The new head of Ireland's first official unit to fight human trafficking took up her post today.
Marion Walsh, a former private secretary to a number of ministers for justice, is charged with targeting people smuggling for sex and illegal labour as head of the recently established Anti Human Trafficking Unit.
Ms Walsh vowed to work with the government and other agencies to combat the modern slave trade, to prosecute traffickers and to protect victims.
"I am very much in listening mode, and I am confident that we can work together to make a positive difference in tackling this crime, which has no place in a modern day Ireland," she said.
Ms Walsh was involved in the setting up of the Office of the Refugee Applications Commissioner and has worked on criminal law reform.
The new unit, announced by Justice Minister Brian Lenihan last November under the Criminal Law (Human Trafficking) Bill, will work with the Garda and the Irish National Immigration Service.
Recent research suggested that at least 76 women were trafficked into the Republic over the last seven years.
Experts calculate an estimated 800,000 people are trafficked worldwide each year, with some 2.5 million people recruiting, entrapping, transporting and exploiting victims.