U.S. Department of State 2006 Trafficking in Persons Report - Russia

Russia (Tier 2 Watch List)

Russia is a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children trafficked for various purposes. It remains a significant source of women trafficked to over 50 countries for commercial sexual exploitation. In the Russian Far East, men and women are trafficked to China, Japan, and South Korea for both forced labor and sexual exploitation. Russia is also a transit and destination country for men and women trafficked from Central Asia, Eastern Europe including Ukraine, and North Korea, to Central and Western Europe and the Middle East for purposes of forced labor and sexual exploitation. Internal trafficking remains a problem in Russia; women are trafficked from rural areas to urban centers for commercial sexual exploitation, while forced labor in the maritime industry remains a concern in the Far East. Men are trafficked internally and from Central Asia for forced labor in the construction and agricultural industries. The ILO estimates that 20 percent of the five million illegal immigrants in Russia are victims of forced labor. Debt bondage is common among trafficking victims. Child sex tourism remains a concern.

The Government of Russia does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Russia is placed on Tier 2 Watch List for a third consecutive year for its continued failure to show evidence of increasing efforts to combat trafficking, particularly in the area of victim protection and assistance. The government made uneven progress during the reporting period. Although Russia implemented a witness protection program that affords a mechanism to shelter and protect trafficking victims, significantly increased investigations and prosecutions, and improved local government cooperation with NGOs, much more remains to be done. Passage and implementation of comprehensive legislation on victim assistance, which has been anticipated for three years, would greatly improve the status of trafficking victims and would provide much-needed funding for shelters and victim assistance. Today, victim protection and assistance is provided on an ad-hoc basis and is highly dependent upon local and regional authorities. Moreover, the support provided by these local governments is not formalized and dependent upon relationships between NGOs and local government officials. Passage of the proposed legislation would guarantee that victims across Russia receive necessary assistance and would serve to alleviate some of the financial burden currently placed on local authorities. Local governments should work with NGOs to facilitate the establishment of more trafficking shelters in Russia.

Prosecution

Russia demonstrated improved law enforcement efforts during the reporting period. Police significantly increased the number of trafficking investigations from 26 in 2004 to 80 in 2005; 60 of these investigations were sexual exploitation cases and 20 were forced labor cases. Authorities also notably increased criminal prosecutions five-fold, conducting 53 prosecutions in 2005, up from 11 in 2004. Courts convicted at least nine traffickers and sentenced six traffickers to time in prison. Trafficking sentences ranged between three and one-half years and eight years in prison. Russia needs to develop a system to better track convictions and sentences of traffickers.

The government conducted several joint trafficking investigations with other governments. In 2005, Russian authorities assisted in the successful prosecution and conviction of four traffickers in the United States, and provided critical assistance to the U.S. prosecution of an American citizen who allegedly sexually exploited trafficked children in St. Petersburg. The Ministry of Interior (MVD) and anti-trafficking NGOs completed a trafficking manual that has been used by several police units to assist officers in field investigations. The Ministry of Interior and NGOs also conducted three joint training seminars on investigative techniques for police instructors from regional police academies; these instructors then conducted instructional seminars for cadets at their respective MVD academies. Approximately 120 police instructors were trained in 2005 by NGO-sponsored anti-trafficking seminars. Although this progress is notable, the need for additional trainings for law enforcement and judicial officials remains.

While the Russian constitution prohibits the extradition of Russian citizens, Russia does permit the extradition of others. In 2005, Russia cooperated with Israeli authorities and extradited to Israel a man charged with trafficking women from Uzbekistan and Ukraine. Corruption remained a serious problem in Russia; corrupt police officers and border guards reportedly accepted bribes to facilitate or protect trafficking. The extent and thoroughness of investigations into trafficking corruption is unknown; however, over the last year, authorities investigated at least four trafficking cases involving corrupt government officials, including a June 2005 case involving a drug enforcement agent who beat and sold unsuspecting Uzbek migrants to slave traders for $15 each. An NGO reported instances where several prosecutors resigned during the course of trafficking prosecutions because they were either threatened or bribed. Concern remains over the lack of vigorous punishment of trafficking-related corruption.

Protection

The Government of Russia again failed to provide adequate protection to victims of trafficking. The number of trafficking shelters in Russia remained insufficient. Although an internationally funded shelter is expected to open in Moscow in spring 2006, shelter space in the city of approximately 8.3 million people remains greatly needed. At least three Russian trafficking victims were re-trafficked in 2005, due in part to the lack of a trafficking shelter in Moscow; the victims returned to Moscow and, because they had nowhere to go, were identified by their traffickers and quickly re-trafficked.

Furthermore, there are no trafficking-specific shelters east of the Ural Mountains. Although some municipalities run child shelters that assist child trafficking victims, all adult trafficking shelters are managed by NGOs and most do not receive government funding or assistance. Only one NGO-run shelter receives financial support from its local government; another shelter is provided with free office space by the local government. Local governments have expressed their support for the passage and implementation of the comprehensive legislation as it will provide much needed funding for shelters and victim assistance in local municipalities.

Assistance provided to trafficking victims remained inconsistent and inadequate. The government relied on NGOs to provide adult victims with legal, medical, and psychological assistance. Foreign trafficking victims, like all foreigners in Russia, cannot receive medical treatment unless they are able to pay for it, though at least one local government provided medical assistance to foreign trafficking victims while another local government provided psychological counseling. Authorities used the new witness protection law in 2005 to assist four Russian trafficking victims in two cases; the victims were placed in protective housing and their identities were changed. The witness protection program guarantees social, employment, and medical benefits for all qualifying victims. Although there were no reported cases of foreign victims being deported in 2005, there is currently no formal program that grants foreign trafficking victims legal residency in Russia while a trafficking case is investigated and prosecuted. Currently, victims are permitted to stay in Russia during the investigation and prosecution of their respective case; this decision is made at the discretion of the police and prosecutors involved in the victim's case. There is currently no system in place to track the number of foreign victims identified by law enforcement. There is also no system in place to calculate the number of foreign victims that were successfully repatriated.

Authorities increased their level of coordination with NGOs over the last year. In one city, NGOs and police signed a formal victim referral agreement. Several NGOs also reported informal agreements with police for victim referral. There were no reported cases of victims being prosecuted in 2005, but there is no current legal protection to prevent authorities from prosecuting a victim for visa fraud, bribery, or border violations that directly result from their being trafficked.

Prevention

Some local governments increased their cooperation and in-kind support for NGOs working to raise public awareness in several cities; this support was often in the form of office space, utilities, and coverage in the local media. Some NGOs received financial assistance to cover operating costs while at least five received grants to conduct specific outreach and awareness raising projects. Students from a state-funded university in Smolensk worked with local authorities to conduct anti-trafficking awareness training for more than 4,000 students. In 2005, the government provided amnesty to more than 7,300 illegal migrants working in Russia; this preventative measure made those workers less vulnerable to labor exploitation, which is the principal form of trafficking in Russia.