IOM and US praise government's progress on trafficking

The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and Washington have hailed Tajikistan's progress in fighting human trafficking. Their reaction follows the release of a US State Department report earlier this month removing Tajikistan from its list of countries that have failed to do enough to stem the global problem. "This is a positive development," Igor Bosc, the IOM chief of mission, told IRIN from the Tajik capital, Dushanbe. "This has been long awaited. The government recognises it has a problem with regard to trafficking, and is revising its legal code, thereby allowing for better prosecution of traffickers." The IOM official noted that Tajikistan was adopting a national programme to prevent trafficking, and cooperation with international agencies had proven positive. "The president [Emomali Rahmonov] has specifically recognised the problem of trafficking himself. This shows the highest level of government commitment," Bosc said. According to IOM figures, in 2000, some 2,000 Tajik women were trafficked, while in 2002, that number dropped to 646. "These are only cases that we know about; there may have been more," the IOM official explained, noting, however, that women were not the main angle of trafficking in the country. "Most of the trafficking going on here is among labourers," he said. Bosc's comments follow similar remarks made by US Ambassador to Tajikistan Franklin Huddle on Tuesday. "We are pleased at the progress that Tajikistan has made on this issue during the last year. This is representative of a significant commitment on the part of the Tajik government and its domestic and international partners - the kind of effort necessary to combat this problem," Huddle said in a statement in Dushanbe. He noted in particular the government's adoption of a law to criminalise trafficking. "We are looking forward to upper house approval of the law and harmonisation of the criminal code," Huddle said. On 11 June, a US State Department report accused 15 nations, these being Greece, Turkey, Belize, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Georgia, Haiti, Kazakhstan, Liberia, Myanmar, North Korea, Sudan, Suriname and Uzbekistan, of not doing enough to stop the trafficking of people forced into servitude or the sex trade, thereby classifying them as Tier III countries in the report. In 2002, Tajikistan had also been listed as Tier III, but was upgraded to Tier II this year, following positive government efforts to counter the problem. "The government of Tajikistan does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to do so," the report said. Despite being a post-conflict country and the poorest of the former Soviet states, with a per capita GDP estimated at US $182 for 2002, the government had taken some steps forward, most notably in its recognition of the problem and willingness to work alongside organisations with greater resources and expertise, the report explained. In its annual "Trafficking in Persons Report", the State Department maintained that between 800,000 to 900,000 people were trafficked across international borders each year, many of them forced into prostitution or other forms involuntary servitude. In his introduction to the document, US Secretary of State Colin Powell said the report emphasised the human side of trafficking through victims' stories while highlighting innovative measures some countries were taking to prevent trafficking in persons, prosecuting those who trafficked in human misery, and protecting those most vulnerable to this transnational crime. [For a full copy of the US State Department report see: www.state.gov]