VZCZCXRO3660
OO RUEHAG RUEHDF RUEHLZ
DE RUEHRL #1687/01 1701603
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 191603Z JUN 06
FM AMEMBASSY BERLIN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 3772
INFO RUCNFRG/FRG COLLECTIVE PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 BERLIN 001687 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EUR/AGS, EUR/PGI, G/TIP, DRL/IL, INL/HSTC, AND PRM 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KCRM PHUM KWMN KJUS SMIG ELAB PREL PGOV GM
SUBJECT: TIP: RECENT GERMAN GOVERNMENT STEPS; FIGHTING TIP 
DURING THE WORLD CUP 
 
REF: A. BERLIN 366 
 
     ¶B. MUNICH 369 
     ¶C. FRANKFURT 3313 
     ¶D. HAMBURG 15 
     ¶E. BERLIN 298 
 
------- 
Summary 
------- 
 
¶1. (SBU) On June 14, Germany deposited instruments of 
ratification for the UN Convention Against Transnational 
Organized Crime and the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress, and 
Punish Trafficking in Persons (Palermo Protocol).  Germany 
will become a party to both July 14.  Federal Interior 
Ministry officials report police in all 12 cities hosting 
Soccer World Cup games have increased their monitoring and 
inspections of brothels and other commercial sex venues. 
Officials report an increase in the number of prostitutes in 
those cities, but say the increase is primarily attributable 
to a temporary influx of prostitutes who had already been 
working in other German cities.  Over 20 NGOs throughout 
Germany have received government funds to conduct dozens of 
trafficking prevention and awareness campaigns.  Some NGOs 
have set up multi-language telephone hotlines for victims of 
trafficking in persons (TIP) and clients who suspect a 
prostitute may be a TIP victim.  Others have used petition 
drives, giant billboards and posters, and video clips to 
raise awareness.  NGO volunteers in most cities are 
distributing flyers, postcards, and other materials outside 
of stadiums and at fan festivals.  International campaigns, 
such as anti-TIP ads running on MTV, are also underway in 
Germany.  End Summary. 
 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
Germany Completes Ratification of UN Convention 
Against Transnational Crime and Palermo Protocol 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
 
¶2. (U) According to MFA Deputy Director for Cooperation 
against International Organized Crime Werner Koehler, Germany 
deposited the instruments of ratification June 14 for the UN 
Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime and the 
Protocol to Prevent, Suppress, and Punish Trafficking in 
Persons (Palermo Protocol).  Germany will become a party to 
both July 14.  As reported ref A, the German parliament 
ratified the Convention and the Protocol in December 2005. 
Legislation implementing both the Convention and the Protocol 
is already in place. 
 
---------------------------------------- 
Police Increase Surveillance of Brothels 
---------------------------------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) According to contacts within the Federal Interior 
Ministry, the nationwide task force set up to facilitate 
information sharing and coordinate World Cup-related security 
and law enforcement, including TIP, appears to be functioning 
effectively.  Ministry officials report police in each of the 
12 cities hosting World Cup games have placed additional 
officers in red light districts and other key areas and have 
increased surveillance of brothels and other venues (refs B 
and C).  According to Federal Interior Ministry officials, 
the number of prostitutes working in World Cup cities has 
risen; however officials report the increase is attributable 
primarily to a temporary influx of prostitutes from other 
German cities.  Interior Ministry representatives tell us 
local police have not reported a significant increase in the 
number of foreign prostitutes.  Ministry officials noted this 
was a preliminary assessment and said they would continue to 
watch the issue closely. 
 
¶4. (SBU) On the evening of June 11, five teams of Munich 
police officers raided 48 brothels and six special zones 
where street prostitution is permitted.  The police action 
involved a total of 314 prostitutes and 47 other persons, 
including clients and pimps.  In one brothel, police 
questioned a 19-year-old prostitute from Ukraine and, upon 
determining she was under 21 years of age, placed her in 
protective custody.  The woman told police she had worked as 
a prostitute in other German cities, but not in Munich. 
After police determined the prostitute was not a trafficking 
victim and verified her legal resident status, she was 
released.  Police representatives told ConGen Munich 
officials there has been no significant increase in the 
numbers of visitors in Munich's red-light district, but did 
note the number of prostitutes working there had increased 
from 500 to 800. 
 
 
BERLIN 00001687  002 OF 003 
 
 
¶5. (U) According to a recent "Leipziger Volkszeitung" 
article, although the number of prostitutes working in 
Leipzig had increased, the number of foreign prostitutes had 
not.  The article quoted sources as saying intense police and 
municipal controls sent a clear message to brothel owners. 
The story reported street prostitution has been prohibited in 
Leipzig during the World Cup and described a police raid on a 
nightclub that resulted in police issuing warrants for the 
arrest of two men on charges of human trafficking. 
 
--------------------------------------------- - 
NGO Public Awareness Campaigns Expand Outreach 
--------------------------------------------- - 
 
¶6. (U) Over 20 NGOs throughout Germany have received 
government funds to conduct dozens of trafficking prevention 
and awareness campaigns.  (NOTE: A spreadsheet summary of 
major NGO campaigns, including website information for most, 
was provided to EUR/AGS and G/TIP via e-mail.  END NOTE.) 
Volunteers from NGOs are distributing informational materials 
outside stadiums.  German government agencies and several 
NGOs have established help hotlines that are available 24/7 
during the World Cup, offering assistance in dozens of 
languages to TIP victims, as well as guidance to clients who 
suspect a prostitute may be a victim of trafficking. 
 
¶7. (U) The German Women's Council government-financed "Final 
Whistle" campaign, in cooperation with the Council's 50 
member organizations and 13 other groups -- including the 
German Council of Criminal Detectives, the German Federation 
of Trade Unions, Men Against Male Violence, the Men's 
Commission of the Protestant Church in Europe, Medica 
Mondiale, the German chapter of the Ecumenical Forum of 
Christian Women in Europe, the Federal Working Committee of 
Municipal Women's Affairs Offices and Equal Opportunity 
Offices, the National Council of Women's Counseling Centers 
and Emergency Hotlines, Amnesty International, and the 
International Labor Organization -- has used petition drives, 
media events, conferences, and other local and national 
events to raise TIP awareness.  Demand for "Final Whistle" 
flyers, posters, and whistles -- provided free of charge to 
NGOs conducting anti-TIP campaigns -- was greater than 
originally anticipated, according to project coordinator 
Marion Steiner.  As of April 10, the volume of materials 
ordered was two times greater than campaign organizers had 
produced.  The campaign subsequently used a donation from the 
German Soccer Association (DFB) to produce a "fan postcard" 
highlighting the campaign's logo, slogan, and website. 
 
¶8. (U) A social aid organization affiliated with the Lutheran 
Church, Diakonisches Werk, is sponsoring a campaign to mount 
billboards (27 feet x 36 feet) that read "Say No to Forced 
Prostitution" in multiple languages outside major train 
stations during the World Cup.  The group is also running ads 
in major newspapers and set up a 24/7 hotline for TIP 
victims.  Other NGOs have posted large signs in airports and 
train stations displaying anti-TIP slogans in German, 
English, and Russian and hotline numbers.  In Frankfurt, the 
NGO "Women's Rights are Human Rights" (FIM) and others have 
launched major campaigns targeting customers of prostitutes 
to educate clients how to discern whether a prostitute may 
have been trafficked and whom to contact to file anonymously 
a report.  NGO personnel hung posters and continue to 
distribute brochures throughout the city, especially near 
train stations. 
 
--------------------------------------------- ------ 
Lower Saxony Media Campaign Calls for Public Action 
--------------------------------------------- ------ 
 
¶9. (U) The NGO Lower Saxony Coordination and Counseling 
Office for Trafficking Victims (KOBRA) has produced a TIP 
awareness video with the support of the Lower Saxony Office 
of Criminal Investigation (LKA) and distributed the video 
clip to each of Lower Saxony's approximately 2,000 communes 
and their preventive councils (ref D).  A copy of the spot is 
available online at www.kobra-beratungsstelle.de.  NGO 
representatives expect the clip will be aired several times a 
day during the 28-day World Cup tournament on giant TV 
screens at the fan festivals in Hannover.  (NOTE: 
Approximately 20,000 people are expected to attend these 
events daily in Hannover.  END NOTE.)  The video spot was 
distributed to other cities hosting World Cup games, 
including Cologne, in North Rhine - Westphalia, and 
Kaiserslautern, in Rhineland - Palatinate. 
 
¶10. (U) KOBRA representatives told ConGen Hamburg staff that 
NGO volunteers are distributing post cards at fan festivals 
throughout Lower Saxony.  The postcards call forced 
 
BERLIN 00001687  003 OF 003 
 
 
prostitution a blatant violation of human rights and ask the 
public to provide KOBRA with clues on potential cases of 
forced prostitution.  KOBRA officials said a broad coalition 
of representatives from political parties, the church, sports 
and women's organizations in Lower Saxony had collected 
26,000 signatures in the context of its "Campaign Against 
Forced Prostitution -- Johns Hold Responsibility."  The 
campaign also calls for improved witness protection and 
need-based support for NGOs assisting TIP victims.  The NGO 
contact expressed concern about the accuracy of media reports 
claiming German authorities facilitate prostitution.  She 
said she had been quoted often in the media without actually 
having given any interviews on the subject. 
 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
North Rhine - Westphalia Legislature Debates TIP 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
 
¶11. (U) In a June 1 debate, the North Rhine - Westphalia 
(NRW) legislature discussed TIP in the run-up to the World 
Cup.  NRW Interior Minister Ingo Wolf (FDP) stressed state 
authorities were well prepared for the fight against TIP and 
said the state had a strong program in place for helping TIP 
victims.  Wolf expressed pride that despite NRW,s strict 
fiscal austerity policies, state funding for NGOs that 
provide counseling and assistance to TIP victims had not been 
cut.  The Greens, who requested the debate, introduced a 
motion calling on the NRW government to use its influence in 
the Bundesrat -- Germany's upper house of parliament -- to 
press for "improvements" in pending federal legislation that 
would implement EU Council Directive 2004/81/EC, which 
mandates uniform standards on granting residence permits to 
third-country TIP victims who agree to cooperate with 
authorities.  The Greens favor granting residence permits for 
more than 12 months (current legislation requires TIP victims 
willing to cooperate with authorities to renew their 
residence permits every 12 months) and granting subpoena 
immunity privileges for members of NGOs that support TIP 
victims.  Government coalition speakers maintained that 
further protective measures for TIP victims beyond the EU 
directives were not necessary and would in fact be 
counterproductive.  The Greens' motion was referred to 
committee for further deliberation. 
 
--------------------------------------------- ---------- 
Leipzig Public Awareness Campaign Prompts Discussion of 
Victim Assistance, Police Challenges 
--------------------------------------------- ---------- 
 
¶12. (U) City of Leipzig, the Green party, the Women's 
Library, several anti-TIP NGOs, as well as the Catholic and 
Protestant Churches organized a forum May 22 as part of the 
"Final Whistle" campaign.  Local politicians, NGO 
representatives, and state police officials attended the 
event, which was timed to coincide with an exhibition 
entitled "Without Gloss or Glamour -- Prostitution and 
Trafficking in the Age of Globalization."  German MEP Gisela 
Kallenbach (Green party) discussed EU-wide anti-TIP 
campaigns.  She linked trafficking to globalization and 
called for harmonizing anti-TIP policies in EU countries. 
She also called for more public pressure on politicians to 
increase funding for anti-TIP NGOs.  An NGO representative 
focused on German implementation of EU guidelines on 
residence permits for TIP victims and called on the 
government to increase financial support for TIP victims. 
She also talked about the intimidation and violence used by 
traffickers, noting traffickers seek to instill a fear of 
police in their victims to prevent them from turning to 
authorities for help. 
 
¶13. (U) A police union representative used the event to 
discuss a shortage of police resources to combat TIP in 
Saxony (NOTE:  As reported ref A, post-9/11 counterterrorism 
commitments have stretched police resources to fight TIP in 
Germany's eastern states.  END NOTE).  He talked about the 
challenges in investigating trafficking networks and the 
obstacle posed by TIP victims' reluctance to come forward. 
He stated German Customs officials working on the German 
border with Poland and the Czech Republic have received 
training on TIP and described a campaign to educate the 
public in the border region. 
 
¶14. (U) This message was coordinated with ConGens Dusseldorf, 
Hamburg, Frankfurt, Leipzig, and Munich. 
TIMKEN