Human trafficking in Cyprus

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In 2009,

Child Trafficking for Cyprus, some children within migrant and Roma communities may be vulnerable to trafficking.[1]

In 2009, the

Republic of Cyprus did not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking; however, it is making some efforts to do so. The government drafted and passed a new National Action Plan and convicted an increased number of traffickers in 2009. However, during 2009, the government identified fewer sex trafficking victims, failed to consistently provide financial and social support services to trafficking victims, and did not effectively address trafficking-related complicity, which local observers reported was hampering the government's anti-trafficking efforts.[1]

Cyprus ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in August 2003.[2]

The

U.S. State Department's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons placed the country in "Tier 2" in 2017.[3] The country was moved to Tier 1 by 2023.[4]

Between 2019 and 2022, 24 men, 65 women and nine minors were trafficked in Cyprus.[5] Between 2022-2023, the Social Welfare Services (SWS) responded to 296 cases of trafficking victims.[6] In 2023, the government launched a new unit dedicated to assisting human trafficking victims and victims of sexual exploitation.[7] In the same year, police arrested ten people suspected of running a crime gang ring trafficking migrants.[8]

In 2023, the Organised Crime Index gave Cyprus a score of 5.5 out of 10 for human trafficking, noting that the government had improved its efforts to prevent this crime.[9]

Prosecution (2009)

Cyprus made some progress in its anti-trafficking

court, seven are still under investigation, and two were "otherwise disposed of". The government convicted ten sex trafficking offenders in 2009, compared with one in 2008, and courts handed down harsher penalties for some traffickers. Sentences ranged from a $4,400 fine to four years in prison. Local observers reported, however, that the Attorney General's Office downgraded trafficking cases and sometimes tried anti-trafficking cases in lower courts, which are less equipped to deal with serious offenses.[1]

In November 2009,

performing artist" work permits; however, no DOL inspectors work after-hours, when "performing artists" are most subject to exploitation in cabarets.[1]

The government in 2009 added an additional member to its four-person police anti-trafficking unit;

prosecution of traffickers more difficult."[1]

A pending complicity investigation from 2008, involving four police officers who allegedly patronized a cabaret, was yet to be concluded in 2010. In 2007, the government transferred a police officer out of his unit for allegedly raping a trafficking victim; the court determined that the main witnesses in the case were unreliable, and the prosecution against the officer was dropped.[1]

Protection (2009)

The Government of Cyprus made limited but inconsistent progress in ensuring that trafficking victims received necessary protective services over the last year. It continued to fund its own shelter dedicated for trafficking victims, allocating $280,000 for its operation in 2009. The government cared for a total of 47 trafficking victims in the shelter in 2009, compared with 59 victims assisted in 2008. In 2009, the government allocated $235,000 in funding for additional victim assistance, and the Department of Social Welfare Services reported assisting 66 female victims of commercial

sexual exploitation and 163 male and female victims of labor exploitation.[1]

Although Cyprus' anti-trafficking law mandates referral of trafficking victims to the government's

vocational training.[1]

During the year, the government allowed some victims to stay at the shelter longer than the four weeks prescribed by law. NGOs reported, however, that social services and

welfare benefits, NGOs reported that several victims did not receive their full allowances on a consistent and timely basis. While the government provided some protections to a key prosecution witness from the Dominican Republic and allowed her to stay in the government shelter longer than four weeks, in comments to the media she reported overall inadequate treatment by the government. The government lacks a systematic procedure for the repatriation and safe return of trafficking victims. The government encouraged victims to participate in investigations of trafficking offenders and reported that all identified trafficking victims cooperated with law enforcement in 2009. However, cabaret owners and agents reportedly used attorneys to bribe potential witnesses, and pressured women to withdraw complaints or not follow through with testifying in court. In January 2010, the European Court of Human Rights found that Cyprus failed to adequately protect a trafficking victim from Russia who died in 2001 under suspicious circumstances.[1]

Prevention (2009)

The government did not implement any comprehensive campaigns to specifically address demand within the context of Cyprus, or to educate clients about the realities of forced prostitution inherent to the island's

sex industry, a long-standing deficiency. The government approved a 2010–2012 National Action Plan to combat human trafficking that calls for demand-focused public awareness campaigns and cooperation with NGOs to conduct outreach at universities, army camps, and other venues. In the same year, the government also provided over $8,000 to a radio station for programming throughout the year that specifically addressed human trafficking in Cyprus.[1]

Although the government reported it adopted a new policy to screen applications for foreign "performing artists", the work permit category that replaced the previous "artiste

barmaid" work permits in 2009; the government reported it issued 467 such permits in 2009, up from 422 issued during the previous reporting period. Another NGO questioned the government's official statistics on trafficking, speculating that a number of trafficking victims were intentionally left out of the statistics to indicate a smaller problem.[1]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "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 2023-02-12. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  2. ^ United Nations Treaty Collection website, Chapter XVIII Penal Matters section, Section 12a, retrieved August 19, 2024
  3. ^ "Trafficking in Persons Report 2017: Tier Placements". www.state.gov. Archived from the original on 2017-06-28. Retrieved 2017-12-01.
  4. ^ US Government website, Trafficking in Persons Report 2023
  5. ^ "Cyprus a 'destination country' for trafficking". cyprus-mail.com. 2024-01-03. Retrieved 2024-05-24.
  6. ^ Solutions, BDigital Web. "Cyprus launches special unit for human trafficking victims in anti-trafficking effort". knews.com.cy. Retrieved 2024-05-24.
  7. ^ Solutions, BDigital Web. "Cyprus launches special unit for human trafficking victims in anti-trafficking effort". knews.com.cy. Retrieved 2024-05-24.
  8. ^ "Cyprus Busts Refugee Trafficking Ring as More Arrive from Mideast". Voice of America. 2023-10-23. Retrieved 2024-05-24.
  9. ^ Organised Crime Index website, Cyprus: 2023
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