VZCZCXYZ0000
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHSK #0185 0741218
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 141218Z MAR 08
FM AMEMBASSY MINSK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 7024
INFO RUEHMO/AMEMBASSY MOSCOW 3659
RUEHKV/AMEMBASSY KYIV 0104
RUEHWR/AMEMBASSY WARSAW 3497
RUEHRA/AMEMBASSY RIGA 1814
RUEHVL/AMEMBASSY VILNIUS 3913
RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA 0367
RUEHAD/AMEMBASSY ABU DHABI 0136
RUEHVEN/USMISSION USOSCE 1876
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS
RHMFISS/HQ USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE
RUFOADA/JAC MOLESWORTH RAF MOLESWORTH UK

UNCLAS MINSK 000185 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR G/TIP (ROFMAN/DONNELLY) 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KCRM KWMN PGOV PHUM BO
SUBJECT: TRAFFICKER SENTENCED TO LENGTHY JAIL TERM 
 
¶1.  On March 3, a Gomel district court sentenced a local 59-year-old 
woman to 11 years in a minimum security jail on human trafficking 
charges.  The unnamed defendant was convicted under the TIP-specific 
Criminal Code Article 181 "Kidnapping Human Beings for the Purpose 
of Exploitation," which allows for stiffer sentences in such cases. 
The court found her guilty of recruiting girls for sexual 
exploitation abroad "by deceit and abuse of trust."  The judge also 
ordered property confiscation and BYR 1.5 million (USD 700) in 
compensation to victims. 
 
¶2.  Anti-TIP and drug trafficking police arrested the woman at a 
Belarus-Ukraine border crossing May 26, 2007 as she was attempting 
to traffic two young women to Turkey.  The subsequent investigation 
established she had already trafficked over 10 women to the United 
Arab Emirates for sexual exploitation and made a profit of about USD 
16,000 per victim.  The police maintained the defendant was one of 
the founders of a criminal trafficking ring based in Gomel who 
reportedly had been convicted of a TIP-related crime and served a 
short jail term in 2001. 
 
¶3.  Pol/Econ FSN spoke to an independent journalist who covered the 
case.  She surmised that the harsh sentence stemmed from the GOB's 
desire to boost TIP convictions and demonstrate its resolve to 
become a leading force in combating TIP in the region.  In private 
conversations with the reporter, the victims admitted they sought 
the convict's assistance in organizing travel to work as 
prostitutes.  As with the April 2007 case against the owners of a 
modeling agency accused of trafficking, the hearings for this case 
were held behind closed doors.  Authorities contend this was done to 
ensure victims' privacy and security. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶4.  The lengthy jail term for the convicted trafficker is an 
encouraging sign that authorities are taking prosecution of 
trafficking seriously.  Though the victims in the case supposedly 
sought work abroad as prostitutes, the fact that authorities 
acknowledge this remains human trafficking is a positive step.  That 
said, the goal of shielding victims' identities can be achieved 
without denying defendants their rights under the Belarusian 
constitution to a public trial. 
 
Moore