Associated Press
By Vanessa Gera

Human rights activists condemned Eastern European authorities for doing too little to crack down on widespread corruption that makes the trafficking of women possible.

Nearly 30 groups from 18 countries gathered in Vienna this week to put pressure on former communist states to reform their human rights policies if they want support in joining Western organizations. The groups insisted that top government officials do more to fight the cross-border trafficking of women who are forced into prostitution.

"Trafficking in human beings undermines governments in the regions, and undermines the authority of governments," said Helga Konrad of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. "Without addressing the problem, governments won't be able to be part of the European Union."

Konrad, who chairs an OSCE task force on trafficking, described trafficking as a "new form of slavery" that "has been rising massively since the fall of communism in the early 1990s."

The conference, organized by the International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights, was aimed at exploring ways human rights groups can work with governments to fight trafficking.

Activists released a joint statement calling for reform, and singled out Bulgaria, Moldova and Ukraine as being among the worst offenders.

Authorities in the three countries have reportedly extorted bribes from people who tried to report cases of human trafficking - and are often themselves involved.

"Police are often in collusion with criminal traffickers, for example in forcing women back to brothels from which they have escaped, receiving sexual favors and bribes in return," the statement said.

The conference's participants drafted recommendations for fighting corruption which they plan to present to governments in Central and Eastern Europe. They suggest, for instance, that governments provide police protection and secure housing for women testifying against those who forced them into prostitution.

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