Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
05KINGSTON1531
2005-06-17 18:58:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Kingston
Cable title:  

OFFICE OF PRIME MINISTER DRIVING JAMAICA'S

Tags:  KCRM KWMN OPRC PHUM PREL SMIG JM TIP 
pdf how-to read a cable
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KINGSTON 001531 

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

DEPARTMENT FOR WHA/CAR (BENT) AND WHA/PPC (PUCCETTI)
DEPARTMENT FOR G/TIP (OWEN) AND (ETERNO)
SOUTHCOM FOR POLAD AND J7

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KCRM KWMN OPRC PHUM PREL SMIG JM TIP
SUBJECT: OFFICE OF PRIME MINISTER DRIVING JAMAICA'S
ANTI-TIP EFFORTS

REF: A. STATE 097853


B. KINGSTON 001444

C. COWGER/BENT EMAIL 6/15/05

-------
Summary
-------

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KINGSTON 001531

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

DEPARTMENT FOR WHA/CAR (BENT) AND WHA/PPC (PUCCETTI)
DEPARTMENT FOR G/TIP (OWEN) AND (ETERNO)
SOUTHCOM FOR POLAD AND J7

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KCRM KWMN OPRC PHUM PREL SMIG JM TIP
SUBJECT: OFFICE OF PRIME MINISTER DRIVING JAMAICA'S
ANTI-TIP EFFORTS

REF: A. STATE 097853


B. KINGSTON 001444

C. COWGER/BENT EMAIL 6/15/05

--------------
Summary
--------------


1. (U) Since the June 3 release of the 2005 Trafficking in
Persons (TIP) Report (Ref A),the GOJ has not engaged Post on
the issue, nor has there been any official reaction to the
Tier 3 Action Plan delivered to the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs and Foreign Trade (MFAFT) on June 2. However,
following a week of sensational media coverage (Ref B) that
reported (feigned) surprise and disbelief on the part of many
GOJ officials, there are early signs that trafficking has
been made a priority and that steps are being taken locally
to combat TIP. End Summary.

--------------
New GOJ TIP Coordinator
--------------


2. (SBU) During a previously scheduled meeting at the
Ministry of National Security (MNS) on June 14, Poloff
encountered Karl Hamilton of the Security, Intelligence, and
Operations Division. Hamilton was named in an April 14, 2005
letter from the GOJ as "the focal point for issues relating
to TIP," but was subsequently out of the office for one month
preceding the June 3 publication of the 2005 TIP Report.
Hamilton reported that, due to the timing of his recent
vacation, his supervisor, Woodrow Smith, has taken over the
lead role on TIP within MNS. Hamilton further stated, "We do
see a problem. The report is good," adding that TIP in
Jamaica has not been addressed to date because the Jamaica
Constabulary Force (JCF) lacks resources and does not
understand the issue. He noted that TIP is currently a hot
topic for the GOJ and that an "internal committee" is working
on it. Poloff responded that Post looks forward to working
with the GOJ on this issue.

--------------
Prime Minister's Office Leading the Way
--------------


3. (SBU) In a follow-up telephone conversation with Poloff on
June 15, Hamilton elaborated that, despite Smith's role in
the process, it is the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) and

the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade (MFAFT)
that are currently leading the GOJ's efforts on TIP. He
explained that, thanks to the 2005 TIP Report, the GOJ has
realized the broad scope and serious implications of human
trafficking in Jamaica, and has escalated the issue
internally. Poloff again expressed Post's willingness to
work together with the GOJ on TIP, urging immediate action in
consideration of the August 1 deadline and the July 13-16
visit by Department TIP representatives. Poloff pointed out
that the GOJ has not communicated with Post on TIP since the
release of the Report almost two weeks ago, and that it is
important for Post to be kept apprised of GOJ anti-TIP
efforts in order to report progress to Washington. Hamilton
said that OPM and MFAFT were driving the issue, and that they
would contact Post. He added that "most of the Jamaican
public seems to be on your side," based on recent media
coverage of the issue.

--------------
Positive Developments for Local Children
--------------


4. (U) Extensive media coverage of the TIP Report, and the
reporting of several TIP-related issues in major news outlets
in recent weeks appear to indicate that the GOJ is responding
seriously to the issue (Ref B). On June 2, the "Jamaica
Observer" daily newspaper included an article by the GOJ-run
Jamaica Information Service titled "Report child abuse or
face prosecution." In some cases, media exposure of the
issue may be pressuring the GOJ to take action. On June 16,
"The Gleaner" daily newspaper reported that one of four
caregivers accused of sexually abusing children in a
state-run children's home was charged in court, more than two
years after the police reported their findings in the case to
the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP). While neither
case qualifies as trafficking in persons, both represent
heightened government interest in protecting the rights of
children.

--------------
Kingston Mayor Plans Massage Parlor Raids
--------------

5. (U) The Gleaner also reported on June 16 that the Kingston
and St. Andrew Corporation (KSAC) intended to shut down "more
than 200 illegal massage parlors" across the capital, in
cooperation with the Public Health Department and the JCF.
The three agencies plan to meet the week of June 20 to plan
the operation against the unlicensed businesses, which Mayor
of Kingston Desmond McKenzie implied also operate as
brothels. McKenzie publicly credited the 2005 TIP Report
with "focusing attention on an issue that the KSAC has been
grappling with for over two years." Winston Bowen, Director
of Programs at the Child Development Agency, commented to
Poloff that his agency is prepared to assist in the action to
ensure that any underage workers discovered in the raids are
adequately protected.

--------------
GOJ Embracing NGOs and IOs on TIP?
--------------


6. (U) On June 13, Poloff learned from Betty-Ann Blaine,
Director of People's Action for Community Transformation
(PACT),a local NGO funded by USAID, that Jamaican
immigration officers had on that day participated in a
training session on trafficking issues at the request of the
Immigration Department. Similarly, on June 15, Bertrand
Bainvel, UNICEF Representative, explained to Poloff that his
organization is working with the GOJ to train service
providers on the contents of the Child Care and Protection
Act.

--------------
Post Forms TIP Working Group
--------------


7. In order to coordinate Post's efforts to address TIP in
Jamaica, an internal Working Group has been formed that
includes representatives from USAID, Pol/Econ, Public
Affairs, Narcotics Affairs, and the Military Liaison Office,
whose programs could be seriously affected by Tier 3
sanctions. The working group is mapping out a strategy for
collaborating with the GOJ to achieve goals suggested in the
Tier 3 Action Plan, and will seek to integrate anti-TIP
activities into the planning of all relevant USG agencies at
Post. The Working Group will also brief, at their request,
local representatives of international financial institutions
whose programs may be subject to sanctions.

--------------
Comment
--------------


8. (SBU) Post is concerned at the lack of communication from
the GOJ in the two weeks since the release of the TIP Report
and delivery to MFAFT of the Tier 3 Action Plan. This may in
some measure by attributable to a determination by some of
our GOJ interlocutors not to be seen as "answering to
instructions from Washington." With the clock running, we
are left to inform ourselves largely through media reports,
and have little idea at this point of the GOJ's specific
plans to avoid Tier 3 sanctions. However, media reports are
encouraging, and Post is cautiously optimistic that the GOJ
is preparing to take meaningful law enforcement action to
combat TIP by raiding massage parlors. It is clear that, as
Kingston Mayor McKenzie said to the press, the TIP Report has
"jerked this country" at the highest levels, including the
Prime Minister's office, which is very likely the invisible
hand behind many of the recent positive developments about
which we have been reading. End Comment.
TIGHE