AZERBAIJAN--2009 TIP REPORT: PRESS GUIDANCE AND

UNCLAS STATE 060488 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ELAB KCRM KWMN PGOV PHUM PREL SMIG KPAO KTIP AJ SUBJECT: AZERBAIJAN--2009 TIP REPORT: PRESS GUIDANCE AND DEMARCHE REF: A. 2009 STATE 59732 ¶B. 2009 STATE 5577 ¶1. This is an action cable; see paras 5 through 7 and 10. ¶2. On June 16, 2009, at 10:00 a.m. EDT, the Secretary will release the 2009 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report at a press conference in the Department's press briefing room. This release will receive substantial coverage in domestic and foreign news outlets. Until the time of the Secretary's June 16 press conference, any public release of the Report or country narratives contained therein is prohibited. ¶3. The Department is hereby providing Post with advance press guidance to be used on June 16 or thereafter. Also provided is demarche language to be used in informing the Government of Azerbaijan of its tier ranking and the TIP Report's imminent release. The text of the TIP Report country narrative is provided, both for use in informing the Government of Azerbaijan and in any local media release by Post's public affairs section on June 16 or thereafter. Drawing on information provided below in paras 8 and 9, Post may provide the host government with the text of the TIP Report narrative no earlier than 1200 noon local time Monday June 15 for WHA, AF, EUR, and NEA countries and OOB local time Tuesday June 16 for SCA and EAP posts. Please note, however, that any public release of the Report's information should not/not precede the Secretary's release at 10:00 am EDT on June 16. ¶4. The entire TIP Report will be available on-line at www.state.gov/g/tip shortly after the Secretary's June 16 release. Hard copies of the Report will be pouched to posts in all countries appearing on the Report. The Secretary's statement at the June 16 press event, and the statement of and fielding of media questions by G/TIP,s Director and Senior Advisor to the Secretary, Ambassador-at-Large Luis CdeBaca, will be available on the Department's website shortly after the June 16 event. Ambassador de Baca will also hold a general briefing for officials of foreign embassies in Washington DC on June 17 at 3:30 pm EDT. ¶5. Action Request: No earlier than 12 noon local time on Monday June 15 for WHA, AF, EUR, and NEA posts and OOB local time on Tuesday June 16 for SCA and EAP posts, please inform the appropriate official in the Government of Azerbaijan of the June 16 release of the 2009 TIP Report, drawing on the points in para 9 (at Post's discretion) and including the text of the country narrative provided in para 8. For countries where the State Department has lowered the tier ranking, it is particularly important to advise governments prior to the Report being released in Washington on June 16. ¶6. Action Request continued: Please note that, for those countries which will not receive an "action plan" with specific recommendations for improvement, posts should draw host governments' attention to the areas for improvement identified in the 2009 Report, especially highlighted in the "Recommendations" section of the second paragraph of the narrative text. This engagement is important to establishing the framework in which the government's performance will be judged for the 2010 Report. If posts have questions about which governments will receive an action plan, or how they may follow up on the recommendations in the 2009 Report, please contact G/TIP and the appropriate regional bureau. ¶7. Action Request continued: On June 16, please be prepared to answer media inquiries on the Report's release using the press guidance provided in para 11. If Post wishes, a local press statement may be released on or after 10:30 am EDT June 16, drawing on the press guidance and the text of the TIP Report's country narrative provided in para 8. ¶8. Begin Final Text of Azerbaijan's country narrative in the 2009 TIP Report: -------------- AZERBAIJAN (TIER 2 Watch List) -------------- Azerbaijan is a source, transit, and limited destination country for men, women, and children trafficked for the purposes of commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor. Women and children from Azerbaijan are trafficked to Turkey and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation. Men and boys are trafficked to Russia for the purpose of forced labor. Men and women are also trafficked to Iran, Pakistan, and the UAE for purposes of sexual exploitation and forced labor. Some men are trafficked within Azerbaijan for the purpose of forced labor and women and children are trafficked internally for forced prostitution and forced labor, including forced begging. Azerbaijan serves as a transit country for victims trafficked from Moldova, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan to Turkey and the UAE for commercial sexual exploitation. The Azerbaijani exclave of Nakhchivan serves as a transit point for women trafficked to Turkey. A small number of men and women from Ukraine, Moldova, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Russia were trafficked to Azerbaijan for the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation. The Government of Azerbaijan does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Despite these overall efforts, the government did not show evidence of progress in investigating, prosecuting, convicting, and punishing trafficking offenders, including complicit officials; therefore, Azerbaijan is placed on Tier 2 Watch List. Although the government made modest improvements, victim identification and access to victim assistance remained limited during the reporting period. The government adopted a new national action plan on trafficking in February 2009; however, it did not allocate funding to implement the programs and policies in the plan, and funding for anti-trafficking efforts remained low and inconsistent throughout the reporting period. The new action plan included a draft national victim referral mechanism, though the mechanism was not formally adopted or implemented during the reporting period. Azerbaijan demonstrated improved awareness efforts. Recommendations for Azerbaijan: Increase law enforcement efforts to prosecute and convict traffickers, including government officials complicit in trafficking, and ensure that a majority of convicted traffickers serve some time in prison; vet members of the anti-trafficking unit for human rights abuses; implement the national victim referral mechanism; increase inter-agency coordination of anti-trafficking efforts; improve victim assistance and protection for child victims of trafficking; provide initial assistance to domestic victims without requiring them to file a formal complaint with police; and conduct awareness and victim treatment training for law enforcement and judges. Prosecution -------------- The Government of Azerbaijan conducted fewer trafficking investigations and prosecutions and convicted fewer traffickers than in 2007. Azerbaijan's 2005 Law on the Fight Against Trafficking in Persons prohibits trafficking for both sexual exploitation and forced labor, and prescribes from five to 15 years' imprisonment, punishments which are sufficiently stringent and commensurate with those prescribed for other grave crimes, such as rape. In 2008, the government reported conducting 66 trafficking investigations and prosecuted 61 trafficking cases, down from 75 cases in ¶2007. The government secured the convictions of 61 traffickers, down from 85 convictions in 2007. Some convicted traffickers received sentences of from one to eight years' imprisonment. According to most civil society groups in Azerbaijan, corruption and a lack of training among low-level law enforcement impeded overall anti-trafficking efforts. There were unconfirmed reports that convicted traffickers bribed some judges to grant suspended sentences. There were also unconfirmed reports that police officers controlled saunas, motels, and massage parlors where forced prostitution occurred. During the reporting period, some victims claimed they were kidnapped by police and forced into prostitution and were later threatened by police not to file charges against the officials responsible for trafficking them. The government failed to vigorously investigate trafficking-related corruption during the reporting period. The government has yet to vet members of its anti-trafficking unit for human rights abuses, a recommendation since the 2005 Trafficking in Persons Report. Protection -------------- The Government of Azerbaijan demonstrated mixed progress in assisting victims during the reporting period. It did not employ a system to proactively identify victims of trafficking among vulnerable populations, including labor migrants; some NGOs suspect that labor trafficking may be more significant that sex trafficking. Coordination among the government agencies assigned to combat trafficking and assist victims was infrequent; most agencies did not have a dedicated office or point of contact responsible for coordinating with other agencies to effectively combat trafficking. In 2008, NGOs and law enforcement identified 121 victims; the government-funded shelter assisted 55 of these victims, up from 29 in 2007. Victims were only eligible for government-funded assistance, however, if they were an adult, female, and participated in a formal criminal case. Law enforcement referred 52 victims to the government-funded shelter in 2008. The government encouraged victims to participate in investigations and prosecutions of trafficking offenders; however, victims reported that some corrupt police officers discouraged them from filing criminal complaints through threats of physical violence. There were no reports that victims were penalized for unlawful acts committed as a direct result of being trafficked. Generally, identified foreign victims of trafficking who cooperate with law enforcement were permitted to remain in Azerbaijan until the completion of their court case; however, six foreign victims were deported prior to the completion of their court case during the reporting period. There were no child trafficking shelters operating during the reporting period. Some child victims received shelter at a government-run child homeless center for a maximum of 30 days and then were returned to the streets. Prevention -------------- The government improved its prevention efforts during the reporting period. The government conducted a general trafficking-awareness campaign, advertising in both newspapers and on television. The government also funded and produced a documentary, in part, about sex trafficking called &Protect Me,8 which aired on several television stations during the reporting period. The government-funded trafficking hotline appeared more effective and identified at least eight trafficking victims during the reporting period. Although the government appointed a national anti-trafficking coordinator in 2004, the individual is a known human rights violator, a problematic obstacle to it achieving a truly victim-centered approach to its anti-trafficking efforts. The government made no effort to reduce demand. -------------- ¶9. Post may wish to deliver the following points, which offer technical and legal background on the TIP Report process, to the host government as a non-paper with the above TIP Report country narrative: (begin non-paper) -- The U.S. Congress, through its passage of the 2000 Trafficking Victims Protection Act, as amended (TVPA), requires the Secretary of State to submit an annual Report to Congress. The goal of this Report is to stimulate action and create partnerships around the world in the fight against modern-day slavery. The USG approach to combating human trafficking follows the TVPA and the standards set forth in the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (commonly known as the "Palermo Protocol"). The TVPA and the Palermo Protocol recognize that this is a crime in which the victims' labor or services (including in the "sex industry") are obtained or maintained through force, fraud, or coercion, whether overt or through psychological manipulation. While much attention has focused on international flows, both the TVPA and the Palermo Protocol focus on the exploitation of the victim, and do not require a showing that the victim was moved. -- Recent amendments to the TVPA removed the requirement that only countries with a "significant number" of trafficking victims be included in the Report. Beginning with the 2009 TIP Report, countries determined to be a country of origin, transit, or destination for victims of severe forms of trafficking are included in the Report and assigned to one of three tiers. Countries assessed as meeting the "minimum standards for the elimination of severe forms of trafficking" set forth in the TVPA are classified as Tier 1. Countries assessed as not fully complying with the minimum standards, but making significant efforts to meet those minimum standards are classified as Tier 2. Countries assessed as neither complying with the minimum standards nor making significant efforts to do so are classified as Tier 3. -- The TVPA also requires the Secretary of State to provide a "Special Watch List" to Congress later in the year. Anti-trafficking efforts of the countries on this list are to be evaluated again in an Interim Assessment that the Secretary of State must provide to Congress by February 1 of each year. Countries are included on the "Special Watch List" if they move up in "tier" rankings in the annual TIP Report -- from 3 to 2 or from 2 to 1 ) or if they have been placed on the Tier 2 Watch List. -- Tier 2 Watch List consists of Tier 2 countries determined: (1) not to have made "increasing efforts" to combat human trafficking over the past year; (2) to be making significant efforts based on commitments of anti-trafficking reforms over the next year, or (3) to have a very significant number of trafficking victims or a significantly increasing victim population. As indicated in reftel B, the TVPRA of 2008 contains a provision requiring that a country that has been included on Tier 2 Watch List for two consecutive years after the date of enactment of the TVPRA of 2008 be ranked as Tier ¶3. Thus, any automatic downgrade to Tier 3 pursuant to this provision would take place, at the earliest, in the 2011 TIP Report (i.e., a country would have to be ranked Tier 2 Watch List in the 2009 and 2010 Reports before being subject to Tier 3 in the 2011 Report). The new law allows for a waiver of this provision for up to two additional years upon a determination by the President that the country has developed and devoted sufficient resources to a written plan to make significant efforts to bring itself into compliance with the minimum standards. -- Countries classified as Tier 3 may be subject to statutory restrictions for the subsequent fiscal year on non-humanitarian and non-trade-related foreign assistance and, in some circumstances, withholding of funding for participation by government officials or employees in educational and cultural exchange programs. In addition, the President could instruct the U.S. executive directors to international financial institutions to oppose loans or other utilization of funds (other than for humanitarian, trade-related or certain types of development assistance) with respect to countries on Tier 3. Countries classified as Tier 3 that take strong action within 90 days of the Report's release to show significant efforts against trafficking in persons, and thereby warrant a reassessment of their Tier classification, would avoid such sanctions. Guidelines for such actions are in the DOS-crafted action plans to be shared by Posts with host governments. -- The 2009 TIP Report, issuing as it does in the midst of the global financial crisis, highlights high levels of trafficking for forced labor in many parts of the world and systemic contributing factors to this phenomenon: fraudulent recruitment practices and excessive recruiting fees in workers' home countries; the lack of adequate labor protections in both sending and receiving countries; and the flawed design of some destination countries' "sponsorship systems" that do not give foreign workers adequate legal recourse when faced with conditions of forced labor. As the May 2009 ILO Global Report on Forced Labor concluded, forced labor victims suffer approximately $20 billion in losses, and traffickers' profits are estimated at $31 billion. The current global financial crisis threatens to increase the number of victims of forced labor and increase the associated "cost of coercion." -- The text of the TVPA and amendments can be found on website www.state.gov/g/tip. -- On June 16, 2009, the Secretary of State will release the ninth annual TIP Report in a public event at the State Department. We are providing you an advance copy of your country's narrative in that report. Please keep this information embargoed until 10:00 am Washington DC time June ¶16. The State Department will also hold a general briefing for officials of foreign embassies in Washington DC on June 17 at 3:30 pm EDT. (end non-paper) ¶10. Posts should make sure that the relevant country narrative is readily available on or though the Mission's web page in English and appropriate local language(s) as soon as possible after the TIP Report is released. Funding for translation costs will be handled as it was for the Human Rights Report. Posts needing financial assistance for translation costs should contact their regional bureau's EX office. ¶11. The following is press guidance provided for Post to use with local media. Q1: Why was Azerbaijan again given a ranking of Tier 2 Watch List? A: Azerbaijan is placed on Tier Two Watch List for a second consecutive year because the government did not show evidence of progress in investigating, prosecuting, convicting, and punishing trafficking offenders, including complicit officials. Q2: What progress did Azerbaijan make in the last year? ¶A. The government made modest victim assistance improvements in 2008, although victim identification and access to victim assistance remained limited. The government adopted a new national action plan on trafficking in February 2009; however, it did not allocate funding to implement the programs and policies in the plan, and funding for anti-trafficking efforts remained low and inconsistent throughout the reporting period. The new action plan included a draft national victim referral mechanism, though the mechanism was not formally adopted or implemented during the reporting period. Azerbaijan also demonstrated improved public awareness efforts. Q3: What can Azerbaijan do to improve its fight against trafficking in persons? ¶A. To improve its anti-trafficking performance, the Government of Azerbaijan could: increase law enforcement efforts to prosecute and convict traffickers, including government officials complicit in trafficking, and ensure that a majority of convicted traffickers serve some time in prison; vet members of the anti-trafficking unit for human rights abuses; implement the national victim referral mechanism; increase inter-agency coordination of anti-trafficking efforts; improve victim assistance and protection for child victims of trafficking; provide initial assistance to domestic victims without requiring them to file a formal complaint with police; and conduct awareness and victim treatment training for law enforcement and judges. ¶12. The Department appreciates posts' assistance with the preceding action requests. CLINTON