IHF-HR: "A Form of Slavery: Trafficking in Women in OSCE Member States"
  Country Reports

ALBANIA

SPECIAL ISSUES

INTERNATIONAL HELSINKI FEDERATION FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

''A FORM OF SLAVERY: TRAFFICKING IN WOMEN IN OSCE MEMBER STATES'' COUNTRY REPORTS:

ALBANIA

July 2000

Trafficking in women is prosecuted as a separate offence according to the criminal law in Albania, which punishes women who engage in prostitution whether with or without their consent, as well as the criminal groups who organize the trafficking. However, the legislator has prepared a draft proposal on certain changes in the criminal law that would improve the law on trafficking.

Because of its geographical location, Albania is a country of origin, transit and destination. There are many cases in which criminal groups, comprised of Albanians and foreign criminals, send Albanian girls to Italy or Greece. At the same time, women from other countries such as Moldavia and Bulgaria enter Albania through the northern border and pass through to Italy or another eastern country.

The main factors that influence the incidence of trafficking in women include:

·         The economic situation

·         Unemployment

·         Economic profit from this kind of activity

·         Crisis of the Albanian family

·         Lack of experience and appropriate structure dealing with trafficking (Police, Prosecutor’s Office and Judicial System)

·         Increasing criminal activity

The principal recruiting methods include:

·         Promise of marriage, a better job, and a better life abroad;

·         Use of force (violence, physical and psychological);

·         Legal and illegal means of transportation by criminal groups. In most cases, the trafficking is organized by illegal means;

·         The provision of false visas and passports. In some cases, corrupted policemen facilitate this process.

A number of cases have been reported to the police. Compared to figures in 1998, 1999 witnessed an increase in the number of trafficked women.

There are some governmental and NGO initiatives in this field. There is a governmental Committee in Albania called “Woman and Family”, which coordinates all the initiatives and activities in the field of women's rights. This Committee cooperates with other governmental institutions such as the police, the judicial system, as well as NGOs.

Firstly, the government aims to promote and coordinate the gathering of data at governmental and non-governmental levels in order to get a clear idea of the extent of the phenomenon and to launch, in coordination with authorities in the country of destination, programs to combat trafficking. Another important way in which the authorities are trying to combat trafficking is the establishment of information campaigns that warn potential victims of the techniques used by traffickers and of the dangers involved.

At the same time, there are women NGOs working on the return of trafficked women. In particular, they cooperate with the police forces and authorities in the country of destination. There are also some support services available for women victims, called Shelters. These Shelters provide psychosocial assistance and protection.

Some research has been done by NGOs, the Ministry of Public Order, the governmental Committee “Woman and Family”, the Faculty of Social Sciences and women NGOs presenting statistics and arguments on the trafficking situation.