The Federal Migration Centre Myria’s annual report on human trafficking that was released earlier this month says that the way in which the Brussels-Capital-Elsene Local Police Service deals with victims of sexual and domestic violence is also being used to good effect when the capital’s police service deals with the victims of human trafficking. Myria’s 2025 annual report on human tracking examines the psychological vulnerability of the victims and should have this approached by agencies such as social services and the police.
Brussels police play a pioneering role in caring for the victims of human trafficking
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5 of the 6 local police services in the Brussels-Capital Region have an Emergency Victim Assistance Cell (EVA) that includes officers that are specially trained in questioning victims and confidents to whom victims of human trafficking can tell their story.
Myria says that this is the way to go and believes that this approach should be adopted by police in the rest of the country.
Myria’s human trafficking expert Alexandra Büchler told the Brussels regional news platform Bruzz, “The EVA cells focus on the quality of victims are received and this is crucial to ensuring that they feel comfortable and safe enough to tell their story.
“Victims become victims again”
Alexandra Büchler added that “If the authorities deal with them badly, they become victims again. This can be the case if they are made to feel guilty about what has happened to them, is too little understanding is shown for the position of the victim or if the victim is afraid of facing prosecution themselves”. The EVA approach is fitted to match the needs of victims and as such is designed to counter this.
“One of the key tasks of the EVA units is to ensure that victims only have to file their complaint once and that this can be done in an environment where confidentiality is assured. Interviews take longer than would otherwise be the case. Police ensure that breaks are taken in order to limit the risk of the victim reliving the trauma. An advisor may also be present during the interview. In cases involving human trafficking, this is often someone from the PAG-ASA shelter." PAG-ASA offers support to victims of human trafficking”.
“In addition to this room in which EVA interviews take place is also furnished in a more homely style, and victims can also spend time with the assistance dog. Furthermore, all interviewers have received training that place an emphasis on listening carefully and empathetically to the victims' stories” Ms Büchler explains.
A “beacon country”
Within Europe Belgium is seen as being a beacon country when it comes to tackling the issue of human trafficking, Ms Büchler says.
“We started working on this early on, back in the 1990s. One example of good practice is our specialised shelters for victims of human trafficking. These are PAG-ASA in Brussels, Payoke in Antwerp and Sürya in Liège. In other European countries, victims often end up in non-specialised shelters”.
The work of the EVA cells, which exist for all victims of sexual or domestic violence in Brussels, is greatly appreciated. Earlier this month, Queen Mathilde visited the EVA unit at the Brussels-Capital-Elsene Local Police Service. While she was there, the Queen of the Belgians spoke with staff and victims of human trafficking.