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An agenda for change: Implementing the platform for action against human trafficking

10 décembre 2009 OSCE

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Ofﬁce of Ofﬁce of the the Special Special Representative Representative and and Co-ordinator for Co-ordinator for Combating Combating Trafﬁcking Trafﬁcking in in Human Human Beings Beings

AN AGENDA FOR CHANGE: IMPLEMENTING THE PLATFORM FOR ACTION AGAINST HUMAN TRAFFICKING

2009 Annual Report of the OSCE Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings presented to the Permanent Council, 10 December 2009

Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe ISBN: 978-92-9234-429-0

Published by the OSCE Ofﬁce of the Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings

Wallnerstr. 6, 1010 Vienna, Austria Tel: + 43 1 51436 6256 Fax: + 43 1 51436 6299 email: info-cthb@osce.org

Copyright: “All rights reserved. The contents of this publication may be freely used and copied for educa- tional and other non-commercial purposes, provided that any such reproduction is accompanied by an acknowledgement of the OSCE/Ofﬁce of the Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings as the source”.

The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is a pan-European security body whose 56 participating States span the geographical area from Vancouver to Vladivostok. Recognized as a regional arrangement under Chapter VIII of the United Nations Charter, the OSCE is a primary instrument for early warning, conﬂict prevention, crisis management and post-conﬂict rehabilitation in its area. Its approach to security is unique in being both comprehensive and co-operative: comprehensive in that it deals with three dimensions of security - the human, the politico-military and the economic/environ- mental. It therefore addresses a wide range of security-related concerns, including human rights, arms control, conﬁdence- and security-building measures, national minorities, democratization, policing strate- gies, counter-terrorism and economic and environmental activities. It is co-operative in that all the States participating in OSCE bodies and activities are equal in status. Decisions are taken by consensus on a politically but not legally binding basis.

The materials in this publication are for general information purposes only, provided on an “as is” basis, without warranties of any kind, including ﬁtness for any particular purpose. The OSCE, speciﬁcally, does not make any warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the information in this publication. The views, ﬁndings, interpretations and conclusions expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the ofﬁcial position of the OSCE and/or its participating States. To the extent permitted by law, the OSCE does not accept any liability for any loss, damage, liability or expense incurred or suffered, which may arise as a result of, or in connection with, the use of information contained in this publication. Ofﬁce of the Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings

AN AGENDA FOR CHANGE: IMPLEMENTING THE PLATFORM FOR ACTION AGAINST HUMAN TRAFFICKING

Annual Report of the OSCE Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings presented to the Permanent Council, 10 December 2009 FOREWORD This is my third and ﬁnal Annual Report in my capacity as the OSCE Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings. Three years ago, I established the Platform for Action as the framework for my work. This report provides a reﬂection on that framework, on our achievements and activities. I can conﬁdently say that there has been tremendous progress in the anti-trafﬁcking arena. At the same time, I have also seen many gaps and recognize many challenges that still remain.

The strength of the OSCE is that it is able to work across the broad spectrum of the security agenda. Trafﬁcking in human beings is ﬁrst of all a threat to the security of an individual. Additionally, it threatens the fundamental structures in society that our well-being and development are built on. The OSCE’s constructive and comprehensive approach has made it a true frontrunner in ﬁghting trafﬁcking in human beings. The fact that there has been a Ministerial Council Decision on human trafﬁcking every year from 2000 to 2008 is testimony to the importance given by the participating States to combating trafﬁcking. I can truly say that the Ministerial Council Decisions have served as the backbone of the SR’s engagement and the building blocks upon which the work of my Ofﬁce rests.

It has been a privilege to work in the unique position of SR, having had the opportunity to engage in high-level dialogue with decision makers and policymakers in OSCE participating States, and to engage with hands-on, grass root actors of civil society. One of the strengths of the SR is the role of a facilitator for co-operation and sharing of information between various actors, and bringing together international experts and activists alike. The creation of the Alliance against Trafﬁcking in Persons in 2004 and its maintenance over the years is, I believe, a major achievement in terms of co-operation throughout the international community. I do hope that the Alliance will be further developed and strengthened. I am convinced that my engagement and the engagement of all of the OSCE’s anti-trafﬁcking structures and ofﬁcials have raised the overall proﬁle of the whole OSCE and increased the general awareness of the important work carried out by this noble Organization.

To become a true priority, trafﬁcking must ﬁrst of all be placed high on the political agenda in all our participating States. Secondly, we need more systematic efforts to ﬁght this crime. So far, many of our efforts have been too ad-hoc and too short-term. There are many encouraging signs that coun- tries are starting to build up systematic approaches and strengthening the long-term national struc- tures and strategies. The basic instruments in this regard, besides the legal framework, are National Co-ordination Mechanisms, National Action Plans and National Rapporteurs or equivalent mecha- nisms, which I have continuously been advocating for. Finally, adequate resources must be committed to this work. The funds and efforts put into ﬁghting trafﬁcking must be in proportion to the funds and efforts put into responses to other, equally serious threats of our time.

We all need to actively search and ﬁnd the tipping point where the tide turns and trafﬁcking is no longer a lucrative and low risk business. We must stop tolerating the wasting of human lives. It is my hope that

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ﬁghting trafﬁcking in human beings will continue to remain one of the key priorities of this organization until we can conﬁdently say that trafﬁcking has been eradicated from this world.

I wish to express my sincerest gratitude to the Governments and delegations of the OSCE partici- pating States for all their support, contributions and commitment to my work. I want to extend my cordial thanks to the Greek OSCE Chairmanship, as well as the previous Chairmanships of Belgium in 2006, Spain in 2007 and Finland in 2008. My sincere wishes of success go to the forthcoming Kazakh Chairmanship, which, as it has stated, will include the ﬁght against trafﬁcking in human beings as one of its priorities. My thanks also go to the OSCE Secretary General and the OSCE executive struc- tures, especially the ODIHR and the ﬁeld operations, as well as the members of the Alliance against Trafﬁcking in Persons.

My warmest, heartfelt thanks go to all the highly professional, dedicated and conscientious staff in my Ofﬁce, who have worked tirelessly and diligently to support my mission these past three years. Without their efforts and backing, my work could not have been successful. Their expertise has been invaluable not only to me, but also to the whole organization in positioning the OSCE at the forefront of the international work to end modern-day slavery.

Lastly, I want to thank the numerous interns who have offered their time, dedication and idealism to support our important work.

Eva Biaudet OSCE Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings

4 Table of contents

1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

2. THE MANDATE OF THE SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

3. THE 2007-2009 AGENDA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 3.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 3.2 Encouraging Action at the National Level and Establishing National Anti-Trafﬁcking Structures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 3.3 Promoting Evidence-Based Policies and Programmes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 3.4 Stepping up Efforts to Prevent Trafﬁcking in Human Beings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 3.5 Prioritizing Action against Child Trafﬁcking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 3.6 Addressing All Forms of Trafﬁcking in Human Beings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 3.7 Promoting Effective Assistance and Access to Justice for all Victims . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

4. MAIN ACTIVITIES IN 2009 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 4.1 Raising the Public and Political Proﬁle of Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings . . . . . . . . 23 4.1.1 Dialogue with OSCE Participating States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 a. Bilateral Action: Working Together with National Authorities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 b. Supporting the Work of the Participating States’ Delegations to the OSCE . . . . . . . 24 4.1.2 Country Assessments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 a. Spain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 b. Romania . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 c. Kazakhstan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 4.1.3 Promoting the Implementation of OSCE Commitments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 a. 9th Alliance against Trafﬁcking in Persons Conference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 b. Technical Seminar on Trafﬁcking for Labour Exploitation in the Agricultural Sector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 4.1.4 Technical Assistance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 4.2 Raising the Visibility of OSCE Action on Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings . . . . . . . . 28 4.2.1 Participation in Conferences and Public Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 4.2.2 Working with the Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 4.3 Joining Efforts to Tackle Trafﬁcking in Human Beings: Co-ordination and Co-operation . . . . 31 4.3.1 Internal Co-ordination and Co-operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 a. Ofﬁce for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 b. Field Missions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 i. South-Eastern Europe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 ii. Eastern Europe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 iii. South Caucasus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 iv. Central Asia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 c. OSCE Secretariat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

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4.3.2 External Co-operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 a. The Alliance against Trafﬁcking in Persons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 b. Working with Other Multilateral Groups and Intergovernmental Organizations . . . . . 38 i. United Nations (UN) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 ii. International Labour Organization (ILO) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 iii. International Organization for Migration (IOM) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 iv. Regional Organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 1. European Union (EU) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 2. Council of Europe (CoE) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 3. NATO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 4. Commonwealth of Independent States Executive Committee . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 5. Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 6. Council of Baltic Sea States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

5. ACHIEVEMENTS, CHALLENGES AND REFLECTIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 5.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 5.2 Achievements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 5.3 Challenges and Reﬂections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 5.3.1 Protecting Children from Exploitation and Trafﬁcking is our First Priority . . . . . . . . . . 46 5.3.2 Better Identiﬁcation of Victims will Require a More Humane Attitude . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 5.3.3 Trafﬁcking is a Crime That Takes Many Forms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 5.3.4 Are Trafﬁckers Always a Step Ahead? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 5.3.5 Prevention is Complex but Fundamental . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 5.3.6 Fighting Human Trafﬁcking is the Cheapest Option for Governments . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

ANNEX 1: List of Keynote Addresses and Interventions in Conferences, Seminars and Other Events by the SR and her Ofﬁce . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

ANNEX 2: OSCE Ministerial Decisions Concerning the Fight against Trafﬁcking in Human Beings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

ANNEX 3: Key Press Clippings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

6 1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

In October 2006, Ms. Eva Biaudet, former Finnish Member of Parliament and Minister of Health and Social Services, was appointed as the OSCE Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings (SR). The SR is tasked by the Ministerial Council to:

”report to the Permanent Council …on progress achieved in work on trafﬁcking issues in the 1 OSCE MC.DEC/13/05 OSCE. These reports also contain contributions from OSCE structures, institutions and ﬁeld on Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings. operations on developments related to trafﬁcking in human beings throughout the OSCE region and will include an analysis of achievements in the light of objectives set out in the 2003 Action Plan to Combat Trafﬁcking in Human Beings.” 1

This is the fourth Annual Report of the OSCE Special Representative and the third report of the current 2 The ﬁrst report was Special Representative.2 In addition to providing a report on the Ofﬁce of the Special Representative’s produced by the former Special Representative, Dr. Helga Konrad. efforts to combat trafﬁcking in human beings over the period January-November 2009, it provides an overview of the activities, achievements and challenges of the Special Representative’s entire three-year term in ofﬁce.

The report outlines the mandate of the Special Representative and her role in combating trafﬁcking in human beings. It then sets out the agenda that has guided the SR’s work from 2007-2009, building upon the Platform for Action described in the 2007 Annual Report. This platform is based upon six thematic priority areas:

1. Encouraging action at the national level and establishing national anti-trafﬁcking structures; 2. Promoting evidence-based policies and programmes; 3. Stepping up efforts to prevent trafﬁcking in human beings; 4. Prioritizing action against child trafﬁcking; 5. Addressing all forms of trafﬁcking in human beings; 6. Promoting effective assistance and access to justice for all victims.

This report explores each of these priorities in detail and explains how the SR has addressed them over her three-year mandate. The report also highlights the strong focus that the Special Representative has placed upon ensuring that a human rights-based and gender-sensitive approach is taken to combating trafﬁcking.

In addition to outlining the SR’s agenda within the framework of the Platform for Action, the 2007 Annual Report explored the work of the SR and her Ofﬁce over the previous year and analysed the extent to which it had contributed to the realization of OSCE commitments in the anti-trafﬁcking ﬁeld. In 2008, the Annual Report was based upon the results of a survey conducted with OSCE partici- pating States on national co-ordination and reporting mechanisms. It provided a detailed analysis of

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anti-trafﬁcking efforts at the national level. The 2009 Annual Report builds upon this previous material and explores the progress that has been made since their publication.

The next section of this report focuses speciﬁcally upon the activities that the SR has undertaken in 2009 to combat trafﬁcking in human beings. It concentrates upon three main areas of work: (i) raising the public and political proﬁle of combating trafﬁcking in human beings; (ii) raising the visibility of OSCE action on trafﬁcking in human beings; and (iii) joining efforts to tackle trafﬁcking in human beings: co-ordination and co-operation. The latter section looks both at co-operation within the OSCE’s struc- tures and institutions, and at co-operation with other international organizations and key stakeholders in the OSCE region.

The report concludes with an examination and reﬂections on the achievements in terms of combating human trafﬁcking in the OSCE region over the period 2007-2009, as well as the challenges which remain both for the participating States and for the Ofﬁce of the Special Representative.

8 2. THE MANDATE OF THE SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE

While the primary responsibility for tackling human trafﬁcking in the OSCE region lies with the partici- 3 MC (8).DEC/1 on Enhancing pating States themselves, they have clearly tasked the OSCE to play a key role in assisting them in the OSCE’s Efforts to Combat Trafﬁcking in Human Beings. the implementation of the relevant OSCE commitments, upon request. The ﬁght against trafﬁcking in human beings has been at the heart of the OSCE’s work since 2000, when the ﬁrst Ministerial Decision on enhancing the OSCE’s efforts to combat trafﬁcking in human beings was taken.3 Real momentum on the issue gathered pace with the adoption of the OSCE Action Plan to Combat Trafﬁcking in Human Beings in 2003. Ministerial Decision 2/03, which endorsed the Action Plan, also established an OSCE mechanism to provide assistance to participating States to combat human trafﬁcking. It stipulated that the mechanism would consist of two parts: a Special Representative, appointed by the Chairman-in- Ofﬁce, and a special unit within the OSCE Secretariat. The Decision highlights three overarching tasks for the Special Representative:

t5PSFQSFTFOUUIF04$&BUUIFQPMJUJDBMMFWFM SBJTJOHUIFQVCMJDBOEQPMJUJDBMQSPmMFPGDPNCBUJOH all forms of trafﬁcking; t5PBTTJTUQBSUJDJQBUJOH4UBUFT BUUIFJSSFRVFTU JOGVMmMMJOHUIFSFMFWBOU04$&DPNNJUNFOUTBOE the recommendations of the OSCE Action Plan; t5PDPPSEJOBUFBOUJUSBGmDLJOHFGGPSUTXJUIJOUIF04$&BOEUPDPPQFSBUFXJUIOBUJPOBMBVUIPSJ- ties, civil society and relevant international actors.

In 2006, Ministerial Decision 3/06 transformed the mechanism established by the Action Plan into the Ofﬁce of the Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings within the OSCE Secretariat. This Ministerial Council Decision also provided a more detailed frame- work for the work of the SR. Today, the SR is supported in her work by her Deputy Co-ordinator, a Senior Adviser, an Executive Ofﬁcer, three advisers, a Press Ofﬁcer and two administrative staff.

The SR and her Ofﬁce are tasked to work across all three dimensions of the OSCE’s work: politico- military, economic and environment, and human dimension. It is this cross-dimensional aspect of the SR’s work that makes the OSCE’s work on human trafﬁcking stand out from other international actors and stakeholders. It means that the SR can approach the problem from a number of angles, engaging a wide range of other stakeholders. The cross-dimensional aspect brings together a human rights-based approach to combating trafﬁcking, a mandate to address the socio-economic root causes of trafﬁcking and a role in assisting in the creation of national structures and legislation designed to combat traf- ﬁcking and assist victims.

The political will of the participating States to address the problem of trafﬁcking is clear in the Ministerial Decisions adopted during the SR’s mandate:

t%FDJTJPO/PPO&OIBODJOH&GGPSUTUP$PNCBU5SBGmDLJOHJO)VNBO#FJOHTJODMVEJOHGPS Labour Exploitation, through a Comprehensive and Proactive Approach t%FDJTJPO/PPO$PNCBUJOH5SBGmDLJOHJO)VNBO#FJOHTGPS-BCPVS&YQMPJUBUJPO t%FDJTJPO/PPO$PNCBUJOH4FYVBM&YQMPJUBUJPOPG$IJMESFOPOUIF*OUFSOFU t%FDJTJPO/PPO&OIBODJOH$SJNJOBM+VTUJDF3FTQPOTFTUP5SBGmDLJOHJO)VNBO#FJOHT Through a Comprehensive Approach

These decisions build upon 12 other Ministerial Council Decisions taken on the ﬁght against trafﬁcking in human beings since 2000. A full list can be found in Annex 2 of this report.

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The SR works together with individual participating States and Partners for Co-operation, encour- aging bilateral and multilateral co-operation. In all of these activities, the SR acts to catalyse political will and the implementation of concrete actions against trafﬁcking at the national level. She is able to facilitate dialogue between countries of origin, transit and destination, maintaining a multidisciplinary and human rights-based approach to combating trafﬁcking.

10 3. THE 2007-2009 AGENDA 3.1 Introduction The SR’s Annual Report 2007 set out the agenda for the SR’s three-year term, in full compliance with 4 MC.DEC/14/06 on Enhancing the SR’s mandate. This agenda, entitled ‘Platform for Action’, was conceived through a broad consulta- Efforts to Combat Trafﬁcking in Human Beings, Including for tive process with participating States, and in co-operation with international organizations and civil Labour Exploitation, Through a society. The agenda was based on an approach that is human rights-based and gender-sensitive.4 Comprehensive and Proactive The Platform for Action was created to provide a sound foundation for the work of the SR and the Approach and MC.DEC/15/05 Ofﬁce of the Special Representative (Ofﬁce of the SR). Within this framework, the SR has actively on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women, as well worked to support the 56 OSCE participating States in the implementation of the Organization’s as other relevant MC Decisions. anti-trafﬁcking commitments, including the OSCE Action Plan, as well as other relevant international instruments. She has also encouraged the OSCE Partners for Co-operation to make full use of both the political and operational aspects of the OSCE anti-trafﬁcking framework.

The Platform encompasses six broad thematic priority areas:

1. Encouraging action at national level and establishing national anti-trafﬁcking structures; 2. Promoting evidence-based policies and programmes; 3. Stepping up efforts to prevent trafﬁcking in human beings; 4. Prioritizing action against child trafﬁcking; 5. Addressing all forms of trafﬁcking in human beings; 6. Promoting effective assistance and access to justice for all victims.

Since trafﬁcking is a multifaceted phenomenon, which is constantly taking new forms, a variety of issues, including many emerging and new developments, have been addressed under the six afore- mentioned thematic areas. The developments over the course of the SR’s three-year term are reﬂected in the next section.

The SR’s role as a catalyst to promote dialogue and action at a high political level has been key to advancing the advocacy agenda established within the Platform for Action. The SR has placed partic- ular emphasis on engaging in high-level policy dialogue with decision makers and national authorities, non-governmental organizations and civil society, as well as with international and regional organiza- tions.

3.2 ENCOURAGING ACTION AT NATIONAL LEVEL AND ESTABLISHING NATIONAL ANTI-TRAFFICKING STRUCTURES

The adoption of Ministerial Council Decisions on the topic of combating trafﬁcking in human beings every year since 2000 gives a strong signal of commitment from participating States to the ﬁght against trafﬁcking. However, the key to ﬁghting trafﬁcking is concrete action at the national level. 5 SR address at the Alliance “[T]his work cannot be outsourced to international organizations. It is the responsibility of against Trafﬁcking in Persons every national and local government to create concrete strategies, and to allocate adequate Conference on Prevention of Modern Slavery: An Ounce of resources for implementation of targeted anti-trafﬁcking efforts as well as their evalua- Prevention is Worth a Pound of tion. I am convinced that such strengthened and sustainable political will, including the […] Cure, Vienna, 14-15 September National Rapporteurs or equivalent mechanisms, together with National Co-ordinators and 2009. National Action Plans, are a strong foundation upon which we can together stop trafﬁcking.”5 6 OSCE Action Plan, Chapter VI, Paragraphs 1 and 2; Chapter V, The SR has advocated strongly, throughout her term, for the establishment of dedicated national Article 3. structures to combat trafﬁcking in human beings. Such mechanisms are called for in the OSCE Action 7 MC.DEC/14/06 on Enhancing Plan, which recommends that participating States establish National Anti-Trafﬁcking Commissions, Efforts to Combat Trafﬁcking in Human Beings, Including for National Referral Mechanisms and National Rapporteurs.6 Ministerial Council Decision 14/06 reiterates Labour Exploitation, Through a the recommendation that participating States consider appointing a National Rapporteur or similar Comprehensive and Proactive independent monitoring mechanism.7 The National Rapporteur mechanism has also been called for Approach, operative paragraph 3.

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in other international documents, including the 1997 EU Hague Declaration and the 2005 Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafﬁcking in Human Beings.

8 SR 2008 Annual Report, The SR’s 2008 Annual Report focused speciﬁcally upon these national co-ordination mechanisms. pp. 100-105. It outlined efforts taken by participating States to establish such mechanisms, including National Co-ordinators and interagency co-ordinating bodies, National Action Plans and National Rapporteurs or equivalent mechanisms for monitoring and analysis. Since then, more participating States have estab- lished interagency commissions, adopted anti-trafﬁcking legislation and elaborated National Programs (National Action Plans to Combat Trafﬁcking in Human Beings). The developments with regard to the establishment of these mechanisms are encouraging. By the end of 2007, some 24 participating States and two OSCE Partners for Co-Operation had established a National Rapporteur or equivalent mecha- nism8, with a number of others establishing similar mechanisms in the intervening period.

The SR strongly believes that the adoption and implementation of these national co-ordination mecha- nisms forms a concrete and necessary step in ﬁghting trafﬁcking. The SR ﬁnds it encouraging that so many participating States have already established National Co-ordination Mechanisms, National Action Plans and National Rapporteurs. The effectiveness of these structures, however, depends on the resources, both human and ﬁnancial, that are allocated to them.

While all countries are different and the structures need to be suited to the national context, there are some basic features that have proved to be crucial for their effectiveness. The 2008 Annual Report provided recommendations for the establishment of these national structures. The intera- gency co-ordinating bodies should be inclusive, ensuring the involvement of civil society actors. The National Action Plans should receive sufﬁcient and adequate resources, both human and ﬁnancial, and should task the relevant actors with concrete actions. The National Rapporteur should be sufﬁ- ciently independent in its activities and should work in a transparent way, analysing data and trends, monitoring and evaluating the implementation of anti-trafﬁcking policies, legislation and programmes, and providing policy recommendations, preferably through annual public reports to the Parliament. The National Rapporteur or equivalent mechanism needs to have adequate access to data on the full range of forms of trafﬁcking and should be in a position to report directly to the Government and/ or Parliament in order to make policy recommendations. The report by the National Rapporteur can therefore promote parliamentary and public debates on the issue of trafﬁcking in human beings, and contribute to enhanced efforts at the national level.

The promotion of National Rapporteurs or equivalent mechanisms has been a consistent theme throughout all activities undertaken by the SR, as well as the focus of speciﬁc events. The 6th Alliance conference on “National Monitoring and Reporting Mechanisms to Address THB: the Role of National Rapporteurs”, held in May 2007 in Vienna, showcased concrete examples and existing practices of National Rapporteurs or equivalent mechanisms in the participating States, and raised the prioritization of the issue amongst the anti-trafﬁcking community. Together with the Czech Minister of the Interior and the European Commission, the SR co-organized the Czech EU Presidency conference on “Joint analysis, joint action: EU National Rapporteurs on trafﬁcking in human beings”, which was held in Prague in March 2009.

In line with OSCE commitments, the SR has promoted the establishment of national anti-trafﬁcking struc- tures and has continuously stressed the crucial role of these national structures in collecting data, in analysing and monitoring measures taken, and in providing policy guidance and recommendations to decision makers and practitioners. For example, in June 2008, in the course of her high-level visit to Spain, the SR met with Parliamentarians, Members of the Committees on Equality of the Congress and Senate of Spain to discuss the decisive role of the Parliament in making the ﬁght against human trafﬁcking a political priority for the country. In December 2008, the SR spoke before the Employment and Equality Committee of the Finnish Parliament, commenting on the bill on the establishment of a National Rapporteur on trafﬁcking in human beings. In 2009, the SR discussed the signiﬁcance of estab- lishing or strengthening National Rapporteur mechanisms and other relevant anti-trafﬁcking structures and frameworks, during her ofﬁcial visits to Azerbaijan, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom, Armenia, Turkmenistan, Romania and Iceland, as well as during numerous anti-trafﬁcking events. In September 2009, during her country visit to Romania, the SR met the Chair of the European Affairs Committee of the Romanian Parliament and the leader of the parliamentary Group to prevent trafﬁcking in persons, and learned about their efforts to investigate and address human trafﬁcking.

12 3.3 PROMOTING EVIDENCE-BASED POLICIES AND PROGRAMMES

One of the major challenges in ﬁghting trafﬁcking in human beings is that there is too little data on and knowledge of the extent of the phenomenon, of its trends and patterns. A major challenge relates to the fact that there is a gap between the operational assumption of a vast number of possible victims of human trafﬁcking versus the limited number of actual identiﬁed victims and convicted trafﬁckers. This is a signal that even more efforts need to be put into collecting data, law enforcement and also into evaluating the impact of anti-trafﬁcking policies and actions. Despite many national and interna- tional efforts to standardize trafﬁcking indicators and data collection mechanisms, trafﬁcking remains an underreported and underdocumented crime. There is also scarce evaluation and monitoring of the various policies and programmes, and few efforts have been undertaken to date to determine whether, how and why these are effective.

“It’s clear that we lack an overall image of the scope of this issue, the trends, and even an 9 SR speech at the Czech accurate assessment of the results of our actions! As policymakers and practitioners, we EU Presidency Conference of EU National Rapporteurs on need empirical evidence so we can understand the problem, identify how far we are from Trafﬁcking in Human Beings, the turning point, and respond adequately. Furthermore, especially in times of crisis, I believe Prague, 30 March 2009. that policymaking based on evidence can also increase public conﬁdence in the effective- ness, efﬁciency and impact of efforts undertaken by all stakeholders.” 9

In the current economic situation, it is more crucial than ever that funds spent on anti-trafﬁcking efforts, both nationally and internationally, are accurately targeted and that the programmes and policies achieve the intended goal. To provide further examples of promising practices, in September 2007 the SR organized the 7th Alliance against Trafﬁcking in Human Beings conference on “Assistance to Trafﬁcked Persons: We Can do Better”. One of the main objectives of this event was to present the most recent qualitative and quantitative research available on identiﬁcation of, protection of and assist- ance to trafﬁcked persons. The conference highlighted the importance of a multidisciplinary approach and sustained research into understanding human trafﬁcking. It also highlighted the need to review the notions of assistance, protection and identiﬁcation through empirical evidence-based research. Finally, it underlined the beneﬁts of closer co-operation between state and non-state actors, in particular researchers and policymakers.

In an effort to promote evidence-based policies, the SR has consistently and systematically worked to promote the establishment of National Rapporteurs or equivalent mechanisms as instruments (with national ownership) to evaluate anti-trafﬁcking work, revise, adapt and better target anti-trafﬁcking poli- cies and programmes.

The Occasional Paper series, which was started by the SR in 2007, is a way of raising topical issues in trafﬁcking and showcasing examples of good practice. The occasional papers are one way in which the SR has tried to collect and analyse evidence, in order to bring it to the attention of the participating States and to help them in shaping their policies and practical responses to human trafﬁcking. The SR has produced three Occasional Papers, entitled: (1) a Summary of Challenges Facing Legal Responses to Human Trafﬁcking for Labour Exploitation in the OSCE Region (2007); (2) Human Trafﬁcking for Labour Exploitation/ Forced and Bonded Labour (2008); and (3) A Summary of Challenges on Addressing Human Trafﬁcking for Labour Exploitation in the Agricultural Sector in the OSCE Region (2009) (see Section 3.6 for more detail on these reports).

3.4 STEPPING UP EFFORTS TO PREVENT TRAFFICKING IN HUMAN BEINGS

The SR has taken a broad approach to prevention, in line with the OSCE Action Plan that adopted a multidimensional approach to trafﬁcking. It stems from the recognition that mere awareness-raising is not enough to curb trafﬁcking. Instead, prevention has to be approached comprehensively, recog- nizing that all anti-trafﬁcking efforts have a preventive function. Prevention of trafﬁcking is a cross- dimensional issue that requires better economic and employment opportunities, good governance and the combating of corruption. It requires that trafﬁcking be recognized as a transnational security threat requiring co-operation between participating States as well as zero tolerance of exploitation and discrimination. It also requires recognition that trafﬁcking is a grave violation of human rights, and

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10 Human Security Now. that trafﬁcking severely violates human security, destroying social cohesion and threatening the rule of Commission on Human Security, law. Just as “human security […] broadens the focus from the security of borders to the lives of people New York, 2003, p.6. and communities inside and across those borders”10, ﬁghting trafﬁcking also necessitates a broad approach that incorporates gender mainstreaming, educational opportunities, the pursuit of the best interests of the child and engagement with young people. Each of these areas, when addressed in a responsible way, has a strong impact on the prevention of slavery. Each has to be dealt with, in order to ensure equality and non-discrimination, inter-ethnic peace and cultural diversity. By addressing the root causes of trafﬁcking, the countries prevent those most vulnerable from taking desperate and risky decisions which may easily lead to enslavement. Decent alternatives may prevent former victims from being re-trafﬁcked or for those who are still under the control of perpetrators, even from joining the criminal world as facilitators of, contributors to or perpetrators of trafﬁcking, in order to ‘escape’ from 11 Global Report on Trafﬁcking in humiliation and torture. According to research by UNODC11, a signiﬁcant proportion of investigated, Persons, UN.GIFT, UNODC, 2009, prosecuted and convicted trafﬁckers are women. In fact, the percentage of women convicted for the pp. 45-47 and 52-57. crime of trafﬁcking is much higher than the percentage of women convicted for other crimes. This may be due to the fact that convictions for trafﬁcking seem to target the lower levels of criminals, as law enforcement agencies fail to apprehend the main perpetrators. In some cases, victims of trafﬁcking 12 Siddharta Kara, Sex turn into perpetrators as a means of gaining power and control over their situation, or simply to escape Trafﬁcking: Inside the Business of Modern Slavery. Columbia the exploitation.12 In others, the so-called ‘Stockholm Syndrome’ may be present, whereby victims University Press: New York, 2009. become so dependent on their trafﬁckers that they begin to feel afﬁliation and loyalty towards them.

The Alliance against Trafﬁcking in Persons Conference in September 2009, entitled “Prevention of Modern Slavery: An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure”, renewed the perspective on prevention. It became clear from the discussions during the conference that the global ﬁnancial crisis, worsening conditions for migrants, growing xenophobia and discrimination, job losses, reduced or non-payment of wages, and signiﬁcantly reduced remittances affecting communities are all contributing to changing patterns of trafﬁcking. Restrictive immigration policies are also creating opportunities and incentives for human trafﬁckers who prey on desperate people vulnerable to exploitative conditions.

13 The 1994 Code of Conduct The conference demonstrated that every level of society can contribute to the prevention of modern-day for OSCE Ofﬁcials and OSCE slavery. It is crucial to use a multi-stakeholder approach to curb trafﬁcking and forced labour in the Staff Instruction No. 11/2004 on Preventing the Promotion/ face of the global ﬁnancial crisis. Strengthening the co-operation between governments, businesses, Facilitation of Trafﬁcking in Human workers and consumer associations is vital, especially for introducing regulations and carrying out Beings regulate the behaviour of monitoring to root out exploitative labour conditions. Codes of conduct in businesses, international OSCE staff. In addition, in 2005 organizations and in the military are needed to stop the production of goods and services made with the OSCE Ministerial Council adopted MC Decision No. 16/05 child and forced labour as well as to prevent any misconduct, exploitation or abuse by military and on Ensuring the Highest Standards civilian personnel.13 Journalists can also create an environment in which exploitation, discrimination of Conduct and Accountability of and impunity are no longer tolerated, and in which people are educated to understand the conse- Persons Serving on International quences of the demand for commercial sex and unprotected labour, and to change their behaviour. Forces and Missions. NATO has the 2004 NATO Policy on Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Conference participants agreed that the responses to these challenges must include the creation of Beings and the United Nations has low-cost co-ordination mechanisms that can improve the targeting of anti-trafﬁcking programmes the “Ten Rules Code of Personal Conduct for Blue Helmets”. and increase the speed of joint responses to these new threats, building knowledge and experience on trafﬁcking. It is also necessary to ﬁnd ways to collate reliable data on the real scope of human trafﬁcking. If trafﬁcking is analysed as a business model, it is clear that it is the enormous proﬁts that drive the trafﬁckers. Chasing the money trails and assets is therefore an important activity in the ﬁght against trafﬁcking.

It is also crucial to address the socio-economic root causes of trafﬁcking, including marginalization and discrimination based on ethnicity and gender, weak rule of law, as well as corruption. At the same time, it is important to selectively mainstream trafﬁcking into a number of related policy areas 14 SR 2008 Annual Report, in order to enhance the effectiveness of anti-trafﬁcking policies.14 This could both contribute to better pp. 49 and 71. co-ordination and burden-sharing between various governmental actors (e.g., those responsible for child protection, education, law enforcement, fair labour practices, social services, etc.), and enhance all actors’ contributions to combating trafﬁcking in human beings.

Ensuring legal and safe migration opportunities is also clearly a preventive action. Female migrants are often particularly vulnerable and disadvantaged due to their gender. The “Guide on Gender-Sensitive Migration Policies”, a joint report by the SR, the Ofﬁce of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA) and the OSCE Secretariat Gender Section, published in May 2009,

14 highlights the need for gender-speciﬁc action in order to ensure safe and accessible migration chan- nels for women. The Guide, among other things, seeks to raise policymakers’ awareness of the demand in countries of destination for low-skilled workers in so-called ‘feminised sectors’ and the challenges female migrant workers often experience in these sectors due to limited admission schemes. These limitations lead many into irregular and unprotected employment and in worse cases into labour exploi- tation and trafﬁcking situations, including more hidden forms such as domestic servitude. The Guide points out these challenges and policy gaps and proposes a set of policy changes in order to better consider gender aspects in labour migration policies both in countries of destination and origin and can therefore also be regarded as one way of preventing trafﬁcking.

Moreover, prevention must also include preventing trafﬁcking and exploitation at each stage of the crime, as well as the prevention of re-trafﬁcking. The SR has highlighted the responsibility of countries of origin, transit and destination to equally respond to and intervene to prevent trafﬁcking. The SR has recognized that in order to truly prevent trafﬁcking, it is crucial to also address those engaging in the crime, both criminals and potential criminals. The SR is contributing to this area of work by implementing a project under the United Nations Global Fight against Human Trafﬁcking (UN.GIFT) Expert Group Initiative, enti- tled “Analyzing the Business Organization and Socio-Economic Context of Human Trafﬁcking in order to Better Prevent the Crime”, an overview of which can be found in section 4.3.2 of this report.

The SR has systematically raised the need for all countries and actors to address the demand for cheap and exploitative labour and commercial sex that fosters trafﬁcking.

“Without comprehensive measures in all countries to reduce demand, we will never reach 15 SR presentation at the the tipping point in our ﬁght to eradicate trafﬁcking from our societies. There is an urgent seminar on Side Effects of Free Mobility, Helsinki, 26 March 2009. need to develop legislation that makes people truly accountable for exploitation. The crimi- nalisation of demand is of course only one way – but can be a most effective measure in this regard. But most importantly, there is an urgent need to start serious discussions about whether we want to protect all our fellow human beings, regardless of their ethnicity, nation- ality and legal status from abuse and exploitation, or remain indifferent. The choice is ours.” 15

There are many emerging promising practices in this area. Efforts to raise public awareness of goods 16 http://www.thebodyshop. that are produced using forced labour and child labour have proven useful. The Body Shop, for instance, co.uk/_en/_gb/values-campaigns/ trafﬁcking.aspx has launched a campaign to stop sex trafﬁcking of children and young people. The campaign aims to raise awareness of the scale of the issue, raise funds for vulnerable children and young people, and 17 http://www.thecode.org/

inspire those with decision-making power to effect change.16 A further good example is that of ECPAT International, who have worked together with the tourism industry to develop a code of conduct for the protection of children from sexual exploitation in travel and tourism.17 The OSCE Mission in Kosovo fought internal as well as international trafﬁcking through a 15 day awareness campaign entitled “Rock to break the silence! Report human trafﬁcking!”, which culminated in a free music concert attended by thousands of adolescents on the anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 2008. The OSCE Mission to Serbia depicted seven well-known prominent men half-naked on billboards, posters and television spots all across the region; the “Naked Facts” campaign encouraged people to be cautious and aware of a crime that is growing in magnitude within the borders of Serbia.

This year’s Alliance Conference also showed how community action can be a vehicle for change. An 18 http://www.theccat.com example particularly welcomed by participants was that of the Croydon Community against Trafﬁcking (CCAT), a community-based group in London, which presented its work in identifying victims who have been trafﬁcked for sexual exploitation. CCAT has been successful in achieving the closure of brothels known to house trafﬁcking victims and in persuading the local media not to carry advertisements for ‘personal’ services potentially provided by victims of trafﬁcking.18 There is a danger that such adver- tisements could contribute to trafﬁcking for sexual exploitation by increasing demand for victims, thereby making the media, even if involuntarily, an integral part of the crime of trafﬁcking, due to the huge proﬁts made from such thinly veiled advertisements.

The SR has also focused upon demand in the defence sector:

“We have come a long way since when not so long ago a high-level UN ofﬁcial was quoted as saying “boys will always be boys” in response to allegations of sexual abuse by interna- tional peacekeepers. There has been increasing recognition of how trafﬁcking for sexual and labour exploitation undermines security and international peacekeeping efforts, and we

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19 SR address at the NATO have begun to enforce laws and policies that address the abuse of a position of power of Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council, some international forces and workers, and to promote respect for human dignity… When 12 March 2008. members of military forces purchase sexual services from organized criminal networks, they are creating the demand for trafﬁcking.” 19

3.5 PRIORITIZING ACTION AGAINST CHILD TRAFFICKING

In recent years many new, horriﬁc forms of child trafﬁcking have emerged. The disappearance of unac- companied asylum-seeking children has become a growing problem in many OSCE participating States. Many of the missing children end up as victims of sexual exploitation or exploited in street begging, petty crime and domestic slavery. The situation is particularly dire for many Roma children, who face marginalization and discrimination and are at greater risk of re-trafﬁcking. There is also a growing trend of internal trafﬁcking of under-age girls for sexual exploitation. One aspect of this trend is the so-called ‘loverboy’ phenomenon, where a man poses as a suitor to entice and deceive under-age girls into prostitution. Furthermore, forced child labour, especially for agricultural work such as cotton-picking, but also for cannabis cultivation and domestic servitude, is a problem in parts of the OSCE region.

Child trafﬁcking is a core theme in the OSCE’s anti-trafﬁcking work. Key commitments include the Addendum to the OSCE Action Plan to Combat Trafﬁcking in Human Beings: Addressing the Special Needs of Child Victims of Trafﬁcking for Protection and Assistance, adopted by the Ministerial Council in 2005, the Ministerial Council Decision 15/06 on Combating Sexual Exploitation of Children, adopted in 2006 at the Brussels Ministerial Council, and the Ministerial Council Decision 9/07 on Combating Sexual Exploitation of Children on the Internet, adopted by the Ministerial Council in 2007.

Throughout her mandate, the SR has strongly prioritized action against child trafﬁcking.

20 SR Presentation at the “When it comes to protecting children, I want to reiterate that there is no margin of apprecia- Alliance against Trafﬁcking tion. Every single country has a moral responsibility and legal obligation to actively seek to in Persons Conference: Child identify and protect every single vulnerable child, without discrimination and regardless of Trafﬁcking: Responses and his or her immigration status…These children, like all other children, based on universally- Challenges at Local Level, Vienna, 26-27 May 2008. accepted Human Rights principles, have a legal right to education, medical and psycholog- ical treatment and safe development.” 20

The SR selected the ﬁght against child trafﬁcking as one of her key priorities for 2008. The protec- tion of children against all forms of trafﬁcking and exploitation is a fundamental responsibility of all governments. Accordingly, the 8th Alliance against Trafﬁcking in Persons Conference entitled “Child Trafﬁcking: Responses and Challenges at Local Level”, held in Vienna on 26-27 May 2008, focused on how the local level can best respond to child trafﬁcking. The conference drew attention to the overwhelming acknowledgement that children on the move are not adequately protected and thus form the largest group at risk of trafﬁcking. An increasing number of participating States acknowledged the need to implement National Action Plans at the local level, which would mean allocating resources to combating the exploitation of children for organized begging, petty crime and sexual abuse. The SR, in her concluding remarks, advocated for a number of urgent steps to be taken to combat child trafﬁcking:

t5IFFTUBCMJTINFOUPG/BUJPOBM3BQQPSUFVSTPSFRVJWBMFOUNFDIBOJTNTUPJNQSPWFLOPXMFEHF regarding the situation of children on the move; t"OJODSFBTFJOSFTPVSDFTGPSDIJMEQSPUFDUJPO BVHNFOUJOHCVEHFUTBUUIFMPDBMMFWFM t"OJNQSPWFNFOUJODPPSEJOBUJPOCFUXFFOMBXFOGPSDFNFOUBOEDIJMEQSPUFDUJPOBVUIPSJUJFT XJUI a multinational approach; t5IFQSPNPUJPOPGKPJOUBDUJPOTCZNJYFEUFBNTPGTPDJBMXPSLFSTBOEDVMUVSBMNFEJBUPSTGSPN countries of origin and destination; t5IFBEESFTTJOHPGUIFJOUFSOBUJPOBMEFNBOEGPSDIFBQHPPETVTJOHDIJMEMBCPVS BTXFMMBTUIF use of children for sexual purposes.

The SR has stressed that children must be protected regardless of their immigration status and advo- cated a multidisciplinary and cross-national approach to combating child trafﬁcking, in order to create a system of multicultural responses. Children should receive assistance, not be punished or detained.

16 Detention puts children at risk of various forms of exploitation and can never be in their best interest, not even in the interest of maintaining family unity, and therefore alternatives to detention must be sought. At the same time, a decision regarding safe return must be made, based upon a process of best interest determination of the child, in which the child should be included. The return of child victims of trafﬁcking without proper risk assessment and best interest determination puts children at continued risk of exploitation and re-trafﬁcking.

In practical terms, the SR has contributed to the prevention of child trafﬁcking by supervising an extra-budgetary project (2008-9), entitled “Prevention and assistance to the children victims of commer- cial sexual exploitation in Russia”. The project was funded by the Principality of Monaco and imple- mented by the Saint Petersburg NGO Stellit, in co-operation with municipal bodies of the city. The project and the work of Stellit in this area was highly appreciated by the speakers who addressed the Alliance conference on child trafﬁcking. The project improved rehabilitation opportunities for child victims of sexual exploitation by increasing the professionalism of specialists and police ofﬁcers involved in combating commercial sexual exploitation of children, and by establishing a network of rehabilitation organizations to ensure comprehensive, consistent and continuous assistance to the victims of such exploitation, including child trafﬁcking. The implementation of the project was extended for an additional six months, with a view to undertaking research on trafﬁcking of children from the Republic of Moldova to Saint Petersburg. This will lead to the development of recommendations on the improvement of the child protection network, on the identiﬁcation of child victims of trafﬁcking and on providing them with continuous care in Moldova, which will be implemented by Stellit in co-operation with the NGO Terre des Hommes.

The OSCE Strategic Police Matters Unit (SPMU) organized an online workshop on 13-24 October 2008 on Countering Sexual Exploitation of Children on the Internet, the ﬁrst such conference to be held exclusively online. This innovative conference highlighted, inter alia, the need for more training for police ofﬁcers, the establishment of specialized units, improved co-operation with civil society, child-friendly procedures and effective software for investigators. The SR pointed out in her contribution to the event that the exploitation of a child always equals trafﬁcking.

The SPMU also maintains the OSCE Policing OnLine Information System (POLIS), which consolidates 21 http://polis.osce.org/ all aspects of law enforcement activities within the OSCE area. The SPMU is currently working on establishing a thematic portal with comprehensive information on how to combat sexual exploitation of children on the Internet. The portal will be launched by the end of 2009.21

Making the empowerment of children and youth one of her priorities, the SR regularly met with children 22 Because I am a Girl: the State and youth during her country visits. For example, in 2007 the SR supported the OSCE Presence in of the World’s Girls 2009 Girls in the Global Economy – Adding it All Albania in implementing a one-month national public campaign on child begging. After a survey showed Up, Plan International, p. 20. that many citizens lacked a clear understanding of the forced begging phenomenon, a comprehensive media campaign was run on television, radio and billboards to raise awareness about this form of child trafﬁcking. In April 2008, during her visit to Belarus, the SR addressed secondary school children in Minsk, raising awareness of human trafﬁcking as a social phenomenon, both as a crime and as a human rights violation. At the European Youth Forum in Barcelona in May 2008, the SR raised the issue of migration and youth. Children who want to migrate, but who know their rights and are able to express their own views and opinions are less likely to fall victim to trafﬁcking. The empowerment of children, and girls in particular, is especially important. This means giving girls the ability to make strategic choices regarding their own lives, as well as control over their future. 22

“It is often said that women and children are in the most vulnerable group of people 23 Speech by SR at the trafﬁcked worldwide. Therefore, it is important to highlight the fact that ﬁrst and foremost European Youth Forum Council of Members Meeting, 2-3 May 2008. most trafﬁcked victims are deceived with false promises of employment abroad by trafﬁckers; secondly, there is a need to promote desirable migration movement whilst reducing unwanted ones.” 23

The SR has continuously advocated for the creation of a protective environment to prevent the abuse, exploitation and trafﬁcking of children, as well as for an environment in which children can live in safety and dignity. The children of today are tomorrow’s adults and they need our protection and assistance.

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3.6 ADDRESSING ALL FORMS OF TRAFFICKING IN HUMAN BEINGS

The Porto Declaration on Trafﬁcking in Human Beings of 2002 and the OSCE Action Plan highlight the need to address all forms of trafﬁcking. The SR has, throughout her mandate, stressed the necessity of a comprehensive approach, addressing all forms of trafﬁcking, including trafﬁcking for sexual exploita- tion and labour exploitation, as well as child trafﬁcking.

24 Global Report on Trafﬁcking in Trafﬁcking for sexual exploitation remains the most common type of trafﬁcking identiﬁed at the global Persons, UN.GIFT, UNODC, 2009, level. Of all victims identiﬁed by State authorities, almost 80% have been trafﬁcked for sexual exploi- pp. 48-50. tation. Women and girls constitute nearly 80% of identiﬁed victims trafﬁcked for this purpose. 24 The SR has, throughout her work, highlighted the links between gender discrimination and marginalization of women as a root cause and contributing factor to trafﬁcking. The SR has continuously advocated for all anti-trafﬁcking actions, programmes and policies to be reﬁned to ensure they are appropriate and relevant to both sexes, through an examination of how men and women are differently affected by trafﬁcking in human beings and by its various forms. All actions, programmes and policies should also avoid compounding existing inequalities between women and men, and should strive to empower both sexes.

The 8th Alliance Conference on Child Trafﬁcking highlighted the phenomenon of child trafﬁcking for the purpose of organized begging and committing petty crimes. Moreover, throughout her mandate, the SR has shed light on these speciﬁc forms of child trafﬁcking, which are difﬁcult to tackle.

Participating States have committed themselves to combating trafﬁcking for labour exploitation through Ministerial Council Decision 14/06 on Enhancing Efforts to Combat Trafﬁcking in Human Beings, Including for Labour Exploitation, through a Comprehensive and Proactive Approach, adopted in 2006, and MC Decision 8/07 on Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings for Labour Exploitation, adopted in 2007. These decisions, alongside the Porto Declaration and the OSCE Action Plan provide a balanced framework for tackling all forms of trafﬁcking and also refer to the trafﬁcking of children.

The global ﬁnancial crisis has contributed to an increase in numerous reports this year of migrant workers housed in inhuman conditions, exploited, unpaid and dismissed from employment and having become victims of trafﬁcking for labour exploitation. The use of complex subcontracting chains continues to make it difﬁcult to bring claims against an ‘employer’ for unpaid wages, compensation or injuries at work. The lack of adequate efforts to identify or investigate labour trafﬁcking in many participating States has also left victims wrongly regarded as ‘irregular migrants’ and thus subject to detention and expulsion without access to remedies.

Through the Occasional Paper series, the SR has placed special emphasis on trafﬁcking for forced labour. The third Occasional Paper, “A Summary of Challenges on Addressing Human Trafﬁcking for Labour Exploitation in the Agricultural Sector in the OSCE Region”, gives concrete case examples and suggests recommendations for addressing the speciﬁc vulnerabilities of agricultural labourers. It gives a solid foundation for concrete action to be taken at the national and international levels. The key points include:

t5IFJNQPSUBODFPGVOEFSTUBOEJOHUIFBHSJDVMUVSBMTFDUPSBOEJUTTZTUFNJDQSPCMFNT BOEIPX they affect the workers by placing them at greater risk of trafﬁcking; t5IFOFFEUPBEBQUDVSSFOUQSBDUJDFTPGJEFOUJmDBUJPOXJUIJOBNVMUJEJTDJQMJOBSZBQQSPBDI t5IFOFFEUPSFDPOTUSVDUUIFOPUJPOTPGBTTJTUBODF QSPUFDUJPOBOEDPNQFOTBUJPOUPUSBGmDLFE persons; t5IFCFOFmUTPGNVMUJEJTDJQMJOBSZDPPQFSBUJPOJOQSPTFDVUJPO BMPOHXJUIDIBMMFOHFTGBDFECZUIF authorities in this ﬁeld.

The Occasional Paper concludes that combating trafﬁcking in the agricultural sector will require not only the identiﬁcation and prosecution of criminal cases, but also the enforcement of workers’ rights generally, regardless of migration or employment status. Success will depend upon participating States being willing to devote resources and attention to the machinery of labour rights enforcement, such as inspectors and tribunals, as well as to educating employers, workers and labour recruiters about these rights.

18 The changing global environment means that criminal groups will also be quicker to adapt. Indeed, the 25 Alexis Aronowitz, Human changing environments and changing demand means that trafﬁcking is constantly taking new forms. Trafﬁcking, Human Misery: The Global Trade in Human Beings, While trafﬁcking is clearly linked to organized crime, the SR has also highlighted that not all trafﬁcking is Praeger: Westport & London, run by organized crime groups. The modus operandi of trafﬁcking operations can broadly be grouped 2009, p. 66. into three basic categories: individual trafﬁckers, small groups, and large-scale, international networks. 25 In fact, small-scale and single trafﬁckers often use crueller methods and more violence to coerce their victims and, from this perspective, the effects and trauma on victims can be even worse.

Trafﬁcking for domestic servitude as well as trafﬁcking for illegal adoption and forced marriage are 26 Trafﬁcking in Organs, Tissues areas that could receive further OSCE attention in the future. With regard to trafﬁcking for the purpose and Cells and Trafﬁcking in Human Beings for the Purpose of Removal of organ removal, the recent study undertaken by the Council of Europe and the United Nations26 of Organs, Joint Council of Europe/ calls for a new international convention to prevent trafﬁcking of kidneys and other organs. This United Nations Study, 2009. would include an internationally-recognized deﬁnition of what constitute trafﬁcking in organs, tissues and cells.

3.7 PROMOTING EFFECTIVE ASSISTANCE AND ACCESS TO JUSTICE FOR ALL VICTIMS

A human rights-based approach to combating trafﬁcking in human beings requires that “the human 27 Recommended Principles rights of trafﬁcked persons shall be at the centre of all efforts to prevent and combat trafﬁcking and and Guidelines on Human Rights and Human Trafﬁcking, UNOHCHR, to protect, assist and provide redress to victims.”27 This relates to the obligations of States to prevent, E/2002/68/Add.1. investigate and prosecute trafﬁckers and to assist and protect trafﬁcked persons; it further implies that anti-trafﬁcking measures should not adversely affect the human rights and dignity of persons.

“A victim-centred approach…means taking the needs of the trafﬁcking victim to be 28 SR Opening Remarks at Alliance Conference: Successful protected, assisted and ultimately empowered to live a digniﬁed life, as the fundamental prosecution of human trafﬁcking starting point during all phases of criminal proceedings. And I want to stress that adhering – challenges and good practices, to this principle, often also referred to as the human rights-based approach, is not an Helsinki, 10-11 September 2008. option but an imperative for all OSCE countries, having signed up both to our OSCE anti-trafﬁcking commitments and other key international instruments, most importantly the UN Palermo Protocol, and the Council of Europe Convention on Action Against Trafﬁcking in Human Beings.” 28

Victim identiﬁcation is usually not an easy or a swift process, but requires active investigation as well as efforts to reach out to possible trafﬁcked persons. A lack of trust in the authorities, fear of reprisals, immigration status, individual circumstances and cultural background, language barriers, limited avail- ability of support services and opportunities and stigmatisation, as well as lack of comprehensible information on options of assistance are all factors that may explain why victims do not come forward to the authorities.

Furthermore, research has shown that victims of trafﬁcking may encounter a ‘culture of disbelief’ 29 Pearce et al, Breaking the whereby authorities coming into contact with victims may not believe the victim’s story. 29 The SR has wall of silence: Practitioners’ responses to trafﬁcked children continuously emphasized the need for increased and enhanced training for practitioners, such as and young people, National health care and social workers, trade union representatives, immigration ofﬁcers, teachers and police, Society for the Prevention of as well as for sustained outreach efforts at the local level. Cruelty to Children (NSPCC), 2009, pp. 103-104.

The active involvement of civil society in both the identiﬁcation of victims of trafﬁcking and in the provision of assistance is crucial. The SR, in her contacts with governmental ofﬁcials, has consistently reiterated the role of civil society organizations and NGOs as the main service providers for trafﬁcking victims. She has highlighted their value in providing psychological and legal assistance to trafﬁcked persons, assisting them in the rehabilitation process and in overcoming trauma. She has also stressed their important role in empowering trafﬁcked persons to take voluntary decisions in co-operation with law enforcement agencies and the judiciary on return to the country of origin, or on pursuing other options, depending on the risk assessment. The SR has promoted the establishment of National Referral Mechanisms as a form of institutionalised co-operation between law enforcement agencies and NGOs, guaranteeing that trafﬁcked persons receive the whole package of protection and assist- ance they need and deserve as victims of a crime. Many OSCE participating States have signiﬁcant

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30 National Referral Mechanisms experience in developing and implementing protocols and Memoranda of Understanding establishing - Joining Efforts to Protect the co-operation mechanisms between police and NGOs in the identiﬁcation and referral of victims. The Rights of Trafﬁcked Persons: A Practical Handbook, ODIHR, 2004. OSCE Ofﬁce of Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) has worked extensively with the development of National Referral mechanisms and on promoting a multidisciplinary approach to victim identiﬁcation.30 While the SR has highlighted the need for NGOs to be included as equal counterparts, she has also raised concerns about the trend in some countries to limit the role of civil society in the identiﬁcation process, making this the competence of law enforcement alone, and setting a high threshold for a victim to be identiﬁed as such and therefore to be eligible for assistance and support. The importance of State-NGO co-operation was underlined in many events, such as various high-level seminars on preventing and combating trafﬁcking in human beings and the UN.GIFT Final Conference on the Expert Group Initiative Project implemented by IOM on “Guiding Principles on Memoranda of Understanding between Key Stakeholders and Law Enforcement Agencies on Counter-Trafﬁcking Co-operation”.

Many countries in the OSCE region are also facing increasing numbers of internal trafﬁcking cases, such as trafﬁcking for agricultural and construction labour, domestic servitude, as well as adult and child sex trafﬁcking, organized begging and petty crime. Unfortunately, many national anti-trafﬁcking laws do not recognize the crime of internal trafﬁcking, as the transnational element of the crime is missing. The laws also often do not encompass victims who have been trafﬁcked by individual criminals, who are not part of organized crime groups. This means that victims of internal trafﬁcking and victims trafﬁcked by criminals who are not part of an organized crime groups may not be entitled to specialized assistance and protection. The SR has continuously raised the need for victims to receive unconditional assist- ance, regardless of their status or the type of exploitation they have experienced.

The Alliance Conference in 2008 on “Successful Prosecution of Human Trafﬁcking – Challenges and Good Practices” showcased many examples of how governments have tried to improve victims’ access to justice. One such best practice is that of Vasa Prava, the only NGO providing free legal aid to traf- ﬁcking victims in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Legal advocates from Vasa Prava are available to domestic victims from their arrival at a shelter, and they arrange all residency permits and asylum applications for foreign victims. If a victim chooses to testify, Vasa Prava represents the individual from the start to the end of a trial.

Some countries have established speciﬁc victim and witness protection measures. One such example is that of Romania with the creation of a network of Victim Witness Co-ordinators who work closely with victims, explaining to them what a court process entails, what their rights are, what protections they can receive, and who also accompany the victim to the trials and follow up with them after criminal proceedings.

31 SR address at the Alliance “The enormous proﬁts drive organized crime. Asset forfeiture would deal a major economic against Trafﬁcking in Persons blow to the trafﬁckers and would best prevent them from continuing their business. We need Conference, Prevention of Modern to put more serious efforts into making trafﬁcking less lucrative for the criminals using all Slavery: “An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure”, Vienna, the tools at our disposal, including improved co-operation between participating States in 14-15 September 2009. ﬁghting this transnational crime.” 31

Tracing the money and assets of trafﬁckers is an integral part of any investigation into organized crime. However, it is both time and resource consuming, and requires specialization as well as adequate structures for the collection of intelligence. It is imperative to strengthen efforts to combat money laundering, and to put special efforts into investigating the speciﬁcities of trafﬁcking networks and how they engage in money laundering. The joint Regional Meeting on Combating Human Trafﬁcking and Money Laundering in the Mediterranean Rim Region in September 2008, organized by the Ofﬁce of the SR, the Ofﬁce of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA), UNODC and the Government of the Republic of Cyprus, discussed regional and interagency co-operation and best practices in order to strengthen the ﬁght against trafﬁcking in human beings and money laundering.

Some countries demonstrate promising practices in having established such structures. Despite ongoing discussion about the need to ensure that conﬁscated assets are also used to compensate victims of trafﬁcking, turning the theory into practice has proved challenging in most

20 participating States. The ODIHR report on Compensation for Trafﬁcked and Exploited Persons in the OSCE Region (2008) analyses the right to compensation and the mechanisms for compensating victims of trafﬁcking in eight OSCE participating States (Albania, France, Moldova, Romania, the Russian Federation, Ukraine, the United Kingdom and the United States of America). The report highlights that, despite attempts by victims to pursue enforcement against their trafﬁckers, compensation payments remain rare.

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4.1 RAISING THE PUBLIC AND POLITICAL PROFILE OF COMBATING TRAFFICKING IN HUMAN BEINGS

The Special Representative is tasked by the Ministerial mandate to “raise the public and political proﬁle 32 MC.DEC/03/06 on Combating Trafﬁcking in Human of combating trafﬁcking in human beings” 32. During 2009, this has been achieved through developing Beings, Paragraph 1(d). further bilateral dialogues with participating States, organizing high-level conferences and seminars, and through implementing substantive country assessments in co-operation and agreement with indi- vidual participating States. There has also been signiﬁcant co-operation with the media, including addressing audiences through media interviews and press conferences, and transparency of all activi- ties has been achieved through daily updates of the SR’s website.

This section provides an overview of the speciﬁc activities that the SR has undertaken to raise the public and political proﬁle of the ﬁght against human trafﬁcking in the course of 2009.

4.1.1 Dialogue with OSCE Participating States The OSCE Action Plan to Combat Trafﬁcking in Human Beings urges “the pursuit of close interaction 33 OSCE Action Plan to Combat between the OSCE Secretariat, its institutions and its ﬁeld operations, to assist participating States, Trafﬁcking in Human Beings, VI.6. where appropriate in implementing the … action plan” 33. The Ministerial Mandate also speciﬁcally 34 MC.DEC/03/06 on Combating Trafﬁcking in Human tasks the SR with assisting the participating States in the implementation of commitments and recom- Beings, Paragraph 1(a). mendations of the OSCE Action Plan.34

Throughout 2009, the SR maintained and enhanced the dialogue with high-level representatives of the participating States, both in Vienna and in the capitals (with over 120 participants from the capitals alone attending events organized by the SR during the year). This has taken place through country visits and through working with the Permanent Council and the Human Dimension Committee.

a. Bilateral Action: Working Together with National Authorities

Country visits provide the SR with the opportunity to work together with individual participating States to assess the reality of anti-trafﬁcking actions in individual countries and to identify areas in which countries may require further assistance in implementing the OSCE Action Plan. In 2009, the SR had meetings with Ministers and Government ofﬁcials in the following countries: Armenia (5-9 May), United Kingdom (16-18 June), Turkmenistan (24-26 August), Finland (6 October and a hearing in the Finnish Parliament on the Government’s Human Rights Report on 26 November), Iceland (30 October) and the Russian Federation (19-20 November).

During her visit to Armenia, the SR emphasized the importance of enhanced victim identiﬁcation and assistance, strengthened co-operation between law enforcement and civil society, and the need to investigate cases of internal trafﬁcking. The SR also participated in the opening ceremony of the Anti-Trafﬁcking Support and Resource Unit, established by the OSCE Ofﬁce in Yerevan under the Ministry of Labour and Social Issues.

In London, the SR had the opportunity to explore the UK’s new Action Plan to combat trafﬁcking, as well as the country’s recent ratiﬁcation of the Council of Europe’s Convention on Action against Trafﬁcking in Human Beings. She also participated in a conference on identifying and supporting trafﬁcked children.

In Turkmenistan, the SR opened a one-day high-level seminar on human trafﬁcking, organized by the OSCE Centre in Ashgabat in co-operation with Turkmenistan’s Foreign Ministry. In meetings with Government representatives, the SR highlighted the need for the criminalisation of trafﬁcking, as well as the importance of awareness-raising and victim support.

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In Finland, the SR discussed the structure and status of the National Rapporteur, as well as the chal- lenges in identifying and investigating trafﬁcking in human beings. The SR also focused upon the importance of prevention, speciﬁcally through comprehensive child protection measures and through promoting equality and acting against exploitation.

The Ofﬁce of the SR addressed a national seminar on human trafﬁcking in Iceland on 30 October, commending the Government for their efforts to combat trafﬁcking. In discussions with Government representatives, the Ofﬁce of the SR focused on discussing the implementation of the Icelandic Action Plan against trafﬁcking, especially in regard to victim assistance and protection, as well as national referral mechanisms.

In Russia, the Special Representative had a series of meetings with the representatives of several Government ministries, as well as representatives of Parliament, journalists and civil society. The meet- ings facilitated the exchange of views on how to increase co-operation and strengthen efforts to combat human trafﬁcking.

In addition to these visits, the Special Representative took the opportunity to meet with Government representatives when attending events in the capitals of participating States. During her visit to Slovenia in February for an OSCE conference on gender-based violence, the SR held bilateral meetings with relevant Ministers, NGOs and the Slovenian Human Rights Ombudsman. The SR was also invited to Paris by the French Ministry of Justice to address the ﬁfth anniversary of the creation of the Specialised Interregional Courts in France. Such visits to the participating States play an important role in strengthening the anti-trafﬁcking work between the Special Representative and participating States themselves.

b. Supporting the Work of the Participating States’ Delegations to the OSCE

The SR has placed great importance upon maintaining excellent contacts with the delegations of the OSCE participating States in Vienna, as well as with the governments in the capitals. This continuous contact is important both in terms of guiding the work of the Ofﬁce of the SR and in terms of ensuring that this work is informed by the current realities of the ﬁght against human trafﬁcking in the participating States.

The Human Dimension Committee is the main forum for the SR in terms of dialogue with participating State delegations on the implementation of OSCE anti-trafﬁcking commitments. At the request of the Chairman-in-Ofﬁce, the SR provided technical assistance to the participating States in the develop- ment of new commitments to improve the prevention of human trafﬁcking.

The opportunity to speak to the Permanent Council allows the SR to address the participating State delegations at the highest level. At the Permanent Council on 9 July, the SR outlined the recent and ongoing activities of her Ofﬁce. The SR also places great importance on ongoing dialogue with the OSCE Partners for Co-operation. For example, at a Meeting of the Mediterranean Contact Points held in Vienna on 4 April 2009, the SR spoke about her work and highlighted the present and future chal- lenges in combating human trafﬁcking. The SR considerably contributed to the efforts of Mongolia and supported its initiative to prepare the concept and agenda for a 2010 OSCE Chairman-in-Ofﬁce (CiO) international expert workshop on “Combating Modern Slavery: National, Regional, International Dimensions”, which the delegations of Kazakhstan and Mongolia proposed to be held in Ulaanbaatar on 9 and 10 February 2010.

Bilateral discussions with the delegations of participating States and Partners for Co-operation have also played an important role in ensuring that there is a continuous ﬂow of information between the SR and the participating States. These discussions help to advance the implementation of OSCE commit- ments and to engender the political will to ensure that new challenges in the ﬁght against human traf- ﬁcking are addressed quickly and effectively.

4.1.2 Country Assessments In 2007, the SR initiated the preparation of a series of country assessments based upon the Platform for Action, which the SR established in 2007 at the beginning of her mandate. The aim of the country assessments is to ensure that greater priority is given to combating trafﬁcking in human beings at the

24 national level and to initiate political processes for the further implementation of commitments and best practices by participating States. The assessments are also intended to systematically build and enrich the OSCE knowledge base on national implementation of commitments and best practices, and on the scope of national responses to human trafﬁcking. Moreover, the assessments can catalyse political will, and can recommend pragmatic, progressive and actionable measures that would support and assist participating States in advancing their anti-trafﬁcking work.

The ﬁrst country assessment began in 2008 in Spain, and the SR and her Ofﬁce continued to work on this in 2009. Country assessments were also initiated in 2008 in Romania and in 2009 in Kazakhstan. These assessments are carried out in agreement with the country concerned, which provides strong support in ensuring that meetings and consultations are held with relevant ofﬁcials at all levels. The SR aims to achieve a geographical balance between carrying out assessments in countries of origin, transit and destination, thus strengthening co-operation and dialogue between countries connected by trafﬁcking ﬂows.

a. Spain

During the Spanish Chairmanship of the OSCE in 2007, the SR met with the Chairman-in-Ofﬁce (CiO) 35 SR meeting with the OSCE Chairman-in-Ofﬁce Minister of of the time, Minister of Foreign Affairs Miguel Angel Moratinos, and offered to support the Spanish Foreign Affairs of Spain, Miguel Government in its efforts to combat human trafﬁcking, as well as to contribute to the strengthening Angel Moratinos, Bucharest, of comprehensive bilateral co-operation and dialogue in combating trafﬁcking between Spain and 7 June 2007. Romania, which are closely connected as countries of destination and origin respectively.35 The Spanish Chairmanship of the OSCE included the ﬁght against human trafﬁcking as one of its thematic priorities of work with the Organization, and the positive response of the CiO to the SR’s proposal gave an addi- tional high-level signal of the priority attached by the Spanish Government to the problem of combating human trafﬁcking. The Spanish Chairmanship stood ready to provide an example to other participating States by engaging with the SR in this co-operative assessment effort of its national human trafﬁcking situation, and indicated a strong political will to share good practices and to identify challenging areas where reform is needed to advance the country’s efforts against this human rights violation.

The assessment process of the Spanish response to human trafﬁcking began in the spring of 2008 and continued until the autumn of 2009; the whole process lasted longer than expected due to both the complexity of the work, being the ﬁrst report of this kind carried out by the SR, as well as to internal human resource constraints.

During the assessment process, a number of important initiatives and concrete and substantial steps were taken to tackle human trafﬁcking in compliance with the recommendations discussed during the SR visit and presented in the assessment report. These included the adoption of the National Plan to Combat Sexual Exploitation with a substantial budgetary allocation, the establishment of a broad multi- disciplinary consultation forum with civil society, and the ratiﬁcation of the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafﬁcking in Human Beings, which entered into force in Spain in August 2009.

b. Romania

On 22-24 September 2009, the Special Representative made an ofﬁcial visit to Romania, during which she engaged in direct consultations with Government Ministers, Secretaries of States, Members of Parliament and NGOs, amongst others. The visit provided a signiﬁcant opportunity for the SR to discuss the country’s main policy priorities with regard to combating human trafﬁcking. The SR welcomed Romania’s efforts in reforming legislation to comply with European standards and OSCE commitments on human trafﬁcking, as well as the measures adopted to set up a complex institutional framework to prevent and combat trafﬁcking, including an Inter-ministerial Working Group on Trafﬁcking in Human Beings and a National Agency against Trafﬁcking in Persons within the Ministry of Interior. The meet- ings provided signiﬁcant input and valuable documentation for the SR’s report, and also contributed to the identiﬁcation of a number of recommendations. Among these, the SR strongly advocated for the authorities to seize the momentum to review and improve the existing anti-trafﬁcking database, developing a National Rapporteur or equivalent national reporting mechanism that is not involved in any operational tasks and operates in a transparent and systematic way, providing valuable support for anti-trafﬁcking policy and decision making.

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c. Kazakhstan

On 10-14 October, the Ofﬁce of the SR, together with a consultant, undertook a series of meetings in Kazakhstan, designed to prepare an assessment of the country’s anti-trafﬁcking activities. The timing of this assessment is particularly signiﬁcant as Kazakhstan will assume the role of OSCE Chairman- in-Ofﬁce for 2010, thus obtaining additional opportunities to set high-level standards for countering modern slavery in the OSCE area and to engage in constructive collaboration with the SR.

The Ofﬁce of the SR held meetings at expert level with representatives of the structures which are relevant for anti-trafﬁcking measures, be it prevention, protection or prosecution. These included key Ministries, local authorities and NGOs. The assessment team also met with international organizations and updated them on the OSCE anti-trafﬁcking policy.

These meetings gave the SR the opportunity to assess the implementation of human trafﬁcking legisla- tion, identify good practices, and focus upon any remaining challenges in the identiﬁcation of cases, adequacy of protection and assistance to the needs of the victims.

4.1.3 Promoting the Implementation of OSCE Commitments 36 MC.DEC/3/06 on In the course of 2009, a high-level conference on the prevention of trafﬁcking and a technical seminar Combating Trafﬁcking in Human on trafﬁcking for forced labour in the agricultural sector were held in Vienna within the framework of the Beings, section 1(h). Alliance against Trafﬁcking in Persons. These meetings were extremely valuable in terms of promoting OSCE commitments with the participating States. They allowed the participating States to exchange knowledge and experiences with the international organizations and NGOs represented in the Alliance. The meetings were organized in the spirit of Decision No. 3/06 on Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings, which tasks the Ofﬁce of the SR under the auspices of the Special Representative to “assume responsibility within the OSCE for hosting and facilitating meetings for the exchange of information and experiences between national co-ordinators, representatives designated by the participating States and experts on combating THB”.36

a. 9th Alliance against Trafﬁcking in Persons Conference

On 14-15 September 2009, the SR organized the 9th Alliance against Trafﬁcking in Persons Conference, Prevention of Modern Slavery: “An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure”, which concentrated upon the prevention of modern-day slavery. Prevention is one of the three key focuses – alongside protection and prosecution – of the OSCE Action Plan on Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings. In Ministerial Council Decision 10/02, participating States commit to strive to take:

37 MC.DEC/10/02 – section II, “adequate measures to prevent trafﬁcking in human beings in our countries...” 37 paragraph 5.

In her opening statement at the conference, the SR noted that:

38 SR address at the Alliance “Prevention efforts are challenging and cover a broad range of activities. We must engage against Trafﬁcking in Persons in prevention of the root causes and factors in trafﬁcking, before trafﬁcking occurs, but also Conference, Prevention of Modern Slavery: “An Ounce of Prevention during each stage of the process: at the point of transit, in the exploitation phase and ﬁnally, is Worth a Pound of Cure”, Vienna, to prevent re-trafﬁcking.” 38 14-15 September 2009. 39 To view US Secretary of State, The 9th Alliance Conference brought together more than 300 experts from governments, international visit the conference website at organizations and civil society, as well as investigative journalists, documentary ﬁlmmakers, photogra- http://www.osce.org/conferences/ phers and students. The conference opened with a keynote video address from U.S. Secretary of State prevention_09.html. Hillary Rodham Clinton, who urged OSCE participating States to redouble prevention efforts and to initiate national reporting functions.39 The three UN Special Rapporteurs also gave keynote speeches during the ﬁrst panel. They focused upon the role of the UN Special Procedures in promoting a victim- centred approach to combating human trafﬁcking, child prostitution, child pornography and new forms of slavery. The second panel focused upon prevention by undermining the trafﬁcking business model, going after the money trails and decreasing vulnerability. This explored the models used by organized crime gangs and individual trafﬁckers, and showcased ways of accessing and seizing the assets of traf- ﬁckers. The third panel looked at the impact of the global ﬁnancial crisis on trafﬁcking in human beings

26 and the prevention of its consequences. It provided an insight into the actual and potential implications of the crisis on vulnerabilities of populations in participating States, such as a considerable decrease in job opportunities for both nationals and migrant workers in the countries of origin and destination. The following panel provided participating States with an overview of best practices in existing approaches and programmes aimed at preventing trafﬁcking in human beings. The ﬁnal panel looked at the media’s role in the prevention of trafﬁcking in human beings, exploring the role of media reporting in shaping attitudes and informing people about trafﬁcking issues. Speakers represented international organiza- tions, NGOs and the media. Alongside the event, there was a photo exhibition showing the plight of traf- ﬁcking victims, as well as an Emmy award-winning documentary ﬁlm about women trafﬁcked for sexual exploitation. For the ﬁrst time, an evaluation survey was sent out to all participants and speakers after the event, in order to collect impressions and feedback on the conference, its structure and content. The participants were asked to evaluate various aspects of the conference such as the relevance of the material presented, the networking opportunities and the opportunity to contribute personal views; all aspects were rated well above average. Participants indicated that the conference had been highly useful in terms of making new contacts and increasing their knowledge about the topic of prevention; however, they highlighted the need for greater co-ordination and co-operation between international organizations, participating States, law enforcement bodies and other stakeholders in the prevention of human trafﬁcking. Participants also highlighted the fact that the conference led them to realize the importance of the media in combating trafﬁcking in human beings.

b. Technical Seminar on Trafﬁcking for Labour Exploitation in the Agricultural Sector

The OSCE Action Plan addresses all forms of trafﬁcking in human beings, including trafﬁcking for labour exploitation, and Decision No. 8/07 focuses speciﬁcally upon Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings for Labour Exploitation. In 2005 and 2006, the OSCE organized high-level conferences aimed at mobilizing greater political will to eradicate human trafﬁcking for forced labour, and produced two occasional papers on this topic. Building on this platform, on 27-28 April 2009, the SR organized a Technical Seminar on Trafﬁcking for Labour Exploitation, Focusing on the Agricultural Sector. According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), agriculture employs over one billion people throughout the world, making it the second largest employment sector. This was the ﬁrst event of its kind, looking into a speciﬁc sector of the economy where trafﬁcking and exploitation occur.

The event brought together expertise, enhanced dialogue and facilitated the exchange of informa- tion between national authorities dealing with this issue, increasing governments’ understanding of the factors that increase people’s vulnerability to exploitation. It also provided a thorough analysis of current challenges within the agricultural sector and assisted participating States, policymakers and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in identifying the structural issues and deﬁcits of this sector which cause or exacerbate a worker’s vulnerability, so as to better address them in a systemic way.

The seminar was attended by more than 100 representatives from participating States, 86 of whom came from capitals, as well as leading international organizations (ILO, IOM, UNHCR, Council of Europe and Europol), and key international NGOs working in the ﬁeld of trafﬁcking for labour exploitation. Participants included representatives from Ministries of Labour, Justice and Internal Affairs, labour inspection agencies, law enforcement, social services, immigration agencies and prosecution services.

A background paper commissioned for the event was distributed to participants prior to the seminar 40 Alessandro Leograndeutti, and, after including relevant input from the seminar, was published as an Occasional Paper. The report L’epidemia dei migranti-schiavi, L’Unitá (Italy), 14 October 2009 is the ﬁrst of its kind to address human trafﬁcking for labour exploitation in the agricultural sector (amongst others). throughout the OSCE region. Many international organizations and NGOs have commended this publi- cation and it has been referred to in national media in a number of countries.40

4.1.4 Technical Assistance The SR provides technical assistance to OSCE participating States in order to assist them in imple- 41 MC.DEC/03/06 on menting their commitments both within the OSCE Action Plan and within the individual Ministerial Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings, Paragraph 1(a). Council Decisions on trafﬁcking in human beings. The Ministerial Mandate highlights this important role of the SR.41 This technical assistance is provided during ﬁeld visits and on the request of individual participating States.

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For example, during 2008 and 2009, the Ofﬁce of the SR has been involved in the elaboration and the delivery of a training course for law enforcement and migration ofﬁcers from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and other areas. The training was delivered in June 2009 in the CIS International Training Centre for Migration and Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings in Minsk, within the Academy of the Ministry of Interior of the Republic of Belarus. At the request of the host country, it focused upon trafﬁcking for labour exploitation, and the Ofﬁce of the SR was commended by the Vice-Minister of Interior for its expert contribution to the regional training course on anti-trafﬁcking.

The Ofﬁce of the SR supervised the implementation of an Extra-Budgetary Project, funded by the Principality of Monaco, entitled “Prevention and assistance to the children victims of commercial sexual exploitation in Russia”. This is being implemented by the Saint Petersburg NGO Stellit in co-operation with municipal institutions of the city and regional authorities in the North-West of Russia (see section 3.5 for further details).

As a follow-up to the SR’s visit to Iceland, the Icelandic Government requested that the SR provide training to airport ofﬁcials, border guards and law enforcement ofﬁcials on trafﬁcking in human beings, as their ﬁrst major trafﬁcking case was underway.

Finally, an important area of technical assistance is the support provided to the OSCE Chairman-in- Ofﬁce, by way of background analysis and advice. Training on human trafﬁcking as a cross-dimensional issue was also provided by the Ofﬁce of the SR to Kazakh and Lithuanian diplomats, who will be responsible for the OSCE portfolio in the context of the forthcoming Chairmanships (2010 and 2011).

4.2 RAISING THE VISIBILITY OF OSCE ACTION ON COMBATING TRAFFICKING IN HUMAN BEINGS

One of the activities at the core of the Special Representative’s work is raising the visibility of OSCE action on combating human trafﬁcking. This is achieved through participation of the SR in public events throughout the OSCE region, as well as through engaging with the media.

4.2.1 Participation in Conferences and Public Events The SR and her Ofﬁce actively participated in more than 40 events during 2009, including conferences, seminars and expert meetings convened by governments, international organizations and non-governmental organizations (see Annex 1 for a full list). These events provided the SR with a useful platform to present the work of the Ofﬁce to a wide audience, including youth and student NGOs, women’s groups and local authori- ties. This section gives a brief overview of some of the key events attended by the SR and her Ofﬁce.

Children, Youth and Students

tOne World Week, Warwick, UK – the Special Representative spoke at a large student-led inter- national event, during which she presented the work of the ofﬁce. tVienna Webster Symposium, Austria – the Ofﬁce of the SR actively participated in the ﬁrst Webster University symposium on human trafﬁcking. The event examined ways in which victims of trafﬁcking can be identiﬁed and protected. The Ofﬁce of the SR presented the role played by the media, analysing examples of media reportages on the topic in the OSCE region. tSpeech at United World College of the Adriatic, Trieste, Italy – the SR was invited as a guest speaker to the International Affairs programme of the United World College of the Adriatic in Trieste, Italy. In her speech, the SR gave an outline of different forms of trafﬁcking, and also spoke about the violence and trauma that victim’s experience, highlighting the need for coun- tries to protect people, not borders. tThe Future of Childhood Conference, Helsinki, Finland – the SR spoke at an NGO conference in Helsinki on the future of childhood, which served as the Finnish launch for the Status of the World’s Girls 2009 report. The SR gave an overview of current examples and trends in child trafﬁcking and good practices in assisting victimized children. She speciﬁcally highlighted the need for best interest determination, empowerment and comprehensive, multiagency support measures.

28 tDiscussion on the possible ways of development of infrastructure of assistance to children who are victims of commercial sexual exploitation and sexual violence, St. Petersburg, Russia – the Ofﬁce of the SR participated in a round-table discussion organized by the non-governmental organization Stellit, spoke about the importance of protecting children from trafﬁcking, and also addressed the promotion of national structures to ﬁght trafﬁcking.

Women and Families

tPresentation to Svenska Kvinnoforbundet, Finland – the SR met with representatives of the Women’s Organization of the Swedish People’s Party in Finland. The meeting included a pres- entation of the work of the Ofﬁce of the SR. tMarthaforbundet, Finland – the SR was invited to speak at a conference of the Swedish Martha Association, a non-political, non-governmental organization that provides adult education and extends advisory service in matters related to home, family and society.

Local Government

tPresentation at ‘Side Effects of Free Mobility’ conference, Helsinki, Finland – the City of Helsinki, in co-operation with the Helsinki Police Department, the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities and the Ministry of Justice, organized the ﬁrst Europe-wide seminar on the side effects of free movement, as seen from the angle of urban actors. In her presentation, the SR explained how internal trafﬁcking within individual member states but also within the EU requires special attention and concerted actions as it cannot be stopped at any border.

This demonstrates the wide range of events in which the SR participated throughout the OSCE region. These meetings also often provided the opportunity for the ofﬁce to hold bilateral meetings with national and local authorities and to meet with local NGOs.

4.2.2 Working with the Media During the last three years, the most signiﬁcant consequence of increased media coverage of human 42 Opening address by Miguel d’Escoto Brockmann, President trafﬁcking is that there is no longer a need to prove the existence of the problem in most OSCE partici- of the General Assembly, at the pating States. As Mr. Miguel d’Escoto Brockmann, President of the 63rd Session of the United Nations General Assembly’s Thematic General Assembly, pointed out this year: “The world is waking up to the scope of the problem of human Dialogue on Human Trafﬁcking, trafﬁcking. We see it in movies, novels and talk shows”.42 Recognizing the problem is the ﬁrst step to New York, 13 May 2009: http://www.un.org/News/Press/ wisdom; however, there is still a long way to go to translate awareness of the problem into concerted docs/2009/ga10827.doc.htm and systematic action to eradicate it.

In 2009, the SR strengthened and further developed her Public Information Action Plan. In February 2009, the Media Strategy, a fundamental part of the Action Plan, was presented and discussed with the OSCE anti-trafﬁcking focal points, the main sources of information for journalists on the OSCE ﬁeld missions’ work on trafﬁcking issues.

Internal Media Strategy

The internal media strategy aims to improve co-ordination and co-operation with other OSCE units, institutions and ﬁeld operations. In line with this strategy, the Ofﬁce of the SR produces ‘Weekly Press Clippings’, a compilation of news reports from the OSCE region in all the ofﬁcial OSCE languages, including a summary in English. The report is distributed to all OSCE personnel and delegations, to the Alliance focal points and to experts directly involved in anti-trafﬁcking work.

In order to promote the work of the OSCE ﬁeld operations, the Ofﬁce of the SR publishes their latest press releases online and distributes their research and reports to a vast network of knowledge centres. The SR took the lead in providing guidance and support on the compilation of feature articles, both for the Internet and for the OSCE Magazine, which dedicated its December 2008 Ministerial edition to promoting the work of the SR and of ﬁeld presences in combating human trafﬁcking. The SR used this opportunity to present the anti-trafﬁcking biannual survey, carried out for the 2008 Annual report,

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focusing upon the co-ordination and reporting mechanisms implemented by all OSCE participating States. This report also highlighted the 2007 OSCE ﬁeld operations survey and an analysis and over- view by the ODIHR on its activities and achievements. All this information was made available online to increase transparency and communication within the OSCE. A speciﬁc webpage with latest publica- tions and research was also launched to facilitate communication and increase knowledge exchange between the staff of the Secretariat, institutions and missions.

External Media Strategy

43 These included AFP, Reuters, The external media strategy aims to increase qualitative reporting of human trafﬁcking across the AFP, DPA, BBC News, Afghan OSCE region. In line with this goal, the Ofﬁce of the SR holds regular informal meetings with Vienna- News, Efe, Kurier, Nikei, Kyodo News, ORF, Le Monde and El Pais. based correspondents from a wide range of media organizations 43. These informal meetings help to maintain rapport and build conﬁdence with the Vienna-based media representatives, proposing 44 In 2009, the SR provided research and background different story angles aimed at assisting the media in informing the public about the reality and severity information to a large number of of the problem, to shape attitudes and to inﬂuence behaviour surrounding human trafﬁcking. journalists from, among others, the International Herald Tribune, BBC News, Aberdeen Evening The SR’s proactive approach to working with the media has positioned her Ofﬁce as one of the main Express, El País, El Mundo, Le sources of information for journalists on this issue.44 Monde, Vienna Review, BHT1, Helsingin Sanomat, Ulkopolitiikka, Cadena Ser Radio, BBC News The Web Radio, YLE News, Deutsche Welle, The Guardian, Voice of America, Itogi and Ritzau Agency. The Ofﬁce of the SR continued investing a substantial amount of time in further developing the SR’s website (www.osce.org/cthb). The SR’s website is considered a unique gateway to information about the entire organization’s work in combating trafﬁcking. The total number of visits to the website increased by more than 12% in 2009, building upon an increase of 10% in 2008. This is particularly notable in the light of the declining number of visits to the general OSCE website over the same period (mainly due to the closure of the missions in Croatia and Georgia).

The main part of the SR’s website is dedicated to latest activities, publications and initiatives, with press releases and feature stories having a prevalent position. The website highlights the SR’s goal of being informative and transparent by posting photos of events, meetings or ﬁeld trips throughout the year. The photo database on human trafﬁcking related events and issues has increased by 45% during the ﬁrst ten months of 2009, amounting to an accumulated increase of more than 200% over the last three years. The use of photographs and images is a complementary media strategy aimed to reach a younger audience, usually less willing than adults to spend time on websites with useful content but poor presentation. This strategy follows the general Press and Public Information Section (PPIS) Action Plan and supports our efforts to prevent trafﬁcking, as most victims of trafﬁcking are under 25 years old.

The SR’s website continues to be the only OSCE webpage to include the latest news on human traf- ﬁcking, reﬂecting ‘best news reporting’ in all ofﬁcial OSCE languages. A monthly archive of key news items since 2007 is also available online. Experts and journalists consistently request that their links be included on it, thereby conﬁrming its usefulness. The archive, which is updated daily, is also an excellent resource for journalists writing on the topic of human trafﬁcking.

Multimedia and Social Media

The SR actively uses multimedia and social media to promote the work of the OSCE. Social networking sites (e.g., Facebook and Twitter), spaces for multimedia sharing (e.g., YouTube and Flickr) and social bookmarking (e.g., Delicious) are all part of the SR’s strategy to reach more people. The SR actively updates her personal Facebook page, engages in Internet forums and publishes her work online, with the conviction that the use of word-of-mouth is important and that there are new meeting places and communities on the Internet. The intention is to reach web communities, increase awareness of the OSCE’s work and trigger conversation and dialogue with experts, journalists and friends, building relationships through sharing activities. This approach supports the general OSCE strategy to increase its Internet presence.

The recent use of videos for the OSCE YouTube website is worth highlighting. The SR encouraged the use of videos to illustrate different events, and was the ﬁrst OSCE representative to produce an

30 in-house video to promote a Hofburg-held conference, receiving 530 views within two months. Upon the launch of the OSCE YouTube channel, the SR produced three videos within the ﬁrst ten months of the year. At the moment, two of the SR videos are within the 12 most viewed OSCE videos, at positions two and twelve respectively.

Lastly, the SR actively publishes material on a wide range of multimedia platforms, such as ISSUU, a free Internet site that publishes all types of documents across all digital platforms. The SR’s publica- tions are the ﬁrst ones available in this form from an institution, unit or ﬁeld mission.

Media Coverage

In 2009, there was increased media coverage of the issue of human trafﬁcking and of the OSCE’s 45 E.g., Associated Press, anti-trafﬁcking work, including coverage by several important international agencies and newspa- Reuters, Hufvudstadsbladet (HBL), Helsingin Sanomat, Efe, AFP, The pers45. The SR participated in press conferences and was interviewed by several media outlets 46; Prague Post, Vjesnik-Naklada, she also held meetings with national media during her country visits, resulting in further coverage of Deutsche Welle, The Washington human trafﬁcking across the OSCE region.47 The SR contributed to a monthly opinion column in the Post, FOX News Channel, USA Today, DPA and Vienna Review. Finnair magazine “Blue Wings”, as well as writing other opinion articles and giving in-depth interviews in specialized publications48. The SR appeared on the front cover of several other publications (see 46 These included: Information, ORF, YLE News, Der Standard and Annex 3). This work serves to catalyse public opinion with the goal of engendering government action, Wiener Zeitung. as well to increase public awareness of human trafﬁcking and of the wider work of the OSCE. 47 Amongst others, the SR was interviewed by Armenian television Channel 4 (during the programme ‘Right to Speak’), 4.3 JOINING EFFORTS TO TACKLE TRAFFICKING IN HUMAN BEINGS: Turkmenistan’s TV Watan and Finnish Broadcasting Company CO-ORDINATION AND CO-OPERATION YLE TV. The SR also held several radio interviews, including with BBC Radio, Hessischer Rundfunk, The ﬁght against trafﬁcking in human beings can only be successful if the key actors work in a spirit Deski, Radio FM4 and Sveriges Radio. of co-operation, undertaking complimentary activities. This is true both within the OSCE itself, and of co-operation with the other international organizations and non-governmental organizations active 48 These included: Voces contra la Trata, Ulkopolitiikka, within the OSCE region and beyond. Successful co-operation and co-ordination helps to maximize the the European Union Magazine or impact of the work of all key stakeholders and prevents unnecessary overlap or neglect of certain areas Rochier. of work. Such co-operation must be based upon a sound knowledge of each other’s mandates and an acknowledgement of the differences, as well as the similarities, between the organizations.

4.3.1 Internal Co-ordination and Co-operation The unique selling point of the OSCE as an organization engaged in combating human trafﬁcking is its ability to work across all three dimensions of the security agenda: politico-military, economic and human. In order to successfully address this wide agenda, the SR works closely with other parts of the Organization which also support the ﬁght against human trafﬁcking. In particular, the Ofﬁce for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) has a mandate to assist participating States in protecting trafﬁcked persons and preventing trafﬁcking, particularly through promoting the devel- opment and implementation of National Referral Mechanisms, supporting the mandate of multia- gency anti-trafﬁcking structures, improving the identiﬁcation and assistance of trafﬁcked persons and strengthening access to remedies and rights.

The OSCE ﬁeld missions also play a key in-country role in co-operating with national governmental and non-governmental actors engaged in combating trafﬁcking. They are involved in implementing concrete projects in a range of areas, from providing training on anti-trafﬁcking to NGOs to launching trafﬁcking awareness campaigns. Co-ordination is ensured through anti-trafﬁcking focal point meet- ings and Heads of Mission meetings, during which the SR updates the ﬁeld presences on the Ofﬁce’s approach, priorities and activities highlighting the relevant regional and national aspects which have to be taken into consideration in the elaboration of future anti-trafﬁcking programs and projects. The SR, in close collaboration with the OSCE ﬁeld missions, provides advice, expertise and assistance to the host countries where the OSCE has a presence in the review of legislation and National Action Plans and in the creation of anti-trafﬁcking structures.

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Within the OSCE Secretariat, other units engaged in the ﬁght against trafﬁcking include the Strategic Police Matters Unit (SPMU), the Ofﬁce of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA) and the Gender Issues section. These ofﬁces work together with the Special Representative in a coherent and complementary manner, tackling trafﬁcking in human beings within their own speciﬁc mandates. Co-ordination is achieved through regular meetings, both between the SR and her counterparts, as well as at the working level.

The following section sets out the key activities of these OSCE structures, ﬁeld missions and units in the Secretariat in the ﬁeld of combating trafﬁcking in human beings, and explains how they comple- ment the work of the Special Representative.

a. Ofﬁce for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR)

The mandate of the Ofﬁce for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) on anti-trafﬁcking stems from its general mandate to monitor and provide technical assistance to participating States in the implementation of their human dimension commitments and speciﬁc tasks under OSCE Ministerial commitments. In particular, its anti-trafﬁcking programme focuses on strengthening respect for traf- ﬁcked persons’ rights and preventing trafﬁcking through a variety of activities with both state and civil society actors.

The 2008 Annual Report of the OSCE Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings included a detailed overview of ODIHR’s work in promoting the establish- ment of National Referral Mechanisms in participating States as part of a rights-based approach to trafﬁcking. Some of the challenges highlighted in the report have continued into 2009, including the fact that trafﬁcking is still primarily addressed by governments as a problem for law enforcement and immigration control, rather than as a human rights issue.

In order to address these challenges, ODIHR has continued to implement projects to prevent traf- ﬁcking and support trafﬁcked persons’ access to justice and rights. Addressing the issue of labour trafﬁcking in Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan, ODIHR has supported civil society actors in conducting outreach work with vulnerable migrants to inform them of their rights, providing guidance on avoiding trafﬁcking and giving legal advice and support in cases of exploitation. ODIHR also implemented projects in Moldova and Poland to provide social and legal assistance to victims of trafﬁcking, including support for claims for compensation and unpaid wages. In Albania and Uzbekistan, ODIHR conducted a series of training events for legal professionals including lawyers, law enforcement personnel, prosecutors and judges, in order to raise awareness of the rights of victims of trafﬁcking, including rights to compensation.

In Turkey and the United Kingdom, ODIHR organized two workshops to present the ﬁndings from its National Referral Mechanism assessments and to debate the continuing challenges of supporting rights-based approaches to trafﬁcking and assisting victims of trafﬁcking. Following research in a number of OSCE participating States on the return of trafﬁcking victims to countries of origin, ODIHR organized an expert seminar to identify the gaps in human rights protection and to recommend ways forward.

ODIHR further continued to raise awareness amongst participating States of the progress and chal- lenges in combating human trafﬁcking through its side events organized during the Human Dimension Implementation Meeting, which dealt with the return of trafﬁcking victims to their countries of origin, compensation to trafﬁcking victims and migrants’ rights protection. It also continued to seek partner- ships with a wide variety of stakeholders relevant to anti-trafﬁcking activities, including organizations and state actors specialized in migration, labour rights, victim support, asylum and refugee issues and criminal justice.

Finally, in order to share expertise with and build the capacity of the OSCE anti-trafﬁcking focal points, ODIHR organized a training event on migrants’ rights, compensation of trafﬁcking victims and human rights issues in the return of trafﬁcking victims to their countries of origin.

32 b. Field Missions

i. South-Eastern Europe

The OSCE Presence in Albania supported the implementation of the National Anti-Trafﬁcking Strategy and its Action Plan, and provided capacity-building support to the Regional Anti-Trafﬁcking Committees, in order to improve the identiﬁcation, protection and assistance of trafﬁcked persons. The Presence provided legal training to judges and prosecutors on the investigation and trial of trafﬁcking-related crimes. The improvement of cross-border co-operation on anti-trafﬁcking matters continued to be a core activity, with the Presence assisting the National Anti-Trafﬁcking Co-ordinator in organizing a meeting with Greek counterparts on improving cross-border support for the protection of child victims of trafﬁcking. A child protection unit will be established in Vlora as a result of co-operation with the NGO Terre des Hommes and local authorities. The OSCE Presence in Albania has been working with ODIHR to increase access to the justice system for victims of trafﬁcking, strengthen the capacities of the judiciary on the rights of victims and improve the capacities of Roma Peer Educators in handling street children cases.

The OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina released a report entitled “Trafﬁcking in Human Beings and Responses of the Domestic Criminal Justice System: A Critical Review of Law and Emerging Practice in Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Light of Core International Standards”. The Mission has also worked closely with the country’s expert legal advisory mechanism, established under the auspices of the Ministry of Justice, to prepare amendments to the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina and to review its deﬁnition of the offence of Trafﬁcking in Human Beings. Support to authorities in developing the State Action Plan for 2008-2012 was extended. As part of the ongoing trial monitoring programme, the Mission monitored both cases against suspected human trafﬁckers, and the provision of assist- ance from governmental and non-governmental sources to victims of trafﬁcking as part of the referral mechanism. It has also contributed to the development of minimum shelter standards for victims of human trafﬁcking. Moreover, training was provided to Ministry of Defence staff and military forces deployed to UN and NATO Peace Support Operations on root causes of human trafﬁcking and the role of the military in combating the phenomenon in conﬂict and post-conﬂict societies. The Mission has provided funding for the production of a documentary ﬁlm examining the increase of internal trafﬁcking which will be used to raise awareness of this endemic problem within the general public and among law enforcement, judicial and social welfare professionals.

The OSCE Mission in Kosovo has provided advice on the implementation of the 2008–2011 Kosovo Strategy and the Action Plan against Trafﬁcking in Human Beings and has contributed to the drafting of “Minimum Standards of Care for Victims of Trafﬁcking”. The Mission increased the border police’s capacity to identify, refer and establish effective operating procedures for victims of trafﬁcking by organizing training for 120 border police ofﬁcers. Additionally, the Mission produced leaﬂets entitled “How to identify and treat victims of trafﬁcking – Victims Rights”, which have been distributed to all border and boundary police stations. The Mission organized and delivered four two-day training sessions on human trafﬁcking for school teachers and provided them with information leaﬂets for distribution to pupils.

The OSCE Mission to Montenegro assisted local stakeholders in establishing an effective National Referral Mechanism. The Mission is also represented within the Working Group for the Implementation of the National Strategy for the Fight against Trafﬁcking in Human Beings and has assisted in the implementation the Strategy. It also worked with the National Co-ordinator’s Ofﬁce on the preparation of the 2010-2011 Action Plan and the promotion of an SOS hotline for victims of human trafﬁcking. Finally, the Mission organized a ﬁve-day course on human trafﬁcking and the identiﬁcation of victims for border police and customs ofﬁcers.

The OSCE Mission to Serbia supported the Serbian National Co-ordinator for Combating Human Trafﬁcking in drafting the National Action Plan. In order to strengthen the National Referral Mechanism, the Mission has worked together with the Judges Association of Serbia to organize ten local multi- stakeholder workshops for police ofﬁcers, prosecutors and judges on legal issues in investigating, prosecuting and trying human trafﬁcking cases. The Mission, in co-operation with the Child Rights Centre, is providing specialist courses on combating child trafﬁcking to local police ofﬁcers and social workers. Finally, the Mission is running a joint project with ASTRA, a leading anti-trafﬁcking NGO in Serbia, to prepare a manual for hotline organizations, which is expected to come out in early 2010.

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The OSCE Spillover Mission to Skopje supported the Government of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia in the revision of the 2009 National Action Plan and Strategy to Combat Trafﬁcking in Human Beings and Illegal Migration. Speciﬁcally, the Mission led an evaluation of achievements to date and organized a National Workshop on the revision process aimed at gathering input from all anti-trafﬁcking stakeholders in the country. The OSCE supported the country’s ratiﬁcation of the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafﬁcking in Human Beings, sponsoring a pre-ratiﬁcation analysis of national legislation and undertaking lobbying activities. Finally, the OSCE Mission has continued to support the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy in the establishment of a National Referral Mechanism Coordination Ofﬁce.

ii. Eastern Europe

The key anti-trafﬁcking project for the OSCE Ofﬁce in Minsk in 2009, entitled “Direct Assistance to Victims of Trafﬁcking”, focused upon reintegration assistance for trafﬁcking victims and developing NGO support for victims. The project was implemented in co-operation with the Government, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and Belarusian NGOs. Throughout the year, the Ofﬁce took part in talks with the Government on establishing a National Referral Mechanism for victims. The Ofﬁce also supported Government ofﬁcials and NGO representatives participating in various OSCE and other international conferences on combating human trafﬁcking.

The OSCE Mission to Moldova has continued to play a leading role in organizing monthly co-ordination meetings on trafﬁcking and gender issues among donors, state authorities and NGOs, in co-operation with the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection. The Mission organized a three-day training seminar for law enforcement representatives from the General Prosecutor’s Ofﬁce and Ministry of the Interior’s Centre to Combat Trafﬁcking in Persons in Chisinau. The discussions focussed on identiﬁcation, assistance and protection of trafﬁcked persons within the National Referral System. The Mission provided a training programme for judges and prosecutors on how to better prosecute trafﬁcking cases and assisted the National Institute of Justice in drafting the curriculum and training manual for the course. The Mission supported the Ministry of the Interior to improve interviewing techniques for child victims of trafﬁcking with the assistance of a specialized psychologist. The Mission organized interactive theatre performances for more than 6,000 students which raised the public awareness of the dangers of trafﬁcking, especially among youth at risk. As trafﬁcking victims have often been previous victims of domestic violence in Moldova, support was provided to hotlines for victims and potential victims of violence and trafﬁcking, including children, as well as legal assistance to bring domestic legislation in line with newly enforced legislation on family violence. Other activities included television programmes, a summer school, press conferences and a special website (www.atnet.md) which publishes updated information on anti-trafﬁcking developments and activities implemented by different actors in Moldova.

In 2009, the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine (PCU) supported the Ministry of Ukraine for Family, Youth and Sports in creating an Interagency Working Group responsible for drafting a comprehensive anti-trafﬁcking law; this is currently being reviewed by the relevant national actors and ODIHR. The OSCE Project Co-ordinator has also provided support to Ukrainian authorities and civil society in the establishment of a National Referral Mechanism, with a National Conference being organized in June 2009. The OSCE Project Co-ordinator, in co-operation with the Academy of Judges of Ukraine, organ- ized a Judges Conference on Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings, attended by approximately 150 representatives of the Ukrainian judiciary. The Project Co-ordinator trained about 900 police ofﬁcers in combating human trafﬁcking, emphasizing their potential role in the identiﬁcation and referral of trafﬁcking survivors. The OSCE PCU also facilitated the translation of criminal ﬁles obtained within the mutual legal assistance procedure and facilitated English language courses for key anti-trafﬁcking staff of the Ministry of Interior. Trafﬁcking can only be tackled successfully if the root causes of poverty and social exclusion are also addressed. In order to prevent trafﬁcking in children, the OSCE PCU endeavors to increase economic opportunities for Ukrainian orphans. In September 2009, the PCU trained 76 social and employment service providers and psychologists from vocational schools from ﬁve project regions on support mechanisms for orphan graduates of vocational training institutions. In October and November 2009, the training participants provided training in employability promotion and social guidance to up to 150 orphan graduates. The training programme was delivered to representa- tives of business associations from the project regions in order to encourage them to provide employ- ment opportunities for children from vulnerable backgrounds. The PCU strives to achieve sustainability

34 within its anti-trafﬁcking efforts, thus supporting Ukrainian authorities in the establishment of national anti-trafﬁcking co-ordination and reporting mechanisms as well as encouraging allocation of relevant state budget funding for national anti-trafﬁcking response.

iii. South Caucasus

The OSCE Ofﬁce in Baku worked together with the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) to implement a regional project on insti- tutional capacity-building to combat trafﬁcking in human beings. This included a workshop on drafting National Action Plans and a one-day seminar for judges. The Ofﬁce also organized a Round Table and elaborated recommendations for the establishment of a new National Action Plan and National Referral Mechanism (NRM). Together with the ILO, the Ofﬁce facilitated a study visit to Serbia for NRM members, to allow the participants to learn from the experiences of a well-established NRM model. In May 2009, the OSCE, in co-operation with the Judicial Legal Council of Azerbaijan, organized a one-day training session for judges and prosecutors in Azerbaijan.

The OSCE Ofﬁce in Yerevan supported the Armenian government and non-governmental actors in developing and implementing a victim-oriented anti-trafﬁcking policy. This is being achieved through strengthening the capacity of the actors involved in the national referral mechanism (NRM), and through improving the anti-trafﬁcking training curricula for Armenia’s law enforcement bodies. The OSCE Ofﬁce, in co-operation with the Ministry of Labour and Social Issues, has established an Anti-Trafﬁcking Support and Resource Unit (ATSRU) to strengthen co-ordination and institutionalize the operational infrastructure. The OSCE Ofﬁce in Yerevan, in cooperation with the ILO and UNDP ofﬁces in Armenia, has also drafted a Law Enforcement Training Manual on trafﬁcking.

iv. Central Asia

In August 2009, the OSCE Centre in Ashgabat, in co-operation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan, organized a high-level seminar on preventing and combating trafﬁcking in human beings, which was opened by the SR. The Centre also organized a three-day study trip to Ukraine, which aimed to familiarize the four-member Turkmenistan delegation with best practices and lessons learnt in preventing and combating trafﬁcking in persons. In addition, the Centre, in co-operation with the National Red Crescent Society of Turkmenistan, launched a project aimed at raising aware- ness about trafﬁcking in persons amongst citizens and state ofﬁcials, organizing a ‘train the trainers’ seminar, facilitating regional seminars and publishing brochures on the topic of trafﬁcking. Moreover, in November 2009, the Centre organized a one-day seminar aimed at raising awareness among law enforcement bodies about human trafﬁcking. The seminar focused upon international standards, the role of law enforcement bodies in combating human trafﬁcking, concrete cases of trafﬁcking for labour and sexual exploitation, current trends, speciﬁc means and methods used by organized criminal groups as well as practices applied by law enforcement bodies to combat the crime. The human traf- ﬁcking situation in Romania and Ukraine was also presented. Lastly, the Centre provided relevant Turkmenistan authorities with extensive literature on trafﬁcking.

In January, the OSCE Centre in Astana held an Anti-Trafﬁcking Donor Co-ordination Meeting, in co-operation with the US Embassy, gathering together representatives of diplomatic missions, as well as international and non-governmental organizations engaged in ﬁghting human trafﬁcking in Kazakhstan and Central Asia. In August, the Centre launched a pilot project entitled “Monitoring and Reporting on Women’s Rights in Kazakhstan”, which will monitor the trafﬁcking of women and girls and their access to justice, alongside other areas of concern highlighted by the 2007 Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Violence against Women (CEDAW) Committee recommendations to Kazakhstan. In October, the Centre facilitated a visit to Kazakhstan for the SR’s Deputy Co-ordinator, Senior Advisor and a consultant, as part of the country assessment process being carried out by the SR. Moreover, in October, the Centre conducted a two-day training seminar for judges from courts across Kazakhstan, as well as from the Supreme Court, to discuss human trafﬁcking from a judicial perspective.

The OSCE Centre in Bishkek assisted in the drafting process and implementation of a new National Action Plan on Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings. In order to support the implementation of this new Action Plan, the Centre assisted the Kyrgyz State Committee on Migration and Employment in the establishment of a Working Group, which is responsible for elaborating proposals on the alignment

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of national legislation with international standards. The OSCE Centre in Bishkek also implemented a project funded by the French Government, aimed at enhancing regional mechanisms for the prevention of trafﬁcking in Osh province and developing the capacities of law enforcement bodies in combating trafﬁcking. This included regular meetings for NGOs and local authorities on trafﬁcking trends, dissemi- nation and awareness-raising campaigns and media initiatives.

The OSCE Ofﬁce in Tajikistan, with the co-operation of the Ministry of Interior and the OSCE Strategic Police Matters Unit (SPMU), organized a ﬁve-day pilot training programme in Dushanbe for law enforcement personnel, which included a legal and situational review of human trafﬁcking in Tajikistan, training on victim identiﬁcation and Tajik case studies. The OSCE Ofﬁce, with funding from the Finnish Government, is helping to introduce a training curriculum into the programme of the Police Academy and, together with the SPMU, conducted a ‘train the trainers’ session, involving international experts. The Ofﬁce has also provided substantial support to the Inter-Agency Commission to combat human trafﬁcking, organizing a study visit to Belgrade and Skopje, aimed at providing the delegates with the opportunity to learn about best practices in combating human trafﬁcking. The ﬁndings were presented to relevant government representatives, and a three-day training programme on how to establish a well-functioning national referral mechanism was organized.

The OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Uzbekistan is providing assistance in the establishment of a func- tional, victim-centred identiﬁcation and referral mechanism and in the development of a longer term strategy for social inclusion of victims. The Project Co-ordinator worked together with the OSCE Mission to Moldova, the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the French Ministry of Interior to organize a study tour to Moldova, Italy and France for Uzbek anti-trafﬁcking agencies. The Project Co-ordinator supports the Training Centre for Prosecutors through the provision of learning aids, information mate- rials and technical equipment, as well as the development of an anti-trafﬁcking educational database. In November, the Project Co-ordinator worked together with ODIHR to organize a training session for lawyers entitled “Compensation and Other Fundamental Victims’ Rights in Law and Practice”. The Project Co-ordinator has supported the creation of a legal aid unit within Istiqbolli Avlod, an anti-trafﬁcking NGO. Over a two month period, the legal aid unit provided 95 consultations for the citi- zens of Uzbekistan on issues of safe migration and identiﬁed 16 cases of human trafﬁcking. It followed up these cases with the provision of legal aid, including protection of the victim’s rights during the investigation process and court hearings, the preparation of documents for claiming compensation and assistance in housing and employment.

c. OSCE Secretariat

The SR has worked closely with the Ofﬁce of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA) and the Gender Section on the issue of gender-sensitive migration policies. This work was undertaken in the context of the OCEEA 17th Economic and Environmental Forum (held in two parts, in Vienna in January and Athens in May) which focused upon “Migration management and its linkages with economic, social and environmental policies to the beneﬁt of stability and security in the OSCE region”. The SR spoke at both parts of the Forum, highlighting the relationships between migration management and the ﬁght against trafﬁcking.

The OSCE Secretariat and the Foreign Ministry of Slovenia, with the support of the Greek OSCE Chairmanship and Finland, organized a seminar on gender-sensitive migration policies in Ljubljana, Slovenia, on 16-17 February 2009. The SR had the opportunity to address over 65 senior ofﬁcials and experts from across the OSCE region and from international organizations. The aim of the seminar was to engage in a dialogue and enhance the exchange of experiences and good practices, with the aim of better responding to the increasing feminization of labour migration in the OSCE region.

The outcomes of the seminar were used for the ﬁnalization of the OSCE Guide on Gender-Sensitive Labour Migration Policies, published by the OSCE Gender Section in conjunction with the OCEEA and the Ofﬁce of the Special Representative. The Guide is intended to assist governments in their efforts to create new gender-sensitive migration policies and to address and foster a conducive environment in which the rights of female migrant workers are respected.

The Guide was launched in the second part of the 17th OSCE Economic and Environmental Forum. The Forum provided an excellent venue for raising the visibility of the joint work of the SR, the OCEEA and

36 the Gender Section on gender-sensitive labour migration. This project demonstrated how successful collaboration between different units of the OSCE Secretariat can deliver concrete results and can serve as a good example for future co-operation.

The Gender Section also addressed the issue of human trafﬁcking through other aspects of its work, for example by conducting a multi-part programme to compile good practices and innovative approaches to addressing various forms of violence against women, including trafﬁcking. The Gender Section also prepared an extensive technical reference, entitled “Bringing Security Home: Combating Violence against Women in the OSCE Region – a Compilation of Good Practices”, which was published in June 2009. The compilation includes good practices to prevent, combat and prosecute different forms of violence, including the trafﬁcking of women. The reference material contains more than 95 examples of tested practices implemented by various organizations, including the OSCE. This publication is being distributed in English and Russian throughout the OSCE region and is facilitating the work of a number of ﬁeld operations on combating violence against women.

The Strategic Police Matters Unit (SPMU) is also active in the ﬁeld of combating trafﬁcking in human beings. The Unit provided support to a number of OSCE ﬁeld missions in organizing anti-trafﬁcking training programmes for police forces. This included assisting in the drafting of a project for training at the Police Academy of Tajikistan and carrying out a needs assessment for a police training programme in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. In March, the SPMU participated in a training session on “Increasing Operational Awareness to Detect Forged Documents” organized by the Action against Terrorism Unit (ATU), the Borders team and the OSCE Centre in Ashgabad. In May 2009, the SPMU gave a presentation on trafﬁcking in human beings for forced labour at a training course for CIS countries held at the International Training Centre on Migration and Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings in Minsk.

The SR worked with the OSCE’s Action against Terrorism Unit to contribute to the IOM-OSCE Travel Document Security Conference entitled “Biometric Applications in Electronic Machine Readable Travel Documents & Issuance Systems”. This event, which was held in Minsk (31 March–1 April), was a follow-up to the seminar entitled “A Comprehensive Approach to Border Security and Management in the OSCE Area”, which focused upon challenges of identifying trafﬁcking cases at borders and ways to enhance the efﬁciency of border ofﬁcials in combating human trafﬁcking. The SR stressed the problem of identiﬁcation, which is crucial for the provision of assistance to the victims of trafﬁcking and for prosecution of offenders.

The ﬁght against trafﬁcking is an issue which is of concern to a wide range of departments, institu- tions and ﬁeld missions within the OSCE. For example, the new Border Management Staff College in Dushanbe is planning to include training on trafﬁcking issues in its future curriculum for border ofﬁcials. As an issue which is cross-dimensional, concerning all three dimensions of the OSCE’s work, the ﬁght against human trafﬁcking is at the heart of the organization’s activities.

4.3.2 External Co-operation The SR works closely with a full range of international organizations in order to implement her mandate and ensure co-ordinated efforts throughout the OSCE region in combating trafﬁcking in human beings. These efforts also act to raise the proﬁle of the OSCE’s work in this ﬁeld.

The main platform through which the OSCE co-operates with key external stakeholders engaged in combating trafﬁcking in the OSCE region is the Alliance against Trafﬁcking in Persons. The work that the SR undertakes through the Alliance is complemented by the formation of bilateral and multilat- eral relations with key International Organizations involved in combating trafﬁcking in human beings. In particular, the SR works closely with the UN Ofﬁce on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the UN Ofﬁce for the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the International Labour Organization (ILO) and others. The SR also co-operates with regional organizations such as the European Commission, NATO, the Council of Europe, the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) Executive Committee and the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference. This section sets out the key activities that were undertaken in co-operation with these organizations in 2009.

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49 Members include: ABA CEELI (American Bar Association, Europe and Eurasia Division), Amnesty International, Anti- Slavery International, Caritas, Council of Europe (CoE), Dutch National Rapporteur, European Commission expert group, European Police Ofﬁce (EUROPOL), ECPAT International (End Child Prostitution, Child Pornography and Trafﬁcking of Children for Sexual Purposes), International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD), International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL), International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, International Organization for Migration (IOM), International Labour Organization (ILO), La Strada International, Save the Children, Terre des Hommes, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), United Nations Development Program (UNDP), UNICEF Innocenti Research Center (UNICEF – IRC), United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) and United Nations Ofﬁce on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). a. The Alliance against Trafﬁcking in Persons The Alliance against Trafﬁcking in Persons is an international forum that brings together the key inter- locutors engaged in preventing and combating human trafﬁcking. Since its creation in 2004, the Alliance has acted as a platform for co-operation and dialogue between OSCE participating States, International Organizations and civil society. The platform is supported by the Alliance Expert Co-ordination Team (AECT), which consists of experts from leading International Organizations and NGOs.49 The meetings of the AECT are hosted by the Ofﬁce of the SR in line with the Ministerial Decisions tasking the SR to develop further co-operation with international organizations and NGOs. The Expert Team aims to develop strategic networking and partnerships among active players, facilitating exchanges of experi- ence, best practices and lessons learnt, as well as joint actions across the OSCE region. The partners in the Alliance provide an important expert forum not just for co-ordination of anti-trafﬁcking activities, but also a peer group for exchange of views and discussion on good practices and how to best tackle human trafﬁcking. In April 2009, the SR hosted a regular meeting of the Alliance Expert Co-ordination Team which provided an excellent opportunity for experts to update each other on ongoing projects, activities and current trends, including those necessitated by the global ﬁnancial crisis, to present recent research and publications, to share existing challenges and to explore ways to identify solutions. The SR under- lined that in the present situation, a decrease of funding from the governments and from private donors could be expected in all areas, which may create a domino effect and reduce the political focus on anti-trafﬁcking issues. The meeting was attended by new members of the AECT, including a representative of the Council of Baltic Sea States. It was also the ﬁrst AECT meeting to be attended by a NATO representative, reﬂecting a new level of co-operation between the two organizations and highlighting the intention of NATO to contribute to the activities of the Alliance. b. Working with Other Multilateral Groups and Intergovernmental Organizations i. United Nations

The SR works closely with United Nations bodies engaged in the ﬁght against human trafﬁcking. The United Nations Ofﬁce on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) is the key partner for the SR in terms of promoting the implementation of the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and the associated Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafﬁcking in Persons, Especially Women and Children. The OSCE is also an active partner within the United Nations Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafﬁcking (UN.GIFT), and works within the IGO Contact Group, which brings together international organizations engaged in combating trafﬁcking. The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) within the UN 50 According to the UNODC Economic and Social Council is also a natural ally in terms of combating the exploitation of women website (http://treaties. through trafﬁcking. The SR has also worked closely with the three UN Special Rapporteurs, within the un.org/Pages/ViewDetails. framework of the Alliance against Trafﬁcking in Persons Conference on the Prevention of Trafﬁcking. aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no= XVIII-12-a&chapter=18&lang=en as of 12 November 2009), United Nations Ofﬁce on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Andorra, Czech Republic, Greece, Holy See, Iceland, Ireland and The OSCE has consistently urged participating States to become parties to the above mentioned trea- San-Marino have yet to ratify the Protocol. The fact that these ties in its Ministerial Council Decisions taken between 2001 and 2008, and has incorporated Palermo seven participating States have provisions into its own anti-trafﬁcking documents, such as the OSCE Action Plan to Combat Trafﬁcking not yet ﬁnalized their ratiﬁcation in Human Beings. For quite a number of participating States, the adoption of political commitments procedures does not automatically in this area in 2003 facilitated the process of ratiﬁcation of the UN Convention and the Protocol. As of mean that they refrain from taking relevant and active measures in 2 November 2009, 49 of the 56 OSCE participating States had become parties to the Convention and combating human trafﬁcking, or the associated Protocol, supplementing the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime.50 in reforming national legislation With Kazakhstan’s accession to and Uzbekistan’s ratiﬁcation of the Protocol and the Convention in in compliance with international standards. At the same time, this summer 2008, all countries with OSCE ﬁeld missions are now Parties to the Convention. naturally does not diminish the legal and political signiﬁcance of In 2009, the SR contributed to the elaboration of the “Framework for Action for an Effective ratiﬁcation of the Convention and Implementation of the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafﬁcking in Persons, especially the Protocol. The daily updated lists of ratiﬁcations can be found Women and Children”. The Ofﬁce of the SR provided recommendations and contributed to the editing on the website above. process, alongside other key international organizations.

38 In April 2009, the OSCE Secretary General, the Special Representative and other high-level OSCE ofﬁcials attended a Co-ordination Meeting with the Executive Director of the UN Ofﬁce on Drugs and Crime, during which one of the key issues for discussion was the ﬁght against trafﬁcking in human beings and against transnational organized crime. The will was expressed to strengthen OSCE-UNODC co-operation in these areas, maximizing the synergy and complementarities of the respective activities of the two organizations, both on the programmatic level and in the ﬁeld.

United Nations Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafﬁcking (UN.GIFT)

The United Nations Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafﬁcking (UN.GIFT) was conceived to promote the global ﬁght against human trafﬁcking, on the basis of international agreements reached at the UN. UN.GIFT was launched in March 2007 by the UN Ofﬁce on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) with a sizeable grant made on behalf of the United Arab Emirates. UN.GIFT is managed in co-operation with the OSCE, the International Labour Organization (ILO), the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the Ofﬁce of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). The SR is the only member of the Steering Committee representing a regional organization. She partici- pated in a number of events under the UN.GIFT, providing her expertise and promoting the OSCE approach to combating modern slavery. For example, the SR was invited to collaborate in the UN.GIFT Expert Group Initiative Project on “Stakeholder Co-operation with Law Enforcement”. Implemented by the IOM, this project developed recommended principles and guidelines on co-operation between law enforcement agencies and key stakeholders. The SR contributed to the drafting process at all stages and gave a presentation on “Preventing and Combating THB through Formalized Co-operation – Existing Regional Practices” at the ﬁnal conference entitled “Guiding Principles on Memoranda of Understanding between Key Stakeholders and Law Enforcement Agencies on Counter-Trafﬁcking Co-operation”, which was held on 30 March 2009 in Vienna.

The SR is currently directing a research project under the UN.GIFT Expert Group Initiative, entitled “Analyzing the Business Organization and Socio-Economic Context of Human Trafﬁcking in order to Better Prevent the Crime”. This project consists of research into the economic crime of trafﬁcking of human beings and explores the factors that make the business of human trafﬁcking so attractive and lucrative, in order to identify strategic intervention points to disrupt and prevent the crime. The research will address aspects such as the typology of trafﬁcking (including solo trafﬁckers, small networks and large-scale organized criminal groups), the modus operandi used by different criminal groups, human trafﬁcking as a ‘business model’, and the trafﬁcking process (including recruitment, transportation, routes, exploitation, different markets and the type of violence or manipulation used). The research will highlight the social, political, economic and other structural factors in the source and destination countries which promote human trafﬁcking, and will provide recommendations to policymakers and relevant stakeholders on ways to enhance the prevention of trafﬁcking in human beings.

UN General Assembly

The Special Representative participated in the 53rd Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) in New York in March 2009. Invited by the UN, she took part in a panel discussion organized by the UN Secretariat’s Division for the Advancement of Women entitled “Addressing Violence against Women through Legal Reform”. The SR spoke on the topic of “Developments in law to address traf- ﬁcking in women and girls in the OSCE region – promising practices and challenges ahead”. The SR also gave the keynote address at the Fourth International Helvi Sipilä Seminar, organized as a side event to the CSW. The International Helvi Sipilä Seminar Series was started in 2006 to honour Ms. Sipilä’s work and the work of women within the UN and its bodies as well as in other international and national women’s organizations. In her speech, the SR stressed the need to create the political will to ﬁght human trafﬁcking and the need to reduce the demand for cheap labour and sexual services that fosters modern-day slavery.

UN Ofﬁce of High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNOHCHR)

The SR co-operated closely with the UNOHCHR and contributed to the meeting of the IGO-Contact Group on Human Trafﬁcking and Migrant Smuggling initiated by the Ofﬁce of the High Commissioner in March 2009. This is an informal group of international organizations and NGOs, mainly Geneva-based, working on trafﬁcking. The group includes the OHCHR, UNHCR, ILO and IOM, as well as NGO repre-

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sentatives, and aims to strengthen co-operation on trafﬁcking issues. The participants in the meeting agreed that they would support the work of the UN Special Rapporteur on Trafﬁcking in Persons during her country visits by sharing information and contacts of relevant organizations and by brieﬁng her about the country’s speciﬁc concerns on trafﬁcking. Priority areas for future co-operation include placing human rights at the centre of all anti-trafﬁcking laws and policies, prevention of trafﬁcking, compensation of victims, addressing the lack of data and strengthening co-operation and partnership. The Ofﬁce of the SR used this opportunity to raise the visibility of OSCE efforts and develop further co-operation with UN-based organizations and NGOs.

UN Special Procedures

UN special procedures form an important part of the UN framework; they include special rapporteurs, representatives, independent experts and working groups of the Human Rights Council that monitor, advise and report on thematic mandates or on the human rights situation in speciﬁc countries. There are three mandates within the special procedures which are of particular relevance to the SR’s work: the UN Special Rapporteur on Trafﬁcking in Persons, especially Women and Children; the UN Special Rapporteur on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography, and the UN Special Rapporteur on Contemporary Forms of Slavery, its Causes and Consequences.

In preparation for the Alliance Conference on Prevention, the SR extended an invitation to the UN Special Rapporteurs to address the participating States at a Special Panel. The aim of this Panel was to provide a broad overview of UN activities in promoting the human rights and victim-centred approach in the ﬁght against human trafﬁcking, child prostitution, child pornography and new forms of slavery. It was the ﬁrst OSCE anti-trafﬁcking event at which the UN Special Rapporteurs highlighted the signiﬁcance and effectiveness of the Special Procedures under the UN Human Rights Council (which includes regular reporting to the Human Rights Council) in mobilizing national efforts to prevent and combat all forms of human trafﬁcking, in better co-ordinating anti-trafﬁcking activities, and in ensuring the reintegration of victims and the prevention of re-victimization. The session gave a new impetus for developing further co-operation between the OSCE SR and UN Special Rapporteurs.

ii. International Labour Organization (ILO)

The ﬁght against trafﬁcking for the purposes of forced labour has been one of the issues at the fore- front of the SR’s work in 2009, particularly in terms of the Alliance Technical Seminar on Trafﬁcking for Forced Labour in the Agricultural Sector and the subsequent Occasional Paper on the same issue. The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a valuable partner in the SR’s work on combating trafﬁcking for forced labour. The ILO also spoke and participated in the Alliance Conference on Prevention of Trafﬁcking, focusing on the impact of the global ﬁnancial crisis on human trafﬁcking.

The SR participated in the Tri-partite Regional Conference in Tbilisi to address all forms of trafﬁcking in human beings in the Caucasus and related destination countries, co-organized by ICMPD, the ILO and the OSCE. The SR addressed the theme of National Action Plans and institutional frameworks for combating trafﬁcking in countries of origin and destination: making them more effective. The seminar focused on this and other thematic areas such as the forced labour dimension of human trafﬁcking – the role of social partners and the recruitment industry; ways and means of forging better co-operation on combating all forms of human trafﬁcking between law enforcement authorities in the three coun- tries of the Caucasus and with the countries of destination; and Rights Protection-Victim assistance – reviewing progress and sharing good practices and innovative approaches.

iii. International Organization for Migration (IOM)

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) is a partner in the Alliance against Trafﬁcking in Persons. The SR and her Ofﬁce have participated in a number of events organized by the IOM, and equally, have involved IOM representatives in OSCE and Alliance conferences and seminars.

The SR and her Ofﬁce worked with the IOM and the Austrian Federal Ministry of the Interior on a project to develop guidelines for the collection of data on trafﬁcking in human beings. The Ofﬁce of the SR participated in an interorganizational team of experts which designed the guidelines and provided the Ministry with examples of how to best implement the guidelines, emphasizing the importance of the

40 National Rapporteurs as the most established mechanism for achieving better reporting, reviewing and measuring of progress at the national level. The SR spoke at the Ministerial Conference in Vienna in February, at which the guidelines were presented. In her speech, the SR highlighted the importance of reporting, reviewing and measuring progress made at the national level, as well as making recommen- dations in order to address the knowledge gap. However, she also pointed out that the best solution to the problem of trafﬁcking is not data alone, but a concerted effort to co-ordinate our actions, combined with commitment both at the local level and in the highest, international arena.

The SR and her Ofﬁce also contributed to a number of other IOM-led events. These included a regional networking event in Vienna in January 2009, which was part of the project on “Preventing and Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings and Enhancing Victims Protection through Operational Networking and Cooperation and Joint Multi-Disciplinary Trainings for Counter-Trafﬁcking Specialists in EU Member States, Candidate and Neighbouring Countries”. The project is a co-operative effort between the Belgian Police, the Ministry of the Interior of Italy and the International Organization for Migration. The SR stressed the importance of proactive victim identiﬁcation and emphasized that the granting of a residence permit, regardless of the individual’s willingness or ability to co-operate, offers victims a clear legal status and a perspective of social inclusion that, in the long run, has proven to be a contributing factor in the ﬁght against organized crime.

Lastly, the Ofﬁce of the SR delivered a presentation on international legislation and aspects of inter- national co-operation at the Round Table for Diplomats on Prevention of Human Trafﬁcking, held in St Petersburg on 9 October, and a panel discussion to mark the EU anti-trafﬁcking day, organized by the Austrian Federal Ministry for International Affairs and the International Organization for Migration, within the framework of the Vienna Migration Group.

iv. Regional Organizations

1. European Union

The Special Representative has developed effective synergies in anti-trafﬁcking work with both the Czech and Swedish Presidencies of the EU, as well as with the European Commission, and in partic- ular with the Directorate General for Justice, Freedom and Security. Both the Czech and Swedish Presidencies of the European Union made the ﬁght against trafﬁcking in human beings a political priority for 2009, building upon the advocacy and leadership of the SR. The Czech Presidency also focused speciﬁcally upon strengthening the National Rapporteur or equivalent mechanism within EU Member States, whilst the Swedish Presidency has emphasized the importance of tackling human trafﬁcking within the EU’s external relations policies.

The SR signiﬁcantly contributed to the jointly organized event of the Czech EU Presidency and the 51 http://www.national-rapporteurs.eu European Commission on “Joint Analysis, Joint Action: EU National Rapporteurs on Trafﬁcking in Human Beings”. This event, which took place in Prague on 30-31 March, brought together more than 80 government ofﬁcials and other experts to discuss the role of national monitoring and reporting mechanisms. The aim was to increase co-operation and information exchange between EU coun- tries, and with other states beyond the EU borders, in order to develop a comprehensive response to human trafﬁcking. In her contribution, the SR emphasized that, in times of crisis, evidence-based policy making is critical in building public conﬁdence in the effectiveness, efﬁciency and impact of efforts undertaken by all stakeholders. Concrete outcomes of the event included the establishment by the Czech EU Presidency of a website containing details of existing National Rapporteur mechanisms.51 The event also contributed to the Council of Ministers’ decision to establish an informal EU Network of National Rapporteurs or Equivalent Mechanisms on Trafﬁcking in Human Beings.

The SR was invited by the Swedish EU Presidency to speak at the Ministerial Conference entitled “Towards Global Action against Trafﬁcking in Human Beings”, which took place in Brussels in October 2009. The SR, speaking in the panel on “Partnerships to Protect and Assist Victims of Trafﬁcking in Human Beings”, highlighted the need for comprehensive and holistic support to victims and urged States to provide assistance to victims regardless of their status. She also raised the need for victim assistance measures to recognize and deal with the effects of trauma on victims. The SR welcomed the EU’s commitment to the establishment of National Rapporteurs and urged States to show continued, strong political will to combat trafﬁcking. The meeting was attended by several ministers and other

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dignitaries, including the Queens of Sweden and Belgium. The SR also contributed to a background paper produced by the Swedish EU Presidency in conjunction with this conference. A joint statement by the SR and the head of ODIHR and a press release were issued on the occasion of the Third EU anti-trafﬁcking day in October 2009. This highlighted the value the OSCE places on co-operation with the European Union in combating human trafﬁcking, stressing that the OSCE provides an excellent platform for co-operation, facilitating dialogue between countries of origin, transit and destination, and therefore complementing the EU’s action in combating human trafﬁcking.

Amongst other examples of such good co-operation, it is worth mentioning OSCE participation in the EU Expert Group on Trafﬁcking in Human Beings, which, inter alia, advised the European Commission in its work on a Proposal for a Council Framework Decision on preventing and combating trafﬁcking in human beings, and protecting victims. It also advised the European Commission on a possible revi- sion of Council Directive 2004/81/EC of 29 April 2004 on the residence permit issued to third-country nationals who are victims of trafﬁcking in human beings or who have been the subject of an action to facilitate illegal immigration, who cooperate with the competent authorities.

2. Council of Europe

The Joint Declaration on Co-operation between the OSCE and the Council of Europe identiﬁed the ﬁght against trafﬁcking in human beings as one of the priority areas in which co-operation between the two organizations should be strengthened. The two organizations have shared values and strongly advocate for a human rights approach to combating human trafﬁcking. The Council of Europe remains one of the main partners for the SR, not only on the bilateral level, but also within the framework of the Alliance, through which it has contributed to high-level events and played an integral role within the Alliance Expert Co-ordination Team.

The Co-ordination Group between the OSCE and the Council of Europe, which has met twice a year since 2007, provides an excellent forum for discussing the priorities of the two organizations, exchanging experience and addressing issues which may require further clariﬁcation or expert discus- sion. For example, both the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafﬁcking in Human Beings (2005) and the OSCE Action Plan to Combat Trafﬁcking in Human Beings (2003) call upon the participating States “to consider appointing National Rapporteurs or other mechanisms for monitoring the anti-trafﬁcking activities of State institutions and the implementation of national legislation require- ments”. In the course of this last decade, several participating States have established these mecha- nisms, which are crucial for evidence-based assessment of the efﬁciency of anti-trafﬁcking measures at the national level and for the elaboration of recommendations to decision-making bodies. Still, according to information provided by the participating States, these mechanisms differ considerably from one another. For example, some are independent, whilst others are attached to government bodies, and some combine the functions of co-ordination and monitoring, whilst others focus just on one aspect. Participating States often reiterate their interest in receiving a more detailed description and explanation of the structure and tasks of this crucial instrument, commentaries and interpreta- tion. This can be achieved through expert consultations, which will further develop the concept of the National Rapporteur and lead to a vision shared by both organizations.

The SR and CoE anti-trafﬁcking focal point, taking into account the enactment of the Convention and the activities of its monitoring mechanism GRETA established in 2009, have paid due attention to better co-ordination in reviewing the anti-trafﬁcking efforts of the participating States, trying to avoid unnecessary duplication. These issues have been put in the centre of discussions at the two meetings of the Co-ordination group, and need regular expert level contacts and broad exchange of information in the future. The mandates of the SR and GRETA do not overlap, and both are contributing, each in its own way as well as together, to the continued development of a strong and adequate response to the tremendous ongoing challenge of eradicating human trafﬁcking.

3. NATO

During 2009, NATO has placed great effort into raising the awareness of its troops of trafﬁcking issues and ensuring a zero tolerance policy in relation to trafﬁcking in human beings. Co-operation between NATO and the SR has been enhanced as a result. In February, the SR attended the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council Ambassadorial Meeting in Brussels, contributing to the discussion of the ﬁrst

42 Report on the implementation of NATO’s Policy on Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings. The OSCE was welcomed by the NATO Secretary General, H.E. Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, as “one of the most important partners in the ﬁeld of anti-trafﬁcking and in promoting the policy of zero tolerance to the modern slavery”.

The SR has also established an excellent relationship with the Partnership-for-Peace Training Centre in Ankara, with regular training sessions on human trafﬁcking being provided for the military personnel of the NATO member States and NATO Partners. In February 2009, a training session was organized in co-operation with IOM, Europol, NATO School and UNHCR for the representatives of Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Oman, Pakistan, Russia, Serbia, Turkey, Turkmenistan and Ukraine. The second training course was delivered in November and focused upon the OSCE’s role and approach to combating human trafﬁcking.

On the initiative of the NATO Senior Co-ordinator for Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings and at the request of the host country, a joint OSCE-NATO-IOM-UNHCR pre-deployment course was organized for the Armenian military contingent in Yerevan from 29 June-2 July. The Ofﬁce of the SR supported the development and implementation of the training course, provided the curricula and presented the training material to the OSCE Mission in Yerevan for a follow-up. The Senior Co-ordinator highly commended the SR’s contribution to the success of the course.

4. Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) Executive Committee

The SR continued to strengthen co-operation with the CIS Executive Committee, and was apprecia- tive of the efforts of its structures to facilitate the implementation of the 2007-2010 CIS Programme of Co-operation on Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings (this includes the adoption of a Model Law on Countering Trafﬁcking in Human Beings and A Model Law on the Status of the Victims and Recommendations on Harmonization of National Legislation by the CIS Parliamentary Assembly). These legal instruments were developed in line with recommendations of international organizations, based upon a human rights-based, comprehensive approach.

Upon the invitation of the CIS Executive Committee, the SR contributed to the IOM-CIS Conference in Moscow (29-30 September 2009) on “Enhancing International Co-operation in Counteracting Human Trafﬁcking”. The Ofﬁce of the SR provided a welcome address, shared the OSCE approach and experi- ence of combating human trafﬁcking, and presented proposals and recommendations for the elabora- tion of a draft CIS Programme of Co-operation for 2011-2014 (together with IOM, EC, UNODC). The Ofﬁce of the SR also contributed to the concluding recommendations of the conference. The confer- ence (which is organized on an annual basis by the CIS Council of Prosecutors General as part of the Programme of Co-operation) demonstrated strong political will and a high-level awareness of the complex nature of the challenges related to combating human trafﬁcking. It also demonstrated a will- ingness to step up joint efforts in the ﬁght against all forms of human trafﬁcking, through a co-ordinated and coherent response. The draft Agreement on Co-operation between the CIS Prosecutor General’s Ofﬁces in the Fight against Trafﬁcking in Human Beings, Organs and Human Tissues is just one example of such a co-ordinated response.

5. Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference

The Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference (BSPC) is a forum for political dialogue between Parliamentarians from the Baltic Sea Region. The SR was invited by the Nordic Council to speak at the 18th BSPC, held in Nyborg, Denmark, from 31 August-1 September 2009. The BSPC consists of members of national and regional parliaments from 11 Baltic Sea States, the Baltic Assembly, the European Parliament, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) and the Nordic Council and provides an annual forum for political debate and opinion building in the Baltic Sea Region. The 2009 conference dealt with new security challenges, and the SR spoke about the current trends of human trafﬁcking, urging the BSPC to support the creation of systematic structures against trafﬁcking, such as the National Rapporteur or equivalent mechanisms. She called for more co-operation between the participating States and urged their governments to place the ﬁght against trafﬁcking, especially its prevention, at the top of their political agendas.

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6. Council of Baltic Sea States

In 2009, the CBSS became a member of the Alliance against Trafﬁcking in Persons, as well as of the AECT, and contributed to its events. Besides, the SR spoke at a training seminar on human trafﬁcking for diplomatic and consular personnel, organized by the Task Force against Trafﬁcking in Human Beings of the Council of Baltic Sea States, the Ministry of the Interior of Finland and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland. The seminar focused on providing information on how to best counteract human trafﬁcking and to support victims. Participants came from around 25 embassies and consulates in Finland, representing countries of origin, transit and destination.

44 5. ACHIEVEMENTS, CHALLENGES AND REFLECTIONS

5.1 INTRODUCTION

During her three years in ofﬁce, the SR has seen increased and more strategic efforts by participating States, international organizations and civil society actors to combat trafﬁcking in human beings. However, trafﬁcking is still a serious – and perhaps even a growing – global problem. Many questions remain: why is it that exploitation of women, men and children, at its worst in the form of human traf- ﬁcking, is still widespread despite the efforts to combat it? Could it be because anti-trafﬁcking efforts are still too often carried out in ad hoc efforts or projects without actually becoming part of the core priorities of authorities and stakeholders? We do know that many actions, particularly those aiming at preventing trafﬁcking, have not been properly targeted, let alone evaluated. Could it be that trafﬁcking is not – despite the relatively strong international instruments and active international dialogue – priori- tized adequately on the national level and not implemented locally? Or, could it be that trafﬁcking, even though it attracts some political attention, is not receiving adequate resources, especially when compared to the severity of the threat on human life and on our societies? Or are there other, more prioritized interests, such as the need to manage migratory movements by keeping up – without discre- tion – the strict climate towards all migrants, which overshadow and sometimes seem to contradict and prevent us from taking more decisive actions to protect victims of trafﬁcking or vulnerable persons at risk? The answer to these questions can only be found when participating States will introduce, in a transparent way, more systematic self-evaluation and analysis on their particular situation and on their responses and when they start working together. The work of the OSCE and the SR will then provide a dynamic and an even more fruitful platform for action – sharing lessons learnt and co-operating on common actions – resulting in eroding the basis for human trafﬁcking in our region.

In this section of the Annual Report, the SR reﬂects on both the achievements and the remaining chal- lenges in eradicating the modern-day slavery of human trafﬁcking. The work of the SR has beneﬁted from the constant exchange of views and experiences from experts both within and outside the organi- zation. This section has thus also beneﬁted from ideas and issues raised by the OSCE ﬁeld missions and structures, as well as external co-operation partners.

5.2 ACHIEVEMENTS

The OSCE has been a frontrunner in the battle against trafﬁcking in human beings. The OSCE has helped to place many issues onto the international agenda, including:

t"EWBODJOHIVNBOSJHIUTCBTFESFTQPOTFTUPIVNBOUSBGmDLJOH t1SPNPUJOHUIFSJHIUTPGUSBGmDLFEQFSTPOTBOEUIFFTUBCMJTINFOUPG/BUJPOBM3FGFSSBM.FDIBOJTNT to secure the protection of those rights; t3BJTJOHUIFWJTJCJMJUZPGDIJMEUSBGmDLJOH UIFHFOEFSBTQFDUTPGUSBGmDLJOH BOEPGUSBGmDLJOHGPS labour exploitation, including in agricultural labour and domestic work; t&ODPVSBHJOHQBSUJDJQBUJOH4UBUFTUPEFWFMPQFWJEFODFCBTFEQPMJDJFTBOEUPFTUBCMJTI/BUJPOBM Rapporteurs or equivalent mechanisms.

The OSCE’s approach to trafﬁcking is characterized by the Organization’s comprehensive secu- rity approach where the security of an individual is intertwined and indivisible from State security. Trafﬁcking threatens both State and individuals. Yet, from a victim’s perspective, this threat exists and is very concrete even in situations when the authorities fail to identify the victim as a victim of traf- ﬁcking, or in situations where the number of identiﬁed victims is low. The failure to identify substantive numbers of victims is a pull factor for trafﬁckers and increases the risks they are willing to take. The

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52 Opening address by Hon. Dr. failure to identify victims consequently also means a failure to protect and assist victims. Most impor- Helen Bamber OBE, Co-founding tantly, trafﬁcking is a grave violation of human rights and human dignity. It is violence and restriction of Director, The Helen Bamber Foundation at the 8th Alliance freedom: threats, abuse, humiliation and “it is torture”, as Dr. Helen Bamber put it at an Alliance High- against Trafﬁcking in Persons Level Conference.52 The OSCE’s anti-trafﬁcking work has always strived to incorporate an approach Conference: Child Trafﬁcking: that is human rights-based, speciﬁcally gender- and child-sensitive as well as non-discriminatory. Responses and Challenges at Local Level, Vienna, 26-27 May 2008. From a State point of view, trafﬁcking in human beings erodes social cohesion from within. It thrives on discrimination and corruption and it enhances the dark economy and organized crime. It raises the tolerance for violence, abuse and exploitation of vulnerable persons. It creates people that have lost their hope and their trust in other people and for society. The result is less security for all.

The OSCE’s strength is its consensus approach among participating States. However, this is also one of its main challenges when further commitments could be helpful. The key to stepping up OSCE’s anti-trafﬁcking efforts at the national and international levels is hence ﬁrst to work towards ensuring that all participating States address the implementation of international obligations and recommenda- tions and reach the best possible level using best available knowledge and experience in developing anti-trafﬁcking legislation, national structures and bilateral co-operation.

The position of the SR is unique in that it is an international, high-level position dedicated solely to ﬁghting human trafﬁcking. It provides an instrument through which dialogue can be promoted with decision makers and policymakers in important roles in OSCE participating States, as well as facili- tating concrete co-operation and sharing of information. The SR has been well received in all OSCE participating States and the fact that she has been able to meet ministers, parliamentarians, govern- ment ofﬁcials and representatives of civil society has given voice not only to anti-trafﬁcking efforts, but to the work of the OSCE in many connecting areas too.

The co-operation with the OSCE ﬁeld missions continues to be crucial. There is a strong link and a mutual exchange of information between the SR and the ﬁeld missions.

The cross dimensional co-operation within the structures of the organization has clearly increased, partic- ularly if one looks at OSCE activities in the area of economic factors, such as, inter alia, migration and money laundering, rule of law and strengthening of the judicial system, border management, police and anti-terrorism training, and ﬁghting organized crime. To further improve its effectiveness, the Organization could consider how to strengthen in-house co-operation, ideally already at the early planning stage. The synergies of the diverse work of the three OSCE dimensions per se are obvious and strongly support one another. By demonstrating this through common efforts, the OSCE’s voice can become stronger.

The fact that the SR is asked to provide advice on National Action Plans, on draft legislation and on further steps in implementing commitments shows an appreciation of the OSCE work in this ﬁeld. It is also evidence of the expertise of the Ofﬁce of the Special Representative and of the wish to beneﬁt from this know-how. The constructive but also critical approach of the anti-trafﬁcking work is clearly attractive to the OSCE capitals.

The OSCE has become a clearing house for knowledge-sharing and the sharing of best practice and achievements between participating States, international organizations and NGOs. It also provides a forum for national actors and experts from participating States to discuss future challenges and responses. The attendance at the yearly high-level Alliance Conferences, counted in hundreds, is rewarding and also testimony to the importance of the OSCE as a platform.

5.3 CHALLENGES AND REFLECTIONS

5.3.1 Protecting Children from Exploitation and Trafﬁcking is our First Priority It is unfathomable that so many children are falling victim to trafﬁcking. Every trafﬁcked child is a future destroyed. It is unacceptable that children can go missing in our region without any action taken. To respond effectively to this deplorable situation, local authorities need to be better prepared to enhance and co-ordinate their efforts. Local actors in countries of origin, transit and destination need

46 more training to be able to identify children at risk, as well as children who are victims of trafﬁcking. 53 For a comprehensive All authorities must have the obligation to protect any child who is identiﬁed as a child in need, an explanation of the process of best interest determination, see the exploited child or a victim of trafﬁcking, regardless of the child’s immigration status, gender or ethnicity. UNHCR Guidelines on Determining The process of best interest determination is a beneﬁcial tool in ensuring that all aspects of the child’s the Best Interests of the Child, situation are considered when assessing how to help him or her.53 This process must especially be http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/ pdﬁd/48480c342.pdf. made a prerequisite before a child is returned or repatriated.

A strong child protection framework is also key to preventing trafﬁcking. Among other things, it means investing in social structures through which families in need are supported, structures through which children can also receive help on their own initiative and which provide a basic education which in reality is all inclusive. All actors at the local and regional levels must strive to strengthen the protective environment for children. Migration management programmes also need to include the well-being and safety of the children of migrants, whether accompanying parents or left behind.

In order to address child trafﬁcking more effectively, cross-border co-operation between different stakeholders is to be enhanced. Regional co-operation, for instance between OSCE Missions, could help improve the response to child labour and to trafﬁcking for begging. The work already under way by the OSCE Presence in Albania to support the National Anti-Trafﬁcking Co-ordinator in her work with Greek counterparts and Albanian, international and Greek NGOs on child trafﬁcking provides a good example of this.

The priority, however, in countries of origin, transit or destination, is to take urgent action to stop child trafﬁcking. Children who are repeatedly ‘returned’ from one country to another as unaccompanied asylum seekers have a heightened risk of falling victim to trafﬁckers. The current Dublin procedure practice of the European Union should therefore be seriously reconsidered in the case of children, so as to prevent children from falling prey to trafﬁckers, and to prevent them from being re-trafﬁcked during their return process. In any case, the optimal, most safe and sustainable solution is always the one that best serves the interest of the child. This is critical when protecting and considering the future of a child and therefore, the Dublin procedures and similar administrative regulations for the purpose of ‘burden sharing’ must be secondary.

Finally, the prevailing culture of disbelief, even among professionals specialized in assisting presumed victims, is an obstacle that much too often excludes victims from protection. It is important that prac- titioners and authorities are aware of their inclination to distrust the victims’ stories just because they sound so extremely cruel, and that they learn to believe what victims say. Child victims do not need cynicism; they deserve the strongest assistance and support. From the victim’s point of view, and from a human rights point of view, it is more risky not to provide protection than to provide it. In protecting a presumed victim, one has to separate this decision from the criminal proceedings concerning the presumed trafﬁcking case. If the protection is linked to the ability to prove the criminal act, the protec- tion may come too late.

5.3.2 Better Identiﬁcation of Victims will Require a More Humane Attitude The identiﬁcation of victims of trafﬁcking is always the biggest challenge – anywhere in the world. Experience has shown that allocating more resources to investigating and identifying trafﬁcking leads to improved identiﬁcation of victims. The more one looks, the more one will see. Evidence also shows that providing security and sustainable safety for victims in fact enhances their co-operation with law enforcement authorities. Victims naturally wish that perpetrators will be held responsible for their deeds and that the crime against them will be adequately acknowledged. The fact that perpetrators are punished and the crime is recognized can help victims deal with their trauma and feeling of shame, and can thus be seen as one important step in their rehabilitation. Often victims will withhold the provision of information to the authorities in criminal proceedings, unless they know that they are safe and see an alternative future for themselves. The period of reﬂection delay, granted to presumed victims, is important for the victim to be able to start his or her recovery from the trauma and to regain the ability to make decisions about his or her life, including regarding co-operation with criminal investigation. Victims need to receive both low-threshold, immediate help, including healthcare, as well as long-term, comprehensive assistance and rehabilitation. All assistance, however, needs to be safe and sustainable and must be delivered in a compassionate

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way, respecting the needs and dignity of the person. This approach is not always obvious in criminal investigations and in court proceedings where victims may still face stigmatisation and may be forced to encounter their perpetrators again. Much could be improved in this respect if courts and judicial systems would engage more actively in knowledge-sharing with more experienced peers from other participating States. The training of judges continues to be a challenge in many OSCE countries.

National Referral Mechanisms and adequate victim assistance systems ensure that all victims, regard- less of their needs, have access to support services tailored to the individual victim’s needs, right from the point of identiﬁcation up until that of re-integration in society, and that high standards of care are established. It is important that victim services are integrated into broader social protection systems to diminish stigma and lower thresholds for victims to actively seek help. Planning of services and building of safe houses, shelters or support housing could be more innovative and better take into account the needs of integrity, empowerment and ownership of the victim, so as to enhance the recovery process.

Furthermore, the return is to be preceded by access to judicial remedies and to information on rights, as well as an individual risk assessment, preferably conducted in co-operation with NGOs, especially at the local level, aimed at establishing whether the return of a victim of trafﬁcking to a country of origin is in fact safe. This assessment aims to determine whether there is a risk that return to the country of origin could lead to the victim’s loss of life and torture or inhumane and degrading treatment.

54 National Referral The SR has strongly supported the critical role of civil society organizations in both identifying victims Mechanisms. Joining Efforts to and providing assistance. Further measures to enhance co-operation between civil society, law Protect the Rights of Trafﬁcked Persons. A Practical Handbook, enforcement agencies and other authorities are basic requirements if we want to be more successful OSCE/ODIHR, 2004. in our efforts. To include the important experiences and knowledge of NGOs in a systematic response means that ongoing funding for NGO programmes is critical. Evidence shows that law enforcement 55 MC.DEC/5/08 on Enhancing Criminal Justice Responses to agencies and the criminal justice system in fact gain more from close co-operation with civil society; Trafﬁcking in Human Beings this is highlighted in the OSCE/ODIHR practical handbook on National Referral Mechanisms, which Through a Comprehensive states that “the rate of successful criminal prosecution of perpetrators rises in countries where compre- Approach. hensive NRMs have been set up in co-operation with NGOs”.54 The Ministerial Council Decision of 2008 (MC.DEC/5/08) takes a strong position regarding a human rights-based approach towards victims of trafﬁcking. In it, participating States recognize “that providing victims of human trafﬁcking with adequate protection and assistance and enhancing victim identiﬁcation are among the prerequisites for an effective criminal justice response, including the prosecution of trafﬁckers and their accomplices, to human trafﬁcking”.55

Civil society plays an important role not only in identiﬁcation and assistance, but also in the prevention of trafﬁcking, in contributing to designing policies, in researching the problem of trafﬁcking, as well as in assessing the impact of efforts to ﬁght trafﬁcking.

The challenge is that all presumed victims of trafﬁcking, regardless of their legal status or of the modus operandi of the trafﬁckers, must have access to victim assistance and support before there is a convic- tion on human trafﬁcking in court. It is well known that victims are threatened and even killed when alleged trafﬁckers are exposed before or during criminal investigations and trials. Most importantly, assistance must be given to presumed victims, even without knowing whether the victim is capable of or willing to assist in criminal proceedings. Resources invested in investigating and in assisting victims, will be rewarded through increased victim co-operation with law enforcement bodies and through the prevention of re-trafﬁcking.

Victim compensation still remains a challenge. Countries should adopt legislative measures to estab- lish funds for victim compensation or to establish specialized victim assistance co-ordinators to ensure the protection and due compensation of victims, including the conﬁscation of assets related to the crime and provision to the victim.

All victim assistance must also empower the victims. Trafﬁcking is such a traumatic experience that the trauma will probably stay with the victims throughout their lives. With the right help and support, victims may hopefully be able to deal with their trauma and regain control over their life. By regaining a sense of self esteem, victims are able to use their own agency and make their own, informed choices.

48 5.3.3 Trafﬁcking is a Crime That Takes Many Forms It has become more the rule than the exception that all governments and other actors alike acknowl- edge that, unfortunately, no country is immune to trafﬁcking in human beings. Very few countries are purely transit countries, or purely countries of origin or destination. Moreover, trafﬁcking situations and scenarios often change rapidly. No trafﬁcking situation is static and governments and other actors need to be equally ﬂexible in addressing these changing circumstances. Furthermore, the perspective of being ‘solely’ a transit country can result in a failure to see the exploitation and crime that inevitably also takes place at the transit stage. Exploitation of victims of trafﬁcking happens at every stage of the crime and all violations must be addressed, regardless of the stage of the trafﬁcking process at which they take place. Many transit countries are also countries of origin or destination, or will become so as the crime assumes new forms and takes new routes. Trafﬁcking often entails a long chain of events, maybe taking place over a long period of time, and governments need to prepare for a variety of responses to tackle this crime.

One of the major challenges is to ensure that both governments and the international community will be able to adapt and to become more up to date with the ever-changing modalities of trafﬁcking. International co-operation and exchange of expertise, not only in law enforcement and in sharing of intelligence, but also in victim assistance and prevention, can, at best, give all participating States the possibility to follow new developments and beneﬁt from lessons learnt. It goes without saying that this also means that increased efforts and funds will need to be put into comprehensive prevention efforts, victim identiﬁcation, assistance and protection, as well as enhanced investigation and prosecution. This should be combined with improved, more systematic co-operation between all actors inside and outside the government and across multiple sectors at the national level, in order to improve the capacity to work also in the international context in a speedy and ﬂexible manner, so as to provide the best possible protection to the victims. Through working together on the basis of sound knowledge of the phenomenon of human trafﬁcking and through a shared understanding of its causes and effects, the effectiveness of anti-trafﬁcking action can improve.

5.3.4 Are Trafﬁckers Always a Step Ahead? It is important to recognize that trafﬁcking operations are indeed often highly organized, but also very ﬂexible, specialized and segmented. Contrary to government organizations, criminal organizations do not face budgetary, regulatory or geographical restrictions in their operations. They are able to work across borders in a swift manner. This ﬂexibility ensures that trafﬁckers are always one step ahead of the criminal justice system. This also means that greater efforts and resources have to be put into ﬁghting trafﬁcking.

Organized trafﬁcking is a business and, like any business, it relies on changing markets and changing 56 Global Report on Trafﬁcking circumstances. In the same way that criminals adapt to changes, there also needs to be adaptive in Persons. UN.GIFT, UNODC, 2009, pp. 45-47 and 52-57. change in governments’ counter-trafﬁcking actions, in terms of crime prevention, identiﬁcation and investigation. More proactive efforts also need to be made to ﬁnd out more about criminal structures and the methods used by criminals, as well as to ensure operational cross-border co-operation in this ﬁeld. Moreover, it is crucial to target the highest levels of the organized criminal groups. In organized criminal networks, the lower end of the criminal chain is the easiest to replace. Often the lower end consists of women, who may themselves once have been victims of trafﬁcking but have become traf- ﬁckers as a means of survival or in order to gain power and control over their lives. It is therefore a concern that so many of those convicted for the crime of trafﬁcking are women.56 This indicates that the criminal justice system is able to only tackle the lower end of the criminal network; the network will just substitute these lower levels and continue their business. To truly tackle organized criminal groups, more efforts must be put into tackling the enormous proﬁts. Asset forfeiture is one of the most effective means of preventing organized criminal groups from continuing their business.

Many important actions aim at combating organized crime and criminal networks as such. Sometimes the same networks change the ‘goods’ they sell depending on what is most proﬁtable at that moment. In responding, however, there is an important distinction between human trafﬁcking and other organ- ized crimes such as trafﬁcking in drugs or weapons. The expedient identiﬁcation of the presumed victim, who may be incriminated with some other lesser crime, is important so as to be able to provide

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immediate minimum protection and not to leave the victim at the hands of the trafﬁckers, putting her or him in higher danger. Without this, the rights to assistance and protection may often fail and conse- quently identiﬁcation is not able to take place. Hence, there is a need for specialized responses to organized crime in order to address the human trafﬁcking situation most effectively.

5.3.5 Prevention is Complex but Fundamental The prevention of exploitation and trafﬁcking in the ﬁrst place is the best way of protecting and upholding human rights.

Migration and the movement of people is part of human history. When legal migration channels are strengthened, less vulnerable persons will be less at risk of falling into the hands of unscrupulous trafﬁckers. Better management of migration should not mean failing to provide adequate protection to potential victims of trafﬁcking. It is time to take a serious look at what drives exploitation. The slave trade was abolished through targeting demand as well as exploitation. Similarly, it should be possible to target trafﬁcking by targeting exploitation and the demand that fosters that exploitation.

Demand can be discouraged, inter alia, through legislation, awareness raising, codes of conduct and the media. Demand cannot be erased through standalone measures or quick, simple ﬁxes. It needs a comprehensive strategy that includes awareness raising through dialogue and strong signals from leaders condemning exploitation, and through their example whether in the military or in the business sector. All efforts can contribute towards a general deeper change in attitudes and behaviour, proac- tive investigation as well as comprehensive support and assistance to all victims. It is important also to continue targeting potential and actual clients or so-called employers, who make the choice to use the services of exploited and trafﬁcked persons.

The role of the local authorities should not be underestimated. They have a key task in addressing the root causes of human trafﬁcking through providing avenues for economic empowerment, for instance through support for small and medium-sized enterprises, creating ﬁnancial services that facilitate remittances being invested at home, or services for irregular migrants to create micro-loans and other means for self-help and improved social mobility.

National governments and international actors also need to focus the implementation of commitments to become part of development and economic strategies. It is time to move away from short-term projects. Trafﬁcking is a complex issue and can only be tackled through a systematic approach and with a comprehensive strategy. There is clear evidence on the usefulness of suitable (yet nationally-adapted) national structures, including adequately funded National Action Plans, National Referral Mechanisms, National Co-ordinators or Co-ordinating Bodies, as well as National Rapporteurs. It is time to move towards a stricter implementation of existing commitments, i.e., the establishment of agreed national structures that are provided with resources and capacities to fulﬁl their proper functions.

Many participating States have already established a National Rapporteur or equivalent mechanism, or are in the process of considering the establishment of one. The OSCE has during these years collected information on good practice with regard to the functions of the National Rapporteur, including their need to access data, their independence and the requirement of annual, public reporting to decision makers.

Lessons learned from participating States show that these National Rapporteurs or other equivalent mechanisms need to be authorized to gather and analyse data and information on trafﬁcking and anti-trafﬁcking efforts at both the national and local levels, with due regard for the protection of privacy. The National Rapporteur should also be in a position to make recommendations on how to strengthen and target the national anti-trafﬁcking efforts of diverse stakeholders. In this regard, it is useful if the National Rapporteur can report regularly to Parliament, so as to provide material for political discourse and also make its reports public for awareness raising and dialogue with civil society. To ensure that the National Rapporteur can do all of this, it is important that he or she is able to work in an independent way. The structure of the National Rapporteur function can differ between countries. However, the key to its mandate is to report, review and measure progress made at the national level, based on assessment and evaluation, as well as make recommendations in order to address the gaps. It is only

50 by putting into place a National Rapporteur or equivalent mechanism in all OSCE participating States that the next level of improved effectiveness in the ﬁght against trafﬁcking can be achieved.

5.3.6 Fighting Human Trafﬁcking is the Cheapest Option for Governments The reality today is that a zero scenario of ‘business as usual’ does not exist in relation to this crime that threatens security and undermines human values. If the responses are not effective enough, the criminal activity, which is already one of the most proﬁtable illicit trades in the world today, will keep on infecting our societies and the consequences will be costly. To ﬁnd more effective solutions to combating trafﬁcking, our actions must ﬁrst of all be seen as beneﬁcial to society at large. All individ- uals are equally worthy and each individual’s rights must be equally respected so that they can live in peace and security. Secondly, it is necessary to ensure that the funds and efforts invested into ﬁghting human trafﬁcking are proportionate to the funds and efforts invested into ﬁghting other serious crimes or other serious threats to security. Investing in more effective responses, resulting in eradicating traf- ﬁcking, is the cheapest way out.

“Governments and law enforcement agencies in Europe are waking up to the fact that 57 Statement by Rob trafﬁcking in human beings is a growing problem and one which suffers from insufﬁcient Wainwright, Director of EUROPOL, at the EU Ministerial Conference: political and operational attention. As a priority in the EU it is the poor cousin to other forms Towards Global EU Action against of serious crime, such as drug trafﬁcking and terrorism. Although taking tough decisions Trafﬁcking in Human Beings, on competing priorities is never an easy task for Ministers and Police Chiefs, many are now Brussels, 19-20 October 2009. considering the merits of doing relatively more to combat trafﬁcking in human beings.” 57

The OSCE work has aimed to raise the political visibility of this serious problem, which is present in all our OSCE countries, whether countries of origin, transit, destination or all of these at the same time. The work has focused on sharing experiences of both the crime and its causes and consequences as well as on responses taken in participating States. Aware of the fact that the solutions and responses to human trafﬁcking cannot be outsourced to intergovernmental structures, and that national owner- ship of the strategies in response to this problem is essential, the OSCE work has developed tools and mechanisms based on shared experiences to support the participating States in this process. Concrete examples and work of civil society actors presented in OSCE conferences together with valuable work of other important international global and regional organizations, through the Alliance Expert team and the high-level Alliance Conferences have placed the OSCE in the centre of the discus- sions and equipped with best available information.

Roger Plant, from the ILO, thanked the OSCE efforts with the following words: “The Special Representative has made an extraordinary contribution to our common ﬁght on human trafﬁcking. She has chosen the themes well, ﬁrst in focusing on labour exploitation, then focusing on economic dimensions, focusing on speciﬁc sectors like agriculture. We are getting more real, more direct and we are more likely to have practical results and outcomes after this conference”.

Combating trafﬁcking in human beings be it for sexual exploitation, child trafﬁcking or other forms of exploitation must continue to be made even more visible through a search of ever more targeted and effective responses, always preserving the protection of the victim in the centre of our focus. The OSCE is a good platform for this work to continue and grow stronger.

It is not the time to give in, despite the fact we have not seen the scope of this modern-day slavery diminish globally. Every rescued person counts. Every prevented crime means that the human rights and freedom of girls, boys, men and women are protected.

Eradicating trafﬁcking may seem like an impossible goal. The task may indeed seem daunting, but as the old Chinese proverb says, “a journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step”.

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tRegional Networking Seminar: “Preventing and Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings and Enhancing Victim Protection through Operational Networking and Cooperation and Joint Multi- disciplinary Trainings for Counter-trafﬁcking Specialists in EU Member States, Candidate and Neighbouring Countries”, EU, IOM, Belgian Federal Judicial Police and the Ministry of Interior of Italy (21-22 January 2009, Vienna)

tOne World Forum 2009: “A Brave New World”, University of Warwick (23 – 31 January 2009, Warwick)

tSeminar on Gender-Sensitive Labour Migration Policies, OSCE and the Slovenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (16-17 February 2009, Brdo)

tTri-partite Regional Conference to address all forms of THB in the Caucasus and related destina- tion countries, OSCE, EU, ILO and ICMPD (18-20 February 2009, Tbilisi)

tFinal Ministerial Conference on “Guidelines for the Collection of Data on Trafﬁcking in Human Beings, Including Comparable Indicators”, Austrian Ministry of the Interior, EU and IOM (23-24 February 2009, Vienna)

tPartnership for Peace training course in Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings, Turkish General Staff – Partnership for Peace Training Centre (24-26 February 2009, Ankara)

tPresentation to law students from Finland and Slovakia, (6 March 2009, Vienna)

t53rd Session of the Commission on the Status of Women, UN ECOSOC (2-13 March 2009, New York)

tIGO Contact Group, (10-12 March 2009, Geneva)

tConference on the “Side Effects of Free Mobility”, City of Helsinki (25-27 March 2009, Helsinki)

tConference of EU National Rapporteurs on Trafﬁcking in Human Beings, OSCE, European Commission, and Ministry of the Interior of the Czech Republic. (30-31 March 2009, Prague)

tTravel Document Security Conference for Belarus: “Biometric Applications in Electronic Machine-Readable Travel Documents and Issuance Systems”, OSCE and IOM (31 March – 1 April 2009, Minsk)

tSpeech at the United World College of the Adriatic, (2-3 April 2009, Trieste)

tPresentation to the Swedish Women’s Association – Svenska Kvinnoforbundet, (24 April 2009, Vienna)

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tPresentation to the Finnish Bar Association – Suomen Asianajajaliitto, (24 April 2009, Vienna)

tSpeech at meeting of the OSCE Mediterranean Contact Points, (24 April 2009, Vienna)

tAlliance against Trafﬁcking in Persons: “Technical Seminar on Trafﬁcking in Labour Exploitation Focusing on the Agricultural Sector”, OSCE/OSR CTHB (27-28 April 2009, Vienna)

tOSCE Central Asian Regional Heads of Mission Meeting, (27-29 April 2009, Dushanbe)

tPresentation to the Martha Foundation – Marthaförbundet, (15-17 May 2009, Helsinki)

t17th OSCE Economic and Environmental Forum, Part II: “Migration Management and its linkages with economic, social and environmental policies to the beneﬁt of stability and security in the OSCE region.” OSCE/EEF (17-20 May 2009, Athens)

tFirst National Network Meeting Towards Global EU-action against Trafﬁcking in Human Beings, Swedish Ministry of Justice and IOM (28 May 2009, Stockholm)

tBrieﬁng for the Geneva Centre for Security Policy, (29 May 2009, Vienna)

tSymposium on Violence against Women, OSCE Gender Section (8 June 2009, Vienna)

tTraining course for the Armenian pre-deployment of the military, OSCE, NATO, IOM and UNHCR (29 June – 2 July 2009, Yerevan)

t768th Permanent Council of the OSCE, (9 July 2009, Vienna)

t18th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference, on “New Security Challenges”, Danish Parliament (30 August – 1 September 2009, Nyborg)

t10th Meeting of the Co-ordination Group between the Council of Europe and the OSCE, (11 September 2009, Strasbourg)

tAlliance against Trafﬁcking in Persons: “Prevention of Modern Slavery: an Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure”, OSCE/OSR CTHB (14-15 September 2009, Vienna)

tImprovement of International Cooperation in Countering Human Trafﬁcking, CIS Executive Committee and IOM (29-30 September 2009, Moscow)

t2009 Human Dimension Implementation Meeting, OSCE/ODIHR (28 September – 9 October 2009, Warsaw)

tSymposium on Human Trafﬁcking, Webster University Vienna, (1 October 2009, Vienna)

tRound Table for Consular Services on “Raising awareness of the Embassies’ Consular Departments to Prevent and Counter-act Trafﬁcking in Human Beings”, IOM Moscow and the St. Petersburg Centre for International Cooperation of the Red Cross. (9 October 2009, St. Petersburg)

tBelieve in Children – the Future of Childhood, Plan Finland (14 October 2009, Helsinki)

t1BOFM %JTDVTTJPO PO “A Comprehensive Multidisciplinary Approach towards Trafﬁcking in Human Beings”, IOM Vienna in cooperation with the Austrian Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs (16 October 2009, Vienna)

tEU Ministerial Conference on the occasion of the third EU Anti-Trafﬁcking Day – “Towards global EU Action against Trafﬁcking in Human Beings”, EU, FRA and IOM (19-20 October 2009, Brussels)

54 tCollision between Wishes and Reality – Human Rights, Victim-Centred Approach and the Fight against Trafﬁcking in Human Beings, Vot-Pro Project (22-23 October 2009, Helsinki)

tConference on the Fifth Anniversary of the Specialised Inter-Regional Jurisdictions, Ministry of Justice of the Republic of France (26 October 2009, Saint Denis)

tTraining Seminar on Human Trafﬁcking for Diplomatic and Consular Personnel in the CBSS Region, Ministry of the Interior of Finland, Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland, Council of the Baltic Sea States and IOM (11 November 2009, Helsinki)

tPartnership for Peace training course in Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings, Turkish General Staff – Partnership for Peace Training Centre (17 November 2009, Ankara)

tDiscussion on the possible ways of development of infrastructure of assistance to children who are victims of commercial sexual exploitation and sexual violence, non-governmental organisa- tion Stellit (24 November 2009, St. Petersburg)

tHearing on the Government’s report to the Parliament on the human rights policy of Finland 2009, Legal Affairs Committee, the Parliament of Finland (26 November 2009, Helsinki).

A N A G E N D A F O R C H A N G E : I M P L E M E N T I N G T H E P L AT F O R M F O R A C T I O N A G A I N S T H U M A N T R A F F I C K I N G 55 ANNEX 2: List of Ministerial Council Decisions concerning Trafﬁcking in Human Beings and related issues

DECISION No. 1, ENHANCING THE OSCE’S EFFORTS TO COMBAT TRAFFICKING IN HUMAN BEINGS (MC(8).DEC/1; 28 November 2000,Vienna)

DECISION No. 6 BY THE MINISTERIAL COUNCIL (MC(9).DEC/64 December 2001, Bucharest)

DECLARATION ON TRAFFICKING IN HUMAN BEINGS (MC(10).Jour/2, 7 December 2002, Porto)

DECISION No. 2/03 COMBATING TRAFFICKING IN HUMAN BEINGS (MC.Dec/2/03, 2 December, Maastricht)

DECISION No. 13/04 THE SPECIAL NEEDS FOR CHILD VICTIMS OF TRAFFICKING FOR PROTECTION AND ASSISTANCE (MC.DEC/13/04, 7 December 2004, Soﬁa)

DECISION No. 13/05 COMBATING TRAFFICKING IN HUMAN BEINGS (MC.DEC/13/05, 6 December 2005, Ljubljana)

DECISION No. 15/05 PREVENTING AND COMBATING VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN (MC.DEC/15/05, 6 December, Ljubljana)

DECISION No. 16/05 ENSURING THE HIGHEST STANDARDS OF CONDUCT AND ACCOUNTABILITY OF PERSONS SERVING ON INTERNATIONAL FORCES AND MISSIONS (MC.DEC/16/05, 6 December 2005)

DECISION No. 3/06 COMBATING TRAFFICKING IN HUMAN BEINGS (MC.DEC/3/06, 21 June 2006)

DECISION No. 5/06 ORGANIZED CRIME (MC.DEC/5/06, December 2006, Brussels)

DECISION No. 14/06 ENHANCING EFFORTS TO COMBAT TRAFFICKING IN HUMAN BEINGS, INCLUDING FOR LABOUR EXPLOITATION, THROUGH A COMPREHENSIVE AND PROACTIVE APPROACH (MC.DEC/14/06, December 2006, Brussels)

DECISION No. 15/06 COMBATING SEXUAL EXPLOITATION OF CHILDREN (MC.DEC/15/06, 5 December 2006, Brussels)

DECISION No. 8/07 COMBATING TRAFFICKING IN HUMAN BEINGS FOR LABOUR EXPLOITATION (MC.DEC/8/07, 30 November 2007, Madrid)

DECISION No. 9/07 COMBATING SEXUAL EXPLOITATION OF CHILDREN ON THE INTERNET (MC.DEC/9/07, 30 November 2007, Madrid)

DECISION No. 5/08 ENHANCING CRIMINAL JUSTICE RESPONSES TO TRAFFICKIN IN HUMAN BEINGS THROUGH A COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH (MC.DEC/5/08, 5 December 2008, Helsinki)

A N A G E N D A F O R C H A N G E : I M P L E M E N T I N G T H E P L AT F O R M F O R A C T I O N A G A I N S T H U M A N T R A F F I C K I N G 57 ANNEX 3: Key Press Clippings ANNUAL REPORTS: 2009: An Agenda for Change: Implementing the Platform for Action against Human Trafﬁcking 2008: Efforts to Combat Trafﬁcking in Human Beings in the OSCE Area: Co-ordination and Reporting Mechanisms 2007: A Platform for Action

OCCASIONAL PAPER SERIES: 2009: A Summary of Challenges on Addressing Human Trafﬁcking for Labour Exploitation in the Agricultural Sector in the OSCE Region 2008: Human Trafﬁcking for Labour Exploitation/Forced and Bonded Labour 2007: A Summary of Challenges Facing Legal Responses to Human Trafﬁcking for Labour Exploitation in the OSCE Region

All publications are available online at http://www.osce.org/cthb The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe works for stability, prosperity and democracy in 56 States through political dialogue about shared values and through practical work that makes a lasting difference.

Ofﬁce of the Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafﬁcking in Human Beings

Wallnerstr. 6, 1010 Vienna, Austria Organization for Security and Tel: +43 1 51436 6921 Co-operation in Europe Fax: +43 1 51436 6299 email: info-cthb@osce.org www.osce.org/cthb

Informations clés

Organisation Organisation pour la sécurité et la coopération en Europe (OSCE)

Type de document annual-report

Date d'adoption 10 décembre 2009

Source OSCE