VZCZCXRO0628
PP RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDBU RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA
RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHNP RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHSK #0086/01 0751413
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P R 161413Z MAR 09
FM AMEMBASSY MINSK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0161
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUEHC/USAID WASHDC
RHMFIUU/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHINGTON DC
RUEFHLC/DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY WASHINGTON DC
RUEHC/DEPT OF LABOR WASHINGTON DC
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC
RUEHTV/AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV 0001
RUEHJM/AMCONSUL JERUSALEM 0001
RUEHEG/AMEMBASSY CAIRO 0001
RUEHPC/AMEMBASSY LOME 0001
RUEHSK/AMEMBASSY MINSK 0163

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 15 MINSK 000086 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR G/TIP, G-ACBLANK, INL, DRL, PRM, EUR/UMB, EUR/PGI 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KTIP KCRM PHUM KWMN SMIG ASEC PREF ELAB BO
SUBJECT: BELARUS: NINTH ANNUAL TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS (TIP) REPORT 
 
REF: A) 08 STATE 132759, B) EUR/UMB-ROFMAN TELCON 02/26/09 
 
MINSK 00000086  001.2 OF 015 
 
 
¶1.  (U) This is Embassy Minsk's submission for the ninth annual 
TIP report.  Responses, based on information received March 12, 
2009,  are keyed to ref A and subsequent tasking ref B. 
 
¶2.  (SBU) This report identifies anti-TIP NGOs and international 
organizations by name.  However, for security reasons, post 
requests that the Department protect their identity and not/not 
publicly disclose them. 
 
¶23.  THE COUNTRY'S TIP SITUATION 
-------------------------------- 
 
-- A. What is (are) the sources(s) of available information on 
trafficking in persons?  What plans are in place (if any) to 
undertake further documentation of human trafficking?  How 
reliable are these sources? 
 
-- (SBU) Reliable sources of information in Belarus on 
trafficking in persons include the Ministry of Interior (MOI), 
the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare, the Ministry of 
Justice, the International Organization for Migration Minsk 
office, the Young Women's Christian Association of Belarus 
(BYWCA)/La Strada, the Belarusian Red Cross, the Business 
Women's Association, and the Women's Crisis Center Radislava. 
 
-- (SBU) The following international organizations and NGOs work 
with trafficking victims in Belarus: 
 
-- (SBU) The Young Women's Christian Association of Belarus 
(BYWCA)/La Strada runs prevention and victim assistance and 
reintegration programs.  The NGO's anti-trafficking efforts 
include operation and management of Belarus' first toll-free 
trafficking hotline and a shelter to accommodate victims.  The 
hotline provides callers with legal information, advice about 
working abroad and marriage to foreign nationals, review of work 
contracts, and information about where to seek help if trouble 
arises.  It has received over 14,000 calls and 400 email 
inquiries since its inception in 2001.  The organization, which 
has a prominent public campaign including materials placed 
around Belarus and at Minsk's international airport, also plays 
a significant role in developing educational materials for 
distribution through government channels, training government 
officials, and curriculum development for the MOI's Anti-TIP 
Center. 
 
-- (SBU) The International Organization for Migration (IOM) 
implements a counter trafficking program that addresses 
prevention, prosecution, and protection.  IOM's network of 21 
Belarusian NGOs tackling human trafficking and providing 
assistance to victims have helped over 1,700 human trafficking 
victims.  IOM runs a preventive program for women living in the 
regions of Belarus who were most at risk for being victims of 
trafficking to teach them basic job and job-seeking skills and 
possibly help them find employment.  The organization has run 
extensive public awareness campaigns throughout Belarus, and in 
conjunction with the Brest-based Association of Business Women 
operates toll-free information hotline in Brest through funding 
from the USG and the Swedish Development Agency (SIDA).  SIDA 
also funds IOM law enforcement activities and victim 
repatriation, and the Department's PRM Bureau funds prevention 
and protection activities.  IOM has excellent relations with the 
Ministry of the Interior and the State Border Committee. 
 
-- (SBU) The Women's Crisis Center "Radislava" opened in 2002 
and assists victims of trafficking and domestic violence in 
Minsk.  The Center operates a mini-shelter that provides 
temporary room and board.  As the services were not tailored to 
specifically assist victims of trafficking, UNDP and IOM opened 
a mini-shelter with Radislava for trafficking victims.  The 
mini-shelter is equipped to accommodate short stays for two 
adults and two minors.  Radislava reported receiving 
newly-renovated facilities at a territorial social center in 
Minsk from the authorities to aid victims of trafficking and 
domestic violence and reported over 1,180 assistance requests in 
¶2008. 
 
-- (SBU) The Business Women's Association continues to run its 
own anti-trafficking hotline in Brest; this hotline began 
operations in 2002 and registered 2,260 calls in 2008. The city 
of Brest is the largest crossing point along the 
 
MINSK 00000086  002.4 OF 015 
 
 
Belarusian-Polish border.  IOM provided funding for the hotline 
project and BYWCA implemented training for hotline 
administrators and counselors.  The Association also assists in 
training seminars in the Brest Region, usually sponsored by IOM 
or La Strada, and continues to develop contacts across the 
border in Poland to facilitate anti-trafficking efforts in the 
region. 
 
-- (SBU) The Red Cross provides preventative information and 
assistance and victim protection.  The organization established 
seven consultation centers throughout Belarus with financial 
help from the IOM.  Each center has an advisory council that 
consists of Red Cross staff and representatives of local health, 
education, and law enforcement organization.  The organization 
provides victims with medical, psychological, legal, and 
material assistance and has programs designed to help victims 
acquire professional skills and acquire jobs.  The Red Cross 
assisted over 110 victims in 2008. 
 
-- B. Is the country a country of origin, transit, and/or 
destination for internationally trafficked men, women, or 
children?  Does trafficking occur within the country's borders? 
If so, does internal trafficking occur in territory outside of 
the government's control (e.g. in a civil war situation)?  To 
where are people trafficked?  For what purposes are they 
trafficked?  Provide, where possible, numbers or estimates for 
each group of trafficking victims.  Have there been any changes 
in the TIP situation since the last TIP Report (e.g. changes in 
destinations)? 
 
-- (SBU) Belarus is a country of origin and transit for 
internationally trafficked persons, particularly women. 
However, the trafficking of male victims to Russia for labor 
continues to be a problem.  For 2008, the Ministry of Interior 
(MOI) reported 69 cases of trafficking in persons.  Authorities 
also registered 591 trafficking victims, of whom 458 were 
trafficked for sexual exploitation (including 103 minors) and 
133 for labor exploitation.  244 victims were recruited for 
sexual exploitation (including 96 minors) and 2 for labor 
exploitation on the territory of Belarus.  Out of 591 victims, 
366 were female (including 42 minors) and 225 male (including 61 
minors). 
 
-- (SBU) In 2008, the Minsk office of the International 
Organization for Migration (IOM) assisted 218 victims of 
trafficking, including 25 minors, accordingly.  For 
January-February 2009, 17 victims (including two minors) were 
assisted.  Of the victims IOM assisted, 153 in 2008 and 11 in 
January-February 2009 suffered sexual exploitation at their 
destination point compared to 134 in 2007, while 63 and 6, 
accordingly, were forced to perform manual labor (as compared to 
47 in 2007). 
 
-- (SBU) There were no territories in Belarus outside of the 
government's control. 
 
-- (SBU) BYWCA/La Strada, an NGO that plays a significant role 
in Belarus in trafficking prevention and victim assistance, and 
IOM reported cases of trafficking in persons within Belarus 
where women from low-income families were trafficked from the 
regions to Minsk mainly for sexual exploitation.  IOM also 
reported on an ongoing criminal case against Roma residents in 
the Minsk and Mogilyov Oblasts for trafficking Russian homeless 
persons into servitude. 
 
-- (SBU) According to the MOI and IOM, Belarusian single, 
unemployed females between the ages of 16 to 30 were most at 
risk of being trafficked.  Most victims of trafficking are 
seeking a way to escape bad economic circumstances or troubled 
domestic situations.  Local NGOs assert that more government 
intervention against the related problems of domestic violence, 
prostitution, drugs and alcoholism would greatly reduce the 
number of women seeking employment abroad.  Of the victims IOM 
assisted in 2008, 95 were between 18 and 24 years of age, and 56 
were between 25 and 30.  Of women assisted by IOM in 
January-February 2009, nine were between 18 and 24 and two were 
between 25 and 30.  In addition, traffickers have continued to 
target males of all ages for forced manual labor, primarily in 
Russia.  IOM statistics reported that a vast majority of victims 
would be considered poor and uneducated by GOB standards. 
 
 
MINSK 00000086  003.2 OF 015 
 
 
-- (SBU) The MOI reports indicated that traffickers were members 
of loosely organized crime networks with connections to larger 
international highly organized crime rings, brothels, clubs, or 
bars in destination countries.  Traffickers lured victims 
through advertisements and personal approaches through friends 
and relatives, offering well-paid jobs abroad and soliciting 
marriage partners.  Victims were often told that they would be 
providing escort services at their destination countries; 
however, traffickers withheld victims' documents and used 
physical and emotional abuse, fraud, and coercion to control 
victims and force them into sexual exploitation.  Because of the 
MOI's effective preemptive investigatory measures, traffickers 
frequently communicated with their potential victims over the 
internet to avoid personal contact.  The MOI added that 
traffickers were often Belarusian citizens living abroad with 
business ties to their home country along with the citizens of 
Russia, Poland, Germany and Israel.  For example, in December 
2008 the court sentenced a German citizen to 12 years in high 
security jail with property confiscation for trafficking 
Belarusian women for sexual exploitation in Poland and running a 
brothel for foreign tourists in Brest in 2006-2008. 
 
-- (SBU) As part of an effort to restrict common channels of 
trafficking, in March 2005 the GOB introduced stricter controls 
on modeling, employment, and marriage agencies.  As a result 
traffickers began to rely more on informal recruitment networks 
to approach potential victims personally to lure women and men 
with false promises of lucrative financial opportunities abroad. 
 Most recruiters were acquaintances or a friend of a friend of 
the victim.  According to IOM and La Strada, traffickers 
frequently approach potential victims at bars or discos for 
sexual exploitation work and widely use advertisements for 
construction sites to lure victims for labor exploitation.  IOM 
and La Strada reported that the majority of their victims were 
approached personally by a trafficker or recommended a job by a 
friend of a friend or even a relative. 
 
-- (SBU) Traffickers often use vehicle and train crossings with 
Russia, Poland, Lithuania and Latvia.  The GOB has made efforts 
to tighten borders and train border guards to monitor and 
prevent TIP-related border crossings.  Traffickers increasingly 
opted to send more victims through Russia, both because of the 
open border there, and because the EU has implemented stricter 
visa requirements.  According to La Strada, trafficking victims 
primarily exit Belarus on legal documents and valid tourist 
visas, making it extremely difficult to identify victims. 
Traffickers sometimes falsified a variety of documents to move 
victims including passports, training certificates, and 
government stamps and seals; however, according to the MOI, such 
incidents did not take place in 2008. 
 
-- (SBU) Reports from the IOM and MOI indicate victims were 
mainly trafficked in 2008 to European Union countries 
(particularly Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic, Lithuania, 
Latvia, Austria, the Netherlands), the Middle East (particularly 
Israel and the United Arab Emirates), Turkey, Egypt, Russia, 
Ukraine and the Republic of Togo.  Trafficking to Russia 
presents a particular problem because of its open border. 
Although primarily a country of origin, its central location 
also makes Belarus a country of transit to eastern and western 
destinations.  The MOI reported that it shut down 59 trafficking 
channels to 10 foreign states in 2008. 
 
¶25.  INVESTIGATION AND PROSECUTION OF TRAFFICKERS 
--------------------------------------------- ---- 
 
-- E. Law Enforcement Statistics: Did the government prosecute 
any cases against human trafficking offenders during the 
reporting period?  If so, provide numbers of investigations, 
prosecutions, convictions, and sentences imposed, including 
details on plea bargains and fines, if relevant and available. 
Please note the number of convicted traffickers who received 
suspended sentences 
and the number who received only a fine as punishment.  Also, if 
possible, please disaggregate numbers of cases by type of TIP 
(labor vs. commercial sexual exploitation) and victims (children 
under 18 years of age vs. adults).   What were the actual 
punishments imposed on persons convicted of these offenses? 
 
-- (SBU) Belarusian law prohibits all forms of trafficking in 
persons and criminalizes trafficking in persons for sexual, 
 
MINSK 00000086  004.2 OF 015 
 
 
labor, or other kinds of exploitation.  Article 181 of the 
criminal code, which entered into force in 2001 and was amended 
in 2005, penalizes trafficking in persons for the purposes of 
sexual or other kinds of exploitation, including labor 
exploitation.  In December 2008, the GOB introduced a 
sub-Article 181 that criminalizes servitude.  The penalty for 
trafficking is a minimum of five years' imprisonment with 
property forfeiture, while the punishment for severe forms of 
trafficking is a minimum of 10 years' imprisonment with 
forfeiture.  The penalty for servitude ranges from a minimum of 
two years' imprisonment up to 12 years in jail with forfeiture. 
 
-- (SBU) Other laws which pertain to trafficking in persons 
include: Article 18, organized crime; Article 171, pimping and 
operating a brothel for the purpose of prostitution; sub-Article 
171 (introduced in December 2008), engaging into prostitution or 
forcing to continue prostitution; Article 173, engaging a minor 
into antisocial behavior (applied to TIP-related offenses 
only/only until December 2008); Article 182, kidnapping human 
beings for the purpose of exploitation; and Article 187 (amended 
in 2008), illicit recruitment of human beings for employment 
abroad.  A March 2005 presidential decree allows the 
confiscation of property of convicted traffickers and increased 
prison sentences. 
 
-- (SBU) The GOB also relates the following criminal code 
articles to TIP offenses: Article 343, producing and 
distributing pornographic materials or objects; sub-Article 343 
(introduced in December 2008), producing or distributing 
pornographic materials or objects depicting a minor.  The 
articles stipulate various penalties of up to 13 years in jail 
with property confiscation and allow the GOB to prosecute 
pedophiles and child pornography manufacturers.  These laws 
taken together appear to be adequate to cover the full scope of 
TIP crimes. 
 
-- (SBU) Even though prosecutors and law enforcement officials 
use Article 181, many trafficking investigations were still 
opened under Articles 187, 171, 182, due to the difficulty of 
collecting evidence for prosecution.  Similarly, convicted 
traffickers were sentenced under these articles.  However, 
prosecutors and judges were becoming more familiar with Article 
181; training by IOM and MOI officials improved the judiciary's 
ability to use Article 181 effectively. 
 
-- (SBU) According to Ministry of Interior data, in 2008 
authorities registered 333 "trafficking in persons" crimes, 
including 129 serious ones.  Of those, 120 cases involved 
transporting 345 victims abroad for the purpose of exploitation. 
 There were 53 cases of labor exploitation involving 133 
victims.  The MOI and the Justice Ministry reported that 112 
people were convicted of various TIP-related offences in 2008, 
17 of which were sentenced for human trafficking to 
incarceration terms from three to 15 years.  The majority of 
traffickers were jailed for over eight years with their property 
confiscated.  The courts also convicted 54 persons under the 
Article 343. 
 
-- (SBU) The MOI provided the following breakdown of the number 
of trafficking related crimes for 2008: pimping, maintaining 
brothels, prostitution (Article 171) - 121 cases; involving 
minors in antisocial behavior (Art. 173) - 25 cases; trafficking 
in persons (Art. 181) - 69 cases; kidnapping human beings for 
the purpose of exploitation (Art. 182) 6 cases; illicit 
recruitment of human beings for employment abroad (Art. 187) - 
14 cases; producing or distributing pornographic materials (Art. 
343) - 98 cases. 
 
-- (SBU) Based on the recommendations from a series of UNDP 
conferences aimed at improving Belarus' anti-trafficking 
legislation, President Lukashenka issued Decree No. 3 "On Some 
Measures to Combat TIP" in March 2005, which raised the 
punishment for trafficking via amendments to Articles 171, 181, 
182, and 187 of the Criminal Code.  Although many of the 
possible penalties remain the same, amendments to the criminal 
code made after this decree ensure that those convicted of 
trafficking receive longer sentences than they would have prior 
to the decree.  The decree also amended the law to comply with 
the Palermo Protocol which mandates that trafficking victims are 
not to be held responsible for illegal acts committed while a 
victim and enables the government to confiscate the property of 
 
MINSK 00000086  005.2 OF 015 
 
 
convicted traffickers. 
 
-- (SBU) Legal experts noted that prosecutions under the 
original language of Article 181 were hindered by legally 
referring to the victim as a "dependent person."  This allowed 
defense lawyers to challenge the extent of dependency, causing 
cases to be prosecuted under the less effective Article 171 
(pimping and operating a brothel) instead.  The GOB subsequently 
modified the criminal code to broaden the language to include 
any person being exploited, thus enabling investigators and 
prosecutors to build stronger cases against traffickers and 
increase the number of convictions made under Belarus' 
trafficking law. 
 
-- (SBU) Penalties for traffickers increased under the 
amendments to the criminal code brought about by Decree No. 3 
"On Some Measures to Combat TIP."  The penalty for trafficking 
is now a minimum of five to seven years' imprisonment with 
forfeiture of property (previously three to six years with or 
without property forfeiture).  If the crime was premeditated, 
committed intentionally against a minor, involved two or more 
victims, was done for the purpose of sexual exploitation or any 
other kind of exploitation, involved the sale of organ tissue, 
or involved organized crime, the penalty is now a minimum of 10 
to 12 years' imprisonment with forfeiture of property 
(previously five to ten years with or without property 
forfeiture).  If the crime involved the unintentional death of 
the victim, or caused severe injury to the victim, the penalty 
is 12 to 15 years' of imprisonment with forfeiture of property 
(previously eight to fifteen with or without property 
forfeiture). 
 
-- (SBU) The maximum penalty for rape or forcible sexual assault 
is 15 years' imprisonment.  The maximum penalty for severe forms 
of trafficking is 15 years' imprisonment with property 
confiscation. 
 
-- (SBU) Prostitution is illegal under Article 162 of Belarus' 
administrative code.  The administrative penalties for 
prostitution are a written warning, a fine or a 15-day arrest, a 
measure that the GOB introduced in 2008.  Pimps and brothel 
owners may be held liable under Article 171 and sub-Article 171 
of Belarus' criminal code.  The penalty for pimping, engaging 
into prostitution, or operating a brothel for the purpose of 
prostitution is imprisonment for up to ten years.  Clients of 
prostitutes are not liable under Belarus' criminal or 
administrative laws.  Amendments to the Criminal Code added a 
new provision to Article 171, which describes the penalties for 
pimping or operating a brothel in connection with transporting 
someone abroad for prostitution.  If the above acts are done by 
a governmental official abusing authority, by an organized 
group, by a person charged with offences stipulated in Articles 
171 or 181, or using a minor for prostitution, the penalty is 
imprisonment from seven to ten years' imprisonment with property 
confiscation. 
 
-- I. Is there evidence of government involvement in or 
tolerance of trafficking, on a local or institutional level?  If 
so, please explain in detail. 
 
-- (SBU) There were no indications of government involvement in 
or tolerance of trafficking on a local or institutional level. 
 
-- (SBU) The MOI body responsible for investigating public 
corruption is the Office to Combat Organized Crime and 
Corruption.  The State Control Committee also investigates 
allegations of official corruption through the Interagency 
Commission for Combating Crime, Corruption and Drug Trafficking. 
 During the past year, there have been no indications of 
official government involvement in trafficking. 
 
-- J. If government officials are involved in trafficking, what 
steps has the government taken to end such participation? 
Please indicate the number of government officials investigated 
and prosecuted for involvement in trafficking or 
trafficking-related corruption during the reporting period. 
Have any been convicted?  What sentence(s) was imposed?  Please 
specify if officials received suspended sentences, or were given 
a fine, fired, or reassigned to another position within the 
government as punishment.  Please indicate the number of 
convicted officials that received suspended sentences or 
 
MINSK 00000086  006.2 OF 015 
 
 
received only a fine as punishment. 
 
-- (SBU) There were no indications that government officials 
were involved in trafficking. 
 
-- M. If the country has an identified problem of child sex 
tourists coming to the country, what are the countries of origin 
for sex tourists?  How many foreign pedophiles did the 
government prosecute or deport/extradite to their country of 
origin?  If your host country's nationals are perpetrators of 
child sex tourism, do the country's child sexual abuse laws have 
extraterritorial coverage (similar to the U.S. PROTECT Act) to 
allow the prosecution of suspected sex tourists for crimes 
committed abroad?  If so, how many of the country's nationals 
were prosecuted and/or convicted during the reporting period 
under the extraterritorial provision(s) for traveling to other 
countries to engage in child sex tourism? 
 
-- (SBU) Belarus does not have an identified child sex tourism 
problem either as a source or as a destination.  Belarus acceded 
to the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the 
Child on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution, and Child 
Pornography in January 2002.  Presidential Decree No. 3 "On Some 
Measures to Combat TIP" criminalized child pornography 
distribution.  Manufacturing, distributing or storing child 
pornography is punishable by up to four years' imprisonment for 
an individual or five to 13 years' imprisonment by an organized 
group of people. 
 
-- (SBU) In 2008, police registered 98 crimes related to 
production and dissemination of pornographic materials, 
including three cases of trafficking minors.  In March 2008, the 
MOI arrested three Belarusian and three Russian citizens, 
members of an organized criminal group, on the charges of 
maintaining brothels in Belarus, for establishing a pornography 
studio at a rented apartment in Minsk, and selling and posting 
pornographic materials picturing minors on over 270 websites 
based in Cyprus over the period 2005 to 2008.  The Ministry also 
assisted their Ukrainian counterparts in detaining a Ukrainian 
citizen, a member of the same criminal group, who had been 
recruiting minors for production of pornography materials 
production.  The MOI reported 94 victims in the case, of which 
61 were minors, including two Russians and one Ukrainian.  Law 
enforcement completed the investigation in November 2008 and 
filed the case with the court.  The trial was still ongoing at 
the end of the reporting period. 
 
-- (SBU) According to Article 7 of the criminal code, Belarusian 
citizens cannot be extradited to a foreign country if provision 
for such action is not covered by an international agreement 
with the Republic of Belarus.  Foreign nationals residing in 
Belarus can be extradited to a requesting state in accordance 
with international agreements with the Republic of Belarus.  If 
no agreement exists between the Republic of Belarus and the 
requesting state, a foreign national can be extradited on the 
basis of reciprocity.  Belarus ratified the Convention Against 
Transnational Organized Crime that provides a legal basis for 
cooperation in extradition with other states that are parties to 
the Convention. 
 
¶26.  PROTECTION AND ASSISTANCE TO VICTIMS 
----------------------------------------- 
 
-- A.  What kind of protection is the government able under 
existing law to provide for victims and witnesses?  Does it 
provide these protections in practice? 
 
-- (SBU) The August 2005 anti-TIP Presidential decree defines 
the status of trafficking victims and enumerates the services 
that they should be provided free of charge.  The edict ensures 
victims' safety, social security and rehabilitation care, and 
requires Belarusian diplomatic missions and consular sections 
abroad to render necessary assistance to victims.  Social 
security and rehabilitation services include providing victims 
with temporary room and board, providing free legal assistance, 
and arranging medical and psychological care by state-run 
medical institutions.  Full-time employment assistance will also 
be offered.  The GOB uses its partnerships with NGOs and 
international organizations to provide many of the above 
services. 
 
 
MINSK 00000086  007.2 OF 015 
 
 
-- (SBU) The Criminal Code provisions regulate that where there 
is reason to believe that a witness, their family members, close 
relatives, or other persons closely related to the witness have 
been threatened with murder, violent actions, or destruction of 
property, the witness' personal data and signature should not be 
included in the witness report.  Upon receipt of information or 
statements regarding threats made against a witness, the 
authorities must register, consider, and provide a decision 
regarding the claim within three days, or no more than 10 days 
if time for verification is necessary and there is sufficient 
reason for instituting a criminal case.  To protect their 
safety, the identity of the witness may be kept confidential 
from the court until just before the witness is called to 
testify.  According to MOI officials, the witness protection 
programs were efficiently enforced in 2008. 
 
-- B.  Does the country have victim care facilities (shelters or 
drop-in centers) which are accessible to trafficking victims? 
Do foreign victims have the same access to care as domestic 
trafficking victims?  Where are child victims placed (e.g., in 
shelters, foster care or juvenile justice detention centers)? 
Does the country have specialized care for adults in addition to 
children?  Does the country have specialized care for male 
victims as well as female?   Does the country have specialized 
facilities dedicated to helping victims of trafficking?  Are 
these facilities operated by the government or by NGOs?  What is 
the funding source of these facilities?  Please estimate the 
amount the government spent (in U.S. dollar equivalent) on these 
specialized facilities dedicated to helping trafficking victims 
during the reporting period. 
 
-- (SBU) The Belarusian Government mandates that victims receive 
a variety of services.  Much of the assistance was provided by 
IOM, La Strada and the Women's Crisis Center Radislava. 
According to the MOI, because of budget shortfalls and 
"expediency", the GOB looks to NGOs to cover much of the 
associated costs. 
 
-- (SBU) There were 156 territorial social centers under the 
Ministry of Labor and Social Security around Belarus, but they 
do not specialize in trafficking victim assistance and render 
services to the victims of any kind of abuse over 15 years of 
age.  Law enforcement officials generally refer TIP victims to 
NGO shelters and crisis centers to provide rehabilitation and 
reintegration services, including the shelters run by IOM, La 
Strada, and Radislava.  According to Radislava, only seven of 
the 156 territorial centers have crisis specialists or drop-in 
centers that were ready to accept trafficking victims.  Each 
territorial center reportedly had an operating helpline; 
however, their specialists also referred victims to the NGOs for 
tangible assistance. 
 
-- (SBU) In 2006, IOM opened a Medical Rehabilitation Shelter 
that offers medical and psychological assistance to trafficking 
victims.  Radislava and La Strada also run mini-shelters for TIP 
victims, Radislava mainly providing consultative services to the 
victims.  Approximately 30 NGOs render legal, psychological and 
other assistance across Belarus.  To fund their activities, 
government facilities and NGOs have the right to sue traffickers 
for reimbursement.  The GOB by no means provides financial 
support for the NGOs' activities. 
 
-- (SBU) There are 146 child social care and education centers 
under the Ministry of Education where victims three to 15 years 
of age can be sent.  In 2008, IOM registered 25 minors as 
trafficking victims, two minors were registered as victims in 
January-February 2009.  The Ministry of Education established 
ten specialized children's homes for rehabilitating toddlers of 
three years of age and younger.  The MOI informed that there 
were no TIP-related cases involving children of such age, and 38 
victims of trafficking sought medical assistance at state-run 
rehabilitation facilities in 2008. 
 
-- (SBU) Victims can independently seek medical assistance, 
including HIV/AIDS testing, through state clinics free of charge 
under Belarus' system of healthcare, though the centers do not 
specialize in trafficking victims.  Most victims decline to seek 
medical assistance due to reluctance to divulge information to 
clinic and hospital staff.  Regional social centers and 
employment offices in theory can also provide social services to 
returned victims.  Financial restraints and a lack of resources 
 
MINSK 00000086  008.2 OF 015 
 
 
and training undermine the government's ability to provide 
comprehensive care to victims. 
 
-- (SBU) Ministries of Labor and Social Security, Education, 
Interior, Healthcare as well as the NGOs, including IOM, set up 
an advisory council in the framework of an international project 
to combat trafficking in order to elaborate a comprehensive 
mechanism of streamlining and boosting efficiency of the 
rehabilitation assistance to the victims of trafficking.  IOM is 
due to outline their recommendations before March 20, 2009.  The 
group is to report to President Lukashenka in mid-2009. 
 
-- C.  Does the government provide trafficking victims with 
access to legal, medical and psychological services?  If so, 
please specify the kind of assistance provided.  Does the 
government provide funding or other forms of support to foreign 
or domestic NGOs and/or international organizations for 
providing these services to trafficking victims?  Please explain 
and provide any funding amounts in U.S. dollar equivalent.  If 
assistance provided was in-kind, please specify exact 
assistance.  Please specify if funding for assistance comes from 
a federal budget or from regional or local governments. 
 
-- (SBU) Ministries and government agencies allow anti-TIP 
international organizations and NGOs to operate with little 
interference, and despite red tape and time-consuming  project 
registration procedures, delays were significantly reduced in 
the past year.  The government makes mostly in-kind 
contributions to the activities of these organizations such as 
personnel, technical and administrative support, and assistance 
with transportation, lodging or conference space, and allows the 
NGO Radislava to operate a small anti-TIP shelter in a 
government building housing a territorial social center in 
Minsk.  The MOI continues to devote significant human and 
material resources to investigation and detection efforts as 
well as to provide representatives to participate in 
NGO-sponsored victim assistance training seminars as guest 
speakers or presenters.  La Strada informed that the GOB did not 
raise its lease payments following President Lukashenka's April 
24, 2008, edict removing NGOs' benefits and automatically 
increasing their leases tenfold. 
 
-- (SBU) The GOB increased its in-kind assistance efforts and 
has made administrative matters significantly easier for 
anti-TIP NGOs.  Radislava reported receiving newly-renovated 
facilities from the authorities for its  mini-shelter for 
victims of trafficking and domestic violence, and the Red Cross 
reported receiving favorable leasing terms and pricing for its 
facilities.  Government sources stated that NGOs also receive 
waivers for customs duties.  Most government assistance comes 
from the federal budget.  IOM reported that the GOB provided 
approximately 20 percent and above of all conference costs, 
amounting to approximately USD 50,000 in 2007 (no figures 
available for 2008), and provides venues for conferences and 
seminars, transportation, security, lodging for participants and 
general logistical support. 
 
-- (SBU) IOM indicated that thanks to its successful cooperation 
and partnerships with the MOI departments in the regions, their 
victims were able to receive free training at state-run 
employment centers in Gomel and Minsk.  Moreover, a number of 
victims from the regions were placed in Minsk-based dormitories 
free of charge to continue studies after their rehabilitation at 
IOM facilities.  In Mogilyov, victims were rendered extensive 
medical assistance at state-funded clinics.  However, IOM 
reported that their victims often experienced hindrances in 
obtaining quality medical services at state-funded clinics and 
preferred seeking aid from private doctors. 
 
-- (SBU) The 2005 edict also mandates reimbursement by the 
offender/trafficker, enforceable in a court of law, of all costs 
incurred by the state in helping TIP victims.  Local governments 
and administrative agencies, district centers of social 
services, children's social shelters, and prosecutors all have 
the right to demand such reimbursement through the courts. 
However, La Strada has noted that the procedure is complicated 
and burdensome.  To address this, the new 2008-2010 plan 
includes the possibility of reinforcing the reimbursement 
mechanism by creating a standing victim compensation fund to 
cover expenses related to repatriation and physical and 
psychological damage.  The fund will be subsidized with assets 
 
MINSK 00000086  009.2 OF 015 
 
 
confiscated from convicted offenders. 
 
-- (SBU) According to the Justice Ministry data, in 2002-2008 
Belarus' courts heard 122 lawsuits on moral damages compensation 
in TIP-related crimes and declared to reimburse to the victims 
of trafficking almost USD 79,000 (as of December 31, 2008), 70 
percent of what the plaintiffs originally sought. 
 
-- (SBU) According to the MOI, the GOB allocated in 2008 
approximately USD 345,000 (as of December 31, 2008) to fund 
measures, including victims' rehabilitation, outlined in the 
2008-2010 plan.  The Ministry had requested the GOB to 
appropriate USD 380,000 (as of January 1, 2009) for 2009.  No 
exact funding amount was available at the end of the reporting 
period. 
 
-- (SBU) The government is seeking assistance from international 
organizations and foreign nations to return victims to Belarus. 
According to the MOI, Belarus Foreign Ministry's Consular 
Department ensured the safe return to Belarus of a number of 
trafficking victims.  IOM is attempting to expand their victim 
repatriation program to meet this need.  Given the lack of 
financial resources to address all the new anti-TIP initiatives, 
the GOB relies on its partnerships with NGOs and international 
organizations to implement anti-TIP regulations. 
 
-- (SBU) Because of the GOB's increased focus on training, law 
enforcement officials more frequently referred victims to NGOs 
in Belarus (125 referrals in 2008) that can provide medical, 
shelter and financial assistance.  In some cases law enforcement 
officials provided transportation to and from home to NGOs or to 
other assistance providers for victims who requested 
reintegration help. 
 
-- D. Does the government assist foreign trafficking victims, 
for example, by providing temporary to permanent residency 
status, or other relief from deportation?  If so, please explain. 
 
-- (SBU) The government does assist foreign trafficking victims. 
 The law allows for authorities to grant temporary residency 
status to foreign victims.  In January 2008, immigration 
officials granted a minor from Ukraine temporary residency 
status and shelter in Belarus.  During the reporting period, 
other foreign victims have received assistance, including from 
IOM, though three were Russian citizens and because of standing 
bilateral immigration agreements with Russia did not need any 
adjustment in residency status. 
 
-- E. Does the government provide longer-term shelter or housing 
benefits to victims or other resources to aid the victims in 
rebuilding their lives? 
 
-- (SBU) The GOB relies on the anti-TIP NGOs to provide 
longer-term sheltering.  However, IOM reported wide cooperation 
with state-run employment and job training agencies that were 
often able to render their victims vocational training, 
educational support free of charge.  IOM also named isolated 
instances when the GOB provided permanent housing or certain 
housing benefits to the trafficking victims. 
 
-- F. Does the government have a referral process to transfer 
victims detained, arrested or placed in protective custody by 
law enforcement authorities to institutions that provide short- 
or long-term care (either government or NGO-run)? 
 
-- (SBU) An NGO referral system exists, which IOM established in 
September 2002.  It consists of 21 partner organizations 
involved in both prevention and reintegration activities.  In 
2008 and January-February 2009, these organizations referred 174 
and 9 victims, accordingly, to IOM for reintegration assistance. 
 Some NGOs have commented in the past that law enforcement 
officials have made inaccurate referrals, and recommended 
additional training for officers to learn how to properly 
identify and refer victims of trafficking.  Authorities have 
been successfully addressing this problem through officer 
training at the MOI's Anti-TIP Training Center.  Additionally, 
under the auspices of IOM's memorandum of understanding with the 
border guards, IOM held seminars and victim identification 
training sessions for government officials. 
 
-- G. What is the total number of trafficking victims identified 
 
MINSK 00000086  010.2 OF 015 
 
 
during the reporting period?  Of these, how many victims were 
referred to care facilities for assistance by law enforcement 
authorities during the reporting period?  By social services 
officials?  What is the number of victims assisted by 
government-funded assistance programs and those not funded by 
the government during the reporting period? 
 
-- (SBU) In 2008, the Minsk office of the International 
Organization for Migration (IOM) assisted 218 victims of 
trafficking, including 25 minors.  In January-February 2009, 17 
TIP victims (of which two were minors) were assisted by IOM.  Of 
the victims IOM assisted, 153 in 2008 and 11 in January-February 
2009 suffered sexual exploitation at their destination point 
compared to 134 in 2007, while 63 and 6, accordingly, were 
forced to perform manual labor (as compared to 47 in 2007).  The 
MOI registered 591 victims and referred 125 to anti-TIP NGOs for 
rehabilitation assistance.  38 victims of trafficking sought 
medical assistance at state-run rehabilitation facilities in 
¶2008. 
 
-- H. Do the government's law enforcement, immigration, and 
social services personnel have a formal system of proactively 
identifying victims of trafficking among high-risk persons with 
whom they come in contact (e.g., foreign persons arrested for 
prostitution or immigration violations)?  For countries with 
legalized prostitution, does the government have a mechanism for 
screening for trafficking victims among persons involved in the 
legal/regulated commercial sex trade? 
 
-- (SBU) According to the MOI, the government has a system of 
"methodological recommendations" to monitor and control various 
categories of people crossing Belarusian borders.  The 2006-2010 
State Migration Program created a mechanism of state regulation 
of migration trends throughout Belarus.  Belarus has taken steps 
to increase border security.  Border authorities are currently 
working on the Bombel Program, a joint project with the European 
Commission and UNDP designed to raise Belarusian border 
management to EU standards.  Phase one was completed in 2007 and 
focused on increasing border security, providing training for 
border guards in EU standard practices, and continuing 
development of an automated passport system.  Phase two is under 
way and is aimed at improving migration control 
 
-- (SBU) Prostitution in Belarus is illegal. 
 
-- I. Are the rights of victims respected?  Are trafficking 
victims detained or jailed?   If so,for how long?  Are victims 
fined?  Are victims prosecuted for violations of other laws, 
such as those governing immigration or prostitution? 
 
-- (SBU) NGOs in Belarus generally agree that the legal rights 
of victims are respected.  Trafficking victims are not detained, 
jailed or fined.  Belarus ratified the Palermo Protocol in 2003, 
and follows its policy that states that even if a woman had 
previously consented to prostitution, she should still be 
considered a victim.  In addition, the August 2005 anti-TIP 
decree mandates that TIP victims may not be deported or 
otherwise held administratively accountable for offences 
committed in connection to TIP crimes against them such as 
prostitution or immigration violations. 
 
-- J. Does the government encourage victims to assist in the 
investigation and prosecution of trafficking?  How many victims 
assisted in the investigation and prosecution of traffickers 
during the reporting period? May victims file civil suits or 
seek legal action against traffickers?  Does anyone impede 
victim 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?  Are there means by which a victim 
may obtain restitution? 
 
-- (SBU) Official policy forbids coercion of victims, and it 
appears that this is taken seriously by the Ministry of Interior 
leadership.  Several NGOs have reported an improvement in the 
area of victim coercion citing fewer reports that pressure to 
cooperate with investigations does occasionally occur with less 
experienced officers at the local level or during victims' 
questionings to enable the law enforcement curbing and 
preventing trafficking attempts in advance.  The State Border 
Committee now allows IOM to take and shelter victims for several 
 
MINSK 00000086  011.2 OF 015 
 
 
days before calling in investigators.  Law enforcement agencies 
permit La Strada and IOM specialists to attend interrogations 
and even closed court hearings upon victims' requests.  In 2008, 
the State Border Committee encouraged a La Strada representative 
to meet and assist a TIP victim deported from Israel on the 
airplane at the Minsk international airport.  The issue of 
pressuring victims is one area that the TIP Academy emphasizes 
during its training of local TIP-specialist police officers. 
 
-- (SBU) Victims are allowed to file civil suits and/or seek 
legal action against the traffickers, and IOM, La Strada and 
Radislava provide legal assistance to victims of trafficking.  A 
counter-trafficking manual for law enforcement officials and 
repeated law enforcement trainings by international 
organizations and NGOs in Belarus' regional centers have 
improved law enforcement officers' interviewing skills.  Local 
NGOs reported in the past, however, that victims occasionally 
encountered judgmental and hostile attitudes from some law 
enforcement personnel, particularly in smaller cities and towns, 
though this issue continues to be addressed through further 
training. 
 
-- K. Does the government provide any specialized training for 
government officials in identifying trafficking victims 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?   What is the number of trafficking victims 
assisted by the host country's embassies or consulates abroad 
during the reporting period?  Please explain the type of 
assistance provided (travel documents, referrals to assistance, 
payment for transportation home). 
 
-- (SBU) The Belarusian government has demonstrated a noticeable 
increase in political will to combat trafficking and has used 
its efforts to combat TIP to establish itself as a responsible 
member of the international anti-TIP community and to raise its 
international profile.  The MOI has increased its training 
resources and has made a concerted effort to improve specialized 
anti-TIP training in victim identification, protection, 
communication and referral to relevant social services for 
members of law enforcement, courts, and the Prosecutor General's 
Office.  However, the high turnover rate for law enforcement 
officials and bureaucratic red tape continue to hinder Belarus' 
ability to address the problem, though this issue is slated to 
be addressed during the government's new 2008-2010 anti-TIP 
action plan.  Overall corruption is not a problem related to 
anti-TIP efforts. 
 
-- (SBU) The GOB trained officers to fight TIP more effectively 
and assist and protect victims.  The Ministry of 
Interior-sponsored new Anti-TIP Training Center at the National 
Police Academy graduated its first class of trainees in July 
¶2007.  It trained four groups of the CIS and Belarus' law 
enforcement officers and TIP specialists of local police 
districts in 2008.  Also, 13 police officers from the United 
Arab Emirates took the courses at the Center in 2008.  These TIP 
specialists are trained in law-enforcement, victim assistance 
and protection.  The Ministry of Interior invested USD 149,000 
in the facility, financing 90 percent of its startup costs. 
Partial funding was provided by IOM, and training materials were 
developed in conjunction with La Strada. 
 
-- (SBU) According to the August 2005 edict, Belarusian 
diplomatic missions and consular sections must field inquiries 
from Belarusian citizens abroad about legislation to combat 
trafficking in persons and protect victims in the host country 
and in Belarus, guarantee full compliance of the host country's 
laws in relation to the citizens of Belarus, and ensure the 
return of victims who are Belarusian citizens to their place of 
residence.  The MFA reported that Belarusian embassies' consular 
sections assisted and repatriated several victims from the Gulf 
States and the Middle East region in recent years.  The MFA 
included anti-TIP training in its annual consular conference and 
invited NGO and government TIP specialists to provide training. 
La Strada created a booklet for Belarusian embassies abroad on 
anti-TIP legislation, victim identification and the MFA's role 
in combating TIP, including contact information for embassies, 
consulates and international anti-TIP NGOs and shelters.  IOM 
has disseminated information about Belarusian NGOs that assist 
 
MINSK 00000086  012.2 OF 015 
 
 
returned victims of trafficking in Belarus to the MFA, which has 
in turn passed the information to embassies and consulates in 
destination countries. 
 
-- (SBU) The August 2005 anti-TIP decree ensures victims' 
safety, social security and rehabilitation care, and requires 
Belarusian diplomatic missions and consular sections abroad to 
render necessary assistance to Belarusian victims abroad. 
 
¶27.  PREVENTION 
--------------- 
 
-- A. Did the government conduct anti-trafficking information or 
education campaigns during the reporting period?  If so, briefly 
describe the campaign(s), including their objectives and 
effectiveness.  Please provide the number of people reached by 
such awareness efforts, if available.  Do these campaigns target 
potential trafficking victims and/or the demand for trafficking 
(e.g. "clients" of prostitutes or beneficiaries of forced 
labor)?  (Note: This can be an especially noteworthy effort 
where prostitution is legal. End note.) 
 
-- (SBU) The government's latest initiative is the adoption and 
implementation of its 2008-2010 State Program on Countering 
Trafficking in Human Beings, Illegal  Migration and Related 
Illicit Activities.  This program is aimed at decreasing 
TIP-related and child pornography crimes, irregular migration 
and prostitution, increasing protection and rehabilitation for 
victims of trafficking, enhancing the efficiency of the state 
authorities' prevention efforts, further improving TIP-related 
legislation, and developing cooperation with concerned states 
and organizations.  A major currently implemented component of 
the plan is to create a series of public service announcements 
to be aired on national and regional television stations.  This 
information campaign is led by the Ministry of Interior and will 
receive funding from the Ministry of Information. 
 
-- (SBU) State-controlled media outlets continued to increase 
news coverage of trafficking stories in state newspapers and 
aired talk shows, television documentaries about 
counter-trafficking and illegal migration efforts, and 
interviews with GOB officials about the problem of trafficking 
in Belarus.  During 2008, the GOB officials continued to conduct 
press conferences and briefings to increase awareness of the 
problem.  Over 40 correspondents of Russian and Belarus mass 
media outlets participated June 3-6, 2008, in a GOB-sponsored 
"press tour" that had proved to be effective in expanding 
information campaigns.  The printed media extensively covered 
anti-TIP situation and the activities of rehabilitation centers 
to raise awareness and prevent illegal recruitment for 
employment abroad and trafficking of foreign victims for labor 
exploitation in Belarus, curb fraud and coercion through 
marriage and modeling agencies and to inform the victims who had 
been reluctant to seek assistance about the rehabilitation and 
integration services.  The Citizenship and Migration Department 
conducted its own public awareness campaign on working abroad 
which included television appearances, radio spots and printed 
informational articles.  The Education Ministry also prepared 
and distributed among its agencies and schools a manual for 
teachers and instructors on how to effectively organize 
activities to prevent trafficking.  It also provided schools 
with updated legislative information to broaden students' legal 
knowledge about their rights and possibilities for protection 
under domestic and international laws. 
 
-- (SBU) In addition, the MOI continued in 2008 to monitor 
advertising media for potential TIP recruitment messages. 
 
-- (SBU) The information about the number of people reached by 
awareness efforts is unavailable; however, the MOI asserted that 
campaigns mainly targeted potential trafficking victims and 
their families. 
 
-- (SBU) Though in the past IOM complained of long delays in 
receiving approval for its own anti-TIP television spots, it 
reported a marked improvement in the approval process in 2007. 
Three of the four television messages IOM proposed were approved 
without delay.  IOM also reports that its public awareness 
billboard messages that can be seen throughout Minsk have been 
provided free of charge by the authorities.  Due to the 
financial constraints, IOM did not release any new television or 
 
MINSK 00000086  013.2 OF 015 
 
 
billboard messages in 2008 but reported no hindrance from the 
GOB in airing their messages.  Educational materials developed 
by IOM and La Strada are now displayed and distributed at all 
land border crossings and at the Minsk international airport. 
 
-- (SBU) The Ministry of Interior continues to run a TIP 
information hotline, though its single goal is to offer 
information regarding the licensing status and legitimacy of 
marriage and modeling agencies and agencies involved in work and 
study abroad.  The Ministry acknowledges that NGO-run hotlines 
are more effective at providing a broader range of services, and 
that they refer callers to those hotlines.  La Strada and IOM 
reported continued significant cooperation between the 
government hotline and their own hotlines in Minsk and Brest.  A 
La Strada official acknowledged that it would be ideal for 
callers to receive all necessary information in one call, but 
notes that the government hotline refers the majority of the 
callers to them and that authorities do not hinder or interfere 
with their work.  NGOs have reported close cooperation from 
authorities in distributing educational materials.  Authorities 
supported distribution of public service announcements produced 
by the Red Cross and IOM, airing them on state television and on 
television screens at subway stops free of charge. 
 
-- B. Does the government monitor immigration and emigration 
patterns for evidence of trafficking? 
 
-- (SBU) Attention to trafficking detection by Belarus' State 
Border Committee (SBC) continued to increase due to training by 
international organizations and attention from the highest 
levels of government.  SBC has increased emphasis on training 
border guards, sending officers to take part in numerous 
seminars on counter-trafficking strategies organized in Belarus 
and abroad.  In addition, IOM noted that GOB officials 
investigate all Belarusians who return from abroad without 
travel documents.  SBC officials have reported several cases 
where officers were able to identify potential victims at 
borders and convinced them to turn back. 
 
-- C. 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? 
 
-- (SBU) The single point of contact for all anti-trafficking 
efforts government-wide is the head of the MOI's Department on 
Combating Drug Trafficking and Trafficking in Human Beings which 
serves as a coordinating agency.  All ministries involved in 
anti-TIP efforts report to this Department on a regular basis 
for evaluation.  Every six months the Department itself submits 
a status report to the Presidential Administration and the 
Interagency Commission for Combating Crime, Corruption and Drug 
Trafficking under the State Security Council.  The MOI reports 
directly to the Security Council every quarter and to the 
President once a year. 
 
-- (SBU) In March 2005, the GOB formed an Interagency Commission 
of government officials under the Security Council to implement 
the President's decree and to improve the efficiency of 
international programs against human trafficking in Belarus. 
 
-- (SBU) Other government agencies involved in anti-trafficking 
activities include: the Council of Ministers, the Supreme Court, 
the Presidential Administration, the Prosecutor General's 
Office, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Labor and 
Social Security, the Ministry of Information, the Ministry of 
Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Healthcare, the Ministry of 
Education, the Ministry of Sports and Tourism, the Ministry of 
Transport, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of 
Telecommunications, the State Security Committee (Belarusian 
KGB), and the State Border and Customs Committees.  The National 
Academy of Sciences, the National Broadcasting Company and 
Oblasts' executive committees also contribute to the anti-TIP 
activities.  The Interagency Commission has a separate standing 
working group on issues of counter-trafficking that unites the 
abovementioned agencies along with the representatives from the 
Parliament, National Center for Legislation and Legal Research, 
Ministries of Culture and Economy.  NGOs are not represented on 
the Commission and the working group; however, actively 
participate in an advisory council established in the framework 
of an international project to combat trafficking.  In 2008, the 
 
MINSK 00000086  014.2 OF 015 
 
 
council convened in April and December.  NGOs are generally more 
active in prevention, rehabilitation and assistance to the 
trafficking victims.  Government sources stated that victims 
were more likely to trust NGOs than government sources of 
assistance. 
 
-- (SBU) The MOI is responsible for monitoring the 
implementation of the government's national strategy to combat 
trafficking in persons.  In the past, anti-trafficking 
organizations were often frustrated by a lack of 
inter-ministerial communication and coordination, as well as the 
lack of a single point of contact within the government on 
trafficking issues.  However, during 2007-2008, anti-TIP NGOs 
reported that communication with government officials 
significantly improved. 
 
-- (SBU) In 2001, the Council of Ministers approved its first 
five-year action plan to combat trafficking in persons and 
prostitution.  The strategy called for the formation of an 
interagency working group to address the trafficking problem and 
proposed measures for prevention, prosecution, victims' 
assistance and international cooperation.  The government is 
continuing its efforts with the adoption of its new 2008-2010 
State Program on Countering Trafficking in Human Beings, 
Irregular Migration and Related Illicit Activities.  This 
program is mainly aimed at decreasing irregular migration and 
prostitution, and increasing protection and rehabilitation of 
victims of trafficking and further improving TIP legislation. 
The plan also includes training to enhance the efficiency of 
prevention efforts improving cooperation between government and 
non-government entities.  Exact budget figures for the 
implementation of the program are unavailable. 
 
-- (SBU) The government agencies involved in developing the plan 
include: the Interior, Foreign Affairs, Education, Labor and 
Social Security, Economic, Health, Justice, Labor, Culture, 
Information, and Sports Ministries; State Customs and Border 
Committees; the Prosecutor General's Office; the Committee for 
State Security (the Belarusian KGB); the National Academy of 
Sciences; the Scientific Research Institute of Criminology, 
Criminal Analysis and Judicial Experts; Belarusian State 
Insurance Organization; Belarusian TV/Radio Broadcasting 
Company; Institution of Social and Political Research under the 
Presidential Administration.  Prior to enacting this plan, the 
Ministry of Interior consulted extensively with IOM and its 
partner NGOs experts. 
 
-- (SBU) The MOI reported that Belarusian law enforcement 
officials successfully established direct TIP enforcement 
contacts with their counterparts in the main destination 
countries - Russia, Ukraine, Spain, Poland, Lithuania, the 
United Kingdom, Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Israel, and 
Turkey.  Belarusian law enforcement officials actively 
investigated cases of trafficking throughout the year and worked 
jointly with officials abroad to break up several trafficking 
rings. 
 
-- (SBU) In an investigation that concluded in 2008, Belarusian 
police worked closely with German and Dutch authorities to shut 
down an organized criminal ring that trafficked over 30 
Belarusian women to brothels in Germany and the Netherlands. 
German, Dutch and Belarus law enforcement authorities arrested 
nine criminals, and courts in Belarus sentenced three local 
citizens to imprisonment of five to eight and one-half years. 
In a separate case, the Ministry of Interior worked closely with 
their Polish and German counterparts to investigate recruiting 
and trafficking in 2001-2006 of over 30 Belarusian women to 
brothels in Germany and Poland by two persons in the Brest 
Oblast. 
 
-- (SBU) In 2008, Belarus tabled draft resolutions at the United 
Nations General Assembly (UNGA) calling for improvements in 
coordinating mechanisms to combat human trafficking at the 
international level, initiated a debate on human trafficking 
during the UNGA session and called for developing a UN global 
action plan to prevent TIP.  Belarus was also active in ensuring 
that TIP remains on the agenda for the Collective Security 
Treaty Organization (CSTO) and the Commonwealth of Independent 
States (CIS). 
 
-- (SBU) The GOB actively sponsored and participated in 
 
MINSK 00000086  015.2 OF 015 
 
 
international TIP conferences.  In April 2008, the GOB and the 
Ministry of Interior in cooperation with the international 
organizations held a conference in Minsk on efforts to prevent 
violence against children which was attended by representatives 
from 27 countries. 
 
-- F. Required of all posts: What measures has the government 
taken during the reporting period to reduce the participation in 
international child sex tourism by nationals of the country? 
 
-- (SBU)  As Belarus is not a trafficking or sex tourism 
destination, it has not conducted awareness campaigns targeting 
clients of the sex trade, or collected any information 
indicating that its nationals participate in international child 
sex tourism. 
 
¶28.  HEROES: N/A 
 
¶29.  BEST PRACTICES: The Ministry of Interior's International 
Anti-TIP Academy continues to serve as an example of how 
governments can take the initiative in training their personnel 
to fight TIP.  The Academy's efforts work on two fronts.  Not 
only does it provide training for local law enforcement 
specialists for each of its police jurisdictions, but it has 
also completed courses for officers in destination countries. 
It has already completed training courses for several officials 
in CIS countries, and is expanding its efforts toward a 
curriculum for Gulf State destination countries.  In 2009, the 
Ministry provided tours of the facility to Embassy employees and 
a prominent visiting private AMCIT with interest in TIP issues. 
 
¶2.  (U) Embassy point of contact for TIP report: Regional 
Security Officer Christine Putz, telephone +375 17 210-1283, 
x4637, fax +375 17 334-7853, e-mail putzc@state.gov. 
 
¶3.  (U) Personnel time spent on this report: post spent 
approximately 80 hours preparing the Ninth Annual Trafficking in 
Persons Report. 
MOORE