The number of foreign women who are being trafficked by criminal gangs to work in the sex industry in the State is increasing rapidly, a report said today.
The Ruhama Women's Project said it had encountered 91 women who had been trafficked for this purpose and had managed to help 21 in the past two years.
But spokeswoman Geraldine Rowley said this was only the tip of the iceberg. She said the problem was almost invisible because criminals were using the Internet and mobile phones to attract customers to nondescript locations around the country.
"We need legislation to address the trafficking issue. We also need a Garda vice squad," she said.
Ruhama's annual report for 2003 and 2004, published today, outlined the experiences of the women who have contacted the group. Some were not even aware of what country they were working in; others had been beaten up and robbed by pimps and were forced to move from lap-dancing clubs to work in the sex industry.
Ms Rowley said there was no doubt that lap-dancing clubs were linked to prostitution and trafficking.
Gardaí closed down three lap-dancing clubs as part of operation Quest in 2003.
Labour Party spokesman on justice Joe Costello called for stricter enforcement of existing legislation and more frequent use of the Criminal Assets Bureau (Cab) to clamp down on the trafficking of women
"The Gardai have attempted to clamp down on these clubs in the past, but we need much stricter enforcement of existing powers, rather than one-off spectacular raids on these clubs," said Mr Costello.
"The use and abuse of women in prostitution in this country is a hidden shame. If the Gardaí are prepared only to use the powers at their disposal on an intermittent basis as a deterrent, then they are whistling in the dark."
Meanwhile, the Vatican has also demanded greater protection of women through better enforced laws on prostitution and trafficking.
In a communique, the Vatican called for those forced into prostitution to be protected by the law, describing them as "victims of violence and exploitation" who have had their fundamental human rights violated.
However, legal protection was not enough, it said, asking for an alternative to be given to those who work as prostitutes, such as a home and community where they can begin to rebuild their lives, it said.
The Vatican urged legal punishment for clients of prostitutes, but also called for counselling to halt what it called a form of "modern day slavery".
"The `client' needs more than social condemnation and having to face the full rigors of the law," the communiqué said. "He must also be helped to face his deeper problems and to find other ways of dealing with his personal needs."
The recommendations contained the in the communique were the result of a two-day symposium on prostitution and human trafficking hosted by the Vatican in June.