JAMAICAN OFFICIALS ADDRESS PREVENTION, PROTECTION, AND

UNCLAS KINGSTON 001014

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM SOCI PGOV KTIP JM XL
SUBJECT: JAMAICAN OFFICIALS ADDRESS PREVENTION, PROTECTION, AND
PROSECUTION IN TIP CASES


1. On November 22 poloff spoke at a panel discussion on trafficking
in persons (TIP) hosted by local NGO Woman, Inc. The discussion,
one of several themed talks over a two-day trade fair/fundraiser for
the NGO, featured Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Lisa Palmer
Hamilton, Director of the NGO PACT Sheila Nicholson, and Jennifer
Williams, an official in the Government of Jamaica's Bureau of
Women's Affairs. The other three panelists discussed prevention of
trafficking, protection of victims, and prosecution of perpetrators.
Poloff explained the origins of the G/TIP Bureau, the Trafficking
Victims Protection Act (TVPA),and the tier ranking system for the
annual TIP Report. The audience consisted of 30 or so persons, many
of whom were local NGO activists attending the event to support
Woman, Inc.


2. The Jamaican panelists highlighted efforts to prevent trafficking
in persons, including NGO outreach to schools and editorials placed
in local papers. In October, the Gleaner, a prominent daily
newspaper, featured an article outlining the dangers of trafficking
and advising parents on how best to protect their children. In
addition, following the November 22 panel discussion, the
Independent Actors' Guild performed a skit demonstrating the perils
of trafficking. The group has performed the play at several venues
around Jamaica.


3. In terms of victim protection, the GOJ has begun building two
shelters to supplement the shelters run by Woman, Inc. and similar
NGOs. Valerie Moodie, the president of Woman, Inc., is a member of
the Jamaican national Task Force on TIP. In a private conversation
with poloff on November 24, she said her organization and several
others had offered guidelines as a model for the government
shelters. During the November 22 panel, DPP Hamilton also noted
that her office is working to implement a system of video testimony,
which will allow trafficking victims to record their testimony for
the court and not be forced to confront their abusers.


4. In a private discussion with poloff prior to the panel, Hamilton
discussed the November 11 conviction of two men for conspiracy to
traffic in persons. The men were sentenced to twelve months in
prison each. The case, which was widely reported in the media,
involved these men offering to procure a fourteen year-old girl for
a foreign visitor. The tourist, who was conducting research on TIP,
contacted the police's anti-TIP unit, and together they set up a
sting operation to catch the perpetrators. According to Hamilton,
the men were charged under the trafficking statutes of the Child
Protection Act. She explained that the updated 2007 anti-TIP law
could not be invoked because the crime occurred in 2006, so the new
law could not be applied ex post facto. Nevertheless, she said,
there are currently four other trafficking cases in the courts, and
her office works closely with the police TIP unit to advise and
bring accused traffickers to trial.

JOHNSON