MALAYSIA PASSES COMPREHENSIVE ANTI-TRAFFICKING IN

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KUALA LUMPUR 000834

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, G AND G/TIP

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM PGOV PREL KCRM MY
SUBJECT: MALAYSIA PASSES COMPREHENSIVE ANTI-TRAFFICKING IN
PERSONS LAW

REF: A. KUALA LUMPUR 753 - TIP BILL IN PARLIAMENT


B. KUALA LUMPUR 788 - TIP PROJECT PROPOSALS

C. 06 STATE 144327 - ACTION PLAN FOR MALAYSIA

Summary
--------------


1. (SBU) Malaysia's House of Representatives on May 10 passed
a comprehensive anti-trafficking in persons (TIP) law,
representing a significant breakthrough for anti-trafficking
efforts and the achievement of our highest priority objective
in the U.S. action plan for Malaysia. The new law provides a
robust definition of trafficking and very serious penalties
for traffickers, including confiscation of assets, and
establishes mechanisms for the care and protection of
victims. While not perfect, the bill represents a dramatic
step forward in Malaysia's commitment to fighting
trafficking, and its drafting and passage of the law in such
rapid fashion indicates that Malaysia has recognized it must
take significant measures to comply with international
standards. Our diplomatic efforts in Malaysia are achieving
results. For the next phase, we seek Washington funding for
recently submitted TIP projects that would give us a
constructive role in supporting implementation of the new
anti-trafficking law. End Summary.

Malaysia Prioritizes TIP Bill
--------------


2. (U) Malaysia's House of Representatives passed a
comprehensive anti-trafficking in persons (TIP) bill on May

10. The government, which began drafting the legislation in
December 2006, introduced the anti-TIP bill in Parliament on
April 24 (ref A) and quickly pushed this to the top of
Parliament's agenda. Endorsement by the unelected Senate is
a mere formality and is expected to occur before the Senate
recesses on May 24. The bill would then be forwarded to the
King for formal enactment in June.


3. (U) The new law, styled the Anti-Trafficking in Persons
Act 2007, consists of 67 sections and is divided into six
parts (the text of the law is available on the Department's
intranet at http://kualalumpur.state.gov/misc/TIP Law.pdf).
The first part is generally administrative and defines the
scope of the law, provides for the extraterritoriality of its
measures and discusses conflict of law issues.

National Task Force
--------------


4. (U) The second section of the law orders the creation of
a national "Council for Anti-Trafficking in Persons,"
equivalent to the interagency task force set up under our own
Trafficking Victims Protection Act (2000). This council is
organized on the same premise as our interagency task force
and is to include up to three members of interested NGOs or
civil society organizations appointed by the Minister of
Internal Security (in this case the Prime Minister or his
Deputy Minister of Internal Security). This part implements
the national task force envisioned in the National Human
Rights Commission (SUHAKAM) report of 2004 that is often
referenced by Washington offices in their evaluations and
annual reports.

Robust Definitions, Heavy Penalties
--------------


5. (U) The third part defines the offense of trafficking in
persons and defines victims of trafficking. The law sets
minimum sentencing guidelines of 15 years for trafficking for
the purpose of exploitation. Other forms of trafficking are
defined and mandatory sentences of three to twenty years are
set out -- consistent with the maximum twenty year sentences
provided for in the U.S. TVPA. The definitions in the new
law are extensive and include far more than the UN minimum
definitions of fraud, force or coercion. This represents one
of the strongest sections of the law and far exceeds the
expectations of local NGOs and activists. The law
specifically excludes sexual history as an indicator of a
victim's status, and recognizes that victimization may occur
even for persons who knowingly entered into the commercial
sex trade. Victims are statutorily immune from prosecution
for immigration violations that are a direct consequence of
their becoming a trafficking victim.

Enforcement and Asset Forfeiture
--------------


KUALA LUMP 00000834 002 OF 002



6. (U) The fourth section concerns enforcement, arrest,
search and seizure, and prosecution. The law provides for
the forfeiture of property used or acquired by trafficking
offenses, much like our drug laws in America provide for drug
traffickers to have their property seized. The law
criminalizes the act of tipping-off the traffickers to
pending police action. This can be a great tool in curbing
police corruption or involvement in protecting traffickers
and assisting them in avoiding arrest. Again, this part of
the Anti-Trafficking bill appears at least as complete as our
own law, and exceeds the minimum expectations of the UN
Protocol.

Victims and the Question of Refuge
--------------


7. (SBU) The fifth part of the law is entitled "Care and
Protection of Trafficked Persons." This section of law
varies greatly from the protections and services afforded
victims rescued in the United States. The law provides that
a person suspected of being a victim may be remanded to a
refuge for 14 days to determine their actual status as a
victim, and then may be "placed under protective custody" for
a term of three months at the shelter. Services are to be
provided to the victims, including medical care, but the
length of custody is set, and it is unclear whether victims
may be repatriated prior to the end of those three months.
The law criminalizes the act of assisting a victim to escape
from a shelter. The law basically codifies the "protective
custody" system currently used by the NGO Tenaganita and
various embassies at their local shelters. Our discussions
with a member of the drafting team indicate this was the best
solution the Attorney General's Office could reach given the
domestic political situation in which immigrants and refugees
are third rail racial issues and in which the GOM seeks to
prevent the establishment of pull factors attracting more
undocumented migrant laborers. The institution of federal
regulations under the law will provide more insight into how
the law will be implemented at the places of refuge. The
extent and quality of services provided at shelters also will
be important. When the government introduced the bill,
Women's Minister Shahrizat noted the GOM's intention to
establish the first of the "half-way houses" within several
months of the law's passage in order to protect victims (ref
A).

Protecting Victims' Identities
--------------


8. (U) The sixth and final section of the law provides
protections for victim identity and deals with the
admissibility of evidence at trial. The act includes notes
delineating drafter's intent and identifies the UN Protocol
to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons as the
basis for Malaysia's law.

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


9. (SBU) Our TIP Action Plan for Malaysia (ref C) calls for
Malaysia to "begin drafting comprehensive anti-trafficking
legislation." Malaysia has far exceeded this goal. The
fast-track drafting, tabling and passage of the bill shows
great movement on the part of the Malaysian government, which
has publicly heralded this bill's importance for the nation
in all its major newspapers. The law represents a striking
change in the GOM's previous positions and a new recognition
that Malaysia must take serious steps to comply with
international standards on combating trafficking in persons.
Implementation of the law will constitute a major task. We
will watch closely the application of the law as it pertains
to victim protection and places of refuge. We intend to
employ existing, modest DOJ/ICITAP resources to assist
Malaysian police and prosecutors with some initial training.
To support implementation of the law at national and local
levels, Post requests Washington's priority consideration of
other NGO project proposals that we recently submitted for
funding (ref B).
LAFLEUR