Cyprus Meets Traffic Standards, US State Department Report Says, KNEWS

The Government of the Republic of Cyprus fully complies with minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, the State Department said in its “Trafficking in Persons” report.

In its report, the State Department said that “the government continued to demonstrate serious and sustained efforts during the reporting period.”

“As a result, Cyprus remained at Tier 1. These efforts included convicting more traffickers and, for the first time, convicting a perpetrator for receiving services from a victim of trafficking,” the report said.

It should be noted that Level 1, in which the Republic of Cyprus falls in terms of trafficking, meets US standards, which are not necessarily free from human trafficking, but are considered fully compliant with the Human Trafficking Act. protection of victims of trafficking. , but also for its elimination. Among Cyprus, there are still 29 Tier 1 countries, including France, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada and Germany.

According to the State Department report, the government slightly increased its prevention efforts. The Multidisciplinary Coordination Group (MCG) to Combat Trafficking, comprised of government agencies and relevant NGOs, implemented and monitored anti-trafficking efforts; the MCG met three times compared to two in 2022.

“The government developed and adopted the PAN 2023-2026. The MCG continued to conduct awareness campaigns targeting victims and potential victims through leaflets and posters written in 10 languages,” the report notes.

The State Department report describes a completely different situation for the “Turkish Cypriot-administered” area, as it refers to areas of Cyprus occupied by Turkey, noting that the United States does not recognize the “TRNC”, as the pseudo-State is called. , and no other country either, except Turkey.

Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third.

The report states that in March 2020, the so-called “parliament” amended the “penal code” to include trafficking.

“Turkish Cypriot representatives have not investigated, prosecuted or convicted any traffickers in 2023. Turkish Cypriot representatives have not identified any victims of trafficking and have failed to provide any protection to victims, including shelter, psychosocial support and financial or legal assistance. The Turkish Cypriot representatives did so. not allocate funds or implement prevention efforts to combat trafficking,” he adds.

According to the report, “Turkish Cypriot officials confiscated the passports of foreign women working in nightclubs and issued them with hostess visas upon their entry into the Turkish Cypriot-administered area. Turkish Cypriot officials did not not allowed women to change employers once contracted with a nightclub and regularly had victims expelled who expressed dissatisfaction with their treatment.

It indicates that areas occupied by Turkey “expelled 805 women after reducing their contracts (11 in 2022)”.

The “law” prohibited living off the income of “prostitution” or encouraging “prostitution,” but nightclub bodyguards accompanied female nightclub employees to their weekly health checks to screen for sexually transmitted infections. communicable, ensuring that women did not share details of possible commercial sexual exploitation with them. police or doctors to facilitate the continuation of illegal activities.

“Turkish Cypriot representatives indicated that the permit holders came from Belarus, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Morocco, Russia, Tajikistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan,” he continues. .

As noted, the areas occupied by Turkey “did not have a NAP, were not mentioned and did not conduct any awareness campaigns or research on trafficking. Turkish Cypriot officials failed to enforce labor “laws,” and observers reported that Turkish Cypriot officials made little effort to investigate. employers and recruitment agencies charged recruitment fees, confiscated passports, or withheld salaries, which was a common practice. »

“As has been reported over the past five years, human traffickers exploit domestic and foreign victims in the Turkish Cypriot administered area. Traffickers exploit women from Central Asia, Eastern Europe East and Africa in connection with sex trafficking in nightclubs licensed and regulated by Turkish Cypriot officials.” it's added.