04ANKARA4544

Reference ID	Created	Released	Classification	Origin
04ANKARA4544	2004-08-12 14:35	2011-08-24 01:00	UNCLASSIFIED	Embassy Ankara
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
UNCLAS ANKARA 004544 

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR G/TIP, G, INL, DRL, EUR/PGI, EUR/SE

E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KCRM PHUM PGOV SMIG PREF KWMN TU AM TIP IN TURKEY SUBJECT: TIP IN TURKEY: VISITING ARMENIAN DELEGATION TRIES TO WORK TOWARD CROSSBORDER TIP NGO COOPERATION

¶1. Summary: Visiting Armenian TIP-NGO Hope and Help and IOM Armenia Program Officer have briefed us on meetings with reps from Turkish NGOs, Armenian religious and media organizations, and Georgia's diplomatic mission in Turkey. Hope and Help rep described her meetings as "the first steps" in establishing a cross-border network of government and non-government agencies in Turkey, Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan to coordinate repatriation efforts and social services for victims of trafficking. Though upbeat about opportunities for cooperation among NGOs, she asserted that meetings with Turkish MFA officials, the main reason for her visit to Ankara, were canceled without any explanation from MFA contacts. End summary.

¶2. Hope and help project coordinator Mnatsakanyan held meetings with Turkey's lead TIP assistance NGO Human Resources Development Foundation (HRDF); representatives from Flying Broom, an NGO coordinating council for various women's assistance groups; International Organization on Migration (IOM) project coordinators in Istanbul and Ankara; Armenia's delegate to the Black Sea Economic Cooperative (BSEC); the Armenian Patriarchate; and law enforcement officials in Istanbul, Ankara, and Trabzon.

¶3. According to Mnatsakanyan, Dr. Demet Gural, HRDF Executive Director "agreed to work with us" to counsel Armenian victims of trafficking about services available through Armenian Hope and Help, and to coordinate victim repatriations through the network of assistance channels Mnatsakanyan hopes to develop.

Emboff separately confirmed with Dr. Gural that the two NGOs 

have reached an informal agreement. Gural noted that HRDF accepted Armenian and Russian language brochures, which she says HRDF will distribute to potential TIP victims from Armenia. According to Gural, the meeting included pledges by both NGOs to coordinate the NGOs' public information campaigns.

¶4. Mnatsakanyan said discussions also focused on initial plans to organize a conference, possibly in Istanbul or Tblisi, where NGOs, border guards and national police agencies from each of the participating countries can exchange contact information and compare notes on best practices. HRDF, IOM, Flying Broom, and a Georgian NGO also traveling with the delegation expressed interest in participating.

¶5. The Armenian delegation relied on Georgian Embassy and Consulate officials in Istanbul, Ankara and Trabzon to schedule meetings. Mnatsakanyan commented that her Georgian colleagues were shocked when the group arrived at the Turkish MFA only to be told that the MFA had no knowledge of an appointment. MFA Consular Affairs anti-TIP officer Hacisendoglu subsequently asserted to Emboff that, to the contrary, the MFA was "instrumental" in helping the Georgian Embassy schedule Mnatsakanyan's meetings with GOT prosecutors and law enforcement officers. Hacisendoglu claimed Mnatsakanyan's delegation didn't request a meeting with the MFA.

EDELMAN