Cardiff newspaper the South Wales Echo has been accused of hypocrisy after running adverts for massage parlours that had been exposed in the front of the paper as allegedly being part of sex-trafficking industry.

In a separate development, Women's Minister Harriet Harman is to hold talks with the Newspaper Society to discuss how it can help curb what she terms an "evil trade" advertised in newspapers across the UK.

The Echo had carried a report on an Amnesty International study which claimed that up to 60 women, brought to the UK as part of the sex trade, were working in brothels in the city.

It gave several harrowing examples of how the women suffered abuse and attacks, and its leader column spoke out against a "hideous trade" in sex slavery.

But Welsh Assembly member Lynne Neagle spotted classified adverts in the same edition, for adult massage – with three parlours advertising which were referred to in the editorial story.

She said that the publisher, Media Wales, was demonstrating hypocrisy and called on the Assembly to withdraw advertising from its titles in protest, a move she estimated could hit the company for some £3m.

A spokesman for the paper's owners, Trinity Mirror, said: "The fact that we published our report of Amnesty International's findings is evidence of our belief that this is an important issue which deserves to be aired.

"We will continue to monitor carefully all our classified advertising. If we reasonably suspect or become aware of any illegal conduct on the part of a potential advertiser it goes without saying that the advertising will be refused."

Harriet Harman said in the House of Commons yesterday: "It's ... being advertised on the back of local newspapers, local family newspapers are advertising 'new girls in every week', 'new girls from eastern Europe, from Africa, from South East Asia'.

"This is advertising slavery. And I am meeting the Newspaper Society next week to discuss how they can play a part in curbing this evil trade."

The issue was raised in exchanges on forthcoming parliamentary business by former Labour minister Denis MacShane, who said: "Young women (aged) 12, 14, 16 beaten up, forced to act as sex slaves and it is on account of demand, not supply which we can't really do much about."