FINLAND: 2009 ANNUAL TRAFFICKING-IN-PERSONS REPORT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 06 HELSINKI 000059

SENSITIVE

SIPDIS

DEPT. FOR G/TIP, G, INL, DRL, PRM, EUR/NB, EUR/PGI
STATE PASS AID

PART 01 OF 02

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREF KTIP KCRM PHUM KWMN SMIG KFRD ASEC ELAB FI
SUBJECT: FINLAND: 2009 ANNUAL TRAFFICKING-IN-PERSONS REPORT

REF: (A)2008 STATE 132759 (B)STATE 005577` (C) Email dtd December
15, 2008 Finland Action Guide (D) 2008 Helsinki 00563(E) 2008
Helsinki 00574

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1. (U) Post's point-of-contact on TIP is Political & Labor Officer
Lisa Conesa(ConesaLB@state.gov; Tel: 358-9-6162-5482; FAX:
358-9-6162-5766). Ms. Conesa is an FS-04, and spent 100 hours on
preparing the TIP report. Two local LES employees in the Political
Section and Consular Section spent 67 hours supporting the
preparation of this report.


2. (SBU) Embassy Comment: Embassy Helsinki has continued to work
collaboratively with our Finnish interlocutors in the area of
trafficking-in-persons (TIP). The GoF has been proactive in
responding to Mission requests for information related to its TIP
efforts, and has been receptive to the Department's TIP Action Plan
contained in ref C. Post believes that Finland continues, in both
talk and action, to represent a prime example of a Tier 1 country.
End Comment.


3. (SBU) Begin Text.

Overview of Finland's Activities to Eliminate TIP
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The following has been keyed according to ref A.

The Country's Tip Situation:
--------------

23A: The Embassy's main sources for official
trafficking-in-person's information are government officials from
the Interior Ministry (MOI),Finnish Border Guards (FBG),National
Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and National Immigration Service
(NIS). The Political Section meets with these officials and the new
National Rappateur for Trafficking in Human Beings on a regular
basis. The RSO and Consular Sections alert and include the
Political Section in meetings that may address crimes or migration
with a trafficking component. Officials remain unanimous in their
assessment that the instances of trafficking continue to be very
small, an assertion that is supported by academic researchers, NGO
leaders and media reporting. Nevertheless, the Government of
Finland (GoF) takes the fight against TIP very seriously and has
established effective interagency mechanisms to detect, prevent and
deter it.

23A - cont. The GoF has adopted and implemented a revised national
TIP action plan (2008),and has allocated personnel and resources at
all levels of the GoF to deter and reduce the likelihood of
trafficking into or through Finland. In the Revised National Plan
of Action Against Trafficking in Human Beings, the GoF has
acknowQdged the need to conduct more detailed data collection and
analysis so that it can better grasp the scope of the TIP issue. To
that end, the GoF added an independent National Rappateur for
Trafficking in Human Beings who is required to report regularly to
the Government, to monitor the trafficking phenomena in order to
identify problems. The Rappateur may also issue advice,
recommendations, proposals for action and statements.

23A - cont. A Finnish NGO network (30 NGOs),led by Pro-tukipiste,
began separately counting known victims appearing in the network for
services in 2007, whether or not the victim agreed to go through
police channels or had been referred by the police.

23A - cont. The Embassy PAS section provides daily press
translations. Post documents cases that appear in the press and are
reported as human trafficking or a crime, which may turn out to be
trafficking, such as alien smuggling. Additionally, PAS watches for
articles that may not make the daily press translation and alerts
POL to them. The POL Assistant (an FSN) also scans domestic press
daily. When a press item appears, post contacts local officials for
more detailed background.

23A - cont. Data from Finnish sources is generally reliable. NGOs
disclose what is fact-based, what is estimated and what is an

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opinion.

23B: Finland is a transit and destination country for trafficked
men and women, with transit trafficking being more prevalent than
trafficking to Finland as a destination. Finland is not a source
country. Internal trafficking does not routinely occur.

23B - cont. People are trafficked for labor and prostitution. In
the very small number of recent cases into Finland, perpetrators
trafficked people into the southern more populous parts of the
country. Recent illegal transit (alien smuggling) cases that might
have developed into trafficking, if not for early interdiction, were
destined for France, Italy, Spain, Canada and the US.

23B - cont. According to officials, most victims trafficked through
Finland are likely women destined for Western Europe's commercial
sex industry, and come from Russia and Estonia; there is limited
trafficking of women from Lithuania, Latvia, the Caucasus and Asia.
Finland has no "red light" districts per se, and cities such as
Helsinki, Turku, and Tampere support only a handful of nightclubs.
NGOs count 300 "Thai Massage" parlors in Finland, 150 of those in
Helsinki. NGOs estimate that half of them operate legitimate massage
establishments. Police investigate massage parlors and a case
prosecuted in 2007 as extortion and usury involving 13 victims is
currently under appeal; this year, an investigation of 38 massage
parlors found one case of pandering in Turku. Most prostitutes work
out of their homes, rent apartments and, in certain circumstances,
utilize hotel rooms. While advertising for sex is illegal, many
prostitutes use the Internet to attract clients and the internet was
used in pandering and procurement cases. According to the NBI, most
prostitutes are Finnish students, full-time freelance sex workers,
and individuals working in the sex industry on a part time basis.
Most officials and NGOs estimate 500 to 600 prostitutes work in
Finland, though Pro-tukipiste, the NGO which supports and promotes
civil rights for sex workers in Finland, claims 8,000 calls from sex
workers and 2,000 individual in-office contacts per year.

23B - cont. According to authorities, many non-Finnish prostitutes
continue to commute to Finland to work as prostitutes for several
weeks at a time, often from Russia, Estonia, Latvia. These
individuals, or independent sex workers, largely come to Finland
voluntarily for economic gain and NGOs refer to the phenomena as
"moving prostitution". Of the few women who are trafficked to
Finland, most are aware that they will work as prostitutes upon
arrival; they do not, for example, believe that they will be
domestic servants or agricultural workers. NGOs have suggested that
in some cases, "pimps" use coercion to maintain the services of a
sex worker, thereby changing the dynamics of the situation from one
of cooperation to one of victimization. Finnish NGOs disagree on
whether prostitution is a valid profession or whether all
prostitutes are, by the nature of the work, exploited.

23B - cont. Indian, Chinese and to a lesser degree, Pakistani and
Bangladeshi men, have also been trafficked into Finland to work as
illegal laborers. Labor trafficking purportedly involves
restaurants, sub-contractor situations, domestics, cleaning crews,
and construction. Officials believe that most labor trafficking is
small-scale and tied to ethnic businesses like restaurants. Labor
victims are predominantly East Asian or Indian, although cases
involving Pakistanis and Bangladeshis have been noted

23B - cont. Based on available official information, refugees have
not been victims of trafficking in Finland. Finnish authorities
again have seen no trafficked minors destined to Finland during this
reporting period. The trafficking of minors to third countries via
Helsinki is a concern, but such trafficking is minimal. Border
Guards indicated that they pay special attention to unaccompanied
minors. They have been trained in identifying potentially
trafficked minors, and patrol the transit lounges looking for them.


23C: Based on police information, perpetrators brought victims
exploited for sex work to private apartments or private homes. The
one domestic trafficking incident during the reporting period
involved securing the victim in the basement of a rural home with

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duct tape. Restaurant owners kept Chinese restaurant workers in the
food storage area of the restaurant. Accommodations for suspected
labor trafficking victims are substandard.

23D: The common vulnerabilities in trafficking-related prosecutions
appear to be previous contact between the trafficker and an
unemployed victim. With one exception, most of the trafficking-type
cases have started with an employment offer that then did not
conclude as promised. The distinction between trafficking and
smuggling, especially in labor cases, is often murky. Due to early
interdiction, prior to boarding aircraft bound for Finland notably
from India, over 100 smuggling cases were thwarted during this
reporting period. Because of the early interdiction, the victims
still perceive the smuggler as a hero. The intent of the smugglers,
because of the reportedly high payments up front and additional
payments expected at the destination, remains unclear.

23E: The traffickers appear to be friends of friends or extended
family relationships who connect victims with a criminal
organization or activity via a job offer, usually for a service job,
or a promise of reunification. Exploiters appear to be travel and
document purveyors. Officials believe that many represent organized
rings. According to the NBI, there are no identifiable Finnish
organized crime networks that traffic sex or labor workers into or
through Finland. However, Russian and Estonian trafficking groups
may facilitate the entry of Russian and Estonian prostitutes into
Finland, but the perpetrators generally operate beyond Finland's
borders. Estonia extradited two traffickers to Finland during this
reporting period. Finnish officials would like to see greater
support from Russian law enforcement personnel when Finnish law
enforcement attempts to seek their assistance in potential TIP cases
involving Russians. [Note: The Revised National Action Plan states
that human trafficking and its prevention must be taken into account
in cooperation between Finland and Russia, with particular attention
to gender and child-sensitive issues. End note.) Approaches to
victimization and transit appear organized and officials work to
identify the initial perpetrators, often resident in another
country.

23E - cont. Workers voluntarily enter Finland (legally or smuggled)
for economic reasons, but after arrival, are forced to work long
hours for minimal wages. Some are forced to sleep on premises, as
was apparent in the Chinese restaurant workers' case. Passports may
be taken and the threat of violence or turning the victim over to
immigration authorities is used. Finnish law enforcement
authorities report that it is extremely difficult to investigate
such cases due to the closed nature of immigrant communities,
language barriers, and the unwillingness of victims and material
witnesses to cooperate with the police. The full scope of labor
trafficking to Finland is unknown, but authorities believe there are
likely small numbers of trafficked workers in major Finnish cities.

23E - cont. Exploiters use false documents and real documents under
false pretense or attempt to move people from a neighboring country
by ferry, bus, train or car where no documents would be expected.
Smugglers sell complete packages including identity documents,
travel, and a border FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) manual for use
when officials ask questions. Because of interdiction before
departure or at the Finnish border, officials cannot say for certain
that victims would not become trafficked to make final payments,
which were reported to be large, although the end employment would
be low-wage employment such as farm work.

23E - cont. NGOs believe that arranged or forced marriages may
verge on trafficking for some immigrant groups coming from South
Asia and Africa. They have no provable cases so far but have
received assistance calls that lead them to suspect trafficking in a
few cases annually. One NGO logged 21 suspect cases over a 9-year
period ending in 2008. NGOs believe foreign wives are vulnerable
because they may not know their rights in Finland and may continue
to live under their source-country's paradigm.

23E - cont. While the actual number of TIP victims inside Finland
appears low, expanded travel options to Finland have expanded the
possibilities of transit through Finland. Finnish law enforcement

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remains vigilant regarding the transit TIP dynamic, particularly
trafficking from Asia. Finnair, the national airline, has 26
flights weekly to China and 12 flights weekly to India. In the
Indian smuggling cases reported by the media, officials and Finnair,
the victims hoped to continue on to other destinations; Finnair
proved instrumental in preventing transit. When Finnair expanded
its Asian air routes between Helsinki and Osaka, Tokyo, Nagoya,
Mumbai, New Delhi, Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Hong Kong and
Bangkok, attempts at transit trafficking increased. Finnair
enhanced passenger screening of transit passengers to reduce
suspected TIP flows from Asia to and through Finland. Finnair will
be adding a route to Turkey and is actively pursuing transit
monitoring arrangements at the overseas departure point. Finnair
statistics indicate a consistent refusal to board suspect
passengers.


Setting the Scene for the Government's Anti-Tip Efforts
-------------- --------------

24A: The GoF acknowledges that trafficking-in persons is a criminal
and social problem.

24B: The GoF revised anti-TIP national action plan ensures
continuing cooperation and coordination throughout all levels of the
GoF. The GoF frequently voices its determination to stop TIP in
Finland, and to support international programs aimed at eliminating
situations overseas which create a conducive environment for the
trafficking of persons to developed nations. Finland has actively
pursued these goals at the European Union and United Nations, and
made trafficking a theme of its 2008 OSCE Chairmanship.

24B - cont. The elimination of trafficking and smuggling within and
through Finland is a responsibility taken seriously and shared
across the government. The GOF works via a "Steering Committee"
composed of representatives from the Ministries for Foreign Affairs,
Social Affairs and Health, Justice, and Education, as well as the
FBG, the NBI, and several NGOs. This group coordinates the
implementation of the National Plan of Action against Trafficking in
Human Beings and related counter-trafficking/smuggling activities.
The following agencies are involved in the GoF's TIP initiatives:

--Minstry of Interior (Lead and Key):

-- National Rappateur for Trafficking in Human Beings: In this
reporting period, the government appointed the Ombudsman for
Minorities (Rappateur) to be the Rappateur. The Rappateur, part of
the Ministry of Interior but operating with independence, reports
regularly to the government and monitors international commitments
and the mechanism of the Council of Europe Convention on Action
against Trafficking in Human Beings (GRETA).

--Finnish Border Guards: principal responsibility of interdicting
trafficked persons attempting to cross a Finnish border. They also
have shared responsibility for investigating trafficking/smuggling
rings that attempt to circumvent Finnish immigration laws. Part of
the Ministry of the Interior.

--The National Bureau of Investigation: charged with pursuing
organized crime pertaining to trafficking and smuggling, and has the
lead of coordinating Finnish TIP law enforcement cooperation with
third countries. TIP investigations are centralized in the NBI's
25-person Economic Crimes Unit. The unit focuses on prostitution,
child pornography, abandoned children, human organ theft and
trafficking, and forced/illegal labor crimes. Part of the Ministry
of the Interior.

--Finnish Police: the police are charged with enforcing all laws
throughout Finland. The police represent a national police force,
and identify possible TIP victims as they enforce laws related to
prostitution, pandering and internal immigration violations. Part of
the Ministry of the Interior.

--Finnish Immigration Service: plays a key role in protecting the
rights of individuals identified as victims of

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trafficking/smuggling, either at a port of entry or upon
identification by law enforcement authorities. Part of the Ministry
of the Interior.

--Finnish Customs: indirectly enforces immigration laws and is
charged with detecting trafficking-smuggling when individuals are
identified during routine Customs checks, and at locations where the
Customs service provides immigration screening services on behalf of
the Border Guards. Part of the Ministry of Finance.

--Ministry of Employment and the Economy (key): charged with
enforcing and investigating potential labor law violations,
including instances of forced labor. Also coordinates GoF emergency
support services and assistance provided to non-resident TIP
victims.

--Ministry of Social Affairs & Health (key): manages the nation's
health and social welfare programs. Provides coordination of
benefits and social services to individuals who have been identified
as potential victims of trafficking-smuggling.

--Ministry of Justice (key): coordinates development of relevant
Finnish law pertaining to TIP. Also coordinates extradition and
legal requests from foreign jurisdictions regard TIP and
extraterritorial jurisdiction of citizens overseas.

--Ministry for Foreign Affairs(key): implements international
treaties against human trafficking and Finland's accession, taking
into account current national legislation. Also coordinates visa
policy and GoF authorities participation in the Visa Information
System (VIS) and Schengen. The Passport and Visa Unit of the
Ministry for Foreign Affairs (MFA) maintains an anti-human
trafficking agenda. The MFA may also be involved in victim return
and protecting human rights in civilian crisis management.

--Ministry of Education (key): involves itself in training and
education and special services for children.

--Ministry of Defense: ensures that civilian crisis management and
peacekeeping missions are familiar with the human trafficking
phenomenon and how it relates to the filed.

--Ministry of Finance: is involved in victim assistance, training,
work and integration issues via social security.

24C: Finland is rated by Transparency International as one of the
world's least corrupt nations, consistently placing among the top
five. Corruption is extremely rare, and has not been associated
with TIP enforcement. The GoF's law enforcement, immigration and
Border Guards are well trained and funded, and capable of thoroughly
investigating and prosecuting all cases of TIP. The GoF and its
multipronged TIP action plan (Revised National Plan of Action
against Trafficking in Human Beings, August 2008) are also well
funded, resourced and prepared to quickly respond to all TIP cases.
NGOs argue that flow and use of resources could be more fluid and
are actively working to improve public trust and ensure a positive
outcome for victims.

24D: GoF's Revised National Plan of Action against Trafficking in
Human Beings specifically directs the police to monitor trafficking,
prostitution and related criminal activities with support from the
Surveillance Unit for Illegal Foreign Labor and the Illegal
Immigration intelligence subordinate to the National Bureau of
Investigation.

24D - cont. Exchange of information among police, customs and the
border guard occurs while maintaining respect for the victim's
privacy, safety, and human rights. NGOs are working to improve the
exchange of information by building "street credibility" and "trust"
with suspected victims.

24D - cont. The newly formed office of the National Rappateur for
Trafficking in Human Beings must collect and analyze information
related to trafficking.


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BUTLER