US embassy cable - 05ANKARA2192

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ANKARA 002192 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR G/TIP, G, INL, DRL, EUR/PGI, EUR/SE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL, KCRM, PHUM, KWMN, SMIG, KFRD, PREF, TU, TIP IN TURKEY 
SUBJECT: TIP IN TURKEY: TURKISH MEDIA ATTENTION, March 16- 
31, 2005 
 
 
1. (U) In response to G/TIP inquiries, national and 
  international media sources published the following news 
  articles about TIP in Turkey.  Text of articles 
  originally published in Turkish is provided through 
  unofficial local FSN translation. 
 
2. (U) Published on Monday, March 21 by Milliyet, 
http://www.milliyet.com: 
 
     TITLE: Annually 1.2 Million Children Are Being Sold 
 
     BEGIN TEXT: (Vienna) The OSCE based in Vienna announced 
     that annually 1.2 million children are sold worldwide. 
     Helga Konrad, OSCE special envoy for following human 
     trafficking, stated that the number of children sold in 
     particular in eastern European countries doubled in the 
     last three years. 
 
     Konrad noted that 30 percent of the victims of human 
     traffickers who operate worldwide were children and 
 
     that the sold children were used as cheap labor in the 
     fields of agriculture, mining, domestic work and 
     prostitution. 
 
     Doottridge (the paper did not identify who he/she was) 
     said that some of the sold children were forced to 
     serve as beggars and some others were employed in 
     small-scale organized crime. END TEXT. 
 
3. (U) Published on Friday, March 18 by Almaty Karavan: 
 
    TITLE: Paper Criticizes Suspected Human Trafficker's 
    Release on Bail 
 
    BEGIN FBIS TRANSLATED TEXT: The Almaty garrison's 
    military prosecutor has released on bail a senior 
    lieutenant who is suspected of organizing trafficking 
    of women abroad.  A source told us that the suspect had 
    tried to justify his activity recruiting girls to 
    Turkey.saying that it was for undercover work. 
    However, having studied the portfolios of recruited 
    girls, the military police came to the conclusion that 
    none of them suited the role of undercover radio 
    operator. 
 
    The military specialist was detained on 18 February. 
    When the suspect had been detained, he tried to buy his 
    freedom for 105,000 tenge (about 800 dollars) and 210 
    dollars.  But the police refused to take the money from 
    him and brought additional charges against him for 
    attempted bribery. 
 
    Later it turned out that the senior lieutenant was not 
    an ordinary military officer but an employee of the 
    Defense Ministry's chief intelligence department, the 
    head of a special group. 
 
    The case caused an international scandal.  The Turkish 
    special services arrested other individuals in Istanbul 
    who were suspected of recruiting prostitutes.  However, 
    now thanks to the fact that now he has been released on 
    bail, the suspect can destroy all traces of his 
    suspicious activity. END TEXT. 
 
4. (U) Published Wednesday, March 16 by the semi-official 
Turkish-language Anatolian News Agency: 
 
    BEGIN TEXT: Three people, including one police officer, 
    were detained in Istanbul on charges of forcing 
    prostitution on women coming to Turkey from Kyrgyzstan 
    with employment promises.  Arrest decision in absentia 
    was issued on two people (including one police 
    officer). 
 
    According to information obtained by AA correspondent, 
    Kyrgyz nationals Dina J. and Gulanda S. and police 
    officer A.T. who brought Gulzade M., Dinara A., Nazgul 
    T., Roza R. and Zinagul T. to Turkey with the promises 
    that they will find jobs, then threatened them and 
    forced them for prostitution.  Kyrgyz nationals Dina J. 
    and Gulanda S. and police officer A.T. were detained. 
 
    It was learned that Dina J. and Gulanda S. forced these 
    five women for prostitution for a while and then sent 
    them to Kucukcekmece district to Fahriye B., who is 
    known to be a "women trafficker" along with the police 
    officer A.S. who she lives with. 
    Upon the complaint of the Kyrgyz women who were forced 
    into prostitution by Fahriye B. and police officer A.S. 
    as well, the Foreigners Police got activated and 
    launched an operation. 
    Police officer A.T., Dina J. and Gulanda S. were sent 
    to the Istanbul Public Prosecutor's office and then at 
    the court they were taken, arrested, and imprisoned on 
    charges of "human trafficking and forcing for 
    prostitution." 
 
    Arrest decision in absentia was issued on other police 
    officer A.S. and Fahriye B. END TEXT. 
 
EDELMAN