Article 21

1. A Party that has received a request from another Party having jurisdiction over an offence covered by this Convention for confiscation of proceeds of crime, property, equipment or other instrumentalities referred to in Article 17, Paragraph 1 of this Convention situated in its territory shall, to the greatest extent possible within its domestic legal system:

a. Submit the request to its competent authorities for the purpose of obtaining an order of confiscation and, if such an order is granted, give effect to it; or

b. Submit to its competent authorities, with a view to giving effect to it to the extent requested, an order of confiscation issued by a court in the territory of the requesting Party in accordance with Article 17, Paragraph 1 of this Convention insofar as it relates to proceeds of crime, property, equipment or other instrumentalities referred to in Article 17, Paragraph 1, situated in the territory of the requested Party.

2. Following a request made by another Party having jurisdiction over an offence covered by this Convention, the requested Party shall take measures to identify, trace, and freeze or seize proceeds of crime, property, equipment or other instrumentalities referred to in Article 17, Paragraph 1 of this Convention for the purpose of eventual confiscation to be ordered wither by the requesting Party or, pursuant to a request under Paragraph 1 of this Article, by the requested Party.

3. The provisions of Article 18 of this Convention are applicable, mutatis mutandis, to this Article. In addition to the information specified in Article 18, requests made pursuant to this Article shall contain:

a. In the case of a request pertaining to Paragraph 1 (a) of this Article, a description of the property to be confiscated and a statement of the facts relied upon by the requesting Party sufficient to enable the requested Party to seek the order under its domestic laws;

b. In the case of a request pertaining to Paragraph 1 (b) of this Article, a legally admissible copy of an order of confiscation upon which the request is based issued by the requesting Party, a statement of the facts and information as to the extent to which execution of the order is requested;

c. In the case of a request pertaining to Paragraph 2 of this Article, a statement of the facts relied upon by the requesting Party and a description of the actions requested.

4. The decisions or actions provided for in Paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article shall be taken by the requested Party in accordance with and subject to the provisions of its domestic laws and its procedural rules, any bilateral or multilateral treaty, agreement or arrangement to which it is bound in relation to the requesting Party, and the Treaty on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters.

5. If a Party elects to make the taking of the measures referred to in Paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article conditional on the existence of a relevant treaty, that Party shall consider this Convention the necessary and sufficient treaty basis.

6. The provisions of this Article shall not be construed to prejudice the rights of bona fide third parties.

7. The Parties shall consider concluding bilateral or multilateral treaties, agreements or arrangements to enhance the effectiveness of international cooperation undertaken pursuant to this Article.

Article 20

1. The Parties shall cooperate closely with one another, consistent with their respective domestic legal and administrative systems, to enhance the effectiveness of law enforcement action to combat the offences covered by this Convention. Each Party shall, in particular, adopt effective measures:

a. To enhance and, where necessary, to establish as well as utilise existing channels of communication between their competent authorities, agencies and services in order to facilitate the secure and rapid exchange of information concerning all aspects of the offences covered by this Convention, including if the Parties concerned deem it appropriate, links with other criminal activities.

b. To cooperate with other Parties in conducting inquiries with respect to offences covered by this Convention concerning:

(i) The identity, whereabouts and activities of persons suspected of involvement in such offences or the location of other persons concerned;

(ii) The movement of proceeds of crime or property derived from the commission of such offences;

(iii) The movement of property, equipment or other instrumentalities used or intended for use in the commission of such offences;

c. To provide, when appropriate, necessary items or quantities of substances for analytical or investigative purposes;

d. To facilitate effective coordination between their competent authorities, agencies and services and to promote the exchange of personal and other experts, including, subject to bilateral agreements or arrangements between the Parties concerned, the posting of liaison officers;

e. To exchange information with other Parties on specific means and methods used by traffickers, including, where applicable, routes and conveyances and the use of false identities, altered or false documents or other means of concealing their activities;

f. To exchange information and coordinate administrative and other measures taken as appropriate for the purpose of early identification of the offences covered by this Convention.

2. With a view to giving effect to this Convention, the Parties shall consider entering into bilateral or multilateral agreements or arrangements on direct cooperation between their law enforcement agencies and, where such agreements or arrangements already exist, amending them. In the absence of such agreements or arrangements between the Parties concerned, the Parties may consider this Convention as the basis for mutual law enforcement cooperation in respect of the offences covered by this Convention. Whenever appropriate, the Parties shall make full use of agreements or arrangements, including international or regional organisations, to enhance the cooperation between their enforcement agencies.

3. The Parties shall endeavour to cooperate within their means to respond to trafficking in persons and other offences covered by this Convention committed through the use of modern technology.

Article 19

1. Each of the offences established in accordance with Article 5 of this Convention shall be deemed to be included as an extraditable offence in any extradition treaty existing between Parties. The Parties undertake to include such offences as extraditable offences in every extradition treaty to be concluded between them.

2. If a Party that makes extradition conditional on the existence of a treaty receives a request for extradition from another Party with which it has no extradition treaty, it may consider this Convention the legal basis for extradition in respect of any offence established in accordance with Article 5 of this Convention.

3. Subject to the provisions of its domestic laws and its extradition treaties, the requested Party may, upon being satisfied that the circumstances so warrant and are urgent and at the request of the requesting Party, take a person whose extradition is sought and who is present in its territory into custody or take other appropriate measures to ensure his or her presence at extradition proceedings.

4. A Party in whose territory an alleged is found, if it does not extradite such person in respect of an office established in accordance with Article 5 of this Convention applies solely on the ground that he or she is one of its nationals, shall, at the request of the Party seeking extradition, be obliged to submit the case without undue delay to its competent authorities for the purpose of prosecution. Those authorities shall take their decision and conduct their proceedings in the same manner as in the case of any other offence of a grave nature under the domestic law of that Party. The Parties concerned shall cooperate with each other, in particular on procedural and evidentiary aspects, to ensure the efficiency of such prosecution.

5. For the purpose of this Article, each Party shall designate a central authority to be notified to the depositary of this Convention.

Article 18

1. In order to combat offences of trafficking in persons which are transnational in nature, the Parties shall, subject to their respective domestic laws, afford one another the widest measure of mutual legal assistance in criminal investigations or criminal proceedings in relation to such offences established in accordance with Article 5 of this Convention.

2. The Parties shall carry out their obligations under Paragraph 1 of this Article in accordance with the Treaty on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters.

Article 17

1. Each Party shall adopt, to the greatest extent possible within its domestic legal system, such measures as may be necessary to enable confiscation of:

a. Proceeds of crime derived from offences covered by this Convention or property the value of which corresponds to that of such proceeds;

b. Property, equipment or other instrumentalities used in or destined for use in offences covered by this Convention.

2. Each Party shall adopt such measures as may be necessary to enable the identification, tracing, freezing or seizure of any item referred to in Paragraph 1 of this Article for the purpose of eventual confiscation.

3. If proceeds of crime have been transformed or converted, in part or in full, into other property, such property shall, without prejudice to any powers relating to freezing or seizure, be liable to confiscation up to the assessed value of the intermingled proceeds.

4. If proceeds of crime have been intermingled with property acquired from legitimate sources, such property shall, without prejudice to any powers relating to freezing or seizure, be liable to confiscation up to the assessed value of the intermingled proceeds.

5. Income or other benefits derived from proceeds of crime, from property into which proceeds of crime have been transformed or converted or from property with which proceeds of crime have been intermingled shall also be liable to the measures referred to in this Article, in the same manner and to the same extent as proceeds of crime.

6. For the purposes of this Article and Article 21 of this Convention, each Party shall empower its courts or other competent authorities to order that bank, financial or commercial records be made available or be seized. Each Party shall not decline to act under the provisions of this Paragraph on the ground of bank secrecy.

7. Each Party may consider the possibility of requiring that an offender demonstrate the lawful origin of alleged proceeds of crime or other property liable to confiscation, to the extent that such a requirement is consistent with the principles of its domestic laws and with the nature of the judicial and other proceedings.

8. The provisions of this Article shall not be construed to prejudice the rights of bona fide third parties.

9. Nothing contained in this Article shall affect the principle that the measures to which it refers shall be defined and implemented in accordance with and subject to the provisions of the domestic laws of a Party.

Article 16

1. Each Party shall adopt such measures as may be necessary to ensure that competent authorities dealing with trafficking in persons cases are equipped with appropriate skills or knowledge in the fight against trafficking in persons and the protection of victims of trafficking in persons, and where appropriate, designate specialised units or authorities for this purpose.

2. Each Party shall take effective and active steps to detect, deter and punish corruption, money laundering, participation in an organised criminal group and obstruction of justice that contributes to trafficking in persons.

3. Each Party shall ensure that its legal system is efficient to deal with trafficking in persons cases.

4. Each Party shall adopt such measures as may be necessary to ensure coordination of the policies and actions of its government’s departments and other public agencies against trafficking in persons, and where appropriate, set up coordinating bodies to combat organise4d crimes such as trafficking in persons, corruption, money laundering and obstruction of justice.

5. Each Party shall, consistent with the domestic laws of the sending and the receiving Parties, through informal cooperation or mutual legal assistance where appropriate, encourage the victims of trafficking in persons to voluntarily enter and stay temporarily in the territory of the receiving Party for purposes of testifying or otherwise cooperating in the prosecution of their traffickers, with due regard for the safety of the victims of trafficking in persons.

6. Each Party shall provide or strengthen training programmes for relevant officials in the prevention of and fight against trafficking in persons, with focus on methods used in preventing trafficking, investigating and prosecuting the traffickers, and protecting the rights of the victims, including protecting the victims and their families from the traffickers, and the privacy of the victims.

7. Each Party shall take all necessary steps to preserve the integrity of the criminal justice process including through protecting victims and witnesses from intimidation and harassment, where necessary, and punishing perpetrators of such acts, in appropriate cases.

8. Each Party shall, where appropriate, establish under its domestic laws a long statute of limitations period in which to commence proceedings for any offence covered by this Convention and a longer period where the alleged offender has evaded the administration of justice.

9. Nothing contained in this Convention shall affect the principle that the description of the offences established in accordance with this Convention and of the applicable legal defences or other legal principles controlling the lawfulness of conduct is reserved to the domestic laws of a party and that such offences shall be prosecuted and punished in accordance with that law.

Article 14

1. Nothing in this Protocol shall affect the rights, obligations and responsibilities of States and individuals under international law, including international humanitarian law and international human rights law and, in particular, where applicable, the 1951 Convention1 and the 1967 Protocol2 relating to the Status of Refugees and the principle of non-refoulement as contained therein.

2. The measures set forth in this Protocol shall be interpreted and applied in a way that is not discriminatory to persons on the ground that they are victims of trafficking in persons. The interpretation and application of those measures shall be consistent with internationally recognized principles of non-discrimination.

Article 11

1. Without prejudice to international commitments in relation to the free movement of people, States Parties shall strengthen, to the extent possible, such border controls as may be necessary to prevent and detect trafficking in persons.

2. Each State Party shall adopt legislative or other appropriate measures to prevent, to the extent possible, means of transport operated by commercial carriers from being used in the commission of offences established in accordance with article 5 of this Protocol.

3. Where appropriate, and without prejudice to applicable international conventions, such measures shall include establishing the obligation of commercial carriers, including any transportation company or the owner or operator of any means of transport, to ascertain that all passengers are in possession of the travel documents required for entry into the receiving State.

4. Each State Party shall take the necessary measures, in accordance with its domestic law, to provide for sanctions in cases of violation of the obligation set forth in paragraph 3 of this article.

5. Each State Party shall consider taking measures that permit, in accordance with its domestic law, the denial of entry or revocation of visas of persons implicated in the commission of offences established in accordance with this Protocol.

6. Without prejudice to article 27 of the Convention, States Parties shall consider strengthening cooperation among border control agencies by, inter alia, establishing and maintaining direct channels of communication.

Article 10

1. Law enforcement, immigration or other relevant authorities of States Parties shall, as appropriate, cooperate with one another by exchanging information, in accordance with their domestic law, to enable them to determine:

(a) Whether individuals crossing or attempting to cross an international border with travel documents belonging to other persons or without travel documents are perpetrators or victims of trafficking in persons;

(b) The types of travel document that individuals have used or attempted to use to cross an international border for the purpose of trafficking in persons; and

(c) The means and methods used by organized criminal groups for the purpose of trafficking in persons, including the recruitment and transportation of victims, routes and links between and among individuals and groups engaged in such trafficking, and possible measures for detecting them.

2. States Parties shall provide or strengthen training for law enforcement, immigration and other relevant officials in the prevention of trafficking in persons. The training should focus on methods used in preventing such trafficking, prosecuting the traffickers and protecting the rights of the victims, including protecting the victims from the traffickers. The training should also take into account the need to consider human rights and child- and gender-sensitive issues and it should encourage cooperation with nongovernmental organizations, other relevant organizations and other elements of civil society.

3. A State Party that receives information shall comply with any request by the State Party that transmitted the information that places restrictions on its use.

Article 6

1. In appropriate cases and to the extent possible under its domestic law, each State Party shall protect the privacy and identity of victims of trafficking in persons, including, inter alia, by making legal proceedings relating to such trafficking confidential.

2. Each State Party shall ensure that its domestic legal or administrative system contains measures that provide to victims of trafficking in persons, in appropriate cases:

(a) Information on relevant court and administrative proceedings;

(b) Assistance to enable their views and concerns to be presented and considered at appropriate stages of criminal proceedings against offenders, in a manner not prejudicial to the rights of the defence.

3. Each State Party shall consider implementing measures to provide for the physical, psychological and social recovery of victims of trafficking in persons, including, in appropriate cases, in cooperation with non-governmental organizations, other relevant organizations and other elements of civil society, and, in particular, the provision of:

(a) Appropriate housing;

(b) Counselling and information, in particular as regards their legal rights, in a language that the victims of trafficking in persons can understand;

(c) Medical, psychological and material assistance; and

(d) Employment, educational and training opportunities.

4. Each State Party shall take into account, in applying the provisions of this article, the age, gender and special needs of victims of trafficking in persons, in particular the special needs of children, including appropriate housing, education and care.

5. Each State Party shall endeavour to provide for the physical safety of victims of trafficking in persons while they are within its territory.

6. Each State Party shall ensure that its domestic legal system contains measures that offer victims of trafficking in persons the possibility of obtaining compensation for damage suffered.