VZCZCXRO1602
PP RUEHAST RUEHBC RUEHDBU RUEHDE RUEHDIR RUEHFL RUEHKUK RUEHLA RUEHLN
RUEHMRE RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHKB #0254/01 0601141
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 011141Z MAR 07
FM AMEMBASSY BAKU
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2486
INFO RUEHAD/AMEMBASSY ABU DHABI 0071
RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA 2017
RUEHTH/AMEMBASSY ATHENS 0244
RUEHRL/AMEMBASSY BERLIN 0236
RUEHEK/AMEMBASSY BISHKEK 0199
RUEHCH/AMEMBASSY CHISINAU 0085
RUEHKA/AMEMBASSY DHAKA 0012
RUEHHE/AMEMBASSY HELSINKI 0017
RUEHIL/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD 0067
RUEHKV/AMEMBASSY KYIV 0022
RUEHMO/AMEMBASSY MOSCOW 0643
RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI 0033
RUEHNT/AMEMBASSY TASHKENT 0359
RUEHSI/AMEMBASSY TBILISI 1496
RUEHVB/AMEMBASSY ZAGREB 0020
RUEHDI/AMCONSUL DUBAI 0057
RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL 0034
RHMFIUU/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHINGTON DC
RUEAHLC/DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY CENTER
RUEHC/DEPT OF LABOR WASHDC
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC
RUCNIRA/IRAN COLLECTIVE
RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE
RUCNOSC/OSCE COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 06 BAKU 000254 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR G/TIP; G; INL; DRL; PRM; AND EUR/CARC 
DEPARTMENT PLEASE PASS USAID 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KCRM PHUM KWMN SMIG KFRD ASEC PREF ELAB AJ
SUBJECT: PART II OF II: AZERBAIJAN 2007 TIP REPORT SUBMISSION 
 
REF: 06 STATE 202745 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED - NOT FOR INTERNET DISTRIBUTION. 
 
INVESTIGATION AND PROSECUTION OF TRAFFICKERS 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
¶A. In June 2005 the GOAJ adopted the Law on the Fight Against 
Trafficking in Persons (amended in January 2006), and in October 
2005 adopted relevant criminal code amendments to establish 
penalties for the crimes outlined in the law.  The law was written 
in close consultation with the international community and as such, 
meets international standards and covers a plethora of TIP 
circumstances.  The law itself bans trafficking for the purposes of 
human exploitation, which includes a broad range of activities 
including sexual exploitation, forced labor, slavery, recruitment 
for unlawful activity, etc.  The law makes no distinction that the 
activity must involve crossing international borders.  The law also 
sets out an ambitious program that relevant authorities within the 
GOAJ must undertake in order to investigate, prosecute, and prevent 
trafficking, as well as provisions for victim protection and 
rehabilitation. 
 
Prior to the law's passage and adoption of criminal code amendments, 
traffickers were convicted under the country's laws that covered 
trafficking-related crimes.  Outside of the law specifically 
criminalizing TIP, traffickers may be prosecuted under articles 
prohibiting slavery, rape, forced prostitution, sexual coercion, 
operation of brothels, the trade and transit of minors, and 
involvement of minors under the age of 16 in sexual coercion, 
prostitution or other obscene acts, and travel document forgery. 
Taken together, these laws encompass the full scope of possible 
trafficking activities. 
 
The above represents a full inventory of trafficking laws in 
Azerbaijan, with the relevant penalties described below.  The 2005 
TIP legislation included, for the first time, the possibility of 
confiscation of property.  While roughly equivalent to a civil 
forfeiture law, this provision is included in the criminal code. 
 
¶B. The criminal code amendments passed by Parliament in October 2005 
establish the following penalties for "human trafficking" without 
distinction as to the type of human trafficking: 
 
-- Trafficking of one human being is punishable by five to ten 
years' imprisonment and confiscation of property. 
 
-- Trafficking of more than one person, committed repeatedly, or 
with various special circumstances is punishable by eight to 12 
years' imprisonment with confiscation of property. 
 
-- Trafficking that results in the death of a victim or other grave 
results due to negligence is punishable by ten to 15 years' 
imprisonment with confiscation of property. 
 
The criminal code also outlines penalties for dissemination of 
confidential information about a TIP victim, which is a fine of 100 
 
SIPDIS 
to 500 times the "nominal fiscal unit," equal to 5,500 old manats or 
approximately USD 1.26, (the average monthly salary is currently 
approximately USD 140); up to 240 hours of community service; or up 
to one year of correctional labor.  Should the same act be committed 
by a person using his or her official status, the fine is increased 
 
BAKU 00000254  002.2 OF 006 
 
 
to 500 to 1,000 times the average monthly salary; one year of 
correctional labor; or up to six months' imprisonment.  If the same 
actions include grave results, the punishment is one to five years' 
imprisonment. 
 
¶C. Trafficking for labor exploitation, like other forms of 
trafficking, is punishable as "human trafficking" under the criminal 
code, with penalties as described above.  While labor recruiters in 
labor source countries are convicted under the article on "human 
trafficking," employers and labor agents who confiscate workers' 
passports and keep workers in a state of service are convicted under 
a separate article on forced labor.  This is punishable by up to two 
years of correctional work or imprisonment, unless it is organized 
and carried out by a group, in which case the law would consider it 
an aggravating circumstance and increase the punishment to three to 
five years of imprisonment. 
 
¶D. Under the criminal code provisions, traffickers prosecuted for 
sexual violence (which can include rape, compulsion to prostitution, 
compulsory sterilization or commitment against persons of other 
actions connected to sexual violence) may receive a jail sentence of 
ten to 15 years or life imprisonment.  Rape itself is punishable by 
four to 15 years.  Violent actions of a sexual nature carry a 
sentence of three to eight years, or up to 15 if the victim is a 
minor, dies, or contracts HIV.  Coercion into sexual actions is 
punishable by a fine, corrective works, or imprisonment up to three 
years.  The more punitive charges are in line with the penalties for 
sex trafficking. 
 
¶E. Prostitution is illegal in Azerbaijan.  The activities of a 
prostitute, brothel owner/operator, pimp, and enforcer are all 
criminalized and the laws are enforced.  The actions of a client are 
not criminalized. 
 
¶F.  The National TIP coordinator and the Head of MIA's Unit to 
Combat Trafficking in Persons brief USG personnel on the latest 
trafficking prosecution statistics at virtually every meeting.  The 
GOAJ was prompt and forthcoming with requested information on 
trafficking investigations, prosecutions, and convictions. 
 
During 2006, the GOAJ reported that it opened 192 criminal cases 
related to trafficking in persons.  Eight cases were still under 
investigation at year's end.  Out of the remaining 184 cases, 156 
were sent to the courts and 28 were closed without criminal charges. 
 Out of the opened criminal cases, 38 were prosecuted under 
trafficking in human beings, four under coercion to sexual 
activities, three under involving a minor in prostitution, 33 under 
involvement in prostitution, and 86 in managing a brothel. 
 
Under the charges of trafficking in human beings and involvement in 
prostitution, as of March 1, 24 individuals had been imprisoned, six 
individuals had received administrative charges (fines or 
injunctions), six individuals had received suspended sentences, and 
24 individuals had been fined.  Out of these cases, 53 of the 
convicted are women and seven are men. 
 
Ten cases are still under consideration by the courts. As of March 
1, 21 individuals remained in prison on trafficking-related 
convictions. 
 
¶G. The GOAJ has provided little information about the identity of 
convicted or suspected traffickers.  Anecdotal evidence suggests 
 
BAKU 00000254  003.2 OF 006 
 
 
they are men or women, working alone or in small groups, who say 
they will arrange for employment abroad, then force the victims to 
work in the sex industry.  Victims may give prior consent to working 
in the sex industry but are not told the circumstances under which 
they will work.  Prostitution rings run by local organized crime 
groups throughout the country are also potential perpetrators.  We 
do not have any credible evidence of government officials' 
involvement in trafficking. 
 
¶H. The Special Anti-TIP Police Unit (SPATS) within the MIA's Unit to 
Combat Trafficking in Persons is responsible for investigating TIP 
cases, in conjunction with local police units and other relevant law 
enforcement personnel.  When the GOAJ becomes aware of trafficking 
activity, it investigates the activity.  However, the GOAJ needs to 
increase its capacity to conduct proactive TIP investigations.  We 
hope that further training of the SPATS will serve both to increase 
the unit's capacity to investigate sensitive TIP crimes and to work 
more closely with its international counterparts. 
 
The GOAJ does not share the specific investigative techniques it 
uses for such investigations, but Azerbaijani police do use active 
investigation techniques, such as surveillance and undercover 
operations, and are not prohibited from engaging in covert 
operations. 
 
¶I. The GOAJ has incorporated TIP-specific training into its regular 
courses for police units and prosecutors throughout the country. 
The GOAJ provides and briefs its officers and prosecutors on the NAP 
and relevant legislation.  During the year prosecutors and officers 
participated in trainings, both internationally and domestically, 
that included trafficking components.  The USG has also provided 
training to prosecutors on identifying and prosecuting TIP cases, as 
well as implementing the TIP law.  As of March 1, prosecutors from 
MIA's Unit to Combat Trafficking in Persons and SPATS officers were 
undergoing TIP training funded by the OSCE. 
 
¶J. The GOAJ reported that during the reporting period, it received 
no requests for assistance with international TIP investigations. 
However, the GOAJ reported that its anti-TIP personnel established 
ties through joint trainings and seminars with Russia, Turkey, 
Austria, Germany, Italy, Georgia, and Kazakhstan during the year. 
The GOAJ also works with CIS-member states through the CIS Executive 
Secretariat to link anti-TIP efforts throughout the territory of the 
 
SIPDIS 
former Soviet Union. 
 
¶K. The GOAJ did not extradite traffickers to foreign countries 
during the year, nor were any Azerbaijani nationals extradited to 
foreign countries for prosecution in TIP crimes.  The GOAJ has 
signed bilateral extradition treaties with Russia, Bulgaria, 
Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Iran, Ukraine, and Lithuania. 
 
L, M. There is no evidence of GOAJ involvement in or tolerance of 
trafficking on a local or institutional level.  However, we suspect 
that low-level civil servants, local law-enforcement officers, and 
border guards may accept bribes in exchange for turning a blind eye 
to migrant smuggling and possible trafficking activities. 
High-ranking government officials are rumored to own some of the 
saunas and restaurants in Baku and in the regions where prostitutes 
work, but we have no evidence of the officials' investment or direct 
involvement in these businesses, nor do we know whether prostitutes 
working in those establishments are in fact trafficking victims.  No 
government officials have been prosecuted for trafficking or 
 
BAKU 00000254  004.2 OF 006 
 
 
trafficking-related corruption. 
 
¶N. There is no evidence of child sex tourism in Azerbaijan. 
 
¶O. The GOAJ has signed and ratified ILO conventions 29 (May 19, 
1992) and 105 (August 9, 2000) on forced or compulsory labor and 
Convention 182 (March 30, 2004) on the worst forms of child labor. 
 
 
Azerbaijan has joined the European Charter Article on Protecting 
Child and Youth Rights.  In August 2003, the Government ratified the 
Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on 
the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution, and Child Pornography. 
 
In May 2003 the GOAJ ratified the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress, and 
Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, 
supplementing the UN Convention against the Transnational Organized 
Crime (the Palermo Protocol). 
 
PROTECTION AND ASSISTANCE TO VICTIMS 
------------------------------------ 
 
¶A. In October 2006, the GOAJ opened a permanent shelter for TIP 
victims.  The GOAJ is working to open an NGO-led TIP hotline, which 
will also serve as a referral mechanism for the shelter.  Until the 
hotline and referral mechanism are in place, the shelter will not 
function as intended.  As of March 1, four victims have been housed 
at the shelter - all referred directly by the MIA.  The shelter 
provides access to legal, medical, and psychological services for 
TIP victims.  Families of underage TIP victims can also be housed in 
the shelter.  The GOAJ reported that in 2006, in addition to the 
four victims who received assistance at the shelter, 15 were 
referred to medical centers for treatment.  Prior to the opening of 
the shelter, some NGOs sheltered victims in private homes. 
 
The Law on Trafficking passed in 2005 provides for relief from 
deportation for victims for up to one year.  If a victim cooperates 
in the investigation, the victim is entitled to stay until the court 
case is completed.  A victim can also apply to the relevant 
government authorities for immigrant status. 
 
¶B. The GOAJ lacks the necessary resources and mechanisms to provide 
financial support to domestic NGOs for services to trafficking 
victims; domestic NGOs in all fields receive most of their funding 
from international sources. 
 
¶C. There is no formal victim screening and referral system in place. 
 Until the shelter opened in October, the GOAJ worked with local and 
international NGOs and state healthcare institutions on an informal 
basis to provide trafficking victims with short-term care.  Since 
the shelter opened, the MIA has referred four victims to the shelter 
for short-term care.  Once the NGO-led TIP hotline is functional, a 
formal screening and referral system will be in place to transfer 
victims to the victims' assistance shelter. 
 
¶D. The Embassy has received no reports of trafficking victims being 
jailed.  The GOAJ reported that former victims of trafficking have 
been convicted for involving others in prostitution, but we have no 
evidence that victims of trafficking have been prosecuted for 
violations of the law because of their actions while being 
trafficked.  IOM reported that in 2006, several Azerbaijani TIP 
victims were detained after arriving in Baku on late night flights 
 
BAKU 00000254  005.2 OF 006 
 
 
from Istanbul, Turkey.  These victims were released after active IOM 
intervention, usually within several hours of the detention.  The 
Embassy has received no reports of trafficking victims being 
deported, although there is a discrepancy on the status of a large 
group of Uzbeks who were deported, as previously described.  The 
GOAJ maintains that the Uzbeks were prostitutes while NGOs reported 
that they were TIP victims. 
 
¶E. Trafficking victims rarely file civil suits or seek legal action 
against the traffickers, but there are no legal restrictions on 
their ability to do so.  There are no restrictions on a witness' 
actions during a court case.  Once the victims' assistance shelter 
procedures are fully in place, there will be a standardized process 
for obtaining testimony from victims and asking permission to use 
their testimony in court.  The TIP law permits a victim to gain 
employment elsewhere if he or she is a witness in a case against a 
trafficker; it also permits a victim to remain in the country if he 
or she wishes.  The TIP law also provides for a victim restitution 
program. 
 
¶F. The GOAJ is unable at this time to provide special protection for 
victims and witnesses beyond providing short-term protective 
custody.  The MIA, and specifically vetted officers of a specific 
division of the SPATS, provides security for victims housed in the 
shelter.  While there were reported child trafficking victims during 
the year, we do not know what assistance or care they received.  We 
assume that the children were either returned to their families or 
placed in orphanages. 
 
¶G.  The NAP and the accompanying TIP legislation includes training 
for NGO groups, police specialists, and other government officials 
in how to recognize trafficking and provide assistance to trafficked 
victims, including the special needs of trafficked children.  In 
2006, the GOAJ reported that the MIA conducted TIP-related training 
for employees of the Police Academy, the Ministry of Justice's Legal 
Education Center, and the Prosecutor General's Office's Education 
Center.  According to the GOAJ, state officials also participated in 
TIP-related training in Turkey, Kazakhstan, Austria and Italy. 
 
Under the GOAJ's TIP legislation, embassies and consulates are 
instructed to provide quickly the necessary documentation for 
victims abroad to return to Azerbaijan. 
 
¶H. The GOAJ now provides medical assistance and shelter to 
repatriated victims at the TIP victims' assistance shelter.  Prior 
to the shelter's October 2006 opening, the GOAJ provided medical 
assistance to repatriated victims at state medical clinics, and 
provided shelter and counseling through local international NGOs. 
Victims of trafficking are entitled to financial compensation under 
the TIP law. 
 
¶I.  IOM conducts substantive research on the trafficking problem in 
Azerbaijan; however, personnel changes and other intervening 
circumstances inhibited IOM's efforts during the year to take a 
leading role on TIP issues.  The USG, IOM, and OSCE provide guidance 
and conduct anti-TIP programs (as did ABA-CEELI until December), 
including conducting a TIP Coalition Building Seminar for NGOs and 
training NGO employees to work at the TIP shelter and hotline. 
Several national domestic NGOs also deal with the problem of 
trafficking, including Clean World, the Women's Crisis Center, the 
Center for Legal Assistance to Migrants, Symmetry, the Forum of 
Azerbaijan NGOs on Migration (FANGOM, a network of 35 NGOs), and the 
 
BAKU 00000254  006.2 OF 006 
 
 
Azerbaijan Children's Union.  There are also several regional NGOs 
that concentrate on trafficking programming.  These NGOs serve 
primarily as contact points for at-risk populations and engage in 
some information campaigns about the dangers of trafficking.  Two of 
these organizations also informally shelter local and foreign 
trafficking victims.  The Center for Legal Assistance to Migrants 
provides free legal services to trafficking victims and works with 
other NGOs to coordinate services.  The Women's Crisis Center 
operates a crisis hotline and provides free legal, psychological, 
and medical services.  In 2006, seven women who contacted the center 
for assistance (or whose families contacted the center) reported 
that they had been trafficked.  Under a grant awarded through the 
U.S. Embassy Democracy Commission to support programs on 
trafficking, in August, Clean World together with several other NGOs 
and government officials completed a fourteen month-long series of 
trainings throughout Azerbaijan for broad audiences.  Through this 
same project, Clean World also produced a pamphlet for distribution 
that included extensive information regarding advice when traveling 
abroad, how to recognize potential traffickers, how to verify 
employment offers (including contact numbers for embassies and 
consulates), how to find assistance if you have been or are being 
trafficked, and case studies.  Many NGO representatives and 
professional journalists have written about the trafficking problem 
in national newspapers and magazines.  The Government in general 
does not interfere in these NGOs activities and at times facilitates 
civil society efforts to combat trafficking. 
 
END TEXT OF REPORT. 
 
¶4. (U) Embassy Baku's point of contact for this report is Political 
Officer Rebecca Naslund (FS-05), who spent 35 hours speaking with 
local non-governmental organizations, international organizations, 
journalists, and GOAJ officials and analyzing the data provided to 
prepare this report.  Her contact information is e-mail: 
NaslundRJ@state.gov; phone: (99412) 498-0335 or TIE line 641-4210; 
fax: (99412) 465-6671. 
 
DERSE