Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09YEREVAN259
2009-04-16 13:16:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Yerevan
Cable title:  

GOAM USES NEW NRM FOR LABOR TRAFFICKING CASE

Tags:  PHUM PGOV PREL ELAB KTIP KCRM HSTC RU AM 
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DE RUEHYE #0259/01 1061316
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 161316Z APR 09
FM AMEMBASSY YEREVAN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 8939
INFO RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE
RUEHLMC/MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE CORPORATION WASHINGTON DC
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO 0695
RUEHVEN/USMISSION USOSCE 0604
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 YEREVAN 000259 

SENSITIVE

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM PGOV PREL ELAB KTIP KCRM HSTC RU AM
SUBJECT: GOAM USES NEW NRM FOR LABOR TRAFFICKING CASE

REF: YEREVAN 244

-------
SUMMARY
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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 YEREVAN 000259

SENSITIVE

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM PGOV PREL ELAB KTIP KCRM HSTC RU AM
SUBJECT: GOAM USES NEW NRM FOR LABOR TRAFFICKING CASE

REF: YEREVAN 244

--------------
SUMMARY
--------------


1. (SBU) On March 17, Armenian police reported their launching of an
investigation into a major labor trafficking case involving the
forced labor of Armenian men in Russia. According to police, three
suspected traffickers recruited and transferred eight male victims
to a remote village in Russia's Altay Kray region, where they
exploited them for unremunerated labor in the construction field.
According to a prominent, local anti-trafficking NGO, Armenia's
police invoked the new National Referral Mechanism (NRM) in their
handling of the case, using it effectively to identify and refer the
victims for shelter and assistance. This use of the new NRM by the
police heralds progress in Armenia's anti-trafficking efforts, with
law enforcement bodies now actively involved in the provision of
victim assistance in a more institutionalized and formal manner.
END SUMMARY.

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TRAFFICKING - A FAMILY BUSINESS
--------------


2. (SBU) On March 17, Armenian police reported that they they had
detained the day before at Yerevan's international airport two
Russian citizens (Volodya M. and Simak M.),and alleged that in
April 2008 these individuals had recruited and transferred to the
Zalesovo village in Russia's Altay Kray region eight male Armenian
trafficking victims between the ages of 23-59, whom they then
exploited for uncompensated labor in the construction field. Police
arrested Volodya M., but released his son, Simak M., after he signed
an oath not to depart Armenia. A few days later police apprehended
a third suspect, Sevak M., another son of Volodya M.,and also a
Russian citizen. He was released, pending his oath not to depart
Armenia. According to police the degree of involvement of the sons
remains unclear, and the investigation is ongoing. (NOTE: This is
the second investigation of a recent labor trafficking case
involving a large group of Armenian males being trafficked to Russia
for forced or uncompensated labor (reftel) END NOTE).

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NRM IN PLACE AND RUNNING
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3. (SBU) According to the local anti-trafficking NGO Hope and Help,
the police attentively followed the protocol of Armenia's recently
implemented NRM to assist trafficking victims. In the police's
referral of the victims to Hope and Help, they properly identified
the victims as being trafficked, and then officially referred them
with a formal letter request for further assistance. (COMMENT: The
police's response in this case represented a departure from past
practice, when they would either not act on a case, or merely phone
an NGO and request it to shelter the victims. This change marks an
encouraging sign of the NRM's implementation, and the formalization
of law enforcement-NGO cooperation on trafficking cases, as foreseen
by the NRM. END NOTE.) All of the victims in the labor trafficking
case have filed civil complaints against the traffickers indicating
the sums of money owed to them (ranging from USD 4,000 - 6,000).

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VILLAGE POPULATION AT RISK
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4. (SBU) According to Hope and Help, all of the victims in the
trafficking case hail from impoverished villages located near the
town of Gavar in the Gegharkunik region. Gavar is one of Armenia's
poorest communities. While Russian citizens, all three suspected
traffickers are ethnic Armenians with roots in Gavar's neighboring
villages. According to the trafficking victims, they were exploited
in various construction projects for six months, at which time their
traffickers abruptly returned them to Armenia without paying them
their owed wages. While in Russia they lived in semi-completeded
housing, were underfed, saw their passports confiscated, and were
not registered for residency by their traffickers, which made them
illegal aliens. The victims filed complaints with Armenian police
upon their return to Yerevan, after which the police launched the
investigation and referred them to Hope and Help for assistance.

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COMMENT
--------------


5. (SBU) It is encouraging that law enforcement bodies appear to
have taken the NRM on board, are using it as it was intended, and
promoting new institutionalized cooperation with NGOs in the
process. The sobering side of this, of course, is that with

YEREVAN 00000259 002.2 OF 002


Armenia's worsening economic situation, its poorest citizens will be
more vulnerable to predatory trafficking. This bears watching in
the near future, as many of Armenia's itinerant labor force will no
longer be able to find paid seasonal jobs in Russia This large pool
of inactive labor could become exploitable prey for traffickers.

YOVANOVITCH