Young Invisible Enslaved: The child victims at the heart of trafficking and exploitation in Italy

Produced by Save the Children Italy, this annual report ”Piccoli Schiavi Invisibili” (Tiny Invisible Slaves) highlights the brutal practices many lone children arriving in Italy are subjected to at the hand of traffickers.

Save the Children Italy found that girls from countries like Nigeria and Romania as young as 13 are being tricked into believing they will secure jobs like babysitting, waitressing or hairdressing – sometimes by their own teachers and boyfriends – but are then forced into prostitution, made to rent sidewalk space to sell sex, and subjected to physical, sexual, and emotional violence.

While the majority of girls are forced into the sex trade, boys from countries like Egypt are subjected to child labour and criminal activity, like theft and drug dealing, to repay their debts. Traffickers use social networking sites like Facebook to lure boys with the promise of a better life in Europe and the chance to help lift their families out of poverty.