TIP INTERIM ASSESSMENT FOR ISRAEL

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 TEL AVIV 004675 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ELAB GTIP PHUM IS KCRM KJUS SUBJECT: TIP INTERIM ASSESSMENT FOR ISRAEL REF: STATE 175900 ¶1. (Summary) The Government of Israel has taken several important actions to combat human trafficking since the 2006 TIP Report was written. On October 19, it amended Israel's trafficking in persons law to include labor trafficking, the most serious deficiency noted in the TIP report. The government will also provide legal assistance to victims of labor trafficking under a pilot program that will be reviewed in two years. In addition to the new law, the GOI took several other steps to address the problem of human trafficking. On May 31 the GOI officially appointed Rachel Gershuni from the Ministry of Justice as National Coordinator responsible for coordinating the battle against trafficking via prosecution and prevention. The Knesset has tabled the United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime, and if no objections are raised by Knesset members, the Convention will be sent to the Government for ratification. In the area of prosecution, the government doubled the number of trafficking cases that it brought to court -- all related to prostitution to this point, as the impact of the October 19 law has not yet had time to be felt. This report responds to questions posed in reftel. (End Summary.) -------------- -------------- Interim Assessment Question 1 -- What progress has Israel made in passing and enacting a comprehensive anti-trafficking law? -------------- -------------- ¶2. The Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (Legislative Amendments) Law, 5766-2006, was voted upon and approved unanimously by the Knesset on October 19, and went into force upon its publication on October 29. The law strengthens and broadens penalties for human trafficking, stipulating trafficking offenses for the purposes of stealing organs, kidnapping newborn children, slavery, forced labor (including the taking of passports),prostitution, pornography and sexual abuse. Forced labor is defined as "anyone who forces a person to work, by using force or other means of pressure or by threat of one of these, or by consent elicited by means of fraud, whether or not for consideration." Slavery is defined as "a situation under which powers generally exercised towards property are exercised on a person." Maximum penalties for several trafficking offenses were increased. The courts were instructed to grant trafficking victims compensation to be paid through a dedicated fund to be set up for such purposes, and were authorized to hold trafficking trials behind closed doors and to prevent the publication of details that identify the victims. The NGO Hotline for Migrant Workers (Hotline) called the law comprehensive and an important tool in the prevention of trafficking in persons. Hotline said that it would also like the charging of fees for job placement without a legal job to offer in Israel added to the newly expanded definition of trafficking. -------------- -------------- Interim Assessment Question 2 -- What progress has Israel made in extending victim protection services to all victims of trafficking, including labor TIP victims? -------------- -------------- ¶3. The new law amends the existing Legal Aid Law to provide legal aid to all victims of trafficking and slavery, including those trafficked for the purpose of labor. Previously, legal aid was accorded only to victims of trafficking for the purpose of prostitution. Victims do not have to meet economic criteria to receive the aid. The expanded legal aid program will be reviewed in September ¶2008. NGOs such as Hotline for Migrant Workers and Kav La'Oved responded positively to the new law's victim protection framework, but did criticize the law's allocation of confiscated property and fines from traffickers to the government rather than directly to the victims. On March 30, the Israeli Supreme Court ordered the State to establish within six months a new employment arrangement that will allow foreign workers to change employers without losing their legal status. In response, on September 12 the Government adopted Resolutions 447 and 448, which set new methods for employing foreign workers in the fields of nursing and agriculture that are designed to provide the workers with increased protections and simplify the process under which they can change employers. A GOI contact said that the government hopes to complete the changes to the laws and regulations by April 2007. -------------- -------------- Interim Assessment Question 3 -- What progress has Israel made in increasing criminal investigations and prosecutions against suspected traffickers, including those engaged in practices related to involuntary servitude? -------------- -------------- ¶4. Through October 1, the police conducted 282 criminal investigations on trafficking in persons for the purpose of prostitution and related offenses, and GOI brought 27 new trafficking cases to court, a 50% rise in prosecutions in comparison to 2005. The Government acknowledges documented abuse of some foreign workers, but cites a lack of exact statistics with regards to victims of trafficking for labor, and stated that "there are few cases in which the abuse amounts to slavery or forced labor." Estimates on the extent of the labor trafficking problem vary greatly, with some NGOs claiming hundreds (slavery) and thousands (forced labor) of labor trafficking victims. No reliable empirical evidence is available to support either the Government or NGO estimates. The impact of the new law on investigation and prosecution of cases and practices related to involuntary servitude is not yet known. ********************************************* ******************** Visit Embassy Tel Aviv's Classified Website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/telaviv You can also access this site through the State Department's Classified SIPRNET website. ********************************************* ******************** JONES