PROPOSAL FOR TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS INCLE PROJECT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 05 GEORGETOWN 000132

SIPDIS

WHA/PPC - MICHAEL PUCCETTI
G/TIP
JUSTICE FOR OPDAT (ROBERT LIPMAN)

SIPDIS

E.O. 12598: N/A
TAGS: PHUM SMIG SNAR KWMN KCRM KJUS GY
SUBJECT: PROPOSAL FOR TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS INCLE PROJECT

REF: 05 STATE 221183


1. Below is Embassy Georgetown's proposal for an FY 2006 INCLE
funded anti-trafficking in persons program to build the capacity
of the Guyanese criminal justice system:


A. Title: Technical Assistance Proposal to Increase the Capacity
of Guyana's Criminal Justice System to Combat
Trafficking in Persons by Advancing and Strengthening
Its Institutional Capacity to Investigate, Prosecute,
and Adjudicate Such Cases


B. Name of Recipient Organization/Government Agency:

U.S. Department of Justice
Office of Overseas Prosecutorial, Development,
Assistance and Training (OPDAT)

Attention:

Robert Lipman, Program Manager
Phone: (202) 514-0950
e-mail: Robert.Lipman@usdoj.gov

Beth Truebell:
Phone: 202-514-3253
e-mail: Beth.Truebell@usdoj.gov

This proposal was prepared in partnership with:

Edward P. Luchessi
Economic/Commercial Officer
U.S. Embassy
Georgetown, Guyana
Phone: 011-592-225-4900 ex. 220
e-mail: LuchessiEP@state.gov



C. Duration of the Project and whether project is new or
ongoing:

This is a new project with a proposed duration of two (2)
years.


D. Description:

The proposed technical assistance is designed to increase the
capacity of Guyana's criminal justice system to combat
trafficking in persons (TIP). This will be accomplished by
advancing and strengthening Guyana's institutional capacity to
investigate, prosecute, and adjudicate TIP cases. The program
has five components:

1) A multi-phase component with an objective of enhancing the
capacity of law enforcement and civil society (prosecutors,
investigators, border officials, victim service providers, and
other relevant stakeholders and NGOs) to investigate and
prosecute human trafficking and respond appropriately to
victims. This component will consist primarily of a series of
workshops in which U.S. experts (for example, a prosecutor, an
investigator, and a victim-witness expert) help their Guyanese
counterparts create an Operations and Tactics Handbook to
Combat Trafficking in Persons. This handbook, when completed,
will describe the best practices for Guyanese investigators,
prosecutors, victim service providers, and other relevant
stakeholders and NGOs. The process of developing this
handbook will build cooperation between and among criminal
justice sector agencies and relevant stakeholders in civil
society so that all relevant entities (prosecutors,
investigators, border officials, victim service providers, and
other relevant stakeholders and NGOs) collaborate effectively
to combat human trafficking. The OPDAT trainers/facilitators
will explain the importance of maintaining a host country
interagency law enforcement working group to combat human
trafficking and will provide concrete suggestions for
incorporating the interagency law enforcement working group
concept into the Operations and Tactics Handbook. The
Operations and Tactics Handbook, when completed, can also
serve as the core document for the training of Guyanese law
enforcement (prosecutors, investigators, border officials,
etc.) on human trafficking. During the course of the
workshops it is expected that weaknesses in Guyana's
legislative regime will be identified and that the U.S.
trainers will make suggestions for legislative changes to
enhance Guyana's capacity to combat trafficking in persons,
such as criminal code reforms and civil forfeiture of property
used to commit crimes (or acquired with the proceeds of
crime). (Note: Both the U.S. and the U.K. have enacted and
implemented civil forfeiture legislation.). In addition to
facilitating the development of the operations handbook, this
component of the program will include practical exercises,
such as exercises on conducting searches for evidence,
investigative teamwork and investigative planning, and
interviewing victims. OPDAT will closely coordinate this
component of the program with Embassy Georgetown's Pol/Econ
Office.

2) A multi-phase "judicial exchange" program spanning two
years to facilitate the use of "best practices" by Guyanese
judges and magistrates in the adjudication of cases involving
trafficking in persons. This program will consist of a series
of workshops to sensitize Guyanese judges and magistrates to
the seriousness of the crime of trafficking in persons and to
help Guyanese judges and magistrates prepare a "benchbook" of
best practices for adjudicating human trafficking cases. The
workshops would be conducted by U.S. judges in collaboration
with Guyanese judges and magistrates (including
representatives of the Magistrate Court, the High Court of the
Supreme Court of Judicature, and the Court of Appeals). After
the initial workshop, Guyanese judges and magistrates selected
by Embassy Georgetown would be invited to spend one week
"shadowing" a U.S. judge to observe how criminal cases are
fairly and effectively adjudicated in the U.S. under the U.S.
federal rules of criminal procedure; it is anticipated that
eight Guyanese judges (approximately one each quarter) will be
able to shadow U.S. judges over the two-year period. OPDAT
will closely coordinate this component of the program with
Embassy Georgetown's Pol/Econ Office.

3) A public affairs event for policymakers, judges, law
enforcement executives, other important government officials,
journalists and other members of the news media of Guyana to
promote political will to combat trafficking in persons. This
public affairs event, which will be co-hosted by Embassy
Georgetown and the Government of Guyana, will emphasize that
human trafficking is both a global and regional issue. Among
other things, this event is intended to enhance political
support for intensified efforts by Guyanese law enforcement to
combat human trafficking. OPDAT will closely coordinate this
component of the program with Embassy Georgetown's Public
Affairs Office.

4) A public awareness program in which college and high school
students (and, possibly, other students) are encouraged to
write articles and create posters about trafficking in
persons. Efforts will be undertaken to have select articles
published and select posters duplicated and posted. This
component of the program will promote public awareness of
human trafficking in an effort to enhance prevention,
protection, and prosecution. Among other things, such
increased public awareness is expected to increase the flow of
actionable information about human trafficking to Guyanese law
enforcement. OPDAT will closely coordinate this component of
the program with Embassy Georgetown's Public Affairs Office.

5) Project monitoring and evaluation (see evaluation plan,
below)

The program is entirely sustainable because the technical
assistance will, in essence, provide the recipients the "know
how" to identify, document and implement the "best practices" for
investigating, prosecuting, and adjudicating cases involving
human trafficking within the available resources and within the
present legal regime of Guyana. Suggestions will also be
provided on how to expand those existing resources (through civil
forfeiture) and strengthen the existing legal regime (through
criminal code reform). All these activities are sustainable
because, once the technical assistance provides the host country
officials the requisite "know how," the host country officials
will be able to sustain and expand the program essentially
without cost.


E. Justification: The following summary is derived from the
Department of State's 2005 "Trafficking in Persons Report" and
other sources. Guyana is a country of origin, transit, and
destination for young women and children trafficked primarily for
the purpose of sexual exploitation. Much of the trafficking
takes place in remote areas of the country's interior, or
involves Amerindian girls from the interior trafficked to coastal
areas to engage in prostitution and involuntary domestic
servitude. Girls promised employment as domestics, waitresses,
and bar attendants are trafficked into prostitution; young
Amerindian men are exploited under forced labor conditions in
timber camps. Guyanese girls and young women are trafficked for
sexual exploitation to Suriname and other countries in the
region, such as Barbados, Trinidad & Tobago, and Venezuela. Most
foreign victims come from bordering regions of Brazil, and may be
trafficked through Guyana to Suriname.

The Government of Guyana does not fully comply with the minimum
standards for the elimination of trafficking; however, it is
making significant efforts to do so. Guyana showed appreciable
progress over the last year, particularly through its enactment
of anti-trafficking legislation, improvements in government
coordination, and aggressive public awareness campaigns.
Government law enforcement actions against traffickers remained
inadequate despite some progress during the reporting period. In
2004, authorities arrested and released on bail one suspected
trafficker pending indictment; no traffickers were prosecuted or
convicted. Guyana should work with NGOs to improve services for
victims; it should also more aggressively investigate and
prosecute traffickers.

The Government of Guyana made good faith efforts to assist
trafficking victims over the last year, though protection of
victims remained inadequate. Police initially jailed and fined
four victims under immigration laws. The Ministry of Labour,
Human Services, and Social Security secured their release after
determining the four were victims and not traffickers, and
arranged for their repatriation. As a result of this case, the
Commissioner of Police and Ministry officials stated that they
would coordinate more closely and ensure that victims are
referred to the Ministry for assistance.

According to a recent news report, Guyana's Minister of Labour,
Human Services and Social Security stated that eight persons were
brought before the courts in trafficking in persons (TIP) cases,
but that there was an ongoing problem when TIP cases were handled
by courts located in Guyana's outlying areas. The minister said
she planned to ask "the powers that be" to have all the TIP cases
handled by one court in the city; the minister had previously
told the media that it would also be better if one prosecutor
dealt with all such issues. The minister also said she was
concerned with the police response to human trafficking, as there
were about ten reported cases that had not yet been investigated
by the police. She noted that in some instances the matters were
pending for so long that the perpetrators had been able to
abscond.

The proposed technical assistance is designed to help Guyana
identify and implement procedures that will mitigate in a
sustainable way the criminal justice system deficiencies noted
above.


F. Performance indicators:

- Development by relevant stakeholders (prosecutors,
investigators, border officials, victim service providers, and
other relevant stakeholders and NGOs) of an Operations and
Tactics Handbook to Combat Trafficking in Persons describing the
best practices for Guyanese investigators, prosecutors, victim
service providers, and other relevant stakeholders and NGOs
consistent with the legal regime and resources available in
Guyana

- Implementation by relevant stakeholders (prosecutors,
investigators, border officials, victim service providers, and
other relevant stakeholders and NGOs) of some or all the best
practices identified in the an Operations and Tactics Handbook t
Combat Trafficking in Persons (described above)

- Use of relevant portions of the Operations and Tactics
Handbook to Combat Trafficking in Persons (described above) by
Guyana in the training of its law enforcement (prosecutors,
investigators, border officials, etc.)

- Development by the Guyanese judiciary of a benchbook
describing best practices for the fair and efficient adjudicatio
of cases involving human trafficking, including the appropriate
treatment by the court system of victim-witnesses

- Implementation by the Guyanese judiciary of some or all the
best practices described in the benchbook (described above) on
the fair and efficient adjudication of cases involving human
trafficking

- Development by students of Guyana of articles and posters on
human trafficking -- specifically, articles and posters designed
to enhance prevention, protection, and prosecution; select
articles are published and select posters are duplicated and
posted

- Favorable newspaper or other media coverage of the public
affairs event highlighting that human trafficking is a global an
regional problem

G. Evaluation Plan: Project monitoring and evaluation will be
undertaken on a continuous basis by OPDAT and Embassy Georgetown;
a quarterly report prepared by OPDAT will be submitted to Embassy
Georgetown and G/TIP. The project monitoring and evaluation will
include regular phone calls, e-mails, and other forms of
communication between OPDAT and Embassy Georgetown; to the extent
necessary, OPDAT will conduct on-site evaluations. The project
monitoring and evaluations, including the quarterly report, will
address the progress of the project and how U.S. tax dollars are
helping in the fight against trafficking in persons.


H. Budget breakout: his will fund the following:


1. Six (6) workshops for prosecutors and other law enforcement
Per diem Days No. of trainers Sub-total
$196 6 4 $4,704

Airfare Local No. of trainers Sub-total
$1,800 $100 4 $7,600

Site expenses per workshop $2,500
(room rental, coffee breaks, A-V equipment, etc.)
Cost per workshop $14,804

--------------
Six (6) workshops 6 $88,824


2. Four (4) workshops for Judges (to be held in Guyana)

Number of Workshops Cost per workshop --------------
4 $14,804 (see above) $59,216


3. Judicial exchanges (Eight Guyanese judges and magistrates
"shadow" U.S. judges)

Per diem Days Sub-total
$250 7 $1,750

Airfare Local Sub-total
$1,800 $100 $1,900

Cost per judge $3,650
--------------
Total cost for eight judges $29,200


4. Public Affairs Event

Per diem Days No. of trainers Sub-total
$196 4 3 $2,352

Airfare Local No. of trainers Sub-total
$1,800 $100 3 $5,700

Site expenses $3,000
(room rental, coffee breaks, A-V equipment, etc.)
--------------
Total cost for event $11,052


5. Workshops for college students and other students

Per diem Days No. of trainers Sub-total
$196 6 4 $4,704

Airfare Local No. of trainers Sub-total
$1,800 $100 4 $7,600

Site expenses for three days $1,500
(room rental, coffee breaks, A-V equipment, etc.)

Cost of 3 days of workshops in one week $13,804
--------------
Six trips to Guyana over two years $82,824

--------------

6. Materials and other expenses $20,000
(Stationary supplies, duplication, shipping, materials, etc.)

Total program expenses $291,116

OPDAT overhead at 12% of expenses $34,934
--------------
TOTAL PROGRAM COST $326,050


I. Type and amount of host government contribution: The core
philosophy of this program is that the components of Guyana's
criminal justice system and other relevant stakeholders -
including the courts, investigators, prosecutors, victim service
providers, NGOs, and other relevant stakeholders - are in the
best position to know the legal regime of Guyana and the
resources available in Guyana and, therefore, they are in the
best position to determine the best practices for investigating,
prosecuting, and adjudicating cases involving human trafficking
within the constraints of that legal regime and the available
resources. OPDAT, in coordination with Embassy Georgetown will
be the catalyst for the identification of best practices and the
host government will make a significant contribution of manpower
(by judges, prosecutors, investigators, etc.) in the
identification, documentation, and implementation of those best
practices.

J. Proposed funding mechanism: Letter of Agreement (LOA) (or
Amended Letter of Agreement (ALOA) / Inter-Agency agreement with
the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) (Office of Overseas
Prosecutorial Development, Assistance and Training (OPDAT)).


K. Embassy point of contact:

Edward P. Luchessi
Economic/Commercial Officer
U.S. Embassy
Georgetown, Guyana
Phone: 011-592-225-4900
e-mail: LuchessiEP@state.gov


L. Other donors: None

BULLEN