VZCZCXRO8460
RR RUEHDBU RUEHIK RUEHYG
DE RUEHBUL #0793/01 0661400
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 071400Z MAR 07
FM AMEMBASSY KABUL
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 6665
INFO RUCNAFG/AFGHANISTAN COLLECTIVE
RUEHZG/NATO EU COLLECTIVE
RUEKJCS/OSD WASHINGTON DC
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC
RHMFIUU/HQ USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 3734
RHEHAAA/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 12 KABUL 000793 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR G/TIP, G, INL, DRL, PRM 
DEPARTMENT FOR SCA/RA LINDA LEE 
DEPARTMENT FOR SCA/FO DAS GASTRIGHT, SCA/A 
STATE PASS TO USAID FOR AID/ANE, AID/DCHA/DG 
NSC FOR HARRIMAN 
OSD FOR KIMMITT 
CENTCOM FOR CG CFC-A, CG CJTF-76 POLAD 
 
SENSITIVE, SIPDIS 
 
 
E.O. 12958 N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM KCRM KWMN SMIG KFRD ASEC
PREF, ELAB, AF 
SUBJECT: AFGHANISTAN'S 2007 TIP QUESTIONNAIRE RESPONSE 
 
REFTEL: 06 STATE 202745 
 
 
Post's response to reftel questions on Trafficking in 
Persons in Afghanistan are as follows: 
 
---------------- 
GENERAL OVERVIEW 
---------------- 
 
¶1.  (SBU) Is the country a country of origin, transit, 
or destination for internationally trafficked men, 
women, or children?  Provide, where possible, numbers 
or estimates for each group; how they were trafficked, 
to where, and for what purpose.  Does the trafficking 
occur within the country's borders?  Does it occur in 
territory outside of the government's control (e.g. in 
a civil war situation)?  Are any estimates or reliable 
numbers available as to the extent or magnitude of the 
problem?   What is (are) the source(s) of available 
information on trafficking in persons or what plans 
are in place (if any) to undertake documentation of 
trafficking? How reliable are the numbers and these 
sources? Are certain groups of persons more at risk of 
being trafficked (e.g. women and children, boys versus 
girls, certain ethnic groups, refugees, etc.)? 
 
Very little data on trafficking victims exists.  The 
few statistics which do exist were provided by the 
Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs (MLSA), the 
Ministry of Interior (MOI), the Afghan Independent 
Human Rights Commission (AIHRC), and the International 
Organization for Migration (IOM).  The data provided 
is reliable but is based on spot reports and should 
not be considered exhaustive.  It is generally 
believed that the prevalence of trafficking is much 
higher than available statistics reveal.  There has 
been no national assessment on trafficking, nor are 
there any government ministries or NGO's who have 
taken on the responsibility of organizing such an 
assessment.  (The MLSA would like to conduct a 
national survey on issues that affect children this 
year, which would include trafficking, but this study 
would not address trafficking of adult women or men.) 
Most available information about trafficking trends in 
Afghanistan is anecdotal and unconfirmed. 
 
Afghanistan is a country of origin, transit, and 
destination for trafficked children and women. 
According to the MLSA and IOM, as a country of origin, 
Afghanistan serves as a source for children who are 
trafficked into Iran, Pakistan, and the Gulf countries 
(mostly Oman and Saudi Arabia).  In 2006, there was an 
isolated case of two Afghan children being trafficked 
in Zimbabwe.  (The Ministry of Labor and Social 
Affairs believes they were trafficked to Zimbabwe 
through the Gulf.  The children were found working in 
the streets of Zimbabwe and were repatriated in 2006.) 
There are unconfirmed reports of Afghan women being 
trafficked into Pakistan and Iran.  In some cases, 
adult males are trafficked into Iran as labor.  As a 
transit country, Afghanistan is rumored to be used to 
send women and children from Tajikistan to either 
Pakistan or Iran, primarily for labor but also for sex 
(no statistics exist). 
 
Afghanistan is reportedly a destination country for 
women being trafficked from China and Iran 
(unconfirmed) for sex or from Pakistan to carry drugs. 
In 2006, IOM conducted a program funded by PRM to 
assist 150 victims of trafficking.  Ninety-six of 
these victims were women who had been trafficked to 
Afghanistan from China for sexual exploitation.  Most 
are working in Kabul at establishments purporting to 
 
KABUL 00000793  002 OF 012 
 
 
be "Chinese restaurants" but which effectively act as 
brothels.  IOM suggested that the women voluntarily 
left China seeking work in another country but were 
not told they would be sent to Afghanistan and were 
forced to stay and work as prostitutes upon their 
arrival.  The Ministry of Interior, however, believes 
most Chinese prostitutes come willingly and knowingly. 
The MOI reported two cases of Tajik women willingly 
coming to Afghanistan for work in hotels but being 
forced into prostitution after their arrival.   During 
a November visit to Pol-e-charki Prison in Kabul, 
Poloff met a Pakistani woman who had been arrested on 
charges of smuggling drugs into Afghanistan from 
Pakistan.  It was unclear whether she was a forced or 
willing participant. 
 
Internal trafficking also remains an issue in 
Afghanistan, but no statistics are available.  Child 
labor and forced begging are regular occurrences in 
Afghanistan's largest cities.  For example, large 
numbers of children are rumored to be trafficked from 
provinces such as Baghlan into Kabul for labor.  A 
2006 AIHRC report estimated that there are 
approximately 60,000 child laborers in Kabul, most of 
whom migrated from other provinces.  There are 
scattered reports of young boys being trafficked 
internally for sex, especially in the northern 
provinces of Badakhshan, Takhar, Kunduz, Baghlan, 
Samangan, Balkh, Jowzjan, Sar-e-pol, and Faryab. 
These boys are abducted and forced to work as dancers 
who perform before groups of men in private parties. 
In the southern provinces along the Pakistani border, 
there are reports of commanders abducting young boys 
or forcing families to turn over their sons to "work" 
for them as sexual objects. 
 
IOM reported assisting at least nine adult men who 
were victims of internal trafficking in 2006 (no 
details on the type of trafficking were available). 
Throughout Afghanistan, women and girls continue to be 
exchanged to settle debts or resolve conflicts.  The 
AIHRC received 41 reports nationwide of women being 
exchanged to settle debts in 2006.  Women and girls 
are also sold by their families for financial gain. 
The AIHRC reported 12 such cases in 2006.  There were 
unconfirmed reports of husbands in Herat selling their 
wives into prostitution.  In other cases, underage 
girls are forced to marry much older men to settle 
debts or their families are forced by influential 
commanders to give them away.  If the girls are too 
young to consummate the marriage, they are often used 
as household servants instead. 
 
 
¶2.  (SBU) Please provide a general overview of the 
trafficking situation in the country and any changes 
since the last TIP Report (e.g. changes in direction). 
Also briefly explain the political will to address 
trafficking in persons. Other items to address may 
include:  What kind of conditions are the victims 
trafficked into?  Which populations are targeted 
by the traffickers?  Who are the traffickers?  What 
methods are used to approach victims? (Are they 
offered lucrative jobs, sold by their families, 
approached by friends of friends, etc.?)  What methods 
are used to move the victims (e.g., are false 
documents being used?). 
 
There is no evidence of any major change to 
trafficking trends since last year's report.  There 
continue to be rumors of child trafficking for organs, 
but none of the sources who have mentioned this 
(including the Ministry of Interior) have documented 
cases that would confirm the practice exists. 
 
KABUL 00000793  003 OF 012 
 
 
 
While political will to address trafficking does 
exist, the capacity of the government and civil 
society to adequately address the issue - especially 
in the provinces and along the borders - is extremely 
weak.  The government and local NGOs rely completely 
on funding and training from international donors to 
make any headway against TIP. 
 
There is virtually no information available on the 
conditions into which victims are trafficked 
(internally or abroad), average profile of 
traffickers, or their methods for transporting them to 
other countries.  There are unconfirmed rumors of the 
existence of trafficking rings in the Northern 
provinces.  As in other countries, parents in poor, 
rural parts of Afghanistan often willingly send their 
kids with traffickers in hopes that the child will 
receive education and make income that he or she can 
send home.  Baghlan province, which was traditionally 
an agrarian society whose economy has been hard hit by 
years of drought and war, is thought to be a common 
source of trafficked children for this reason.  Women, 
children, and men trafficked into Iran for labor and 
into Pakistan are often trafficked through the 
province of Nimroz in the Southwest, due to the 
isolation and lack of border control along that part 
of the Iran-Afghanistan-Pakistan border.  The Islam 
Qala border checkpoint in Herat is another site 
commonly used for trafficking into Iran.  Similarly, 
the city of Torkham, in the Eastern border province of 
Nangarhar, is often used to traffic victims from north 
Afghanistan into Pakistan.  Other victims from the 
South are trafficked into Pakistan via Afghanistan's 
very porous border with the provinces of Helmand, 
Kandahar, Zabul, Paktika and Khost. 
 
 
¶3.  (SBU) What are the limitations on the government's 
ability to address this problem in practice?  For 
example, is funding for police or other institutions 
inadequate?  Is overall corruption a problem?  Does 
the government lack the resources to aid victims? 
 
As mentioned above, the government's capacity to 
address trafficking is extremely weak, and there is 
little coordination among the various government 
agencies that play a role in combating trafficking. 
There appears to be some disagreement about which 
government ministry has the lead on coordinating anti- 
trafficking efforts.  Funding to train police, judges, 
and prosecutors on identifying and investigating 
trafficking cases remains inadequate.  Border and 
highway police are often believed to be complicit in 
trafficking activities.  The government has no 
capacity to assist victims; such assistance is 
provided mostly by international NGO's. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) To what extent does the government 
systematically monitor its anti-trafficking efforts 
(on all fronts -- prosecution, prevention and victim 
protection) and periodically make available, publicly 
or privately and directly or through 
regional/international organizations, its assessments 
of these anti-trafficking efforts? 
 
The government does not currently have the capacity to 
systematically monitor its anti-trafficking efforts. 
Various ministries are responsible for prosecution and 
prevention, but they do not coordinate. 
 
---------- 
PREVENTION 
---------- 
 
KABUL 00000793  004 OF 012 
 
 
 
¶5.  (SBU)  Does the government acknowledge that 
trafficking is a problem in the country?  If not, why 
not? 
 
The government does acknowledge that trafficking is a 
problem and since last year seems to have a greater 
understanding of the different forms of trafficking. 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Which government agencies are involved in 
anti-trafficking efforts and which agency, if any, has 
the lead? 
 
The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs has been the 
most active on strategic efforts to combat 
trafficking; however, the Ministry of Interior is 
primarily responsible for reporting and investigating 
cases, and has the most direct contact with victims. 
The Ministry of Justice is currently drafting a 
specific law that criminalizes trafficking.  The 
Attorney General's Office is responsible for keeping 
statistics on arrests, prosecutions, and convictions. 
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is involved in 
addressing efforts against international trafficking. 
The Ministry of Women's Affairs is involved somewhat 
in addressing issues of trafficking of women.  These 
ministries do not coordinate and have differing 
opinions on which agency should take the lead.  The 
Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs receives the most 
international assistance (funding and capacity 
building) for anti-trafficking efforts, primarily from 
UNICEF, but as a result, only addresses trafficking of 
children. 
 
 
¶7.  (SBU) Are there, or have there been, government- 
run anti-trafficking information or education 
campaigns?  If so, briefly describe the campaign(s), 
including their objectives and effectiveness.  Do 
these campaigns target potential trafficking victims 
and/or the demand for trafficking (e.g. "clients" of 
prostitutes or beneficiaries of forced labor)? 
 
The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, with the 
assistance of UNICEF, did conduct a public awareness 
and education campaign in 2006.  There was no 
available data on its effectiveness.  The campaign 
sought to educate the public-at-large on the types of 
trafficking and to whom incidents should be reported. 
 
¶8.  (SBU) Does the government support other programs 
to prevent trafficking? (e.g., to promote women's 
participation in economic decision-making or efforts 
to keep children in school.)  Please explain. 
 
The government does support other programs which 
indirectly prevent trafficking, such as efforts to 
keep children in school, increasing overall law 
enforcement and rule of law, and public education 
campaigns on women's and children's rights. 
 
¶9.  (SBU) What is the relationship between government 
officials, NGOs, other relevant organizations and 
other elements of civil society on the trafficking 
issue? 
 
Government officials are willing to interact 
cooperatively with NGOs and other relevant 
organizations on trafficking issues, mostly because 
the government's anti-trafficking efforts are still 
driven by funding from the international community. 
 
¶10.  (SBU) Does the government monitor immigration and 
emigration patterns for evidence of trafficking?  Do 
 
KABUL 00000793  005 OF 012 
 
 
law enforcement agencies screen for potential 
trafficking victims along borders? 
 
The government currently has no capacity to do this. 
The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs maintains 
statistics on repatriation of child trafficking 
victims.  The Ministry of Foreign Affairs had 
information on isolated cases, but did not maintain 
overall statistics on repatriation 
 
¶11. (SBU) Is there a mechanism for coordination and 
communication between various agencies, internal, 
international, and multilateral on trafficking-related 
matters, such as a multi-agency working group or a 
task force?  Does the government have a trafficking in 
persons working group or single point of contact? 
Does the government have a public corruption task 
force? 
 
There was a presidential decree in 2005 establishing a 
commission involving the Ministries of Defense, 
Justice, Interior, Foreign Affairs, Border Affairs, 
Refugees and Repatriation and Chief of the Office of 
the National Intelligence to coordinate on trafficking 
issues; however, it appears that this group never met 
with any frequency and has since dissolved.  There is 
presently no coordinating mechanism within the GOA. 
 
¶12.  (SBU) Does the government have a national plan of 
action to address trafficking in persons?  If so, 
which agencies were involved in developing it?  Were 
NGOs consulted in the process?  What steps has the 
government taken to disseminate the action plan? 
 
The government developed a National Plan of Action to 
address trafficking in persons in 2004 that set the 
following goals for national anti-trafficking efforts: 
creation of an anti-trafficking law; training of law 
enforcement officials, judges and prosecutors to 
identify, investigate, and prosecute trafficking 
cases; development of a system to track and analyze 
trafficking trends; increasing border security; public 
awareness activities to educate the public on 
trafficking issues; provision of shelters and services 
to victims; training of Afghan diplomats working at 
GOA missions abroad to identify and assist trafficking 
victims; development of a witness protection program 
for those who help police in combating trafficking. 
To date the only parts of this plan which have been 
implemented include some training of law enforcement, 
NGO, and diplomatic employees to identify trafficking 
cases and scattered public awareness campaigns.  With 
help from IOM, the Ministry of Justice began drafting 
an anti-trafficking law in late 2006.  The draft is 
currently 65% complete and should be sent to the 
Afghan Parliament for approval in late 2007.  In early 
2007, the MOI drafted a new organizational plan that 
includes a specific office to track cases and analyze 
trends on TIP.  This office has not yet been staffed. 
 
In 2006 the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs 
drafted, in consultation with UNICEF, a National 
Strategy for Children At-Risk, which identified 22 
categories of children at-risk, one of which was 
trafficking victims.  The MLSA and UNICEF have 
circulated copies of this strategy. 
 
-------------------------------------------- 
INVESTIGATION AND PROSECUTION OF TRAFFICKERS 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
 
¶13.  (SBU) Does the country have a law specifically 
prohibiting trafficking in persons--both for sexual 
 
KABUL 00000793  006 OF 012 
 
 
and non-sexual purposes (e.g. forced labor)?  If so, 
please specifically cite the name of the law and itQ 
date of enactment.  Does the law(s) cover both 
internal and external (transnational) forms of 
trafficking? If not, under what other laws can 
traffickers be prosecuted?  For example, are there 
laws against slavery or the exploitation of 
prostitution by means of force, fraud or coercion? 
Are these other laws being used in trafficking cases? 
Are these laws, taken together, adequate to cover the 
full scope of trafficking in persons?  Please provide 
a full inventory of trafficking laws, including non- 
criminal statutes that allow for civil penalties 
against alleged trafficking crimes, (e.g., civil 
forfeiture laws and laws against illegal debt. 
 
As stated above, the Ministry of Justice began 
drafting an anti-trafficking law in late 2006.  The 
draft is currently 65% complete and should be sent to 
the Afghan Parliament for approval in late 2007. 
Currently traffickers are prosecuted under laws 
designed to address kidnapping. 
 
The relevant laws are as follows:  (Note: the quality 
of translation is poor; however, they are from 
official translations published in Afghan law books. 
End note.) 
 
Penal Code 
 
Article 356: 
A person who takes away or hides a newborn baby from 
person who have legal rights over him, or changes him 
with another infant, or untruthfully relates him to 
some other than his mother, shall be sentenced in the 
light of circumstances to medium imprisonment. 
 
Article 418: 
A person who, himself/herself or through another, 
kidnaps a child, not yet seven years old, or someone 
who cannot look after himself, or leaves at large one 
of the persons mentioned in an uninhabited area, shall 
be sentenced. 
 
Article 419: 
If, as a result of commitment of the crimes specified 
under article 418 of this law, some organ of the child 
or the person (kidnapped) is defected or lost, the 
offender shall be punished in accordance with the 
provisions of deliberate laceration or if the child or 
person (kidnapped) dies, the offender shall be 
punished in accordance with the provisions of 
deliberate murder. 
 
Article 420: 
¶1.  A person who, himself or through another, kidnaps, 
without coercion or fraud, a child not yet eighteen 
years old, shall be sentenced.  2.  If the kidnapped 
child is a girl, the offender shall be sentenced to 
long imprisonment, not exceeding ten years. 
 
Article 421: 
¶1.  A person who, himself or through another, kidnaps 
without coercion or fraud, a child not yet eighteen 
years old, shall be sentenced.  2.  If the kidnapped 
child is a girl, the offender shall receive the 
maximum anticipated punishment of the above paragraph. 
 
Article 423: 
If the acts specified under article 420 and 421 of 
this law are committed by a person who has influence 
or authority over the person against whom the crime 
has been committed, or if the former is charged with 
the responsibility of raising the latter, the offender 
 
KABUL 00000793  007 OF 012 
 
 
shall be sentenced. 
 
Article 425: 
A person who carries off a girl, who is sixteen years 
or over, at her own will from her parents' residence 
for the purpose of lawfully marrying her, shall not be 
deemed as having committed an act of kidnapping. 
 
Article 515: 
 
A person who holds as hostage another person through 
threat, coercion or any other means, shall be 
sentenced to long imprisonment 
 
 
¶14.  (SBU) What are the penalties for trafficking 
people for sexual exploitation? 
 
No specific law has been defined for trafficking for 
sexual exploitation. 
 
 
¶15.  (SBU) Punishment of Labor Trafficking Offenses: 
What are the prescribed and imposed penalties for 
trafficking for labor exploitation, such as forced or 
bonded labor and involuntary servitude?  Do the 
government's laws provide for criminal punishment -- 
i.e. jail time -- for labor recruiters in labor source 
countries who engage in recruitment of laborers using 
knowingly fraudulent or deceptive offers that result 
in workers being exploited in the destination country? 
For employers or labor agents in labor destination 
countries who confiscate workers' passports or travel 
documents, switch contracts without the worker's 
consent as a means to keep the worker in a state of 
service, or withhold payment of salaries as means of 
keeping the worker in a state of service?  If law(s) 
prescribe criminal punishments for these offenses, 
what are the actual punishments imposed on persons 
convicted of these offenses? 
 
Article 49 of the Afghan constitution prohibits forced 
labor. 
 
 
¶16.  (SBU) What are the prescribed penalties for rape 
or forcible sexual assault?  How do they compare to 
the prescribed and imposed penalties for crimes of 
trafficking for commercial sexual exploitation? 
 
The courts in Afghanistan refer to Article 429 of the 
Penal Code to address rape cases and sexual assault 
cases.  This article provides for no more that seven 
years imprisonment in rape case, unless aggravating 
circumstances exist.  It states that, "(1) A person 
who through violence, threat, or deceit, violates the 
chastity of another (whether male or female), or 
initiates the act, shall be sentenced to long 
imprisonment, not exceeding seven years.  (2) In the 
case where the person against whom the crime is 
committed is not eighteen years old, or the person who 
commits the crime is one of the persons specified 
under the paragraph 2 of article 427 of this law, the 
offender shall be sentenced to long imprisonment, not 
exceeding ten years."  There is no punishment for rape 
mentioned in the Koran, but Islamic criminal law 
historically has treated it as a form of "adultery" 
punishable by stoning.   Also, in practice, women who 
are victims of rape are sometimes considered to have 
committed a crime themselves and are sentenced 
accordingly.  The penalty for sex trafficking has not 
been defined. 
 
¶17.  (SBU) Is prostitution legalized or 
 
KABUL 00000793  008 OF 012 
 
 
decriminalized?  Specifically, are the activities of 
the prostitute criminalized?  Are the activities of 
the brothel owner/operator, clients, pimps, and 
enforcers criminalized?  Are these laws enforced?  If 
prostitution is legal and regulated, what is the legal 
minimum age for this activity?  Note that in many 
countries with federalist systems, prostitution laws 
may be covered by state, local, and provincial 
authorities. 
 
Though the Penal Code is silent on the definition and 
punishment for prostitution, courts normally consider 
it akin to the crime of "adultery".  Judges usually 
refer to Article 427, which says that, "A person who 
commits adultery...shall be sentenced to long 
imprisonment" (but the law doesn't provide specific 
sentencing guidelines).  Article 430 deals with the 
crime of "instigation to debauchery" and provides a 
minimum three years imprisonment.  The translation we 
have is imperfect, but Article 430 apparently states 
that:  (1) A person who instigates a male or female, 
not eighteen years old to debauchery or a person who 
instigates another to acquire a profession pertaining 
to debauchery, or assists another in this respect, 
shall be sentenced to medium imprisonment, not less 
than three years and; (2) if the person committing the 
crime is one of the persons specified under the 
paragraph 2 of article 427 of this law, or the act has 
been performed for the purpose of acquiring benefit, 
the offender shall be sentenced to long imprisonment, 
not exceeding ten years.  (Note: Under Islamic Law, 
prostitution is also considered a form of adultery and 
is punishable by lashing for unmarried prostitutes 
and/or unmarried clients of prostitutes.   For those 
clients and/or prostitutes who are married, the 
penalty is death by stoning in public view. End Note.) 
 
 
¶18.  (SBU) Has the government prosecuted any cases 
against traffickers?  If so, provide numbers of 
investigations, prosecutions, convictions, and 
sentences, including details on plea bargains and 
fines, if relevant and available.  Does 
the government in a labor source country criminally 
prosecute labor recruiters who recruit laborers using 
knowingly fraudulent or deceptive offers or impose on 
recruited laborers inappropriately high or illegal 
fees or commissions that create a debt bondage 
condition for the laborer?  Does the government in a 
labor destination country criminally prosecute 
employers or labor agents who confiscate workers' 
passports/travel documents, switch contracts or terms 
of employment without the worker's consent, use 
physical or sexual abuse or the threat of such 
abuse to keep workers in a state of service, or 
withhold payment of salaries as a means to keep 
workers in a state of service?  Are the traffickers 
serving the time sentenced:  If not, why not?  Please 
indicate whether the government can provide this 
information, and if not, why not? (Note: complete 
answers to this section are essential. End Note.) 
 
130 people were arrested for TIP-related offenses in 
¶2006.  120 of those cases were prosecuted, but only 45 
were actually convicted.  Sentences varied between 7 
months and 16 years.  The Attorney General's Office 
did not provide data on the average length of 
sentences and whether such sentences were carried out. 
The Attorney General's office did not provide 
specifics on which types of trafficking cases were 
most commonly prosecuted. 
 
¶19.  (SBU) Is there any information or reports of who 
is behind the trafficking?  For example, are the 
 
KABUL 00000793  009 OF 012 
 
 
traffickers freelance operators, small crime groups, 
and/or large international organized crime syndicates? 
Are employment, travel, and tourism agencies or 
marriage brokers fronting for traffickers or crime 
groups to traffic individuals? Are government 
officials involved?  Are there any reports of 
where profits from trafficking in persons are being 
channeled?  (e.g. armed groups, terrorist 
organizations, judges, banks, etc.) 
 
There are no official reports on who is behind the 
trafficking.  There are unofficial reports of some 
organized crime involvement in the trafficking of 
Eastern European women and some reports of employment 
agencies in China that traffic women to Afghanistan. 
 
¶20.  (SBU) Does the government actively investigate 
cases of trafficking?  (Again, the focus should be on 
trafficking cases versus migrant smuggling cases.) 
Does the government use active investigative 
techniques in trafficking in persons investigations? 
To the extent possible under domestic law, are 
techniques such as electronic surveillance, undercover 
operations, and mitigated punishment or immunity for 
cooperating suspects used by the government?  Does the 
criminal procedure code or other laws prohibit the 
police from engaging in covert operations? 
 
Despite scattered efforts to train law enforcement 
officials, government officials still lack the 
capacity to properly investigate TIP cases.  Cases 
that do come to the government's attention are most 
likely reported by victims or their families or 
discovered by law enforcement officials when they are 
investigating other types of illegal activity, such as 
drug smuggling, prostitution or the sale of alcohol. 
The criminal procedure code does not prevent covert 
operations. 
 
¶21.  (SBU) Does the government provide any specialized 
training for government officials in how to recognize, 
investigate, and prosecute instances of trafficking? 
 
The government itself does not have capacity to offer 
such training.  When conducted, such training is 
provided by international NGOs and not with any 
consistency. 
 
¶22.  (SBU) Does the government cooperate with other 
governments in the investigation and prosecution of 
trafficking cases?  If possible, can post provide the 
number of cooperative international investigations on 
trafficking? 
 
There is limited cooperation on the return of Afghan 
children who have been trafficked abroad and 
practically no cooperation in the investigation or 
prosecution of cases.  The GOA reports having a 
particularly hard time getting cooperation from the 
Government of Pakistan Q investigate cases of Afghan 
women and children trafficked into Pakistan that are 
reported by their families.  The Ministry of Labor and 
Social Affairs reported a total of 400 repatriations 
of Afghan children in 2006: 315 from Saudi Arabia, 1 
from Oman, 3 from Pakistan, 10-15 from Iran, 2 from 
Zimbabwe.  (Note: These numbers are unlikely to 
reflect accurately the scale of trafficking into 
Pakistan and Iran.  End note.) 
 
¶23.  (SBU) Does the government extradite persons who 
are charged with trafficking in other countries?  If 
so, can post provide the number of traffickers 
extradited?  Does the government extradite its own 
nationals charged with such offenses?   If not, is the 
 
KABUL 00000793  010 OF 012 
 
 
government prohibited by law form extraditing its own 
nationals?  If so, is the government doing to modify 
its laws to permit the extradition of its own 
nationals? 
 
There have been no extraditions of traffickers, 
although there does not appear to be any law 
preventing such. 
 
¶24.  (SBU) Is there evidence of govQnment involvement 
in or tolerance of trafficking, on a local or 
institutional level? If so, please explain in detail. 
 
There are unconfirmed reports of corrupt Afghan 
National Police and Afghan Border Police officers 
being complicit in trafficking, but no evidence 
exists.  The Ministry of Interior said no police 
officials have been arrested for involvement in 
trafficking.  There are no reports of institutional 
involvement in trafficking by the government. 
 
¶25.  (SBU) If government officials are involved in 
trafficking, what steps has the government taken to 
end such participation?  Have any government officials 
been prosecuted for involvement in trafficking or 
trafficking-related corruption?  Have any been 
convicted?  What sentence(s) was imposed?  Please 
provide specific numbers, if available. 
 
None. 
 
¶26.  (SBU) If the country has an identified child sex 
tourism problem (as source or destination), how many 
foreign pedophiles has the government prosecuted or 
deported/extradited to their country of origin?  What 
are the countries of origin for sex tourists?  Do the 
country's child sexual abuse laws have 
extraterritorial coverage (similar to the U.S. PROTECT 
Act)?  If so, how many of the country's nationals have 
been prosecuted and/or convicted under the 
extraterritorial provision(s)? 
 
Sex tourism has not been identified as a problem in 
Afghanistan. 
 
¶27.  (SBU) Has the government signed, ratified, and/or 
taken steps to implement the following international 
instruments?  Please provide the date of 
signature/ratification if appropriate. 
 
--ILO Convention 182 concerning the Prohibition and 
Immediate Action for the Elimination of the Worst 
Forms of Child Labor.  Afghanistan has not ratified 
this convention. 
 
--ILO Convention 29 and 105 on Forced or Compulsory 
Labor.  Yes, 1963. 
 
--The Optional Protocol to the Convention on the 
Rights of the Child (CRC) on the Sale of Children, 
Child Prostitution, and Child Pornography.  Yes, 2000. 
 
--The Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish 
Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children, 
supplementing the UN Convention Against Transnational 
Organized Crime.  Yes, 2000. 
 
------------------------------------ 
PROTECTION AND ASSISTANCE TO VICTIMS 
------------------------------------ 
 
¶28.  (SBU) Does the government assist victims, for 
example, by providing temporary to permanent residency 
status, relief from deportation, shelter and access to 
 
KABUL 00000793  011 OF 012 
 
 
legal, medical and psychological services?  If so, 
please explain.  Does the country have victim care and 
victim health care facilities?  Does the country have 
facilities dedicated to helping victims of 
trafficking?  If so, can post provide the number 
of victims placed in these care facilities? 
 
No.  Any assistance to victims is provided by 
international NGOs and not with any consistency.  The 
Ministry of Women's Affairs occasionally receives 
reports of trafficking but is unable to provide 
services to victims. 
 
¶29.  (SBU) Does the government provide funding or 
other forms of support to foreign or domestic NGOs for 
services to victims?  Please explain. 
 
No. All funding comes from international donors. 
 
¶30.  (SBU) Do the government's law enforcement and 
social services personnel have a formal system of 
identifying victims of trafficking among high-risk 
persons with whom they come in contact(e.g. foreign 
persons arrested for prostitution or immigration 
violations)? Is there a referral process in place, 
when appropriate, to transfer victims detained, 
arrested or placed in protective custody by law 
enforcement authorities to NGO's that provide short- 
or long-term care? 
 
No. 
 
¶31.  (SBU) Are the rights of victims respected, or are 
victims treated as criminals?  Are victims detained, 
jailed, or deported?  If detained or jailed, for how 
long?  Are victims fined?  Are victims prosecuted for 
violations of other laws, such as those governing 
immigration or prostitution? 
 
There is no established protocol for the treatment of 
victims.  Their treatment varies depending on the 
official involved, location, or security service. 
Female victims are often treated as criminals, both in 
cases of prostitution and in cases where women have 
run away from home to escape forced marriages or 
domestic abuse.  No specific information is available 
on the length of detention or treatment of individual 
victims. 
 
¶32.  (SBU) Does the government encourage victims to 
assist in the investigation and prosecution of 
trafficking?  May victims file civil suits or seek 
legal action against the traffickers?  Does anyone 
impede the victims' access to such legal redress?  If 
a victim is a material witness in a court case against 
a former employer, is the victim permitted to 
obtain other employment or to leave the country 
pending trial proceedings?  Is there a victim 
restitution program? 
 
There is no victim restitution program.  The 
government does not encourage victims to assist in 
investigations, and the court system does not have the 
capacity to handle civil proceedings adequately. 
 
¶33.  (SBU) What kind of protection is the government 
able to provide for victims and witnesses?  Does it 
provide these protections in practice?  What type of 
shelter or services does the government provide?  Does 
it provide shelter or housing benefits to victims or 
other resources to aid the victims in rebuilding their 
lives? Where are child victims placed (e.g. in 
shelters, foster-care, or juvenile justice 
detention centers)? 
 
KABUL 00000793  012 OF 012 
 
 
 
The government provides no formal protection to 
victims.  Victims are sometimes jailed while officials 
decide on the disposition of their cases, whether to 
press charges, or to deport.  Some protection is given 
by NGOs, though not on a consistent basis.  There are 
approximately four women's shelters nationwide that 
provide protection to female victims and their 
children but not in large numbers.  Otherwise, 
children are usually placed in orphanages until their 
families can be located. 
 
¶34.  (SBU) Does the government provide any specialized 
training for government officials in recognizing 
trafficking and in the provision of assistance to 
trafficked victims, including the special needs of 
trafficked children?  Does the government provide 
training on protections and assistance to its 
embassies and consulates in foreign countries that are 
destination or transit countries?  Does it urge those 
embassies and consulates to develop ongoing 
relationships with NGOs that serve trafficked victims? 
 
Any such training is provided by international NGOs, 
not the government.  Training to GOA embassies and 
consulates was last provided in 2004-2005. 
 
¶35.  (SBU) Does the government provide assistance, 
such as medical aid, shelter, or financial help, to 
its repatriated nationals who are victims of 
trafficking? 
 
Such assistance is provided by international NGOs, if 
at all. 
 
¶36.  (SBU) Which international organizations or NGOs, 
if any, work with trafficking victims?  What type of 
services do they provide?  What sort of cooperation do 
they receive from local authorities?  NOTE:  If post 
reports that a government is incapable of assisting 
and protecting TIP victims, then post should explain 
thoroughly.  Funding, personnel, and training 
constraints should be noted, if applicable. 
Conversely, the lack of political will to address the 
problem should be noted as well. 
 
The International Organization for Migration (IOM), 
UNICEF, Save the Children, and the Afghan Independent 
Human Rights Commission provide assistance to 
trafficking victims.  As stated before, the government 
does not have the financial resources or capacity to 
assist and protect victims.