Amnesty International and Anti-Slavery International issued a public statement today urging greater transparency in the drafting of a European Convention Against Trafficking in Human Beings.  In September 2003, the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers began the process of drafting this convention with the intention of focusing on human rights and victim protection and incorporating a gender perspective.  The Committee of Ministers created an Ad Hoc Committee on Action Against Trafficking in Human Beings (CAHTEH) charged with drafting the convention.  CAHTEH has held four meetings to date and plans to meet at the end of this month to discuss provisions relating to the protection of the human rights of trafficking survivors. 

The Amnesty/ Anti-Slavery statement includes requests for (1) the public distribution of the draft text of the convention so that NGOs may provide CAHTEH with comments; (2) the invitation of relevant NGOs and experts to address CAHTEH; and (3) COE Member State consultation with NGOs and experts serving trafficking survivors in their countries.

For more information, please see this statement available on the Amnesty International website here. Please see also the Council of Europe website that has been created to cover developments related to this drafting process: www.coe.int/trafficking. 

For more information, please visit the Trafficking Law and Policy: Council of Europe section of this website.

The April 2004 edition of the American Journal of Public Health featured the results of an 18-month study of 150 women in the state of Texas (USA) who qualified for a two-year protection order against an intimate partner.  The study demonstrates that "[a]bused women who apply and qualify for a 2-year protection order, irrespective of whether or not they are granted the order, report significantly lower levels of violence during the subsequent 18 months."  The study results show a significant decrease in threats of assault, physical assault, stalking and worksite harassment over time among all women studied.

For more information about orders for protection, please see the full text of this article that may be purchased here and the section of this website entitled Domestic Violence Explore the Issue: Orders for Protection.

Minority Rights Group reports that a seminar in Tirana, Albania found
that women in Albania and those in majority of South-East Europe are vulnerable because of povery, exclusion and "double-discrimination" (sic). (Cited from: "'Double-discrimination' leaves Albania's minority women vulnerable." Minority Rights. 2 June 2004.) The seminar addressed a number of issues including povery, trafficking, domestic violence and political exclusion. In addition to the burdens faced by many women such as exclusion and poverty, minority women in South-East Europe also face multiple discrimination based on ethnicity, religion or linguistic differences. Trafficking in women is an especially urgent issue for minorities in the region because many victims come from minority groups. A report entitled "Gender and Minority Issues in Albania: Awareness-Raising Regional Seminar (Tirana, 12–13 September 2003)" was published with the findings of the seminar.

Compiled from: "'Double-discrimination' leaves Albania's minority women vulnerable." Minority Rights. 2 June 2004.

For more information, please see the Domestic Violence, Trafficking in Women and Albania section of this website.

Michael Chance, the head of the International Organization for Migration (IOM)  in Kazakhstan, told Radio Free Europe that corrupt officials are limiting the effectiveness of Kazakhstan’s efforts to combat human trafficking.

According to official figures, 110 cases against people alleged to be involved in trafficking were initiated in the first three months of 2004, only eight cases were opened in all of 2003. The IOM official said, however, that few traffickers have been punished because those involved in the trade have enough money to bribe investigators. He also attributed the low success rate to a lack of legislation criminalizing human trafficking.

The U.S. State Department has cited Kazakhstan in its annual human-rights report for weakness in fighting human trafficking. The report is available here, (please refer to section 6(f)).

Most citizens of Kazakhstan who fall victim to human trafficking are sent to the United Arab Emirates, though some have been sent to western Europe, Israel. And Saudi Arabia.

Cited from Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty online newsletter, Volume 8, Number 97, 24 May 2004, available here.

For more information, please visit the Kazakhstan section of this website. For reference to other reports on Kazakhstan please refer to the Human Rights Reports section of this website.

Roma Women's Initiative launched a new website that includes an online library, country-specific information, the history of the initiative, directory of Roma women's organizations in the region among other useful research tools. Of particular importance, the website informs users how to get involved with the Decade of Roma Inclusion project, a program of the Open Society Institute and World Bank. The Roma Women's Initiative is a project of the Network Women's Program of the Open Society Institute.

Compiled from: "Roma Women's Intiative Website Launched." Open Society Institute. 3 June 2004.

The Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights has created a new webpage for the Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women. The page includes documents of the Special Rapporteur and other information on key issues, countries visited by the Special Rapporteur and international standards relating to violence against women.

According to ARMINFO,  USAID Intra/PRIME reports that one in three women in Armenia is a victim of physical or psychological abuse at least once in her lifetime. The survey indicated that 46% of 1,457 respondents reported psychological abuse and twenty one percent of respondents reported physical abuse. Two per cent of the women reported being raped before marriage. The report also indicates that Armenian victims of violence are hestitant to report the abuse to the authorities.

Compiled from: "Every Third Armenian Woman Subjected to Violence" ARMINFO Independent Armenian News Agency.

For more information, please see the Domestic Violence section, Sexual Assault section and Armenia country page of this website.

The European Parliament recently announced the creation of a website to provide up-to-date information on the upcoming Parliamentary elections on 13 June 2004. The website was designed to provide the media with detailed election information as well as to inform citizens about candidate parties and platforms. The website will publish the national and European-level election results for all twenty-five countries on June 13.

For more information on the EU, please visit the European Human Rights System section of this website.

As part of its Stop Violence Against Women Campaign launched in March 2004, Amnesty International published a report entitled Turkey: Women Confronting Family Violence on 2 June 2004. The report presents the cases of individual women who have been victims of domestic violence and examines the causes of and contributing factors to domestic violence. The report also identifies traditional practices, including early marriage, “crimes of honor” like forced suicide or honor killings, and continuing court practices reducing the sentences for rapists if they promise to marry their victim.

In a press release issued by the International Secretariat of Amnesty International, the organization called on the Turkish government to ensure that:

• "Women are provided with protective mechanisms such as shelters, judicial mechanisms and appropriate health care, reparation and redress;"
• "Prosecutors and police investigate and press charges against perpetrators of violence against women;"
• "There is comprehensive recording and statistical monitoring of incidence of violence against women;"
• "Laws to protect women are properly enforced;"
• "Women's rights groups and other NGOs receive support for their work in eradicating discrimination and violence against women."

Cited from the Amnesty International press release of June 2, 2004, AI Index: EUR 44/021/2004.

The Office of Gender Affairs in the U.N. Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) has completed a gender survey in Kosovo, which reveals a serious gender gap in both the workforce and education. The survey found that women constitute only thirty percent of the labor force in urban areas, and female participation in the workforce drops to twenty-one percent in rural areas. In addition, the survey also found that girls were under-represented in schools. Ninety-one percent of girls go to primary school, and only fifty-four percent attended secondary school.

UNMIK carried out the survey to provide information to policymakers in their efforts to attain gender equality in the areas of employment, education, health and social welfare.

Compiled from UN News Centre, 8 June 2004, available here.

For more information on women in Kosovo, please visit the Kosovo section of this website

On 13 May 2004, the Parliament of Mongolia unanimously adopted a Domestic Violence Bill. Since 1996, women's groups have advocated for the law with training and support from the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM).

The Advocates for Human Rights has issued comments on the new law.

Cited from UNIFEM’s electronic newsletter, May/June 2004, available here.   

Mongolia_Domestic_Violence_law.doc  

For more information on Mongolia, please visit the Mongolia section of this website.

On 8 June 2004, the Council of Europe's independent human rights monitoring body, the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI), released its Third Reports on both Czech Republic (PDF, 40 pages) and Hungary (PDF, 37 pages). The Third Reports discuss whether and to what extent recommendations from ECRI's prior reports have been implemented. The Third Reports also address "specific issues" and make recommendations to the country. Among other recommendations, the ECRI recommended that both countries monitor the status of minorities, taking into account "the gender dimension, particularly from the viewpoint of possible double or multiple discrimination." (cited from the Third Report on Hungary and Third Report on Czech Republic, European Commission against Racism and Intolerance, C.R.I. 2004 25).

The Third Reports are also available in Czech (PDF, 38 pages) and Hungarian (PDF, 39 pages).

For more information, please visit the ECRI website.

For more information about these countries, please visit the Czech Republic and Hungary sections of this website.

To prepare for a "Review of the implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action and the outcome documents of the twenty-third special session of the General Assembly" during its forty-ninth session, the U.N. Division for the Advancement of Women sent a questionnaire (PDF) to all governments requesting information on accomplishments and obstacles to implementing the Beijing Platform for Action. Responses were due by 30 April 2004 and are now available in the original language of submission on the U.N. Division for the Advancement of Women website. 

Compiled from: U.N. Division for the Advancement of Women website.

For more information, please visit the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action section of this website.

Date: 30 June 2004

Location: Central London

Aim: This one-day conference has been designed to address how the trafficking of women and children into the UK can be dealt with at a national level, with specific reference to prevention of trafficking, identifying traffickers, victim support and effective prosecution.

Speakers include:

• David Ould, Deputy Director, Anti-Slavery International 
• Carron Somerset, Acting Campaign Co-ordinator, ECPAT UK
• Karen Tatom, District Manager, County Asylum Team, Kent County Council
• Andy Johnson, Detective Sergeant, Joint De-Briefing Team, Kent Police
• Simon Jeal, European and International Division, Crown Prosecution Service 
• Laura Weight, Head of Organised Immigration Crime Section, Police Organised Crime Unit, Home Office
• Cameron Bryson, Immigration Inspector, Immigration Service

For more information or for a brochure, please visit Capita Learning and Development.

For more information about trafficking, please visit the Trafficking in Women section of this website

Presented by Amnesty International USA's Western Region Human Rights Educators Network

Join concerned educators for an institute to explore ending violence against women. During this four-day event, participants will share experiences, move toward broader understanding, and work together in finding solutions to this complex issue.

From Wednesday, July 21st through Saturday, July 24th at Seattle University in Seattle, Washington, come together with teachers, students and community members for presentations, workshops and fieldwork. Participants will examine the roles we can play as educators in ending violence against women.

How do we begin a dialogue about violence against women? What challenges have we faced and how can we build upon our knowledge of those experiences? The Institute will provide opportunities to join others in seeking, sharing and making sense of what we know about violence against women.

The cost for the institute itself is only $125, if you register by June 15th. Three units of course credit (continuing ed) available for $105. Academic (degree applicable) course credit will also be available upon request.

For more information about events and speakers, please visit the Amnesty USA website. The registration form, along with information on housing and meals, is available as well.

The Network of East-West Women reported that on the 13th of June seven women were elected to the European Parliament, resulting in a 12.96% vote share.

Compiled from: "7 Polish Women in European Parliament", Network of East-West Women Newsletter No. 36, 16-06-2004.

For more information, please see the Poland section of this website

Several dozen young Georgians from three predominantly Georgian-populated districts in northwestern Azerbaijan gathered on 14 June outside the state chancellery where Saakashvili and Aliyev were meeting, Georgian media reported. They protested the lack of Georgian-language education in Azerbaijan and official restrictions on giving children Georgian names. Caucasus Press quoted Aliyev as saying the Azerbaijani government "will do everything possible" to help the Georgian minority. Georgian Education Minister Kakha Lomaya is scheduled to travel to the region later this month bringing a consignment of Georgian textbooks for 12 local schools, Caucasus Press reported on 4 June.

Copyright (c) 2004. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org

For more information, please see the Georgia and Azerbaijan sections of this website.

In its annual report on human trafficking, released yesterday, the United States cited 10 nations for not doing enough to fight the crime and introduced the possibility of sanctions against them but dropped five other nations from last year's blacklist.

As in past years, Cuba, Myanmar, North Korea and Sudan were singled out. This year they were joined by newcomers Bangladesh, Ecuador, Equatorial Guinea, Guyana, Sierra Leone and Venezuela. Those nations could see their non-humanitarian and non-trade-related U.S. aid cut off unless they show progress trying to curb trafficking by October, the U.S. State Department said.

Among nations removed from the list were NATO allies Greece and Turkey, both of which had protested their inclusion in the 2003 Trafficking in Persons report, as well as anti-terrorism allies Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.

Belize, Bosnia, the Dominican Republic, Georgia and Suriname were also dropped after having recorded improvements in fighting trafficking, according to the report.

Haiti, which also appeared in last year's survey, was placed in its own category to reflect that its new government, which took over after the Feb. 29 ouster of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, has not had time to address trafficking.

The 10 blacklisted countries appeared in the category "Tier 3" for countries that have not taken "significant efforts" to prevent the trade in people, particularly women and children. Nations determined to comply with U.S. anti-trafficking efforts were put in "Tier 1," while those making "significant efforts" are given "Tier 2" status.

This year's report also created a "Tier 2 watch list" for nations that are not yet in compliance with U.S. standards but have pledged to take steps toward meeting the requirements, officials said.

The watch list included by far the largest number of the 140 nations surveyed. Japan, Greece, Turkey, India, Thailand appeared in this category along with 37 other countries (Agence France-Presse, June 14).

Cited from U.N. Wire, June 15 2004, available here. Copyright, National Journal Group, 2004.

For more information, please see the Trafficking in Women section of this website.

U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan has appointed Norwegian Ambassador Kai Eide to investigate ethnic violence that rocked Kosovo in March, leaving 19 people dead and hundreds injured and driving 3,000 people — mostly Serbs — from their homes.

Eide will examine the political and cultural implications of the violence between the Serbs and ethnic Albanians and recommend ways in which the two groups can live in peace.

Meanwhile, Harri Holkeri, who stepped down last month as head of the U.N. Mission in Kosovo, warned Sunday "there may still be difficult days ahead" for the province and urged the people to "reject extremism, reject division and listen to their responsible leaders."

Reflecting on his 10 months of service, Holkeri said that while the March violence was "a big setback" to peace and reconstruction in the region, much progress had been made before the clashes.

"Kosovo had no functioning institutions when the U.N. arrived here (in 1999), but since then, three elections have been organized and Kosovo now has a functioning government and an elected assembly," he said (seeurope.net, June 14).

Cited from U.N. Wire, June 15 2004, available here. Copyright, National Journal Group, 2004.

For more information, please refer to the Kosovo section of this website.

The draft European Union Constitution is currently being reviewed by the Intergovernmental Conference meeting on June 17-18 at the occasion of the European Council meeting in Brussels. If the Constitution is approved by the Member State representatives at the Conference, it will need to be ratified by each Member State, a process that is estimated to last two years. Once ratified, the Constitution will make the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union binding on EU Member States for the first time. The Charter of Fundamental Rights covers the entire range of civil, political, economic and social rights of European Union citizens and residents. Chapter One, Dignity, prohibits forced labor or slavery, including the trafficking of persons (Article 5). Chapter Three, Equality, addresses non-discrimination (Article 21) and equality between men and women (Article 23).

On April 1, 2004, the leaders of the 25 current and future Member States of the European Union unanimously committed themselves to reaching an agreement on the European Draft Constitution by their June 17-18, 2004 EU Council Summit. A similar effort six months ago was unable to produce an agreement. Increased political pressure to decide on the Constitution has been complicated by the recent European Parliament elections of June 14, which gave increased representation to “Euroskeptic” political groups.

A number of significant issues remain to be faced at the Intergovernmental Conference being held June 17-18. Medium-sized nations, including Spain and Poland, are resisting a voting system that would reduce the sizable influence they are currently accorded. In response, the EU’s presidency has just proposed modifying the “double majority” voting system (requiring a 50% majority of Member States and 60% of the EU population) by increasing Member State and population majority requirements to 55% and 65%, respectively. In other areas, Italy and Poland strongly favor including a reference in the preamble to God as a source of European values, an issue that is opposed by France and Belgium. Britain still favors keeping a veto right for taxation, social security and criminal law policies. Britain also wants a guarantee that the Charter of Fundamental Rights won’t create any new rights under national law that would affect Britain’s flexible labor laws. The Irish Presidency of the EU, as well as the leaders of France and Germany, remain optimistic about reaching an agreement on schedule.

The biweekly bulletin of the Constitutional Convention tracks the latest developments on the Constitution agreement process. The webpage of the Irish presidency of the European Council also covers the latest developments of the Intergovernmental Conference.

This month Greece granted temporary residence permits to two women who were trafficked in the country and forced to work as prostitutes. They are the first victims of trafficking who benefit from Law 3064/2002 on "Combating trafficking in human beings, crimes against sexual freedom, child pornography and more generally on economic exploitation of sexual life and assistance to the victims thereof.”

The law was adopted in 2002 and criminalizes trafficking in persons for sexual exploitation and forced labor. Under the provisions of Law 3064, victims are allowed to remain in Greece until the case against their traffickers is tried in court. In the meantime, they can secure residence and work permits and stay at shelters.

In its 2004 report, the U.S. Department of State noted that no convictions were reported under Law 3064, although the Greek government had arrested 284 alleged traffickers.

Local human rights groups hope that the new center-right government will issue more temporary residence permits to trafficking victims. The Greek Helsinki Monitor and 13 other local human rights groups signed a petition appealing to the Minister of Justice for legal aid to trafficking victims.

The granting of temporary residence permits is also in line with a European Union directive adopted in April. The directive states that victims of trafficking should be granted a short-term residency permit in order to encourage them to cooperate with the authorities.

Between 20,000 and 40,000 women and girls are trafficked into Greece every year. The majority of trafficking victims are from the former Eastern bloc countries.

Compiled from Athens News, The Balkan Human Rights Web Pages and U.S. Department of State 2004 Trafficking in Persons Report.

For more information, please see the Trafficking in Women section of this website.

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Mission to Serbia and Montenegro will present the first survey on human trafficking in Serbia on 23 June 2004. A Serbian version of this news release is also available. The report addresses trafficking of women, children and those trafficked for exploitation of labor. It addresses issues of prostitution, illegal migration and labor, begging and vagrancy.  The report also provides official data and data from NGOs as well as information regarding legislation and previous research available on the subject of trafficking. The objective of the survey is to assist law-makers and NGOs in developing a "national strategy to prevent and combat more efficiently the trafficking in human beings." (Cited from: "OSCE Mission to present first study on human trafficking in Serbia." Organization of Security and Cooperation in Europe Mission to Serbia and Montenegro, Belgrade, 22 June 2004). Four researchers from the Victimology Society of Serbia conducted the survey.

Compiled from: "OSCE Mission to present first study on human trafficking in Serbia." Organization of Security and Cooperation in Europe Mission to Serbia and Montenegro, Belgrade, 22 June 2004.

For more information, please see the Trafficking in Women and Serbia and Montenegro section of this website.

On 31 March, the Czech website idnes.cz reported that Czech police had arrested and expelled four Ukrainian night club workers from Stara Voda in western Bohemia. The workers had forged passport stamps from Prague's Ruzyne Airport and reportedly obtained them from an unknown man for the price of 120 euros ($145). A year earlier, in April 2003, the Czech police's Anti-Organized Crime Unit arrested two Ukrainian men, one Czech man, and a Czech woman, on charges of trafficking in women for prostitution in the Czech towns of Hazlov and As, idnes.cz reported. The two Ukrainians, Mikola Didych and Viktor Sidorchuk, are said to have trafficked some tens of women from Ukraine and Slovakia. According to the report, they made profits of 5.7 million Czech crowns ($216,363) from the trade.

While many of the criminals involved in trafficking are caught and prosecuted, the victim is often left to fend for herself, without travel documents, money, or working papers. La Strada, a nongovernmental organization that has been active in the Czech Republic since 1995, works to protect and help women trafficked for sexual exploitation. Hundreds, if not thousands, of women were returning to their home countries in Central and Eastern Europe after being smuggled or tricked into working as prostitutes in the West. Back home, the women needed a support mechanism to help them reintegrate into society.

La Strada, whose name comes from the Italian for "the street," has been funded for the past nine years by the Dutch Justice and Foreign ministries in cooperation with the Dutch Foundation Against Trafficking in Women. The organization has offices in the Czech Republic, Belarus, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Moldova, Netherlands, Poland, and Ukraine. La Strada tries to raise awareness in society about the problem of trafficked women, the prevention of human trafficking, assisting individuals, as well as political lobbying.

HUMAN TRAFFICKING: THE SEEN AND THE UNSEEN

La Strada representatives say that there have been certain changes in women-trafficking trends. While formerly the Czech Republic was more a country of origin or transition, it is now also a country of destination having undergone significant social changes after the fall of communism in 1989. Victims of trafficking tend to come from an economically weaker region to an economically stronger one. That means that women are trafficked not only from Eastern European countries to Western Europe, but also from economically depressed regions in their own country.

According to a September 2003 Czech government report, most trafficked women in the Czech Republic come from Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, Moldova, Lithuania, Romania, and Bulgaria. Romany women from Slovakia are also a group at high risk. More than 50 percent of women assisted by La Strada come from the countries of the former Soviet Union, although new trends show an increased number of women arriving from China, Vietnam, Slovakia, and occasionally Turkey. In the report, it is estimated that the purchase price of one woman is between 1250 and 1500 euros.

La Strada provides a maximum of six months of counseling and room and board for the victims of trafficking. The estimated monthly cost of care provided by La Strada is 12,150 Czech crowns ($473) for a Czech or foreign citizen. La Strada also works with the Czech Catholic Charity, which often takes on women after three months of La Strada care. The International Office for Migration (IOM) also assists in various cases by covering the costs of new travel documents, visas, or travel expenses, estimated to be around 10,000 crowns per person.

Following that, the Czech government provides the rest of the assistance. The crucial point at this stage concerns the willingness of the victim to cooperate with the police in the investigation and prosecution of the traffickers. If the victim cooperates, she is given asylum. If, on the other hand, she is too scared and refuses to cooperate, this can result in expulsion from the country. According to Klara Skrivankova, a prevention coordinator at La Strada, the "risks of retrafficking are rather high, and some experts suppose that almost the half of the persons end up retrafficked."

La Strada works closely with the Czech police's Anti-Organized Crime Unit. Police officers receive special training on how to deal with victims of trafficking and put many women in contact with La Strada.

However, most women trafficked to the Czech Republic for sexual exploitation refuse to cooperate with the police. According to La Strada representatives, many women have a general distrust of the police, a trait brought from their native countries. According to Skrivankova, cooperation with regional police in the border areas, where prostitution is prevalent, has not been extremely positive. On the other hand, she says that "to break the vicious circle [of human trafficking for sexual exploitation] it takes much more than the work of one NGO or interagency cooperation on a national level -- which I'm glad to say has improved greatly in the past years." "In the Czech Republic there are channels of cooperation between state agencies and NGOs," she adds.

In those cases where the victim does decide to trust the Czech police, there is still fear for the security of their family back home. Traffickers usually "draft" women from their own regions and are therefore well informed about the victim's family. Often families rely on money sent home by trafficked women. In addition, many victims fear that her family or relatives will find out what her "real" job was abroad, which can lead to being ostracized upon returning home.

This doesn't appear to be the case with Czech citizens trafficked abroad. The press office of the Czech Police Department of Security told RFE/RL that during 2003, around 800 Czech citizens, both men and women, contacted Czech embassies throughout the world, claiming to be victims of trafficking. And according to the IOM's Czech Republic Mission Director Lucie Sladkova, the country with the highest number of Czech women reported to have been trafficked to is Italy, with 10 cases reported in 2003.

During the course of 2003, as part of the UN's Global Program against Trafficking in Human Beings, the Czech Institute for Criminology and Social Prevention (IKSP) carried out research related to trends in the trafficking of Czech citizens. The research was based on information provided by Czech embassies; the highest number of Czech victims of trafficking during the last five years was reported at Czech embassies in Washington D.C. (400 cases), in Paris (65 cases), followed by Tokyo (around 25), Madrid and Vienna (each around 20), and Bonn (around 15).

By launching a 15-month twinning project between the Czech Republic, Netherlands, and the U.K. on 9 June, the Czech Republic is aiming to strengthen its legislation and training for specialists, as well as to implement new methods in order to fight more effectively against human trafficking. The project will receive up to 950,000 euros from the European Union's Phare program...

...LEGAL AMBIGUITY

In the Czech Republic, as in other post communist countries, human trafficking and smuggling are illegal according to paragraphs in the criminal code on cross-border trafficking and sexual exploitation. The 2000 UN Palermo Convention protocol (PDF, 51 pages) has not yet been ratified and the Czech legal system still lacks specific paragraphs that would enable the Czech system to combat more effectively another serious issue -- prostitution as a result of human trafficking, sexual exploitation, slavery, or forced labor.

Czech law on prostitution is ambiguous and largely depends on the specifics of each case. A proposal for a new law on prostitution, which aims to legalize the trade through licenses for workers, enforced monthly medical check-ups of workers, registered brothels, and taxation, has been a hotly debated issue. While the initiator of this law -- the Czech police department of the Interior Ministry -- believes that the law would help to curb enforced prostitution, La Strada Prevention Coordinator Skrivankova says that neither legalization or criminalization are "tools for solving the problem of trafficking."

La Strada argues that legalization will not prevent forced prostitution -- only alleviate it -- and, on the other hand, will create a much more serious problem: foreign females forced into prostitution without a license will not be helped, but fined or arrested. The fine for illegal prostitution suggested by the proposed law would be between 5,000-15,000 Czech crowns. "We would like to see that the law also thinks about the prostitutes themselves," says La Strada Director Petra Burcikova, "and not only about the interest of the state to get income by taxing this activity."

In a document provided to RFE/RL by the Police Press Department, the Czech Interior Ministry explains that there hasn't been any progress in a new law on prostitution primarily because the Czech Republic is bound by the International Agreement on Suppressing and Combating Human Trafficking and Forced Prostitution from 1949. This agreement binds the signatories not to accept any laws that would de facto legalize prostitution. Most of the countries belonging to this agreement are the former Soviet republics and members of the Warsaw Pact. The Czech Republic became party to this agreement in 1958. Countries sharing a similar attitude toward prostitution as the Czech Republic are Belgium, Finland, France, Portugal, Spain, and the U.K. Austria (with the exception of the state of Vorarlberg), Australia, Germany, the Netherlands, Nevada (U.S.), and also to some extent Turkey, have fully legalized prostitution. Countries where prostitution is not legal but tolerated with some exceptions are Canada, Denmark, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, and Sweden, according to research published by the University of Exeter in the U.K.

Note: This issue follows up on "Organized Crime and Terrorism Watch," 24 May 2004. La Strada representatives visited RFE/RL in April. The briefing report is available on RFE/RL's Regional Analysis website.

Excerpt cited from Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, full article available here. Copyright (c) 2004. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC. 22036 www.rferl.org

For more information, please see the Trafficking and Czech Republic sections of this website.

In a 8-1 decision, the Supreme Court ruled that employers can be held liable in sexual harassment cases when a hostile work environment forces workers to leave their job.

The case involved Nancy Drew Suders, a former dispatcher with the Pennsylvania State Police. Suders claimed that she had been continuously subjected to sexual harassment by three male supervisors and that forced her to quit her job.

According to the standard set by the Court, a former employee must show that her working conditions were so intolerable that a reasonable person would have felt compelled to resign.

The Supreme Court clarified a 1998 decision that establishes the broad guidelines for employer liability in sexual harassment on the workplace. According to the 1998 ruling, employers would be held strictly liable if the supervisor that engaged in harassing conduct takes a “tangible employment action” against the worker, such as firing the employee or reassigning her to an undesirable position.

In contrast, when the supervisor's harassment does not culminate in “tangible employment action,” the employer may present a defense by showing that it has a policy for reporting sexual harassment and that the employee did not make full use of that remedy.

The Court ruled that the employer defense may not be asserted if the employee resigned in response to a supervisor’s official act, as for example, a reduction in compensation.

Justice Clarence Thomas dissented, stating that an employer should be held liable only if he knew of the alleged harassment. In addition, the Justice noted that Suders had not presented sufficient evidence that the adverse employment action was taken because of her sex.

Compiled from James Vicini, "Court Sets Liability Rules in Harassment Cases," Reuters, 14 June 2004, available here.

On Friday, June 18, the Member States of the European Union reached an agreement on the EU Constitutional Treaty. 

The new treaty has four parts. Part I defines the aims, competence and institutions of the Union. Part II lists the fundamental rights of EU citizens. Part III deals with regulations concerning the Union's separate policy areas and part IV contains general and final provisions. 

In addition, the European Union Member States agreed on Protocols and Declarations to be annexed to the treaty. Addendum two contains a Declaration on combating all kinds of domestic violence. (p. 66, available below)

According to Juliette Kamper, a policy officer at European Women's Lobby, "this Declaration will have no legal status but represents a moral obligation and political will. The scope of the Declaration is limited in that it only refers to domestic violence; it would have been much better if it referred to all forms of violence against women.  However, the wording chosen is particularly strong as it calls on Member States to take all necessary measures to prevent and punish domestic violence and to support and protect victims." 

Compiled from "EU countries reach agreement on Constitutional Treaty", Government Information Unit, Press release 200/2004, June 18 2004, available here (PDF).

A provisional consolidated version of the draft Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe is available here (PDF, 325 pages).

Addendum One: Provisional consolidated version of the Protocols annexed to the Treaty establishind a Constitution for Europe and of Annexes I and II, available here (PDF, 351 pages).

Addendum Two: Provisional consolidated version of the Declarations to be annexed to the Final Act of the Intergovernmental Conference, available here (PDF, 88 pages).

New legislation to combat sex tourism was signed into law in Hawaii on May 19, 2004.  HB 2020, an Act relating to prostitution, “makes it a felony offense, with a sentence of up to five years in prison, to sell or offer to sell travel services for the purpose of engaging in prostitution and authorizes suspension or revocation of a travel agency registration for engaging in these acts.”  (cited from Equality Now Women’s Action 24.2 Update, May 2004)  With this new law, Hawaii becomes the first state in the United States to specifically criminalize the activities of sex tour operators. 

The new law also references the connection between sex tourism and trafficking, and underlines Hawaii’s determined opposition to any form of sex tourism:

Prostitution and related activities, which are inherently harmful and dehumanizing, contribute to the trafficking in persons, as does sex tourism. The low status of women in many parts of the world has led to a burgeoning of the trafficking industry. Discouraging sex tourism, which is an estimated $1,000,000,000-per-year business worldwide, is key to reducing the demand for sex trafficking . . . The purpose of this Act is to promote and protect the human rights of women and girls exploited by sex tourists . . . In so doing, the legislature forcefully declares Hawaii's unequivocal opposition to any form of sex tourism, whether it is child sex tourism or sex tourism involving adults.

Equality Now, which has an ongoing campaign against the sex tourism industry, actively supported the Hawaiian legislation, and hopes other states will follow suit with similarly effective laws.

Compiled from Equality Now Women’s Action 24.2 Update, May 2004, full text available here.

For more information, see the Trafficking in Women section of this website.

The Daphne II Program of the European Union runs from May 2004 to December 31 2008 and has a budget of 50 million Euros. The program is designed to support organizations that develop measures to combat all types of violence against children, young people and women.

Organizations from the 25 European Union member states are eligible to participate, as well as, organizations from EFTA/EEA countries and organizations from Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey.

The European Commission’s Justice and Home Affairs website features updated information on the Daphne II program, available here. The website contains information on grant application, guidelines for applicants, and a catalogue of previous funded projects.

The World Health Organization recently released a 56-page research report, The Economic Dimensions of Interpersonal Violence.  According to the WHO website, the report focuses on the following three areas: 

• The economic effects of interpersonal violence in a variety of socioeconomic and cultural settings.
• The economic effects of interventions intended to reduce interpersonal violence.
• The effects of economic conditions and policies on interpersonal violence – with particular reference to poverty, structural adjustment, income equality and social investment.  (Cited from WHO website Summary, available here.)

The complete summary of the report, as well as a pdf of the full report, is available on the WHO website here.

For more information, see the Community Costs of Domestic Violence section under Domestic Violence on this website.