OMAN MINISTER OF MANPOWER COMMITTED TO REFORM

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MUSCAT 000997 SIPDIS STATE PLEASE PASS TO DEPT OF LABOR FOR TIM WEDDING AND JAMES RUDE AND USTR FOR LEWIS KARESH AND AMY KARPEL E.O. 12958: DECL: 2019/11/03 TAGS: PREL KTIP PHUM ELAB MU SUBJECT: OMAN MINISTER OF MANPOWER COMMITTED TO REFORM REF: A. MUSCAT 993; B. 08 MUSCAT 860 CLASSIFIED BY: Richard Schmierer, Ambassador, Department of State, Embassy Muscat; REASON: 1.4(B),(D) ¶1. (C) Summary: The Omani Minister of Manpower remains committed to combating labor abuses in the Sultanate and is encouraging the further development of trade unions. His ministry has a deep understanding of labor and trafficking issues, due in large part to its ongoing engagement with the International Labor Organization (ILO). Minister Al-Bakri said that the General Federation of Trade Union (GFoTU) has the ministry's support to hold its first Congress very soon. He continued to emphasize the importance of further training, increased public awareness, and cooperation with the U.S. and other international partners. End Summary. ¶2. (C) The Ambassador and poloff met on October 28 with Minister of Manpower H.E. Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Abdullah al-Bakri, Advisor Dr. Ali Hassan al-Abduwani, Director General of Labor Care Salim Said al-Badi and Abdullah al-Mullahi from the International Organizations and External Relations group. The Minister was eager to meet with the Ambassador and sent over packets of information in advance to emphasize key programs and initiatives. He apologized that he was not able to meet with us personally during Assistant USTR for Labor's recent visit (Ref A). Omani Duty and Values -------------- ¶3. (C) Al-Bakri began the meeting by emphasizing that improving the rights of workers and combating TIP was "our duty to human rights in Oman." He was keen to pursue further cooperation with the U.S. on these endeavors and reiterated the Sultanate's goal to be a tier one country for TIP. Al-Bakri stressed that these issues have been addressed by the Sultan himself, who takes an ongoing and active interest in related improvements. The minister underscored the idea that treating people fairly was an "Omani value" and that anti-TIP activities were a reflection of a core part of his culture. Labor Inspectors -------------- ¶4. (C) Al-Bakri highlighted his ministry's collaboration and good relationship with the ILO and noted that they had been working together since 2007. He stressed that Oman was working to meet the regulations of the ILO, particularly in the areas of a labor inspectorate and unions. He noted that they have 160 labor inspectors, all of whom have been trained by the ILO. Press reports on October 4 gave extensive coverage to a training course conducted for the 68 newest labor inspectors by the ILO. Al-Badi was quoted as saying that "labor inspection is a civilized feature of modern societies in a bid to establish and develop work relationships based on intimacy and cooperation in serving the joint interests of production parties." TIP Workshop -------------- ¶5. (C) The MoM officials also mentioned the recent two-day TIP workshop conducted by the ILO. The agenda and list of attendees for the event was in the packet of information sent to the embassy ahead of the meeting. The workshop was attended by 12 senior officials from the following groups: MoM, Royal Oman Police, Public Prosecution, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Social Development, Ministry of Tourism, GFoTU, Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Education, and Ministry of Information. The agenda included presentations and discussion on forced labor and trafficking - experiences and lessons, the main convention on forced labor, the main elements of Omani TIP law, forced labor and Oman's experience, control over private recruitment offices, control and punishment of those convicted of TIP crimes, roles of various parties in preventing TIP and TIP case studies. This event was covered by local press which quoted Salih bin A'yil al-Amri, Labor Welfare Advisor to the Manpower Minister, as saying, "...these trans-boundary crimes violate human values, principles and laws, all concerned parties must tackle them and lessen their MUSCAT 00000997 002 OF 002 impacts on individuals and society within the context of respecting human rights." Unions -------------- ¶6. (C) Al-Bakri said there were currently 66 enterprise-level unions in Oman (Note: This is an increase of two since our October 6 meeting with the MoM (Ref A). End Note.) and that the congress for the General Federation of Trade Unions (GFoTU) would be held "very soon" - by the end of this year or at the latest, during the first quarter of next year. He noted that Oman still has many activities related to its chairing of the GCC that may preclude the event being conducted sooner. Press reported on October 28 that al-Bakri met with the ILO's Labor Affairs Advisor and emphasized the Sultanate's determination to hold the General Conference for the GFoTU which would be "managing its deliberations with absolute freedom and without intervention of the government." Labor Abuses -------------- ¶7. (C) The Minister acknowledged the need to increase public awareness of potential labor abuses and worker rights in Oman. He said that they have agreements with sending countries, specifically mentioning India and Bangladesh. (Note: The India MOU was signed last year (Ref B),post will get additional information on the agreement with Bangladesh. End Note.) The MoM tries to solve labor issues between the employer and employee via informal arbitration without going to court. Dr. Ali committed to giving us further details on recent cases of this type. The MoM has formed an internal committee to work on TIP issues, that will specifically discuss domestic laborers. After the meeting Dr. Ali noted that the committee had reviewed the areas of improvement specified in the U.S. TIP report and would be addressing each one. Passport Holding -------------- ¶8. (C) Al-Bakri's team confirmed that labor inspectors are determining whether employee passports are being held illegally during the inspection process. He also said that the MoM has forced a number of employers to return passports to employees when the employees have complained to the MoM. The Ambassador asked for details on these cases. ¶9. (C) Comment: This meeting, in conjunction with feedback from the ILO and recent USTR meetings with the MoM (Ref A),showed that the MoM remains the ONE of the most engaged government agencies in Oman on labor abuse issues. Although al-Bakri himself is not aware of all the details, his team is working closely with the ILO and is deeply involved in resolving specific instances of abuse and working on plans to address concerns brought by the USG. End Comment. Schmierer