October 1, Pozirk. Children from Ukraine transferred to Belarusian territory by the authorities in Minsk are highly vulnerable to human trafficking, according to the “2025 Trafficking in Persons Report” by the US Department of State.
It said the Belarusian authorities continued to facilitate illegal migration to Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, as well as the entry into Belarus of thousands of migrants and asylum seekers from the Middle East, sub-Saharan Africa and Central Asia. These migrants and asylum seekers were also vulnerable to human trafficking.
The report notes a government policy or pattern of forced labor in state-run “labor therapy centers” (LTPs) during the reporting period between April 2024 and March 2025. The authorities forced thousands of people with drug or alcohol addiction, as well as political prisoners, to perform a wide range of jobs at LTPs. “Reports indicated the government held at least 10,852 people in these centers in 2024.”
Besides, the Belarusian government scaled down anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts. In 2024, the authorities did not report investigations or prosecutions of crimes related to human trafficking. However, data for 2023 was available: 79 investigations and 38 prosecutions on charges such as the “use of prostitution or creation of conditions for prostitution” and the “recruitment into prostitution or coercing someone to continue in prostitution.”
“For the fourth consecutive year, the government did not report convicting any traffickers under Articles 181 [human trafficking] or 181-1 [use of slave labor],” the report said.
According to the Department of State, data collected by NGOs indicated that the majority of victims of human trafficking were Belarusian men forced to perform labor, mainly in Russia.
“Traffickers exploit Belarusian victims primarily in Belarus and Russia, as well as in Poland, Türkiye, and other countries in Europe, Central Asia, and the Middle East,” the paper says. “Traffickers exploit some Belarusian women traveling for foreign employment in the adult entertainment and hotel industries in sex trafficking.”
Belarusians, Moldovans, Russians, Ukrainians, Vietnamese and Ghanaians were found to be victims exploited in Belarus, with the majority of traffickers being Belarusian citizens.
The Department of State advised the Belarusian authorities to stop using forced labor in LTPs; actively investigate and prosecute human trafficking-related crimes; increase the amount of resources allocated to help and protect trafficking victims in Belarus; and establish cooperation with NGOs providing assistance to human trafficking victims.
The US also advised Minsk to “cease the facilitated transfer of Ukrainian children to Belarus and take all necessary steps to prevent trafficking among this population, including by ensuring these children’s safe return to their parents or guardians.”
The report contains other recommendations, data and conclusions substantiating the classification of Belarus as a country with a documented human trafficking policy or pattern.
