Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09BUENOSAIRES706
2009-06-17 22:10:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Buenos Aires
Cable title:  

SUBJECT: (C) ARGENTINA: FOREIGN MINISTER "VERY

Tags:  PREL KTIP KCRM ELAB PHUM KWMN SMIG KFRD ASEC 
pdf how-to read a cable
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RUEHNL RUEHQU RUEHRD RUEHRG RUEHRS RUEHTM RUEHVC
DE RUEHBU #0706/01 1682210
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 172210Z JUN 09
FM AMEMBASSY BUENOS AIRES
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3880
INFO RUEHWH/WESTERN HEMISPHERIC AFFAIRS DIPL POSTS PRIORITY
RHMFISS/DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RHMFISS/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BUENOS AIRES 000706 

SIPDIS

G/TIP FOR AMBASSADOR DE BACA, BARBARA FLECK
WHA/PPC FOR SCOTT MILLER
WHA/BSC FOR DRUCKER, FRIEDMAN, SHOWELL

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/16/2019
TAGS: PREL KTIP KCRM ELAB PHUM KWMN SMIG KFRD ASEC
PGOV, AR
SUBJECT: SUBJECT: (C) ARGENTINA: FOREIGN MINISTER "VERY
UPSET" ABOUT TIP REPORT

REF: BUENOS AIRES 0445 AND PREVIOUS

Classified By: CDA Tom Kelly for reasons 1.4 b and d

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BUENOS AIRES 000706

SIPDIS

G/TIP FOR AMBASSADOR DE BACA, BARBARA FLECK
WHA/PPC FOR SCOTT MILLER
WHA/BSC FOR DRUCKER, FRIEDMAN, SHOWELL

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/16/2019
TAGS: PREL KTIP KCRM ELAB PHUM KWMN SMIG KFRD ASEC
PGOV, AR
SUBJECT: SUBJECT: (C) ARGENTINA: FOREIGN MINISTER "VERY
UPSET" ABOUT TIP REPORT

REF: BUENOS AIRES 0445 AND PREVIOUS

Classified By: CDA Tom Kelly for reasons 1.4 b and d


1. (C) Summary. On the instructions of Argentine FM Jorge
Taiana, MFA Chief of Staff Alberto D'Alotto called CDA June
17 to express the GOA's irritation with the State
Department's Trafficking in Persons (TIP) report which placed
Argentina on the Tier 2 Watch List. D'Alotto said Taiana was
"very upset" with the report's "willfully ignorant" criticism
of GOA efforts to fight TIP. D'Alotto added that the
"excessively critical" USG report will make it more difficult
for the GOA to work with the USG to combat TIP. Although the
report did not make front-page news, Argentina's two leading
dailies focused on the negative aspects of the report and
their headlines used the word "harsh" to describe the report.
As noted in reftels, post remains concerned that failure to
recognize the GOA's notable efforts to combat TIP ultimately
undermines efforts to strengthen bilateral cooperation in
this important human rights and law enforcement issue. End
summary.

MFA Reaction: Ranking Argentina Lower than its Neighbors is
"Objectively False"
-------------- -


2. (C) MFA Chief of Staff Alberto D'Alotto called CDA June 17
to express the GOA's irritation with the State Department's
Trafficking in Persons (TIP) report which placed Argentina on
the Tier 2 Watch List. D'Alotto said that he was calling on
the instructions of Foreign Minister Jorge Taiana, who was in
New York. D'Alotto characterized Taiana as "very upset" with
Argentina's ranking on the Watch List and found it "hard to
understand" such critical comments on the GOA's efforts. He
said that Argentina does not deny the existence of a

trafficking problem in Argentina, but to put it in a lower
category than countries like Bolivia, Paraguay, Brazil, and
Central American countries, he said, was "unbelievable" and
"objectively false."


3. (C) Given that countries like Paraguay were longstanding
sources of trafficked women, D'Alotto said that Taiana
thought that the rankings indicated "a lack of regional
understanding" of the causes and scope of the problem and a
willful ignorance of GOA efforts over the last year to combat
trafficking. D'Alotto added that the "excessively critical"
report will complicate the efforts of those within the GOA
who want to work with the USG to combat TIP here. He added
that the USG, in its reliance on press reports, seemed to be
punishing Argentina for its tradition of investigative
journalism, which excels at uncovering problems. Countries
like Bolivia and Paraguay, he asserted, do not have the same
tradition, which may be why there is an abundance of stories
concerning the trafficking issue in Argentina.


4. (C) D'Alotto also said that more suspicious elements
within the GOA will be inclined to interpret the report's
release less than two weeks before Argentina's critical June
28 mid-term election as a political provocation. The CDA
cautioned against the public airing of this conspiratorial
thinking, pointing out that the report is always released at
the same time of year and reviews TIP policies all over the
world, not just in Argentina. A GOA claim of a USG
"operation" against Argentina would offend Washington.
D'Alotto took the point and said he did not expect that such
a view would be aired.

Local Press: TIP Report "Harsh on Argentina"
--------------


5. (SBU) Argentina's two leading newspapers "Clarin" and "La
Nacion" ran stories by their Washington correspondents on
June 17 with headlines that characterized the TIP report as
"harsh" on Argentina (which is doubtlessly what precipitated
the phone call to the CDA). Both articles carry basically
accurate descriptions of the text of the report but
concentrate on the negative. Although "Clarin" noted that
the report recognized Argentina's efforts to fight
trafficking, including passage of anti-TIP legislation and
efforts to arrest suspects as well as rescue and protect
victims, the article argued that "it appears the U.S.
Department of State believes that the Argentine Government is
only going through the motions since the report concludes
that the government is unable to demonstrate 'evidence of
progress.'"

BUENOS AIR 00000706 002 OF 002




6. (SBU) La Nacion's coverage personalized the report's
findings, saying "the Barack Obama administration has placed
Argentina on a 'watchlist' because it considers the country a
'source, transit, and destination for human trafficking.'"
It also stated that the report "signed by Secretary Hillary
Clinton" states that "the Cristina Kirchner-led government
'does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the
elimination' of this embarrassing trafficking situation."
Neither story ran prominently in their respective print
editions: "Clarin" buried its half-page piece on page 38, and
"La Nacion" ran a short half-column on page 20. Its
repercussions were non-existent on morning radio and TV.


7. (SBU) Argentina's second largest on-line news portal,
Infobae.com, had the most complete coverage of the report.
It explained that the report is done on an annual basis as
mandated by the U.S. Congress, and that Argentina has been on
Tier 2 watch list since 2006. It reported that the State
Department will soon downgrade to Tier 3 those countries that
remained on the watch list for two consecutive years. It
noted that a Tier 3 classification could result in sanctions
that could be waived by President Obama if it is deemed to be
in the national interest. The article closed by quoting
Secretary Clinton saying that "this is not a criticism of
past failures, but a guide for future progress."

Comment: Need More Carrots, Less Stick
--------------


8. (C) Post considers it a top priority to work with the GOA
to eliminate the scourge of TIP. Post has stressed to the
Department, however, that the failure to recognize GOA
efforts to combat TIP generates a backlash in the
nationalistic country, making it more difficult to secure GOA
commitment to work with us on this important human rights and
law enforcement issue. To a certain extent, these fears are
coming true. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as the agency
charged with coordinating the GOA's official response to our
annual TIP questionnaire, has been reluctant to provide this
information. In the end, we received a copy directly from
the Ministry of Justice. The MFA was equally reluctant to
provide similar information when we sent the Department of
Labor's annual questionnaire on child labor issues. Although
the Ministry of Labor assured us that they had forwarded the
completed questionnaire to the MFA, it would not send us the
response directly. Finally, it is our understanding that the
Argentine Embassy in Washington has boycotted the
Department's TIP briefing for the diplomatic community for a
second year in a row.


9. (C) As noted in reftels, our critical public reports on
TIP and a broad range of other issues have reinforced the
view here among the Argentine public that the USG sets itself
up unilaterally as police officer, judge, and jury on GOA
conduct and that, however much Argentines try, their best is
never good enough for us. Instead of singling out countries
like Argentina for problems they are trying to address, the
USG should find ways to praise governments that are genuinely
trying to fight the problem, even with the limited resources
available to them. Our success in moving the GOA to pass and
enforce anti-TIP legislation, and to go after traffickers and
rescue victims, is due in large part to our emphasis on
recognizing Argentina for what it does right, while offering
concrete assistance, such as law enforcement training, in
areas where they fall short.
KELLY