An international group against child prostitution and child pornography has claimed that Malta is a destination for women and children trafficked or sexual purposes.

In an unsigned report, ECPAT, the End Child Prostitution And Trafficking group said no reliable data was available on the extent of trafficking of children in sexual exploitation in Malta. Similarly, Malta did not record a large number of children sexually exploited through prostitution. Most cases of sexual exploitation of children were related to the possession of child pornography.

"Malta is primarily a destination country for women and children trafficked for sexual purposes from Eastern European countries such as Ukraine, Russia and Romania," the organisation said.

"Young women recruited for prostitution from Eastern European countries are essentially ‘purchased’ by Maltese men, according to law enforcement agencies. Sometimes pimps intent on exploiting them for commercial sex act as intermediaries. These women can then often be ‘sold’ to other pimps or individuals who then continue the cycle; it is typical for trafficking victims to be ‘sold’ every three months under these practices.

"In many cases, these victims enter Malta legally on a tourist visa. In the case of victims of trafficking from Ukraine, various research points out that the majority of the victims are female and that trafficking occurs mainly for sexual exploitation."

The report made no reference to recent legislation to counter child pornography and prostitution.