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State Department: Croatia meets standards to eliminate trafficking

Autor: mses
WASHINGTON, June 14 (Hina) - The US Department of State on Monday released the 10th annual Trafficking in Persons Report for 2010, covering 177 countries, including Croatia which is recommended to step up efforts aimed at identifying trafficking victims, aggressively prosecute traffickers and to impose tougher sentences on trafficking masterminds.

"Croatia is a destination, source, and transit country for men, women, and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically conditions of forced prostitution and forced labor. Croatian women and girls fall victim to sex trafficking within the country, and women and girls from Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and other parts of Eastern Europe are subjected to forced prostitution in Croatia and in Western Europe. Men reportedly are subjected to forced labor in agricultural sectors, and children, including Roma, are subjected to conditions of forced begging and theft," reads the Croatia section of the report.

The report reads that the Croatian government "fully complies with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking."

"In 2009, the government continued to investigate and prosecute trafficking offenders, increased the minimum imposed penalty for convicted traffickers, and for the first time, ordered a trafficker to pay compensation to a victim."

Croatia is commended for giving "significant funding to NGOs providing assistance and shelter to trafficking victims during the reporting period and continued proactive training and outreach on victim identification."

"However, the government identified very few trafficking victims in 2009 and failed to protect some victim witnesses," the paper warns.

Croatia is recommended to intensify efforts to identify trafficking victims among vulnerable populations, particularly women in prostitution and migrant men in the agricultural sector.

One of the recommendations is to strengthen partnerships with NGOs to enlist their help in identifying victims during authorities' initial contact with potential victims among women detained for prostitution offenses.

The country is recommended "to intensify investigations of trafficking crimes in high tourism sectors and other areas with prostitution".

It also should "aggressively prosecute traffickers and continue to toughen sentences imposed on convicted traffickers; ensure the responsible repatriation of foreign victims; improve courtroom treatment and protection for victims who testify against their traffickers; ensure trafficking victims are not inadvertently punished for committing unlawful acts as a direct result of being trafficked."

Croatia is urged to "expand awareness efforts to educate clients of the sex trade about the demand for commercial sex acts and forced labor; and educate the larger public about prostitution and its links to trafficking."

When it comes to prosecution, Croatia "generally sustained its anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts in 2009, though it prosecuted only half as many traffickers as it did the previous year."

"In 2009, the government investigated 13 suspected trafficking offenders, compared with 15 in 2008. It prosecuted six traffickers in 2009, a decrease from 12 prosecuted in 2008. Six trafficking offenders were convicted and given sentences ranging from two to eight years, compared with nine convictions obtained in 2008; however, one conviction was out on appeal and awaited a final verdict. Two of these convictions involved forced labor."

"The government continued to provide general anti-trafficking training to police officers, and continued its 'train-the-trainer' program involving 26 police officers training counterparts on ways to recognize and assist trafficking victims."

The report reads that "in response to continued concerns about prostitution and potential trafficking during the high tourist season along the Adriatic coast, the government reported training over 250 police officers in coastal cities during 2009."

The State Department notes substantial efforts Croatia invested to raise awareness and prevent trafficking in 2009.

Those moves include "numerous anti-trafficking education workshops and seminars for Croatian authorities, including social workers, diplomatic and consular staff, judges, prosecutors, police, and students, including members of mobile teams responsible for assisting trafficking victims."

For instance, Croatia continued to conduct "anti-trafficking training for Croatian soldiers prior to their deployment to Afghanistan as international peacekeepers".

(Hina) ms

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