July 2005

CONTENTS OF THIS ISSUE

Fall Opening for New Ten Bed Shelter in Ankara SIDA-Funded Facility to Adress Shelter Shortage IOM To Begin Process of 157 Spin Off NGO Operator to Be Selected in Tender Capacity Building Major Focus of NGO Outreach Activities Developed as Part of Swedish Project 100 Trafficked Individuals Assisted by IOM Assistance Pace Well Ahead of 2004 New Shelter Set for 1 September Opening in Ankara… The new ten-bed Ankara shelter for trafficked persons is now set for a 1 Sept. opening. The shelter will be operated by the Foundation for Women’s Solidarity in the framework of the SIDA-funded, IOM-implemented one year counter-trafficking project. The Ankara municipal government donated the building and is covering the costs for renovation and furnishing, a process just weeks away from completion. The Ankara municipality contribution is valued at about $70,000. Through a separate US-funded project, IOM is coordinating training in August for new Ankara staff at the IOM-operated Albania shelter. When fully operational, the Ankara shelter will provide much needed bed space to trafficked individuals. Currently, there is only a single shelter in Istanbul and supply of shelter beds is often short of demand. On average, ten trafficked individuals per day go wanting for shelter space, forcing trafficked individuals to remain in police-administered housing. The SIDA-funded project will address much of the shortfall, allowing a doubling of accomdations from 10 to 20 beds throughout Turkey. ...As IOM prepares to Spin Off 157 Helpline to Qualified NGO Passport Insert Distribution at Istanbul Ataturk Airport Also on 1 Sept IOM will announce the competitive tender for the NGO takeover of the 157 helpline for rescue and assistance of trafficked individuals. Since157 launched in late May, the helpline has assisted in the successful rescue of six trafficked individuals, received 69 requests for immediate rescue and answered 118 trafficking-related calls. IOM will now operate the helpline through November and then turn over administration to a qualified NGO. IOM will formally begin the tender process for selecting an NGO partner Sept. 1 and announce a final selection by 10 October. Funding for the helpline has been secured through May 2006 through co-funding from the U.S. Government and SIDA. The helpline is operated 24 hours a day seven days a week, currently by four full time operators and a part-time intern who speak Turkish, English, Russian and Romanian. A fifth operator is expected to be hired in coming weeks. An initial multi-country information campaign to promote the 157 helpline number will also wrap up in coming weeks. NGO Capacity Building to Be Major Focus of Fall Activities NGO Capacity Building Workshop IOM this July completes a major study of NGO capacity in counter-trafficking. The study funded through the Swedish consulate in Istanbul will provide the framework for a major push for NGO capacity building activities this fall. These activities will be implemented as part of the U.S. Government-funded, Turkish government-coordinated and IOM implemented counter-trafficking project. The study is being conducted by an Istanbul-based researcher who has interviewed representative from more than two dozen Turkish NGOs. It will also incorporate findings from a two-day, outcomes-based NGO workshop held last month in Istanbul (also funded by the Swedish consulate) aimed at identifying strategies and activities for building counter-trafficking related capacity. Potential areas for intervention include awareness raising of trafficking realities, and countering misperceptions of trafficked individuals, and working more effectively with Turkish law enforcement to assist and protect trafficked persons. IOM Assists 100 Trafficked Persons in Turkey in 2005 IOM this July has assisted 100 trafficked individuals in Turkey return home. In coordination with Turkish government and NGO partners, IOM helps identify and then coordinates safe return of individuals trafficked to Turkey. In 2004, IOM assisted 62 trafficked persons. That number has already reached 100 after the first six months of 2005. Increased identification of trafficked persons is considered a major step forward as Turkish law enforcement is identifying and an increasing number of trafficked individuals and referring them to IOM for a dignified return to their home country under internationally accepted human rights standards. The bulk of the cases have come from Ukraine (28), Moldova (22) and Russia (10), following the pattern seen in 2004.