GOI SEEKS NGO INPUT ON NEXT STEPS IN FIGHT AGAINST

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 TEL AVIV 001652 SIPDIS SENSITIVE DEPT FOR G/TIP: GAYATRI PATEL; NEA/IPA: WES REISSER; NEA/RA: JOHN MENARD E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PHUM KWMN SMIG KFRD ASEC PREF ELAB IS KCRM GTIP ISRAELI SOCIETY SUBJECT: GOI SEEKS NGO INPUT ON NEXT STEPS IN FIGHT AGAINST TRAFFICKING REF: TEL AVIV 1391 ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: The GOI inter-ministerial anti-trafficking committee decided at its April 26 meeting to press for rapid passage of the draft anti-trafficking bill, and to address specific concerns raised by three leading NGOs critical of the GOI's anti-trafficking efforts. The committee invited the three NGOs to attend their meeting, where NGO representatives presented a "wish list" of anti-trafficking measures, including clarification of items in the draft bill, prosecution of foreign workers who assist labor traffickers, and formalization of the process for issuing visas to victims of sex trafficking. The USG anti-trafficking award has reportedly strengthened its recipient, Rachel Gershuni, in her attempt to lead efforts to address the issues raised by NGOs (reftel). COMMENT: GOI officials took an unusual step by formally inviting NGO representatives to present their ideas at a high-level, inter-ministerial meeting, and by acting immediately to implement NGO recommendations to increase training of judges and police, and to formalize visa adjudication procedures for sex trafficking victims. END SUMMARY AND COMMENT. -------------- --- GOI ANTI-TRAFFICKING COMMITTEE INVITES NGO INPUT -------------- --- ¶2. (SBU) MFA Director of International Organizations Daniel Meron told poloff April 26 that the inter-ministerial anti-trafficking committee invited to its April 26 meeting representatives from the Hotline for Migrant Workers, Kav LaOved (Workers' Hotline),and Isha L'Isha (Woman to Woman) in order to, as Meron terms it, "go over all pending issues, to see where we stand." He said that the committee discussed "how to make sure the Knesset bill goes through quickly." ¶3. (SBU) De Facto Anti-Trafficking Coordinator Rachel Gershuni told poloff that NGOs presented to the committee a "wish list" of anti-trafficking measures. The NGO representatives who attended the meeting -- Uri Sadeh, field coordinator for the Hotline for Migrant Workers; Yuval Livnat, legal counsel for Kav LaOved; and Tali Eisenberg, legal counsel for Isha L'Isha -- told poloff that they made the following points. -------------- NGOS RECOMMEND NEXT STEPS FOR THE GOI... �0A; -------------- ...IN THE FIGHT AGAINST LABOR TRAFFICKING... ¶4. (SBU) Yuval Livnat of Kav LaOved and Uri Sadeh of the Hotline for Migrant Workers said that they urged GOI officials to take the following steps: -- Clarify the definition of "trafficking" in the draft anti-trafficking bill. NGOs worry that traffickers may claim that the practice of dismissing workers shortly after they arrive in Israel in order to collect commission fees constitutes "trafficking for commission fees," which the Knesset bill does not explicitly outlaw, instead of "trafficking for labor," which the bill does outlaw. -- Prosecute foreign workers who facilitate trafficking. NGOs said that Israeli employers increasingly use foreign workers to serve as "middle men" to collect fees from and intimidate other foreign workers. The Israeli National Police (INP) have focused on investigating and prosecuting Israeli employers, but neglected to pursue foreign workers who facilitate the trafficking of their co-nationals. NGOs aver that the police currently lack the linguistic and cultural fluency necessary to understand the illegal activity that occurs within foreign worker communities. -- Increase investigation and prosecution of passport confiscation by employers. NGOs reported that the crime unit of the Immigration Administration (IA) rarely investigates employers who illegally confiscate only one passport; IA investigators focus, instead, on employers who confiscate two or more passports. This practice renders domestic workers particularly vulnerable to exploitation. In addition, NGOs noted that the IA generally informs employers before it conducts inspections, and encouraged the IA to conduct more surprise inspections in the future. ...AND IN THE FIGHT AGAINST SEX TRAFFICKING ¶5. (SBU) Tali Eisenberg of Isha L'Isha and Uri Sadeh of the Hotline for Migrant Workers said that they urged GOI officials to take the following steps: -- Formalize the process for issuing visas to victims of sex trafficking. NGOs reported disappointment that the decision-making process for approving residency and work visas for trafficking victims continues to lack transparency, consistency, and criteria. -- Train the military and police forces that protect the Israel-Egypt border on trafficking issues. Now that the GOI has significantly increased the number of soldiers and police guarding Israel's southern border with Egypt, NGOs say that it is imperative to train the new forces to search for, identify, and handle trafficking victims. -- Increase the training of judges. NGOs report that not enough of Israel's judges have received formal training about trafficking in persons. -------------- THE GOI REPORTS ITS NEXT STEPS -------------- ¶6. Rachel Gershuni reported that the committee decided to take the following steps to address NGO suggestions: -- Organize more training for judges. Gershuni said that the committee decided that she should schedule a meeting with the director of the judges training institute in Haifa to urge him to incorporate an anti-trafficking module in the formal curriculum for the continuing education of Israel's judges. -- Approach the commander of the border police about training his personnel on trafficking issues. Gershuni said that the committee decided that she should approach the commander of the Israeli border police to see if he will permit his policemen to receive the same training on trafficking issues that leaders of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have agreed to provide to IDF soldiers. -- Identify GOI points of contact for NGOs and trafficking victims. Gershuni reported that the committee provided to the NGO representatives at the meeting additional, individual points of contact at Ben Gurion airport, the Israeli National Police, and the Immigration Administration. She said that the committee encouraged NGOs to contact these individuals to protest mistaken deportations of trafficking victims, or to investigate allegations of abuse of foreign workers. -- Formalize procedures for issuing visas to trafficking victims. Gershuni said that she secured on April 10 agreement to formalize visa adjudication procedures from the senior official responsible for creating and implementing this policy, Yisachar Katsir, director of the Population Administration in the Ministry of the Interior (MOI). Gershuni said that she worked with MOI officials to draft the formal procedure for Katsir's review, and that Katsir said that he aims to approve the final draft by the end of May. ¶7. (SBU) Gershuni also reported that she will be meeting May 1 with the deputy director general of the Ministry of Justice, Moshe Shilo, to resolve technical delays in the official appointment of an anti-trafficking coordinator, and to discuss the date for an anti-trafficking seminar tentatively scheduled to take place during the summer. -------------- -------------- USG AWARD STRENGTHENS ANTI-TRAFFICKING COORDINATOR -------------- -------------- ¶8. (SBU) Uri Sadeh of the Hotline for Migrant Workers told poloff that the Department's anti-trafficking "hero" award has increased Rachel Gershuni's influence within the GOI. "She has had problems in the past with people in the government who consider her a pain," Sadeh said. "This is the first time I've seen them visibly proud of her. Please draw as much attention to this award as you can." Gershuni confirmed that the award has strengthened her position as unofficial coordinator, making it easier for her to persuade other government officials to cooperate with her. "I plan to use this award for all it's worth," she said. ********************************************* ******************** Visit Embassy Tel Aviv's Classified Website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/telaviv You can also access this site through the State Department's Classified SIPRNET website. ********************************************* ******************** JONES