GOJ LAUNCHES TIP PUBLIC AWARENESS CAMPAIGN

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KINGSTON 002059

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: GOJ LAUNCHES TIP PUBLIC AWARENESS CAMPAIGN

REF: A. STATE 97853


B. KINGSTON 01904

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SUMMARY
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1. Summary: The GOJ on August 30 launched a yearlong public
awareness campaign to educate its citizens about the dangers
of trafficking in persons (TIP). In a move that appears to
indicate the GOJ's determination to make sustained efforts
against trafficking, the Cabinet Office organized a public
forum at Emancipation Park in Kingston with National Security
Minister Peter Phillips as the keynote speaker. With
Information Minister Burchell Whiteman, senior police
officers, and representatives of international organizations
and local NGOs in attendance, the tenor of the event was
positive and constructive, and seemed to demonstrate that the
GOJ has moved beyond its initial, defensive response to its
June 3 downgrade to Tier 3 status (Ref A). End Summary.


2. At a public forum organized by the Office of the Cabinet
and the National Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Task Force, the
GOJ on August 30 launched a one-year campaign to educate the
Jamaican public about the threat of trafficking in persons.
The event was attended by National Security Minister Peter
Phillips, Information Minister Burchell Whiteman, Assistant
Police Commissioner Charles Scarlette, and representatives of
the Bureau of Women's Affairs and the Child Development
Agency. Charge also delivered remarks at the event, as did
Nidia Casati, Chief of Mission, International Organization
for Migration.

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USG Calls for Greater Cooperation
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3. In remarks prepared for the event, Charge d'Affaires
stressed the importance of a sustained public awareness
campaign in Jamaica in order for citizens to be able to
identify and combat trafficking in their own communities. He
highlighted the USG's contribution to the issue in the form
of a USD 250,000 public education campaign administered by
USAID in 2004 and 2005. He also underlined the importance of
law enforcement action to convict traffickers, including
"swift and decisive action" against "unscrupulous airline
employees or nightclub owners, corrupt officials, or deviant
international tourists." He acknowledged existing USG-GOJ
efforts to combat drug and gun trafficking and money
laundering, and called for similar cooperation to stem human
trafficking.

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Phillips Promises GOJ Action
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4. In the keynote address, National Security Minister Peter
Phillips, whose ministry has assumed responsibility for
combating TIP, identified human trafficking as a problem
inherent to the increased flows of capital and people that
are a part of globalization. He told the audience that,
although there exists no comprehensive estimate of the extent
of the problem in the Caribbean, Jamaica has a responsibility
to fight the problem as a member of the international
community. Phillips further stressed that, given its history
with slavery, Jamaica should be at the forefront of the fight
against trafficking, a modern-day form of slavery.


5. Phillips, who was acting as Prime Minister while P.J.
Patterson was off the island, demonstrated a strong grasp of
the subject matter, drawing an important distinction between
cross-border and internal trafficking and labeling both as
serious problems in Jamaica. Citing a component of the
trafficking definition that is often overlooked in the local
context, he added that all children under 18 are trafficking
victims if they are engaged, even consensually, in commercial
sexual activity. Phillips said definitively that the GOJ
does not condone trafficking in persons, which he said
weakens the country's moral fiber and economic standing. He
concluded by saying that the GOJ was ready to play its part
in the fight against trafficking, and that it would begin to
take definitive measures to do so, including investigations
of establishments suspected of participating in trafficking
and related activities. Phillips also announced that, with
the support of a USD 150,000 grant from the Inter-American
Development Bank, the GOJ would undertake its own
comprehensive study of trafficking in Jamaica.


6. The GOJ spent approximately USD 15,000 on the event,
which was not well attended by the public due to poor
publicity and a thunderstorm that passed overhead about 30
minutes before the program began. However, a strong media
presence, including television, radio, and newspaper, ensured
broad exposure after the fact. The hosts made several
references to the fact that there would be more public
awareness events in the next 12 months.


7. Comment: Minister Phillips' remarks were notably
constructive and demonstrated a fairly thorough understanding
of trafficking, in contrast to obviously disingenuous remarks
he made in July (Ref B). Because Phillips was serving as
acting Prime Minister in P.J. Patterson's absence, and
because he launched his campaign for the People's National
Party presidency on August 21, his remarks may also have been
delivered in that light. However, the GOJ's sustained
response over the last three months to Department's Tier 3
Action Plan seem to indicate that the public forum, and
Phillips' comments, are more than just window-dressing. We
will continue to monitor and report on the extent of GOJ
follow-through after the Presidential Determination on Tier 3
countries is made in September. End Comment.
TIGHE