GREECE PART 1: TIP REPORT SUBMISSION 2007

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 05 ATHENS 000503 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS FOR EUR/SE, EUR/PGI, G/TIP, INL/HSTC, G, DRL, PRM, IWI E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KCRM PHUM KWMN SMIG KFRD PREL PREF ELAB GR SUBJECT: GREECE PART 1: TIP REPORT SUBMISSION 2007 REF: A. 2006 State 202745 ¶1. The following is Sensitive but Unclassified. Please Protect Accordingly. ¶2. (SBU) Below are Embassy Athens' responses to the 2007 TIP report questionnaire. Text is keyed to Ref A request for "Overview" Section. This is the first of four cables. ¶3. (SBU) SUMMARY: Greece continues to make significant efforts domestically and regionally in its TIP fight in 2006-07, demonstrating evidence of progress from the previous year. Greece shared comprehensive conviction statistics on arrests made in 2006. In 2006 Greece identified 83 victims, provided assistance to 39 of them and arrested 206 traffickers. Greece has also taken a number of steps outside and beyond the benchmarks. It funded numerous important programs to prevent trafficking and to provide for domestic shelters, legal aid, and other victim services. It has sponsored, hosted, and funded major TIP-focused international and domestic conferences, and has funded and implemented training for law enforcement authorities and others. Interministerial cooperation has been strong. The Ministry of Interior produced a national public awareness campaign last year and continued its use into this year, building on the momentum of press articles detailing the TIP problem in Greece. The MFA completed a Child Repatriation Agreement with Albania; however after more than a year the agreement remains unratified even while it appears to be followed in practice. Greece signed the Council of Europe's Convention against Trafficking and is progressing towards ratification of the Palermo Protocol. Problem areas still remain, however. The process by which victims are identified needs to be strengthened in order to successfully and reliably identify victims of trafficking. Other problems include the fact that victims are still frequently prosecuted alongside their victimizers. The final serious deficiency is the dearth of reliable statistics on a wide range of matters related to TIP in Greece. It is the Embassy's judgment based on the progress made this year and reflected in this report, and the need for continued improvement in key areas, that Greece should remain in Tier Two. Looking ahead, septel will analyze how best to capitalize on current momentum in the government and in public opinion for 2007-2008 with the entirely achievable aim of reaching Tier One before publication of the next annual TIP report. END SUMMARY. Overview of Greece's activities to eliminate TIP: -------------- -------------- -- A. Is the country a country of origin, transit, or destination for internationally trafficked men, women, or children? Specify numbers for each group; how they were trafficked, to where, and for what purpose. Does the trafficking occur within the country's borders? Does it occur in territory outside of the government's control (e.g. in a civil war situation)? Are any estimates or reliable numbers available as to the extent or magnitude of the problem? Please include any numbers of victims. What is (are) the source(s) of available information on trafficking in persons or what plans are in place (if any) to undertake documentation of trafficking? How reliable are the numbers and these sources? Are certain groups of persons more at risk of being trafficked (e.g. women and children, boys versus girls, certain ethnic groups, refugees, etc.)? Greece is a destination and transit country for international trafficking in women and children, and to a smaller degree, men. In 2006 the GoG identified 83 victims of TIP and provided assistance to 39 of them. International organizations such as IOM and authorities from other destination countries report that Greece is sometimes a transit country, with victims being moved on to Italy and other EU countries. There are no official estimates of the extent or magnitude of TIP in Greece. In January 2005 sociologist and criminologist at Panteion University Grigoris Lazos estimated, based on field research, that there were between 6,100 and 6,250 victims of sex trafficking (women and teenage girls) in Greece. Lazos, a 2005 Index on Censorship Whistleblower Award winner for his "tireless campaign against human trafficking," estimated in 2003 that there were 20,000 TIP victims in Greece. Lazos is the only person in Greece who has made an effort at estimating the scope of the TIP ATHENS 00000503 002 OF 005 phenomenon in Greece. He has attributed the decrease in trafficking to decreased demand for prostitution, due to lower discretionary income of Greeks. (Note: Whether actually true or not, anecdotal polling results show Greeks believe their discretionary income has decreased and that inflation is outpacing wage increases. Greeks may, therefore, less frequently visit sex workers. End Note.) Other anecdotal evidence and some NGO workers support the belief that the high rates of trafficking seen in the earliest parts of this decade have begun to subside. Without an analysis conducted in accordance with accepted statistical norms, it remains impossible to verify or refute this assertion. Anti-child trafficking NGOs estimated in 2006 that "hundreds" of children, mainly Roma from Albania, remain victims of trafficking for labor exploitation; typically selling small items (packs of tissue or flowers),begging, or stealing. NGOs report that trafficking of children has decreased due to police efforts in Greece and because it has become easier for Albanian parents to immigrate to Greece with their children rather than "rent" their children to traffickers as was done in the past. There are teenaged girls trafficked to Greece for commercial sexual exploitation. One volunteer NGO offering medical services to aliens awaiting deportation at the Petrou Ralli police detention center said that it identified one suspected child trafficking victim. The 14 year-old child, however, refused to testify against the traffickers or to take advantage of the protections eligible to victims of trafficking. The Child Repatriation Protocol with Albania, signed in Tirana in February 2006, will address some of the problems with the protection of child victims. The Protocol is designed to bring about cooperation between Albanian and Greek authorities in returning Albanian children from Greece, in locating the families of returning children and of placing children in the hands of appropriate carers when families cannot be located immediately. It also aims at assisting Greek and Albanian NGOs to closely monitor the reintegration and rehabilitation of the children following their return to Albania. After more than a year, the agreement remains signed but not ratified, although authorities assert that it is being followed in practice, nonetheless. In the meantime, some NGOs allege that only a few of the children deported to Albania are actually returned to their families. NGOs claim that many of these children are literally imprisoned in Albania and slip back into Greece at the first opportunity. -- B. Please provide a general overview of the trafficking situation in the country and any changes since the last TIP Report (e.g. changes in direction). Also briefly explain the political will to address trafficking in persons. Other items to address may include: What kind of conditions are the victims trafficked into? Which populations are targeted by the traffickers? Who are the traffickers? What methods are used to approach victims? (Are they offered lucrative jobs, sold by their families, approached by friends of friends, etc.?) What methods are used to move the victims (e.g., are false documents being used)? Political Will to Address TIP -------------- The Greek Government demonstrated political will at the highest levels in 2006-2007 to address trafficking in persons. The GoG updated its Action Plan for 2006-2007 to include plans to ratify the Palermo protocol and the Bilateral Agreement with Albania for Minor Victims of trafficking. In 2006 it streamlined the procedure for issuance of residence and work permits by centralizing the system for victims. It undertook to improve regional police cooperation initiatives including cross-border cooperation through the Southeast European Cooperative Initiative (SECI) and by initiating in December 2006, the "Ilaeira" Project -- a regional police cooperation program involving more than twenty countries. The GoG also has several ongoing multilateral, regional programs to combat trafficking. One program is conducted in cooperation with USAID and UNICEF in Albania. Another project is designed to establish a clearing house for missing Children in southeastern Europe in cooperation with the NGO 'Smile of the Child;' and another is to codify the trafficking legislation in ten countries that are the homes of many trafficking victims in cooperation with the European Public Law Center. The GoG also carried on public awareness campaigns and cooperation with NGOs. It continued to consult with diplomatic and consular ATHENS 00000503 003 OF 005 authorities from victims' countries of origin. It has structures in place for the protection of victims and ongoing support and prevention projects in victims' countries of origin. The Greek government asserts that it lobbies and promotes trafficking awareness in international organizations including NATO, the OSCE, the Council of Europe and the Human Security Network. Some examples of the GoG's resolve to combat TIP are below: -- Since 2005, Hellenic Aid and IOM are signatories to a humanitarian repatriation and social integration contract to ensure the humane repatriation of trafficking victims and to provide for their social reintegration into their countries of origin. -- In 2006, the Secretariat for Gender Equality held five seminars for Public Administration officers in five different Greek cities. The attendees included social workers, psychologists, nurses, police personnel and judges. The focus was on violence against women and trafficking of women for sexual exploitation. -- The Secretariat for Gender Equality produced informative materials in Greek and English about the support services available for victims. The Secretariat plans to publish the material in Albanian, Russian and French, as well. -- IOM and Hellenic Aid produced an information card in Greek, English, Romanian and Russian to alert potential victims to the law enforcement resources available to help them. The card is distributed at all check points to women entering Greece from specific countries. -- In 2006, the Secretariat for Gender Equality launched a development assistance project in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Kosovo entitled "Support of Regional Policies Against Illegal Trafficking of Women." The program has a total budget of 100,000 euros and aims at providing direct counseling support to victims in Sarajevo and Pristina. It includes an education campaign in schools in both cities and support to the IOM structures in both Sarajevo and Pristina which are already providing assistance and protection to victims of trafficking in the Balkans. -- As part of the National Action Plan to Confront Trafficking in Persons, the Union of Public Prosecutors in Greece and the IOM held a 2-day conference in June 2006 to train Greeek Prosecutors in applying the protections guaranteed victims under the anti-trafficking legislation. The conference entitled "The Combating of Human Trafficking" was financed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Hellenic Aid Division. Almost half of the total prosecutorial force from all over Greece attended this training Conference. --On November 13, 2006, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and IOM held a conference on "International and Regional Counter Trafficking Cooperation" with speakers from the Swedish police, the Stability Pact, representatives of Greek Ministries and the NGO Community. -- The Ministry of Public Order held a conference in November 2006 on the "Ilaeira" initiative to combat trafficking in human beings announced in the EU Council of Ministers in April 2006. The Conference, the scope of which was to improve trans-border police cooperation in bilateral and multilateral level, was attended by police personnel from 20 countries and four international bodies (EUROPOL, EUROJUST, FRONTEX, INTERPOL). The MPO's Ilaeira Project targets police, task forces, prosecutors, law enforcement officials, and NGOs. -- The Secretariat for Gender Equality held a regional Conference, December 5-6, 2006, on "Action against Trafficking in Human Beings, Prevention, Protection, Prosecution" under the auspices of the Directorate General of Human Rights of the Council of Europe. The Conference brought together trafficking experts from eight countries including Greece with experts from the Council of Europe. Some NGOs continued to raise complaints in 2006 that there is a lack of political will to address TIP evidenced by low numbers of identified victims. Others countered that the political will is ATHENS 00000503 004 OF 005 real but needs to be matched with more effective implementation of the tools now in place. Based on the array of activities carried out by the GoG, only some of which are shown above, it is the assessment of the Embassy that the government is demonstrating the political will to continue to address this issue, by focusing not only on the "benchmarks," but also on self-generated anti-TIP initiatives and ideas. TIP Trends in Greece -------------- --As in past years, NGOs and police agree that most victims trafficked to Greece are women from former Soviet states, the Balkans and Africa. These victims work in bars, brothels, and strip clubs. In 2006, Greek law enforcement authorities identified the following numbers and nationalities of TIP victims: from Albania (4 victims), Bulgaria (10),Georgia (1),Kazakhstan (1),Kyrgyzstan (1) Latvia (2) Belarus (1) Lithuania (2),Moldova (5) Nigeria (3),Ukraine (5), Poland (1),Romania (20),Russia (25),Serbia (1) Syria (1). --Most victims continued to enter Greece with legal documentation, including work permits. Some recognized victims also have legal, but fraudulently obtained, documentation. For example, at least four Russian victims over the past few years have reported to NGOs that their traffickers falsified visa applications to obtain visas in the victims' legal names (See Prosecution - K). --There was an increasing trend of immigrant smugglers locking smuggled immigrants for labor trafficking in apartments once they arrived in Greece, and demanding a "ransom" from family members in origin countries. --There were reports of debt bondage both by victims and by source country diplomatic representatives in Greece. --In 2006, the trend continued of increasing numbers of African, especially Nigerian, women trafficked to Greece for sexual exploitation. Some of these women believe they are under a "spell," and will not, therefore, speak to police and/or NGOs about their possible victimization, and refuse assistance offered to them. In 2006, police and NGOs convinced at least three Nigerian women "under voodoo curses" to accept GoG assistance. -- TIP victims are subjected to withholding of documents and physical and psychological violence and threats. The trend continued of victims being trafficked into more so-called "humane" conditions, with some freedom of movement, communication, and small stipends, but increased psychological abuse. For example, some victims' lives and the lives of their families were threatened, and traffickers told some victims they would be arrested, deported, or even killed if they went to the police. --Some victims were forced to marry traffickers or traffickers' associates to "legalize" their status in Greece. --NGOs report that increasing numbers of women were acting as traffickers. Ultimately, the identification of trends becomes more difficult in the absence of reliable statistics and beyond recounting the anecdotal evidence above, little can be said reliably. -- C. What are the limitations on the government's ability to address this problem in practice? For example, is funding for police or other institutions inadequate? Is overall corruption a problem? Does the government lack the resources to aid victims? The government has made funds available for training of police personnel and for key civil servants, including judges, prosecutors, psychologists, social workers, and the personnel responsible for issuing residence permits. Resources to address support and assistance needs of victims are more than adequate when considering the limited number of identified victims in the last year. The ATHENS 00000503 005 OF 005 government funds NGOs to maintain shelters and to provide assistance, aid and other services to victims. However, corruption within the Greek bureaucracy and a slow judicial system contribute to limitations on the GoG's ability to address trafficking in practice. GoG continued efforts to educate the police force and key civil servants. Plans are in place for continued training of police, prosecutors and judges. -- D. To what extent does the government systematically monitor its anti-trafficking efforts (on all fronts -- prosecution, prevention and victim protection) and periodically make available, publicly or privately and directly or through regional/international organizations, its assessments of these anti-trafficking efforts? TIP experts at the Ministries of Justice, Public Order, Health, Interior and Foreign Affairs actively monitor the anti-trafficking efforts of the GoG in prosecution, prevention, and victim protection. The GoG makes their assessments available, both publicly and privately, directly to regional organizations, international bodies, and embassies. The absence of reliable statistics, however, continues to be a barrier to assessing anti-trafficking efforts. In 2007 as in 2006 the GoG coordinated with NGOs and IOM to provide information for this report, gathering some statistics directly from NGOs and forwarding them as-is. Greece 2007 TIP Report Submission Continued Septel.