Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07GUANGZHOU208
2007-02-14 09:05:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Consulate Guangzhou
Cable title:  

Tough to Talk About: TIP in South China

Tags:  PHUM PGOV SOCI EAGR EINV CH 
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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 GUANGZHOU 000208 

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E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM PGOV SOCI EAGR EINV CH
SUBJECT: Tough to Talk About: TIP in South China

(U) This document is sensitive but unclassified. Please protect
accordingly.

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 GUANGZHOU 000208

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EAP/CM AND DRL
USPACOM FOR FPA

SENSITIVE

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM PGOV SOCI EAGR EINV CH
SUBJECT: Tough to Talk About: TIP in South China

(U) This document is sensitive but unclassified. Please protect
accordingly.


1. (SBU) Summary: Talking TIP is not a popular topic in South
China. Many recent requests by the Consulate have been turned down
in Guangxi and Guangdong. However, trafficking in persons,
particularly of women, continues to occur from within China's inland
provinces to South China, as well as from other countries, such as
Vietnam. While increased economic development has lowered the
number of women trafficked to be sold as wives to rural areas in
Guangdong, reports of trafficking for labor or the sex trade
continue to be published. According to Vietnamese diplomats in
Guangzhou, TIP cooperation with local authorities has improved and
Vietnam signed an MOU with China in 2006 to enhance cross-border
cooperation and procedures for victim identification, assistance and
re-integration. While not involved in the criminal aspects of
trafficking in persons (TIP),such as prostitution, the Guangdong
Women's Federation (WF) has shifted its focus from the spouse trade
to public education to prevent migrant working women from falling
victim to trafficking schemes. Improvements have been seen, but it
is likely that the extent of the problem is underreported by
authorities. Trafficking in spouses will continue to grow as the
gender imbalance in China widens. End summary.

Vietnam: Cooperation with China on TIP is Improving
-------------- --------------


2. (SBU) In a January 31 meeting with the Consul General, Vietnam
Consul General in Guangzhou Vo Thinh described the Vietnam-China
border as long, mountainous, and difficult to control. Traffickers
frequently use river and forest routes. In China, the majority of
trafficked persons from Vietnam are located in South China, i.e.,
Fujian, Guangdong, and Guangxi, but have been found as far north as
Chongqing. Vietnam has expended much effort in public education
through media and the grassroots efforts of the Women's Union and
sentenced traffickers to fines and prison. It does not penalize the
victims of trafficking, although social stigma remains an issue for

many victims. Increased efforts by both sides to promote economic
development and trade and historically close business relationships
make it harder to check goods and persons, with a potentially
negative impact on trafficking enforcement. While unable to provide
statistics on numbers of cases, the Consul General thought
cooperation between Guangdong and Vietnam was positive. He
described the Guangdong Public Security Bureau (PSB) as being much
more responsive in recent years, though the PSB still did not
provide that much information on the subject. He termed ministerial
cooperation with China on TIP "good" but called local-level
cooperation poor. Vo also said that Vietnam had discussed TIP
issues with neighboring countries and at ASEAN, including at
meetings attending by China, in an effort to combat the problem.


3. (SBU) In May 2006, the Government of Vietnam (GVN) and China
signed an MOU to increase cross-border law enforcement cooperation.
The Vietnam Women's Union (VWU) was tasked with implementing the
"victim assistance and re-integration and raising public awareness"
portfolio of the GVN's National Action Plan against TIP. It also
began a series of cross-border workshops with provincial women's
federation counterparts in China. These reportedly have been
useful.


4. (SBU) Vietnam's approach to solving the issue additionally
involves improving the economic climate and employment situation
within Vietnam so that people are not lured by the promise of jobs
outside of the country. As part of what Vo termed Vietnam's new
policy on TIP, the Prime Minister's 2004 National Action Plan is
designed to assist women victims, with the central government
providing a global fund for use by Vietnam's embassies and
consulates to help repatriate victims of trafficking. When
contacted by a victim, the embassy/consulate verifies the person's
identity and checks their status with the local PSB. The office
provides money and sometimes clothes to the victim and issues a
certificate so the person can return to Vietnam. In Guangdong and
Guangxi, the Vietnam Consulate will provide a consulate vehicle to
drive the victim to the Vietnam border in Guangxi at Dongxing or
Pingxiang, so there is no danger of kidnapping. Vo was unaware of
the establishment of a repatriation center in Dongxing, Guangxi,
which was set up in 2005. Vietnam has also established victim
assistance and assessment centers on its side of the border. Note:
Congen Guangzhou plans to take a trip to the border area in the
coming months to look into this matter further. End Note.


5. (SBU) Though Vo was unable to comment on prostitution

GUANGZHOU 00000208 002 OF 004


trafficking, we would note a number of news reports in 2006 that
China had cooperated with Vietnam in cracking down on an increasing
number of cases of women trafficked for the sex trade, labor, and
spouses into Hainan, Guangxi, Guangdong and other provinces. We
have also heard reports of children being trafficked into China for
sex and labor. UNICEF-Vietnam is currently working on a project to
train the Vietnamese Border Command on child trafficking. In
Vietnam, trafficking networks are difficult to prosecute because
they often operate in chains of referrals where few know the
ultimate destination. Along many parts of the Vietnam / China
border, business relationships are historically close and
traffickers take advantage of this. Embassy Hanoi points out that
across the border in Vietnam's northeast Quang Ninh Province, the
Vietnam Women's Union reported that there has been a definite
increase in TIP since 2000. Before 2000, many Vietnamese women went
voluntarily to China to marry Chinese men; however, since then,
conditions for women in Quang Ninh have largely improved so
"voluntary" cross-border marriages have decreased.


6. (SBU) Post asked the Guangxi PSB for a meeting and to visit the
Dongxing border area to discuss TIP issues, its response was that
the USG had no relation to the TIP issue with Vietnam and refused.
When we requested the meeting again, the PSB said there was little
to discuss since the repatriation center concept was just at the
beginning stage (Note: news reports indicate that the Dongxing
center was established in 2005 and a second center established in
Congzuo, also on the Vietnam-Guangxi border. End note.). The
Guangzhou and Guangdong PSB and Guangzhou Women's Federation also
declined to discuss TIP with Post despite news reports that indicate
increased enforcement actions by law enforcement and administrative
agencies.

Guangdong Women's Federation: Stopping The Sale Of Wives
-------------- --------------


7. (SBU) The Guangdong Women's Federation was more willing to talk.
Guo Suisheng, Deputy Director of Women's Rights and Interests
Department, and Hu Lilng, Deputy Director of the
Organization-liaison Department of Guangdong Provincial Women's
Federation, told Congenoff on February 8 that the Guangdong Women
Federation is the largest "NGO" in China, though all its staff are
on the payroll of the Government. Its main mission is to promote
women's rights and interests, including combating trafficking in
women. According to Guo, the Chinese authorities emphasize fighting
against the trafficking in women. China has a law called "Women's
Rights and Interests Protection Law" passed in 1993 and amended in

2005. The National Congress also issued a memorandum on severely
punishing the trafficking of women and children in early 1990s.
Such laws, as well as regulations and judicial interpretations
issued by the Government, the Supreme Court and the Procuratorate
define very clearly each official agency's role and related
proceedings and remedies in combating the trafficking in women.
Each layer of Governments' annual work plans also contain the
element of protection women's interests and rights, which Guo said
havean anti-trafficking element. According to Guo, in China's
criminal code, "the trading of deceived women" and "forced
prostitution" are two separate charges. The Women's Federation is
essentially responsible for the prevention and rescue of the former
victims, while the PSB takes care of the latter problem as a
criminal issue. Inside the provincial PSB there is a special unit
designated for enforcing anti-trafficking in women and children.


8. (U) In addition to implementing its legislatively-mandated
enforcement efforts, Guo said the Chinese Government often launches
interregional and interagency campaigns to fight against TIP
problems. In 2001, Guangdong, as a major "import" market of
trafficked women, cooperated with governments of the "export" areas,
poorer areas to Guangdong's west and north, to launch a joint
campaign to fight against trafficking in women. The National
Congress also sent delegations to Guangdong to inspect the effects
of such campaigns. Under the Pan Pearl River Delta cooperation
(Pan-PRD) framework, Guangdong's Women Federation also has signed
cooperation agreements on women rights issues, including
anti-trafficking with its counterparts in the eight other provinces
and two Special Administrative Regions of Macau and Hong Kong of the
Pan-PRD region. Cross-border Women's Federation workshops between
Vietnam and China to combat TIP have also been growing.

Past Efforts Focused on Preventing Spouse Sales
-------------- --


9. (SBU) Guo, who has over 20 years of working experience in

GUANGZHOU 00000208 003 OF 004


protecting women's rights in the Federation, said that in the past
there are trafficking in women problems in less developed and
isolated areas, particularly in the remote mountains, in order to
obtain spouses. Lufeng County and Xinyi County, which are located
in eastern and western areas of Guangdong respectively, are the two
most notorious areas known for this problem. Farmers in those areas
are so poor that local women try to leave poverty behind by marrying
outside people. At the same time, few women from outside were
willing come in. A "tradition" developed for local men to buy women
from outside as their wives in these counties. The victim women
were usually from inland provinces, such as Hunan and Sichuan. The
Federation also previously provided match making services in those
traditional "women import" areas. Such service is not necessary now
as the TIP problem is decreasing, according to Guo. News reports
continue to indicate that trafficking in women to be spouses remains
a problem in less developed rural areas in China.


10. (SBU) When the Women Federation receives a report of trafficked
women or a request for its assistance, it works with local police to
organize enforcement actions. In the late 1990s, the Federation
helped local police crack a criminal trafficking group that had sold
about 30 women. Guo participated in several rescues, usually
conducted at night, to spirit the women away by surprise. Due to
the isolated, mountainous locations, these operations were often
difficult and time-consuming.

Shifting Focus Toward Prevention Of Labor Trafficking
-------------- --------------


11. (U) Guo said the trafficking in women for spouses has been rare
in recent years because the reform and opening program has improved
local people's living conditions and has given them more
opportunities to be exposed to the outside. In the 1980's, the
Federation handled 30-to-40 cases of trafficking in women cases each
year, while in 2006, the number was only nine. The priority of the
Federation's anti-trafficking efforts has shifted to preventive
measures, especially to educate migrant women workers from falling
victims as traded wives and sweatshop laborers.


12. (U) The Federation utilizes various means to educate the public.
It now tries to promote migrant women workers' awareness of their
legitimate rights and how to protect themselves better. They print
and distribute informational materials, sponsor a hotline which
number "12338" is directly accessible in the whole province, conduct
training classes in factories, produce TV programs, and hold
artistic performances to teach women workers the typical tricks or
deceptions of traffickers. They also demonstrate skills for seeking
outside assistance, such as getting attention from the police in
case they are being trafficked. The Federation works with its
counterparts in the labor exporting regions of inland China to
introduce reliable job opportunities to migrant women workers to
reduce their risks of being deceived by traffickers.


13. (U) After the Chinese Spring Festival, when a lot of migrant
workers come to Guangdong for jobs, the Federation works with other
agencies to organize anti-trafficking promotions in local railway
and bus stations. In 2006, such a promotion campaign was headed by
Guangdong's Vice Governor Madame Lei Yulan and covered the major
migrant labor-importing cities, including Guangzhou, Foshan,
Dongguan, Shenzhen, and Huizhou. In Guangzhou's railway station,
the Women's Federation used a large outdoor display screen to
broadcast its anti-TIP message 6,000 times within three months.


14. (U) In addition to educating the potential targets of
trafficking, the Federation also promotes anti-trafficking awareness
among factories and spouse seekers by explaining to them the likely
penalty they will face if they use trafficking to obtain women.
Interlocutors said rescuing victims of trafficking from prostitution
is not their responsibility as the Federation does not have
enforcement authority and cannot conduct raids on its own. However,
the Federation always passes the request for helping victims to the
police, and provides psychological counseling and material support
after they are rescued. Such services are also provided to children
rescued from trafficking. In 2002, the Police cracked a child
trafficking group in Lufeng County in Guangdong Province that had
sold eight children to Lufeng County and Hainan Province. The
Federation provided psychological and communication counseling to
the affected families, and later managed to obtain Amway's
sponsorhip of the children's tuitions.

Comment: Not Talking About It Will Not Make The Problem Go Away
-------------- -------------- --------------

GUANGZHOU 00000208 004 OF 004




15. (SBU) The Chinese Government may well have an efficient and
organized way of combating trafficking in persons, but provincial
and local enforcement agencies are reluctant to discuss progress in
this sensitive area. As the current leadership in Beijing stresses
the building of a harmonious society in which weaker social groups
get more attention and public services, TIP issues will likely get
more attention in prosperous Guangdong Province. The increased
gender imbalance in China due to traditional preferences for boys
over girls, accentuated by the one-child policy, could cause a
return to the purchase of spouses down the road as millions of
unmarried men seek wives from among a diminishing number of women.
End comment.


16. (U) Embassy Hanoi contributed to this cable.

Goldberg