osce.org
Office of the Special Representative
and Co-ordinator on Combating
Trafficking in Human Beings •
Aimée Comrie, Adviser •
04 July 2011
Expert Seminar on the Prosecution of THB:
Best Practices for Vulnerable Victim-Witnesses
At the core of trafficking is exploitation
Exploited persons tend to be vulnerable:
 May be traumatized and susceptible to re-traumatization
 Require particular attention and focus from investigator and
prosecutor
 May be reluctant to cooperate for various reasons
 May be reluctant to discuss explicit details of their ordeal
 May be challenged in providing linear narratives which can meet
the burden of proof
 Benefit from multidisciplinary human rights approach including
psycho-social, medical, legal counselling
 Benefit from joint investigation teams
> Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet
2
Modern Slavery: What does it look like?
Subtle forms of coercion
Equally pernicious
Equally exploitative
Harder to prove at trial than physical chains
Need to identify factual indicators
3
Need for witness evidence that tells
the full story.
4
How can we strengthen victim-witness evidence?
1. By relying less on victim-witness evidence, through strategic
investigation planning which aims at a full array of corroborative
evidence.
2. Better interview techniques – victim led and full, informed consent
obtained throughout the process.
3. Using an array of victim and witness protection strategies even in
resource-challenged states which cannot always afford relocation
programs.
5
What is a strategic investigation plan?
Building a global view of the transaction into the collection:
 Specialized unit, multidisciplinary team, gender perspective
 Trained, neutral, sensitive, professional interpreters
 Devoted crime analysis including crime pattern analysis
 Network analysis, modes of liability, chain of command
 Identify key partners for first contact
 Use of covert assets or intermediaries if appropriate
6
Aggressive evidence acquisition
Eases the burden on victims and witnesses
Forensic
Documentary
Material, Video, Photographic
Expert, pattern and overview
Financial
Intercept
Suspect, insider or collaborator
7
Don’t forget
Victims and witnesses in trafficking case are often overlooked as a
source of vital linkage evidence.
They often are privy to intimate knowledge of the planning and
execution of crimes, of the means of communication and the key
decision makers in an organized criminal group.
8
Interviewing vulnerable victims and witnesses
Selection of possible witnesses based on availability and profile
Overcoming reluctance of the investigators
Overcoming reluctance of the victim/witness to participate
Overcoming reluctance to speak about certain acts
9
Informed consent is the ethical responsibility
of the investigator.
Should include professional evaluation
from psycho-social perspective on capacity to
consent and should be re-evaluated throughout the interview.
The inherent power dynamics, made worse in THB situations, should
make you lose sleep at night – has this person really consented, do
they really understand?
Do they know the full extent of the risks and dangers they are
submitting their families to?
10
The Step-Wise Interview
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Introduction
Build rapport
Free narrative
Open questioning
Specific questions (optional)
Forensic information (optional)
Conclusion
11
You have to get to the hard stuff.
Penetration (if sexual assault)
Repeated episodes
Dates, time, length of enslavement
Multiple perpetrators
12
Eliciting sexual acts
Their words first
But get to technical side
Use of diagrams, tools
Watch out for traumatization, do no harm!
Do not use suggestive photos, your or their body, do not paraphrase
13
Assessing credibility
Credibility is assessed without reference to
hard fast rules and yet it has to rely on more
than a hunch.
14
How to analyze witness evidence?
Coherence
Spontaneous reproduction
Appropriate detail
Contextual embedding
Reproduction of conversation
Unusual details, unexpected complications, peripheral details.
Admitting lack of memory, knowledge
Spontaneous corrections
Expressing insecurities
15
The paradox of repetition…
16
Victim and Witness Protection
•Need for full effective independent VWP schemes vs. reality
•Best practices along the way in the absence of VWP:
• Covert assets, partners
• Confidentiality
• Safe havens, empowerment
• Initial response capacity
• Communication
• Ongoing victim care including psycho-social
• Redacted identities vs. anonymous testimony
17
osce.org
18