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RENATE legal research, published on 4th July 2024.

The Religious in Europe Networking Against Trafficking and Exploitation (RENATE) are delighted to announce the launch of our new research report, a culmination of 18 months of dedicated and painstaking work by the RENATE Law Task Group.

RENATE commissioned The Bakhita Centre for Research on Slavery, Exploitation and Abuse at St Mary’s University, Twickenham, to conduct in-depth research on the gaps in the training and resources requried by legal practitioners in five European countries who work for and with victims of human trafficking. This research builds upon previous RENATE research (June 2021) in the same countries that specifically examined the legal assistance for victims of trafficking.

This new research invigorates and emboldens RENATE to continue to pursue and advocate for better conditions and services for those victims of human trafficking who are among the most marginalised. RENATE’s promise is to leave no one behind, supporting not only the victims but also those legal practitioners who resonsibly defend their cases.

This significant and important research underpins RENATE’s ongoing commitment to work together with Church, State and Civil Society, in a joint desire to focus on ending human trafficking, ass outlined in specific Sustainable Development Goals. RENATE is confident in challenging judicial and civil authorities to adopt and enforce legislation that empowers lawyers to protect victims, prosecute perpetrators, seize their assets, and guarantee these assets are used for the ongoing empowerment and fulfilment of life for the survivors of this heinous crime.

The report includes carefully articulated country-specific recommendations as well as several recommendations specifically for RENATE, which will be followed up by many of the RENATE Task Groups.