May 10, 2006

Ask Amnesty: An Online Discussion on Human Trafficking in Montenegro with Ljiljana Raicevic

Trafficking of persons is a global human rights problem. Victims are trafficked into a range of forced labor situations including farm work, sweatshops, domestic servitude, and sexual slavery.

Victims of trafficking are subjected to sexual abuse and other forms of violence. Trafficking involves transporting people away from the communities they live in by the threat or use of violence, deception, or coercion for the purpose of exploitation as forced or enslaved workers.

Please join us on for an online discussion on Wednesday, May 10 from 1:00-2:00 PM Eastern with the 2006 Amnesty International USA Ginetta Sagan Fund award-winner, Ljiljana Raicevic of Montenegro. Raicevic is the founder and Executive Director of the Women's Safe House in Podgorica, where she has worked to end all forms of trafficking in women and girls in Montenegro and to ensure that political officials accused of supporting trafficking were removed from office.

Featured Guest: Ljiljana Raicevic

From our featured guest: "I look forward to speaking with you on May 10th."

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Question Submitted by Jessica:

What are the statistics and what is or isn't being done by govenrnments across the globe to prevent this?

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

Hi, Jessica!
Thank you for your question. It takes a lot more time for answering, so I'll focus on situation in Montenegro: we adopted palermo protocol and have a Victim Protection program. Regarding statistics our shelter received 65 victims and help them go back in their home countries. Few of them got asylum in a third country. Regards.
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Question Submitted by jen:

What is punishment for human trafficking crime?

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

According to our Law, the punishment is 10 years of prison, but to be honest, not so many people were convicted and imprisoned.

We had only few cases where men responsible for trafficking went to jail, so now we are working on the Initiative for changing Montenegrin Criminal Code in order to make Law enforcement organs more efficient.

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Question Submitted by Wendy:

Ljiljana, Do you see this same thing happening throughout Kosovo as well? What has been your biggest challenge in getting those involved removed from office? Are you safe?

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

Of course is a very similar situation even in Kososvo, trafficants are well connected and organized. The biggest challenge was to speak out about the problem in public and to ask people who are involved to resign from their duties. One of them was a Montenegrin State Prosecutor.

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Question Submitted by Karen:

How can I help to end this vicious slave trade? I'm especially interested in ending sexual slavery, the worst slavery of all.

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

Hi Karen1,

Be active and join to some organization active in this field, maybe a women NGO which assist victims. Corragio!

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Question Submitted by Milo, Discussion Moderator:

What have been some of the challenges to initiating a public debate about human trafficking in Montenegro?

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

We heard many horrible stories from women and girls who we assisted. We had to speak publicly about it, even if it didn't suit our politicians.

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Question Submitted by Liz:

Hi,

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

Hi, Liz.
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Question Submitted by Maddy:

Within trafficking have there ever been any cases of violence against men, or is it something that women are purely subjected to?

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

Yes, it happens with the boys and especially with men who are used for the purposes of forced labor, but the biggest percentage of victims are women.
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Question Submitted by Karen:

What are the main ways that victims enter the slave trade in Montenegro? Are they tricked by false promises of work, sold by relatives or enslaved in some other way? Thanks.

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

Karen ,you have a good knowledge about situation, obviously, as you mentioned the main ways .The main cause is always extreme poverty and a hope for a better life
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Question Submitted by Mary:

Please make very clear what we can each do to prevent and punish those involved in trafficking human beings.

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

We should raise awareness about it and put pressure on law enforcement organs to respect anti-trafficking laws.
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Question Submitted by Maria:

How can women and youth in the U.S. most effectively take action to discourage global human trafficing? Where do we turn?

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

Join organizations that are supporting victims.
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Question Submitted by Donna:

What can I do to help you from Bloomington, Illinois - middle of the United States?

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

Take action!
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Question Submitted by Tina Magee:

Please outline the most effective things we can do to stop global trafficking.

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

Pressure your government to implement anti-trafficking laws.
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Question Submitted by Taya:

The situation with human trafficking in Ukraine is terrible. It happens that young women are deceptively taken on trips to Turkey, where they are promised jobs as waiters or shop assistants and then forcefully made into prostitution. What can be done in this case? Is it possible to prevent it? Thank you.

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

Yes, talk, talk and talk about it.

What we do is organizing lectures for high school students in most of the Montenegrin high schools, as that's the average age of victims of trafficking. Beside lectures, a very useful tool is broadcasting of movie, "Lilja 4ever," a documentary on trafficking with acctress Angelina Jolie. By our opinion, a good way to raise awareness of this problem is making movies based on a true stories.
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Question Submitted by Whitney:

Do you know about how many male children are trafficked for sexual exploitation?

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

Nobody ever knows the precise number, it is a "black number.' It happens through the Internet as well.
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Question Submitted by Cherie:

Do you have any information of how many women ever make it back home? What happens to them once they are victims of trafficking?

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

A small number ,if lucky enough, are able to go home.many of them try to escape.if they do not succeed they are badly punished.
the victims are subject of horrible traume and often experience post traumatic stress when they go back home, so if they don't get proper pscychological support, them may never been able to reintegrate in society.Sometimes, the become victims again if trafficants find them
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Question Submitted by Yani:

Hello Mrs. Raicevic, First of all, I would like to thank you and congratulate you for the wonderful job that you are doing. My question is what are the parents and families of these young women told that they allowed their daughters to be taken away and abused? Also, what can be done to help fight this abuse of human rights. I live in a small town in Florida, USA and don't know what to do to contribute to this fight. Thank you, Yani Soto

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

In some cases, relatives are those who trick a girl. Sometimes the person who offers a "good job" abroad is a family friend and a person of confidence trusted by the girl and her parents, but in most of the cases girls come from the families where violence is pretty common, or are victims of incest and other forms of abuse. They usually don't come from happy families.

Thank you for a very good question!

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Question Submitted by Nidhi:

Was there any particular incident that led you into this career? And what keeps you going strong?

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

I've been witness of many hard cases, but the success I had in helping them to start a new life gave me a strength. It is important to stand up against bad things that happen.
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Question Submitted by Kate:

What is being done to address the police/authority corruption in Montenegro? I know complicit police are a huge problem in human trafficking in the region.

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

Many girls who were in our shelter witnessed against corrupted officials.

We made sure that their testimony got to the right address, so many of the officials had been withdrew from duty.

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Question Submitted by Judy:

Which countries are involved? and how strict is their punishment when convicted?

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

Many, many countries throughout the world. Punishment varies from one country to another, but usually are not hard enough for such a huge crime as violence against women is.

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Question Submitted by Irene:

El Grupo de Estudios Sociales es una ONG que trabaja en favor de las poblaciones de mayor riesgo social.Quisieramos conocer las cartacterísticas del Proyecto Women Safe House, y de la líea telefónica SOS LINE. No podremos estar el 10 en comunicación, pero agradeceríamos nos envien la información.

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

Muchas gracias, please write to us at:

shelter@cg.yu or go to the web site:
http://www.sigurna-zenska-kuca.cg.yu/
we have your e-mail now also, so we can get in touch

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Question Submitted by Stephen:

On reading that human trafficking is a global human rights problem; I wonder, how does human trafficking in Montenegro compare to that in the U.S? Are you aware of any regions of the U.S. that are commonly known as hotbeds for this kind of activity? Do you believe that efforts such as yours in Montenegro could be equally successful in other areas of the globe?

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

Courageous women exist everywhere. There are lot of them in the USA.
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Question Submitted by judith:

When political officials that support trafficking are removed from office does this stop them from underground trafficking? Also, what happens to the parents that sell their children? Are they being charged with a crime? Thank you for taking these questions.

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

The State prosecutor and his deputy are removed, as well as many other municipal prosecutors and policemen. Yes, that stopped them. Many of them resigned as well.

Recently, we had one Roma man who sold his child. He is in prison at the moment and child is back home.

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Question Submitted by John:

Do you think that human trafficking is separate from other elements of international law, or should human trafficking and murder, rape, and wars of conquest be responded to in a region as an indivisible battery of laws that nations should follow?

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

In all the situations, you mentioned in your question, women are the ones who suffer the most. Laws should protect them as much as they can.

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Question Submitted by Ken:

What are the top three things you would advise a single male parent of a young teenage girl to do to safeguard her from possible human traffic predators? (In the USA) - Thank you!

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

If your child travels alone or with a friend, tell her not to believe strangers, tell her NOT TO GIVE HER DOCUMENTS TO ANYONE and ensure that she take addresses of organizations that deal with trafficking, as well as your embassy address, if she travels abroad.

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Question Submitted by Suri K:

India has a huge problem, traficking young girls. The girls are not only from the poor segement of the society, but also from middle class families. They are tricked into sex by various means including drinks spiked by drugs. They are then photgraphed and blackmailed. Since the society is very conservative the girls are forced to give in to the blackmailer demands of having more sex with different men. They are then abused violently until she looses her soul. Though her intentions to keep her secret away from the family, very soon everybody knows whats going on. Instead of holding the blackmailers responsible, the victim is severely taunted and laughed upon. She will then loose her soul and the intention to live. The society, the victim's family and the victim herself have to be educated not to fall into this vicious cycle. If they have been abused, they should be made aware that it's better for her family to learn of the events. In that way the victim and her family can report to the authorities and hold the blackmailers responsible. The blacmailaers are ususally the politicians, police personnel, rich and spoiled kids who have no regard for other human beings, the underworld and well connected people. Even when they are exposed, they get away all the time because of their money and connections. Do you think you can educate the indian society. Your organization will need to invest money for ads in TV, books, colleges, schools to educate and to make them aware. Well publicized discussions in TV and radio needs to be telecasted. It is important to go to colleges and schools to hold meetings with these girls and made aware and how to avoid getting into these terrible situations. Do you think you can do this?? Peace be with all the women of India and the world who have been abused. I hope they will find somebody for solace and protection. (PS - You may change the format if you want to.)

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

Unfortunately, it happens here as well.

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Question Submitted by Kari:

Hello Ms.Raicevic, I am very impressed with your efforts on behalf of the women of Montenegro. Unfortunately, it seems that where there exists a demand, there will always be someone willing to supply; in this case, people. I am wondering what support, if any, you have had from others in terms of educating the people who are demanding this terrible thing..like the church for instance? Primary schools? What sort of education is possible to keep people from wanting to abuse someone this way? Thank you, and God bless you.

Ljiljana Raicevic answers:

This kind of education starts during early childhood and through the family and various institutions -- church can help a lot, too.

At this moment, we are initiating Law for punishing clients.

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