VZCZCXRO1812
RR RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDBU RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA
RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHNP RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSK RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHBW #0137/01 0441518
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 131518Z FEB 09
FM AMEMBASSY BELGRADE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0976
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUEAWJA/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHINGTON DC
RUEFHLC/DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY WASHINGTON DC
RUEHC/DEPT OF LABOR WASHINGTON DC
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 06 BELGRADE 000137 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPT FOR G/TIP, G-ACBLANK, INL, DRL, PRM, EUR/PGI 
DEPT PASS USAID 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KTIP KCRM PHUM KWMN SMIG KFRD ASEC PREF ELAB SR
SUBJECT: SERBIA: ANNUAL TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS REPORT 
 
REF: A) 08 State 132759, B) Belgrade 17, C) 08 Belgrade 1250, D) 
Belgrade 32, E) 08 Belgrade 224 
 
¶1.  Serbia's TIP Situation 
-------------------------- 
 
¶A. Both the office of the National Coordinator for Combating 
Trafficking in Persons and the Agency for Coordination of Protection 
of Trafficking Victims, as well as other government ministries and 
agencies, provide information about trafficking in persons.  In 
addition, the International Organization for Migration, the 
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, and various 
NGOs provide information.  Information is generally reliable. 
 
¶B. Serbia is a country of origin, transit, and a destination for 
internationally and internally trafficked men, women, and children. 
The government's Agency for the Coordination of Protection of 
Victims of Trafficking recorded 55 trafficking victims in 2008.  Of 
these, there were 48 females and 7 males; 30 were minors; 49 were 
Serbian citizens and 6 foreigners (2 from Uzbekistan, 2 from 
Moldova, and 2 from Macedonia).  The number of foreigners was likely 
higher than reported Romanians and Bulgarians do not need visas in 
Serbia, they are scrutinized less by officials, and victims are more 
difficult to identify.  Foreign trafficking victims are moved into 
Serbia primarily through the Balkan route, from Eastern Europe and 
Central Asia through Kosovo and Macedonia.  While Serbia cooperates 
with its neighbors on individual cases, in order to better tackle 
the Balkan Route problem, Serbia needs to increase its coordination 
with other governments in the region.  The government's refusal to 
cooperate with the relevant Kosovo officials seriously affects 
Serbia's efforts to combat trafficking of all types on this route. 
 
There was an increase in labor trafficking cases compared to sexual 
exploitation cases in 2008.  In less than half of the cases, women 
and girls were trafficked for sexual exploitation, compared to a 
majority of cases in 2007.  NGO Atina noted that victims have been 
younger every year in recent years. 
 
While government, NGO, and IO officials believe there is 
underreporting of victims, especially of male victims who are 
unlikely to come forward due to potential stigma, official figures 
generally track with those reported by NGOs and are probably the 
most accurate available. 
 
¶C. Victims are often lured by promises of jobs as dancers, 
waitresses, or sex workers but then are forced to work in those jobs 
in substandard conditions, have their documents confiscated, and are 
held against their will.  Children are trafficked into petty crime 
or begging rings and live in crowded, substandard conditions with no 
access to school. 
 
¶D. As in previous years, women and children of poor economic means, 
orphans, displaced persons, and individuals without documents are 
most at risk for trafficking. 
 
¶E. Traffickers tend to be part of small crime groups with 
international links.  They operate amid Serbia's black and gray 
markets, where it is not uncommon to deal with employers or 
recruiters making under-the-table deals promising travel and work 
opportunities.  In most cases, friends or family members take part 
in the trafficking scheme, facilitating contact between the 
traffickers and victims.  Many victims from Serbia reported to NGOs 
that their families sold them into trafficking as minors. 
 
¶2. The Government's Anti-TIP Efforts 
------------------------------------ 
 
¶A. The government acknowledges that trafficking is a problem in 
Serbia. 
 
¶B. There is a National Coordinator for Combating Trafficking in 
Persons, based in the Interior Ministry.  The Coordinator heads the 
Republic Team to Combat Trafficking in Persons, which includes 
representatives from the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Human and 
Minority Rights, Interior, Labor and Social Policy, Justice, 
Finance, Education and Sport, and Health, the government Council for 
Children's Rights, the Agency for Coordination of Protection of 
Trafficking Victims, the Supreme Court, and the Republic 
Prosecutor's office, as well as non-governmental and international 
organizations.  The Republic Team has four working groups on 
Trafficking in Children, Prevention and Education, Protection and 
Assistance, and Prosecution.  The Interior Minister leads the 
ministerial-level Council to Combat Trafficking in Persons, which 
sets government anti-trafficking policy. 
 
 
BELGRADE 00000137  002 OF 006 
 
 
The Agency for Coordination of Protection of Trafficking Victims, 
based in the Labor and Social Policy Ministry, is responsible for 
victim identification, protection, and referral for assistance to 
state institutions or NGOs.  The Agency also cooperates with NGOs 
and international organizations that provide protection services. 
 
The organized crime police force includes a full-time 
anti-trafficking unit, and the border police force has a full-time 
office to combat trafficking and alien smuggling.  There are 
anti-trafficking units in the police stations of every town.  Some 
towns have special anti-trafficking teams that include police, 
prosecutors, social workers, and health workers, but they are not 
required and the teams exist only where local officials took the 
initiative to form them. 
 
¶C. The position of the Coordinator was vacant for nearly a year, 
which led to diminished focus on anti-trafficking efforts.  The 
position is now filled by a police officer experienced in combating 
trafficking (Ref B), and the Republic Team to Combat Trafficking in 
Persons and its working groups have resumed meeting.  Lack of 
resources continues to be a problem.  The Agency for Coordination of 
Protection of Trafficking Victims has no budget.  NGOs that provide 
services to victims rely on a government fund generated from the 
government's sale of a special postage stamp in 2008 and funds from 
their donors. 
 
¶D. The Ministry of Interior publishes information about 
anti-trafficking efforts on its website and operates a hotline to 
collect trafficking in persons-related tips for law enforcement. 
The Republic Team to Combat Trafficking in Persons writes periodic 
reports on the government's anti-trafficking activities.  It will 
hold a meeting in March 2009 to measure the effectiveness of the 
first quarter's activities, with plans to hold quarterly meetings 
thereafter. 
 
The National Coordinator for Combating Trafficking in Persons 
maintains a database designed to track trafficking cases from arrest 
through to sentencing; however, it currently only contains arrest 
and investigation data.  The National Coordinator will hold a 
workshop in March to develop a formal data-sharing mechanism with 
the courts and the Justice Ministry to populate fully the database. 
The Agency for Coordination of Protection of Trafficking Victims 
maintains a database of identified victims. 
 
¶3. Investigation and Prosecution of Traffickers 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
¶A. The 2006 Constitution identifies trafficking in persons and 
slavery as crimes.  Serbia's Criminal Code (January 2006) 
specifically prohibits trafficking in persons for both sexual and 
non-sexual exploitation, covers internal and external trafficking, 
and differentiates between trafficking in persons and human 
smuggling.  A separate article of the Criminal Code prohibits 
slavery. 
 
¶B. The penalty for trafficking in persons for both sexual and labor 
exploitation is 2 to 10 years in prison.  For trafficking minors, 
the penalty is a minimum of 3 years.  If the act of trafficking 
resulted in death, the penalty is a minimum of 10 years; if it 
involved serious physical injury, the penalty is 3 to 15 years.  If 
there were multiple acts of trafficking or if perpetrated by an 
organized group, the penalty is a minimum of five years.  The 
penalty for "slavery or a relationship similar to slavery" is 1 to 
10 years in prison and includes anyone who buys, sells, or transfers 
the victim, anyone who helps in the purchase, sale, or transfer, and 
anyone who encourages a person to sell his or her freedom or the 
freedom of a dependent.  The punishment for transporting a person 
held as a slave from one country to another is six months to five 
years.  The penalty for any slavery offense against a minor is 5 to 
15 years. 
 
¶D. The penalties for rape are the same as those for trafficking in 
persons (2 to 10 years in prison).  The penalty for sexual abuse is 
1 to 10 years. 
 
¶E. The National Coordinator for Combating Trafficking in Persons 
reported that prosecutors filed 32 charges against 74 individuals 
for trafficking crimes, mostly related to sexual exploitation, in 
¶2008.  Trials can take years due to an inefficient court system, and 
defendants are often not held in detention during the trial and 
appeals.  By law, defendants are only detained during the appeals 
process if their sentence was greater than five years.  The National 
Coordinator identified this as a weakness in the law that he would 
like the Council to Combat Trafficking in Persons to address in the 
future. 
 
BELGRADE 00000137  003 OF 006 
 
 
 
The Agency for Coordination of Protection of Trafficking Victims 
reports that sentences recently have been higher, thanks to 
increased training for judges.  In December 2008, a trafficker who 
had trafficked and tortured victims while out of jail during an 
appeal for a conviction of robbery was sentenced to eight years, 
based on testimony from one of his victims.  The hearing, verdict, 
and sentence all occurred within one day.  The defendant remains in 
custody pending appeal. 
 
Serbia's Parliament passed a package of Judicial Reform legislation 
in December 2008, designed to improve the efficiency of the judicial 
system (Ref C).  The Justice Ministry will release for public 
comment in March a draft of a revision of the Criminal Procedure 
Code (CPC)(Ref D), which will introduce prosecutor-led 
investigations and enable the use of special investigative 
techniques, such as wiretapping and witness collaborators. 
According to government and international organization officials, 
the improvements in the judicial reform package and the revised CPC 
will enhance efforts to combat trafficking. 
 
¶F. The government, mainly through NGO- and international 
organization-sponsored programs, provides extensive training to 
police, prosecutors, judges, and other officials in how to 
recognize, investigate, and prosecute trafficking.  Some officials 
noted a need to extend more training to local police. 
 
¶G. According to the National Coordinator, the government continues 
to cooperate with all of its neighbors on anti-trafficking cases. 
Interior Minister Ivica Dacic has publicly stated repeatedly since 
his appointment in July 2008 that regional cooperation is a priority 
for the ministry.  International organization officials believe, 
however, that Serbia needs to increase its regional cooperation. 
While there have been individual examples of regional coordination, 
all Interior Ministries in the region need to develop mechanisms for 
formal cooperation, according to the International Organization for 
Migration (IOM).  The government does not cooperate with Kosovo on 
any issues, which impedes its efforts to combat trafficking because 
Kosovo is the major transit country on the Balkan Route, through 
which trafficked persons are transited from Eastern Europe and 
Central Asia. 
 
¶H. Serbian law prohibits the extradition of Serbian citizens, 
including those with dual citizenship, other than to the 
International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia.  The 
Justice Ministry is currently drafting a Law on Cooperation on 
International Criminal Matters that will permit extradition, in 
accordance with EU standards.  The Ministry expects to send the bill 
to Parliament in March 2009. 
 
¶I. There is no evidence of systematic government involvement in or 
tolerance of trafficking. 
 
¶J. The "Jet Set" trial, in which the Novi Pazar deputy public 
prosecutor was arrested and tried, concluded in August 2008.  The 
deputy public prosecutor and eight others received sentences ranging 
from time served to eight years. 
 
¶K. A prostitute's activities constitute a misdemeanor; facilitation 
of prostitution (i.e., the activities of brothel owners, operators, 
and pimps) is a criminal act.  However, being a client of a 
prostitute is not an offense.  The laws are generally enforced. 
 
¶L. The government has not deployed more than 100 troops in 
international peacekeeping efforts.  Officials at the Ministry of 
Foreign Affairs have, however, expressed an interest in receiving 
training materials on anti-trafficking awareness for military 
personnel with the objective of preventing exploitation and sexual 
abuse. 
 
¶M. We are not aware of any child sex tourism or demand for child sex 
tourism in Serbia. 
 
¶4. Protection and Assistance to Victims 
--------------------------------------- 
 
¶A. The government has a witness/victim protection service and 
provides free access to medical care for both foreign and domestic 
trafficking victims.  The government partly funds NGOs that provide 
two shelters and legal, psychological, and reintegration services. 
 
 
¶B. Serbia has victim care facilities for foreign and domestic 
trafficking victims, primarily operated by NGOs.  The NGO Counseling 
Center against Family Violence runs a shelter for foreign 
 
BELGRADE 00000137  004 OF 006 
 
 
trafficking victims.  NGO Atina runs a shelter/transition house for 
domestic and foreign trafficking victims.  ASTRA runs a drop-in 
center that provides legal, medical, psychological, and other 
support.  The Victimology Society of Serbia has a drop-in victim 
support service that offers all victims of crime emotional support, 
provides information on their rights and on specialized services 
available in Belgrade, and refers victims to such service providers. 
 The International Organization for Migration (IOM) can provide 
funds for returns and repatriations on an ad hoc basis and operates 
a joint reintegration program with NGO Atina. 
 
Child victims are placed in the same shelters as adult victims until 
foster care or other services can be arranged.  There are no 
specialized services for men, but men and women have access to the 
same services. 
 
Officials from the Agency for Coordination of Protection of 
Trafficking Victims noted a need to develop legal or regulatory 
standards for NGOs that provide victim assistance. 
 
¶C. By law and in practice, domestic and foreign victims of 
trafficking can receive free medical assistance in public clinics. 
NGOs provide victims shelter, medical treatment, psychological 
counseling, and reintegration assistance (see paragraph B).  The 
government funds the salaries of two full-time staff at the Agency 
for Coordination of Protection of Trafficking Victims.  The 
government also provides grants to NGOs with the remaining proceeds 
of a special anti-trafficking postage stamp sold in January 2008 
(Ref E).  These grants, along with funds from international donors, 
fund the victim services provided by NGOs.  The government also uses 
the stamp fund to fund travel for Agency staff and emergency support 
for victims, including immediate food, clothing, travel, and shelter 
needs.  There are currently no plans to increase the budget for the 
Agency. 
 
¶D. Foreign victims are entitled to the same services that domestic 
victims receive, including free medical care.  The government 
provides temporary residence permits for foreign victims of 
trafficking free of charge, upon recommendation of the Agency for 
Coordination of Protection of Trafficking Victims.  Permits are 
typically issued for an initial period of three to six months, up to 
one year.  Victims may adjust their status to remain in Serbia if 
they choose.  The residency permits are available to any foreign 
victim and not contingent on cooperating with investigations or 
prosecutions.  There were no reports that foreign victims were 
forced to return to their home countries. 
 
¶E. NGOs provide reintegration assistance to domestic and foreign 
victims, partly funded by the government's special stamp fund.  IOM 
assists foreign victims who wish to remain in Serbia. 
 
¶F. The Agency for Coordination of Protection of Trafficking Victims 
is responsible for identifying victims and cooperating with NGOs and 
international organizations that provide victim services.  Police, 
NGOs, shelters, and anti-trafficking hotline operators work directly 
with the Agency when they suspect they have a victim of trafficking, 
and one of the two members of the Agency responds immediately to 
provide identification and emergency support.  This referral process 
is currently informal. 
 
The government for the first time in 2008 authorized the NGO Atina's 
personnel to respond to referrals during the summer months when the 
Agency was only staffed by one person at a time.  While the Agency 
is usually able to respond to all referrals, the two staff members 
are overworked, and the office needs more personnel and resources. 
Staff at the Agency believe the government will allocate more 
resources to victim protection in the coming year as part of the 
government's implementation of Schengen visa-free regime 
requirements, but they are uncertain how that money will be 
allocated. 
 
The National Coordinator for Combating Trafficking in Persons has 
begun discussions in the Republic Team to Combat Trafficking in 
Persons and working groups for a formal National Referral Mechanism. 
 
 
¶G. In 2008, the Agency for Coordination of Protection of Trafficking 
Victims identified a total of 55 trafficking victims, referred by a 
combination of law enforcement, social services, and NGOs.  Of the 
55, 18 were placed in shelters and 37 were not, although they were 
eligible for certain other services, such as free medical care. 
 
¶H. Because most of the trafficking in Serbia is for sexual 
exploitation, Serbian authorities have made at-risk services (night 
clubs, restaurants, massage parlors, discos, etc.) the focus of 
 
BELGRADE 00000137  005.2 OF 006 
 
 
training for law enforcement.  Consular and border officials are 
also trained to look for signs of trafficking in immigration cases. 
The National Referral Mechanism (see paragraph F) will improve the 
ability of these personnel to identify and refer victims from 
at-risk populations.  Until the government of Serbia finds a 
mechanism for cooperation with relevant officials from Kosovo, 
however, these efforts will not cover the main trafficking route 
from Kosovo into Serbia. 
 
¶I. Generally, the rights of victims are respected.  While officials 
believe authorities occasionally fail to recognize a victim 
immediately, victims generally are not detained, jailed, or 
deported.  There were no reports of such detentions or that victims 
were prosecuted for violations of other laws during the reporting 
period. 
 
¶J. The government encourages victims to assist in the investigation 
and prosecution of trafficking, and facilitates this through its 
victim/witness protection program.  An Agency for Coordination of 
Protection of Victims or an NGO official remains with victims during 
trials.  The Agency said separate waiting rooms for victims in the 
courts would increase their comfort.  The length of trials makes it 
burdensome for victims, and a long lapse in time after an offense 
occurs makes it difficult for victims to testify consistently. 
Cases usually depend on victim testimony, because there is no 
physical evidence.  According to NGOs, most identified trafficking 
victims report their crimes to the police and assist them in their 
investigations. 
 
Serbia also allows victims to file civil suits against their 
traffickers for compensation.  Victims who are pursuing criminal or 
civil suits are entitled to temporary residence permits and may 
obtain other employment or leave the country pending trial 
proceedings.  There is no restitution program, but it is possible in 
both criminal and civil proceedings for judges to award plaintiffs 
compensation. 
 
¶K. The government provides specialized training for government 
officials, including police, consular officers at Serbia's 
embassies, and social welfare workers in recognizing trafficking and 
providing assistance to victims. 
 
¶L. Serbian citizens who are repatriated as victims of trafficking 
are entitled to the same assistance as victims identified in 
Serbia. 
 
¶M. Several local and international NGOs, including the Serbian Red 
Cross, Beosupport, the Child Rights Center, the Anti-Trafficking 
Center, Counseling against Family Violence, Atina, Astra, the 
Victimology Society of Serbia, Save the Children UK, and the 
Christian Children's Fund, work with trafficking victims and 
participate in the Republic Team to Combat Trafficking in Persons 
and its working groups.  International organizations include the 
International Organization for Migration, the Organization for 
Security and Cooperation in Europe, UNICEF, and the UN High 
Commissioner for Refugees.  The U.S.-based NGO Fair Fund maintains 
an office in Belgrade and works with Atina on a program that 
provides life skills and income to individuals in Atina's shelter. 
 
¶5. Prevention 
------------- 
 
¶A. The Ministry of Interior publicized its trafficking tip-off 
hotline with a series of "People are not merchandise" posters and on 
its website.  The NGO Astra, in cooperation with the Ministry for 
Human and Minority Rights and international donors, launched the 
Naked Facts campaign, which includes television spots and a 
billboard and poster ad campaign, in September 2008.  The campaign 
features several prominent Serbian men displaying the Astra hotline 
number with the tagline: "Women are not meat.  Children are not 
slaves.  People are not merchandise."  The campaign is intended to 
target demand for trafficking as well as individuals who may see 
evidence of trafficking. 
 
¶B. The office of the National Coordinator for Combating Trafficking 
in Persons plans to examine immigration and emigration data for 
patterns of evidence of trafficking.  The National Coordinator is 
also looking at the potential effects of Serbia joining the Schengen 
visa-free regime, which could at least temporarily facilitate 
trafficking by reducing document inspections into and out of 
Serbia. 
 
¶C. Government agencies, NGOs, and international organizations 
coordinate all anti-trafficking efforts through the Republic Team to 
Combat Trafficking in Persons. 
 
BELGRADE 00000137  006.2 OF 006 
 
 
 
¶D. The government adopted a National Strategy to Combat Trafficking 
in Persons in Serbia in 2006.  After the new National Coordinator 
for Combating Trafficking in Persons was appointed in November 2008, 
the working groups and the Republic Team to Combat Trafficking in 
Persons wrote a draft Action Plan for 2009-2011, which will go to 
each relevant minister for comment in February 2009.  NGOs 
participate in the working groups and the Republic Team and 
contributed to the draft Action Plan.  NGO and international 
organization representatives praise the efforts of the new 
coordinator because activities and planning now include all 
stakeholders. 
 
Activities planned for 2009 are low or no-cost activities and focus 
on improving procedures and coordination, because the government has 
no budget for anti-trafficking activities for 2009, but the Republic 
Team's planning includes budget requests for 2010 and 2011.  Because 
anti-trafficking measures are necessary for Serbia to join the 
Schengen visa-free regime, a top priority for the government, 
officials believe the government will fund anti-trafficking efforts 
next year. 
 
¶E. Prostitution and facilitation of prostitution are illegal, and 
police enforce the relevant laws.  The media publicizes law 
enforcement crackdowns on commercial sex establishments. 
 
¶F. There is no evidence of Serbian citizens participating in 
international child sex tourism. 
 
¶G. Serbia does not have over 100 troops in international peace 
efforts. 
 
¶6. TIP Contact and Hours 
------------------------ 
 
Post's TIP contact is Bianca Menendez, 381-11-306-4654, fax 
381-11-361-3962.  Post spent a total of 43 hours on this report. 
The following individuals contributed to the report:  FO-1: 1 hour, 
FO-2 (two officers): 32 hours, FSN-10: 10 hours. 
 
MUNTER