VZCZCXYZ0015
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHTI #1059/01 3511551
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 171551Z DEC 07
FM AMEMBASSY TIRANA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 6471
RUEHC/DEPT OF LABOR WASHDC
INFO RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 0916

UNCLAS TIRANA 001059 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EUR/SCE 
DOL/ILAB for Tina McCarter 
DRL/IL for Tu Dang 
 
E.O. 12958:N/A 
TAGS: ELAB EIND ETRD PHUM SOCI USAID AL
SUBJECT:  ALBANIA:  2007 UPDATE ON WORST FORMS OF CHILD LABOR 
 
Ref:  A) STATE 158223 B) 06 TIRANA 01259 
 
¶1.  Summary: Post's 2007 report on Albania's worst forms of child 
labor will focus on changes and developments over the last year and 
will not repeat reporting in last year's cable (ref B).  Albania 
continues to make progress in addressing the issue of child labor 
and child trafficking, but as reported in previous years, a lack of 
funding and adequate criminal deterrents keep progress on a slow 
track.  The annual EU progress report, released in October 2007, 
commends Albania for its efforts in this area.  Draft amendments to 
the Penal Code set fines and prison sentences for violations of 
child labor laws.  End Summary. 
 
¶2.  Paragraph numbers below correspond to sections in ref A. 
 
9A) What are the laws and regulations proscribing the worst forms of 
child labor? 
 
No new laws or regulations were enacted concerning child labor in 
the past year.  While the worst forms of child labor are violations 
of the labor code, there are no civil or criminal penalties for 
violators.  New amendments to the Penal Code awaiting Parliamentary 
approval will criminalize these violations and will also penalize 
child abuse, currently not covered in any legislation. 
 
9B) What regulations exist for the implementation and enforcement of 
proscriptions against the worst forms of child labor? 
 
At the present time, the Ministry of Labor (MOL) has authority to 
inspect only legal entities, i.e. registered companies.  The large, 
informal economy and family-oriented enterprises are not within the 
MOL's mandate.  However, recently drafted amendments to the Penal 
Code will provide inspectors with additional powers and authority. 
 
Draft Article 128c of the Penal Code specifies the following 
penalties: 
 
-- exploitation of a minor child for labor or forced services, 
including begging (by parent or legal guardian) - up to one year in 
prison and a fine of 50,000 to 100,000 leke (one US dollar = 82 
leke); 
-- if the exploitation is done by a third party - up to three years 
in prison and a fine of 100,000 to 200,000 leke; and 
-- if the exploitation causes harm to the health of the child or 
death - three to seven years in prison. 
 
While this is a start, the very low fines, short prison sentences 
and low probability of standing trial are not expected to deter this 
profitable criminal activity. 
 
The MOL has labor inspection offices in major cities, including 50 
inspectors in Tirana.  However, there are no inspectors specializing 
in child labor. 
 
9C) Are there social programs specifically designed 
to prevent and withdraw children from the worst forms of 
child labor? 
 
The MOL Child Labor Unit, staffed by Shkelqesa Manaj, was 
established in 2004 with funding for two years by the ILO.  The Unit 
is now wholly funded by the GOA. 
 
The Child Labor Monitoring System (CLMS) was established by the MOL 
in February 2007.  Child Labor Monitoring (CLM) Local Action 
Committees (LACs) have been set up in Tirana, Berat, and Korca and 
are composed of the heads of municipalities, labor inspectors, 
social welfare officers, education officers, trade unions, 
employment officers, and community police. 
 
The LACs: 
-- identify child laborers and identify risks to which they are 
exposed; 
-- refer them to services for rehabilitation and/or provide them 
with risk reduction support as a temporary approach; and 
-- track them to verify that they have been removed and/or that the 
risk has been eliminated and that they have access to satisfactory 
alternatives. 
 
Child Protection Units (CPU), dealing with broader social issues 
surrounding child exploitation, abuse, and neglect, were also 
established during the past year.  NGO projects such as the 
Transnational Action Project Against Child Trafficking (TACT), with 
the overall goal of creating mechanisms for local governments to 
identify and respond to cases of child exploitation.  CPUs have been 
set up in Tirana, Elbasan, Fier, Gjirokaster, Pogradec and Korca. 
 
9D) Does the country have a comprehensive policy aimed at the 
elimination of the worst forms of child labor? 
 
The main pillars of the GOA's policy framework are: 
 
-- the National Strategy for Social Economic Development (previously 
the PRSP); 
-- the EU Stabilization and Association Process (SAP); and 
-- the Millennium Development Goals (MDG). 
 
The PRSP, MDGs and SAP are complementary and mutually re-enforcing 
on child labor issues in the methodologies that they use and in the 
time tables that they establish. 
 
National Strategy documents relating to child labor include: 
 
-- The National Strategy for Social and Economic Development 
(NSSED), published in 2004, is the fundamental document which 
contains government policies to alleviate poverty, guarantee 
economic development, and attain the development goals for the new 
millennium.  The planned objectives and measures cover a number of 
issues related to child labor. 
 
-- The National Strategy for Children (2005 - 2010) on child 
protection provides for raising awareness about child labor, setting 
up municipal and communal structures for protecting children at 
risk, improvement of legislation concerning children and 
coordination between central and local governments, NGOs and 
international organizations to fight child trafficking. 
 
-- The National Strategy on Trafficking in Children (2005-2007), 
including the National Plan of Action, constitutes a comprehensive 
framework for relevant institutions, with activities on awareness 
raising, training and capacity building, law enforcement 
cooperation, victim protection, return and reintegration, 
legislative reform, and prevention. 
 
-- The Strategy for Employment and Vocational Training (February 
2003) has created a network of private employment agencies and aims 
to improve vocational training institutions and provide employment 
opportunities to marginalized communities&QQ 
 
,- Dhe Strategy for Development o& Qg#i!d S%r6acer (M`rbh 2003) 
would increase social prot%c4a/n for children, decentralize and 
widen the variety of sgcial services, and develop alternatives to 
institutionalization through SOS villages, shelters and foster 
families in cooperation with NGOs; and 
 
-- the Strategy on Social Inclusion targets child labor and gives 
priority to the progressive elimination of the worst forms of child 
labor. 
 
While education is compulsory through the ninth grade, police have 
no mandate to take action against children or their parents for 
violations.  The MOL is reviewing a proposal which would withhold 
welfare payments from those families whose children do not attend 
school. 
 
9E) Is the country making continual progress toward eliminating the 
worst forms of child labor? 
 
As a result of the Child Labor Monitoring System (CLMS) (Paragraph 
9C), 300 working children and children at risk (142 boys and 158 
girls) have been identified and referred to LACs, out of which 77 
children (39 boys and 38 girls) have been withdrawn from 
exploitation as a result of the Action Program and 223 children (110 
boys and 113 girls) have been prevented from exploitation. 
 
Child labor is and has been most commonly found in the construction 
and agriculture industries, as well as family workers in car washes 
and as street vendors and beggars. 
 
Children are trafficked mostly for forced labor which includes 
forced begging, selling of small items like cigarettes and chewing 
gum, and petty crime.  It is assumed that a portion of children 
trafficked for labor are also sexually exploited, but no formal 
investigation has been conducted to determine the extent of their 
sexual exploitation.  Internal trafficking to large cities in 
Albania is increasing.  According to interlocutors, internal 
trafficking is increasing partly because Albanian children are being 
pushed out of their traditional markets in neighboring countries as 
child trafficking from countries like Kosovo and Macedonia 
increases.  The ban on power boats in 2006 has reduced significantly 
child trafficking to Italy, but Greece remains a main destination 
country. 
 
¶3.  Sources for this update include: Shkelqesa Manaj -  Director of 
MOL's Child Labor Unit; Etleva Vertopi - Director of the ILO-IPEC 
office; the May 31, 2007 MOL report to the ILO as required by 
Convention 182; USAID anti-trafficking advisor Kelly Cronen; and 
Thierry Agagliate - director of the NGO "Terre des hommes." 
 
WITHERS