NEPAL: FY2003 ANTI-TRAFFICKING PROJECT PROPOSALS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 06 KATHMANDU 000026 SIPDIS STATE FOR G/TIP, SA, PRM AND INL LONDON FOR POL/REIDEL E.O 12958: N/A TAGS: KWMN KCRM PHUM PREL SMIG ELAB KPAO EAID NP SUBJECT: NEPAL: FY2003 ANTI-TRAFFICKING PROJECT PROPOSALS REF: A. STATE 241260 ¶B. STATE 170908 ¶1. Summary: Post's anti-trafficking-in-persons (TIP) project proposals for FY2003 provide for improved formal and non-formal educational opportunities for girls; a public awareness campaign targeting urban migrants, media outlets, transport providers and rehabilitation centers; and improvement in legal provisions and procedures related to trafficking. Funding required is estimated at 900,000 USD. End summary. ¶2. Following are Post's FY-2003 TIP Project Proposals: [Begin submission.] -------------- PROJECT 1: PREVENTION -------------- ¶A. Preventing Trafficking of Women and Girls Through Literacy ¶B. World Education, the Center for Population and Development Activities (CEDPA) and/or local NGOs ¶C. One Year (2003-2004) ¶D. Objectives The primary objective of the project is to assist in the prevention of trafficking in girls by addressing one of the problem's root causes: lack of education. Specific goals include: -- providing basic literacy skills to out-of-school and at- risk girls to expand opportunities for employment outside trafficking; -- raising individual and community awareness of girl trafficking, child labor and discriminatory practices that lead to exploitation; -- improving at-risk population's understanding of relevant laws and legal procedures; -- working with ongoing educational projects to provide vocational training for vulnerable girls. ¶E. Justification In Nepal, lack of education is a major factor contributing to the trafficking of women and girls. It is generally understood that girls, when grown, will marry and leave home, bringing little income back to the family; and that their major responsibilities will be in the area of housekeeping and child care, where the benefits of education are not recognized. Investment in female education is therefore often considered wasteful. However, INGO research has found that trafficked girls largely originate from illiterate households, particularly where there are illiterate mothers and sisters. The average female literacy rate outside Kathmandu is only 25 percent, compared to the male literacy rate of 50 percent, and in at least one district severely affected by trafficking, an NGO study discovered that the literacy rate for girls was only 6 percent. Limited opportunities for employment lead some girls and/or their families to view trafficking as a viable income-generating alternative, and limited education means that many girls and their parents are unaware of the possible dangers involved, including infection with HIV/AIDS. Promotion of female education as a tool for prevention of trafficking is predicated on the idea that formal education not only prepares girls for work and for life, but also improves their understanding and awareness of the world around them. The proposed program aims at increasing the literacy rate of out-of-school girls by enrolling them in non-formal education classes to provide basic reading and writing skills, as well as information on health and social issues. The program will also encourage families to enroll daughters in the formal educational system to enhance their opportunities in life. The proposed program expands on the Girls' Access to Education (GATE) program currently being administered by CEDPA and World Education. The program initially targeted 7,500 girls from seven districts, and first-year evaluations have demonstrated a significant increase in both literacy and awareness of trafficking. The positive impact of the GATE program merits extension to other trafficking-prone districts identified by the Ministry of Women, Children and Social Welfare. Under the auspices of this proposed project, existing GATE materials will be reviewed, and other appropriate subject matter, such as information about legal provisions applicable to trafficking, will be added to the curriculum. Vulnerable girls identified through this program will be provided with vocational training for employment opportunities. ¶F. Performance Measurements -- Increase in the number of adolescent girls achieving literacy; -- Graduation from the program of a significant number of girls, followed by a transition to formal schooling; -- Widespread and improved awareness of trafficking and the dangers involved; -- Exploration by girls of more and varied life options due to higher levels of education and vocational training received. ¶G. Budget Breakdown Post estimates the cost of this prevention project to be approximately 250,000 USD. -- Review of existing materials and development of new curricula: 10,000 USD -- Expansion of program in targeted areas: 240,000 USD ¶H. Host Government Contribution The Government of Nepal is currently working with the US Department of Labor (DOL) and the International Labor Organization (ILO) on a time-bound program to eliminate the worst forms of child labor by 2005. Improvement of the educational system and expansion of access to education are integral components of the project. The GON has also recently publicly reaffirmed its commitment to combating trafficking in women and children. Though significant host government resources are engaged in the fight against Nepal's Maoist insurgency, Post anticipates that the GON will support education and anti- trafficking initiatives to the fullest possible extent, and should be able to provide classrooms or other facilities for non-formal education classes. ¶I. Private donors will provide twenty-five percent matching funds. ¶J. Proposed Funding Mechanism: Post prefers that USAID or the US DOL directly administer funding for this project, working through grants to established international non- governmental organizations. -------------- PROJECT 2: PUBLIC AWARENESS -------------- ¶A. Focused Awareness-Raising Programs to Reduce Trafficking Incidents and Improve Reintegration Services ¶B. US and local NGOs ¶C. One Year (2003-2004) ¶D. Objectives -- Raise awareness regarding trafficking among a targeted audience including transport workers, recent migrants to urban areas and service providers at rehabilitation centers; -- Enable target audience to apply learned knowledge to reduce trafficking incidents; -- Enhance service-provider knowledge of successful approaches for rehabilitation/reintegration of rescued girls. ¶E. Justification The proposed project intends to raise awareness of the seriousness of trafficking in persons among several targeted groups, as well as to provide suggested methods for both combating the problem and assisting its victims. Focus groups and planned activities are as follows: -- Internally displaced urban migrants: The continued spread of Maoist violence has produced a vulnerable population of urban refugees seeking safety in Nepal's towns and cities. Forced recruitment by the Maoists, lack of employment opportunities and school closures have led thousands of rural Nepalis, especially children and young adults, to flee their homes for urban centers. To survive, some of the refugees take jobs at dance clubs, restaurants, garment factories or other industries that serve as recruitment centers for traffickers. Others, with little or no prior exposure to information about trafficking, are targeted by traffickers at overcrowded government schools. School-level awareness programs have previously proven successful in educating students about recruitment methods employed by traffickers and the dangers involved in trafficking. The proposed project will deliver appropriate awareness programs to displaced students and workers in selected industries, focusing on recent urban migrants. Restaurant and factory owners, as well as schoolteachers, will be encouraged to assist in the organization of orientation programs. -- Transport workers: Rickshaw pullers and the drivers of horse-carts, buses and taxis are often made unwitting accomplices in trafficking, by transporting vulnerable girls to the exit points along Nepal's border with India. Employees in the transportation sector, once educated about recently oriented to the problem, have lamented their former involvement in the trade and have encouraged further training for their colleagues to enable them to recognize potential victims and report them to the police. Training for rickshaw pullers and horse-cart drivers was specifically recommended, as they are the workers transporting girls along back roads and less-traveled routes, and not on the major highways where active surveillance groups or police posts routinely check for trafficking. The proposed project will provide basic orientation to approximately 1000 transport workers from 10 border districts. Existing Information Education Communication (IEC) materials will be used for the project. -- Media outlets: Media play a crucial role in bringing issues to the attention of policy makers and the general public, but ineffective reporting on trafficking has kept Nepal's major media outlets from becoming a strong tool in combating the problem. Media personnel lack both sufficient understanding of the issue and training in research and investigation. They often base their reports solely on police information, which may not fully reflect societal concerns or protect victims. The proposed program will develop and present workshops to train journalists in better reporting techniques and to help develop media messages to draw attention to the issue of trafficking. Media campaigns including billboards and newspaper ads have proven effective in drawing attention to other social issues such as HIV/AIDS, and similar programs are proposed for this project. Workshops will also emphasize the need for regular reporting of successful prosecution to help deter potential traffickers and to encourage victims to report the crime. -- Service providers (rehabilitation centers): Successful rehabilitation and reintegration of rescued and/or returning victims of trafficking has been difficult in Nepal for several reasons, including social and cultural reluctance to accept returnees. A growing unemployment problem has also made it difficult for operators of shelters and rehabilitation centers to assist returning victims in transitioning to a new life. However, some strategies, such as providing refuge in "second stage homes," have been successful in other countries and may offer a viable alternative in Nepal. The proposed project will introduce "best practices" to operators of shelters and rehabilitation centers, and assist with modification of programs to fit the needs of Nepal. ¶F. Performance Measurements -- Development of awareness campaign targeting urban migrants, and participation by industry leaders and schoolteachers; -- Completion of transport worker orientation, and increase in cases reported by them; -- Increased quality and quantity of articles on trafficking, including regular reporting on prosecution of traffickers; -- Adoption of "best practices" by shelters and rehabilitation centers, and improved rate of successful reintegration. ¶G. Budget Breakdown Post estimates the cost of this public awareness project to be approximately 400,000 USD. -- Awareness program targeting urban migrants: 100,000 USD -- Training for transportation workers: 125,000 USD -- Media workshops: 125,000 USD -- "Best practices" orientation for rehabilitation centers and shelters: 50,000 USD ¶H. Host Government Contribution As indicated in Project 1, significant host government resources are engaged in the fight against Nepal's Maoist insurgency. However, Post anticipates that the GON will be able to provide government facilities for workshops and trafficking programs, as well as offering a subsidized rate for awareness-raising efforts in government media outlets. ¶I. Private donors will provide twenty-five percent matching funds. ¶J. Proposed Funding Mechanism: Post prefers that USAID directly administer funding for this project. -------------- PROJECT 3: PROSECUTION -------------- ¶A. Fostering a Better Legal Environment for Prevention and Prosecution of Trafficking in Persons ¶B. UNICEF, USDOJ ¶C. Two Years (2003-2005) -- Year One: Develop training curriculum for police and district court prosecutors, focusing on appropriate treatment of victims. Offer guidance on how best to utilize current laws and procedures to protect victims and effectively prosecute trafficking cases. -- Year Two: Assist police and Office of the Attorney General in integrating new TIP training program into permanent curriculum. Provide technical assistance in developing new bilateral or multilateral agreements to prosecute trafficking cases, and in developing new legal procedures to better protect the rights of victims and witnesses. ¶D. Objectives The proposed project is intended to improve police and prosecutorial procedures for dealing with victims of trafficking in persons, and to provide technical assistance to the GON in the development of cooperative agreements for the prosecution of this transnational crime. Specific goals include: -- improving police procedures for dealing with victims of trafficking in persons; -- advising Nepali prosecutors and police on the best way to utilize available legal means to protect the privacy of victims and other individuals willing to testify in anti- trafficking cases; -- offering TIP-specific training to prosecutors at the district court level; -- illustrating the value of in camera interviews and other legal devices to protect victims' privacy, and encouraging Nepali courts to allow similar procedures; -- providing sample documents and technical expertise to GON negotiators, to assist with the formulation of bilateral or multilateral agreements on prosecution of traffickers. ¶E. Justification Despite GON commitment to fight trafficking in persons, successful termination of related legal cases has been hampered by weak international agreements, complicated regulations and ineffective prosecution. A special court dedicated to the prosecution of certain social crimes such as trafficking in persons has been abolished, and prosecutorial authority has reverted to the district courts, where government prosecutors often have no training in successful techniques for trying such cases. Local police cannot investigate complaints without permission from prosecutors, and the resultant delay gives criminals time to flee the jurisdiction or dispose of evidence. Women and children who have filed complaints have been "doubly victimized" when police and prosecutors have failed to protect their privacy or their rights. Victims' names and photographs are released by police and published in newspapers, with reports stating that they have been working as prostitutes and/or are HIV positive. Such victims face social and cultural discrimination, limited opportunities for employment and difficulties in reintegration to their village and families. Nepali law requires the accuser to appear in court and attest to a statement, but lacks protection for victims and other witnesses. As a result, many women and children are too frightened to file complaints or are threatened into changing their statements in court, compromising the prosecution of the case. The proposed project is intended better to equip district prosecutors for trying trafficking cases, and to train local police in sensitivity toward victims. Recognizing that even the most sympathetic authorities are constrained by a lack of legal protection for the victims and witnesses, the program will also seek to improve laws and procedures to protect victims' privacy and to maximize the utilization of currently available protections. The project will also address weaknesses in multilateral and bilateral agreements that allow neighboring countries to serve as havens for traffickers facing prosecution in Nepal. ¶F. Performance Measurements -- Development of a training curriculum for local police and completion of first-round training; -- Publication of police training materials to be used on a regular basis, and successful turnover of training program to GON instructors; -- Increase in number of trafficking complaints filed by victims; -- Increase in number of cases successfully prosecuted; -- Adoption of stronger legal protections for victims and witnesses in trafficking cases; -- Successful extradition and prosecution of traffickers from neighboring countries. ¶G. Budget Breakdown Post estimates the cost of this prosecution project to be approximately 250,000 USD. -- Development of training program for local police, and publication of training materials: 75,000 USD -- Expert guidance to prosecutors on utilization of current laws, to prosecute cases and protect victims: 75,000 USD -- Assistance with development of future witness protection provisions: 50,000 USD -- Assistance with formulation of stronger bilateral and multilateral agreements to allow for extradition and prosecution of traffickers: 50,000 USD ¶H. Host Government Contribution Post anticipates that the GON will be able to provide facilities for training local police and prosecutors, and will encourage participation and cooperation of senior level officials from the police and Attorney General's office in discussions on the maximization of current privacy protections and development of future provisions and agreements. ¶I. No private donor funds have been solicited at this time. ¶J. Proposed funding mechanism: Post would prefer to work directly with the USDOJ to provide expert guidance to prosecutors and GON negotiators, and with UNICEF and local NGOs for the development and delivery of police sensitivity training. [End submission.] ¶3. For all proposals, Embassy Kathmandu point of contact is Political/Economic Officer Sarah Welborne (Tel: 977-1-411- 179, ext 4572; E-mail: welbornese@state.gov.) MALINOWSKI