G/TIP: UAE RESEARCH CENTER SEEKS TO HOST UN TIP

UNCLAS ABU DHABI 003125 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR G/TIP, INL, DRL, NEA/RA, AND NEA/ARP E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PHUM KCRM ELAB UN AE SUBJECT: G/TIP: UAE RESEARCH CENTER SEEKS TO HOST UN TIP CONFERENCE Sensitive but unclassified. Please protect accordingly. ¶1. (SBU) In a July 19 conversation with EmbOffs, Director General of the Emirates Center for Strategic Studies and Research (ECSSR) Dr. Jamal Al-Suwaidi expressed frustration with the UN for not taking a greater interest in his offer to host a global conference on Trafficking in Persons in Abu Dhabi. Stating that the UN in New York had referred him to Geneva for coordination, Al-Suwaidi said he had yet to find someone who would engage in serious discussion of the conference. He said the UN appeared interested in having the UAE host such an event "sometime in the spring of 2007," but apparently did not want UAE input on the substance of the meeting and was very vague about potential dates. They want the UAE to "host and shut up," he complained. ¶2. (SBU) Al-Suwaidi shared a copy of a letter to UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, dated May 7, 2006, from Abu SIPDIS Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan (also Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces and founder of ECSSR). The letter notes that "the trafficking of human beings has become one of the fastest growing social pandemics throughout the world in recent years." It calls for a "concerted effort on a global scale" to deal with this "scourge" and offers Abu Dhabi as a venue for an "international conference on the topic of human trafficking." The letter posits one goal of the conference as the adoption of a formal declaration -- a draft copy of which Al-Suwaidi also shared with EmbOffs. ¶3. (SBU) The declaration, according to Al-Suwaidi, might be more far-reaching than many delegations were comfortable with. He nonetheless argued that a strong commitment to counter trafficking should be the starting point for discussion at such a conference. Al-Suwaidi requested EmbOffs' assistance in bringing this offer to the attention of the USG. Post will fax copies of the declaration and letter to NEA/ARP. ¶4. (SBU) Comment: ECSSR is a well-established and well-funded research center with close ties to the Abu Dhabi Crown Prince. It conducts research and seminars on a variety of topics, often associated with energy or regional security but also ranging to other fields. ECSSR certainly has the capacity to host the proposed event. ECSSR and the Crown Prince's desire to host a trafficking in persons conference suggests UAE seriousness about addressing trafficking issues. In 2005, the UAE was placed on G/TIP's Tier 3, largely due to significant numbers of foreign children trafficked to serve as camel jockeys in the UAE. The UAE only addressed this issue in a serious way as a result of public stigma and USG pressure. To now take on a human trafficking conference indicates an intention to remain engaged in TIP problems. ¶5. (SBU) Comment continued: Further demonstrating its engagement, the UAEG sent a delegation to Vienna in June 2006 to participate in a UN Office on Drugs and Crime experts group that drafted model human trafficking legislation. The UAE is now in the process of preparing its own TIP law. Post deems it wise to encourage greater focus on this issue in a country and region known as a transit point and destination for migrant workers and travelers of all sorts. End comment. QUINN