COUNTRY CLEARANCE FOR CODEL NELSON AND STAFF

UNCLAS LIMA 000452 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR H DEPARTMENT FOR RM/F/DFS/FO/AA/CAA E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OREP AMGT ASEC AFIN CO BL EC SC NU PE SUBJECT: COUNTRY CLEARANCE FOR CODEL NELSON AND STAFF REF: STATE 15976 ¶1. (U) The Embassy grants country clearance for the visit to Peru of Senator Bill Nelson, Mrs. Grace Nelson, Caroline Tess, Sherry Davich, and Capt. Gene Moran from February 21-23, ¶2007. Senator Nelson, Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC),will lead a CODEL on official business to Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Ecuador and Peru. Rooms within per diem ($140 plus 10% service tax) have been reserved at the Swissotel Lima. Address: Via Central 150 Centro Empresarial Real, San Isidro, Tel. 511 421-4400, Fax: 511 421-4422, website: www.lima.swissotel.com. POC: Rosana Martinez, Sales Manager. When departing Lima by air, the Republic of Peru imposes an airport departure tax on any outbound passenger of 30.25 USD for international flights and 6.05 USD for domestic flights. ¶2. POINT OF CONTACT, TELEPHONE NUMBERS, ADDRESS Point of contact for the visit is Political Officer David Brooks, office telephone number (51)(1)618-2515, cellular telephone (51)(1)9-678-0355, e-mail: brooksdc2@state.gov. Embassy after-hours direct line for Marine Security Guard is (51)(1)618-2936. The Embassy address is Av. La Encalada, Cuadra 17, in the Monterrico Sur Section of Lima. Control officer should be notified as soon as possible upon arrival in country if you are not met at the airport. ¶3. PASSPORT/VISAS: To ensure full protection for travelers, the mission requires that all visitors eligible for official/diplomatic passports use them with appropriate visa. Travelers should not use tourist passports. In exceptional cases where official travelers must use tourist passports/visas, specific authorization must be obtained in advance. DOD personnel on personal travel must use a tourist passport. If official visitors arrive via military ship, a passport is not required unless the individual is required to exit Peru via commercial or military air. ¶4. SECURITY: Country clearance is granted for travel to non-Embassy restricted areas only. Visitors who plan to travel to Embassy restricted areas must request Post approval upon arrival. The State Department has designated Peru as high threat for indigenous terrorism, medium threat for transnational terrorism and political violence, and critical threat for crime. Two terrorist groups operate in Peru: Sendero Luminoso (SL) and Movimiento Revolucionario Tupac Amaru (MRTA). Both organizations continue to be potential threats and have targeted U.S. facilities in the past. Due to GOP efforts, the activities of the SL and MRTA have been greatly reduced and are now largely confined to rural areas. Overland travel outside of Lima and other large cities during the hours of darkness is prohibited due to unsafe road conditions and the threat of armed criminals. Terrorist groups operate with relative impunity in some interior areas and are known to target vehicular traffic. Crime is a serious problem in metropolitan Lima and popular tourist areas such as Arequipa, Cuzco, and Machu Picchu. Most crimes involve petty theft, pickpocketing, bag slashing, grab-and-run, and theft from occupied and unoccupied vehicles. More violent crimes include armed robbery, carjacking, and choke-and-rob. Criminals frequently react violently when resistance is encountered. In almost all instances it is advisable not to offer resistance. Most areas of downtown Lima are dangerous and should be avoided during the hours of darkness. Visitors are cautioned to remain alert to their surroundings at all times, particularly when in crowded areas, such as on public transportation, at outdoor markets, and at tourist sites. Countermeasures against crime also protect against terrorism. Special care should be exercised at the Jorge Chavez International Airport in Callao. Criminals frequent this area, especially at night, and are known to target foreigners both inside and outside the terminal. ¶5. ICASS TDY Policy and Action Request: Each visitor, regardless of length of stay, must bring/forward fiscal data to pay for direct costs of the visit. Each agency, organization, or visiting delegation will be charged for the actual costs attributed to their visit. Direct charge costs include, but are not limited to: American and LES staff overtime (e.g., expediter, accommodation exchange, representational event support), field travel-lodging and M&IE by Embassy employees, vehicle rentals, long distance telephone calls, equipment rentals, office supplies and all other costs that are directly attributable to the visit. If your sponsoring agency is not signed up for ICASS services at post, please be prepared to sign a MOU for ICASS support services upon arrival. The agency should provide post with a written communication, generated by the traveler's headquarters that confirms the agency will pay ICASS charges for the TDYers, provides the agency ICASS billing code the TDY support charges should be applied to, and authorizes the traveler to sign the ICASS invoice generated by the TDY module. Where travel is urgent, the TDYers should bring this documentation with them to ensure there are no interruptions in the provision of service. ¶6. HEALTH CONCERNS: Travelers to the jungle areas of Peru should have up-to-date yellow fever vaccine and malaria prophylaxis for chloroquine-resistant strains of malaria. Primary prevention against malaria and dengue fever includes avoiding the mosquito vectors of these diseases: using insect repellant, appropriate protective clothing, and bed netting. Hepatitis A and B vaccinations are strongly recommended for all persons before coming to Peru. Rabies is present in country, and those individuals whose work and/or leisure activities might expose them to wild animals or feral dogs should consider receiving the rabies vaccine. Travelers diarrhea/dysentery is quite common in Peru. Visitors should substitute bottled beverages for potentially contaminated water. Fish, shellfish, and vegetables should not be eaten unless well cooked, and all food should be eaten while still hot. Fruits with a peel are generally safe, provided they are peeled before being eaten. Typhoid vaccine is also recommended. Cholera is endemic in Peru and disease rates reach high levels from January to May--the same food and bottled water precautions apply. Travelers planning to travel to high altitude areas of Peru, such as Cuzco, Machu Picchu, and Puno, should consult with their health care provider first, and be fully aware of the health dangers of high altitudes and measures to minimize these dangers. ¶7. MEDICAL CLEARANCES: It is important to understand that if an employee is at a post without a medical clearance and the embassy medical provider determines that the employee has a condition that cannot be adequately cared for at that post, the employee may not be granted access to the embassy medical unit. Moreover, an employee at post without a medical clearance is not/not covered under M/MED for medical evacuation. While M/MED cannot provide MEDEVAC coverage for TDY employees without full clearances, private MEDEVAC insurance is available at reasonable cost and the employee is strongly encouraged to purchase the insurance. Private air ambulance medevacs can cost upwards of $100,000. In addition, it is important for the employee to review private health insurance coverage. Many HMO type policies do not cover hospitalization costs incurred outside of the USA. The employee will need to have a policy type that will reimburse them for medical expenses overseas. Contractors or other long-term TDY employees who are not direct-hire USG employees are not covered under the Department of State Medical Program and so would, in general, fit under the guidelines above for TDY employees without a medical clearance. They are not covered by M/MED for medevac and should be covered by medevac insurance through their contracting company. Access of these employees to the embassy medical units is a post decision made by the Chief of Mission or his designate acting upon the advice of the Regional Medical Officer. Please contact the Embassy Health Unit for further details. Employees working TDY for less than 60 cumulative days annually are not required to have medical clearances and are not covered under the procedures above. Unfortunately these short-term TDY employees frequently may have significant health problems that may be exacerbated by overseas travel or work and that may require a level of medical care that is not available at the post where the TDY employees are working. As with any international traveler on personal or business travel, these employees should consult with their personal physician regarding the safety or advisability of this travel. STRUBLE