UGANDAN ANTI-TIP EFFORTS IN HIGH GEAR; OVER 2,000 POLICE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 KAMPALA 000027 DOJ FOR ICITAP, TREVILLIAN, RODERICK, BARR, AND BEINHART; DEPARTMENT FOR DS/IP/AF SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PHUM KCRM KTIP KCRM KWMN SMIG ASEC UG SUBJECT: UGANDAN ANTI-TIP EFFORTS IN HIGH GEAR; OVER 2,000 POLICE TRAINED IN TWO MONTHS ¶1. Summary: Over the past six months, the Government of Uganda has made impressive strides in its efforts to combat trafficking in persons. The Bill for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons moved to the floor of Parliament and will be voted on when Parliament returns from recess in February. Ugandan law enforcement authorities have embraced G/TIP-funded training and the expertise of a Department of Justice-provided Senior Law Enforcement Advisor (SLEA),which has resulted in the training of 2,010 law enforcement officers in a two-month period alone. Inspector General of Police (IGP) Kale Kayihura has announced the formation of the counter-trafficking unit, pro-active investigation and police efforts, and the integration of anti-trafficking issues into training academies and community policing programs. These recent developments represent a progression in the government's anti-trafficking efforts, resulting from increased public awareness of trafficking, the impending passage of the anti-trafficking law, and high level attention from President Museveni and key ministers. U.S. Government support for Uganda's counter-trafficking efforts, particularly assistance with the anti-trafficking bill and police training, is receiving significant mention in the press and within high-level government circles. End Summary. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - STATUS OF ANTI-TRAFFICKING LEGISLATION - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ¶2. Uganda's Parliamentary Committee on Defense and Internal Affairs conducted extensive and well-publicized hearings on the Bill for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons in October and November 2008. Once passed as expected in February, the law will criminalize offenses related to human trafficking, such as labor and sexual exploitation, human sacrifice, and forced marriages. The law will bring Ugandan laws up to international standards and protocols, and harmonize Ugandan law with the United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC) and the Protocol to Punish, Suppress, and Prevent Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children. ¶3. P/E Chief and SLEA were invited to appear before the committee to discuss the U.S. Government's experience with trafficking in persons on October 16. In addition, post premiered a documentary entitled "Child Trafficking in Uganda: Modern Day Slavery" for the committee members and other parliamentarians on September 23. The video was funded with USAID anti-trafficking funds channeled through the Mission's Small Grants Office. P/E Chief, parliamentarians, and a network of anti-trafficking non-governmental organizations provided the expertise, victim stories, and editorial content for the documentary, which has been distributed throughout government, media, and law enforcement circles. Meanwhile, SLEA worked closely with the committee's legal counsel to include additional provisions that would take away important tools used by human traffickers. The committee included the SLEA's recommendation on the seizure and forfeiture of instruments of the crime of trafficking to enhance the bill's provision on forfeiture of proceeds of the crime. ¶4. On November 13, Committee Chairman Mathias Kasamba tabled the documentary and all of the U.S.-provided documents, including the Department's annual Trafficking in Persons Report and the Department of Justice's annual report on U.S. anti-trafficking efforts, when presenting the bill to the entire house. He and other parliamentarians that spoke in favor of the bill recognized and thanked the U.S. for its support to the Uganda Women's Parliamentary Association (UWOPA),which was able to bring the legislation as a private members bill, the only such bill presented in this Parliament. (Note: All bills originate with the government or are usurped by the government, with few exceptions, due to financial implications. However, UWOPA gained the early support of Minister of Internal Affairs Ruhakana Rugunda, who supported its status as a private member bill. The last private member bill was the People with Disabilities Act, which also received significant U.S. Government backing. End Note.) During the tabling, a procedural issue prevented Parliament from voting on the bill. The issue was resolved and the Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Rebecca Kadaga, told the Ambassador on November 24 that Parliament will suspend the rules in order to pass the legislation when it returns from recess in February. - - - - - - - - - - - - - TRAINED TRAINERS TAKE OFF - - - - - - - - - - - - - ¶5. In November 2008, a trainer from DOJ's International Criminal Investigative Training and Assistance Program (ICITAP) joined the SLEA to provide a two week train-the-trainer course with participants from the Ugandan Police Force (UPF),Immigration, Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP),and the Ministry of Labor, Gender and Social Development (MGLSD). The course emphasized the KAMPALA 00000027 002 OF 003 process of human trafficking, current and pending Ugandan legislation, victims' rights, and duties of first responders. In addition, current instructional methodologies for law enforcement training programs were taught through a combination of lectures and practical exercises. The 27 participants were tasked with preparing a portion of the training materials to customize them for the Ugandan environment. The training of investigators, prosecutors, immigration, and labor officials together helped forge a law enforcement team that recognizes the roles and expertise of counterparts in other agencies. This could serve as a future training model for other cross-cutting issues, such as organized crime, money laundering, and terrorism. ¶6. Rugunda's attendance and pertinent remarks at the graduation for the trainees on November 21 demonstrated high-level attention and commitment to the issue. He was joined by the Director for Immigration, Godfrey Sekagga, and Director of the Criminal Investigation Division, John Okoth Ochola. Rugunda told the graduates that they were pioneers and formed the nucleus of Uganda's new anti-trafficking unit. To add real life impact to the event, International Organization for Migration (IOM),which also receives U.S. support, arranged for a popular Ugandan singing group to perform a song about human trafficking based on the experience of one of the band members, who had narrowly avoided being trafficked herself. ¶7. The next week, 13 of the newly-trained instructors hit the road with the SLEA to provide a series of one-day sessions on "Combating Human Trafficking: First Responder Courses" in four locations throughout Uganda. The new trainees from the four core law enforcement agencies, with strong support from the Minister of Internal Affairs, Inspector General of Police, Immigration Director, DPP, and MGLSD enthusiastically worked together to teach the course to 2,010 trainees in Kampala, Masindi, Mbarara, and Mbale, all identified as top priority areas for training. One of the Ugandan trainers was so committed that he participated despite being hit by a car and seriously injured days before training others. - - - - - - - - - - - - MORE POLICE INITIATIVES - - - - - - - - - - - - ¶8. The UPF developed a 25 page anti-trafficking first responder pocket manual which was distributed to each of the 2,010 law enforcement personnel during the training programs. The manual contains the United Nations Protocol and current Ugandan laws, the duties of a first responder, and victim/suspect interviewing questions. The SLEA provided expertise and advice during its development and continues to work with the UPF to develop a standardized in-service training program for methods of addressing and combating human trafficking. These efforts will be integrated into the UPF's community policing initiatives. ¶9. Due to the success of the program, the Masindi Police Training Academy Commandant has requested that all 150 instructors receive a modified version of the human trafficking instructor development course in order to institutionalize the program within the academy and deepen the knowledge of the trainers. The SLEA, ICITAP, and the trained UPF instructors will provide five monthly courses in order to accommodate this request beginning in March 2009. ¶10. President Museveni spoke out against child sacrifice and trafficking during several appearances over the holiday season. On January 5, Minister of State for Internal Affairs Matia Kasaija and Kayihura held a press conference to publicize law enforcement's response. Kayihura announced the establishment of an anti-human trafficking police unit to be housed under the Child and Family Protection Department. This move comes in advance of the passage of the anti-TIP law, which provides for its creation. The police will begin proactive law enforcement measures to counter trafficking, according to Kayihura. This includes placing investigators with uniformed officers at checkpoints on roads leading into Kampala to identify potential victims and human traffickers beginning in January. The IGP has also requested that ICITAP begin working with the Community Policing Unit to develop public awareness strategies and procedures for the gathering and sharing of information between the police and the public on trafficking issues. The police have committed to establishing a hotline for tips from the public on trafficking. ¶11. As part of the ongoing reform program, Kayihura has initiated changes that will improve respect for the rights of victims and at-risk individuals. He has adopted SLEA's recommendation that the UPF hold regular meetings on gender-based violence for its personnel to sensitize police officers on a range of issues, including domestic violence and child abuse. These in-house meetings aim to KAMPALA 00000027 003 OF 003 reinforce the UPF's commitment to protecting the rights of women and children. - - - - COMMENT - - - - ¶12. Uganda's current efforts demonstrate what governments can do, with a bit commitment and political will, to enhance TIP prosecution, prevention, and protection efforts. Targeted U.S. assistance, in the form of the expertise of a highly-motivated SLEA to train police and other first responders, as well as support for public awareness-raising and comprehensive anti-trafficking legislation, has been particularly critical for building a strong foundation for law enforcement agencies in Uganda. Though in early stages, Ugandan law enforcement enthusiastically received the training and we expect to see its benefits, especially enhanced prosecution efforts, expand throughout the coming year. The training will also improve the ability of the police and other agencies to investigate other crimes and criminal networks. Already, our NGO contacts are receiving increasing numbers of trafficking victims from the police for protection, a sign of growing public awareness, an enhanced law enforcement response, and a commitment to victim assistance. BROWNING