MADAGASCAR -- 2009 TIP REPORT: PRESS GUIDANCE AND

UNCLAS STATE 060596 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KTIP ELAB KCRM KPAO KWMN PGOV PHUM PREL SMIG MA SUBJECT: MADAGASCAR -- 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 Madagascar 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 Madagascar 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 Madagascar 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 Madagascar,s country narrative in the 2009 TIP Report: -------------- MADAGASCAR (TIER 2) -------------- Madagascar is a source country for women and children trafficked for the purposes of forced labor and sexual exploitation. Children, mostly from rural areas, are trafficked within the country for domestic servitude, commercial sexual exploitation, forced marriage, forced labor for traveling vendors, and possibly forced labor in mining, fishing, and agriculture. Some child sex trafficking occurs with the involvement of family members, friends, transport operators, tour guides, and hotel workers. A child sex tourism problem exists in coastal cities, including Tamatave, Nosy Be, and Diego Suarez, as well as the capital city of Antananarivo; some children are recruited for work in the capital using fraudulent offers of employment as waitresses and maids before being exploited in the commercial sex trade on the coast. The main sources of clients for child sex tourism are France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Switzerland, and Reunion. Victims are usually girls, but reports of male tourists seeking sex with underage boys have increased. Young Malagasy women are trafficked within the country for domestic servitude and sexual exploitation, as well as in small numbers to the Middle East for domestic servitude. The Government of Madagascar does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so. This report covers the efforts of the Malagasy government until January 2009,s political unrest, which resulted in an unlawful change in government in March. Efforts to verify implementation of the laws during the remainder of the reporting period, if any, were difficult given the level of political instability. The new regime,s policies and perspectives on Madagascar,s human trafficking problem are unknown; it remains to be seen whether the new government will maintain the previous administration,s keen interest in combating trafficking. While the government sustained its efforts to raise awareness of child sex trafficking, lack of institutional capacity and funding remained significant impediments to its anti-trafficking efforts, particularly impacting the effectiveness of law enforcement activities. Recommendations for Madagascar: Utilize the anti-trafficking law to prosecute trafficking offenses, including those involving forced labor, and punish trafficking offenders; institute a formal process for law enforcement officials to document trafficking cases and refer victims of both labor and sex trafficking for assistance; increase efforts to raise public awareness of labor trafficking; and investigate and prosecute public officials suspected of trafficking-related complicity. Prosecution -------------- Although the government enacted anti-trafficking legislation in January 2008, it reported no investigations or convictions of trafficking offenders during the reporting period and was unable to provide statistics regarding its anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts. Anti-Trafficking Law No. 2007-038, adopted in January 2008, prohibits all forms of human trafficking, though it only prescribes punishments for sex trafficking; these range from two years, to life imprisonment, penalties that are sufficiently stringent and commensurate with those prescribed for other grave crimes. The Ministry of Justice disseminated copies of the new law to all 22 regions during the year and magistrates received training in its use. Article 262 of the Labor Code criminalizes labor trafficking, for which it prescribes inadequate penalties of one to three years, imprisonment. Decree 2007-563 prohibits various forms of child labor, including prostitution, domestic slavery, and forced labor. The government has yet to use its January 2008 anti-trafficking law to punish traffickers; a lack of case precedent, poor coordination among ministries, lack of systematic information, lack of data shared between the regional and central levels, and the lack of a presidential decree mandating and codifying its use likely hinder the new law,s implementation. Several alleged sex trafficking cases came to trial in 2008, but only two reportedly made use of the anti-trafficking law, and neither has reached a resolution; the remaining cases were tried under other laws, and either dismissed or punished with suspended sentences. The government did not investigate or prosecute cases of forced labor during the reporting period. In September 2008, a foreign government-funded program finished the development of a centralized database for documenting and tracking trafficking cases nationwide. Training for personnel in the use of this database was conducted in the capital and areas of the country where high levels of trafficking have been reported. While a positive example of increased anti-trafficking cooperation between the gendarmerie and police, financial and legal issues threaten to derail this project; the center still lacks a presidential decree giving its work legal standing and financing remains uncertain. The database,s use is limited to cases in Antananarivo. In some tourist areas, local police appeared hesitant to prosecute child sex trafficking and child sex tourism offenses, possibly because of deep-rooted corruption, pressures from the local community, or fear of an international incident. Some officials were punished in 2007 for colluding with traffickers or accepting bribes to overlook trafficking crimes. The Ministry of Justice did not report any such cases in 2008, though the media ran stories alleging official complicity. The ministry began rotating magistrates to different jurisdictions within the country, in part to stem corruption. Protection -------------- The Madagascar government provided weak victim protections. During the last year, previously reported victim protection efforts were determined to mostly be provided by NGOs and international organizations and not by the government. The government did not operate victim assistance programs; the majority of trafficking victims identified in 2008 were assisted exclusively by NGO-run centers. Counseling centers run by local NGOs and supported by the Ministries of Justice and Health in Antananarivo and Fianarantsoa, however, provided psychological support and legal advice to child sex trafficking victims. An unknown number of parents of such children received advice on filing court cases, but most declined to do so, either for fear of reprisal or because of a payoff from the perpetrator. As Madagascar lacked a formal process to identify trafficking victims among vulnerable populations or refer victims for care, law enforcement officials began drafting such procedures during the year with UNICEF assistance. However, the Ministry of Health,s local-level Child Rights Protection Networks ) which increased in number from 14 in 2007 to 65 in 2008 with UNICEF support ) brought together government institutions, law enforcement officials, and NGOs to fill this role. Networks coordinated child protection activities, identified and reported abuse cases, and assisted victims in accessing appropriate social and legal services. In 2008, for example, a protection network in Diego rescued two trafficked girls and the government returned them to their families in Ambanja and Nosy Be and provided money for school enrolment. Labor inspectors reportedly taught job-finding skills to rescued victims during the year. The government did not penalize trafficking victims for unlawful acts committed as a direct result of their being trafficked and encouraged them to assist in the investigation and prosecution of their exploiters. The government does not provide legal alternatives to the removal of victims to countries where they would face hardship or retribution. Prevention -------------- The government sustained its trafficking prevention efforts during the year. At the regional level, Local Anti-Trafficking Boards, comprised of ministerial representatives, improved information sharing among stakeholders and sensitized the population on trafficking issues, resulting in NGO care centers receiving an increasing number of cases in 2008. Although eight Regional Committees to Fight Child Labor increased coordination among government entities, NGOs, and ILO/IPEC under the framework of the National Action Plan for the Fight Against Child Labor, the Ministry of Labor,s five child labor inspectors were insufficient to cover areas beyond Antananarivo or in informal economic sectors. The government continued its national awareness campaign against child sex tourism and conducted a number of law enforcement actions against foreign child sex tourists during the year. In December 2008, President Ravalomanana presented remarks in Nosy Be on the importance of protecting children from foreign sex tourists. In May 2008, the Ministry of Justice launched a national campaign against child sexual exploitation that included messages on sex tourism in posters, a short film, and TV and radio spots. The government continued distributing anti-sex tourism information to tourists at national events and cultural celebrations, such as the Donia festival in Nosy Be, and a customs booklet to arriving international passengers containing a full-page warning of the consequences. In January 2008, a man from Reunion was arrested and prosecuted for the commercial sexual exploitation of a child in Nosy Be, but his case was dismissed for lack of evidence; four Reunionese considered accomplices were deported from the country. A French national was imprisoned in Tamatave for child sex tourism in September 2008. Also, three French citizens, cases for indecent assault or statutory rape were either dismissed or punished with suspended sentences. ¶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 Madagascar downgraded to Tier 2? A: While the government sustained its efforts to raise awareness of child sex trafficking, lack of institutional capacity and funding remained significant impediments to its anti-trafficking efforts, particularly impacting the effectiveness of law enforcement activities. Although the government enacted anti-trafficking legislation in January 2008, it reported no investigations or convictions of trafficking offenders during the reporting period and was unable to provide statistics regarding its anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts. In addition, the government provided weak victim protections. Q2: Did Madagascar,s recent political unrest affect its tier ranking? A: No. The 2009 TIP Report covers the efforts of the Malagasy government until January 2009,s political unrest, which resulted in an unlawful change in government in March. Efforts to verify implementation of the laws during the remainder of the reporting period, if any, were difficult to verify given the level of political instability. The new regime,s policies and perspectives on Madagascar,s human trafficking problem are unknown; it remains to be seen whether the new government will maintain the previous administration,s keen interest in combating trafficking. Q3: What progress has Madagascar made in the last year? A: The Ministry of Health,s local-level Child Rights Protection Networks, comprised of government institutions, law enforcement officials, and NGOs, coordinated child protection activities, identified and reported abuse cases, and assisted victims in accessing appropriate social and legal services. At the regional level, Local Anti-Trafficking Boards, comprised of ministerial representatives, sensitized the population on trafficking issues, resulting in NGO care centers receiving an increasing number of cases in 2008. The government continued its national awareness campaign against child sex tourism and conducted a number of law enforcement actions against foreign child sex tourists during the year. The Ministry of Justice launched a national campaign against child sexual exploitation that included messages on sex tourism in posters, a film, and TV and radio spots. The government continued distributing anti-sex tourism information to tourists at national events and cultural celebrations, and a customs booklet to arriving international passengers containing a full-page warning of the consequences. Several cases of child sex tourism were investigated and prosecuted, but the government reported no criminal punishments of sex tourists. Q4: What can Madagascar do to improve its fight against modern day slavery? A: To further its anti-trafficking efforts, the Government of Madagascar could: utilize the anti-trafficking law to prosecute trafficking offenses, including those involving forced labor, and punish trafficking offenders; institute a formal process for law enforcement officials to document trafficking cases and refer victims of both labor and sex trafficking for assistance; increase efforts to raise public awareness of labor trafficking; and investigate and prosecute public officials suspected of trafficking-related complicity. ¶12. The Department appreciates posts, assistance with the preceding action requests. CLINTON