KUWAIT'S ANTI-TRAFFICKING PUBLIC AWARENESS ESF

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KUWAIT 000263

SIPDIS

FOR NEA/RA AND G/TIP

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM EAID ELAB KCRM KWMN SMIG ASEC KU
SUBJECT: KUWAIT'S ANTI-TRAFFICKING PUBLIC AWARENESS ESF
PROPOSAL

REF: 04 STATE 260881


1. Post requests ESF funding for an anti-trafficking in
persons campaign targeted primarily at East and South Asian
workers, the most vulnerable labor communities in Kuwait.
Project FALCON (Fostering Awareness about Labor CONditions)
would increase public awareness of trafficking in Kuwait, a
destination country; inform workers of their rights under
Kuwaiti labor law; and provide laborers with contact numbers
of resources should they fall victim to trafficking or abuse.
While the principal objective is prevention, the project also
includes a victim assistance component.


2. There is a justified need for an anti-trafficking campaign
in Kuwait. The Department classified Kuwait as a tier 2
country in the 2004 Trafficking in Persons report. From the
report: "Trafficking victims ... come to Kuwait as domestic
servants but are subsequently abused by their employers or
coerced into situations of debt bondage or involuntary
servitude." Victims suffer "involuntary sexual servitude,
coerced labor, verbal and physical abuse, and the withholding
of their passports or other required travel documents."
Project FALCON would provide one method to combat trafficking
and abuse in Kuwait.


3. Project FALCON would consist of two parts: wallet-sized
information cards and public service announcements in
newspapers. First, Post would produce laminated cards for
distribution to nationals of Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, the
Philippines, Sri Lanka and other origin countries upon
arrival at Kuwait International Airport. In addition, cards
would be available at health clinics in Kuwait that perform
the required physical for labor permit renewal. The cards,
printed in the predominant language of each of the countries
listed, would highlight protections afforded to all workers
under Kuwaiti labor law. The reverse side would include
pertinent information targeted at domestic workers such as
contact numbers for their embassies, local police and Kuwaiti
government ministries. The plan calls for the production of
900,000 cards, which would be distributed until depletion of
the stock, estimated to last for one year. The second
component would entail publishing the same information in
advertisement form in two local newspapers. An
Arabic-language paper would carry announcements in Arabic and
Urdu on a rotating basis while an English-language daily
would have them in English, Bengali, Hindi, and Tagalog. The
announcements would appear once-a-week in each newspaper for
a six-month period.


4. Post would administer card distribution in conjunction
with the Kuwaiti Ministries of Interior and Social Affairs
and Labor via the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The ministries
would work with the airport authorities to distribute the
cards to anyone entering Kuwait on an employment visa. Post
would directly oversee the placement of the public service
announcements in newspapers. In both cases, Post would act as
a silent partner with the appropriate government or
non-governmental entity to ensure the public face of Project
FALCON remain Kuwaiti.


5. Project evaluation would consist of contacting the
embassies of origin countries in Kuwait to monitor any
increase in labor inquiries or reports of trafficking or
abuse. Post will attempt to monitor the same with Kuwaiti
ministries and police. Post will review progress after one
month of project implementation and every three months
thereafter. Since statistics from Kuwaiti ministries or
origin country embassies may not be accurate or shared with
Post, it may not be possible to measure project performance
precisely although Post anticipates an initial uptick in
reports of trafficking and abuse as the working population
becomes more informed. Embassy contact, poloff Richard
Michaels, will follow up with these organizations.


6. The estimated cost for Project FALCON is $99,000. The
production of 900,000 cards in various languages will total
approximately $16,250 including translation fees. The
newspaper announcements will cost around $82,750: $40,250 for
one advertisement in an Arabic-language newspaper for 26
weeks and another $42,500 for the same ad placement in an
English-language daily. There are no other proposed funding
donors aside from the ESF. While the host government would
not provide monetary resources for the project, they would
provide logistical support including manpower for the
distribution of cards.

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LEBARON