Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09HANOI179
2009-02-27 10:13:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Hanoi
Cable title:  

2009 TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS REPORT - VIETNAM - PART 3 of

Tags:  KTIP KCRM PHUM KWMN SMIG KFRD ASEC PREF ELAB VM 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO4558
RR RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM RUEHNH
DE RUEHHI #0179/01 0581013
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 271013Z FEB 09
FM AMEMBASSY HANOI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 9207
INFO RUEHHM/AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH 5615
RUCNASE/ASEAN MEMBER COLLECTIVE
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC
RUEAWJA/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHINGTON DC
RHMFIUU/DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY WASHINGTON DC
RUEHC/DEPT OF LABOR WASHINGTON DC
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 09 HANOI 000179

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

STATE FOR G/TIP, G-ACBlank, INL, DRL, PRM, EAP/MLS, and EAP/RSP,
USAID/ANE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KTIP KCRM PHUM KWMN SMIG KFRD ASEC PREF ELAB VM

SUBJECT: 2009 TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS REPORT - VIETNAM - PART 3 of
3

HANOI 00000179 001.2 OF 009



G. Numbers of TIP Victims Indentified

MOLISA and the VWU reported that in 2008, there were over 3,000 TIP
victim returnees (identified officially or informally),of which 80
percent were provided government assistance. The GVN claimed to
have resettled and reintegrated 310 individuals out of the 410
officially identified returnees in 2008. The official number of
returnees represents a slight decrease in the officially reported
number from 2007 of 450 returning victims. However, MOLISA and
VWU's combined number of officially identified victims and those
identified outside the official system is significantly higher and
reflects the GVN's growing recognition of the scale of the problem.
Both NGOs and government officials acknowledge that this number of
victims is still apt to be conservative.


H. Identification of Victims by Immigration, Law Enforcement and
Social Services

In May 2008, the GVN enacted Inter-Ministerial Circular 03 between,
MFA, MPS, and the Border Guard. The document defines cross-border
TIP victims, delineates responsibility for identifying victims and
establishes procedures for referring victims to care upon return to
Vietnam. Also in May, the MPS Immigration Department issued
Decision 2068 on the issuance of forms used for trafficked women and
children returning from overseas.

Under the new regulations, women and children are identified as
victims of cross-border trafficking for the purposes of exploitation
(forced commercial sex or other forms of sexual exploitation, forced
labor or services, slavery, or removal of body organs) if they are
forced or the threat of force is used against them, they are
kidnapped and taken across borders, or they are cheated, taken
advantage of, or taken overseas in exchange for other material
interest (i.e. sold).

The regulation tasks different government offices with the
responsibility for officially identifying victims, depending on the

victims' circumstances:

-- The MPS Department of Immigration, in cooperation with the border
province MPS Immigration Department, is responsible for identifying
victims who return through bilateral arrangements with another
country.

-- Vietnamese diplomatic representatives overseas are responsible
for identifying victims who are discovered while still overseas.

-- The Border Guard at border crossings is responsible for
identifying victims who are rescued or freely return via the land
border.

-- Provincial MPS Department of Immigration in the victim's home
province are responsible for identifying victims who have returned
home without entering via an official border crossing or without
having been identified as a victim at the official border crossing
(e.g. cases that come to light after the victim returns home).

This is a positive development; however, as with the new referral
system put in place by the same Circular, the official
identification system is only just beginning to be effective. A
senior MOLISA official acknowledged that the system will continue to
experience significant growing pains as officials are trained and
advised of their responsibilities. One gap, as identified by NGOs
and international organizations, is that the definition and
identification system does not include victims of internal
trafficking. GVN officials recognize this, but insist that in
practice internal trafficking victims are provided the same services
as cross-border victims.


I. Respect for Victims' Rights

Trafficking survivors returning to Vietnam are not detained,
arrested or placed in protective custody against their will. The
GVN routinely sends prostitutes to "rehabilitation centers" where
they receive medical care and vocational training during a period of
detention. Trafficking survivors are not sent to these centers
unless they are caught engaging in prostitution after their return
to Vietnam. MOLISA officials report that trafficking victims have
the opportunity to enter a prostitute rehabilitation center
voluntarily to take advantage of the medical care and vocational
training, but that this is very rare due to the social and cultural

HANOI 00000179 002.2 OF 009


stigma associated with prostitution.

Victims of internal trafficking for prostitution run the risk of
being sent to rehabilitation centers. However, police and local
government officials in Danang, Ho Chi Minh City, and other
provinces in Vietnam state that the most likely outcome for a victim
of internal trafficking caught up in an anti-prostitution sweep
would be to be sent back to her home village or district. NGOs
reported that interviews with victims bear this out.

Post has no information indicating that returned trafficking victims
in Vietnam are treated as criminals. In all official meetings,
conferences and seminars, and in the press, returnees are referred
to as "victims." Our own conversations with trafficking victims
also support this. The Director of MOJ's Legal Aid Agency advocated
changing the law explicitly to acknowledge the victim status of
returnees and the GVN's recent efforts to define, identify, and
refer victims to care suggest that the need to avoid
"re-victimizing" the victim is one aspects of trafficking better
understood by the GVN.


J. Victims' Participation in Investigations and Prosecutions

According to the MOJ, trafficking victims in Vietnam are encouraged
to assist in the investigation and prosecution process. They are
also encouraged to file suit against the traffickers. Article 31 of
the Criminal Procedures Code explicitly states the right of any
Vietnamese citizen to make complaints or statements during criminal
proceedings.

The Vietnam Women's Union has worked with courts at the local levels
to help victims prosecute traffickers and to protect witnesses.
Staff at assessment centers and shelters stated that victims are
encouraged to participate in legal action against their traffickers.
An MPS official in Can Tho stated that his office consistently
requested victim participation in investigations, but found that
many victims still wish to remain anonymous. There is no data
available as to the number of victims who were involved in case
prosecutions although, based on media reports, it is believed to be
growing.

Recent export labor laws and their related implementing documents
provide some recourse to victims of labor-based trafficking,
although bureaucratic inertia and a lack of resources for victims
continue to be challenges. MOLISA is actively negotiating MOUs with
labor destination countries, although not all destination countries
have been equally cooperative.

If a court ruling is against an employer (for example, the employer
is sentenced to imprisonment),then compensation will be awarded to
the victim by the court, including back pay. Article 29 of the
Criminal Procedures Code establishes the right to compensation and
the restoration of reputation and other benefits for the victims of
injustice, including trafficking. In reality, victims of
international labor trafficking often encounter indifference when
they attempt to seek redress or request that government officials
investigate their cases.

Victims may leave Vietnam in accordance with emigration regulations.
Witness protection is made available, as necessary (see section
5.A).


K. Training for GVN Officials in Identifying Victims and Providing
Assistance to Victims

The GVN, working with UNODC, UNICEF (focusing on child trafficking)
and the VWU, has provided significant anti-TIP training to MPS
Police, Border Guard Command and court officials, in particular over
the last three years. The USG has supported this training through
anti-TIP programs funded under USAID and the Department of State.
During the reporting period, UNODC solicited donor support for a
follow-on project to build the capacity of Vietnam's justice system
and social services to adequately protect and assist victims, build
referral mechanisms, enhance rehabilitation and reintegration for
victims, and address legal assistance issues, including compensation
and other legal recourse for victims.

In 2008, in addition to other GVN courses, MOLISA conducted training
courses on victim assistance, which included psychological support
services, a component which has often been lacking. Both MOLISA and
the VWU have produced numerous training documents and are conducting

HANOI 00000179 003.2 OF 009


information and education campaigns across the country. Both
organizations continue to work closely with international
organizations IOM and ILO in this area and counterparts in China,
Cambodia, and Thailand under the established anti-TIP MOUs.

The MFA regularly intervened to provide assistance in cases of
Vietnamese TIP victims trapped overseas, and Vietnamese Embassies
had some financial resources to assist with sheltering and
repatriation. MFA also worked with MPS in securing travel
documentation in such cases.

The GVN continued to increase the number of labor attaches sent to
embassies located in countries that have the largest number of
Vietnamese workers. These attaches are responsible for working with
the local authorities, the employers of Vietnamese workers and other
Embassy staff members to monitor labor conditions and intervene on
behalf of Vietnamese workers if necessary. They also play a role in
MOLISA's drive to negotiate export labor MOUs and bilateral
agreements with all Vietnamese labor destination countries. In
addition, these officers have access to a fund that can be used to
help Vietnamese workers who find themselves in a difficult situation
(such as an abusive workplace, or a bankrupt employer) to go home.
While this provides an important protection for workers while
overseas, this fund does not address compensation issues once the
worker returns to Vietnam.

MFA consular officers receive training on trafficking in persons as
part of their regular training program. In addition, MFA officers
assigned to Taiwan and Korea receive special briefings on working
with Vietnamese women who are married to men from those countries.
These officials do not hesitate to work with local or international
NGOs, as needed.


L. Assistance to Repatriated Victims of Trafficking

In January 2007, the GVN issued Decision No. 17, on receiving and
providing assistance to TIP victims returning from abroad and
reintegrating them into their communities. The regulation assures
rights, legitimate interests, dignity and non-discrimination for
trafficking victims and provides for living skills, vocational
training and financial aid, depending on circumstances. The GVN
also specifically allocated funds for such activities. As mentioned
previously in this report, new regulations now govern the referral
of victims to care (see section 5.5.F) and, in accordance with the
NPA, MOLISA and the VWU share responsibility for longer term care of
trafficking victims (see section 5.E).

The VWU has facilitated training of the Border Guard Command on how
to identify, process, and support trafficking victims. The GVN has
also established a global fund that overseas Vietnamese Embassies
and consulates can tap into to assist in the repatriation of
trafficking victims. This has typically been used in egregious
labor cases.

Anti-TIP MOUs with Cambodia, China, and Thailand have helped
establish guidelines and standards for the processing and re-entry
of victims. Some international NGOs have complained to us of poor
coordination, corruption and delays in processing Vietnamese victims
in shelters on the Cambodian side of the border.

The return of trafficking victims from Cambodia improved overall,
however, with fewer reports of victims without nationality documents
facing undue bureaucratic red tape upon arrival in Vietnam. Some of
these victims return to Vietnam on their own and are unable to tap
into healthcare, education and other public benefits that require
official residence. MOLISA, the VWU, the MOJ Legal Aid Agency, and
some NGOs assist victims in resolving these often legally complex
problems. The assessment centers and shelters are also increasingly
equipped to assist with documentation issues. Most victims are able
to establish residency, following the normal but lengthy
bureaucratic procedures.

The 2007 export labor law re-mandates use of a fund created in 2004
for the protection and welfare of overseas workers, allowing the GVN
to assist overseas workers in distress without requiring workers to
rely on either the labor export companies responsible for sending
them overseas or the employers in the host country. This allows the
GVN to use public funds to repatriate workers whose employment
situation outside of Vietnam deteriorates to the point that they
need assistance to return to Vietnam.


HANOI 00000179 004.2 OF 009



M. International Organizations and NGOs

International Organizations and NGOs, along with a handful of
domestic NGOs, provide support to victims through financial support
from international donors, including the U.S., the EU, and the
Government of Australia. NGOs and international organizations
providing such services in Vietnam include UNIAP, UNODC, UNICEF, IOM
and ILO. NGOs include AFESIP, The Asia Foundation, Pacific Links
Foundation, and Catholic Relief Services, among others.

These organizations work cooperatively with GVN agencies in
implementing the 2004-2010 NPA; however, they are largely funded by
the international donor community. For this reason, resource
constraints are considerable and NGOs face financial challenges to
maintain their presence on the ground in Vietnam. Funding from the
international donor community, including the USG, has not been
consistent.

Major ongoing NGO anti-TIP projects in Vietnam include:

-- IOM programs focus on the protection of returnees and preventing
trafficking. IOM has assisted the GVN with the implementation of
its MOUs with China and Cambodia and is active in the regional
Mekong project providing assistance to trafficking victims who want
to return to Vietnam. IOM works with provincial and implementing
partners in managing assessment centers for returning trafficked
women, conducting training and capacity building activities, and
developing appropriate services to facilitate the reintegration of
trafficked women. IOM also conducts prevention and behavior-change
activities at the provincial and district levels, especially with
the VWU. Since 2004, IOM has worked closely with the USG (USAID,
PRM, G/TIP) implementing national-level prevention activities,
managing shelters and reintegration assessment centers in Quang
Ninh, Ho Chi Minh City, An Giang and Lao Cai provinces and
developing return and reintegration skills and mechanisms in six
additional provinces.

-- UNICEF has a Vietnam component to its sub regional
anti-trafficking project, which focuses on protection of victims and
institutional capacity building, as well as legal reform. UNICEF's
project is unique in that it incorporates children themselves in
project planning. UNICEF has also conducted training programs for
Vietnamese law enforcement, related to identifying and preventing
trafficking in children. UNICEF has worked closely with IOM and
UNODC on other anti-TIP programs.

-- The Asia Foundation (TAF),also funded by the USG, focuses on the
prevention of trafficking in Quang Ninh and An Giang provinces. TAF
works with Vietnamese NGOs and the Women's Union to improve
conditions and opportunities for women in the provinces. Activities
include the training of women political candidates and business
managers, the provision of micro-credit loans for women starting
small businesses and the improvement of cross-border communication.
In May 2007, TAF launched a USD $300,000 project, funded by State
G/TIP, to combat human trafficking in Vietnam over the next two
years, focusing on five key provinces.

-- Catholic Relief Services (CRS) continued its two-year
anti-trafficking project (started in 2007 and funded by State
G/TIP),in the Mekong Delta. The project focuses on safe migration,
public awareness, and assistance to TIP victims and returnees.

-- The East Meets West Foundation is the lead organization in a
partnership called ADAPT - the An Giang/Dong Thap Alliance to
Prevent Trafficking. The other organizations are the International
Children Assistance Network (ICAN) and the Pacific Links Foundation
(PALS),both members of the California-based Vietnamese American NGO
Network (VA NGO Network). This partnership's project focuses on
prevention, and it launched in the fall of 2005 with a grant from
USAID.

ADAPT offers scholarships to at-risk girls until they finish high
school, covering not only the cost of school fees and supplies, but
also after-school tutoring and a high level of community and
parental engagement.

ADAPT also offers a program to enhance life options for young women
who may have left school already and are considering traveling to
Cambodia or elsewhere to find work. For these at-risk young women,
ADAPT has a program of vocational training combined with job
placement. ADAPT also provides reintegration services, including

HANOI 00000179 005.2 OF 009


access to health care, counseling, vocational training and other
assistance, to trafficking survivors. The current project will end
in September 2009.

-- AFESIP works to rescue and reintegrate trafficking victims
through its rehabilitation center in HCMC, established in 2001. The
center provides former trafficking victims with medical and
psychological assistance, safe accommodation, educational and
vocational training courses. Social workers continue to track
reintegrated residents for at least three years, and some former
residents have also begun mentoring new women arriving at the
center. AFESIP also opened a center in Can Tho in 2005 with
assistance from UNICEF.

-- UNIAP in Bangkok administers a USD three million (total project
cost) project against trafficking in women and children in the
Mekong Sub-region, including Vietnam, which attempts to collect data
and to improve internal coordination among GVN agencies.

-- The Australian Government is funding two projects under the Asia
Regional Trafficking in Persons (ARTIP) project, a five-year
initiative that began in 2006 in Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and
Myanmar. During its second phase (2008-2010),the project includes
Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines.

In March 2008, ARTIP launched a project to assist Vietnam's efforts
to prevent trafficking of women and children in northern border
province of Lang Son. The one-year project, funded in the amount of
approximately USD $57,000, aims to reach 8,000 people, including
2,000 school children and 400 women and children in high risk
groups.

In December 2008, ARTIP undertook a two-year project to help to
increase the capacity of law enforcement agencies, prosecutors, and
the judiciary to tackle human trafficking, while protecting the
rights of the victims. The project will also help Vietnam to
develop and adjust its policies and legal framework, allowing it to
prevent and deal with human trafficking-related crimes more
effectively. Professional training and the provision of facilities
for authorized Vietnamese agencies are among the other aims of the
project.

-- World Vision launched a project in the central province of Quang
Tri in August 2008, funded by World Vision International in the
amount of USD $72,000 USD. The project, which will run until
mid-2011, focuses on strengthening the local community's capacity to
prevent trafficking and support victims.

While the range of projects is impressive, these organizations
altogether are spending well less than USD $5 million annually in
Vietnam. Most projects are small-scale and focused mainly on
raising awareness of trafficking in at-risk communities, with some
additional efforts to address "root causes" and protect returning
victims of trafficking.

Despite resource constraints, GVN participation and in-kind
contributions are impressive. All of these projects have a GVN
partner organization and draw heavily on donated staff from the VWU,
MOLISA, and, in some cases, MPS. Local governments often cooperate
with NGOs to provide support to returned trafficking victims in the
form of vocational training, educational services, farmland or
capital for micro-credit loans. The GVN's contribution to these
projects is nearly always in-kind, in the form of office space,
personnel, equipment and supplies, if available.

Smaller domestic NGOs also provide support service, primarily in the
form of support groups, information access, and basic vocational
training. One domestic NGO in Hanoi provided a trafficking hotline
and reported excellent cooperation with MPS and government social
service organizations. In January 2009, the NGO suspended the
hotline's operation due to lack of resources.

The international community in general, and the NGO and
international organization community in particular, are unanimous in
a positive assessment of GVN cooperation. UN agencies with
experience working with the GVN in several different sectors state
that interaction on the issue of trafficking is the most productive
and effective of all of their projects. Even law enforcement
cooperation, an area where the GVN is known to be cautious, is a
bright spot in the area of combating TIP.


HANOI 00000179 006.2 OF 009



6. (SBU) PREVENTION


A. Public Awareness Efforts

In 2008, both the Youth Union and VWU continued significant
nationwide anti-TIP public awareness campaigns, and surveys show
that these awareness campaigns have had a positive impact.

Under the Prime Minister's Decree 130, establishing the anti-TIP
National Program of Action and National Steering Committee, the GVN
assigned the role of anti-TIP information, education and
communication primarily to the VWU and the Youth Union. Public
awareness campaigns during the reporting period involved public
information sessions, the development of numerous anti-TIP
information products and advertising, radio and television campaigns
and interventions at schools in high-risk zones.

Anti-TIP activities are often included with other "anti-social evil
programs" run by MOLISA's Department of Social Evils Prevention
(DSEP). (Note: The GVN defines "social evils" as drug abuse,
HIV/AIDS, prostitution and trafficking in persons. End Note.) For
example, the GVN's official anti-prostitution program has been
underway since 2001. This program includes TIP information and
education campaigns and, according to DSEP, has as its audience
victims and high-risk groups. The GVN reports that its anti-TIP
campaigns and the anti-TIP components of other campaigns reach tens
of millions of people altogether. In general, government-run
anti-trafficking programs in Vietnam are designed to reach potential
trafficking victims rather than address the demand for trafficking,
which is consistent with Vietnam primary status as a source rather
than a destination country for trafficking. Separate propaganda
campaigns target consumers of prostitution.

Cross-border information campaigns with China and Cambodia have
grown and are believed to have an impact. MTV Asia, under the
auspices of USAID, continued to broadcast public service
announcements on government-run Vietnam Television's youth channel
on the perils of TIP.

In cooperation with its counterpart in South Korea, the VWU
continued a program of pre-marriage counseling centers and hotlines
in key source areas of Vietnam, including the Mekong Delta, Hanoi,
Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) and Haiphong, to alert women to the risk of
trafficking when marrying a foreign national. MOLISA also worked
closely with MPS on illegal labor recruitment, publicity campaigns,
and illegal labor recruitment hotlines.

Vietnam Television also occasionally addresses TIP in a popular
television program about home economics, featuring returnees
discussing their trafficking experiences and advising others on how
to avoid being trafficked. While it is difficult to quantify
increased in public awareness, anecdotal evidence suggests that the
messages are having an impact. In Hue, for example, a provincial
official stated that parents now contact the provincial level NSC
representative when an adolescent goes missing, just in case they
have been trafficked. Members of rural communities are increasingly
aware of the risks of trafficking, although economic desperation
often leads those in search of work to ignore the dangers.


B. GVN Monitoring of Immigration and Emigration Patterns

Sophisticated monitoring of immigration and emigration patterns for
evidence of trafficking currently is beyond the GVN's technical and
resource abilities. Representatives from the General Criminal
Division of MPS point to the countless forest paths and rivers along
Vietnam's 5,000 km of land borders where people cross the border
unofficially. IOM and UNODC are two lead actors in Vietnam in terms
of monitoring migratory patterns and TIP and establishing data.

At regular border crossing points, immigration and border guard
officers always check not only travel documents but also the purpose
of every entry or exit to detect any suspect cases. Such entry-exit
records are well-maintained.

During the reporting period, the GVN, with support from
international NGOs, continued to conduct several anti-TIP training
programs for its Border Guard Command and supplied it with training
materials. Senior Border Guard Commanders, though reporting an
overall strengthening in its capacity and a raised skill level,
stated that demand is not close to being met. The number of border
guard officers trained is still small, and the Border Guard Command

HANOI 00000179 007.2 OF 009


lamented that equipment, facilities and financial assistance for
investigations are all lacking. In particular, there is a lack of
training in remote areas and islands.

In 2008, the GVN, working with IOM, UNICEF and others, continued to
establish more TIP victim assistance and assessment centers at key
border locations. Increased inter-governmental cooperation with
China and Cambodia has also enhanced TIP interdiction at the
borders. The GVN has established a formal regulation for anti-TIP
cooperation between the MPS and the Border Guard Command and this
relationship is very good.


C. Interagency Coordination and Communication

As discussed earlier, the 2004 GVN National Program of Action (NPA)
established a National Steering Committee (NSC) chaired by the
Deputy Prime Minister. The Vice Chair is a senior official from
MPS, the lead implementing agency. Other NSC members include
representatives from the MFA, MOJ, MOLISA, Ministry of Culture,
Sport, and Tourism, Ministry of Planning and Investment, Ministry of
Finance, the Supreme People's Court, the Supreme People's Procuracy,
and the Vietnam Women's Union and Youth Union. Provincial-level
Steering Committees, with compositions similar to the national
level, have also been established under the NPA. These are led
respectively by the Provincial People's Committee chairman.

The NSC in Hanoi has the responsibility for coordinating all GVN
interagency efforts. MPS is the lead agency within the NSC and acts
as a focal point in cooperation with other relevant ministries,
sectors, and international organizations. In addition, there is a
Central Coordination Office and an Anti-Trafficking Task Force of 23
staff members from various member GVN agencies that operate under
the umbrella of the NSC.

The GVN's ability to operate in an interagency context remains
limited, but has improved considerably under the NPA. Problems
include antiquated communications technology and the lack of a
strong tradition of GVN interagency cooperation. The MPS maintains
a conservative police culture and remains reluctant to share
information outside of the law enforcement establishment. NGO
sources complained of interagency clashes between law enforcement,
MOLISA and the Women and Youth Unions.

The GVN generally works well with relevant international
organizations on TIP, especially those connected to the UN such as
UNODC, UNICEF, and ILO. MPS has played an active role in several
UNICEF and UNODC trafficking projects, going so far as to assign one
senior officer full time in the UNODC office as a national project
coordinator. This has greatly improved UNODC's ability to work with
MPS. Although its three year anti-TIP program came to an end in
2007, UNODC continued its work with MPS in the area of domestic
violence prevention and sought donor support for follow on work on
anti-TIP efforts.

While the GVN has facilitated international NGOs working on TIP in
Vietnam, we occasionally hear complaints from NGOs about obstacles
at the local government levels, including the demanding of bribes or
difficulty in obtaining permits to operate in certain districts.

On the TIP issue, civil society representation came primarily from
the VWU, a mass organization dedicated to women's issues in Vietnam,
as well as the Youth Union, although a growing number of domestic
NGOs also provided services and training. The VWU has branches and
offices throughout the country down to the commune level and is
effective at reaching women at all strata of society. Some NGOs
questioned the VWU's professional capacity as TIP has only really
become a top issue in Vietnam in the last few years. Relations
between the VWU and other agencies on the subject of trafficking are
adequate and improving.


D. National Plan of Action

In July 2004, the Prime Minister's office published the Decision of
the Government on the Approval of the National Program of Action
against Trafficking in Women and Children from 2004-2010. The NPA
addresses the major elements of prevention, prosecution and
protection and identifies both the deficiencies in Vietnam's
previous approach and the challenges and constraints facing the GVN
as it wrestles with TIP. The NPA established the NSC and specific
funding mechanisms for the 2004-2010 period.


HANOI 00000179 008.2 OF 009


The GVN completed Phase I (2004-2006) of the NPA and in 2007
reviewed all Phase 1 programs and conducted a lessons learned
exercise. The GVN then issued a new Prime Ministerial Directive,
Directive 16, on "Strengthening the Implementation of the NPA for
the Prevention of and Combat against Trafficking in Women and
Children." This Directive called for greater inter-agency
cooperation; increased responsibility and accountability for
provincial government authorities; greater scrutiny and regulation
of export labor, foreign adoptions and marriages; increased TIP
prevention communications and educational awareness campaigns within
communities.

Further, the Directive instructed the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) to
submit a proposal to the National Assembly to draft a new
comprehensive TIP law during Phase II of the NPA (2007-2010). The
new law is expected to include men in the definition of human
trafficking for the first time. According to the NSC, the draft law
will be released for public comment in the first half of 2009.
Including ratification, the entire process of establishing the new
law is expected to take at least two to three years.

MPS, MOJ, MOLISA, MFA, the Commission for Population, Family and
Children (CPFC) (now part of the Ministry of Health),the Supreme
People's Court and Supreme People's Procuracy and the Vietnam
Women's and Youth Unions were all involved in the NPA's
development.

Outside of the Women's and Youth Unions, which are Party-affiliated
"mass organizations," the GVN did not formally consult NGOs in the
development of the NPA. Nevertheless, the GVN relies heavily on
assistance from international organizations, such as the ILO, UNODC
and UNICEF, as well as funding from foreign donors, to implement its
NPA.

The GVN has also shown a willingness to take in other points of view
in the NPA's implementation, including advice from foreign
governments. International NGOs and victim advocate organizations
have been consulted during the process of drafting of the new TIP
law. During the reporting period, the GVN requested U.S. technical
assistance in drafting the new TIP law and in improving its legal
framework on trafficking. The GVN publicly distributed NPA
information through the GVN's regular channels for the publication
of official documents, assisted by the NGO community.


E. GVN Efforts to Reduce Demand for Commercial Sex

This is an area where the GVN recognizes it could do more work.
Vietnamese culture and society traditionally expect women to remain
faithful and chaste, to hold the family together, while the
procurement of commercial sex by men is largely accepted. However,
Vietnamese society is changing and there is a growing effort to
address and improve the status of women in Vietnam. To date, these
efforts have only tangentially touched on the issue of commercial
sex procurement.

As mentioned previously, the GVN has an extensive campaign to
stigmatize social evils, including prostitution, and has
criminalized the legal status of pimps and brothel owners, with
limited success (see section 4.K).

International child sex tourism is definitely a growing concern as
foreign tourism to Vietnam continued to increase significantly since
2004 (see section 4.M).


F. Steps to Reduce Participation in International Sex Tourism

Vietnamese nationals are not believed to be among the tourists
traveling abroad to participate in child sex tourism (see section
4.M for details).


G. GVN Efforts to Reduce Peacekeeping Troops' Participation in TIP


Post response is not required. See section 4.L for more
information


7. (U) TIME SPENT ON REPORT:

FSN 10: 18 hours
FS-04: 3 hours
FS-03: 90 hours

HANOI 00000179 009.2 OF 009


FP-05: 2 hours
FS-02: 7 hours
FS-01: 2 hours
FE-OC: 3 hours


8. (U) POST TIP POINT OF CONTACT:

Jane Bocklage
Political Officer
United States Embassy
Hanoi, Vietnam
Phone: (84) (04) 850-5081
Fax: (84) (04) 850-5098
E-Mail: BocklageJE@state.gov

MICHALAK