Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06MUSCAT1004
2006-06-21 10:21:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Muscat
Cable title:  

INSIDE OMANI DEPORTATION CENTER, SEEKING

Tags:  PREF SMIG PHUM PBTS OEXC KPAO PGOV PREL MU 
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This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

211021Z Jun 06
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 MUSCAT 001004 

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

STATE FOR NEA/ARP (S. STEINGER),NEA/PPD (DBENZE)
STATE FOR ECA/PE/V/R/N, DRL (J. DEMARIA)
STATE ALSO FOR G/TIP (G. PATEL AND M. TAYLOR)
ABU DHABI FOR W. WALLRAPP AND B. ADADA
AMMAN FOR J. IRVINE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREF SMIG PHUM PBTS OEXC KPAO PGOV PREL MU
SUBJECT: INSIDE OMANI DEPORTATION CENTER, SEEKING
RECIPROCAL VISIT

REF: 05 MUSCAT 1050

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 MUSCAT 001004

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

STATE FOR NEA/ARP (S. STEINGER),NEA/PPD (DBENZE)
STATE FOR ECA/PE/V/R/N, DRL (J. DEMARIA)
STATE ALSO FOR G/TIP (G. PATEL AND M. TAYLOR)
ABU DHABI FOR W. WALLRAPP AND B. ADADA
AMMAN FOR J. IRVINE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREF SMIG PHUM PBTS OEXC KPAO PGOV PREL MU
SUBJECT: INSIDE OMANI DEPORTATION CENTER, SEEKING
RECIPROCAL VISIT

REF: 05 MUSCAT 1050


1. This is an action request for ECA, DRL, and G/TIP; please
see paragraph 11.

--------------
SUMMARY
--------------


2. (U) A June 19 visit to one of Oman's largest deportation
centers revealed a clean and well-organized facility, and
included a tour of the arrivals processing rooms, sleeping
quarters, interview rooms, and kitchen facilities. Detainees
receive medical attention upon arrival, weekly visits by
local physicians, regular access to embassy representatives,
and three meals a day. Seeking to strengthen their
processing and handling of the over 10,000 illegal migrants
apprehended every year, the Government of Oman has requested
that the Embassy facilitate a reciprocal visit to a U.S.
deportation facility. End summary.

-------------- --------------
Embassy Granted First Visit to Deportation Facility
-------------- --------------


3. (U) After a long-standing request to visit one of Oman's
deportation facilities (reftel),the government of Oman
invited PolOff to visit its largest deportation center
located in Sohar on June 19. The Sohar deportation center is
one of two centers in Oman (the other is located at the other
end of the country in Salalah) and it is estimated that over
400 Pakistanis and other nationals are detained and deported
from here every month. (Note: According to officials, no
women or children have ever been detained. Moreover, given
the high cost of passage from Iran - approximately $300 USD
per person - women and children are unlikely to have the
necessary funds or be allowed to travel from their respective
home countries. End Note.) No international
non-governmental organizations (NGOs) or embassy personnel

without detained citizens have ever requested to visit the
facility. The first visit of its kind, PolOff was
accompanied by the Public Relations Director of the Royal
Oman Police. The visit lasted about one hour and included a
tour of the arrivals processing rooms, sleeping quarters,
embassy interview rooms, and kitchen facilities. In whole,
the facility, opened just four years ago, appeared neat,
clean and well-organized.


4. (U) According to Royal Oman Police officers (ROP) who run
the facility, illegal migrants arriving by boat along the
Iran-facing Batinah coast are apprehended, interviewed at
local police stations, and then brought to the detention
facility where they are fingerprinted and photographed.
(Note: Interviews at local police stations include detailed
questioning to determine the detainee's place of origin,
method of travel, and information that may lead to human
smuggling convictions for the apprehended boat captains. End
Note.) Fingerprints allow the ROP to determine if the
illegal migrant has been detained before; in which case, a
criminal case may be filed. It is estimated that less than
10 percent of the apprehended detainees are repeat offenders.
Upon arrival at the center, each detainee receives an
initial medical check by a physician from the Sohar Central
Hospital. The Ministry of Health also sponsors weekly visits
by a local physician. Although detainees' respective
embassies are notified within two to three days of their
arrival at the center, detainees can remain there anywhere
from three days to several weeks as they await interviewing
by their respective embassy representative (usually the Labor
Attache) and eventual repatriation.

-------------- --------------
Deportation Center Appears to Meet High Standards
-------------- --------------


5. (U) The deportation facility itself is a large,
nondescript square compound visible from the main road and
within a mile of the town center. Within the exterior wall
there are two separate sections, each made up of six
rectangular-shaped rooms. Detainees are housed by
nationality. Each room is approximately 30 feet by 60 feet
and can easily accommodate up to forty persons. The rooms
are sparse, but appeared to have plenty of blankets and
pillows, as well as showers and toilets behind a privacy wall
along the back. There is also cold drinking water and six
ceiling fans in each room. According to officers running the
facility, the detainees are provided two hours of exercise
each day and are given reading materials, cards, and a copy
of the Quran if they are Muslim.


6. (U) On the day of the visit, detainees at the center
included 127 Pakistanis (which constitute 40.7 percent of all
illegal migrants detained),60 Iranians, 30 Afghans, 20
Bangladeshis, and 4 Indians. The center is also holding 23
foreign nationals who violated the terms of their work visas;
the Ministry of Manpower arranges their disposition and
transportation separately from the illegal migrants.


7. (U) Maintaining the center is a costly operation. On
foodstuffs alone, it is estimated that the Omani government
spends about $21 USD per day per detainee (almost $250,000
USD a year). A tour of the kitchen facilities confirmed the
limited availability of fruit and vegetables, but menus
featured abundant meat, chicken and fish.

--------------
Repatriation
--------------


8. (U) Once embassy representatives have interviewed the
detainees and ascertained their true place of origin,
including village and road, return travel documents are
issued. Detainees are bussed to the nearest seaport in
Muscat and transported home via vessels provided by their
home countries. Cognizant of recent ferry disasters in the
region, ROP officials were firm in their rejoinder that boats
are only loaded per their capacity, no more. (Note:
Pakistani media have been critical of the crowding on
Pakistani ships. End note.) In addition to sea travel, some
individuals receive plane tickets home from charitable groups
or acquaintances. Moreover, the Omani government provides
air travel for anyone with medical problems or other
conditions unsuitable for sea travel.

--------------
Anti-TIP Actions
--------------


9. (U) Seeking to strengthen processing and handling of the
over 10,000 illegal migrants apprehended every year, the
Government of Oman has requested that the Embassy facilitate
a reciprocal visit to a U.S. deportation facility. The
Omani request is directly relevant to the 2006 Trafficking in
Persons report on the Sultanate, which recommended that Oman
"develop and deploy a more comprehensive screening procedure
to ensure that any (trafficking) victims are identified and
provided with appropriate protection services."

--------------
Comment
--------------


10. (SBU) This visit to the Sohar deportation center was an
opportunity to gain a first-hand account of ROP operations,
facility conditions, and procedures for screening possible
victims of trafficking. While disturbed by the allegations
published in the Department's recent TIP Report, the Omani
government sought to reassure Embassy officials of the fair
and humane treatment of illegal migrants. In addition to
visiting the deportation facility in Sohar, the Embassy has
requested a visit to the other deportation center in Salalah.


--------------
Action Request
--------------

11. (U) The Embassy requests the Department's facilitation of
the Omani request to visit a U.S. deportation facility and
consult with immigration and anti-trafficking officials in
the United States. The Royal Oman Police would like to send
up to six officers to learn more about international
techniques in processing illegal migrants and victims of
human trafficking, as well as to observe U.S. Customs and
Border Protection processes, including interviewing,
investigation, and deportation.
GRAPPO