TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS -- USG TRAINING ASSISTS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 JAKARTA 001435 SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, EAP/MLS, EAP/RSA, G/TIP, CA, CA/FPP, DS/IP/EAP, DS/CR/OCI INL FOR BOULDIN DOJ FOR CTS THORNTON, AAG SWARTZ ICITAP FOR TREVILLIAN/BARR E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM KWMN ID SUBJECT: TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS -- USG TRAINING ASSISTS RESCUE AND ARRESTS REF: 07 JAKARTA 3146 JAKARTA 00001435 001.2 OF 002 ¶1. (U) This message is Sensitive but Unclassified -- Please handle accordingly. ¶2. (SBU) SUMMARY: On July 19, Indonesian National Police (INP) rescued 111 Indonesian women and girls from three Jakarta establishments involved in prostitution. The District Police Chief told us that the three individuals arrested will be charged with trafficking in persons and other crimes. USG training assisted the rescue and arrests. END SUMMARY. RESCUE/ARRESTS IN JAKARTA ¶3. (SBU) The GOI has just completed a major Trafficking in Persons (TIP) rescue. Officers from the West Jakarta police sector raided three local establishments on July 19. During the operation, the INP arrested three Indonesians for operating forced prostitution rings and TIP. The police rescued 111 Indonesian women and girls (ages 16-17). The three individuals arrested have not yet been formally arraigned, but will most likely be charged with operating prostitution businesses and trafficking in persons, according to Wirdanto Hadicoksono, the Head of the Criminal Intelligence Division of the West Jakarta police sector. USG TRAINING PLAYS ROLE ¶4. (SBU) USG training paid dividends in assisting the rescue/arrest process. While interviewing the women and girls involved, the police realized that some had been held against their will--the victims of forced marriages or otherwise. The officer-in-charge immediately contacted the regional police command for assistance. The Regional Head of the CID, Major Suyudi Setosent, sent one of his police officers to assist with the interviews. This female officer had just completed a DOJ International Criminal Investigation Training Assistance Program (ICITAP),Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) and Consular Affairs course. The officer was able to confirm the evidence of trafficking thanks in large part to the USG training she had just received. TIP TRAINING COURSES ¶5. (U) The five-day TIP course provides police and prosecutors with focused training on international law, counterfeit document recognition, investigation techniques and methods to apply Indonesia's trafficking laws when the cases go to trial (the law was introduced in 2007). During the course, the officials also learn from DSS, ICITAP and the Consular Affairs Fraud Prevention Unit a holistic perspective on the local, national and regional implications of human trafficking and how it affects the victims and their families. ¶6. (U) The course has been held twice this year (June and July) with 25 police officers and 10 prosecutors attending each session. There are three more sessions scheduled for ¶2008. POLICE PROACTIVE AGAINST TRAFFICKING ¶7. (SBU) This latest police action against trafficking highlights the continuing problem and the proactive steps the INP is taking to address it. As outlined above, for example, USG training is assisting the effort. Our training is often JAKARTA 00001435 002.2 OF 002 the first opportunity that most police get to learn about the problem and how to deal with it. HUME