— James Nicholson, former U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See, 2004

\”Prostitution is not a new phenomenon. What is new is the existence of a global and complex trade that exploits situations of poverty and vulnerability that many women find themselves in, and exports [these women] into the sex industry.

\”In Italy, there are an estimated 50,000-70,000 women and girls from East Africa, Latin America and Eastern Europe who are prostituted on streets, in nightclubs and in private brothels. Some 30 percent to 40 percent are minors. They typically have no documents, because traffickers seize their passports and papers in order to control them. Upon arrival, traffickers and pimps often tell women they must work off a huge debt, which they had not heard about before leaving home.

\”To pay back this debt bond set at 40,000-70,000 Euros [$54,000-$94,000], Nigerian women must undergo at least 4,000 sexual encounters. On top of this, they are charged for food, lodging and even the space on the sidewalk where they stand.\”

— Consolata Missionary Sister Eugenia Bonetti, anti-trafficking activist, 2007