CAT/C/LVA/CO/6
petition the authorities for protection measures, including restraining orders and legal
separation;
(b)
Ensure that all victims of gender-based violence, including domestic
violence, have access to medical and legal services, including counselling, redress and
rehabilitation, and provide State-funded social rehabilitation services, shelters and
crisis centres;
(c)
Monitor the effectiveness of complaints mechanisms, including the tollfree helpline, operated by the Legal Aid Administration with the help of the “Skalbes”
association for victims of crime, including victims of violence and their families;
(d)
Provide mandatory training for police and other law enforcement
officials, prosecutors, judges and social and medical workers on how to identify and
effectively protect victims of gender-based violence and domestic violence; and
compile statistical data, disaggregated by gender, age and ethnicity of the victims and
their relationship to the perpetrator, on domestic, sexual and other forms of violence
against women, including marital rape, and on the number of complaints,
investigations, prosecutions and convictions of perpetrators and sentences handed
down.
Trafficking in human beings
28.
While noting that articles 1541 and 1651 of the Criminal Law provide for criminal
liability for trafficking in human beings, the Committee is concerned that the State party
remains the country of origin of victims of trafficking, for sexual and labour exploitation
(arts. 2, 12, 13, 14 and 16).
29.
The State party should:
(a) Vigorously implement the relevant international and domestic legislation,
allocate sufficient funds to combat trafficking and conduct national prevention and
awareness-raising campaigns about the criminal nature of such acts;
(b)
Take effective measures to prevent and eradicate human trafficking,
including by providing specialized statutory training to public officials, such as law
enforcement officers and other first respondents, on identifying victims and on
investigating, prosecuting and sanctioning perpetrators;
(c)
Ensure the effective implementation of the guidelines for the prevention
of trafficking in human beings for 2014–2020; increase the protection of and provide
effective redress to victims of trafficking, including legal, medical and psychological
aid and rehabilitation, as well as adequate shelters and assistance in reporting
incidents of trafficking to the police;
(d)
Promptly, effectively and impartially investigate the crime of trafficking
in persons and related practices; prosecute and punish perpetrators in accordance
with the gravity of the crime; and provide the Committee with comprehensive and
disaggregated data on the number of investigations, prosecutions and sentences
handed down to perpetrators of such trafficking, and in particular the specific
sentences handed down during the period under review to perpetrators under articles
1541 and 1651 of the Criminal Law.
Situation of asylum seekers and non-citizens
30.
While noting the adoption in 2015 of the new Asylum Law, the Committee is
concerned that asylum seekers continue to be detained, that they may not have access to
information about the asylum procedure and that they do not enjoy adequate procedural
safeguards, in particular at border crossings. It is also concerned about the absence of free
legal aid to enable asylum seekers to appeal refusal of entry or refusal of registration as an
asylum seeker, an appeal that must be lodged within 48 hours. In addition, the Committee is
concerned that children born to non-citizen parents are not automatically granted Latvian
citizenship (arts. 2, 3, 11 and 16).
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