The US State Department criticizes Macedonia for not investing enough efforts against human trafficking. In the latest report of the State Department, Macedonia remains in the worst group of countries, after years of being an example in the fight against human trafficking. Macedonia has long been in the highest group Tier-1 of countries that seriously understand the fight against human trafficking and invest serious efforts to combat this phenomenon. However, since 2016, with the arrival of Oliver Spasovski at the helm of the Ministry of Interior, Macedonia has been degraded to a lower level – Tier 2. Throughout Zaev’s term, the country remains in this category, in the company of countries from Africa and the Middle East. 

The Government of Macedonia does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of human trafficking, but is making significant efforts do so, the report said.

The United States has criticized Zaev’s government for failing to meet minimum standards in several key areas of the fight against human trafficking.

The government has diverted funds intended for protection of victims to the pandemic-related efforts, jeopardizing the continued functioning of mobile identification teams and the activities of shelters for victims of trafficking. The government did not provide adequate funding and equipment to conduct proactive investigations, and the Organized Crime Prosecutor’s Office did not have sufficient resources and staff to handle all cases under its jurisdiction, the report said.

It further states that the authorities did not initiate new cases of human trafficking, with only five cases in 2020, while the prosecutors in charge prosecuted only one criminal group with eight members. A total of nine people were convicted, five of them for child trafficking in 2019. A total of seven victims were identified during the year, five of whom were forced to offer sexual services.

The report also warns that Macedonian citizens are victims of human trafficking for work, a practice that occurs in countries like Germany.