 Israel has been criticized in the 1990s for its policies and its weak enforcement of laws on human trafficking.Women from the former Soviet Republics were brought into the country by criminal elements for forced labor in the sex industry.In 1998, the "Jerusalem Post" estimated that pimps engaging in this activity derived on average US$50,000–100,000 per prostitute, resulting in a countrywide industry of nearly $450,000,000 annually.