EGYPT -- 2009 TIP REPORT: PRESS GUIDANCE AND

UNCLAS STATE 060563 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KTIP ELAB KCRM KPAO KWMN PGOV PHUM PREL SMIG EG SUBJECT: EGYPT -- 2009 TIP REPORT: PRESS GUIDANCE AND DEMARCHE REF: A. (A) STATE 59732 ¶B. (B) STATE 005577 ¶1. This is an action cable; see paras 5 through 7 and 10. ¶2. On June 16, 2009, at 10:00 a.m. EDT, the Secretary will release the 2009 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report at a press conference in the Department's press briefing room. This release will receive substantial coverage in domestic and foreign news outlets. Until the time of the Secretary's June 16 press conference, any public release of the Report or country narratives contained therein is prohibited. ¶3. The Department is hereby providing Post with advance press guidance to be used on June 16 or thereafter. Also provided is demarche language to be used in informing the Government of Egypt of its tier ranking and the TIP Report's imminent release. The text of the TIP Report country narrative is provided, both for use in informing the Government of Egypt and in any local media release by Post's public affairs section on June 16 or thereafter. Drawing on information provided below in paras 8 and 9, Post may provide the host government with the text of the TIP Report narrative no earlier than 1200 noon local time Monday June 15 for WHA, AF, EUR, and NEA countries and OOB local time Tuesday June 16 for SCA and EAP posts. Please note, however, that any public release of the Report's information should not/not precede the Secretary's release at 10:00 am EDT on June 16. ¶4. The entire TIP Report will be available on-line at www.state.gov/g/tip shortly after the Secretary's June 16 release. Hard copies of the Report will be pouched to posts in all countries appearing on the Report. The Secretary's statement at the June 16 press event, and the statement of and fielding of media questions by G/TIP,s Director and Senior Advisor to the Secretary, Ambassador-at-Large Luis CdeBaca, will be available on the Department's website shortly after the June 16 event. Ambassador de Baca will also hold a general briefing for officials of foreign embassies in Washington DC on June 17 at 3:30 EDT. ¶5. Action Request: No earlier than 12 noon local time on Monday June 15 for WHA, AF, EUR, and NEA posts and OOB local time on Tuesday June 16 for SCA and EAP posts, please inform the appropriate official in the Government of Egypt of the June 16 release of the 2009 TIP Report, drawing on the points in para 9 (at Post's discretion) and including the text of the country narrative provided in para 8. For countries where the State Department has lowered the tier ranking, it is particularly important to advise governments prior to the Report being released in Washington on June 16. ¶6. Action Request continued: Please note that, for those countries which will not receive an "action plan" with specific recommendations for improvement, posts should draw host governments' attention to the areas for improvement identified in the 2009 Report, especially highlighted in the "Recommendations" section of the second paragraph of the narrative text. This engagement is important to establishing the framework in which the government's performance will be judged for the 2010 Report. If posts have questions about which governments will receive an action plan, or how they may follow up on the recommendations in the 2009 Report, please contact G/TIP and the appropriate regional bureau. ¶7. Action Request continued: On June 16, please be prepared to answer media inquiries on the Report's release using the press guidance provided in para 11. If Post wishes, a local press statement may be released on or after 10:30 am EDT June 16, drawing on the press guidance and the text of the TIP Report's country narrative provided in para 8. ¶8. Begin Final Text of Egypt,s country narrative in the 2009 TIP Report: -------------- EGYPT (TIER 2 WATCH LIST) -------------- Egypt is a source, transit, and destination country for women and children trafficked for the purposes of forced labor and sexual exploitation. Some of Egypt,s estimated one million street children ) both boys and girls ) are exploited in prostitution and forced begging. Local gangs are, at times, involved in this exploitation. Egyptian children are recruited for domestic and agricultural labor; some of these children face conditions indicative of involuntary servitude, such as restrictions on movement, non-payment of wages, threats, and physical or sexual abuse. In addition, wealthy men from the Gulf reportedly travel to Egypt to purchase &temporary marriages8 with Egyptian females, including girls who are under the age of 18; these arrangements are often facilitated by the females, parents and marriage brokers. Child sex tourism is increasingly reported in Cairo, Alexandria, and Luxor. Young, female Sudanese refugees, including those under 18, may be coerced into prostitution in Cairo,s nightclubs by family or Sudanese gang members. Egypt is a transit country for women trafficked from Uzbekistan, Moldova, Ukraine, Russia, and other Eastern European countries to Israel for sexual exploitation; organized crime groups are involved in these movements. The Government of Egypt does not fully comply with minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to do so. The government enacted amendments to the Child Law prohibiting child trafficking, provided training for government officials on the use of these amendments, and began the prosecution of several alleged sex trafficking offenders. Despite these overall efforts, the government did not show adequate progress in advancing anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts over the last year; therefore Egypt is placed on Tier 2 Watch List. The government continues to lack formal victim identification procedures and protection services, and some victims of trafficking are punished for acts committed as a direct result of being trafficked. The government took minimal steps to combat the serious issues of child sex tourism and the involuntary domestic servitude of children or to raise awareness of trafficking among the general public. Recommendations for Egypt: Substantially increase law enforcement activity against trafficking, including the growing problems of the involuntary domestic servitude of children and child sex trafficking; draft and enact legislation criminalizing all forms of human trafficking; institute and apply a formal victim identification procedure to ensure that trafficking victims are not punished or otherwise treated as criminals for acts committed as a direct result of being trafficked; provide in-kind or financial support to NGOs providing protection services to victims; and implement a comprehensive public information campaign to educate the public on the definition and dangers of trafficking. Prosecution -------------- Egypt made progress on punishing trafficking crimes during this reporting period. The Egyptian penal code does not prohibit all forms of trafficking; the Unified Labor Law does not define forced labor and there are no provisions against it. In June 2008, however, the government enacted amendments to the Child Law (No. 126 of 2008),which include provisions prohibiting the trafficking of children for commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor. These amendments prescribe sentences of at least five years, imprisonment, which are sufficiently stringent and commensurate with penalties prescribed for other grave crimes. The National Council on Childhood and Motherhood (NCCM) began drafting by-laws to guide enforcement of the amendments to the child protection law. The Anti-Prostitution Law of 1961 prohibits the use of coercion, threats, or abuse to induce a person into prostitution and the commercial sexual exploitation of those under 21 years old. Penalties prescribed for the above crimes range from one to seven years, imprisonment; these are also sufficiently stringent and commensurate with those prescribed for other grave crimes. Unlike other child laborers, however, child domestic workers are not protected under existing labor laws. In September 2008, the National Coordinating Committee to Combat and Prevent Trafficking in Persons began drafting a comprehensive anti-trafficking law. Under the Child Law and the Anti-Prostitution Law, the Alexandria Public Prosecutor,s Office commenced in March 2009 with the prosecution of two defendants suspected of kidnapping eight street children and forcing them to engage in prostitution with wealthy Egyptians and tourists from the Gulf States in exchange for money. Also in March, the South Giza Prosecutors Office initiated the prosecution of a man and his wife on charges of selling their three daughters into prostitution to tourists from the Gulf for $550 a week per child. The Egyptian government did not, however, report efforts to investigate or prosecute cases of the involuntary domestic servitude of children. The Public Prosecutor,s office created and distributed a booklet on investigating and prosecuting trafficking cases to prosecutors working with children, and trained 125 prosecutors working on children,s cases. In 2008, the NCCM trained 45prosecutors and judges on human trafficking. Protection -------------- Egypt made minimal progress in protecting victims of trafficking during the reporting period. The Ministry of Social Solidarity continued to operate 19 drop-in centers for street children, women, and the disabled that may have provided care to trafficking victims in 2008; these centers, however, are only open during the day and do not provide comprehensive services for trafficking victims. In January 2009, the NCCM, in partnership with an international NGO, launched a day center in Cairo to rehabilitate abused street boys involved in forced begging or petty crime; to date, NCCM provided 25 boys with counseling, medical care, and literacy and computer classes, while the NGO operated the facility. In March 2009, the Alexandria Public Prosecutor,s office transferred eight boys victimized by sex trafficking to the NCCM and the Ministries of Health and Social Solidarity for medical, psychological, and rehabilitation services. The NCCM operated a 24-hour hotline to respond to complaints of child abuse, though it lacks the capability to retain information on whether any of the calls received concerned trafficking. Specialized care for adults or foreign victims, including Sudanese women in forced prostitution, was not provided. Despite receiving training in victim identification, the government did not employ formal procedures to identify victims of trafficking and refer them to providers of care; as a result, trafficking victims, including street children and women arrested for prostitution, were often treated as criminals rather than victims. In prisons or detention centers, law enforcement officers may have further mistreated these victims through verbal, physical, and sexual abuse. Foreign victims are not offered legal alternatives to removal to countries in which they may face hardship or retribution. The government does not actively encourage victims to assist in investigations against their traffickers. Prevention -------------- Egypt made minimal efforts to prevent trafficking in persons during the reporting period. The National Center for Criminological and Social Research officially began a comprehensive study on the scope of trafficking in Egypt. In November 2008, the National Council for Human Rights held a seminar and a roundtable discussion on human trafficking. During the second half of 2008, NCCM trained 107 social workers, 35 health inspectors, and 191 officials from various ministries on the Child Law,s amendments and the UN TIP Protocol. The first lady,s anti-trafficking advocacy during the reporting period led to a substantial increase in press coverage on the subject. Nonetheless, the government did not institute any public campaigns to raise awareness on trafficking. The government similarly made no discernible efforts to reduce the demand for commercial sex acts or to raise awareness of sex tourism. In March 2009, Giza Security arrested and criminally charged three men from the Gulf who had paid the parents of three young girls in order to sexually exploit the girls. There were no reports of the Egyptian government,s efforts to provide anti-trafficking training for its troops before they deployed on international peacekeeping missions. ¶9. Post may wish to deliver the following points, which offer technical and legal background on the TIP Report process, to the host government as a non-paper with the above TIP Report country narrative: (begin non-paper) -- The U.S. Congress, through its passage of the 2000 Trafficking Victims Protection Act, as amended (TVPA), requires the Secretary of State to submit an annual Report to Congress. The goal of this Report is to stimulate action and create partnerships around the world in the fight against modern-day slavery. The USG approach to combating human trafficking follows the TVPA and the standards set forth in the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (commonly known as the "Palermo Protocol"). The TVPA and the Palermo Protocol recognize that this is a crime in which the victims, labor or services (including in the "sex industry") are obtained or maintained through force, fraud, or coercion, whether overt or through psychological manipulation. While much attention has focused on international flows, both the TVPA and the Palermo Protocol focus on the exploitation of the victim, and do not require a showing that the victim was moved. -- Recent amendments to the TVPA removed the requirement that only countries with a "significant number" of trafficking victims be included in the Report. Beginning with the 2009 TIP Report, countries determined to be a country of origin, transit, or destination for victims of severe forms of trafficking are included in the Report and assigned to one of three tiers. Countries assessed as meeting the "minimum standards for the elimination of severe forms of trafficking" set forth in the TVPA are classified as Tier 1. Countries assessed as not fully complying with the minimum standards, but making significant efforts to meet those minimum standards are classified as Tier 2. Countries assessed as neither complying with the minimum standards nor making significant efforts to do so are classified as Tier 3. -- The TVPA also requires the Secretary of State to provide a "Special Watch List" to Congress later in the year. Anti-trafficking efforts of the countries on this list are to be evaluated again in an Interim Assessment that the Secretary of State must provide to Congress by February 1 of each year. Countries are included on the "Special Watch List" if they move up in "tier" rankings in the annual TIP Report -- from 3 to 2 or from 2 to 1 ) or if they have been placed on the Tier 2 Watch List. -- Tier 2 Watch List consists of Tier 2 countries determined: (1) not to have made "increasing efforts" to combat human trafficking over the past year; (2) to be making significant efforts based on commitments of anti-trafficking reforms over the next year, or (3) to have a very significant number of trafficking victims or a significantly increasing victim population. As indicated in reftel B, the TVPRA of 2008 contains a provision requiring that a country that has been included on Tier 2 Watch List for two consecutive years after the date of enactment of the TVPRA of 2008 be ranked as Tier ¶3. Thus, any automatic downgrade to Tier 3 pursuant to this provision would take place, at the earliest, in the 2011 TIP Report (i.e., a country would have to be ranked Tier 2 Watch List in the 2009 and 2010 Reports before being subject to Tier 3 in the 2011 Report). The new law allows for a waiver of this provision for up to two additional years upon a determination by the President that the country has developed and devoted sufficient resources to a written plan to make significant efforts to bring itself into compliance with the minimum standards. -- Countries classified as Tier 3 may be subject to statutory restrictions for the subsequent fiscal year on non-humanitarian and non-trade-related foreign assistance and, in some circumstances, withholding of funding for participation by government officials or employees in educational and cultural exchange programs. In addition, the President could instruct the U.S. executive directors to international financial institutions to oppose loans or other utilization of funds (other than for humanitarian, trade-related or certain types of development assistance) with respect to countries on Tier 3. Countries classified as Tier 3 that take strong action within 90 days of the Report's release to show significant efforts against trafficking in persons, and thereby warrant a reassessment of their Tier classification, would avoid such sanctions. Guidelines for such actions are in the DOS-crafted action plans to be shared by Posts with host governments. -- The 2009 TIP Report, issuing as it does in the midst of the global financial crisis, highlights high levels of trafficking for forced labor in many parts of the world and systemic contributing factors to this phenomenon: fraudulent recruitment practices and excessive recruiting fees in workers, home countries; the lack of adequate labor protections in both sending and receiving countries; and the flawed design of some destination countries, "sponsorship systems" that do not give foreign workers adequate legal recourse when faced with conditions of forced labor. As the May 2009 ILO Global Report on Forced Labor concluded, forced labor victims suffer approximately $20 billion in losses, and traffickers, profits are estimated at $31 billion. The current global financial crisis threatens to increase the number of victims of forced labor and increase the associated "cost of coercion." -- The text of the TVPA and amendments can be found on website www.state.gov/g/tip. -- On June 16, 2009, the Secretary of State will release the ninth annual TIP Report in a public event at the State Department. We are providing you an advance copy of your country's narrative in that report. Please keep this information embargoed until 10:00 am Washington DC time June ¶16. The State Department will also hold a general briefing for officials of foreign embassies in Washington DC on June 17 at 3:30 EDT. (end non-paper) ¶10. Posts should make sure that the relevant country narrative is readily available on or though the Mission's web page in English and appropriate local language(s) as soon as possible after the TIP Report is released. Funding for translation costs will be handled as it was for the Human Rights Report. Posts needing financial assistance for translation costs should contact their regional bureau,s EX office. ¶11. The following is press guidance provided for Post to use with local media. Q1: Why was Egypt placed on Tier 2 Watch List? A: Egypt was placed on Tier 2 Watch List because it did not show adequate progress in advancing anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts over the last year. In addition, the government continued to lack formal victim identification procedures and protection services, and some victims of trafficking were punished for acts committed as a result of being trafficked. The government took minimal steps to combat the serious issues of child sex tourism and child domestic servitude or to raise awareness of trafficking among the general public. Q2: What progress did Egypt make in combating trafficking during the reporting period? A: The government enacted amendments to the Child Law prohibiting child trafficking, provided training for government officials on the use of these amendments, began the prosecution of several alleged sex trafficking offenders, provided care to eight boys victimized by sex trafficking, and launched a day center for the rehabilitation of street boys, some of whom are involved in forced begging. Q3: What can Egypt do to further its fight against trafficking in persons? A: To advance its anti-trafficking efforts, the Government of Egypt could: substantially increase law enforcement activity against trafficking, including the growing problems of child domestic servitude and child sex trafficking; draft and enact legislation criminalizing all forms of human trafficking; institute and apply a formal victim identification procedure to ensure that trafficking victims are not punished or otherwise treated as criminals for acts committed as a result of being trafficked; provide in-kind or financial support to NGOs providing protection services to victims; and implement a comprehensive public information campaign to educate the public on the definition and dangers of trafficking. ¶12. The Department appreciates posts, assistance with the preceding action requests. CLINTON