Kazakh President Nazarbaev has signed a bill strengthening articles in the Criminal Code relating to trafficking in human beings, deputy head of the presidential administration Igor Rogov told Interfax Kazakhstan. The official said the problem has become acute in Kazakhstan because the country\'s citizens often fall into the hands of traffickers when they go abroad in search of work, and that Kazakhstan itself is a transit country for trafficked persons. Several articles of the Criminal Code are applicable to trafficking cases: Article 125 covers abduction, Article 126 deals with unlawful deprivation of freedom, Article 128 prohibits recruiting people for exploitative purposes, Article 133 prohibits trafficking in minors, and luring persons into prostitution and maintaining brothels are covered by articles 270 and 271, respectively. The purpose of the new legislation is to change or add wording to specify that the articles apply to trafficking for purposes of sexual exploitation, and to increase the sentences specified for these crimes. Kazakhstan has been criticized by a number of international human rights organizations for failing to adequately criminalize human trafficking. A special working group is being set up within the government\'s Crime Commission to draft proposals on fighting human trafficking. (Interfax-Kazakhstan)