NIGERIA: SOUTHEAST NAPTIP ZONAL OFFICE GROWING IN

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 LAGOS 000202 SIPDIS STATE PASS TO DOJ, KYAMOAH E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ELAB KCRM KWMN PGOV PHUM SMIG SOCI NI SUBJECT: NIGERIA: SOUTHEAST NAPTIP ZONAL OFFICE GROWING IN CAPACITY ¶1. (SBU) Summary: In an April 15 meeting, the Director of the Southeast National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) office told PolOffs child and infant trafficking to augment family size, obtain domestic help and for ritual purposes, is growing. Revised adoption policies, passage of Child Rights Acts in four of the five Southeast states, and the establishment of family courts in Abia and Anambra have helped to combat trafficking. The Southeast office's efforts to coordinate with other Nigerian government agencies on trafficking issues were among the better we have encountered. End Summary. -------------- Child Trafficking on the Rise -------------- ¶2. (SBU) Ijeoma Okoronkwo, Director of the Southeast National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) zonal office, told PolOffs on April 15 that child and infant trafficking in the Southeast fo the purposes of adoption, domestic work, and allegedly for use in rituals, is increasing. Okoronkwo emphasized that the NAPTIP office's capacity to effectively handle the situation is also increasing as they become more aware of new trafficking trends. ¶3. (SBU) Societal pressure on families to have children has caused an increase in infant and young child trafficking, especially to the Southwest, Okoronkwo said. In addition, legal adoptions are free, adoption laws are complex and poorly understood, and many people who are not aware of this option also purchase children to add to their families to address the societal pressures, Okoronkwo stated. The Ministry of Women's Affairs is reexamining current adoption policies and implementing adherence programs. Okoronkwo also noted that local customs can blur the definitions of trafficking and exacerbate the cultural debate about anti-trafficking efforts. Although 18 is the minimum age for domestic employees under Nigerian law, under local custom poor families often send their children as young as five to live with wealthier relatives or neighbors, making the distinction between domestic help and intra-family charity difficult to discern. Poverty and lack of awareness further exacerbate the conditions that allow trafficking to flourish, especially in rural areas, the main sector where victims come from. As a result, economic empowerment for the rural areas is a priority for her office, Okoronkwo said, although she has no resources to dedicate to that effort. In addition, community watches have been set up to detect and report trafficking, but more work needs to be done to draw local women's organizations into the anti-trafficking struggle, she stated. Okoronkwo concluded that until trafficking becomes a high risk and low profit venture, it will continue. ¶4. (SBU) Four of the five southeast states (Ebonyi, Abia, Imo, and Anambra, excluding Enugu) have passed child rights legislation, which can be used to further protect underage trafficking victims by strengthening cases against traffickers and enforcing the rights of victims. However, awareness of this law is low, said Okoronkwo. The Ministry of Women's Affairs has convened a Child Rights Law Implementation Committee to help address these issues. Family courts, another mechanism to protect underage victims and ensure speedy justice, have been established in Abia and Anambra. In Enugu, the previous Assembly considered but did not pass Child Rights legislation before the end of the term. The current Assembly may take up the matter this year, Okoronkwo said. -------------- Southeast NAPTIP Growing in Capacity -------------- ¶5. (SBU) Established in June 2006, the Southeast zonal office, like other zonal NAPTIP offices, is hampered by inadequate and irregular funding, Okoronkwo told PolOffs. Its eight investigators lack resources and face an increasing work load. In December 2007, the office opened a shelter to house victims, and holding cells for male and female traffickers were refurbished. The NAPTIP office provides counseling and vocational training for victims. Since its inception, the office has received 60 reports of trafficking, investigated 42 of those, and obtained two convictions of those cases that went to court, Okoronkwo stated. Six more cases are currently being tried. Current investigations involve hotels in Enugu and Abia that keep prostitutes on call for customers and a neonatal unit of a nearby hospital accused of selling babies. ¶6. (SBU) Okoronkwo characterized NAPTIP's working relationship with the Ministry of Women's Affairs as good and said NAPTIP works well with the police, although the constant rotation of police leadership means it takes considerable effort to maintain that relationship. State-level stakeholder meetings occur quarterly, Okoronkwo claimed, although budget constraints limit the number of people who can participate. The Ebonyi and Enugu stakeholders (police, state LAGOS 00000202 002 OF 002 commissions, NGOs, and community leaders) are especially good at reporting to her, Okoronkwo stated, but Abia's stakeholders are more difficult to get together. ¶7. (SBU) Comment: Although the newest of the NAPTIP zonal offices, the Southeast office appears have a sophisticated approach to the region's particular trafficking patterns. While poverty alleviation is a crucial part of addressing the issue, the office clearly lacks the resources to implement needed programs. The Southeast zonal office's efforts to maintain good relationships with other government entities and stakeholders were better than many we have encountered. End Comment. This cable has been cleared by Embassy Abuja. HUDSON