VZCZCXYZ0000
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHWR #1237/01 1500946
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 300946Z MAY 07
FM AMEMBASSY WARSAW
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 4386
RUEHHI/AMEMBASSY HANOI 0097
RUEHSF/AMEMBASSY SOFIA 1022

UNCLAS WARSAW 001237 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
PRM FOR HOLLABAUGH 
EUR/NCE FOR PUTNEY 
G/TIP FOR HALL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREF KCRM KJUS PL
SUBJECT: TIP ISSUES GRAB POLISH HEADLINES 
 
REF: 06 WARSAW 2511 
 
¶1.  (U) Summary.  Polish media has recently highlighted a number of 
instances where law enforcement mishandled and deported TIP victims. 
Interior Minster Kaczmarek seized on the bad press to highlight the 
seriousness of the problem to the public and launched an internal 
investigation, and the Human Rights Ombudsman pressed for a better 
legal foundation to combat TIP.  NGOs, which had been generally 
happy with progress, are now critical of the GOP's anti-TIP efforts. 
Unrelated political shakeups in the National Police have led to the 
resignation of Central Anti-Trafficking Unit (CATU) Chief Pawel 
Maslowski and the dissolution of the unit as an independent entity. 
These come after a period in which there was significant progress, 
and Post will continue to press the GOP on TIP issues.  End 
Summary. 
 
Press Highlights Law-Enforcement Slipups 
---------------------------------------- 
¶2.  (U) On February 19, media reported on the deportation of a 
Vietnamese woman identified as a TIP victim and protected by the 
Interior Ministry (MSWiA)-funded assistance program for TIP Victims. 
Under this program the woman should have received safety, medical 
and psychological counseling, and other assistance, but instead 
Border Guards treated her as an illegal immigrant and deported her 
without notifying La Strada, the NGO which serves as point of 
contact for TIP victims.  Two months later, on April 19, Interior 
MiQstry officials publicly acknowledged that deportation was a 
mistake and announced that the procedures for dealing with 
trafficking victims would be amended so that such situations would 
not happen again in the future. 
 
¶3. (U) Despite this pledge, on May 8 national newspaper Dziennik 
published story on a similar case where Polish law enforcement 
treated a potential TIP victim as an illegal immigrant.  A Nigerian 
woman was lured to Poland with an offer to play handball at a sports 
club, but instead was forced to work at a sex club.  When police 
discovered the young woman she had been physically and sexually 
abused by clients, tortured by her pimps, and infected with HIV. 
Police turned her over to Border Guards, who immediately began 
deportation proceedings instead of following the proper procedures 
of notifying La Strada and providing social services to the possible 
TIP victim. 
 
¶4. (U) During this period Polish law enforcement did boast some 
successful operations, specifically the arrest of a married couple 
on May 10 for forced prostitution and pimping of another severely 
abused Nigerian woman in northern Poland; and another arrest of two 
Bulgarians who had been forcing a 22-year old Bulgarian woman to 
provide sex to truck drivers along one of Poland's international 
highways and had severely beaten her for not generating enough 
income. 
 
Polish Government Reaction 
-------------------------- 
¶5. (U) Interior Minister Janusz Kaczmarek used the negative press to 
underscore the seriousness of human trafficking in Poland, and to 
show that Poland is not only a transit country but also a 
destination for TIP victims.  He personally intervened and halted 
the deportation proceedings of the Nigerian woman, granting her 
assistance, and opened an internal investigation into the Office for 
Repatriation and Aliens, National Police, and Border Guards to 
examine whether they complied with all required procedures in this 
case. 
 
¶6. (U) On the heels of Kaczmarek's announcement, Human Rights 
Ombudsman Janusz Kochanowski submitted a formal request to the 
Minister of Justice to amend the criminal code to include the 
definition of trafficking into article 253, which prohibits but does 
not define trafficking.  Kochanowski argued that Article 253 is 
unclear and that judges and prosecutors are reluctant to apply this 
article when prosecuting TIP offenders.  Instead, they tend to 
charge perpetrators with other offences, such as fraud, organized 
crime, or pimping.  Most NGOs, academics, and even some in the 
judiciary have long called for precisely this revision of the Polish 
criminal code. 
 
Prominent NGO Lashes Out 
------------------------ 
¶7. (SBU) On May 10, PolAsst spoke with La Strada president Stana 
Buchowska, who strongly criticized law enforcement for their 
comportment in the Vietnamese and Nigerian cases, as well as for 
poor cooperation among various agencies that deal with TIP.  Over 
the last year Buchowska had been praising GOP efforts, primarily 
those of CATU Chief Maslowski.  But the last few months have seen 
serious backsliding according to Buchowska; law enforcement too 
often fails to identify victims and refer them for assistance; too 
many TIP victims are treated as illegal immigrants and deported 
straightaway to their countries of origin; and despite the numerous 
training sessions provided there is a general lack of coordination 
between police, border guards and other law enforcement agencies. 
 
¶8. (SBU) Unlike the Human Rights Ombudsman, Buchowska complimented 
Poland's TIP-related legal framework, specifically Article 253 of 
the Criminal Code, believing that the law is sufficient as written. 
She claims that poor enforcement is the main area of concern. 
Prosecutors and judges, she said, seem to be reluctant to apply this 
article and often refer to Article 204 (4), which only penalizes 
forced prostitution.  The maximum punishment under this article is 
10 years, whereas Article 253 is strictly for trafficking and 
prescribes a mandatory prison sentence of between three and 15 
years.  Buchowska believes that the current government lacks strong 
political will to combat trafficking, and many government officials 
do not perceive trafficking as a major problem. 
 
Shakeup in Police Anti-TIP Unit 
------------------------------- 
¶9. (SBU) Buchowska further claimed that cooperation between La 
Strada and law enforcement, which had shown marked improvement over 
the past year, has recently worsened, due to what she claims is the 
GOP's more conservative approach, political and structural changes 
within law enforcement, and the lack of political will to undertake 
more effective measures to combat trafficking.  She believes that 
not enough government officials perceive TIP as a serious problem. 
Further exacerbating the situation is the recent resignation of 
Central Anti-Trafficking Unit (CATU) Chief Pawel Maslowski, who 
received high marks from NGOs for his anti-TIP work.  Maslowski 
indicated to PolAsst that the overall political atmosphere in the 
police department was a major factor in his decision to step down. 
[Note: There have been drastic personnel changes in the police as a 
result of the current government's unrelated effort to remove 
officers with links to the communist-era police system.  End Note]. 
All other members of the CATU, except one, have resigned as well, 
and the CATU, described in Reftel, will soon cease to exist as a 
separate entity in the national police. 
 
¶10. (SBU) Comment: After significant progress and high-profile 
breakups of international human trafficking rings, the recent 
mishandling of trafficking victims represents a step backwards in 
Poland's efforts to combat TIP.  The GOP's recent public 
acknowledgement of TIP as a major problem may lead to better 
enforcement, but the loss of Maslowski and some of his colleagues in 
the National Police is disconcerting.  The MSWiA and MOJ have 
scheduled training sessions for judges and prosecutors, but not 
until 2008.  Post will continue to engage Justice and Interior 
Ministry and police officials for further training and progress. 
End Comment. 
ASHE