JAMAICA: TRAFFICKING CASE PROMPTS INTERNATIONAL

C O N F I D E N T I A L KINGSTON 001131

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR G/TIP (MTAYLOR, KBRESNAHAN)
STATE FOR WHA/CAR (RBUDDEN, KHARNE)
STATE FOR G
STATE FOR INL
STATE FOR DRL
STATE FOR PRM
STATE FOR WHA/PPC (PUCCETTI)

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/15/2017
TAGS: KCRM PHUM KWMN SMIG KFRD ASEC PREF ELAB JM XL
SUBJECT: JAMAICA: TRAFFICKING CASE PROMPTS INTERNATIONAL
COOPERATION/TEST OF NEW ANTI-TIP LAW

REF: KINGSTON 242

Classified By: DCM James T Heg for reasons 1.5 (b) and (d)


1. (C) The Government of Jamaica (GOJ) is pursuing a
particularly egregious case of labor exploitation under the
recently passed Trafficking in Persons (Prevention,
Suppression and Punishment) Act, 2007 (reftel). GOJ
officials have approached the International Organization of
Migration (IOM),the UK High Commission, and the U.S. Embassy
for assistance in this case. Poloff recently discussed the
case with Peter Bryant (IOM) and Carol Palmer, Permanent
Secretary for the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) independently.

SIPDIS
Both report this is not only a horrific case, but is a
textbook example of the difficulties countries may encounter
in their attempts to pursue trafficking charges when the
victim is a foreign national. But despite cultural and
linguistic barriers between the victim and the investigators,
the GOJ appears determined to prosecute the traffickers under
the new law. (NOTE: This is an ongoing investigation. All
information regarding the victim and the GOJ's efforts to
bring the traffickers to justice should be protected
accordingly. END NOTE).


The Victim
--------------


2. (C) The alleged victim is a Burmese national who the GOJ
believes was brought into Jamaica in 2000 to work as a
domestic. She speaks very limited English (e.g., "yes,"
"thank you," "hello," etc.). The victim reported she was
responsible for cooking and cleaning for a doctor, the
doctor's husband, and their son. She was not allowed to go
outside of the home without the doctor accompanying her. The
victim stated that between 2000 and 2006 she was not paid any
money; however, she said the doctor told her that she would
put money away for her starting in 2006. The victim claims
the doctor has opened a savings account for her, but that the
account is in the doctor's name. The victim has no idea how
much money is in the account. The victim reported that she
had her own room, that the doctor bought clothes for her, and
that she took care of two cats. The victim ate at set times
of the day. She described a typical day as starting after
morning prayers. She then makes the beds in the house. She
then moves to work in the garden. She cooks lunch and then
returns to the garden until dark. At 5:00 pm, she prepares
dinner (which, according to the victim, takes two hours). In
between, she is responsible for cleaning the entire house
(three stories). She has also been tasked with cooking food
for a local monastery. She reports she has no days off.
Finally, she reported that the doctor gave her parents USD
150.00 for her.


3. (C) Palmer and Bryant both independently used the term
"brainwashed" in describing the victim. Bryant reported that
talking with her was like "talking with a child" and that it
was clear she had been "psychologically traumatized." Both
noted that the victim does not recognize that she is a victim
(although both also stated that there must be some level of
understanding as the victim herself alerted police to her
situation). She is reportedly more concerned about who will
take care of her cats than the 7 years she lived as a slave.
The MOJ has moved her to a "safe house" that is run privately
(for reasons of security, the location of the safe house and
the individuals helping the victim have not been shared
outside of a few key MOJ officials and trusted police
officers). Bryant reported that the 14-year-old daughter of
the safe house operator has formed a bond with the victim.
According to Bryant, despite the language barrier, the
victim's face "lights up" when the young girl enters. He
also stated that the young girl has spent a considerable
amount of time attempting to communicate with the victim
through use of hand gestures and bits and pieces of English.


4. (C) When the victim first alerted GOJ officials to her
situation, the MOJ immediately contracted with a member of
the Burmese community in Jamaica. The community is small and
purposefully chooses to remains insular from the broader
Jamaican community. After securing a translator, the
translator promptly withdrew after only one interview.
According to Bryant, the Burmese community "got to him."
Bryant believes that because the doctor and her family are
prominent members, they have threatened or intimidated the
E

rest of the community into not assisting with the MOJ
investigation. The GOJ decided not to pursue identifying
anyone else from the community to assist. Instead, the IOM
has made arrangements with a translator based in London for
phone and video-conferencing interviews with the victim. The
interviews are ongoing and both Palmer and Bryant agree that
it will take multiple interviews over a considerable length
of time to build trust between the MOJ and the victim. For
his part, Bryant is confident that the GOJ will be able to
convict the doctor (and her husband and son) if the victim
becomes willing to sign a sworn statement.

The Traffickers
--------------


5. (C) The doctor and her family are prominent within the
Burmese community. They also are Jamaican citizens and are
believed to travel under both Jamaican and Burmese passports
and have U.S. visas. They live in a three-story mansion in
the Beverly Hills subsection of Kingston. As the name
implies, this subsection is one of the wealthiest parts of
Jamaica indicating that the family could easily afford paid
labor. According to Bryant, the doctor wrote her mother in
Burma asking for her to help arrange sending a girl to work
for them. The doctor's mother contacted the victim's mother
and the victim was sent to Jamaica. The doctor, in addition
to not allowing the victim to leave the home unaccompanied,
has told the victim that she is in violation of her Jamaican
visa as she does not have the appropriate work permit. She
also had convinced the victim that if the police were to
discover her, she would be arrested, convicted of a crime,
and sent to prison. She has told the victim that she and her
family have taken her in "as a relative" and therefore, she
is a member of the doctor's family.

The Investigation
--------------


6. (C) While the GOJ has undertaken numerous raids against
massage parlors and other dubious businesses that advertise
for "pretty young women" since the passing of the Trafficking
in Persons (Prevention, Suppression and Punishment) Act, this
case represents the first real test of the Act. Both Palmer
and Bryant have commented that they couldn't have tested the
Act with a more complicated case had they tried. The victim
is socially, economically, culturally, and linguistically
segregated from Jamaica. She expresses strong desires to
return to the doctor - to an environment where she could
communicate, and, perhaps more importantly, had a degree of
certainty in her life. She has reported she has sisters and
parents in Burma, but if the reports are true, it was her
parents that sold her to the doctor. The IOM is,
understandably, reluctant to return her to Burma until the
entire situation with her family can be sorted out and they
are absolutely confident that either her parents didn't sell
her, or that she won't be resold. That leaves the victim
isolated in Jamaica. The GOJ seems quite aware of the
precarious position of the victim and Ms. Palmer speaks
frequently of her "social" needs and how the GOJ can best
provide them. Currently, she is unwilling to swear out a
statement. Thus, the GOJ and IOM are working together to
undertake as many contacts and interviews as necessary to
build trust with her. To that end, the GOJ and IOM have
utilized facilities at the UK High Commission to work with a
translator based in London. The U.S. Embassy has agreed to
work with the same translator in London to set-up a video
conference link as the victim has asked specifically to see
the face of the woman she is speaking with.

Comment:
--------------


7. (C) In a private conversation, Ms. Palmer confirmed that
the GOJ was proceeding with a plan to achieve Tier 1 status
by next year. This plan involves continuing a massive
crackdown on questionable businesses, opening new
investigations, and bringing as many cases to the courts as
are supported by evidence. This case, however, has clearly
become personal to all involved. Her concern for her cats,
her desire to return to her abusers, her childlike manner and
way of interacting with people have both touched and enraged
MOJ officials. Irrespective of Tier 1 status, it is clear
that this case will proceed whether the victim eventually
decides to sign a sworn statement or not. Already, MOJ

officials have been consulting on ways to convict the
traffickers without victim participation in the trial. Post
will continue to work with the MOJ and IOM on this case and
provide assistance where we are able.
JOHNSON