BANGLADESH GOVERNMENT REPORTS ON ACTIONS TAKEN

UNCLAS DHAKA 001343 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS SCA/RA FOR JPFLEIDERER, G/TIP FOR MTAYLOR, SNEUMANN E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PHUM KCRM BG SUBJECT: BANGLADESH GOVERNMENT REPORTS ON ACTIONS TAKEN AGAINST MIGRANT LABOR ABUSERS REF: DHAKA 1058 ¶1. (SBU) The Expatriate Welfare Ministry, which regulates migrant labor issues in Bangladesh, provided updated statistics to the Embassy on actions it has taken against labor recruitment companies over the past three months, from May to July 2007. ¶2. (SBU) Bangladesh's labor export industry is managed by the Expatriate Welfare Ministry oversees the labor export market, and in particular by the Ministry's Bureau of Manpower Employment and Training (BMET). Private "travel agencies" -- the commonly used term for migrant labor recruitment firms -- must register with and pay a deposit to the government. BMET has the authority to de-license agencies, seize their deposits, and forward cases involving amounts in excess of the deposit to the Home Ministry for prosecution. ¶3. (SBU) Between May and July, the Ministry, through BMET, seized the security deposits of two agencies, settled 63 outstanding complaints against agencies, and accepted 94 new complaints. In addition, 6.3 million taka ($90,000) has been recovered and returned to laborers, and three cases were forwarded to the Home Ministry for criminal investigation and prosecution. ¶4. (SBU) These numbers indicate the GOB is stepping up enforcement and oversight. During the preceding 64 months, from January 2002 to April 2007, the Ministry accepted 909 complaints for further investigation and settled 695 complaints. During that period, it refunded to laborers 50.5 million taka ($731,000). Furthermore, many of the new cases have come since August 2006, when the GOB began a crack-down on agencies in the wake of a series of embarrassing revelations in the press about abuses in recruiting laborers for Malaysia. ¶5. (SBU) COMMENT. The GOB is starting to make progress in cleaning up its labor export industry, though further measures are required. Post is optimistic that, with the addition of the Expatriate Welfare Ministry to the GOB's anti-trafficking coordinating mechanisms, intra-government cooperation will be further enhanced. END COMMENT. PASI