Human trafficking in Albania

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Albania ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in August 2002. [1]

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Albania is a source country for men, women, and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced prostitution and forced labor, including the forced begging of children. Albanian victims are subjected to conditions of forced labor and sex trafficking within Albania and Italy, North Macedonia, Kosovo, and Western Europe. Approximately half of the victims referred for care within the country in 2009 were Albanian; these were primarily women and girls subjected to conditions of forced prostitution in hotels and private residences in Tirana, Durrës, Elbasan, and Vlorë. Children were primarily exploited for begging and other forms of forced labor. There is evidence that Albanian men have been subjected to conditions of forced labor in the agricultural sector of Greece and other neighboring countries. [2] [3] [4]

The Government of Albania is making significant efforts to combat trafficking. It has improved its capacity to identify, protect, and reintegrate trafficking victims. It has also successfully prosecuted some sex trafficking offenders, imposing significant penalties. In March 2009, the government approved an amendment to the Social Assistance law which will provide victims of trafficking with the same social benefits accorded to other at-risk groups in Albania and provide government funding for shelters. The government continues to track and analyze trafficking trends through a nationwide database. Government officials have increased public attention to trafficking in Albania. There are serious concerns, however, about protection for victims who testified against their traffickers. The government has not vigorously prosecuted labor trafficking offenders. Because of lack of political will and corruption in some key government agencies, the government has sometimes been less than vigorous in its prosecution of human trafficking. [2] [5] In 2013 Albania introduced harsher penalties for human trafficking, but there were very few arrests. In 2013, only three people were convicted for human trafficking, and in 2014, according to the US State Department, only nine were convicted. [6] In 2015, the National Coalition of Anti-Trafficking Shelters (NCATS) reported 85 cases of human trafficking. However, they estimate that the number is much higher. Impoverished girls and women who are manipulated through sham marriages and false employment opportunities are named as particularly at risk. [6] [7] The other group of victims includes children, poor and socially excluded people, economic migrants, refugees and victims of domestic violence and other forms of abuse. [8]

The U.S. State Department's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons placed the country in "Tier 2" in 2017. [9] [10] Statistics from the British National Crime Agency showed that in 2017 the majority of victims of human trafficking are Albanians who are exploited as cheap labor or in the sex industry. [11] The country remained at Tier 2 in 2023. [12]

In 2023, the Organised Crime Index gave the country a score of 5 out of 10 for human trafficking, noting improved support for victims. [13]

Prosecution

Albania criminally prohibits sex and labor trafficking through its penal code, which prescribes penalties of 5 to 15 years' imprisonment. Since the fall of communism in Albania in the early 1990s, the trade in young Albanian women has expanded into Western Europe, as well as the trade in women from Eastern Europe for sexual enslavement. [14] [15] [16]

These penalties exceed those prescribed for other serious crimes, such as rape. The State Police division reported investigating a combined 35 suspected traffickers in 2009. The government prosecuted 31 suspected trafficking offenders in 2009, convicting 11 of them; this contrasts with 26 trafficking offenders convicted in 2008 and seven in 2007. All of the prosecutions and convictions involved sex trafficking of women or children. In 2009, sentences imposed on convicted trafficking offenders ranged from 5 to 16 years' imprisonment. Pervasive corruption in all levels and sectors of Albanian society seriously hampered the government's ability to address its human trafficking problem, according to local observers. The Supreme Court overturned convictions of traffickers in two cases in 2009. In January 2009, the government reported it doubled the number of police investigators to investigate trafficking. The Serious Crimes Court seized and confiscated $268,115 in traffickers' assets and property in 2009. [2]

In 2019, the government doubled the budget for the Office of the National Anti-Trafficking Coordinator (ONAC), but nevertheless, the government does not meet all of the minimum standards. Because the government investigated fewer cases, 2019 saw the lowest level of reported prosecutions in four years. [3] However, as it is making significant efforts to meet the minimum standards according to the US State Department's 2020 report on trafficking in human beings, Albania remains at Tier 2. [16]

Protection

The Government of Albania has taken some steps to improve its efforts to identify and protect victims of trafficking. The government has implemented a National Referral Mechanism and conducted meetings with relevant stakeholders to improve its functioning. It identified 94 victims of trafficking in 2009, compared with 108 in 2008. The government's one shelter assisted 24 victims and NGOs assisted 70 during 2009. In 2009, the government provided free professional training to 38 victims, provided 11 with micro-credit loans to start private businesses, and integrated five victims into schools. In January 2010, it approved a draft law to provide social assistance to trafficking victims bridging the time from when they leave the shelters until they find employment. NGO-managed shelters continued to rely primarily on international donor funds in order to provide comprehensive services to trafficking victims. The government funds and operates a reception center that houses both victims of trafficking and irregular foreign migrants identified within Albanian territory; however, victims' freedom of movement is often restricted in this high-security center. The government does not penalize victims for unlawful acts committed in connection with their being trafficked and, under law, it offers legal alternatives to the removal of foreign victims to countries where they may face hardship or retribution. [2] [17] [18]

The government encourages victims to participate in investigations and prosecutions of trafficking offenders; however, victims often refuse to testify, or they change their testimony as a result of intimidation or a fear of intimidation from traffickers. In some cases in 2009, the police offered no protections to trafficking victims when testifying against their traffickers, forcing victims to rely exclusively on NGOs for protection. In 2009, one victim witness received asylum in another country due to ongoing threats from the trafficker to her and her family and concerns that the government could not adequately protect her. The General Prosecutor's office did not request witness protection for victims of trafficking in 2009. [2] [19] [20] [21]

Prevention

In 2010 the Government of Albania partnered with international organizations and experts such as Dr. Gilly McKenzie of the United Nations and Interpol, in order to implement anti-trafficking prevention activities aimed at informing the public and vulnerable groups about trafficking. The National Coordinator's office manages regional anti-trafficking working groups composed of relevant stakeholders. These working groups, however, reportedly do not always include civil society actors and do not efficiently address trafficking cases brought to their attention. The government funds a national toll-free, 24-hour hotline for victims and potential victims of trafficking. In November 2009, the government passed legislation to improve the registration process for new births and individuals in the Roma community; previous cumbersome procedures rendered unregistered Albanians and ethnic Roma highly vulnerable to trafficking. [2]

See also

Related Research Articles

Uzbekistan ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in August 2008.

Algeria ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in March 2004.

Armenia ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in July 2003.

Austria is a destination and transit country for women, men, and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced prostitution and forced labor.

The Bahamas ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in September 2008.

Bangladesh is a source and transit country for men, women, and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced labor and forced prostitution. A significant share of Bangladesh's trafficking victims are men recruited for work overseas with fraudulent employment offers who are subsequently exploited under conditions of forced labor or debt bondage. It also includes the trafficking of children – both boys and girls – within Bangladesh for commercial sexual exploitation, bonded labor, and forced labor. Some children are sold into bondage by their parents, while others are induced into labor or commercial sexual exploitation through fraud and physical coercion. Women and children from Bangladesh are also trafficked.

Belgium is a source, destination, and transit country for men, women, and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced labor and forced prostitution. Victims originate in Eastern Europe, Africa, East Asia, as well as Brazil and India. Some victims are smuggled through Belgium to other European countries, where they are subjected to forced labor and forced prostitution. Male victims are subjected to forced labor and exploitation in restaurants, bars, sweatshops, horticulture sites, fruit farms, construction sites, and retail shops. There were reportedly seven Belgian women subjected to forced prostitution in Luxembourg in 2009. According to a 2009 ECPAT Report, the majority of girls and children subjected to forced prostitution in Belgium originate from Balkan and CIS countries, Eastern Europe, Asia and West Africa ; some young foreign boys are exploited in prostitution in major cities in the country. Local observers also report that a large portion of children trafficked in Belgium are unaccompanied, vulnerable asylum seekers and refugees. Criminal organizations from Thailand use Thai massage parlors in Belgium, which are run by Belgian managers, to sexually exploit young Thai women. These networks are involved in human smuggling and trafficking to exploit victims economically and sexually. Belgium is not only a destination country, but also a transit country for children to be transported to other European country destinations.

Bolivia ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in May 2006.

In 2009 Bosnia and Herzegovina was primarily a source for Bosnian women and girls who were subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced prostitution within the country, though it was also a destination and transit country for foreign women and girls in forced prostitution in Bosnia and Western Europe. There were four identified victims from Serbia in 2009. Most trafficked women entered the country through Serbia or Montenegro. There were reports that some girls, particularly Roma, were trafficked, using forced marriage, for the purpose of involuntary domestic servitude, and that Roma boys and girls were subjected to forced begging by organized groups. There was one case involving Bosnian males recruited for labor and subjected to coercive conditions in Azerbaijan in 2009. NGO's report that traffickers frequently use intermediaries to bring clients to private apartments, motels, and gas stations where victims are held.

Portugal ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in May 2004.

Nicaragua ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in October 2004.

Hungary ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in December 2006.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human trafficking in Ghana</span>

In 2009, Ghana was a country of origin, transit, and destination for women and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced labor and forced prostitution. The nonconsensual exploitation of Ghanaian citizens, particularly children, was more common than the trafficking of foreign migrants. The movement of internally trafficked children was either from rural to urban areas, or from one rural area to another, as from farming to fishing communities.

North Macedonia ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in January 2005.

In 2010 Mongolia was a source country, and to a much lesser extent, a destination for men, women, and children who were subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced prostitution and forced labor. Mongolian men, women, and children were found in these conditions in China, Macau, Malaysia, South Korea, and Hong Kong. Mongolian men and women were found in conditions of forced labor in Turkey, Kazakhstan, and the Czech Republic. Visa-free travel of Mongolians to Turkey resulted in a significant increase in the number of both labor and sex trafficking cases of Mongolian labor migrants in Turkey. There remained concerns about involuntary child labor in the Mongolian construction, mining, and industrial sectors, where children were vulnerable to injury and face severe health hazards. The problem of Mongolian women subjected to conditions of involuntary servitude after engaging in brokered marriages - mainly to South Korean men - continued. Trafficking within Mongolia often involved women and girls forced to work in saunas or massage parlors where they were subjected to forced prostitution. Anecdotal reports continued to indicate that South Korean and Japanese tourists engaged in child sex tourism in Mongolia.

Bulgaria ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in December 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human trafficking in Costa Rica</span> Trade of people in Costa Rica

Costa Rica ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in September 2003.

Croatia ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in January 2003.

Denmark ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in September 2003.

In 2009 El Salvador was a source, transit, and destination country for women and children who were subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced prostitution and forced labor. Most victims were Salvadoran women and girls from rural areas who were forced into commercial sexual exploitation in urban areas, though some adults and children were subjected to forced labor as agricultural workers and domestic workers. The majority of foreign victims were women and children from neighboring countries, such as Honduras, Nicaragua, and the Dominican Republic, who migrated to El Salvador in response to job offers, but were subsequently forced into prostitution or domestic servitude. Trafficking offenders used fraudulent documentation to facilitate the movement of foreign victims. Salvadorans have been subjected to forced prostitution in Guatemala, Mexico, Belize, the United States, Spain, and Italy.

References

  1. ↑ United Nations Treaty Collection website, Chapter XVIII Penal Matters section, Section 12a, retrieved August 19, 2024
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Trafficking in Persons Report 2010 Country Narratives - Countries A Through F". US Department of State. 2010-06-17. Archived from the original on 2010-06-17. Retrieved 2023-02-01.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  3. 1 2 "Albania Trafficking in Persons Report 2019". United States Department of State. Retrieved 2020-11-11.
  4. ↑ "Albania Trafficking in Persons Report 2020". United States Department of State. Retrieved 2020-11-10.
  5. ↑ "Combating human trafficking". osce.org . Retrieved 2020-11-10.
  6. 1 2 "[Investigation] Albanian women trafficked in EU: abused, rejected, abandoned". EUobserver. 25 January 2016. Retrieved 2020-11-10.
  7. ↑ "Breaking the cycle of human trafficking in Albania". UN Women. Retrieved 2020-11-10.
  8. ↑ jryan (2015-07-16). "Human Trafficking in Albania: Hiding in Plain Sight". CRS. Retrieved 2020-11-11.
  9. ↑ "Trafficking in Persons Report 2017: Tier Placements". state.gov. Archived from the original on 2017-06-28. Retrieved 2017-12-01.
  10. ↑ "An Albanian Woman From Italy At Ellis Island" (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 2020-11-17. Retrieved 2020-11-11.
  11. ↑ Osborne, Lydia. "UK: Human Trafficking Surge Linked to Albanian Gangs". occrp.org. Retrieved 2020-11-11.
  12. ↑ US Government website, Trafficking in Persons Report 2023
  13. ↑ Organised Crime Index website, Albania: 2023
  14. ↑ "Comment: The Untold Stories of Albania's Human Trafficking Survivors". Exit - Explaining Albania. 2020-04-24. Archived from the original on 2020-11-12. Retrieved 2020-11-12.
  15. ↑ "Human trafficking: Poor women and girls targeted in Albania". BBC News. 2017-02-22. Retrieved 2020-11-12.
  16. 1 2 "U.S. Department report on Trafficking in Persons: Albania on Tier 2". Tirana Times. 2020-06-26. Retrieved 2020-11-12.
  17. ↑ Refugees, United Nations High Commissioner for. "Refworld | 2018 Trafficking in Persons Report - Albania". Refworld. Retrieved 2020-11-17.
  18. ↑ "UNICEF and its anti-trafficking coalition partners united to address human trafficking in Albania". unicef.org. Retrieved 2020-11-17.
  19. ↑ "Prosecute human traffickers and deliver justice to victims: OSCE Alliance Conference against Trafficking in Persons calls for an end to impunity - World". ReliefWeb. Retrieved 2020-11-18.
  20. ↑ Refugees, United Nations High Commissioner for. "Refworld | 2011 Trafficking in Persons Report - Albania". Refworld. Retrieved 2020-11-18.
  21. ↑ "Legislationline". legislationline.org. Retrieved 2020-11-18.
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