DOCSLIB.ORG

Trafficking in Human Beings: Internet Recruitment

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Trafficking in Human Beings: Internet Recruitment Trafficking in human beings: Internet recruitment COUNCIL CONSEIL OF EUROPE DE L’EUROPE EG-THB-INT (2007) 1 Trafficking in human beings: Internet recruitment Misuse of the Internet for the recruitment of victims of trafficking in human beings prepared by Athanassia P. Sykiotou Lecturer in Criminology Faculty of Law Democritus University of Thrace (Greece) Directorate General of Human Rights and Legal Affairs Council of Europe 2007 Édition française : Traite des êtres humains : recrutement par internet The opinions expressed in this work are the responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy of the Council of Europe. The study on the Misuse of the Internet for the recruitment of victims of trafficking in human beings was carried out in the context of the Council of Europe Campaign to Combat Trafficking in Human Beings and funded by the government of Monaco. © Council of Europe, 2007. Cover image © Lotfi M. – Fotolia.com/Big Family, 2007 Gender Equality and Anti-Trafficking Division Directorate General of Human Rights and Legal Affairs Council of Europe F-67075 Strasbourg Cedex First printing, October 2007 Printed at the Council of Europe Misuse of the Internet for the recruitment of victims of trafficking in human beings The Council of Europe is a political organisation which was founded on 5 May 1949 by ten European countries in order to promote greater unity between its members. It now numbers forty-seven European states.1 The main aims of the organisation are to promote democracy, human rights and the rule of law, and to develop common responses to political, social, cultural and legal challenges in its member states. Since 1989 it has integrated most of the countries of central and eastern Europe and supported them in their efforts to implement and consoli- date their political, legal and administrative reforms. The Council of Europe has its permanent headquarters in Stras- bourg (France). By Statute, it has two constituent organs: the Committee of Ministers, composed of the foreign ministers of the 47 member states, and the Parliamentary Assembly, comprising delegations from the 47 na- tional parliaments. The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe represents the entities of local and regional self- government within the member states. The European Court of Human Rights is the judicial body compe- tent to adjudicate complaints brought against a state by individuals, asso- ciations or other contracting states on grounds of violation of the European Convention on Human Rights. Anti-trafficking activities of the Council of Europe Trafficking in human beings constitutes a violation of human rights and is an offence to the dignity and the integrity of the human being. The Council of Europe, whose principal vocation is the safeguard and pro- motion of human rights, has been active in the fight against trafficking in human beings since the late 1980s. The Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings [CETS No. 197] was adopted by the Committee of Min- isters on 3 May 2005 and opened for signature in Warsaw on 16 May 2005, on the occasion of the 3rd Summit of Heads of State and Govern- ment of the Council of Europe member states. This new Convention, the first European treaty in this field, is a comprehensive treaty focusing mainly on the protection of victims of trafficking and the safeguarding of their rights. It also aims to prevent 1. Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bul- garia, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Georgia, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russian Fed- eration, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, “The former Yugo- slav Republic of Macedonia”, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom. 3 Trafficking in human beings: Internet recruitment trafficking and to prosecute traffickers. In addition, the Convention pro- vides for the setting up of an effective and independent monitoring mechanism capable of controlling the implementation of the obligations contained in the Convention. For further information on the Council of Europe’s activities to combat trafficking in human beings please consult our Web site: http:// www.coe.int/trafficking/. Gender Equality and Anti-Trafficking Division Directorate General of Human Rights and Legal Affairs Council of Europe F-67075 Strasbourg Cedex Tel. +33 3 88 41 20 00 E-mail: [email protected] 4 Contents Foreword . .7 The Council of Europe project – The 2003 report and methodology of the present report . .9 Introduction . .17 The current situation – Techniques used by traffickers to recruit their victims via the Internet. .19 Misuse of the Internet . .21 Users. .24 Traffickers . .25 Clients . .47 Potential victims . .48 Factors that impede recruiting victims of trafficking in human beings via the Internet. .50 Limited telecommunications and Internet infrastructure as an obstacle to increased recruitment . .50 National and cultural differences in the use of the new information technologies . .59 Legal, administrative, technical and other means of combating the recruitment of victims of trafficking in human beings via the Internet . .63 Legal measures . .65 Legal measures taken by the Council of Europe. .66 5 Trafficking in human beings: Internet recruitment Legal measures taken by the European Union . .71 Legal measures taken at national level . .75 Definitional features of the crime of trafficking in human beings via the Internet – comments . .95 Administrative measures. .99 Technical measures . .101 Technical measures to prevent recruitment of victims of trafficking in human beings via the Internet. .102 Technical measures for effective prosecution in cases of victim recruitment via the Internet . .108 Other measures . .118 Evaluation of the current situation . .119 Best practices against trafficking in human beings via the Internet 123 Recommendations on legal and technical measures to fight trafficking in human beings via the Internet effectively . .127 General conclusion. .133 Appendix 1: Internet statistics . .139 Appendix 2: Bibliography. .145 6 Foreword Trafficking in human beings is the modern form of the old worldwide slave trade. It treats human beings as a commodity to be bought and sold. The victims are put to forced labour, usually in the sex industry but also, for example, in the agricultural sector or in sweatshops, for a pittance or nothing at all. Trafficking in human beings directly undermines the values on which the Council of Europe is based: human rights, democra- cy and the rule of law. The Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings [CETS No. 197] was adopted by the Committee of Minis- ters on 3 May 2005 and opened for signature in Warsaw on 16 May 2005, on the occasion of the 3rd Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Council of Europe member states. This new Convention, the first European treaty in this field, is a comprehensive treaty focusing mainly on the protection of victims of trafficking and the safeguarding of their rights. It also aims to prevent trafficking and to prosecute traffickers. In addition, the Convention pro- vides for the setting up of an effective and independent monitoring mechanism capable of controlling the implementation of the obligations contained in the Convention. In 2006 the Council of Europe Campaign to Combat Trafficking in Human Beings was launched under the slogan “Human being – Not for sale”. The aim of the Campaign is to raise awareness of the problem of trafficking in human beings and identify solutions to it among govern- ments, parliamentarians, local and regional authorities, non-govern- mental organisations and civil society. The Campaign also promotes the signature and ratification of the Convention. When drawing up the Convention, the drafters looked at use of new information technologies in trafficking in human beings and decid- 7 Trafficking in human beings: Internet recruitment ed that the Convention’s definition of trafficking in human beings cov- ered trafficking involving use of new information technologies. For instance, the definition’s reference to recruitment covers recruitment by whatever means (oral, through the press or via the Internet). It was therefore felt to be unnecessary to include a further provision making the international-cooperation arrangements in the Convention on Cybercrime [ETS No. 185] applicable to trafficking in human beings. However, given the rapid development in the use of information technologies, in particular the Internet, and the new possibilities which have opened up for the traffickers, it was decided in the context of the Campaign, to further examine this aspect of trafficking in human beings. The project on the Misuse of the Internet for the recruitment of victims of trafficking in human beings (2005/DG2/VC/405) aimed to provide member states with appropriate legal, administrative and technical measures and more effective awareness raising. The project was funded by the Government of Monaco. In addition to this study, a seminar on the Misuse of the Internet for the recruitment of victims of trafficking in human beings was organised in Strasbourg on 7-8 June 2007. Participants included Council of Europe experts, representatives from Eurojust, Europol, International Labour Organisation (ILO),
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Spaces and Identities in Border Regions
    Christian Wille, Rachel Reckinger, Sonja Kmec, Markus Hesse (eds.) Spaces and Identities in Border Regions Culture and Social Practice Christian Wille, Rachel Reckinger, Sonja Kmec, Markus Hesse (eds.) Spaces and Identities in Border Regions Politics – Media – Subjects Bibliographic information published by the Deutsche Nationalbibliothek The Deutsche Nationalbibliothek lists this publication in the Deutsche Natio- nalbibliografie; detailed bibliographic data are available in the Internet at http://dnb.d-nb.de © 2015 transcript Verlag, Bielefeld All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or uti- lized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any infor- mation storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Cover layout: Kordula Röckenhaus, Bielefeld Cover illustration: misterQM / photocase.de English translation: Matthias Müller, müller translations (in collaboration with Jigme Balasidis) Typeset by Mark-Sebastian Schneider, Bielefeld Printed in Germany Print-ISBN 978-3-8376-2650-6 PDF-ISBN 978-3-8394-2650-0 Content 1. Exploring Constructions of Space and Identity in Border Regions (Christian Wille and Rachel Reckinger) | 9 2. Theoretical and Methodological Approaches to Borders, Spaces and Identities | 15 2.1 Establishing, Crossing and Expanding Borders (Martin Doll and Johanna M. Gelberg) | 15 2.2 Spaces: Approaches and Perspectives of Investigation (Christian Wille and Markus Hesse) | 25 2.3 Processes of (Self)Identification(Sonja Kmec and Rachel Reckinger) | 36 2.4 Methodology and Situative Interdisciplinarity (Christian Wille) | 44 2.5 References | 63 3. Space and Identity Constructions Through Institutional Practices | 73 3.1 Policies and Normalizations | 73 3.2 On the Construction of Spaces of Im-/Morality.
    [Show full text]
  • Free Movement of Workers in Cyprus and the EU
    COVER PRIO with spine:Layout 1 28/2/10 12:26 Page 1 Free Movement of Workers in Cyprus Free Movement of Workers and the EU in Cyprus and the EU This study draws on the two Reports on Cyprus for 2007 and 2008-2009 conducted by the RIGHTS IN CYPRUS FUNDAMENTAL I author as a national expert for the Network of Experts on Free Movement of Workers. Since the enactment of Law 7(1)/2007, which purported to transpose Directive 2004/38, there is a clearer view as to the effects the new legislation and the practices relating to transposition. The study examines the situation, the obstacles and challenges for free Nicos Trimikliniotis movement of workers in Cyprus. It illustrates the five key problematic areas and challenges ahead: there are currently 138,000 non-Cypriots legally residing in the areas under the control of the Republic of Cyprus, out of whom over 70,000 EU citizens. The system is working but there are issues to be dealt with such as: the considerable backlogs in the applications; problems with working conditions and pay; problems of reverse discrimination resulting from the operation of the directive, as EU citizens who exercise their rights under the directive can benefit but these rights are not always for Cypriots THE EU WORKERS IN CYPRUS AND FREE MOVEMENT OF and their families; the discrimination against lesbian and gay persons resulting from the from the failure to regulate same-sex marriages and registered relations in Cyprus; the problems generated from the territorial application of the implementation of the Directive given the de facto division of Cyprus and the Green Line Regulation.
    [Show full text]
  • EU-Russia Review Oct2007.Pdf
    FOREWORD One of the main issues the EU Russia Centre seeks to promote is the importance of the EU speaking with one voice towards Russia. Politicians, diplomats, officials and others all agree with this aim. Yet the EU rarely manages to achieve a united position, let alone articulate one towards its large eastern neighbour. The EU- Russia summit at Samara on 30 May 2007 was an example of the Union speaking as one, but it came from a defensive position, not a coherent, positive, forward- looking approach. One of the main reasons for the EU’s failure to speak and act as one towards Moscow is the very substantial number of bilateral relationships that many member states enjoy with Russia. This is most apparent in the energy sector where in recent times there has been a rush to sign a plethora of bilateral energy deals with Russia. But the bilateral relationships go far beyond the energy sector, touching recent history, political and parliamentary contacts, trade and investment, the influence of diasporas, language, media, education, science and culture. This study by the EU Russia Centre is a unique attempt to examine the bilateral relations of all 27 member states with Russia. It is hoped that knowledge of these relationships will lead to a greater understanding of the problems in trying to reach a common EU position. Bilateral relations will continue in many areas, not least because the EU cannot claim ‘competence’ across the board. But there are areas where the Union could be much more effective if it were able to speak with one voice.
    [Show full text]
  • Discriminatory Practices of the Luxembourg Police Against Roma Migrants from the New Member States
    Chachipe a.s.b.l. B.p.97 L - 7201 Béreldange e-mail: [email protected] Luxembourg, 24 February 2011 Mt. Martin Sehnayr Head of Cabinet Cabinet of Vice-President Viviane Reding Commissioner for Justice, Fundamental Rights and Citizenship European Commission B - 1049 Brussels Discriminatory practices of the Luxembourg police against Roma migrants from the new member states Dear Mr. Selmayr, ln reply to your letter dated 6 December 2010, we would like to reiterate our concems regarding the mistreatment of Roma migrants by the Luxembourg police as part of a targcted campaign to deter Roma migrants from entering Luxembourg. We believe that the actions of Luxembourg police, which we have documented in our letters as th th th of September 14 , October 16 and November 2S , 2010 constitute an infringement of EU legislation, not only in terms of the right of freedom of movement, protected by Directive 2004/38/EC and article 2 §§ 1 and 2 of Protocol 4 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), but also in that they violate the right of non-discrimination and equal tteatment, which is guaranteed by Directive 2000/43/EC as weil as article 21(1) of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (Charter) and by article 1 of Protocol 12 of the ECHR. Furthermore, the unjustified arrests, unjustified confiscation of the money obtained through begging, routine body searches and aileged beatings of Roma under arrest violate articles 4 (prohibition of torture and inhuman or degrading tteatment or punishment) and 6 (Right to liberty and security) of the Charter, article 1 § 1 (General Prohibition of Discrimination) of Protocol12 of the ECHR as weIl as articles 3 (prohibition of torture) and 5 § Ic (Right to liberty and security) of the ECHR and article 1 § 1 (protection of Property) of the Protocol ta the ECHR together with article 14 (prohibition of discrimination) of the ECHR.
    [Show full text]
  • EUROPEAN REPORT on the Free Movement of Workers in Europe in 2007
    EUROPE 2007 EUROPEAN REPORT on the Free Movement of Workers in Europe in 2007 Rapporteurs: Prof. Kees Groenendijk, Prof. Roel Fernhout, Prof. Elspeth Guild, Prof. Pieter Boeles, Dr. Ryszard Cholewinski and Dr. Paul Minderhoud December 2008 1 EUROPE 2007 Contents Executive summary General introduction Chapter I Entry, residence, departure Chapter II Access to employment Chapter III Equality of treatment on the basis of nationality Chapter IV Employment in the public sector Chapter V Members of the family Chapter VI Relevance/Influence/Follow-up of recent Court of Justice Judgments Chapter VII Policies, texts and/or practices of a general nature with repercussions on free movement of workers Chapter VIII EU enlargement Chapter IX Statistics Chapter X Miscellaneous 3 EUROPE 2007 Executive Summary Free movement of workers is a cornerstone right of all nationals of the Member States. In examining how the Member States have implemented this right in 2007, the following key issues arise: • Access to the territory, residence and protection from expulsion: workers and job seekers are able to access the territory of other Member States and to remain their under the provisions of Directive 2004/38. A number of Member States appear to have taken the opportunity of a new directive to introduce new restrictions which did not apply before. This phenomenon deserves close attention as it does not appear to be consistent with the intention of the directive. • Transitional arrangements regarding EU-8 workers are gradually being lifted across all the Member States. There are very few member States which are still applying significant restrictions. In light of this it seems unlikely that many Member States will seek to justify a further extension of the transitional arrangements for the EU-8.
    [Show full text]
  • Eurostat 2007 Conference "Modern Statistics for Modern Society"
    ISSN 1977-0375 Methodologies and Working papers Conference on Modern Statistics for Modern Society 6 – 7 December 2007, Luxembourg 2008 edition How to obtain EU publications Our priced publications are available from EU Bookshop (http://bookshop.europa.eu), where you can place an order with the sales agent of your choice. The Publications Office has a worldwide network of sales agents. You can obtain their contact details by sending a fax to (352) 29 29-42758. Europe Direct is a service to help you find answers to your questions about the European Union Freephone number (*): 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (*) Certain mobile telephone operators do not allow access to 00 800 numbers or these calls may be billed. More information on the European Union is available on the Internet (http://europa.eu). Luxembourg: Office for Official Publications of the European Communities, 2008 ISBN 978-92-79-07841-5 ISSN 1977-0375 DOI 10.2785/11354 Cat. No. KS-RA-08-004-EN-N Theme: General and regional statistics Collection: Methodologies and working papers © European Communities, 2008 Programme CONFERENCE PROGRAMME 1st day – Thursday, 6 December 2007 Registration WORKSHOP ON INNOVAT I ONS IN STAT I ST I CAL SYSTEMS Chair: Ms Marie Bohatá, Deputy Director General, Eurostat Discussant: Mr Serge Allegrezza, Director General, STATEC, Luxembourg Speakers: Building a new statistical system: the architecture Mr Gosse van der Veen, Director General, Central Bureau of Statistics, Netherlands A statistical system for future generations Mr Jan Fischer, President, Czech Statistical Office 2nd day – Friday, 7 December 2007 Late arrival registration PLENARY SESS I ON Mr Joaquín Almunia, European Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs Mr Jean-Claude Juncker, Prime Minister of Luxembourg Society forming changes and their impacts on information needs Mr Yves Mersch, Governor of the Banque centrale du Luxembourg Employment statistics as social statistics: some recent challenges Mr A.
    [Show full text]
  • Germany's Stance on the EU Treaty Reform in the Years 2005–2009
    Nr 12 ROCZNIK INTEGRACJI EUROPEJSKIEJ 2018 Janusz Józef Węc DOI : 10.14746/rie.2018.12.3 uniwersytet Jagielloński ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6331-4133 Germany’s Stance on the EU Treaty Reform in the Years 2005–2009 Introductory remarks The objective of this paper is to analyse the position of the German Government on Treaty reform of the union in 2005–2009. The first part of the article analyses Ger- many’s position on the constitutional crisis of the European Union. The second part describes the activities of the Federal Government during the German EU Presidency. The third part of the work reconstructs the German attitude to the 2007 Intergovern- mental conference and the content of the Treaty of Lisbon of 13 December 2007.1 1. Germany’s Run-Up to the Presidency of the European Union during the Constitutional Crisis The ratification of the constitutional Treaty encountered unexpected difficulties already in 2005, when it was rejected by referendum first inf rance (29 May), and then in the netherlands (1 June) by citizens of the said countries. The negative outcomes of the referenda in France and the Netherlands triggered a serious political crisis in the European Union called the constitutional crisis. In this situation, heads of state or government of the eu Member states adopted on 18 June 2005 in Brussels a decla- ration stating that the rejection of the Treaty by France and the Netherlands requires introduction of a “period of reflection.” The said period, which was to take one year, was intended to serve for launching in each Member state a broad debate on the Treaty ratification process with citizens, civil society, social partners, national parliaments and political parties (ec.
    [Show full text]
  • Europol 2007 AR Final
    ANNUAL REPORT 2007 ANNUAL REPORT 2007 Europol Corporate Communications P.O. Box 90850 2509 LW The Hague The Netherlands www.europol.europa.eu Tel.: +31-70 302 50 00 Fax: +31-70 345 58 96 © European Police Office, 2008 Photographs: Europol, the Dutch Nationale Recherche, the French Police Nationale, the German Bundeskriminalamt, the Italian Carabinieri Antifalsificazione Monetaria, the Polish Policja Special thanks to all EU law enforcement authorities, Europol cooperation partners, Europol Liaison Bureaux and Europol Liaison Officers who contributed to this report Contents 1. Introduction 7 1.1 Priority crime areas in 2007 9 1.2 Organisational chart of the Europol Headquarters 10 2. Serious organised crime, terrorism and analysis 11 2.1 Organised crime groups 15 2.2 Drugs 15 2.3 Crimes against persons 16 2.4 Financial and property crime 21 2.5 Terrorism 23 2.6 Forgery of money and other means of payment 24 2.7 Analysis 26 2.8 General achievements 28 3. Information management and technology 29 3.1 Overview 31 3.2 Information and communication technology 31 3.3 Information management 32 4. Corporate governance 39 4.1 Legal framework 41 4.2 Budget 42 4.3 Human resources 42 4.4 Public relations 45 4.5 Open sources, documentation and library 46 4.6 New Europol headquarters 46 5. Cooperation with third parties 47 6. Liaison bureaux activities 51 6.1 Introduction by the Heads of Europol National Units' Chairman 53 6.2 EU member states’ liaison bureaux activities 54 6.3 Third parties’ liaison bureaux activities 79 3 Foreword It is my pleasure to present this document emphasises four basic goals that Europol needs to fulfil when Europol Annual Report 2007, which supporting the competent authorities in the Member States.
    [Show full text]
  • Luxembourg Report Klaus Schneider, Wolfgang Lorig, Nils C
    Luxembourg Report Klaus Schneider, Wolfgang Lorig, Nils C. Bandelow (Coordinator) Sustainable Governance Indicators 2017 G etty Im ages/iStockphoto/ZC Liu Sustainable Governance SGI Indicators SGI 2017 | 2 Luxembourg Report Executive Summary Luxembourg is a founding member of the United Nations (1945), the European Coal and Steel Community (1950) and the European Economic Community (1957). It is also one of the Europe Union’s three capitals, along with Brussels and Strasbourg. It hosts several EU institutions, including the Secretariat of the European Parliament, the European Court of Justice, EUROSTAT, the European Investment Bank and the European Stability Mechanism, as well as several European Commission services. Approximately 11,000 EU officials work in Luxembourg, while key EU ministerial meetings are regularly hosted in the Grand Duchy. The demographic development of Luxembourg differs from most other EU member states due to persistently high migration rates. Since 2012, Luxembourg has had an exceptionally high annual population growth rate by EU standards, currently 2.29% (2016). Another key driver of dynamic population development is the average age of 39.2, which is low by EU standards though higher than in Ireland and Cyprus. Overall, the general population is increasing, aging and becoming more heterogeneous. The economy is strengthening, domestic demand is increasing and the workforce is expanding. In the second quarter of 2016, GDP grew by an impressive 4.4%. In 2015, the real GDP growth rate was 4.8%, higher than the average euro zone growth rate. This is an increase of 0.8% compared to 2012 (4%). In 2015, a 2% increase in general VAT rates was implemented to compensate for a decline in e-commerce tax revenues.
    [Show full text]
  • Bidbook-En.Pdf
    2 R E M I X CULTURE ESCH-SUR-ALZETTE C A N D I D AT E C I T Y E U R O P E A N C A P I TA L O F CULTURE 2022 0. INTRODUCTION AND GENERAL 2 CONSIDERATIONS 1. C O N T R I B U T I O N T O T H E 11 LONG-TERM STRATEGY 2. EUROPEAN DIMENSION 22 3. CULTURAL AND ARTISTIC CONTENT 28 4. CAPACITY TO DELIVER 62 5. OUTREACH 71 6. MANAGEMENT 79 1 0. I N T R O D U C T I O N A N D GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS 2 0 . I N T R O D U C T I O N A N D GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS WHY DOES YOUR CITY WISH TO TAKE PART IN THE COMPETITION Q1. FOR THE TITLE OF EUROPEAN A CAPITAL OF CULTURE? S E C O N D G L A N C E A T T H E SECOND CITY L uxembourg 3. We can almost hear the panel’s former days of glory, but now make a rather thoughts on this. Not again… Not more of the miserable impression. same. Not so! We want to offer a very different perspective on Luxembourg. Not the interna- In the capital, smartly dressed businessmen tional fnancial centre, home to rich bankers- and and -women, along with families with their well- bureaucrats-Luxembourg. Not that. We offer a groomed children and dogs. In Esch, more col- different and, we hope, intriguing perspective ourful people drifting around, people who cannot on Luxembourg.
    [Show full text]
  • Luxembourg Private Equity Investment Vehicles
    Luxembourg Private Equity Investment Vehicles September 2007 Luxembourg Private Equity Investment Vehicles Preface This brochure has been prepared jointly by the Luxembourg Bankers’ Association (ABBL) and the Association of the Luxembourg Fund Industry (ALFI) in order to provide general background information on the legal and tax aspects of regulated and unregulated private equity vehicles domiciled in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. Luxembourg offers today a whole platform of services and opportunities to the private equity industry. Products include competitive structures for setting-up private equity funds, such as the SICAR or the SIF, and structures for pan-European private equity acquisitions. Luxembourg based service providers have specialised in servicing the private equity industry and offer today a wide range of customised services in private equity fund and acquisition structuring, transaction advisory, fund administration, custody and audit services. This publication is intended to provide private equity houses with comprehensive information on Luxembourg’s state-of-the-art fund vehicle for private equity, the SICAR, as well as a summary of the key characteristics of other Luxembourg solutions for private equity. 1 Contents 3 Private equity industry in Luxembourg 30 The fully regulated funds (UCIs Part II) 30 General legal and regulatory framework 3 The context 30 Other key characteristics 3 Private equity 33 Tax regime 4 Overview of available structures 34 The SOPARFI (société de participations 16 The investment company in
    [Show full text]
  • Relationship with the European Union: Slovenia and Montenegro Compared
    Relationship with the European Union: Slovenia and Montenegro Compared GORDANA DJUROVIC AND DAMJAN LAJH Politics in Central Europe (ISSN: 1801-3422) Vol. 16, No. 3 DOI: 10.2478/pce-2020-0030 Abstract: As part of former Yugoslavia and non­‑members of the Eastern Bloc, Slovenia and Montenegro enjoyed a special status and relationships with the European Com- munities (EC) before most other socialist countries. Economic and social interactions with the EC and its member states thus formed part of Slovenian and Montenegrin life even during socialism, particularly after Yugoslavia signed special agreements on trade relations with the EC in the 1970s and 1980s. In this respect, Europeanisation as ‘practical’ integration with the EC was closely linked with liberalisation processes concerning the economy, society and politics along with democratic transition processes that began in the late 1980s. When Slovenia joined the European Union (EU) in 2004 following a relatively smooth integration process, Montenegro was still holding EU candidate member status, after having officially started its accession negotiations in June 2012. The article analyses selected development and integration aspects of Slovenia and Montenegro, their relationship with the EU, together with their similarities and differ- ences. The aim is to highlight developments in both countries and determine whether Slovenia, as an ex­‑Yugoslav republic and EU member since 2004, may serve as a good example for Montenegro to follow while pursuing European integration. Keywords: European Union, Europeanisation, enlargement, Slovenia, Montenegro Introduction Europeanisation is generally associated with terms like innovation, modernisa‑ tion or formation, and thus often used to describe several different phenomena and processes of change (Lajh 2005).
    [Show full text]