Rebecca Project for Human Rights Applauds Congressman Chris Smith's OSCE Human Trafficking Report that Criticizes Dutch and Turkish Authorities for Not Investigating Sex Abuse Allegations Against Former Dutch Justice Ministry Senior Official Joris Demmink

-- Leading Human Rights Organization Also Calls for Demmink's Removal from the Netherlands Helsinki Commission --

WASHINGTON, March 7, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Rebecca Project for Human Rights today applauded the Honorable Chris Smith (R-NJ), Chairman of the House Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health and Human Rights, for reporting to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) details of the continued refusal by Dutch and Turkish authorities to investigate allegations of sexual abuse committed against minors by former Dutch Justice Ministry Secretary General Joris Demmink.  As special representative on human trafficking issues for the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, Congressman Smith also details in the "Report on Human Trafficking Issues to the Winter Meeting of the OSCE General Assembly" the ongoing witness intimidation against Demmink's accusers in Turkey as well as the apparent cover-up of evidence which proves Demmink's travel to Turkey during the time period of the alleged sexual abuse.  In addition the Rebecca Project for Human Rights slammed the recent appointment of Demmink to the Netherlands Helsinki Committee, a human rights groups tasked with combatting issues such as human trafficking and sexual abuse, and called for Demmink's removal from the organization until an immediate and thorough investigation into his alleged crimes is completed.

The Rebecca Project for Human Rights Executive Director Imani Walker and Policy Director Kwame Fosu issued the following statement:  "At a time when alleged sexual abuser and human trafficking enabler Joris Demmink should be arrested and the accusations against him thoroughly investigated, the Netherlands Helsinki Committee has appointed him as a committee member.  As an organization that also is dedicated to combatting human trafficking and sexual abuse, we are perplexed with the committee's decision to appoint a former high-ranking Justice Ministry official who has stood accused of sex offenses against boys for over 20 years without an investigation..  Thankfully, there are still defenders of the victims of sexual abuse and trafficking such as Congressman Chris Smith (R-NJ), who once again has courageously confronted the Dutch and Turkish governments for not only the continued stubborn refusal to investigate allegations against Demmink, but the apparent cover-up of evidence that demonstrates Demmink's travel to Turkey during the attacks, a time period that Demmink has claimed he was not in Turkey.  Prosecutors in the Netherlands and Turkey should read Congressman Smith's report to the OSCE carefully and feel free to use excerpts in their indictments against Demmink.  The report is damning and paints a disturbing picture of continued collaboration by both the Dutch and Turkish governments to keep an alleged sexual offender free, including allowing the continued intimidation of witnesses who were already victimized by Demmink during the sexual attacks. It is time for the Netherlands and Turkey to realize that the world will no longer tolerate allowing accused human traffickers and sexual abusers to walk the streets and remain free to attack other victims.  It is time to arrest Demmink."

The Rebecca Project for Human Right's letter regarding Joris Demmink's appointment as a committee member to the Netherlands Helsinki Committee can be found here: http://www.arrestdemmink.com/index.asp?idmenu=4&title=Latest%20News&idsubmenu=180#.UTZaBKWlDe4

Excerpts of Congressman Smith's "Report on Human Traffickg Issues to the Winter Meeting of the OSCE General Assembly" follow below.  The full report is available at:

http://www.arrestdemmink.com/downloads/TRAFFICKING_REPORT_2013_Winter_Meeting_circ.pdf

Many OSCE participating and partner States struggle to hold government officials accountable for trafficking crimes, including those against children. My briefing focused on a case study in the Netherlands, where serious allegations of child sex trafficking have been raised against a government official who, until very recently, was a senior official in the Dutch Ministry of Justice. This official has been accused by two Turkish boys, now men, of raping them when they were adolescents in Turkey. The alleged victims have attempted several times to open a formal investigation through the Dutch legal system. Multiple Turkish government officials— including the Turkish security officer who allegedly brought one of the boys to the Dutch official for abuse—have come forward to offer evidence and testimony in support of the alleged victims' stories. Yet the Government of the Netherlands has repeatedly refused to conduct a formal investigation. The Government of the Netherlands has not spoken to any of the five Turkish government witnesses nor to one of the alleged victims. The alleged victim offered to come to the Netherlands if given security and allowed the presence of his lawyer during questioning. The Government of the Netherlands refused.

Instead, the Government of the Netherlands conducted a few informal inquiries in which the investigators did not have full investigatory powers. They spoke with one alleged victim, and dismissed his account as "inconsistent" without explanation or opportunity for the witness to clarify any question regarding what he suffered 14 years before. The accused Dutch official says he was not in Turkey during the years when the rapes allegedly occurred. The Netherlands Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations says the Dutch official's travel records were destroyed. And the Government of the Netherlands has not, to date, resolved the conflicting statements on these very serious child sex trafficking allegations.

Meanwhile, the alleged Turkish victims are in grave danger. They have gone into hiding and report threats of rape and murder against them and their families if they do not withdraw their request for a formal investigation in the Netherlands. According to reports, one alleged victim had a spike driven into his leg and his tongue sliced when he refused to drop the formal investigation request. In December 2012, one of his supporters was knocked out on the street and taken to the hospital after the supporter refused to disclose the whereabouts of the alleged victims' safe house. The suspected attacker was caught, but it is not clear if he will face charges. The other alleged victim reportedly had his face broken by thugs as he left an attorney's office in November 2012. A key witness for the case reports an attempt on his life on February 6, 2013, as he left his house. He was able to cover his heart with his hands to avoid being fatally stabbed. But his attackers warned him as they fled, saying, "Next time, you will not escape alive."

These reports raise serious questions as to whether the governments of Netherlands and Turkey are fulfilling their duty to protect trafficking victims with the rule of law and ensure victims' access to their respective justice systems. I have called on the governments of the Netherlands and Turkey to conduct speedy and formal investigations of the child sex trafficking and abuse allegations against the high-ranking Dutch official. I will continue to encourage these important participating States to thoroughly investigate all allegations of child sex trafficking— no matter who is accused—and I look forward to an open dialogue on the topic. I have also introduced legislation in the U.S. Congress to encourage greater attention to the claims of child sex trafficking victims.

The Rebecca Project for Human Rights (RPHR) is a transformational organization that advocates for justice, dignity, and reform for vulnerable women and girls in the United States and internationally. For more information, please visit: http://www.rebeccaproject.org/index.php

SOURCE Rebecca Project for Human Rights