e early 1990s, has militarily occupied 16% of Azerbaijan
- Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)
continues to mediate dispute; over 800,000 mostly ethnic
Azerbaijanis were driven from the occupied lands and Armenia; about
230,000 ethnic Armenians were driven from their homes in Azerbaijan
into Armenia; Azerbaijan seeks transit route through Armenia to
connect to Naxcivan exclave; border with Turkey remains closed over
Nagorno-Karabakh dispute; ethnic Armenian groups in Javakheti region
of Georgia seek greater autonomy; tens of thousands of Armenians
emigrate, primarily to Russia, to seek employment
Refugees and internally displaced persons:
refugees (country of origin): 219,324 (Azerbaijan)
IDPs: 8,400 (conflict with Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh,
majority have returned home since 1994 ceasefire) (2006)
Trafficking in persons:
current situation: Armenia is a major source and, to a lesser
extent, a transit and destination country for women and girls
trafficked for sexual exploitation largely to the UAE and Turkey;
traffickers, many of them women, route victims directly into Dubai
or through Moscow; profits derived from the trafficking of Armenian
victims reportedly increased dramatically from 2005
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List - Armenia has failed to show evidence
of increasing efforts, particularly in the areas of enforcement,
trafficking-related corruption, and victim protection; the
government increased implementation of its anti-trafficking law, but
failed to impose significant penalties for convicted traffickers and
failed to vigorously investigate and prosecute ongoing and
widespread allegations of public officials' complicity in
trafficking; victim protection efforts remain in early, formative
stages and a lack of sensitivity for victims remains a problem,
particularly in the judiciary
Illicit drugs:
illicit cultivation of small amount of cannabis for domestic
consumption; minor transit point for illicit drugs - mostly opium
and hashish - moving from Southwest Asia to Russia and to a lesser
extent the rest of Europe
This page was last updated on 8 February, 2007
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@Aruba
Introduction Aruba
Background:
Discovered and claimed for Spain in 1499, Aruba was acquired by the
Dutch in 1636. The island's economy has been domi
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