CHILD CAMEL JOCKEY DEATH UNCOVERS MORE CHALLENGES

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ABU DHABI 003742



SIPDIS



STATE FOR G/TIP, INL, DRL, NEA/RA, AND NEA/ARP



E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/19/14

TAGS: PHUM, PREL, TC, PK

SUBJECT: CHILD CAMEL JOCKEY DEATH UNCOVERS MORE CHALLENGES





Classified by Richard A. Albright, Charge d'Affaires, a.i.

reasons 1.5 (b) and (d).



1. (U) SUMMARY: The death of an underage camel jockey

trafficked to the UAE from Pakistan has highlighted the fact

that trafficking problems remain in the UAE. Despite

regulations passed to prohibit the use of foreign children as

camel jockeys, there are a number of factors that hamper

implementation of the prohibition. These range from spotty

implementation in the UAE to trafficking networks in source

countries. In an unusual disclosure, the Pakistani Embassy

has told us that powerful interests in Pakistan have had a

significant influence in furthering the practice of

exploiting and trafficking of their native children here in

the UAE. END SUMMARY



TRAGIC DEATH OF YOUNG BOY

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2. (U) In an October 8 story in the "Pakistan Tribune"

newspaper, human rights organization Ansar Burney Welfare

Trust International (ABWTI) announced that the body of a

five-year-old Pakistani boy who was killed from injuries

sustained while working as a camel jockey would be returned

to Pakistan on October 15. The child, Mohammed Kaleem,

fell off a camel during training in Al Ain on September 15.

The camel trampled him, causing serious head and body

injuries that caused a coma and ultimately his death on

September 28.



3. (SBU) Poloff's contact at the Ministry of Interior would

not comment on specifics of the case, but he emphasized that

this particular case was a "wake-up call" and had motivated

the UAEG to conduct a full investigation on all aspects of

the case. The MOI islooking for a "sustainable solution to

this problem", and is researching alternatives to using

children as camel jockeys, based on models used in Australia

and the United States.



4. (C) Poloff met with Pakistan Embassy Consular Officer

Imran Haider (PLEASE PROTECT) on October 13 to verify the

details of the report and received a substantive assessment

of Pakistan Embassy view and their perspective on the road

ahead to combat this trafficking-in-persons issue. Haider

has been working on the camel jockey issue for the last

three years. He claimed that his work has been responsible

for the safe return of 158 underage child camel jockeys to

date, and that he is in the process of returning 86 more.

When asked by Poloff if his embassy was satisfied with UAEG

cooperation on this issue, he said that the UAEG was making

progress, although it still had a long way to go. He

recognized that while President Sheikh Zayed and other

leaders were firm in their desire to outlaw exploitation of

children in camel races, he realized that upholding the

laws and regulations was difficult. He stated further that

problems continue due to some shortfalls in his own

government's processes.



PROBLEMS IN PAKISTAN CONTRIBUTE TO TRAFFICKING CRISIS

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5. (C) Haider explained that while the official Pakistani

government stance is to enforce the law against the

exploitation of children, there are powerful interests in

his country that have significant influence and turn a

blind eye to the practice of exploiting and trafficking of

their native children. This makes for a complicated

political environment, he said. Pakistani immigration

officials receive bribes in exchange for issuing improper

travel and identification documents that allow children who

are accompanied by parents (or those posing as their

parents) to enter the UAE illegally.



6. (U) The desperate poverty in Pakistan is a fertile

environment for the violations of these laws, Haider added,

noting that many children are bought from their parents for

25,000 rupees (427USD),with the promise of being trained

to work in palaces. They are sold to the smugglers at a

very young age for 250,000 rupees (4,270USD) and brought to

the UAE. According to Haider, once a child is trained as a

camel jockey, he becomes priceless, since his work can earn

huge awards for camel owners who win races. However, these

children are often abused and underfed in order to keep

their weight down. While a jockey's age should not be less

than 15 years, per the September 2002 presidential decree

banning the use of foreign children as camel jockeys,

Haider stated that children as young as 2 years old are

brought into the country illegally.



7. (C) Haider believes that there are significant holes in

the Pakistani immigration process that contribute to the

problem of human trafficking. In a separate conversation on

October 16, Ambassador met with the Pakistani Ambassador and

confirmed this assessment. The Pakistani Ambassador stated he

had become aware of the issuance of false passports to

underage boys at the Pakistani consulate in Dubai. As a

result, Islamabad is sending an inspection team to the UAE to

investigate his Consulate General in Dubai, their immigration

procedures, and the possibility of corruption.



THE HEARTBREAKING TALE CONTINUES

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8. (U) When asked why it took so long to get the boy's

body back to Pakistan, Haider told Poloff that he had been

quietly negotiating with the UAE government. He stated

that he could not take the body back until the owner of the

camel stable released custody of the deceased boy's

brother, also a fully trained camel jockey. After much

resistance, the stable owner acquiesced. This case had very

high visibility in the Pakistani media. Haider then

brought in the brother to introduce to Poloff. The brother

looked to be a small, underfed 8 year old. His passport

stated he was 17 years old, confirming a forgery of his

birth date. The young boy was staying in the embassy while

waiting to return to Pakistan, destined for foster care.

He did not know who his real parents were.



ALBRIGHT