Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
10BERN56
2010-02-12 11:52:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Bern
Cable title:  

TIP - SWITZERLAND: ANNUAL ANTI-TRAFFICKING

Tags:  PHUM KTIP KCRM KWMN SMIG KFRD ASEC 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO2341
PP RUEHIK
DE RUEHSW #0056/01 0431152
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 121152Z FEB 10
FM AMEMBASSY BERN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6305
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RHMFIUU/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHINGTON DC
RUEHC/DEPT OF LABOR WASHINGTON DC
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC
RHMFIUU/DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY WASHINGTON DC
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 14 BERN 000056

DEPT FOR G/TIP (J.DONNELLY/A.ROFMAN),INL, DRL, PRM,
IWI, EUR/PGI (J.BUCKNEBERG),EUR/CE (J.LUNA)

DEPT PLEASE PASS USAID

SENSITIVE, SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM KTIP KCRM KWMN SMIG KFRD ASEC
PREF, ELAB, KMCA, SZ
SUBJECT: TIP - SWITZERLAND: ANNUAL ANTI-TRAFFICKING
IN PERSONS REPORT

REF: STATE 2094

BERN 00000056 001.2 OF 014


--------------

I. SUMMARY OF NEW DEVELOPMENTS
--------------

(U) Switzerland continued to make progress in its
anti-trafficking-in-persons practices and
achievements. To further improve the process for
gathering statistics on investigations and
prosecutions, the 26 cantons decided to harmonize
cantonal recording and reporting practices by 2010.
However, these efforts to consolidate national TIP
data have thus far proved to be more difficult than
authorities anticipated. Swiss officials are still
working out apparent anomalies between 2008 case
information reported to the Federal Statistics
Office and information reported or otherwise
available to the Federal Office of Police from the
cantons. The government cooperated with other
governments in the investigation and prosecution of
trafficking and trafficking-related offenses.

(U) Protection: The government enacted new
protective measures for TIP victims. Data on the
number of TIP victims referred by Swiss authorities
to assistance centers for victims of crime in 2008
are not yet available, but expected soon.

(U) Efforts to improve the legal protections of TIP
victims continued. In 2008, the government amended
the Federal Law on Foreigners, thereby reinforcing
the legal framework in which cantons can provide TIP
victims stays of deportation proceedings to recover
from their trauma and weigh participation in
judicial proceedings. The law further allows the
federal government to logistically and financially
assist trafficking victims and witnesses, for whom a
return is acceptable, in the re-integration in their
countries of origin. The government also revised
the Federal Victims Assistance Law. The revision,
which entered into force on January 1, 2009,
enhances crime victims' right to emergency

protections and allows cantons to pool resources to
establish regional victim assistance centers
specializing in certain types of crime (e.g. TIP).

(U) On November 27, the Swiss government submitted
to the Parliament a bill for the ratification of the
Council of Europe's Convention on Human Trafficking
and for the adoption of a comprehensive witness
protection program that enables officials to provide
victims of crime with new identities.

(U) Prevention: Swiss government agencies continued
to fund several prevention and protection programs
abroad.

(U) On September 29, the Federal Office of Police
announced that in the previous 12 months,
approximately 12 cases of suspected child sex
tourism were reported on a Web site it established
in 2008 to enable travel agencies and individuals to
report suspicious travel. The federal police
forwarded relevant information to the competent
municipal, cantonal, or international police offices
for further investigation.

--------------
II. THE COUNTRY'S TIP SITUATION
--------------

(U) A. The Swiss Federal Office of Statistics
collects data on TIP and TIP-related crimes. Useful
NGO information also is available, particularly with
regard to assistance provided to victims of TIP
crimes.

(SBU) The Federal Office of Police Coordination Unit
against the Trafficking of Persons and Smuggling of
Migrants (KSMM) also collects TIP data. It is
currently working to determine why the Federal

BERN 00000056 002.2 OF 014


Office of Statistics does not have information on as
many TIP convictions for 2008 as have been reported
to the KSMM by cantonal officials. The KSMM will
provide authoritative case information for 2008 as
soon as it has resolved these anomalies, and KSMM
contacts are aware of the importance of this data to
the TIP report process.

(U) B. Switzerland is primarily a country of
destination for persons being trafficked, almost
exclusively women, but transit also occurs.
Trafficking occurs both across borders and within
the country. Swiss officials estimate the number of
trafficking victims at a few hundred per year.
Federal Police assess that the total number of
potential trafficking victims currently living in
Switzerland is between 1,500 and 3,000. The great
majority of trafficking victims are forced into nude
dancing and prostitution. Trafficking for the
purpose of labor exploitation as domestic servants
also occurs but appears to be relatively limited.

(U) Several cantons (states),including Zurich,
Geneva, Basel, Bern, Vaud, and Ticino, recorded an
increase in the number of registered prostitutes and
commercial sex establishments. In the city of
Zurich, prostitution reportedly has increased
significantly in 2009. According to police
estimates, 795 new prostitutes arrived in Zurich in
2009, compared to 605 in 2008. At least 300
prostitutes came from Hungary; many of them were
part of the Roma minority and were reportedly
particularly vulnerable for trafficking.

(U) C. In some cases, victims are subjected to
physical and sexual violence, threats to themselves
or their families or both, drugs, withholding of
documents, and incarceration. Police estimates
suggest that up to 50 percent of illegal
prostitutes' gross income is paid to brothel owners
and traffickers who organize the passage and entry
to Switzerland. While the majority of TIP victims
still are found in Swiss urban areas, in recent
years police and NGOs increasingly have encountered
TIP victims working in contact bars in more rural
areas.

(U) D. Both Federal Police and NGO sources noted a
considerable increase in 2009 in the number of young
women being trafficked into Switzerland for sexual
exploitation from Eastern Europe, particularly
Hungary. TIP victims in Switzerland typically come
from Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union
(Hungary, Poland, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Czech
Republic, Slovenia, Romania, Ukraine, Moldova),
Latin America (Brazil, Dominican Republic),Asia
(Thailand, Cambodia),and to a lesser extent from
Africa (Nigeria, Cameroon). The Zurich-based
Information Center for Women from Africa, Latin
America, and Eastern Europe (FIZ) reported that
roughly 43 percent of the 160 TIP victims counseled
in 2008 came from Eastern Europe, another 30 percent
from Latin America, about 15 percent from Asia, 9
percent from Africa and the remaining 3 percent from
Western Europe.

(U) E. Trafficking into the country is primarily
performed by individuals and small groups related
through ethnic, clan, or family ties, as well as
organized criminals. Federal Police have reported
that traffickers are increasingly well organized
with far-reaching international networks. Often,
the perpetrators and victims are from the same
cities and regions. In addition to men, women also
play a role in the recruitment, intermediary, or
exploitation process. How many trafficking victims
were lured into Switzerland under false pretenses
and how many were brought in fully aware that they
were going to engage in prostitution in Switzerland
is unclear, but under Swiss law both are punishable
as human trafficking.


BERN 00000056 003.2 OF 014


-------------- --------------
III. SETTING THE SCENE FOR THE GOVERNMENTQS ANTI-TIP
EFFORTS
-------------- --------------

(U) A. Government officials at the highest level
acknowledge that trafficking is a problem. On
November 27, the Swiss government submitted to the
Parliament a bill for the ratification of the
Council of Europe's Convention on Human Trafficking
and for the adoption of a comprehensive witness
protection program that enables officials to provide
victims of crime with new identities. With the
adoption of the law on a comprehensive witness
protection program, Switzerland will reportedly meet
the requirements of the Convention.

(U) B. The Federal Office of Police (BAP) is the
federal government's primary actor in anti-
trafficking efforts. The BAP's Federal Criminal
Police handles international cooperation and
investigations of organized crime; the Service for
Analysis and Prevention, i.e. the domestic
intelligence service, does strategic analysis of
information. The Federal Office of Police also
hosts the Coordination Unit against the Trafficking
of Persons and Smuggling of Migrants (KSMM),which
is the federal government's interdepartmental body
to coordinate and monitor anti-trafficking efforts.
The KSMM develops anti-TIP strategies and policies
in consultation with its constituting ministries
that retain final responsibility for their
implementation.

(U) The prosecution of illegal prostitution (i.e.
prostitution without a valid work permit) and
trafficking of persons normally falls under the
jurisdiction of cantonal police and judicial
authorities. However, cases linked to organized
crime fall under the authority of the federal
authorities to investigate and prosecute. The
Federal Office of Migration has the lead in easing
the return of trafficking victims and assisting in
their re-integration in their home societies.

(U) The following government agencies are
represented on the Steering Committee of the KSMM,
taking active part in the fight against human
trafficking:

Federal Level:
-- Ministry of Foreign Affairs
- Political Division IV (Human Security)
- Directorate for International Law
- International Development Cooperation
-- Finance Ministry
- Swiss Border Guards
-- Ministry for Justice and Police
- Office of the Prosecutor General
- Federal Office for Migration
- Federal Office of Justice
- Federal Office of Police
-- Economics Ministry
- Directorate of Labor
Cantonal (i.e. state) Level:
-- National Conference of Cantonal Chiefs of Police
-- National Conference of Prosecuting Offices
-- National Conference of Equal Opportunity Offices
-- National Conference of Victims Assistance Centers
-- National Conference of Cantonal Migration Offices
NGOs/IOs:
-- Information Center for Women from Africa, Latin
America, and Eastern Europe (FIZ),Zurich
-- International Organization for Migration, Bern
-- Foundation Terre des Hommes, Lausanne
-- Association Libert`, Geneva

(U) C. In general, criminal cases against
traffickers are not pursued (for lack of evidence)
unless their victims are willing to testify.
Federal and cantonal police and immigration
authorities follow a policy of granting potential

BERN 00000056 004.2 OF 014


TIP victims a stay of deportation proceedings to
give them time to recover from their trauma and to
let them freely decide whether to participate in
judicial proceedings against their tormentors. On
December 17, the Federal Office for Migration issued
instructions on the conditions for providing
residency permits to victims and witnesses of human
trafficking in Switzerland. The instructions state
that a "hardship" residency permit may be granted
independently of the victim's willingness to
testify.

(U) A number of major urban centers and suburban
cantons have established written agreements on a
referral process for TIP victims in the context of
regular roundtable meetings between NGOs and
cantonal justice, police, and immigration
authorities. As a direct result of the federal
regulations to stay deportation proceedings and the
better local cooperation between NGOs and law
enforcement officials, the number of TIP victims
willing to testify against their traffickers has
risen considerably.

(U) D. The Federal Office of Police's Coordination
Unit against the Trafficking in Persons and
Smuggling of Migrants (KSMM) is the federal
government's main coordinating and monitoring body
of its anti-trafficking efforts. Through its
coordinating role, the KSMM keeps abreast of anti-
trafficking efforts on all fronts (prevention,
victim protection, and prosecution) both at the
federal and cantonal level. In addition, its remit
includes monitoring of parliamentary ratification of
international conventions and offering expert advice
on trafficking-relevant legislative reform.

(U) The KSMM has made available its assessment of
Swiss anti-trafficking efforts to the Council of
Europe, the OSCE, and the UN. The Federal Police's
Service for Analysis and Prevention, i.e. the
government's domestic intelligence service, does
strategic analysis of human trafficking in and
throughout Switzerland and publishes its findings in
the Federal Office of Police's annual report on
homeland security.

(U) E. The Civil Register Office of every
municipality is responsible for the registration of
births, deaths and marriages as well as
acknowledgements of paternity. In Switzerland, all
births must be reported to the civil register office
of the place of birth.

(U) All foreign nationals desiring to reside in
Switzerland must register at the Residents'
Registration Office within eight days of their
arrival. The Residents' Registration Office is
responsible for changes of address, temporary or
permanent residence permits and issues passports and
ID cards.

(U) F. Because Switzerland has a federQ system in
which 26 cantons have primary and largely
independent authority for law enforcement, national
data collection is a more cumbersome process than in
centralized states. Moreover, data on convictions
and sentences often changes until judicial appeals
processes have run their course, which can take 18
months or more. To further improve the process for
gathering statistics on investigations and
prosecutions, the 26 cantons decided to harmonize
cantonal recording and reporting practices by 2010.
However, these efforts to consolidate national TIP
data have thus far proved to be more difficult than
authorities anticipated. Swiss officials are still
working out apparent anomalies between 2008 case
information reported to the Federal Statistics
Office and information reported or otherwise
available to the Federal Office of Police from the
cantons.


BERN 00000056 005.2 OF 014


-------------- ---
IV. INVESTIGATION AND PROSECUTION OF TRAFFICKERS
-------------- ---

(U) A. The Swiss Penal Code has two articles
specifically prohibiting trafficking in persons:
Article 182, effective since December 1, 2006,
stipulates that anyone acting as the supplier,
broker, or buyer in the trafficking of a human being
for the purposes of sexual exploitation, labor
exploitation, or to remove a body organ shall be
liable to imprisonment or a fine, or both. The act
of recruiting an individual for the purposes
aforementioned also qualifies as trafficking and is
liable to the same punishment. If the trafficking
victim is a minor under 18 years of age or if the
perpetrator repeatedly engages in human trafficking,
the minimum penalty is a prison sentence of one
year. Article 182 applies universally; traffickers
are subject to prosecution in Switzerland even if
the act of trafficking was committed abroad, and
regardless of whether trafficking is a crime in the
foreign country where the act took place.

(U) Article 195 prohibits the promotion of
prostitution and states that anyone inducing a
person into prostitution by abusing a situation of
dependency or promising pecuniary advantage, anyone
impairing a prostitute's freedom of movement by
checking on the activities in question or fixing the
place, time or extent or any other circumstances of
the prostitution, or anyone secluding a person for
prostitution shall be liable to imprisonment.

(U) Other forms of trafficking or exploitation of
human beings are implicitly covered by the Penal
Code's provisions against threat, coercion,
deprivation of personal liberty, and kidnapping
(Articles 180, 181, 183). The Immigration and
Naturalization Law penalizes facilitating the
illegal immigration of foreigners into Switzerland
as well as the employment of foreigners without
proper work permission. The Constitution implicitly
bans forced or compulsory labor. Article 27
provides for economic freedom and explicitly
guarantees the right to choose freely one's
profession as well as unrestrained access to and
unencumbered exercise of a gainful occupation.
Forced or bonded labor by children is explicitly
forbidden under Article 30 of the 1964 Labor Act.

(U) B. The maximum sentence for trafficking in
persons for sexual exploitation is a prison term of
twenty years (Penal Code Article 182). Coercing
someone into prostitution or restricting a
prostitute's personal freedom (Penal Code Article
195) can carry a prison sentence of up to ten years.

(U) C. Under Penal Code Article 182 the penalties
prescribed for trafficking for labor exploitation
are the same as for trafficking for sexual
exploitation. The minimum penalty is a fine; if the
victim was a minor under 18 years of age, the
minimum penalty is a one-year prison sentence.
Maximum penalty is 20 years in prison. Article 182
explicitly prohibits all acts related to labor
trafficking - recruitment, supply, transfer, or the
receipt of persons being trafficked. Thus, both the
labor recruiters in labor source countries and the
employers or labor agents in labor destination
countries are subject to prosecution in Switzerland.
Article 182 applies universally; labor recruiters
are subject to prosecution in Switzerland, even if
the act was committed in a foreign country where
labor trafficking may not constitute a criminal
offense.

(U) D. The Penal Code also punishes rape, forcible
sexual assault, and other sex crimes. Sexual
activity with minors (Article 187) and sexual acts
with dependent persons (Article 188) are punishable
with up to five years imprisonment; sexual coercion

BERN 00000056 006.2 OF 014


(Article 189),rape (Article 190),and sexual
violations of mentally or physically incapacitated
persons (Article 191) are liable to a maximum ten
year prison sentence; sexual acts with detainees
(Article 192) and taking advantage of a person's
distress or dependency due to employment or any
other condition to induce a sexual act or acceptance
thereof (Article 193) carry a maximum penalty of
imprisonment for up to three years.

(U) E. The investigation and prosecution of forced
prostitution and human trafficking as well as the
protection of victims in Switzerland normally fall
under the jurisdiction of the cantons, and
consolidating national statistics can lag by 12-18
months.

(U) Under Switzerland's federal structure, the
cantons hold jurisdiction over most criminal
infractions, and statistical records of reported
crime and police investigations vary greatly from
canton to canton. In 2007, the inter-cantonal
Working Group on Human Trafficking and Migrant
Smuggling established a database on the ongoing
investigations and prosecutions on suspicion of
human trafficking or forced prostitution in the
cantons. Cantonal authorities report ongoing
investigations/prosecutions on a voluntary basis.

The data base is maintained by the Human
Trafficking/Migrant Smuggling Investigative Unit of
the Federal Criminal Police, which also coordinates
inter-cantonal and international trafficking
investigations. According to this developing
database, there were at least 26 police
investigations or prosecutions during 2008 for human
trafficking for the purposes of sexual or labor
exploitation.

CONVICTIONS:
--------------
Year Art. 196/182 Art. 195 Total
--------------
1999 7 14 21
2000 5 17 22
2001 2 17 19
2002 2 11 13
2003 7 6 13
2004 2 12 14
2005 12 15 27
2006 5 14 19
2007 18 17 35

(U) (Note: Swiss Federal Police contacts inform us
that they are working to resolve anomalies between
2008 TIP conviction data collected by the Federal
Office of Statistics and data reported directly to
the KSMM by cantonal officials. KSMM contacts are
aware of the importance of this data to our TIP
reports process and will provide post with the most
authoritative data available as soon as possible.)

(U) On January 22, the Lausanne Criminal Court found
a Ugandan guilty on charges of human trafficking and
aggravated extortion and sentenced him to a prison
sentence of four years.

(U) On September 16, the High Court of Zurich upheld
a sentence of three and a half years in prison
against a Bulgarian who had forced women into
prostitution and trafficked some of them.

(U) F. Investigators of the Federal Criminal Police
receive specialized training in investigating
incidences of organized crime, including human
trafficking. Under the 2001 Efficiency Bill, the
Federal Criminal Police obtained from the cantons
the jurisdiction to investigate and prosecute more
complex cases of human trafficking that span several
cantons or are linked to organized crime. The
Federal Criminal Police also handles international
cooperation in the investigation of incidences of

BERN 00000056 007.2 OF 014


human trafficking.

(U) G. The Swiss government readily cooperates with
other governments in the investigation and
prosecution of trafficking cases. The Federal
Criminal Police takes part in the expert working
groups of both Europol and Interpol.

(U) Switzerland has a bilateral cooperation accord
between Europol and the Swiss Police, allowing the
latter to obtain information from Europol's
intelligence files on organized crime, drug
trafficking and terrorism. Under the terms of the
agreement, Swiss Federal Police have assigned to The
Hague a liaison officer whose role is to support and
coordinate the cooperation between Switzerland and
other EU countries. There is also a Swiss Police
liaison at the headquarters of Interpol.

(U) H. Extradition is permitted if the act in
question is punishable under Swiss law and the law
of the requesting state, liable to a term of
imprisonment of at least one year, and no Swiss
court is competent in the matter. No Swiss national
shall be extradited to a foreign country for penal
prosecution or execution of a verdict without his or
her written consent. The person in question may
revoke consent until the order for the extradition
is issued.

A request for extradition is complied
with only if the requesting country accords
reciprocity. Foreigners may be extradited to
another state for offenses punishable under its laws
or for serving a term of imprisonment if this state
applies for extradition or accepts, upon request of
the Swiss authorities, to prosecute the person in
question or to execute a verdict cast by Swiss
authorities. Swiss Police statistics record
extraditions only by country so no extraditions
statistics are available for specific criminal
offenses. There have been no changes to extradition
law.

(U) I. Trafficking is not tolerated in Switzerland,
and there are no indications or reports that
government officials are involved.

(U) J. N/A

(U) K. There have been no indications or reports
that Swiss military or civilian personnel deployed
on international peace-keeping missions have engaged
in or facilitated severe forms of trafficking or
exploited victims of such trafficking. Switzerland
pursues a zero-tolerance policy regarding sexual
exploitation by personnel participating in
international peace-keeping missions.

(U) L. The 2002 partial revision of the Penal Code
providing for the extraterritorial coverage of
Switzerland's child sexual abuse laws entered into
force on January 1, 2007. Anybody violating Swiss
child sexual abuse laws is subject to prosecution in
Switzerland under the extraterritorial provisions of
the Penal Code regardless of the legislation of the
foreign country where the abuse took place.

--------------

V. PROTECTION AND ASSISTANCE TO VICTIMS
--------------

(U) A. Under the Swiss Victims Assistance LAW (OHG),
all TIP victims are entitled to help from
government-funded victims assistance centers for
abuse victims or women shelters and enjoy special
safeguards during criminal proceedings, and cantonal
authorities do provide these protections in
practice. On November 27, the Federal Government
submitted a bill to the parliament on a
comprehensive witness protection program that allows
authorities to provide victims of crime with new

BERN 00000056 008.2 OF 014


identities. The draft proposed the creation of a
centralized witness program agency. The consultation
period in the Swiss parliament will last until mid-
March 2010.

(U) On January 1, 2009, a revision entered into
force, which requires the cantonal victim assistance
centers to take into account the special needs of
different groups of victims of crime. Under the
revised OHG, a canton can pay financial compensation
to another canton for counseling services provided
to a victim of crime within the latter cantonQs
jurisdiction. This is meant to provide urban
centers additional incentives and resources to
establish specialized victim counseling centers,
such as a victims' assistance centers tailored to
supporting TIP victims.

(U) In 2007, Parliament adopted a new federal code
of criminal trial proceedings that will supplant the
existing 26 cantonal codes. The new federal code
strengthens the existing witness protection measures
under the OHG in order to avoid a perpetrator in a
TIP case learning the identity of a prosecution
witness and it gives witnesses the right to call on
an attorney and/or a confidante during court
proceedings. The government plans to put the new
federal code into effect on January 1, 2011.
Implementation requires several years because, even
under the new federal code of criminal trial
proceedings, law enforcement remains the dominion of
the cantons. Cantons need time to amend their
legislation and adjust cantonal operating modes to
the new federal regulations on court proceedings.

(U) B. Under the OHG, TIP victims are entitled to
free and immediate material and medical aid as well
as psychological, social, and legal assistance.
Local victims assistance centers have to provide TIP
victims with a minimum of 14 days of emergency
lodging, 14 days of living allowance, 4 hours of
consultation with a lawyer and 5 sessions of
psychotherapy, with all other expenses for medical
treatment, transportation, personal safety, or
translation services being covered by the
government. If recovery requires more time, the
government is obligated to assume the additional
cost of longer-term care. The victims' assistance
center may lodge a TIP victim in a shelter for
battered women.

(U) According to Swiss federal government
statistics, in 2007(most recent figures available) a
total of 128 victims of human trafficking or forced
prostitution received help from government victims
assistance centers, compared to 90 in 2006. Swiss
officials are aware of our interest in this
information for TIP reporting purposes, and will
provide 2008 data to post as soon as it is
available. The NGO FIZ Makasi, a victim assistance
center counseling TIP victims, assisted 186
trafficking victims in 2009, compared to 160 in
2008, 167 in 2007, 133 in 2006 and 116 in 2005. FIZ
Makasi, which was launched in 2004 by the Zurich-
based NGO FIZ, has received some financial
contributions from the federal government and
several cantons for counseling services offered to
TIP victims under their jurisdiction.

(U) Foreign juvenile victims of crime under 18 years
of age have to be placed under the protection of the
Cantonal Guardianship Office
(Vormundschaftsbehoerde) during their stay in
Switzerland. In criminal court proceedings, the OHG
provides special protective measures for juvenile
victims of crime: Questioning by police or the
investigative magistrate must occur soon and the
testimony is recorded on videotape. Cross-
examinations are not allowed. The questioning has
to be done by a recognized expert and no more than
two sessions are allowed. The law recognizes the
special needs of juvenile victims of crime and they

BERN 00000056 009.2 OF 014


may only serve as witnesses of the prosecution if
their testimony is indispensable for the conviction
of a suspect.

(U) In case of the repatriation of a juvenile victim
of crime (after the end of the stay-of-deportation
proceedings or a criminal court procedure),the
Federal Office for Migration and cantonal migration
offices have to take into account that the person in
question is a minor under 18 years of age. Under
the law, a return to the country of origin is only
permissible if the authorities have ascertained that
the juvenile can be placed again in the care of the
parents or a close relative, or if there is a
satisfactory care structure in place in the country
of origin.

(U) C. Federal and cantonal governments provide some
funding to NGOs and women shelters that provide
services to TIP victims, primarily on the basis of
agreed per capita payments for services rendered to
victims. Under the 1993 OHG, all cantons are
obligated to offer TIP victims the services listed
above. Internationally, the Swiss Ministry of
Foreign Affairs provides funding to International
Organizations and NGOs providing services to TIP
victims, primarily through its development aid arm
SDC and the rest through its human rights and human
security division. Post has requested the MFAQs
TIP-related funding statistics for 2009, and will
provide that information in a supplemental report.

(U) D. The government does assist foreign victims of
trafficking by granting relief from deportation and
providing temporary to permanent residency status in
cases of serious hardship. Under the Federal Law on
Foreigners, effective January 1, 2008, cantonal
immigration authorities are expected to grant TIP
victims a minimum 30-day stay of deportation
proceedings to let them recover from their trauma
and weigh participation in judicial proceedings
against their traffickers. Cantonal immigration
authorities may admit TIP victims willing to
cooperate with judicial authorities for up to three
months or may issue short-term residency permits
(with the consent of the federal authorities) if the
criminal investigation takes longer. In 2008,
cantonal immigration offices granted the 30-day
stays of deportation proceedings to 22 trafficking
victims (33 in 2007) and issued 20 short-term
residency permits for the duration of legal/court
proceedings against their traffickers (6 in 2007).
Post will provide 2009 statistics on stays of
deportation proceedings for TIP victims in a
supplemental report, when that information is
available from Swiss federal authorities.

(U) E/F. The new Federal Law on Foreigners further
strengthens the legal status of TIP victims and
witnesses, explicitly authorizing the government to
waive normal immigration requirements and grant
residency permits for victims of human trafficking
as well as witnesses in human trafficking cases.
The Federal Office for Migration grants trafficking
victims temporary admission in Switzerland if they
are at risk of personal harm as witnesses in
criminal proceedings or if a return to the country
of origin is deemed unreasonable. In 2008, four
victims were granted such long-term residency
permits on grounds of personal hardship after the
end of court proceedings (four in 2007). The law
also allows the federal government to logistically
and financially assist trafficking victims and
witnesses for whom a return is acceptable in their
re-integration in their countries of origin. In
April 2008, the Federal Office for Migration started
a two-year pilot project to assist trafficking
victims and witnesses in their return to and re-
integration in their home societies. Post will
provide 2009 statistics on any residency permits
provided to TIP victims in a supplemental report,
when that information is available from Swiss

BERN 00000056 010.2 OF 014


federal authorities.


G. The number of TIP victims receiving counseling
services from professional assistance centers for
victims of crime rose from 90 in 2006 to 128 in

2007. Swiss officials are aware of our interest in
this information for TIP reporting purposes, and
will provide 2008 data to post as soon as it is
available.

(U) Embassy contacts have stressed that statistics
available indicate that persons on L-permits do not
figure prominently among TIP victims. Police
authorities have shared the assessment that the
great majority of TIP victims enter the country
without any proper documentation.

(U) H. Thirteen out of Switzerland's 26 cantons have
established a formal referral process for TIP
victims to improve their protection and security by
regulating the procedures for identifying and
referring TIP victims for assistance. Four major
cantons (Bern, Ticino, Vaud and Zurich) have put in
place special police units for screening for
trafficking victims involved in the legal commercial
sex trade.

(U) I. Under the Federal Law on Foreigners,
effective January 1, 2008, cantonal migration
authorities are expected to grant TIP victims a stay
of deportation proceedings to recover from their
trauma and weigh participation in judicial
proceedings. The new law further strengthens the
legal status of TIP victims and witnesses,
explicitly authorizing the government to waive
normal immigration requirements and, in cases of
serious hardship, grant residency permits for
victims of human trafficking as well as witnesses in
human trafficking cases.

(U) The new Federal Law on Foreigners also allows
the federal government logistically and financially
to assist in the voluntary return to and re-
integration of trafficking victims and witnesses in
their countries of origin. The Federal Office for
Migration in April 2008 started a two-year pilot
project to assist primarily victims and witnesses of
human trafficking and secondarily cabaret dancers in
Switzerland who are in an exploitative situation.
The pilot project is being implemented in co-
operation with cantonal bodies assisting returning
migrants and the International Organization for
Migration. Under the new Federal Law on Foreigners,
the beneficiaries of the pilot program receive the
same assistance and have access to the same
counseling services as are offered to asylum seekers
returning voluntarily. This includes financial,
material, and medical assistance in the return to
the country of origin. The pilot project takes into
account the special needs of TIP victims (i.e. risk
assessment, rehabilitation programs, etc.). After
the pilot phase, the project will be evaluated and
potentially slightly modified. It will then be
turned into an indefinite TIP victim return
assistance program.

(U) J. The Swiss Government encourages TIP victims
to assist judicial authorities in trafficking
investigations and prosecutions by granting them
temporary residency and financial support, and
admitting them to stay if a return to their country
of origin posed a serious risk of personal harm.
The Swiss Victims Assistance Law (OHG) safeguards
TIP victims' rights in criminal prosecutions with
special rules for trial procedures and for
compensation and redress. The OHG covers all
victims of crimes, including foreigners staying
illegally in Switzerland. The OHG provides for the
special protection of witnesses' identity in
criminal court proceedings: victims/witnesses may
request the trial to take place behind closed doors
and avoid confrontation with the defendant. The OHG

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is a federal law and thus binding on all cantonal
codes of criminal trial proceedings. TIP victims
may also file civil suits against their traffickers
and seek financial compensation. Under the Federal
Law on Foreigners, effective January 1, 2008, TIP
victims temporarily admitted for the duration of
court proceedings against their traffickers may be
issued a work permit during their stay. On September
7, the Court of Solothurn sentenced two owners of a
brothel in the canton of Solothurn to prison
sentences of 4 1/2 years (for the main offender) and
15 months, without requiring the victims to testify.
The Court found that the facts that the victims
were in Switzerland illegally, that the victims did
not speak any Swiss languages, nor have other
sources of support, proved that the victims were
totally dependent upon the brothel owners, and that
their self-determination was therefore limited to a
decisive extent.

(U) Several major urban centers have established a
referral process for TIP victims in the context of
regular roundtable meetings between NGOs and
cantonal justice, police and immigration
authorities. As a direct result of the regulation to
stay deportation proceedings and the better
cooperation between NGOs and law enforcement
officials, the number of TIP victims willing to
testify against their traffickers has risen
considerably.

(U) K. The GOS provides extensive training for
government officials in identifying trafficking
victims and providing assistance. The Swiss Police
Institute in 2009 held specialized five-day anti-TIP
workshops for migration and law enforcement
officials and border guards. From November 9 to 13,
the first course in French was held in the French
Speaking part of the country and from November 19 to
20, a special training session for representatives
from the judiciary took place in Bern.

(U) The Swiss Department of Foreign Affairs briefs
experts and diplomatic personnel about the problem
of trafficking in human beings prior to their
postings abroad, and draws their attention to a code
of conduct drafted by a joint working group on human
trafficking. According to these rules, diplomatic
staff shall stay clear of any person who can
reasonably be suspected of engaging in trafficking
in human beings or those who are involved in other
criminal activities under the laws of either the
host country or of Swiss or international law. The
Department of Foreign Affairs also urges its
embassies and consulates to develop ongoing
relationships with NGOs assisting trafficking
victims.

(U) The Federal Department of Foreign Affairs anti-
TIP information and prevention program for visa
applicants is conducted by all Swiss consulates
worldwide. The program consists of the following
elements: a personal interview with every first-time
L-visa applicant; the signing of a standardized
labor contract with a Swiss night club in the
presence of a Swiss consular official; a briefing of
the L-visa applicant on her or his legal and
contractual rights; and an information brochure with
the phone numbers and addresses of victim assistance
hotlines or drop-in centers in Switzerland for
persons in need.

(U) L. N/A

(U) M. The following is a list of IOs and NGOs
operating in Switzerland that provide services to
trafficking victims:
Terre des Hommes, Switzerland;
Ecpat Switzerland (end child prostitution, child
pornography and trafficking of children for sexual
purposes);
International Organization for Migration;

BERN 00000056 012.2 OF 014


International Labor Organization;
Association Libert` (end human trafficking);
Women's Information Center for Women from Africa,
Asia, Latin America and Eastern Europe (FIZ):
counseling, publications/articles,
symposiums/workshops, participation in round tables
with aids-prevention and anti-violence groups,
multi-lingual educational radio programs, and
international contact building.

(U) In addition, a number of smaller NGOs
counseling women in the sex trade as well as women
shelters that exist in most urban centers, deal with
the problem of human trafficking. A great number of
these organizations are linked in the national
network "Prostitution Collective Reflection"
(ProKoRe). The major counseling centers and primary
points of contact of ProKoRe are FIZ in Zurich,
Xenia in Bern, and ASPASIE in Geneva.

(U) The 'Association Libert`' started as a joint
pilot project of the awareness raising campaign 'End
Human Trafficking Now!' and 'Friend of Humanity' in
June 2008 with a specialized hotline for victims of
human trafficking in Geneva. The initiators reported
that in their first year they assisted 31 victims of
human trafficking, which encouraged the initiators
in June 2009 to form a local NGO aspiring to fill
gaps in French speaking Switzerland in terms of
victims' protection through a comprehensive approach
to victims' assistance. Since then, they concluded a
cooperation agreement with the Zurich based TIP
counseling center FIZ.

(U) The national organizations and domestic NGOs
typically deal with TIP victims, prostitutes, and
victims of domestic violence and offer victim
counseling, crisis intervention and emergency
lodging, legal and medical assistance, and assisted
returns to the country of origin. Cooperation with
local authorities is varied but typically includes
regular meetings and institutionalized information
exchange, cooperation in the context of working
groups or roundtables, financial support by local
communities and cantons, as well as public funding
for specific projects.

--------------
VI. PREVENTION
--------------

(U) A. The City of Zurich together with FIZ hosted a
symposium on June 11 dedicated to the topic of
'Women trafficking in Switzerland' combating
strategies. The symposium was held in Zurich and
attended by experts from the federal and the
cantonal governments, NGOs and multi-lateral
organizations. The symposium got wide media coverage
throughout Switzerland.

(U) B. Switzerland's borders are adequately
monitored and immigration regulations are stringent.
Switzerland's visa sections in countries of origin
inform applicants of "artistic visa" or L-permits
about their rights when working in Switzerland.
Information brochures are available in 16 languages.
Some embassies have also displayed respective
information on their homepage.

(U) Swiss Foreign Affairs Department officials have
sensitized visa adjudicators to the problem and have
invited NGOs to give training to embassy staff.

(U) The Swiss Border Guards, an administrative unit
of the Federal Department of Finance, cooperate
closely with the Federal Office for Migration on
issues of asylum and migration. Combating irregular
migration and the smuggling of migrants is a
priority for the Swiss Border Guards. Border Guard
officials receive special training to heighten
awareness of human trafficking as part of the normal
training program. Border guards report all

BERN 00000056 013.2 OF 014


suspicious activities to the cantonal police force
of the area, which holds sole authority for further
criminal investigations. However, in practice it
has proven difficult for border guard officials to
spot victims of human trafficking because the latter
often give only limited information about themselves
and commonly do not denounce their traffickers out
of fear of reprisals. The leadership of the Swiss
Border Guards, the Federal Office for Refugees, and
the Federal Office for Migration are all represented
on the KSMM to assure the flow of information and
the analysis of immigration patterns for evidence of
trafficking.

(U) The Ministry of Foreign Affairs constantly
adjusts measures to combat visa abuse, ensuring that
procedures are tailored to local conditions. In
2005 the MFA introduced systematic risk assessments
and began subjecting Swiss missions to comprehensive
inspections every four years. The MFA puts
special importance on raising awareness among visa
clerks and their line managers and on their careful
screening and preparation for the task in high-risk
missions.

(U) C. The key office coordinating the anti-
trafficking efforts of the various government
agencies is the Coordination Unit against the
Trafficking of Persons and Smuggling of Migrants
(KSMM),which started operations at the beginning of

2003. Formally a part of the Federal Office of
Police, the KSMM processes and passes information
and coordinates policy within the federal
administration as well as between the federal
agencies and the cantons (states). It is also the
primary point of contact for international inquiries
on all issues linked to illegal migration and human
trafficking.

(SBU) In February, 2010, the Swiss federal
government organized a visit of Swiss police
officials to Hungary for a dialogue on TIP
prevention and to coordinate on some concrete TIP
cases. MFA officials have informed post that the
Swiss federal government plans to use this exchange
as a model for dialogue and coordination with other
countries.

(U) Internationally, Switzerland was one of the
initiators of the OSCE Action Plan to Combat
Trafficking in Human Beings and has been supporting
the OSCE Special Rapporteur since 2000, both
financially and with expert secondments.

(U) D. The KSMM seeks to implement the national
action plan that its interdepartmental steering
committee first adopted in 2003. In keeping with
its decentralized structure, the steering committee
is the KSMM's highest organ. The steering committee
consists of directorate-level representatives of the
federal departments involved in combating human
trafficking, delegates from cantonal conferences and
associations, as well as representatives from three
NGOs and international organizations with a
consultative status. The Steering Committee sets
targets and the guidelines for the KSMM's activities
and controls the drafting and implementation of
measures. The Steering Committee is chaired by the
Federal Office of Police.

(U)Specific measures are developed and implemented
either by working groups set up for that purpose or
by individuals with special support from the KSMM
Secretariat.

(U) E. In conjunction with the European Soccer Cup
(Euro 08),which Switzerland hosted jointly with
Austria in June 2008, the federal government
provided $96,000 (100,000 Swiss francs) to NGOs to
kick-start suitable public awareness campaigns
against trafficking and forced prostitution. The
campaign primarily targeted potential 'clients' of

BERN 00000056 014.2 OF 014


prostitutes.

(U) F. In summer 2008, the Association of Travel
Offices in Switzerland signed an International Code
of Conduct related to preventing child abuse abroad.
In coordination with this effort, the Swiss federal
police added a form to its internet site where
suspected incidents of child sex tourism can be
reported to appropriate law enforcement authorities.
On September 29, the Federal Office of Police
announced that in the previous 12 months,
approximately 12 cases of suspected child sex
tourism were reported on the Web site. The federal
police forwarded relevant information to the
competent municipal, cantonal, or international
police offices for further investigation.

(U) G. N/A.

--------------
VII. PARTNERSHIPS
--------------

(U) A. On June 24, the Federal Department of Foreign
Affairs started a three-year series of round tables
on human trafficking for foreign experts in close
cooperation with the International Organization for
Migration (IOM). The first round table consisted of
talks between Swiss experts and a delegation from
Hungary (representatives from the Office of the
National Coordinator against Human Trafficking in
the Hungarian Ministry of Justice, the Hungarian
national police force and the police and state
prosecutor of the City of Budapest and Interpol).
The talks aimed at sharing experiences and
strengthening cooperation, since Hungary was one of
the main countries of origin of victims of human
trafficking in Switzerland.

(U) B. Post is awaiting update from GOS on the
international assistance they've provided to other
countries to address TIP.

--------------
Post POC
--------------

Chris Buck, Deputy POL/E Counselor
Tel. [41] (31) 357-7213
Fax. [41] (31) 357-7344
[Note: Post will provide an estimate of the number
of hours spent in preparation of this report (and
the ranks of the various personnel contributing
those hours),when the report has been finalized.
End Note]

BEYER