ANTI-TRAFFICKING FOR DOMINICANS BY U.S. DOJ, FEB.

UNCLAS SANTO DOMINGO 001486

SIPDIS

STATE FOR WHA/CAR (MCISAAC),WHA/PPC (PUCCETTI),G/TIP
(OWEN); JUSTICE FOR OPDAT (LIPMAN)

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PHUM KCRM SMIG DR
SUBJECT: ANTI-TRAFFICKING FOR DOMINICANS BY U.S. DOJ, FEB.
22-24



1. SUMMARY: On February 22-24, the Department of Justice
Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development Assistance
Training conducted an anti-trafficking workshop to assist
Dominicans in creating an operations manual for enforcement
of laws against trafficking in persons (TIP). The
participants represented government agencies, two local NGOs,
and the International Organization for Migration. The
training emphasized the need for the necessary tools and
resources to combat TIP, including effective, up-to-date
legislation and vigorous, motivated law enforcement
officials. Participants planned to form a working group to
draft the operations manual using notes from the workshop and
to look for ways to improve communication and share
information among the agencies with TIP-related
responsibilities. END SUMMARY.


2. The Department of Justice Office of Overseas
Prosecutorial Development Assistance Training (DOJ/OPDAT)
conducted a workshop on operations to counter trafficking in
persons (TIP) for representatives of Dominican law
enforcement agencies February 22-24. The workshop was
designed to guide the Dominicans in drafting an operations
manual for combating TIP. It attracted working-level
participants from the Attorney General,s Office, National
Police, Foreign Ministry, Naval Intelligence, and Migration
Directorate. Also participating were local NGOs "Center for
Integral Orientation and Investigation" (COIN) and
"Foundation for Institution-Building and Justice" (FINJUS),
as well as the International Organization for Migration.
Robert Lipman of DOJ/OPDAT led. He and prosecutor Maria
Aponte, FBI Special Agent Raul Bujanda, and FBI Victim
Witness Specialist Roberta Lujan led a series of panels,
brainstorming sessions, and discussions addressing specific
steps to combat TIP. Participants shared their experience in
TIP cases, identified challenges in law enforcement, and
discussed ways to improve inter-agency cooperation on TIP
cases.


3. Lipman and the trainers focused the participants,
attention on investigative approaches that law enforcement
can implement immediately, using existing personnel and the
modern and comprehensive 2003 Dominican anti-TIP legislation,
as well as other, more creative methods. Proposed strategies
for detection included obtaining copies of visa applications
from foreign consulates in the Dominican Republic and
developing a list of TIP-related questions for use by airport
officials. An investigative pilot project was proposed, which
included immediately shutting down a handful of brothels
known to be operating, by identifying probable violations of
the labor and tax codes as well as violations of the anti-TIP
law. The Dominicans planned to form a law enforcement
working group to consider these steps and to combine their
notes from the workshop into a manual for handling TIP cases,
based on a structure provided by the DOJ/OPDAT team.

Comment


4. The DOJ/OPDAT workshop focused Dominican partipants on
practical measures that can be implemented quickly. OPDAT
trainers were highly effective. Participants exhibited a
strong desire to implement the lessons learned during the
conference and to collaborate with one another. The proposed
operations manual could help the Dominicans take a more
consistent, cooperative approach to TIP cases.
HERTELL