KAZAKHSTAN: AUTHORITIES FREE 21 TRAFFICKING VICTIMS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ALMATY 003002 SIPDIS STATE FOR INL RICHARD, BUHLER, AND CARROLL; EUR/ACE; SCA/CEN FOR MUDGE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: SNAR KCRM KCOR PREL PINT KZ TJ SUBJECT: KAZAKHSTAN: AUTHORITIES FREE 21 TRAFFICKING VICTIMS REF: ALMATY 2822 ALMATY 00003002 001.2 OF 002 ¶1. Summary: On August 14, Astana city policemen announced that they had freed 21 Tajik citizens from confinement by an Astana labor trafficker, who they promptly arrested. The Tajik victims were kept in a shed and forced to work at construction sites in the rapidly growing capital city. The Embassy of Tajikistan tipped off the police about the plight of the victims and assisted during a raid that was the indirect result of a recent national amnesty act for illegal migrants (reftel). End summary. -------------- FREE AT LAST -------------- ¶2. Working on a tip from the Embassy of Tajikistan, Astana policemen recently freed 21 citizens of Tajikistan from forced labor. According to the Department on Combating Trafficking in Persons of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD) an Astana resident kept them in a shed and forced them to serve as slave labor. The trafficker kept their salaries for himself. The estimated salary of an average migrant laborer is $100-150 per month. Upon arrival in Astana he demanded $250 from each victim for serving as the go-between for them and their future employer. ¶3. According to the police department of the city of Astana, the scenario was typical for a labor trafficking case. The suspect illegally brought Tajik citizens to Astana, collected their passports and never returned them. He kept the victims in custody around the clock, either on special bus transport to worksites or in his shed during non- work hours. Previous cases indicate that the trafficking victims likely remained compliant due to the lure of employment and the fear of being turned over to the police. ¶4. The only compensation the enslaved migrants received was food. The police department insists that this is the first incident of labor exploitation in the city of Astana. According to post's contact in the Department on Combating Trafficking in Persons, police have initiated a criminal case against the suspect (Kazakhstani citizen) under Article 128 (trafficking in persons) of the Criminal Code. An investigation is underway; according to an Astana MVD representative, the alleged trafficker could be sentenced up to eight years of imprisonment. -------------- -------------- AMNESTY: MIGRANTS' FREEDOM FROM FEAR IS THE FIRST STEP -------------- -------------- ¶5. Kazakhstani policemen freed the victims through a raid on the premises, with unspecified assistance from the Tajik diplomatic mission. The Astana MVD reports that they have increased the tempo of national operations in connection with the amnesty of illegal migrants that began August 1 (reftel). According to the MVD, employers are still not very eager to legalize illegal employees on their own, so the police are proactively searching for illegal guest workers to ensure success of the temporary amnesty action. According to the MVD, victims were questioned by the police and taken by the representative of the Embassy of Tajikistan. The Embassy informed post that the victims safely returned home. -------------- COMMENT -------------- ¶6. Comment: Although the stated aim of the raid was not to combat traffickers but rather to make the new amnesty law a success, it is encouraging to see that the migrants were repatriated and not arrested. However, the success of the prosecution of the trafficker is questionable since the primary witnesses to the crime have returned to their home- country. ¶7. Comment, cont.: Post is not aware of other cases of cooperation between Kazakhstani law enforcement and foreign missions regarding illegal laborers. This case therefore ALMATY 00003002 002.2 OF 002 seems to be a positive development that bears monitoring. Whether police will sustain the momentum and continue to free illegal labor migrants and arrest traffickers after the period of amnesty is over remains to be seen. End comment. ORDWAY