TIP AWARENESS TRAINING WELL-RECEIVED BY CAMBODIAN

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PHNOM PENH 000445 SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR EAP/MLS, G/TIP, IO, AND DRL USAID FOR ASIA BUREAU E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KWMN PHUM KPKO CB SUBJECT: TIP AWARENESS TRAINING WELL-RECEIVED BY CAMBODIAN DE-MINING TROOPS HEADED TO SUDAN REF: A. PHNOM PENH 179 CAMBODIA TIP LAW PASSED AND PROMULGATED ¶B. 07 STATE 75692 HUMAN RIGHTS VETTING FOR DE-MINING COMPANY 3 ¶1. (U) Summary: Cambodia's anti-human trafficking National Task Force (NTF) on May 30 provided a trafficking-in-persons training session to 115 Royal Cambodian Armed Forces troops who are headed to Sudan on a one-year de-mining mission. The de-miners are currently the only troops that Cambodia sends on peacekeeping or other similar missions abroad. The troops exhibited enthusiasm for the training, listening intently to the NTF-designated trainer, talking about their own experiences, and asking a number of pointed questions. The training helps Cambodia meet one of the newest Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) minimum standards: to address trafficking and exploitation associated with multinational peacekeepers. End Summary. Cambodia Provides Anti-TIP Training to De-miners -------------- -- ¶2. (SBU) On May 30, 115 Royal Cambodian Armed Forces (RCAF) de-mining troops at the Cambodia Training Mine/UXO Clearance Center (TMCC) received anti-trafficking-in-persons training from a National Task Force-designated trainer. The trainer, The Asia Foundation Program Officer Lim Siv Hong, provided a 45-minute session. She conveyed to the troops the Royal Government of Cambodia's strong commitment to combating TIP, including information about the NTF structure and its role in fighting trafficking; definitions of various types of TIP, including trafficking of women and children for sexual exploitation; and a brief overview of Cambodia's new anti-TIP law (Ref A). De-miners Engaged -------------- ¶3. (U) Lim Siv Hong said after the training that she was impressed by the troops' level of engagement at the session. During her opening comments, she asked the de-miners why they should care about trafficking-in-persons. One of the soldiers responded, "Because when we're on a mission, we want to know how to respect our laws and people's rights." Later, the unit commander stated that they have to be careful when they are in Sudan because the people there are also poor and may be vulnerable to trafficking there, too. Several times during the presentation, de-miners chimed in with stories they had heard or accounts of TIP in their own communities. They also asked informed questions such as, "Trafficking has been a problem for a long time in Cambodia, why was the NTF just established in 2007?" Lim Siv Hong responded that the government has realized that an interlinked, coordinated government structure to combat TIP is the most effective way to tackle the problem. The NTF provided to the troops copies of the new anti-TIP law and the national anti-TIP public awareness campaign flier. (SBU) U.S. Mission Connected the RGC Working Parts -------------- ¶4. (SBU) The Mission -- including ODC, USAID, and State Department officers -- helped facilitate communication between the NTF and the TMCC given our contacts with both. Both sides were eager to ensure the de-miners received the training, evidenced by the NTF and unit commanders' willingness to organize the training in a few days' time. National Task Force Chair and Ministry of Women's Affairs Secretary of State You Ay designated Lim Siv Hong, who has an extensive training background, to conduct the TIP session on behalf of the NTF. TMCC Director Sem Sovanny also pushed through approval on the RCAF side, communicating with his own superior after business hours. Comment -------------- ¶5. (SBU) The 115 De-mining Company 3 troops headed to Sudan next week are the only troops that Cambodia is planning to PHNOM PENH 00000445 002 OF 002 send on peacekeeping or other similar missions abroad this year. In addition to the RGC's own commitment to combat TIP, it is also conscious of TVPA minimum standard requirements. With the new 2008 standard that countries should attempt to address trafficking and exploitation associated with multinational peacekeepers, the NTF training is a laudable activity taking into account their quick response to the new standard. (Note: Cambodia is just over the numerical floor of troops deployed for the standard to kick in. End note.) Cambodia's anti-TIP training of its peacekeepers is also a timely activity on the world stage vis-a-vis a Save the Children report that gained wide international media coverage this week. Based on findings in three countries, the study found that peacekeepers and aid workers have perpetrated crimes of abuse and exploitation in war and disaster zones. We consider Cambodia's training activity today to be part of the solutions to such heinous crimes. CAMPBELL