“All victims of human trafficking in Mongolia are cheated by the information of the intermediary when they first become a victim of this crime,” said Ganbayasgakh.

The Gender Equity Center is the first to do comprehensive research on the issue of Mongolian victims of human trafficking abroad over the last two years. The center included local research as well as conducting studies and taking interviews from victims in China and Macao.

“Most of the victims of human trafficking had no information about what sexual exploitation is and no information about human trafficking abroad. Also, victims had not studied about the receiving country of human trafficking and they didn’t know how they can contact the Mongolian council and where the Mongolian embassies are located in those countries,” said Ganbayasgakh.

State inspectors who participated said students’ overwhelming desires to go abroad and leave Mongolia only added to the problem of trafficking.  

“We took a study from senior pupils of a secondary school asking, ‘Would you go abroad under a person’s information or announcement by media about helping to enter a job with a high salary?’ Unfortunately, 75 percent of them said they would directly go,” said Captain V. Otgonbayar, Senior Inspector of the State Investigation Office.

Contrasting incorrect media reports that only males run human trafficking operations, research showed that women were more involved in the selling process then men, seminar organizers said.  

“The intermediaries of human trafficking in Mongolia are women 20-45 years old. They use the very detailed swindling way to bring the girls abroad and in the some case the parents believe them to be intermediaries,” said Ganbayasgakh.

However the problems reach far deeper into society and law enforcement officials said the laws are far from effective.

“The law of criminal code in Mongolia is not strong enough for prosecuting human trafficking intermediaries. The Supreme Court and Human Rights and Development NGOs reached an agreement to make some amendments to the criminal code and the Supreme Court should have made the explanation for this law, yesterday,” said D. Amarjargal, an officer of the Human Rights and Development Center.  

Captain Otgonbayar also said that enforcement officials as well as judicial sector officers had a general lack of knowledge on trafficking which made it hard for legal matters to be investigated.

Seminar participants also interviewed some victims of prostitution as part of the seminar.  

“I’ve been working for this sauna for two years and I’m selling myself voluntarily here. My work is very beneficial for me and for the director of this sauna. Every person pays MNT 8000 for sauna and body massage. If customer wants additional service from us we gave them what they want, of course it is sex,” a woman said, speaking on the condition of anonymity.

“I take half of the income from the person whom I gave additional services and I don’t take salary from my boss,” she added.

However Captain Otgonbayar explained the laws on prostitution as well as citing that some women they find say they are voluntarily partaking in these illegal activities.  

“Mongolia prohibits any organization from selling a person’s body for sexual activity. But most Saunas are carrying out sexual services in secret. Most of the massagers of the sauna are the girls who are permitting to sell their body,” he said.

“It is a difficult issue for police because the process of a closed justice environment is heavy in Mongolia,” pointed out the police representatives.

The young woman said her work was only temporary until she finished her scholarly studies.