Over 400 human trafficking victims have been identified in Croatia since 2002, mainly women and girls, while the exploitation of men for labour is also on the rise, the deputy prime minister for social activities and human rights, Boris Milosevic, said on Wednesday.

Speaking at a conference on human trafficking in Croatia, he said the victims were the most vulnerable groups in society – women and children.

He added that Croatia used to be a transit country for human trafficking but was recently becoming the final destination.

He said Croatia ratified almost all international documents and conventions, including the EU directive on preventing and combating trafficking in human beings and protecting its victims.

Croatia has a relatively satisfactory legal framework, but there are problems in its application, said Davor Derencinovic, president of the Croatian Academy of Legal Sciences and leader of a project  aimed at protecting, helping and socially including human trafficking victims in Croatia.

He said it was necessary to improve the system for awarding compensation to the victims and the education of lawyers representing them as well as to increase penalties, expedite court proceedings and give victims greater rights.