US embassy cable - 05ANKARA4316

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ANKARA 004316 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR G/TIP, G, INL, DRL, EUR/PGI AND EUR/SE 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/27/2015 
TAGS: PREL, KCRM, PHUM, KWMN, SMIG, KFRD, PREF, TU 
SUBJECT: TRABZON'S COMLEKCI DISTRICT, THE BLACK SEA'S 
AMSTERDAM 
 
 
Classified by Polcounselor John Kunstadter for reasons 
1.4 (b, d). 
 
1. (C) Summary:  A June 27 New York Times article by Craig 
Smith on prostitution in Turkey gives an account of the 
prostitution situation in the Comlekci District of Trabzon. 
Prostitution is indeed rampant in Trabzon, as witnessed by 
PolOffs.  What is not clear, however, is if trafficking is 
equally widespread.  While the local prosecutor is firmly 
behind anti-trafficking measures, most citizens of Trabzon 
are not, and that this is part of life in the Black Sea area. 
 End Summary. 
 
2. (C)  Comlekci, just east of the Trabzon city center, is 
home to no fewer than 50 small seedy hotels and a slightly 
fewer number of cafes where randy men can view and bargain 
for sexual services over a high-priced cola.  We drove 
through the main drag at mid-day, noting that on one side of 
the street were greengrocers and on the other the 
meet-n-greet cafes and small shops selling foreign and local 
alcoholic beverages and cigarettes.  Non-Turkish women, 
dressed for the Trabzon heat, stood in the streets and sat in 
cafes.  The women appeared--how should we put it--weathered 
and worn out.  We were told the younger and prettier ones go 
to Istanbul and Antalya where they can earn more money. 
 
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WHAT DO THE LOCALS THINK? 
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3.  (C) Tuncay, our young taxi driver/tour guide, told us 
that the local businesses do not want the "girls to go away" 
and "when the people do not want that, the police do not 
come."  He stated that there is a pimp mafia that controls 
the area and that there are shootings every night, of which 
the locals do complain.  He also said that the number of 
women in Comlekci has decreased, as was asserted by most of 
our contacts.  That does not mean that the women are not 
coming through Trabzon, however; they are branching out to 
neighboring cities, according to a local university professor. 
 
4.  (C) Sibel _Suicmez and Umit Kaba, two female attorneys who 
have been active in the anti-trafficking campaign in Trabzon, 
recounted stories of ruined marriages and broken homes due to 
the import of prostitutes.  They alleged that alcohol and 
drug abuse among the prostitutes is the norm and that many of 
the women want to get pregnant to ensure some sort of income 
when they returned to their countries.  Turkish men (already 
married or not), it seems, are willing to support their 
children, no matter where they are.  The Black Sea wives are 
in complete denial say the attorneys.  What the wives do not 
acknowledge they do not have to accept.  The two attorneys 
noted that a recent conference on trafficking had a low 
turnout, which was not a surprise.  They also asserted that a 
shelter in Trabzon would not be beneficial, as everyone, 
meaning any troublemakers, would know its location. 
 
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PROSTITUTION IS LEGAL IN TURKEY. 
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5.  (C) Trabzon's Public Prosecutor, Burhan Cobanoglu, 
confirmed that there is a group which trafficks women in 
Trabzon, though the women come to Turkey to work in the sex 
industry and are not brought forcibly.  He likened Comlekci 
to Amsterdam, asserting prostitution has been narrowed to 
that one area and is under control by law enforcement.   He 
is very much interested in the trafficking issue, saying it 
is a human rights issue.  He has attended several IOM 
conferences and has given seminars to provincial prosecutors 
on the reformed Turkish Penal Code in regard to trafficking. 
 
6.  (C) Women who come into Turkey with valid passports and 
visas cannot be deported.  Prostitution is legal in Turkey, 
says Cobanoglu, and it is difficult to determine when the 
line into trafficking has been crossed because many victims 
do not want to give statements or press charges.  If and when 
they do, he says, many times the women disappear to their 
home countries, making it impossible for the courts to find 
them to testify. 
 
7.  (C) Cobanoglu lamented that the judicial system in Turkey 
operates on a minuscule budget, making it extremely difficult 
to gather and analyze statistics on trafficking in Turkey. 
He did not see a solution without the government allocating 
more funds for such purpose.  In his jurisdiction there are 
thirteen trafficking cases currently in front of the court. 
He is hopeful that with the reforms in the law, more 
traffickers will be caught and convicted. 
 
8.  (C) Ibrahim Azcan, Deputy Chief of Police, tried to 
downplay the fact that prostitution exists in Trabzon until 
we explained that we had toured the district.  What happens 
between a man and a woman is not the law's business, Azcan 
said, since prostitution is legal.  He asserted that 
trafficking is not a major problem in Trabzon and that women 
who are there came on their own.  Claiming that the police 
force has control over what goes on in Comlekci, he said that 
it is difficult to talk to these women because they do not 
speak Turkish.  However, not five minutes later claimed that 
the department has translators available and on staff.  He 
proudly told us that 40 women had been deported the previous 
week.  If the women are "ill," it is cause for deportation. 
 
9.  (C) Comment:  An end to prostitution in Trabzon, or 
anywhere else in Turkey, is nowhere in the cards. 
Prostitution is legal and will continue to be legal barring a 
major change in social attitudes.  Trafficking, while a crime 
in Turkey, is difficult to determine due to the victims' 
unwillingness to file charges or to testify in court.  More 
important and more difficult, however, is the need for a 
major shift of attitude of the citizens of Trabzon before 
they demand action against trafficking.  End Comment. 
MCELDOWNEY