2005 MOZAMBIQUE ANTI-TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS (TIP)

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 MAPUTO 000305

SIPDIS
STATE FOR G/TIP, G, INL, DRL, PRM, IWI, AF/S, AF/RSA
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KCRM PHUM KWMN ELAB SMIG ASEC PREF MZ KFLD
SUBJECT: 2005 MOZAMBIQUE ANTI-TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS (TIP)

REPORT
REF: 04 STATE 273089


1. Mozambique is a source country for women and girls
trafficked for the purpose of sexual exploitation. South
Africa is the principal receiving country for trafficked
Mozambicans. The International Organization for Migration
(IOM) estimates that 1,000 Mozambican women are trafficked
every year. IOM based its estimate of trafficked women on
field research carried out in Mozambique and South Africa
during 2003; post considers this information to be generally
reliable. The GRM has not conducted any surveys to measure
the extent of trafficking. Trafficked women are recruited,
generally from the Maputo area, with promises of lucrative
jobs in South Africa; evidence suggests that recruiters are
usually known to the victim on some level. Victims are then
sold to brothels, or as concubines to mine workers, generally
in the Johannesburg area and sometimes in the Durban area.
Trafficking of young women from the Nampula area to South
Africa has also been reported. Traffickers are principally
Mozambican or South African citizens, but involvement of
Russian, Chinese, and Nigerian syndicates has also been
reported. Prostitution is not illegal in Mozambique, nor are
the activities of pimps or brothels -- a situation that makes
it difficult to raise the public profile of trafficking for
purposes of sexual exploitation. Post is not aware of any
reports that men or boys are trafficked for the purpose of
sexual exploitation.


2. The Government of Mozambique does not fully comply with
the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;
however, it has expressed willingness to do so. Incoming
President Armando Guebuza has specifically mentioned the
problem of trafficking in women and children several times in
his public discourse, and high-ranking officials in key
government ministries remain interested in further addressing
the issue. Despite public interest, Mozambique has made
limited progress on trafficking issues in the past year due
to lack of resources and training. No traffickers have been
arrested or formally investigated in the past year. Border
controls remain highly inadequate, and many policemen and
border control agents are suspected to accept regular bribes
from both traffickers and smugglers of persons. Neither the
criminal investigative police in the Ministry of Interior nor
the anti-corruption units of the Attorney General's office
have received meaningful training on trafficking. The
government participates in public education campaigns
targeted to potential victims of trafficking, but these
efforts are limited in scope. The government should address
all of these issues in the near future, and also should
strengthen and clarify laws in order to expressly prohibit
trafficking of women and children.

Prevention
--------------

3. The GRM acknowledges that trafficking in persons is a
problem, and has established an anti-trafficking inter-agency
working group, comprised principally of the Ministries of
Interior, Women and Social Action, Justice, and Health. The
government has not organized any anti-trafficking public
education campaigns on trafficking prevention, due to lack of
resources. The Ministry of Interior the Ministry of Women
and Social Action, have, however, participated actively in
NGO- and international organization-run education campaigns
for women in vulnerable communities; these activities address
trafficking specifically as part of the training program.
The government has taken other steps in the past year to help
women in potentially vulnerable circumstances, such as
approval of a new Family Law, signed in September 2004, which
strengthens and clarifies the rights of women vis-a-vis their
husbands or common law partners. The government also
provides support to women in economically vulnerable
situations through micro-finance initiatives and women's
literacy programs, each of which received increased
government funding in 2004.


4. While Mozambique has made strides in fulfilling its
commitment to women's rights and economic progress, its
capacity to adequately patrol its lengthy borders and
coastline remains woefully inadequate, and irregularities
among border control agents are common. According to
government records, trafficking is rarely if ever reported to
police or border authorities. In 2004, the Ministry of
Interior's Department for Women and Children established a
new database to track a variety of crimes against women and
children -- a groundbreaking step in Mozambique. Significant
numbers of crimes were registered in several categories --
including 53 kidnappings of children and 453 "disappeared"
children in 2004 -- but no official cases of trafficking were
reported.


5. The Mozambican government has taken strides to address its
weak border control and knowledge of trafficking by upgrading
its links with its neighbors, and with international
organizations. In 2004, the Department of Migration signed
an agreement with its counterpart in South Africa to share
information and facilities; information on trafficking in
persons was specified within the agreement. Also, in January
2005 the government formally approved the IOM's application
to re-establish an office in Mozambique this year. In recent
years, the IOM has been the leading organization in the
investigation of trafficking patterns in Mozambique, but has
had to operate out of its Pretoria office. Despite these
steps forward, the Mozambican government does not yet have
any national plan of action to address prevention of
trafficking in persons, nor does it have a person designated
specifically to develop anti-trafficking programs.

Investigation and Prosecution
--------------

6. Mozambican law does not specifically prohibit trafficking
in persons. In theory, traffickers could be prosecuted using
laws on sexual assault, rape, abduction, and child abuse, but
no such cases have been brought. Mozambique has no
experience with extradition of traffickers apprehended in
South Africa. There is no evidence that high-ranking
government officials are involved with trafficking in any
way. The likelihood of bribe taking by border control
officials, combined with the Department of Interior's lack of
statistics on trafficking, suggests that trafficking is
tolerated at lower levels of government. The criminal
investigative police and the anti-corruption unit of the
Attorney General's office have very limited knowledge of
trafficking in persons, and the police are not undertaking
any investigations into trafficking at this time. Government
priorities have been largely conditioned by public opinion
and the media -- while local media reports on trafficking in
persons have been nearly non-existent, media reports of organ
theft were frequent in 2004. In response, the government
launched an investigation into organ crimes in the Nampula
area in March 2004. In June 2004, the GRM cleared two
foreign citizens who had been detained on organ theft-related
charges in late 2003. No arrests have been made and the
investigation into the issue is ongoing. The government has
also increased its efforts to investigate and prosecute
smuggling in persons, making several arrests of South Asian
migrants in late 2004, both at the land borders and at major
airports. The government made tangible progress in
addressing smuggling of persons in 2004.


7. In December 2002, the government ratified the Protocol to
Prevent, Suppress, and Punish Trafficking in Persons.
Mozambique previously ratified ILO Convention 182,
Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labor. (Editor's Note 05/08/25 -- In fact, this Convention was ratified in June 2003.? End Note.) It has also
ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the
Rights of the Child on the Sale of Children and the
Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination
Against Women. On forced labor, Mozambique has ratified ILO
Convention 105 but has not ratified Convention 29 (Editor's note 05/08/25 -- In fact Mozambique ratifed both 182 and 29 in 2003.? End Note).

Protection
--------------

8. The government is making an attempt to provide basic
protection for victims of trafficking, but suffers from
limited resources. The Ministry of Women and Social Action
has provided six major hospitals with counselors to help
women and children who are victims of violence. These
counselors have received basic training in trafficking and
reintegration; counselors in the Maputo Central Hospital
report that they have used their training to help trafficking
victims in the past year. Also, in 2004 the Ministry of
Interior has established (but lightly funded) women's
shelters at police stations in Maputo and Beira. It has also
provided training in women's and children's protection --
including training in trafficking in persons -- to police
officers serving in Maputo, Beira, and Nampula. The
government does not provide financial support to foreign or
domestic NGOs for services to victims. The rights of victims
are broadly respected; victims are not detained, jailed, or
fined. By law, the government is authorized to provide
short-term assistance to victims of trafficking, but it
reports that few if any women have registered with the police
as victims. The government does not provide long-term
financial assistance, shelter, or employment skills training.
There is no evidence that the government encourages victims
to assist in the investigation and prosecution of trafficking.


9. Embassy contact point on TIP is James Potts,
Political-Economic Officer. Tel: 258-1-492-797, Fax:
258-1-490-448, Mobile 258-82-305-899. Principal FSO drafter
spent 25 hours researching and drafting this cable, FSNs
spent 4 hours, and FSO editors/clearers spent 3 hours, for a
total of 32 hours.
LALIME