English fo MP student book

UNIT 9 – Trafficking in Human Beings

A report from the International Organization for Migration says 120,000 women and children are trafficked into the European Union each year for the “sex trade”. In Bosnia, 34,000 foreign visitors have disappeared after flying into Sarajevo airport during the past two years. Most have remained for just a few hours before being taken to the border by people smugglers.

In his third-floor office in the blue and white United Nations building overlooking Sarajevo airport, Graham Leese, the project head of the British-led immigration team, is under no illusions about the scale of the problem. "For the EU as a whole - and the UK in particular - the Balkan route has long been identified as the most productive route in terms of illegal migration flows. It's quite easy to bribe border guards to turn a blind eye when you are smuggling across a lorry load of illegal immigrants."

Bosnian organized crime is turning over an estimated £170m a year and, according to one member of the British team, government corruption is a major problem. "There are big fish here. They have massive influence and a lot of them are holding senior positions," he said. The view is shared by Ian Cliff, the British ambassador in Sarajevo, who said there was "massive" corruption among government officials administering the districts and cantons established in Bosnia after the Dayton Accord in 1995.

# Exercise 6

Decide if the sentences are TRUE or FALSE

1.Tony Blair has persuaded the Bosnian government to allow a team of British immigration officials to help.

2.Mr. Johnstone works for the United Nations as deputy chief on the Bosnian border.

3.Mafia gangs in Ukraine and Kosovo are exploiting the post-war destabilization in the former Yugoslavia.

4.For the E.U., the Balkan route isn’t the most problematic route in terms of illegal migration flows.

5.Bosnian organized crime is turning over an estimated £ 170 million a year.

6.The British ambassador in Sarajevo is John Clifford.

7.The present districts and cantons in Bosnia were established after the Dayton Accord .

8.A report from the International Organization for Migration says 1,200 women and children are trafficked into European Union each year for sexual exploitation.

9.It is not easy to bribe border guards to turn a blind eye when smuggling a lorry load of illegal immigrants.

10.In Bosnia, 34,000 foreign visitors have disappeared after flying into Sarajevo airport during the past two years.

“When I realized that I had been sold from one place to another like goods I felt ashamed and disappointed. I’m a human being. I have the right to live like other people”.

A Cambodian woman

What is your point of view? Write a short composition of about 200 words on this subject.

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Put the words into the correct sequence to complete the sentences

1.United Nations / based on/ documents /sources /other/of/information/are/reports/ articles/ and

2.Acknowledged/are /these/duly/gratitude/with.

3.Hoped/it /will/is/that/material/serve/this/action/as/for/a/catalyst/further.

4.Thousands/children/trafficked/are/women/and/countries/ from/ of/ their/ own

5.If/ unchecked/ will/ left/ continue/ trafficking/ momentum/ gain / economic/ in / the current/climatet/ in Asia.

¾ Activity 6 Canada and U.S. Sign Smart Border Declaration

Listen to the declaration of the two statesmen and report…

Who said that they have agreed to an aggressive action plan?

How will the passage of people and goods be between the two countries?

Who speaks on behalf of President Bush?

What is the Action Plan good for?

What did they discuss about timing this activity?

Who is John Manley? And Tom Ridge?

How many points has the Action Plan?

How many new objectives does the Declaration include?

#Exercise 8

Form nouns from the verbs given and make sentences with them.

To achieve

To improve

To sign

To agree

To collaborate

To meet

In December 2002, 14-year-old Rachel Lloyd from North Wales returned to British soil after having earlier run away to Turkey with her ‘fiancé’, 24-year-old Mehmet Ocack.

Her family claims that she ‘married” the barman, whom she had met on a Summer holiday. The teenager’s return prompted chaotic scenes at Manchester Airport as the media struggled to speak to the girl who left Britain on a forged passport. In November, police had conducted a manhunt before ascertaining she had flown to Turkey. Interpol and Turkish police were brought in after Rachel phoned her family to say she had married her lover. She was traced to her fiancé’s home town and taken into the care of Turkish social services. Mr Ocack was

detained and then released without charge.

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UNIT 9 – Trafficking in Human Beings

Read through the report from a European Assembly debate. Make notes on the given topics and match the underlined words with words or phrases with similar meanings from the box.

Europe's governments want to crack down on human trafficking and stiffen asylum laws. But their economies can't afford to turn back the tide Immigration is the subject Europe's politicians would rather not talk about. Vowing to act tough on illegal immigrants and false asylum seekers plays well in the heartland; but crackdowns merely send refugees underground, forcing them to take ever-deadlier risks to get in. Easing entry requirements makes good economic sense, since Europe needs 75 million new workers over the next 50 years to replenish its aging population; but try telling that to downsized factory workers in Stuttgart or Glasgow. And diversity doesn't sell in the E.U.: just 5 million of its 350 million citizens live outside their native country. But they're still coming. Flung out of their native lands by war or persecution or poverty—or simply the promise of a better life—immigrants are crossing Europe's borders in unprecedented numbers. Last year 390,000 people applied for asylum in the E.U. Britain alone received 76,000 asylum applications, up from 4,000 in 1988. An estimated 500,000 foreigners entered the E.U. illegally last year, five times the number in 1994. And as the demand to enter Europe has widened, so have the opportunities for traffickers who would profit from these masses on the move.

A common E.U. asylum policy isn't expected before 2004. Until then European countries will set their own standards, which isn't great news for immigrants. A new Spanish law that aims to crack down on smuggling also provides for the expulsion of immigrants residing in the country without legal permission. In the absence of a common E.U. immigration policy, governments are racing to the bottom in the level of benefits they offer immigrants hoping to stay. While refugee-rights groups have criticized Britain's Labour government for issuing a meagre $50 weekly to asylum seekers, two-thirds of it in vouchers, other countries' policies are even worse. Germany, for instance, has slashed monthly pocket money to $40 and requires would-be refugees to stay in detention centers for their first three months. At a time of upheaval throughout the developing world, Europe's parsimony has done nothing for its reputation.

If international opprobrium doesn't prod Europe to throw open its doors, there are signs that economic self-interest will. Last November the European Commission declared that "there is a growing recognition that the 'zero' immigration policies of the last 30 years are no longer appropriate." Germany announced plans last March to admit 20,000 foreign computer experts over the next three years, and Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder is pushing to expand this green-card initiative to workers in other sectors. Ireland has loosened immigration requirements for non-E.U. workers in technology, nursing and construction. Even Italy's government has introduced measures to admit 63,000 industrial laborers a year. Says British European Parliament Member Graham Watson: "Many states are seeing that in order to close the back door, we need to open the front door a bit more." Europe may still resist the idea that it is a Continent of immigrants. But in order to thrive, it has no choice but to become one.”

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¾ Activity 9 Listening

This activity is adapted from material on the web-site for OSCE www.osce.org

Listen and complete the text

The options for trafficked women are limited. If they get out of the environment in which they are (1)_________________ - either because the premises have been (2) ____________ by the police or because they have escapedthey are in unknown and often (3) _______________

territory. If they have escaped, there is often the question of where to go; whether they have the courage to go to the police and ask for help, or whether, (4) ______________, they have heard about the IOM (5) ______________ and that there is an OSCE-sponsored safe house. The OSCE Mission in Kosovo has been supporting this safe house (6) ___________________ an international NGO, for some of the women who do succeed in (7) __________________ of the trafficking ring. But is only for those who have chosen to be repatriated. It provides temporary

(8) ________________ for 15 people. At present, more than 20 are there, with some women (9)

_________________.

The only alternative place to house them is the (10) _________________________ in Lipljane near Pristina and this is a very limited option.

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UNIT 9 – Trafficking in Human Beings

If the place they have been working has been raided, the women are still (11) ____________, possibly (12) ______________ charges of prostitution and having entered Kosovo illegally. Their papers have been taken by those who trafficked them and in cases involving trafficking the women have to have the courage to face their (13) __________________ in the courtroom and accuse them of kidnapping, or trafficking and of human exploitation.

One of the priorities of the OSCE mission in Kosovo is to develop a (14) ___________ for trafficked women. Under the present system, there is almost no protection for women who do go to court or for those who return home. The main problem is the huge role played by organised crime in trafficking of women. Women who testify in open court are (15)

______________________ those criminals. If they return home, they could face the very same men who organised their move in the first place. But such programmes are expensive and complicated and, at the moment, those who qualify are usually under protection for political reasons, not in cases where people have been trafficked.

¾ Activity 10

Read the text and discuss the implications.

Based on a report from December 2002

The Sangatte Red Cross Centre in France closed on December 30 but a few weeks earlier, the British government had granted 1200 Iraqi and Afghan migrants four-year work permits. The deal was worked out as a compromise between the French and British governments and meant that Sangatte would close three months earlier than originally planned.

The French authorities agreed to take responsibility for the remaining 4800 migrants in the camp who had registered before it closed its doors to new arrivals in November 2002. The French will also deploy an extra 750 border police to seal the Channel ports from illegal migrants. Britain's immigration control will, in effect, be moved to Calais in France when British Home Office immigration officers will begin to operate a full border control, including vehicle searches while still in France.

The British Home Secretary, David Blunkett, defended the decision in the House of Commons and demanded that the opposition Conservative party should join him in condemning those anti-immigration pressure groups which were "bordering on fascism".

The British Refugee Council welcomed the decision but said that the proposal to extend immigration controls outside its own borders was a worrying precedent. This could jeopardise the rights of refugees to obtain sanctuary in Britain.

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UNIT 10

DEALING WITH VEHICLE CRIME

INTRODUCTION

1.What is the link between cross border crime and organized crime?

2.What is cross border crime?

3.What aspects of car theft are you aware of?

4.Do you think that people must be imprisoned for smuggling stolen cars? Is this such a serious criminal offence? Isn’t it enough to pay a fine, or to do some social work?

5.In the Border Police, is there a need for specialists in stolen cars or is the assistance provided by the police forces enough?

¾Activity 1

In pairs, read one text and relate the facts in your own words to your partner.

Comment from the professional point of view and consider the social implications of these circumstances.

STUDENT A

In Estonia, smuggling stolen cars is almost risk free. Very few people in Estonia have been convicted for smuggling stolen cars. The laws are incomplete in the courts have yet to rule on matters of legal interpretation. In contrast to the Interpol section of other countries, Estonian officers work a lot in the streets. Thousands of stolen cars come to Estonia every year. They arrive from all over Western Europe on ferries and overland from the south. Most cars pass on to Russia. Estonia’s involvement is usually limited as couriers deliver cars to buyers in the St.- Petersburg area. Last year the Estonian police managed to return about 100 vehicles of which approximately 20 had belonged to Swedish and 30 to German owners.

STUDENT B

It’s an open secret that Montenegro is the best hot car market in Europe: new models, priced to go. Most of the inventory however, appears on Interpol’s list of stolen vehicles. The International Police Agency has no authority here, for Yugoslavia- a pariah statehas no relationship with Interpol. A long time member of a car theft gang explained how the cars arrived in Montenegro: “The best method is to find someone in, say, Germany, who needs extra

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UNIT 10 – Dealing with Vehicle Crime

money and who is willing to have his car stolen. We drive the car over, and the owner declares it stolen once it’s already here. The owner collects the insurance policy plus a bonus from us, depending on what kind of car it is. Few cars stay in Montenegro or Serbia, and most often continue on to the Middle East.”

When talking about cars, smuggling means:

a)using a car in a robbery

b)using a car to transport illegal immigrants

c)illegal import and/or export of a vehicle (usually stolen)

d)using cars to transport illicit goods (contraband)

SMUGGLING. The offence of importing or exporting specified goods that are subject to customs or excise duties without having paid the requisite duties. Smuggled goods are liable to confiscation and the smuggler is liable to pay treble their value or a sum laid down by the law (whichever is the greater); offenders may alternatively, or additionally, receive a term of imprisonment.

The following definition of organised crime can be given, based on the practice of fighting against such crime:

“Criminal union organised for profit-seeking to commit diverse criminal offences, with the assumption of meeting objectives through corruption, blackmail, terror as well as the use of force and arms.“

# Exercise 1

Make sentences using some of the underlined words.

1.Almost all criminal activity has as primary motive the idea of ___________.

2.It is remarkable how varied and _______________ the criminal imagination can be.

3.There is evidence to indicate that more criminals are prepared to use _____________

nowadays, particularly as guns are relatively easy to obtain.

4.Getting officials on your side, or to turn ‘a blind eye’ is indicative of the pattern of

_____________ vital to any “successful” organised crime activity.

5.The secret criminal organisation or ___________ is not a new phenomenon. Even medieval society had secret societies, some committing criminal _______

# Exercise 2

Match the two parts to form sentences

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# Exercise 3

Re-arrange the words to make sentences.

1.The theft/ is/ of/ serious/ a / automobiles/ problem/ world-wide

2.Vehicle/ can/ support/ profits/ terrorist/ organisations/ crime/ from

3.Trafficking/ mainly/ of/ criminal/ groups/ in vehicles/ is/ the work/structured and sophisticated.

4.South Africa/ stolen/ criminal/ is / by/ groups/ as/ to export/ a transit area / luxury/ vehicles/ used.

5.Germany / an increase/ is/ in/ facing/ cars/ rental/ of/ thefts/ nationals/African/ by

6.Italy/ concerned/ are/ Greece/ and/ criminal/ at / groups/ Albanian/ smuggling/ are/ who/ engaged/ actively/ car/ in

7.Violence/ increasingly / as/ to obtain / is/ an / ‘modus operandi’/ cars/ luxury/ common

# Exercise 4 In Montenegro, Stolen Cars Are Worth Their Weight in Meat!

Put in one correct word from the box. There are 18 words in total.

At a time when Montenegro’s political situation is (1) …….., Western countries are inclined to look the other way at Montenegro’s (2) ……. little secret.

Montenegro is a key part of the West’s effort to (3) ……. Yugoslav President Slobodan Molosevic, indicted for war crimes last year by the Hague Tribunal. Montenegro’s President Milo Djukanovic has (4) …….himself with the West and has consequently received financial and (5) ……… blessings from the European Union.

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UNIT 10 – Dealing with Vehicle Crime

Though Montenegro is (6) ……….. as a place teeming with stolen goods, Western countries are (7) ……… to protect the republic’s image. While the Milosevic regime often categorized the Djukanovic administration as a (8) ……. of criminals and smugglers, the West points to the Djukanovic government as an example of ethnic tolerance that is a model for the Balkans.

Meanwhile, Montenegrins are reaping the fruits of a shady trade.The deals don’t stop at cars. Podgorica’s (9) …. street, Sloboda Ulica (Freedom Street), is filled with people dressed in Italy’s latest fashions, their (10) ….. cars parked in front of busy cafes, where mobile phones lie next to cups of expresso and ashtrays.

A visitor would never guess that Montenegro’s average monthly (11) ….. is less than $ 100 per month. Montenegrins have a reputation in the Balkans for valuing a good (12) ….. “Visitors often say that it seems nobody does anything in Podgorica, That the cafes are filled with well-dressed people sipping coffee all day,” says a cosmetics “importer” named Milos.

Yet there is hardly any industry to provide jobs for Montenegro’s 600,000 citizens, aside from a smattering of fishing, textile and tourism. Factories are (13) ….. down. The republic imports much of its food.

The (14) ……. car trade could be seen as a legacy of Montenegro’s geographical location and history. With (15) ……. Italy to the West, and Balkan conflicts in other directions, Montenegro is a natural transit point for goods across the Balkans

In their defence, Montenegrins say they’re only doing what they’ve done for hundreds of years. This independent people eked out a living for centuries on one of the most inhospitable pieces of European territory while surrounded by Ottoman Turks. The land is so undesirable that the Turks simply gave (16) … trying to conquer what was then a much smaller Montenegro.

Just as they receive Western patronage today for their role as a buffer state, in the 19th- century Russia supported Montenegro for (17) …….. political reasons. In this context, Montenegrins spent centuries raiding and smuggling to survive.

(18)……. cars can be seen as part of that tradition

#Exercise 5 Cars, Customs Officers and Crime!

Match PART A with the correct PART B

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# Exercise 6

Circle the synonym (s) of the following words.

¾ Activity 3

Comment on the statement below and write a short composition (200 words):

“Violence is an increasingly common ‘modus operandi’ to obtain luxury cars for trafficking.”

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