More than 2,000 children from Albania have been been brought to Greece to be put to work as beggars or, in the case of the girls, to work in the sex trade, according to a report on human trafficking released yesterday in Sarajevo by international organizations.

Human trafficking, particularly of women and young girls from Eastern European countries, is the third-largest illegal money-making industry after the trade in drugs and weapons. Thousands of women from Moldova, Ukraine and other former Soviet states, who seek legitimate work abroad, fall victim to human traffickers who bring them to Southeastern and Western Europe via Romania and Bulgaria, and their numbers are continually increasing, said the report, compiled by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in cooperation with UNICEF and the UN Bureau of Human Rights.

The problem is exacerbated by corrupt border and customs officials and the attitude and policies of local authorities in Southeastern Europe, who treat most of these women as illegal immigrants, and therefore criminals, rather than as the victims of human rights violations.

According to the report, about 90 percent of all prostitutes from Southeastern Europe are victims of human traffickers. Only 35 percent of these women will be recognized as such, and only 7 percent will receive long-term protection from the authorities.

In Greece, about 80 percent of all the victims of human traffickers are underage girls, although the report said there is insufficient information on the trade in young boys. It called on all governments to implement existing legislation and to cooperate with international and non-governmental organizations.