VZCZCXRO0338
RR RUEHPOD
DE RUEHBW #0272/01 0591429
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 281429Z FEB 07
FM AMEMBASSY BELGRADE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0356
INFO RUEAWJL/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHINGTON DC
RUEAHLC/HOMELAND SECURITY WASHINGTON DC
RUEHC/DEPT OF LABOR WASHDC
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC
RUEHSQ/AMEMBASSY SKOPJE 0858
RUEHKV/AMEMBASSY KYIV 0098
RUEHCH/AMEMBASSY CHISINAU 0089
RUEHVJ/AMEMBASSY SARAJEVO 0315
RUEHSF/AMEMBASSY SOFIA 0830
RUEHTI/AMEMBASSY TIRANA 0369
RUEHBM/AMEMBASSY BUCHAREST 0244
RUEHPS/USOFFICE PRISTINA 3659
RUEHPOD/AMEMBASSY PODGORICA 0030
RUEHVB/AMEMBASSY ZAGREB 1406

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 07 BELGRADE 000272 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPT FOR G/TIP, G, INL, DRL, PRM, EUR/SCE, EUR/PGI 
DEPT PLEASE PASS TO USAID 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KCRM PHUM KWMN SMIG KFRD ASEC PREF ELAB SR
SUBJECT: SERBIA: TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS (TIP) REPORT 
 
REF: 06 STATE 202745 
 
--------------- 
¶1. OVERVIEW 
--------------- 
 
¶A. Serbia is a country of origin, transit, and destination 
for internationally trafficked men, women, and children. 
The Agency for the Coordination of Protection of Victims of 
Trafficking recorded 62 TIP victims.  Of these, there were 
60 females and 2 males; 33 were minors.  In the vast 
majority of cases, women and girls were trafficked for 
sexual exploitation; in some cases, children were 
trafficked into forced labor or street begging.  In more 
than half of the cases (46 of 62), recruitment of victims 
and trafficking operations occurred completely within 
Serbia's borders; in most other cases, traffickers promised 
victims in Eastern Europe lucrative job opportunities in 
Western Europe via the Balkans.  Government officials 
acknowledge that the actual number of victims is likely 
higher than its recorded statistics, as societal norms 
discourage many victims from reporting the crime.  However, 
the Agency figures track generally with those reported by 
NGOs and are probably the most accurate tally available. 
As in previous years, women and children of poor economic 
means, orphans, and displaced persons were most at risk for 
trafficking. 
 
¶B. Following the trend noted in the last TIP report, the 
number of Serbian victims identified continued to increase. 
This year more than half of identified victims (46 of 62) 
were Serbian, and all but two were female.  Other victims 
came from Macedonia (4), Ukraine (3), Moldova (3), Bosnia 
and Herzegovina (2), Bulgaria (2), Albania (1), and Romania 
(1).  Unlike last year, there were no reports of non- 
European victims in Serbia.  Serbia's political will to 
address trafficking is strong, given its limited resources 
to finance victim services, and it aims to become a leader 
in its region in implementing best practices. 
 
Victims were often promised jobs as dancers, waitresses, or 
sex workers but were not aware that they would be forced to 
work in substandard conditions or have their documents 
taken from them and be held against their will.  In some 
cases, friends or family members took part in the 
trafficking scheme, facilitating contact between the 
traffickers and victims.  Traffickers are increasingly 
utilizing Internet chat rooms and SMS messaging to recruit 
young people, promising modeling opportunities or other 
lucrative jobs.  In some cases, traffickers use falsified 
documents. 
 
¶C. The government has noticeably increased funding for its 
anti-trafficking programs.  It has adequate funding for 
training of police and other government officials, and this 
year it committed further funds for educational prevention 
programs.  However, the government relies on NGOs to 
provide services to victims of trafficking, including 
counseling, legal assistance, and reintegration programs. 
Even the government's Agency for Coordination of Protection 
of Victims in Trafficking has no budget of its own for 
anti-trafficking programs; it calls on NGOs and two 
affiliated shelters to provide services to victims. 
Despite this challenge, the National Coordinator is able to 
oversee all aspects of anti-trafficking programs, including 
coordination with NGOs, through regular meetings of the 
Anti-Trafficking Team and direct communication with NGOs. 
Although corruption is widespread in Serbia, the 
government's anti-trafficking apparatus is relatively 
efficient and committed to rooting out corruption. 
 
¶D. The Anti-Trafficking Team, made up of government and 
non-governmental representatives, meets periodically to 
 
BELGRADE 00000272  002 OF 007 
 
 
discuss developments in trafficking in persons.  The team 
has working groups on: Prevention and Education, Victim 
Assistance, Law Enforcement, and Children.  The Ministry of 
Interior also updates information about anti-trafficking 
efforts and makes it available to the public on its 
website, and the National Coordinator compiles yearly data 
on TIP investigations.  Several officials have recently 
spoken publicly about the region's trafficking problem and 
shared information with their regional counterparts to 
coordinate regional anti-trafficking activities. 
 
------------------- 
¶2. PREVENTION 
------------------- 
 
¶A. The government publicly acknowledges that TIP is a 
problem in Serbia.  It supports anti-TIP educational 
programs in the public schools, funds anti-TIP efforts as 
noted, and maintains an informative website. President 
Tadic referred to the need to combat TIP in a major speech 
in 2006.  Ministry of Interior officials have also 
frequently spoken out about trafficking issues. 
 
¶B. The Anti-Trafficking Team (AT Team), headed by National 
Coordinator Dusan Zlokas, has the lead in anti-trafficking 
efforts.  This team includes representatives from many 
government ministries (Interior; Justice; Foreign Affairs; 
Finance and Economy; Labor, Employment and Social Policy; 
and Education and Sports) as well as the government's 
Council for the Rights of the Child, NGOs, and 
international organizations.  The organized crime police 
force includes a full-time trafficking unit, and the border 
police force has a full-time office to combat trafficking 
and alien smuggling.  The government coordinates the 
protection of victims through the Agency for Coordination 
(located within the Ministry of Labor, Employment and 
Social Policy), which refers victims to appropriate 
governmental and NGO services. 
 
¶C. The government has shown strong initiative in anti- 
trafficking information and education campaigns.  It 
organizes TIP awareness programs in schools nationwide 
(carried out by Beosupport and other NGO partners).  The 
Ministry of Interior continues to utilize training videos 
produced in previous years for police and border officials 
and reports that law enforcement officials in other 
countries (including the FBI) have also used these videos 
for training. 
 
Serbia was among the first in the region to implement the 
recommendations of the Council of Europe by airing four 
anti-trafficking public service announcements on Serbian 
National Television (RTS) throughout the soccer 
championship finals last summer.  Serbian police announced 
they would be paying particular attention to soccer fans 
attempting to solicit prostitutes and to potential victims 
of human traffickers.  Finally, the government earmarked 6 
million dinars (roughly $100,000) for a 13-episode 
television series entitled "Modern Slavery," devoted to 
generating awareness of TIP -- the government claims this 
is the first television series of this magnitude dedicated 
to TIP awareness in the world. 
 
¶D. The government promoted U.S.-sponsored training on 
domestic violence awareness and supported other NGO- 
sponsored programs.  The Organization for Security and 
Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) sponsored programs and 
training on gender equality.  The Anti-Trafficking Center 
(ATC) organized a nationwide event in April 2006, "Until 
Violence Stops," bringing in about 50 celebrities to speak 
on violence issues.  The UNHCR coordinates with NGOs to 
provide trafficking awareness training to refugees and 
IDPs.  Through its hotline, ASTRA fields calls on 
 
BELGRADE 00000272  003 OF 007 
 
 
employment opportunities, counseling potential victims on 
the danger of trafficking schemes. 
 
¶E. The government, NGOs, and international organizations 
generally have good and cooperative relationships, freely 
exchanging information and participating in each other's 
training, meetings, and public events.  The police, the 
Agency for Coordination, and the shelters work daily with 
one another to identify trafficking victims and refer them 
to the appropriate services.  All work together on the 
national AT Team and in its four working groups.  Unlike 
last year, the working groups met regularly during the 
year. 
 
¶F. Police and border guard training on TIP issues is 
extensive and has shown significant positive results. 
Serbian consular officers also monitor patterns for 
evidence of trafficking and screen for potential 
trafficking victims.  This year, law enforcement officials 
recognized an increase in smuggling cases from Turkey, 
Dubai, and China and monitored them for any indication of 
trafficking; however, to date they have not discovered any 
such signs of trafficking. 
 
¶G. The AT Team, under the leadership of National 
Coordinator Dusan Zlokas, provides coordination among 
agencies on trafficking-related matters, through regular 
meetings and email communications.  The team has four 
working groups (prevention and education, victim 
assistance, law enforcement, and children).  The national 
coordinator serves as the single point of contact for all 
anti-trafficking efforts. 
 
¶H. The government adopted the National Strategy to Combat 
Trafficking in Persons on December 7, 2006.  The government 
worked closely with the AT Team, including NGOs and 
relevant ministries, as well as with OSCE, throughout the 
year on multiple drafts of the strategy.  However, it did 
not consult with NGOs on the final draft before it was 
submitted to parliament, and NGOs reported that they did 
not have copies of the final draft for several weeks after 
it passed.  The strategy is now available on the 
government's website. 
 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
¶3. INVESTIGATION AND PROSECUTION 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
 
¶A. The criminal code for Serbia, which went into effect in 
January 2006, differentiates between trafficking in persons 
and smuggling.  The article on trafficking in persons 
prohibits trafficking for both sexual and non-sexual 
exploitation, and covers both internal and external forms 
of trafficking.  There is a separate article of the code 
prohibiting trafficking in children for the purposes of 
adoption, and yet another article prohibiting slavery.  The 
new Constitution, adopted in October 2006, also includes 
two provisions that cite trafficking in persons and slavery 
as crimes. 
 
¶B. Under article 388 of the criminal code, the penalties 
are the same for sexual and non-sexual exploitation.  The 
penalty for trafficking in persons is 2 to 10 years in 
prison; for trafficking minors, the penalty is a minimum of 
3 years; if the act of trafficking resulted in death, the 
penalty is a minimum of 10 years; if it involved serious 
physical injury, the penalty is 3 to 15 years; if there 
were multiple acts of trafficking or if perpetrated by an 
organized group, the penalty is a minimum of 5 years.  In 
cases of trafficking for adoption, if the victim is under 
14 years old, the penalty is 1 to 15 years. 
 
¶C. Trafficking for the purposes of labor exploitation is 
 
BELGRADE 00000272  004 OF 007 
 
 
covered under article 388, and penalties are the same as 
trafficking for sexual exploitation.  However, there is a 
separate article (390) of the criminal code, which 
stipulates that whoever " puts someone in slavery relation 
or a relation similar to the slavery and keeps him/her in 
that position, whoever buys, sells or transfers such a 
person to somebody else, or whoever helps in purchase, sale 
or transfer of such a person, and whoever encourages 
someone to sell his freedom or freedom of the person he/she 
supports, shall be punished with imprisonment of one to ten 
years."  The punishment for transporting someone held as a 
slave from one country to another is 6 months to 5 years, 
and for any of the above offenses committed against a 
minor, the punishment is 5 to 15 years. 
 
¶D. The penalties for rape are the same as those for 
trafficking in persons (2 to 10 years).  The penalties for 
sexual abuse are 1 to 10 years. 
 
¶E. The prostitute's activities constitute a misdemeanor; 
facilitation of prostitution (i.e., the activities of 
brothel owners, operators, and pimps) is a criminal act. 
However, being a client of a prostitute is not an offense. 
The laws are generally enforced. 
 
¶F. During the year, the government filed 37 criminal 
charges against 84 people based on the criminal code's 
article 388 on trafficking in persons.  Of the 37 total, 33 
were cases of sexual exploitation, and 4 were labor 
exploitation.  These charges include all aspects of 
trafficking, from recruiting, assisting in the transfer of 
victims, holding victims in servitude, using coercion or 
abuse, and withholding documents.  Sentences tended to 
range from 2 to 5 years.  In April 2006, traffickers in the 
Pancevo case were ordered to pay 320,000 dinars to 
compensate the victim for damages and 65,000 dinars for the 
victim's legal fees. 
 
However, Serbia's problem of traffickers not serving their 
time persists.  In the country's judiciary system across 
the board, defendants are given multiple opportunities to 
appeal the verdicts.  Even after a verdict is confirmed by 
the Supreme Court, inefficient administrative procedures 
hold up the justice system, and it is not uncommon to see 
indicted criminals free to walk the streets even years 
afterwards.  Of the three high-profile prosecutions from 
previous years, one trafficker (Zarubica, originally 
sentenced in March 2004) has still not begun serving his 
sentence. 
 
¶G. Traffickers tend to be part of small crime groups with 
international links.  They operate amid the thriving black 
and gray markets in Serbia, where it is not uncommon to 
deal with employers or recruiters making under-the-table 
deals promising travel and work opportunities.  Some 
trafficking cases from previous years showed ties to large 
organized crime groups ("Zarubica" case, "Pancevo" case, 
and "Dalmacija" case); however, there were no such cases 
this year.  There is no evidence of government officials' 
involvement.  There are no reliable reports of where 
trafficking profits are channeled. 
 
¶H. The government actively investigates cases of 
trafficking.  Since 2005, Serbian law allows for techniques 
such as electronic surveillance, undercover operations, and 
mitigated punishment or immunity for cooperating suspects. 
Intercepted phone calls and wire taps provided evidence for 
high-profile cases in previous years.  In addition, as of 
January 1, 2006, the Serbian government implemented a 
victim/witness protection program, providing victims and 
witnesses undercover protection and allowing immunity for 
witnesses who testify in court. 
 
 
BELGRADE 00000272  005 OF 007 
 
 
¶I. The government, mainly through NGO- and IO-sponsored 
programs, provides extensive training to police, 
prosecutors, judges, and other officials in how to 
recognize, investigate, and prosecute trafficking.  In 
addition to the national Anti-Trafficking Team, every 
municipality is now required to have a two-person AT team 
(one police, one social welfare worker) to provide rapid 
response and assistance to possible victims of trafficking. 
NGOs reported improved cooperation with the local teams, 
especially in the northern province of Vojvodina. 
 
¶J. The government continues to cooperate with all of its 
neighbors, including Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, 
Hungary, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Romania, Greece, and Ukraine. 
The Serbian Embassy in Ukraine alerted officials to a 
trafficking scheme to recruit young women to marry Serbian 
men.  Serbian authorities also worked with Croatian 
authorities to apprehend a German citizen in Dubrovnik on 
charges of trafficking, including the trafficking of a 
Serbian girl in Vranje. 
 
¶K. The Constitution prohibits the extradition of Serbian 
nationals (even those with dual citizenship) except to the 
Hague Tribunal for war crimes.  The Serbian government has 
no plan to modify its laws to permit extradition of its own 
nationals. 
 
¶L. There is no evidence of government involvement in or 
tolerance of trafficking at any level.  However, 
authorities still have not responded to more than 200 
freedom of information requests filed in previous years in 
Novi Pazar where there are allegations of police complicity 
in a prostitution ring. 
 
¶M. The Inspectorate General within the Ministry of Interior 
investigates cases against employees suspected of abusing 
their positions.  In 2006, there were no complaints filed 
against any police officers or other Ministry of Interior 
employees for charges related to trafficking in persons. 
 
¶N. We are not aware of any child sex tourism problems in 
Serbia. 
 
¶O. The government signed, ratified, and implemented all 
five conventions as noted below: 
 
--ILO Convention 182 concerning the Prohibition and 
Immediate Action for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of 
Child Labor: Ratified July 2003. 
 
--ILO Convention 29 and 105 on Forced or Compulsory Labor: 
Ratified November 2000 and July 2003, respectively. 
 
--The Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of 
the Child (CRC) on the Sale of Children, Child 
Prostitution, and Child Pornography: Ratified July 2002. 
 
--The Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking 
in Persons, especially Women and Children, supplementing 
the UN Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime: 
Ratified September 2001. 
 
-- Serbia also ratified the Trafficking Protocol, known as 
the Palermo Protocol, in June 2001. 
 
------------------------------------------ 
¶4. PROTECTION AND ASSISTANCE 
------------------------------------------ 
 
¶A. The government provides temporary residence permits for 
victims of trafficking free of charge.  Since July 2005, 
the government gives free access to medical care to 
trafficking victims (both foreign and domestic).  The 
 
BELGRADE 00000272  006 OF 007 
 
 
government works closely with NGOs to ensure that victims 
receive adequate shelter, access to legal, and medical and 
psychological services.  Unlike last year, there were no 
reports of facilities denying services to TIP victims. 
Serbia has two shelters for TIP victims; during the year, 
33 TIP victims were accommodated there.  Atina accommodated 
16 victims in its transition house and provided 
reintegration activities to 44 women. 
 
¶B. The government pays the salaries of the two workers at 
the Agency for Coordination, but it has no funding for NGOs 
for services.  The government relies on NGO and IO programs 
to provide services to trafficking victims. 
 
¶C. Because most of the trafficking in Serbia is for sexual 
exploitation, Serbian authorities have made at-risk 
services (night clubs, restaurants, discos, etc.) the focus 
of training for law enforcement.  Consular and border 
officials are also trained to look for signs of trafficking 
in immigration cases. 
 
The Agency for Coordination officially identifies victims 
and coordinates the provision of services from the 
government, NGOs, and IOs.  Police, other NGOs, shelters, 
and SOS hotline operators work directly with the Agency for 
Coordination when they suspect they have a victim of 
trafficking in custody.  Training of law enforcement 
officials on how to recognize trafficking victims has been 
extensive, and the NGOs report that in geeral authorities 
correctly identify and transfervictims to appropriate 
services. 
 
¶D. Generally,the rights of victims are respected; there is 
nolonger a problem of victims being detained, jailedor 
deported, as extensive training has enabled plice to 
identify potential trafficking victims. Although two NGOs 
expressed concern that potentia TIP victims were being 
held in Padenska Skela,  Belgrade detention center, other 
NGOs and the gvernment said that they had visited the 
facilityand found no reason to believe any detainees were 
TIP victims.  Victims have not been prosecuted for 
violations of other laws, such as prostitution.  Unlike 
previous years, there are no longer reports that judges in 
municipal courts have treated the victims like criminals or 
prostitutes.  However, some courts have shown insensitivity 
to victims' hardship by scheduling the victims and accused 
traffickers to testify on the same day, despite the 
victims' objections. 
 
¶E. The government encourages victims to assist in the 
investigation and prosecution of trafficking, and 
facilitates this through its victim/witness protection 
program.  Serbia also allows victims to file civil suits 
against their traffickers for compensation.  Victims who 
are pursuing criminal or civil suits are entitled to 
temporary residence permits and may obtain other employment 
or leave the country pending trial proceedings.  There is 
no restitution program. 
 
¶F. The government provides protection through its 
victim/witness protection unit, officially implemented in 
¶2006.  Two shelters and many NGOs and IOs provide legal 
aid, medical care, psychological counseling, voluntary 
return assistance, reintegration programs, and other 
services.  The government provides for free medical care 
for both foreign and domestic victims in Serbia.  Child 
victims are placed in the same shelters as adult victims 
until foster care or other services can be arranged. 
 
In one egregious case during the year, law enforcement 
returned a child TIP victim back to the family in Vranje 
that had trafficked her to a pedophile. 
 
 
BELGRADE 00000272  007 OF 007 
 
 
¶G. The government provides specialized training for 
government officials (police, consular officers, social 
welfare workers) in recognizing trafficking and providing 
assistance to victims.  Within the Anti-Trafficking Team, 
the working group on children is headed by the NGO 
Beosupport and meets regularly to plan programs addressing 
child victims of trafficking.  Funding for these programs, 
however, is limited, and child victims are placed in 
shelters along with adults.  During the year, Serbian 
officials participated in regional efforts to share 
information and coordinate anti-trafficking programs. 
 
¶H. By law and in practice, domestic and foreign victims of 
trafficking can receive free medical assistance.  NGOs 
provide victims with shelter, medical treatment, 
psychological counseling and reintegration assistance. 
 
¶I. The Counseling Center Against Family Violence runs a 
shelter for foreign TIP victims.  Atina runs a 
shelter/transition house for domestic TIP victims.  ASTRA 
runs a TIP hotline that receives calls from victims (it 
fielded nearly 2,000 calls in 2006) and provides legal, 
medical, psychological and other support.  The Victimology 
Society of Serbia has a victim support service that offers 
all victims of crime emotional support, information on 
their rights and on services available in Belgrade where 
they can get specialized support, and refers victims to 
such organizations/institutions.  IOM manages returns and 
repatriations, has a reintegration program, provides a 
doctor for TIP victim care, and funds legal assistance for 
victims.  The government works with all of these 
organizations to coordinate assistance for TIP victims. 
 
------------------------------ 
¶5. SUMMARY/COMMENT 
------------------------------ 
 
Serbia took last year's TIP assessment very seriously and 
carried out several changes to improve anti-TIP efforts. 
The government passed a comprehensive National Strategy, 
earmarked roughly $100,000 for an educational television 
series aimed at preventing TIP, and continued training 
efforts at the national and local levels.  The temporary 
residence permits assisted victims in testifying against 
their traffickers and reintegrating into Serbia if they 
wished. There were no high-profile prosecutions this year; 
however, the government progressed steadily in prosecuting 
TIP cases (37 charges against 84 people).  The government 
also continued to improve coordination with NGOs and IOs. 
We recommend that the TIP report acknowledge these positive 
steps. 
 
In terms of areas for improvement, trials tend to be 
lengthy (1-3 years), and the inefficient judiciary system 
allows traffickers multiple appeals and in some cases 
several years of freedom before serving out their 
sentences.  In addition, Serbia continues to use outdated 
passports and IDs lacking sufficient security measures; its 
plans to update both in the near future will help make 
trafficking more difficult. 
 
Post's TIP contact is Laura Brown, 381-11-306-4661 (o), 
381-63-368-089 (c), 381-11-361-3962 (fax).  Brown (FS-3) 
spent 18 hours on this report. 
 
MOORE