MAHARASHTRA COURT CONVICTS TRAFFICKER

UNCLAS NEW DELHI 003264 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PHUM GTIP IN SUBJECT: MAHARASHTRA COURT CONVICTS TRAFFICKER ¶1. (U) Tamil Nadu-based nongovernmental organization (NGO) Freedom Firm notified post of its first successful conviction in a trafficking in persons (TIP) case in a Pune, Maharashtra court. Freedom Firm infiltrates likely trafficking destinations and informs police when a potential trafficking victim has been found. Police then conduct a raid to rescue the victim. ¶2. (U) In March 2007, Freedom Firm's Somling Kamble and James Varghese received a tip-off that a minor had been forced into prostitution in the red-light district of Budhwar Peth, Pune. The NGO workers assisted sub-inspector Gajanan Pawar of the Faraskhana police in the rescue of the victim -- a 16-year-old girl of Nepalese descent. An unidentified woman had kidnapped the victim from her home in Kolkata and sold her to Sonam Roy, a Nepalese brothel-owner in Pune. Police arrested Roy under the Prevention of Immoral Trafficking Act and relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code. ¶3. (U) The trial lasted from February to December 2008 -- speedy by Indian standards. Public Prosecutor C.G. Kulkarni, assisted by Freedom Firm's appointed attorney Rohit Takawane, examined six witnesses to establish Roy's guilt. Freedom Firm's Director of Legal Strategy Glen Park's noted that the victim repeatedly tried to give NGO workers "the slip" out of fear to face her trafficker; however, she proved to be a strong witness. On December 20, Judge T.M. Jahagirdhar sentenced Roy to five years "rigorous imprisonment" for forcing a minor into prostitution. ¶4. (SBU) Parks remarked that the NGO rescues "quite a few" girls out of prostitution, but convictions are rare. He believes that several unique factors contributed to the success of this case, namely the "foreign factor," widespread bias against Nepalis in India that worked against Roy. More practically, as an outsider she had few contacts in Pune and could not bribe officials and witnesses with the same ease as other brothel owners. Parks added that the expedited trial also assisted Freedom Firm's legal team. Comment - while the circumstances of this case are unique, we hope the moderate media attention the conviction garnered will emphasize to NGOs, law enforcement, and the judiciary in India that each victory against TIP matters. End Comment. MULFORD