Risk of deportation of a trafficking victim at risk of being tortured

The International Secretariat of the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) requests your URGENT intervention in the following situation in Greece.

Brief description of the situation:

The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by the Greek Helsinki Monitor (GHM), a member of the SOS-Torture Network, of the plights of E.L., a victim of human trafficking, at risk of being returned to Nigeria where she may face forms of maltreatment that could amount to torture.

E.L. is currently living in Greece without the protection afforded to trafficking victims under Greek law, with no legal status, no official documentation proving she has pending decisions with Greek officials and under the very real threat of deportation to a country where she may face persecution.

According to information from GHM, E.L. was trafficked into Greece by a Nigerian man, who told her that he could get her a job working in a bar, making a lot of money. He convinced E.L. to agree to pay him back 40,000 euros after she would earn it while working in Greece. Taking advantage of local custom, he then bound her to this agreement through a local voodoo wizard. E.L. however had no concept of what this would entail, or how much money 40,000 euros was.

Upon arrival in Greece, he confiscated E.L.’s passport and forced her into prostitution to pay her “debt.” At the same time, his lawyer filed an asylum application for her, but never informed her about the date and place where she must present herself to Greek authorities. For more than a year, E.L. lived in Greece and worked as a sex worker in an effort to pay him the large sum he demanded. She, as well as other Nigerian victims, believe that the voodoo agreement they entered into binds them, and if they do not fulfil their promise, or if they run away from their traffickers, harm will come to them and their families.

After finally paying the amount she owed, because of financial reasons E.L. continued to engage in sex work. While she was arrested on multiple occasions for being a sex worker, in every case she was acquitted because courts found that she did not have the required “mens rea” to be held accountable for her actions – an implicit acknowledgement of her status as victim of trafficking. E.L. had established a relationship with the NGO “Nea Zoe” during her first year in Greece who, after she was released from her trafficker, helped her file a complaint against him and his accomplice. According to information received, the complaint was inappropriately investigated by the anti-trafficking police, the traffickers were not called to make statements as defendants, while vital documents of the investigation were not included in the case file submitted to the court.

In January 2007, E.L. received a decree that her complaint was “manifestly unfounded.” With the help of GHM, she filed an appeal of this decision, which is currently still pending. Upon the denial of her complaint, E.L. was refused protection as a victim of trafficking, and continued to be held in detention pending deportation for three months. At the end of this detention, she was issued an Official Deportation Note to leave Greece by 20 May 2007.

While in detention, GHM helped E.L. file a legitimate asylum application, as the one filed by her trafficker was denied. However, due to the previous denial of the first application, the second application was rejected as abusive. GHM has since, on her behalf, filed a restitution application on 8 March 2007, to consider E.L.’s the genuine asylum application. However, despite the 50-day period for an answer, neither GHM nor E.L. has heard a response. The official order for deportation has already expired; so if arrested, E.L. will likely be sent to Nigeria immediately, with no specific inquiry into the merits of her case.

Reports indicate that, in Nigeria, extramarital sexual relations are serious infractions of the law, often resulting in stoning, persecution, torture and death. E.L. is even more likely to face this treatment than most, because it is believed that her trafficker knows of her pending case against him and still maintains connections in her village. Thus, it is highly likely that, to seek revenge, he will tell people who know her about her work in Greece and she will be persecuted for it. Further, it is believed that the trafficker maintains ties with the Nigerian local police, who would therefore be unable, or at least unwilling, to protect her in the event of threats of harm.

The International Secretariat of OMCT is gravely concerned about the safety of E.L. and the looming possibility of her deportation to Nigeria. The OMCT calls for Greek Courts and Authorities to recognize E.L. as a victim of trafficking and give her all of the protection afforded to these victims, including the suspension of her outstanding order of deportation. Even if Greek Officials do not immediately reopen E.L.’s pending appeal on the asylum application, the OMCT calls on them to recognize their obligations under Article 3 of the Convention against Torture, which bars the return of a person to a State where there are substantial grounds to believe they are in danger of torture.

Action Requested:

Please write to the authorities in Greece urging them to:

1. Ensure E.L.’s physical and psychological integrity at all times, including by recognizing her status as a victim of trafficking in need of protection;
2. Cancel the outstanding order of deportation against E. L. while her asylum application is pending;
3. Order a prompt, thorough and impartial investigation into E.L.’s criminal case against her traffickers in order to identify all those responsible, bring them to justice and apply the penal and/or administrative sanctions as provided by law;
4. More generally, guarantee the respect of human rights protection which is guaranteed in Greece in accordance with national laws and international human rights laws and standards, in particular the Convention against Torture.

Addresses:

• Mr. Kostas Karamanlis, Prime Minister, Prime Minister’s Office at the Hellenic Parliament, Greek Parliament Blgd, Constitution Square, Athens / Greece, Fax: +30-2103238129 , Email: info@primeminister.gr
• Ms. Ntora Bakogiani, Foreign Minister, Athens, Greece, Fax: +30-2103681433.
• Mr. Anastasios Papaligouras, Minister of Justice, Athens, Greece, Fax +30-2107489231
• Mr. Byron Polidoras, Minister of Public Order, Athens, Greece, Fax: +30-2106917944
• Mr. Giorgos Kaminis, Ombudsman for Human Rights, Fax +30-2107289643
• Mr. Athanassios Dimoschakis, Chief of Greek Police, Fax: +30-2106923689
• H.E. Franciscos Verros, Ambassador, Permanent Mission of Greece to the United Nations in Geneva, Rue du Léman 4, 1201 Geneva, Switzerland, Email: mission.greece@ties.itu.int, Fax: +41 22 732.21.50

Please also write to the embassies of Greece in your respective country.

Geneva, 25 May 2007

Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.