Background:

On Thursday 19 February 2004, IOM and the European Parliament co-hosted a meeting in Brussels to discuss the findings of a worrying report focusing on the infiltration by criminal networks of counter-trafficking structures in participating EU, EU candidate and selected neighbouring countries. The research, funded by the European Commission Justice and Home Affairs Directorate’s Hippokrates Programme 2002, surveyed both law enforcement and other agencies working to combat human trafficking, and NGOs and other victim support agencies.

Of 100 expert participants surveyed, 25 claimed to have direct experience of infiltration. 37 had indirect experience with infiltration and were aware of specific cases. 91 out of 100 respondents admitted that a problem existed and recognized the need for measures to protect their structures from infiltration. 63 out of 100 respondents stated that they were concerned or very concerned by the problem of infiltration in their respective countries. 55 out of 100 believed that the risk of infiltration is likely to grow in the future.

Infiltration takes different forms: insertion of members of criminal networks and insertion of coerced victims who have been given specific tasks by the criminals, infiltration through corruption, blackmailing and intimidation of victims and/or employees, as well as the creation of fake counter-trafficking organisations, making false offers of collaboration to counter-trafficking organisations, etc.

Overview of transmission

• Item 1: Interview with Heikki Mattila, research officer, International Organisation for Migration (IOM), Geneva
  Duration: 4’37
  Version: International (interview in English)
  
  
• Item 2: Interview with Patsy Sorensen, Belgian expert and Member of the European Parliament
  Duration: 5’06
  Version: International (interview in English)
  
  
• Item 3: Feature story “The plight of the modern-day slaves”
  Type: Feature story
  Duration: 7’
  Verstion: International (transcript of commentary below)
  
  
• Item 4: Feature story “Can human trafficking be prevented?”
  Type: Feature story
  Duration: 7’
  Version: International version (transcript of commentary below)

Cutaways:
press conference in the European Parliament, Brussels, presentation of the IOM report on infiltration, 19 February 2004

On the IOM report on the infiltration of criminal organisations in the counter trafficking work

10:02:07
In this research we defined infiltration in a very broad way so, first of all, it meant infiltration when, for example, ,criminal organisations inserted, sent a false victim of trafficking into a shelter, so she was infiltrated to the shelter. Then, we also included infiltration into our broad sense, we included threats, other kind of interference and disturbance of counter-trafficking organisations, so we understood it in a very broad sense, but, anyhow, many of the examples, for example, concerning shelters, were real cases of insertion of a person to these counter-trafficking organisations.

10:03:05
We found, for example, if we are talking about shelters for victims, so it seemed to happen both in western Europe and in eastern Europe so, all the countries concerned were affected.

On the link between corruption and infiltration

10:03:20
The goal of the organised crime is to destabilise the counter-trafficking organisations and authorities and so on, so, they seem to make constant attempts, but, of course, then, these cases that were reported were cases where the authorities or shelters could eliminate the problem, they could put a stop to the infiltration so there is a constant fight, obviously, and nobody has yet had the final victory. We also had cases here in this study where counter-trafficking organisations or authorities, where there were attempts, and also successful attempts at corruption.

10:04:10
One example was with the border guards in a country of eastern Europe and these border-guards were obviously not very well paid, unfortunately, and they were local people hired to guard the border in the region and so where also locals organised crimes or criminals who did cross-border trafficking so it was a mixture of local connections, also family connections, there were people from same families both in authorities’ side and in the criminals so this went on for some time until the authorities found it out and then addressed the problem very effectively.

Recommendations: how to tackle the problem

10:05:08
In the report we come with more than 20 concrete recommendations and among the most important ones are very systematic exchanges of information between various concerned authorities and nongovernmental organisations and this is, sometimes, already taking place rather well but it is a constant challenge and obviously, for example, between non-governmental organisations and law-enforcement authorities there is some kind of gap which just needs to be overcome. That is one thing and then, there needs to be more awareness raised among authorities and organisations who are exercising implementing counter-trafficking programs and this is a problem and there needs to be some measures taken for it and it needs to be taken into account in many stages of the work: in recruitment, in the security of information, in making certain things clear with the victims, for example in the shelters form early on-what are the benefits and what are the duties of the both parties, so the awareness needs to be raised everywhere.

On the weak points of Albania, Macedonia and Kosovo in the fight against trafficking in human beings

10:06:49
A weak point in these countries like Macedonia or Kosovo or Albania is that there is a lack of
resources, a lack of money, so if you would like to do something for them, for the victims, that the people offer, some people offer money and you don’t know where the money is coming from and then these people maybe would like to be a member of the board of your organisation and at the end we know then who is coming, who are the victims, who talk and so on, so this is a problem. A second problem is also that the police guys, they don’t earn a lot of money, there is a lot difficulties between them, from one police station to another police station ,sometimes, the police are they who are afraid of traffickers, from gangsters, so they accept money because of, for the protection of the own family, they have a lot of problems but that’s my opinion when I am working there in the field. You see there are also a lot of people doing something, they would like to do something positive for the fight against trafficking in human beings but they are afraid because they are not, they have not the knowledge but sometimes also not the tools to fight against these kinds of things, and I think in a lot of parties, very frankly, my opinion is that maybe my colleague there, the politicians, they don’t work enough with the people in the field and in the streets. And I think they don’t listen enough what’s going on in the field and sometimes it makes me very…

10:08:35
We have no trafficking in human beings without corruption and this is one part and then with corruption then you have also intimidation and everything for me, the key to all these kinds of things is infiltration.

On the political will needed to fight organised crime

10:08:52
I see some light in the darkness in Macedonia-what I see is with the new team, the Proxima team, I know that the head of the team, Bart Dolf (? To be checked), he is a very good one, he is a very good police guy, he is working very hard in the field, also a lot of members from this new unit are involved in the fight against organised crime-this is very positive. It’s still a pity that, for me, that the men fromVelesta have still three years and we have so many victims from these gangs and the results are nothing at the end but after all, I think it’s good that there is a signal, this is a beginning and I hope that we can go further, in the field in Macedonia, but the police people are aware of the problem, also the new police guys in the school are aware of the problem from trafficking, also the new police guys in the school are aware of the problem from trafficking. I think also in the training courses there’s one part of the lessons now; it’s about trafficking in human beings, the gender problems, it’s okay, it’s going slowly, but also the politicians, they are coming now, they ask also addition, to come to the EU. It was this month, they asked officially to be a part of the EU for the future. So, I think it’s coming very slowly, it’s coming very slowly, but it’s still a special area with a lot of tension, so you have to know that it takes time.

On the situation in Macedonia

10:10:42
It’s very difficult to collect all the proofs that there is a trafficking ring so, I think, for the future you know what’s going on, there is, there is a trafficking ring with children there, there is a lot of coming, there is a lot of things visible in the street still; my opinion, you see that there are a lot of nice buildings, where is the money coming from, it’s strange , in the middle of the field, that you see such nice buildings. So, I have a lot of questions when I am there but there is a lot ,also there is political will, there are associations there, international organisation for migration is working there in the field, they know what is going on, they tried to change the law, they are working on the legislation, they follow all these cases, I think there is political will by the youngsters there. I hope now that with this new Proxima team that they listen to all these people.

Commentary

This is Chisinau, the capital of Moldova –a former soviet state now so poor that almost a third of its population has emigrated in search of work- and a better life.
“ I would go to Europe” this woman shouted-“ in Europe there’s work”.
“What can we do?” this man asked.” We need money for shoes. How can we live without money?”

Newspapers carry adverts offering prospects for jobs in Europe. Young women are especially welcome. A meeting is arranged. Often it’s a woman who does the hiring- promises of work in a bar in Italy, as a waitress in France. Many are naďve enough to believe it.
The girls have unwittingly taken their first steps into the hands of the human traffickers.

Some estimate this business is as big as the drugs trade. It’s grown up since the collapse of the Berlin Wall. Mafia type networks earn billions of Euros in Europe every year as they buy and sell their human goods mainly from central and eastern Europe.

Chris Martens
Chief Inspector, Antwerp Police, Belgium

The girls who fall into the hands of all these traffickers
live a miserable life. They are sold and resold like commercial entities. When they get to Antwerp, they have to service 30 to 40 men a day.

Commentary

Many girls have never even heard of human trafficking before. Ana thought she was being brought to Belgium from Moldova to be a waitress. Then she learnt she was to be a prostitute.

Ana
He put me out on the streets. Not in a window like the other girls. I kept crying. I told the other girls about it.
I didn't want to work that way. I felt bad about doing it.
In Moldova, even though we lived poorly, I didn't have to do things like that.

Commentary

Some women are sold to buyers in the Balkan region before ever reaching Europe. This is the Mozart Club in southern Serbia. But what happened here was not music.

A police raid found five girls from Romania and Ukraine, kept prisoner here forced into prostitution. Their pay: two Euros a day for food and a packet of cigarettes.

We found the girls again in Belgrade, now being protected by the International Organization for Migration, which helps hundreds of victims of trafficking every year.

18 year old Katarina says she was tricked into leaving her hometown in Romania for a life of terror:

Katarina

There was this one client who was drunk and high on cocaine. He took me to the woods and beat me up. My face was all swollen. My clothes were ripped apart and covered in blood. He had a gun. It was awful.

Commentary

Natasha is 28 and already a widow with two small children. She believed she was leaving Ukraine for work in a cafe.

Natasha

When I got to the club, one of the bosses told me to take off all my clothes except my underwear. That's when I understood what was happening. He told me he had paid 1700 Euros to buy me. He said I'd have to pay him back and then we could share 50/50. That meant dancing around a pole and ….. sex.

Commentary

In countries such as Romania, it’s not just women who are exploited. It’s children too. Some for the sex industry. Others are taken by organised networks to European cities such as Vienna where they’re taught how to beg and steal.

This Vienna city council crisis centre is where the police bring children if they’re caught pick pocketing. They can’t be prosecuted – some are as young as eight years old.
Nearly 200 children from Romania; Bulgaria and Slovakia have come to this centre in the past year – their photos all kept on file.

Gertraud Balzer
Vienna Crisis Centre

There are so many different stories. Some say they were kidnapped, others say their parents were told they were going on a school trip. These are relatively naive children, who are easy to manipulate. They are nice kids who are trying to please adults.

Commentary

This sort of exploitation of children for crime is growing across Europe. Sometimes it’s the parents themselves-desperate to earn money-who hand their children over to the traffickers. Aid organisations which help to get the youngsters home, say the parents are as much victims as their children.

Erika Laubacher-Kubat
International Organization for Migration (IOM)

It's very easy to judge this kind of behaviour and to say it's criminal. But when you see the conditions in which these people live, you start to realise it's their last chance to get out of their situation.
So for us it's very important to offer these children a chance to reintegrate properly in their home countries.

Commentary

Whether it’s children or adults, deep poverty drives people into the hands of organised criminals. The European Union is making the fight against human slavery a top priority because the traffickers too often manage to stay one step ahead of the police.

Paul Holmes
Law Enforcement Coordinator
International Organization for Migration

It’s a constant game of cat and mouse. They develop one new modus operandi and the Law enforcement agencies identify it and shut that down. It’s almost like an ongoing game of chess but the tragedy is that the chess pieces are vulnerable human beings.

Commentary

For those lucky enough to have escaped- there is just one thought- to go home.

Natasha

I'm going to tell my kids that I'll never leave them again.

Commentary

A Sunday church service in the Romanian capital, Bucharest.

In his address, the Archbishop warns of the dangers of human trafficking and its disastrous consequences.

Romania is fertile ground for organised criminals, who lure thousands of women and girls every year to richer countries-usually for sexual exploitation.

The issue is of such concern to the church that the head of the Romanian Orthodox Church granted a rare interview. He blames corruption for allowing trafficking to thrive.

Patriarch Teoctist
Romanian Orthodox Church

Trafficking has appeared as part of the overall corruption phenomenon. But as a phenomenon, human trafficking is the most dangerous. We have to work together to find a solution. Society must work together with all the churches.

Commentary

On the streets there is a growing awareness. This woman told us girls expect to find paradise but what they do find is hell.

It’s the sort of paradise shown in a TV prevention campaign made by IOM, the International Organization for Migration which has helped thousands of victims of trafficking worldwide. The film warns young vulnerable girls about the people who may offer them lucrative jobs in the west. It shows them that the reality is very different.

A leading women’s magazine in Romania has also launched an anti trafficking campaign along with IOM. Its slogan: People are Priceless.
And one of the coolest faces on TV is sporting a campaign T-shirt as she records her zany weekly show:

Gianina
Romanian TV presenter

I want people to know that I've had enough of words. Something must be done to warn these girls. To put an end to the abuse, to protect potential victims. People should be treated like they were precious china.

Commentary

Over the Romanian border, in the former soviet state of Moldova, it’s easy to see why people are tempted by the traffickers. This village is just 20 kilometres from the capital. There is no running water and little electricity.
Katya is one of fifteen girls here who fell for the trafficker’s line of an offer to escape their poverty for well paid jobs abroad. She was taken to St Petersburg in Russia. When she realised she was to be a prostitute she managed to run away. She already had a son, but she was pregnant again. Now at 18, she has two children:

Katya

That's what I'd like to tell the girls. Don't go abroad, no one will help you there. It's better to stay here, to work in the countryside and to live simply, making do with what you have. All I want to do is to find a job and to raise my family in a loving atmosphere.

Commentary

The girls of this village are now being helped by a project financed by the EU and the International Organization for Migration.
Part of the day they’re working to refurbish a youth centre. The rest of the time, they’re learning about agriculture.
It may seem tame after their hopes of a more glamorous life. But the aim is to give them a focus. Prevent them falling back into the hands of traffickers.

Elena Mereacre
Project Leader

We included these girls in our agricultural project because this is an agricultural region. From what the girls have told me, they wouldn't want to go back to get the money they were promised

Commentary

In the Moldovan capital Chisanau poster campaigns reinforce the anti-trafficking message. Yet every year thousands of girls continue to be tricked into leaving the country. Those who do manage to come back are given support.

Liuba Revenko

International Organization for Migration, Moldova We help them and develop for them a comprehensive reintegration package here. So far we are talking about 850 girls that where brought home and try to regain their lives in all possible ways.

Commentary

One of those ways is this scheme, which teaches the girls simple skills such as knitting and sewing. At the same time they discuss their experiences in a kind of group therapy. The ones with real ambition get the chance to present a business plan to an IOM panel. Kristina has thoughts on a small knitting business and hopes to get start up funding. For her there’s a hope of some financial independence.

One look inside this hospital shows that- in the cities as well as the countryside- the root cause of trafficking is still there: poverty.
The European Union is helping to improve the medical services here and is investing in other projects to try to boost an economy that appears to be in free fall.

Ivan Borisavljevic
European Commission, Moldova

Unfortunately, our work is going to take a very long time. It is fortunate, however, that we can carry on with our work.
We are trying to cut down on economic constraints, to relieve social and rural misery, and the newer moral misery,
and to develop the economy.

Commentary

Back in Romania there’s another church service. This time a baptism. The congregation -all girls who have escaped from traffickers- including Daniela the baby’s mother. She doesn’t know who the father is. That was all part of the brutal life she has left behind. The godmother is the IOM worker who supported Daniela’s return. These girls at least are full of hopes for new beginnings. Of life beyond the terror of the human traffickers.

END OF TRANSMISSION