TURKEY: SIXTH ANNUAL TIP REPORT: INVESTIGATION

UNCLAS ANKARA 000990

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR G/TIP (JENNIFER DONNELLY),G, INL, DRL, PRM
DEPARTMENT FOR IWI, EUR/SE, EUR/PGI
DEPARTMENT FOR USAID

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KCRM PHUM KWMN ELAB SMIG ASEC KFRD PREF TU
SUBJECT: TURKEY: SIXTH ANNUAL TIP REPORT: INVESTIGATION
AND PROSECUTION OF TRAFFICKERS

REF: SECSTATE 03836


1. (U) Sensitive but unclassified. Please protect
accordingly.


2. (U) Post's responses are keyed to questions in Reftel A.
This is part 2 of 3 (septel).

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Investigation and Prosecution of Traffickers
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A. (U) Chapter 1, Article 80 of the Turkish Penal Code, as
amended by Parliament on September 26, 2004, and signed into
law on October 11, 2004, specifically defines human
trafficking and prescribes penalties for traffickers and
their accomplices. The law covers both internal and
transnational forms of trafficking. Penalties range from
eight to twelve years of imprisonment (up from five to ten
years in earlier versions of the law),and, at judicial
discretion, an additional penalty of up to ten thousand days.
Trafficking crimes can also be (and have been) prosecuted
under statutes of the Law on Combating Benefit-Oriented
Criminal Organizations, Turkish Citizenship Law, Labor Law,
Law on Working Permits for Foreigners, and the Law on the
Prevention of Money Laundering.

Chapter 1, Article 80: Human Trafficking (as amended
September 26, 2004):

(1) A person who procures or kidnaps persons or who takes or
transports persons from one place to another or who harbors
persons with a view to force them to work or to provide a
service or to subject them to slavery or similar practices or
to donate their organs by exerting threats, pressure, force
or violence, by abusing his authority, by deceit or by
obtaining their consent through taking advantage of the
opportunities they have to control them or of their
helplessness shall be sentenced to imprisonment for a term of
eight to twelve years and a judicial fine imposed of up to
ten thousand days.

(2) In the event of actions which are undertaken for the
purposes referred to in the first paragraph and which
constitute an offense, the consent of the injured party shall
be deemed void.

(3) Where juveniles under eighteen years of age are
procured, kidnapped, taken or transported from one place to
another or harbored for the purposes referred to in the first
paragraph, the perpetrator shall be sentenced to the
penalties referred to in the first paragraph, notwithstanding
that none of the acts instrumental to the offense has been
resorted to.

(4) Security measures shall be taken for legal entities on
account of the above-mentioned crimes.

On June 1, 2005, Article 80 replaced the following
anti-trafficking statutes in effect since August 3, 2002:

Turkish Penal Code Article 201(b):

(1) Those who provide, kidnap, take or transfer from one
place to another and house other individuals with the
intention of making them work or serve by force, subject them
to slavery or similar treatment, threaten, pressure, use
force or coercion to persuade them to give up their bodily
organs, use undue influence, secure their consent by

deception or by using the desperation of such individuals
shall be sentenced to five to ten years of heavy imprisonment
and a heavy fine of not less than one billion liras.

(2) If the actions that constitute a crime attempted with
the intentions laid out in the first paragraph exist, the
victim is assumed not to have given his/her consent.

(3) If children below the age of eighteen are provided,
kidnapped, taken or transferred from one place to another or
housed with the intentions specified in paragraph one, even
when no intermediary actions in relation to the crime are
committed, the penalties foreseen in paragraph one shall
still be applied to the perpetrator.

(4) If the crimes listed in the paragraphs above are
committed in an organized manner, the penalties foreseen for
the perpetrators shall be doubled.


B. (U) The revised Penal Code provides penalties for
traffickers of eight to twelve years of imprisonment and, at
judicial discretion, an additional ten thousand days
imprisonment. The penalties apply to both traffickers of
people for sexual exploitation and traffickers of people for
labor exploitation.


C. (U) Chapter 1, Section 6 of the revised Penal Code
provides varying degrees of penalties for sexual assault,
rape, and sexual abuse of adults and minors, as noted below.
Penalties may range from two years to life imprisonment,
depending upon the circumstances. The new Code excludes
several controversial articles from the previous law. For
example, under the 2004 revisions, rape is considered a crime
against the individual, rather than a crime against society.
Under the previous Code, rapists could escape punishment by
marrying their victims, and punishments for rape varied
depending on the marital status of the victim and whether the
victim was a virgin.

Section 6: Offenses Against Sexual Integrity

Article 102: Sexual Assault

(1) The perpetrator who violates the physical integrity of
another person by means of sexual conduct shall be imprisoned
for a term of two to seven years upon the complaint of the
victim.

(2) Where the act is committed by means of inserting an
organ or similar object to the body, the perpetrator shall be
imprisoned for a term of seven to twelve years. If the act
is committed against the spouse, legal investigation and
prosecution shall be initiated if the victim lodges a
complaint.

(3) If the offense is committed,

a) Against a person who is physically or mentally incapable
of defending him/herself,
b) By breaching of duties and/or abusing the functions
pertaining to the official status,
c) Against a person of first, second, or third degree blood
relation or a relative by marriage,
d) By using weapons and with the cooperation of more than
one person,

penalties imposed in accordance with articles above shall
be increased by half.

(4) In case excessive violence is exerted on the victim
during the commitment of the offense, the perpetrator shall
also be punished for deliberate wounding.

(5) In case the offense causes damage to the physical or
mental health of the victim, the perpetrator shall be
imprisoned for a term of not less than ten years.

(6) If, as a result of the crime, the victims enters into
a vegetative state or dies, the sentence will be strict life
imprisonment.

Article 103: Sexual Abuse of Children

(1) The perpetrator of child abuse shall be imprisoned for
a term of three to eight years. Sexual abuse means:

a) any act of a sexual nature against a minor who has not
reached fifteen years of age, or, if over fifteen years of
age, lacks the competence to perceive the legal meaning and
consequences of such acts.

b) sexual acts against other minors depending on use of
force, threat, deception, or by any other reason affecting
the will of the child.

(2) Where the sexual assault occurs as a result of
insertion of an organ or similar object into the body, a
penalty imprisonment from eight to fifteen years shall be
imposed.

(3) Where the sexual assault is committed by a first,
second or third degree blood relative, step-father, the
person who has adopted the person concerned, guardian, tutor,
teacher, caretaker, or other person in charge of providing
health services or who bears the obligation for protection or
supervision, or through abuse of the service relation, the
penalty to be imposed, in accordance with the above
paragraphs, shall be increased by half.

(4) Where the sexual assault is committed against a minor
indicated in paragraph 1(a) as a result of force or threat,
the penalty to be imposed, in accordance with the above
paragraphs, shall be increased by half.

(5) Where the force and compulsion used with the aim of
sexual assault lead to aggravated consequences of the offense
of deliberate wounding, provisions of the offense of
deliberate wounding shall apply additionally.

(6) In case the offense results in damage to the physical
or mental health of the victim, the perpetrator shall be
imprisoned to strict life imprisonment.

(7) Where the offense leads to the victim into a
vegetative state or to die, the perpetrator shall be
sentenced to strict life imprisonment.


D. (U) Prostitution in Turkey is legal and regulated. Sex
workers must have Turkish citizenship; foreign citizens
cannot legally practice prostitution. Trafficking, smuggling
with the intent to traffic, pimping, enforcing, or in any
other way supporting the activities of a trafficking
operation is illegal. The law also prohibits and provides
punishment for individuals who own, operate or work to
support the operation of brothels associated with human
trafficking. The minimum age for prostitution in Turkey is

18.


E. (U) According to figures provided by the Ministry of
Interior, in 2005, 125 suspected traffickers were arrested,
134 were released, 105 escaped, 11 were deported, 3 were
determined to have left the country, and one was sent to
prison on other charges. In 2006, 15 were arrested, five
released, 16 escaped, two deported, and one left the country.


According to Ministry of Justice's Judicial Records
Statistics Bureau, Turkey's Heavy Penal Courts opened 166
cases against 241 suspected human traffickers from January
through September, 2005. Forty-eight cases were resolved
with 144 suspected traffickers: 75 were acquitted; 40 were
remanded to other courts or dismissed; 20 were given
probation or fines. A total of nine traffickers were
convicted: five in Mugla were sentenced to five years
imprisonment, 2,043 (approximately USD 1,600) YTL fine, and
three years ban from public service; four in Antalya were
sentenced to four years imprisonment, 1,325 YTL fine
(approximately USD 1,000),and three years ban from public
service.

Statistics for the October-December 2005 term and the first
term of 2006 were not yet available. The Ministry of Justice
does not yet have a computerized database, causing Ankara to
rely on each province faxing in reports.


F. (SBU) IOM statistics claim that a solid majority of
trafficked individuals have no more than a middle school
education; less than one-third have graduated from high
school. These individuals are recruited mostly through
personal contacts, such as a person posing as a friend or by
an actual relative. While the trafficking rings are believed
to be operated by men, the recruiters are overwhelmingly
female, some of whom are former trafficking victims
themselves. These recruiters often work under pressure from
the traffickers, who threaten to kill their children or
family members unless they cooperate. Women recruiters are
prized because they more easily gain the trust of their
female victims. Foreign victims trafficked to Turkey are
typically recruited by small networks of operators. Groups
may be as small as four or five people. Trafficking networks
operating as tourist agencies or firms in source countries
bring women to Turkey with official work permits. We have no
evidence that government officials are involved. Most
reports indicate that profits are channeled into expanding
the networks' capacity and affluence. Networks tend to
deposit proceeds in source country bank accounts through the
Turkish banking system. Jandarma and other officials
repeatedly insist trafficking in humans, arms, and narcotics
are closely connected.


G. (U) According to GoT officials, Turkey actively
investigates cases of trafficking using special investigative
techniques, including undercover operations, electronic
surveillance, and mitigated punishment in TIP cases. Victim
residents at the Istanbul shelter have also utilized the
GoT's humanitarian visa program to lead police to traffickers.

In December 2004, Turkey revised its Code of Criminal
Procedures to codify TIP-Specific surveillance, undercover
operations, and mitigated punishment for suspects in
trafficking crimes. The Code regulates how to conduct
criminal procedures in TIP investigations, as well as the
rights, powers, and obligations of individuals involved in
the process. This Code does not prohibit police from
engaging in covert operations.


H. (U) Cem Kolcu of the Turkish National Police reported

that in 2005, 555 Foreigners' Police and Border Gate
Department personnel attended training on the following
topics:

- What is human trafficking?
- The difference between human trafficking and illegal
immigration
- Who are human trafficking victims?
- National and international regulations in the fight
against human trafficking
- Differences between the old and new Turkish Penal Codes
- The importance of national and international coordination
in the fight against human trafficking
- The UN Palermo Convention and supplemental protocols and
international implementation in the fight against TIP
- Bilateral cooperation agreements in the fight against
human trafficking
- Elements to pay attention to in operations against human
trafficking
- How to approach a victim
- The importance of cooperating with NGOs while approaching
victims
- Administrative arrangements on approaching a victim
- Case studies

According to HRDF's General Director, Berna Eren, HRDF held
two workshops in 2005. In May, representatives of the
Foreigner Departments from nine provinces gathered to share
their experiences in working with trafficking matters and do
group work on cross-border collaboration in the fight against
human trafficking. Presentations by HRDF included recent
developments in combating human trafficking in Turkey and an
evaluation report of training. In September, health service
providers and six state hospital managers assembled and, with
HRDF's guidance, discussed the concept of human trafficking,
GoT efforts to combat trafficking, the role of NGOs in the
fight against trafficking, and HRDF's counter-trafficking
program, as well as the Ministry of Health's circular.

In 2005, the focus of Jandarma training was on raising
personnel awareness of trafficking. The mobile training unit
continued its tour of TIP-targeted districts and trained 206
officers. One hundred twenty officers came to headquarters
for four-day training on:

- How to treat victims as witnesses
- How to cooperate with NGOs and other agencies
- Investigative techniques from experts from Europol,
Scotland Yard
- Sensitivities of victims (jointly with IOM/UNHCR)
- Human trafficking victims among refugees

One hundred fourteen officers sat in on shorter courses and
conferences.

A portion of a 600,000 USD ESF grant funded seven IOM
training workshops: four in cooperation with the Jandarma
(three on combating trafficking with a total of 131
participants, and one orienting 1,500 officer cadets on
counter-trafficking); one with the Partnership for Peace with
36 participants; one with the General Directorate of Security
(Turkish National Police) on cooperation between the police
and IOM (with 34 participants); and one on
counter-trafficking training for 30 officers of the
Anti-Smuggling and Organized Crime Department. Training
topics included:

- International legal definitions of the crimes,
trafficking in persons and migrant smuggling

- Actors, mechanisms, causes, consequences, victim profiles
and latest trends
- Violation of human rights
- IOM activities in the field of counter-trafficking
- Case Studies
- Identification of trafficked victims
- Treatment of trafficking victims: best practices and
referral system
- National legislation of Turkey
- Turkey's situation in the field of counter-trafficking
and activities
- The role of the NGO in combating trafficking; cooperation
between NGOs, IOs and law enforcement
- 157 Hotline
- Counter-trafficking in source countries
- Treatment of victims as witnesses
- Investigation methods and techniques
- Intelligence on trafficking
- Seminar evaluation
- Film: "Lilya Forever"
- UNHCR connection

The Ministry of Justice sent a judge to a seminar in Moldova
on trafficking in human beings in May 2005 and three judges
and one prosecutor went on a working visit on trafficking to
Moldova in November of 2005.


I. (SBU) Partner governments and source country NGOs
reported that the implementation of general bilateral law
enforcement agreements remains inconsistent. After much work
on the Turkish side and delays by source countries, the GoT
signed anti-TIP protocols with Georgia in March 2005, Ukraine
in July 2005, and Moldova in February 2006. We have no
numbers on cooperative international investigations on
trafficking.


J. (SBU) The universal jurisdiction norm is recognized by
the Turkish Criminal Code on the basis of certain offenses
and crimes. Included in this norm are migrant smuggling and
trafficking in human beings. A foreigner or Turkish
trafficker is indictable and punishable in Turkey. The
Turkish Minister of Justice may request a trial process be
launched in Turkey against an accused person who has already
been through the legal system in conjunction with these
offenses in another country. We have no information
regarding the extradition of persons charged with trafficking
from other countries during the reporting period.


K. (SBU) We do not have evidence of government involvement
in or tolerance of trafficking at higher levels. Contacts
state there is some tolerance of foreign prostitution as long
as it is kept within certain limits.


L. (SBU) We do not have evidence of GoT involvement in
trafficking.


M. (SBU) We do not have evidence that Turkey is a source or
destination country for child sex tourism.


N. (U) Turkey adopted the following conventions:

- ILO Convention 182 (Ratified early 2001).

- ILO Convention 29 and 105 on Forced or Compulsory Labor
(ILO Convention 29 went into effect on January 27, 1998 and
ILO Convention 105 on December 21, 1960).

- Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the
Child on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution, and Child

Pornography (Ratified May 9, 2002).

- The Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish
Trafficking-in-Persons, especially Women and Children,
Supplementing the UN Convention Against Transnational
Organized Crime (Signed December 2000; Ratified January 31,
2003 and implemented February 4, 2003).
WILSON