficking.

A police spokesman said: "Lothian and Borders Police is committed to identifying victims of human trafficking, and we will fully investigate any report or intelligence we receive."

Officials at NHS Lothian have warned that the extent of human trafficking in the city "could be on the increase" and could be "happening right under our noses".

The case was discussed last week at an NHS Lothian board meeting after a request by the EHRC for help in estimating the extent of human trafficking in the city.

The EHRC has requested that medical staff provide evidence of alleged trafficking in a bid to build up an accurate picture.? Eddie Egan, NHS Lothian vice-chairman, said: "This seems to be a problem for a particular ethnic minority group.

"This could be something that could be on the increase and more awareness is needed.

"Perhaps we think it isn't a problem here when, in fact, it's happening right under our noses."

However a spokeswoman for NHS Lothian said they have only had two reports of cases since 2009 including the latest case. The earlier report which was investigated by police was not confirmed.

Dr Alison McCallum, director of public health and health policy at NHS Lothian, said: "We have procedures in place to ensure that where human trafficking is suspected, our staff report their suspicions to the relevant authorities and ensure the appropriate care is in place."