ARMENIA (TIER 2 – WATCH LIST)

Armenia is primarily a source and transit country for women and girls
trafficked for sexual exploitation mainly to the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.)
and Turkey, as well as Russia, Greece, and other European countries. Trafficking
to Russia, Turkey and the U.A.E. for the purposes of labor exploitation was an
increasingly significant problem. There were a few cases of trafficking in women
from Uzbekistan to Armenia for sexual exploitation. Advocates expressed concerns
about internal trafficking and trafficking of orphans, but no confirmed cases
were uncovered.



The Government of Armenia does not fully comply with the minimum standards for
the elimination of trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to do
so. Cooperation between police and NGOs increased the number of investigations,
and provided police a greater under-standing of international and domestic
sources of trafficking. The government should improve legal instruments to
create more effective tools for law enforcement and should improve the
transparency of its anti-corruption programs.



Prosecution

While prosecution efforts improved and victim identification increased, courts
handed down few convictions, and only on related crimes with low sentences.
Article 132 of the criminal code, adopted in August 2003, prohibited trafficking
in persons for “mercenary purposes” with a maximum penalty for aggravating
circumstances of four to eight years of imprisonment. These penalties were not
commensurate with other grave crimes, such as rape. Previous reports highlighted
trafficking to the U.A.E., and during the reporting period, police investigated
suspected trafficking operations to Dubai involving an estimated 90 women.
Police initiated two criminal investigations under Article 132 on trafficking in
persons and 17 under Article 262 (operating a brothel), nine of which referred
to pimping abroad or trafficking in persons for sexual exploitation. The
sentences handed down ranged from substantial fines and correctional labor to
one year imprisonment. Prosecutors noted a continuing problem with definitional
elements and weak penalties; the National Assembly was expected to consider
amendments to the criminal code. Corruption was a problem, and two police
officers and two airport officials received administrative penalties for abuse
of power related to a trafficking operation to the U.A.E. Police conducted
in-service training using examples from actual trafficking investigations. The
government cooperated with Georgia and the U.A.E. in investigating and
apprehending traffickers, including cooperating in the return of a suspected
trafficker from the U.A.E. to stand trial in Armenia.



Protection

Law enforcement improved its record of victim identification and referrals to a
service-providing NGO. In one operation, police identified eight foreign
prostitutes, suspected they were victims and referred them to an NGO for
assistance. Armenian NGOs provided most victim assistance, but cooperated well
with police. In order to alleviate vulnerabilities of an at-risk group, the
government adopted a program to provide apartments to children who graduated
from orphanages, and provided assistance to poor families with needy children.



Prevention

Prevention activities increased during the reporting period, especially through
the use of mass media. The National Police were featured in several training
films and TV shows on trafficking, and the Ministry of Education approved
anti-trafficking educational lectures for secondary and university students. In
January of 2004, the government approved an anti-trafficking national action
plan for 2004-2006. The government contributed the equivalent of $11,000 of its
own funds to support the work of the National Anti-Trafficking Commission, and
foreign donors provided the remaining funds. The government’s Department for
Migration and Refugees conducted extensive outreach on migration issues, which
prevented a significant number of individuals from succumbing to trafficking,
according to an independent survey.