SEMI-ANNUAL COUNTRY FRAUD SUMMARY REPORT - EMBASSY SUVA

UNCLAS SUVA 000386

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR CA/FPP; CA/VO/KCC
DHS FOR CIS/FDNS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ASEC CVIS CMGT CPAS KFRD FJ
SUBJECT: SEMI-ANNUAL COUNTRY FRAUD SUMMARY REPORT - EMBASSY SUVA

REF: 09 STATE 057623


1. COUNTRY CONDITIONS

The countries in Suva's diverse consular district (Fiji, Tonga,
Nauru, Kiribati, and Tuvalu) are small and remote nations with
struggling economies. Political uncertainty in some of these island
states contributes to their respective economic instability.

Fiji's military coups, currency devaluation, and continued political
instability increase local anxiety and the urge to immigrate. The
leading industries - tourism, garments, and sugar - continue to
suffer from the local political situation and the global economic
climate. In addition, Government media controls implemented
following the abrogation of the constitution in April 2009 limit the
diffusion of unbiased information.

Fiji continues to have a high rate of emigration. Indigenous Fijians
and Indo-Fijians are establishing a base of distant relatives in the
U.S. and Canada who provide sponsorship to those looking for better
economic opportunities. Post has seen an increase in young
Indo-Fijian families trying to immigrate to the U.S. under NIV
status and a significant number of applicants transiting the U.S. to
join families in Canada. The predominant fields for potential
work/stay risk applicants are home health care, nursing, rugby, and
security.

The Tongan economy remains negatively impacted by the global
economic situation and continued political instability following the
2006 riots. The Tongan economy offers little in new employment
opportunities. Tonga continues to rely on remittances from relatives
for revenue. IMF estimates Tonga's remittance receipts equal 40% of
Tonga's GDP. Another estimate shows 60% of all Tongan households
have a least one migrant worker abroad and 90% of all households
receive remittance. Post validation studies support these
statistics. Local post research shows over 50% of Tongan NIV
recipients stayed six months or more.

The Tuvalu, Nauru, and Kiribati economies are reliant on foreign
aid, fishing licenses, and worker remittances - primarily from
seafarers working on foreign merchant ships.


2. NIV FRAUD

Suva experiences low-level unsophisticated document fraud. However,
recent activity in fraudulent student documents and identification
cards suggests an increasing shrewdness on the part of visa fixers
and document suppliers. Fiji immigration found a photo-subbing
machine on the main island of Viti Levu and suspect another
photo-sub machine is still in Fiji.

Fiji immigration reports increasing numbers of young Pakistani
adults entering Nadi, Fiji for English lessons at a private
institution called Freebird Language Institution. Freebird's
brochure states that the students can obtain Fijian passports after
three months at the school. Recently, Post's RSO and AFU worked
with Fiji Immigration to ensure 52 Pakistani students would not use
Fiji as a jumping point to the United States. Fiji immigration now
pays closer attention to Pakistani students entering Fiji. As of
September 2009, Fijian officials deported 16 Pakistani students.

Post continues to have problems with Tongan groups (dancing groups,
rugby groups, mission groups, etc.) and has implemented procedures
to combat related fraud. Even though post issues explicit
instructions on applying as a group on our website, group organizers
still allow additional group members who might not belong to or
support the group's core function to apply under the auspices of the
group for a visa.

Some of the Kiribati seamen have submitted new passports with
different names/birthdates. An i-Kiribati seaman recently tried to
use his brother's passport to obtain a C1/D visa. There have also
been some limited cases of Tuvaluan and i-Kiribati seamen being
returned to their respective countries for possession of controlled
substances.

Post hosted the Carrier Liaison Program in September of 2008 (see
January 2009 State Magazine, page 7). The program focused on
detecting fraudulent travel documentation and imposters. Fijian,
i-Kiribati and Tongan immigration and customs officers attended the
training along with Fiji Air Terminal Services, Air Pacific, New
Zealand High Commission and French Embassy staff. Over 150 people
attended daily sessions over a period of a week. All attendees were
grateful for the training and post still receives positive stories
about how the training has helped with passenger boarding in one
form or another.


3. IV FRAUD

Post encounters only low-level fraud in IV. Post accepts and
adjudicates about ten local CR/IR petitions each year, mostly for
spouses of American citizens. Such cases are carefully reviewed for
possible marriage fraud. The distance between islands in the
consular district and Post's limited resources make it difficult to
conduct on-site investigations of marriage fraud.

Another type of IV fraud is the occasional principal applicant
attempting to add a child as their own in family preference-based
petitions as an "adopted" child.


4. DV FRAUD

Post encounters some fraud in this area relating to academic
achievements, professional skills, and work experience. Post uses
local contacts to verify suspect documentation. Post has encountered
no serious fraud concerns to date.


5. ACS AND U.S. PASSPORT FRAUD

ACS fraud is not encountered in the district save for the rare
fraudulent attempt via a Consular Report of Birth Abroad (CRBA)
application to transmit citizenship in order to bypass the immigrant
visa process of a step child or adopted child.



6. ADOPTION FRAUD

Although this is not an area of particular concern, post does
encounter the occasional case of a naturalized citizen, unfamiliar
with U.S. adoption laws, trying to adopt a child of a family member,
primarily for economic/educational purposes.


7. USE OF DNA TESTING

Post has very few cases requiring relationship proof.


8. ASYLUM AND OTHER DHS BENEFITS FRAUD

Post has not had a fraudulent case related to visas 92/93 cases.
Some difficulties arise when interviewing family members of asylees
who were granted status in the United States following local coups
in Fiji.


9. ALIEN SMUGGLING, TRAFFICKING, ORGANIZED CRIME, TERRORIST TRAVEL

Post does encounter some fraudulent document production -
predominately of support documentation, not travel (e.g. boarding
passes) documentation. Typically, fraudulent documentation is
submitted to support the applications of children whose parents are
working illegally in the United States. Qualified relatives then
take the children to the parents. Currently, Tongan child applicants
falling into this category outnumber other district countries' child
applicants in similar situations.

Trafficking is entering the Fiji Islands. Three border control
officials working for the Fiji Islands Revenue and Customs Authority
(FIRCA) were detained and are under investigation for their alleged
involvement in a human trafficking scheme. The officials were
logging into immigration computers and entering data of Indian
nationals who entered the country illegally. The corrupt practice
continued for some time as the Indian nationals remained in Fiji and
information continued to be logged in that they were going in and
out of the country. The scheme involved luring Indian nationals
into Fiji for better jobs in return for thousands of dollars. The
participants include a group in India, a company in Fiji, and some
local officials. Thus far 3 local officials and 13 illegal Indian
nationals have been detained. The illegal aliens are now assisting
the police and immigration officials apprehend the others involved.


Continental Airlines will begin flights from Guam to Nadi, Fiji in
December 2009. These flights will connect the regional hub of
Micronesia (Guam) with the regional hub for Melanesia and Polynesia
(Nadi). Flights from Nadi to Hong Kong are also due to begin in
December 2009.

The addition of the Guam-Nadi link will make it significantly easier
for travelers to move between Micronesia and the rest of the Pacific
region. Nadi and Guam could be used as transit points to allow
quicker and more direct travel between Micronesia and
Polynesia/Melanesia. While this route will be appreciated by
legitimate tourists and business travelers, it also presents
opportunities to people smuggling/trafficking syndicates in the
region. Until now it has been difficult for the syndicates
organizing such enterprises to ply their trade between different
parts of the Pacific due to a lack of easy access. The new flights
are likely to be tested by traffickers and smugglers in both regions
to further extend their operations.

Currently, the most significant route for illegal immigration into
Fiji (and onwards to the wider South Pacific) has been the Korean
Air flight from Seoul's Incheon Airport to Nadi. The introduction of
flights from Guam to Nadi and Air Pacific's new route from Hong Kong
to Nadi (both beginning in December) make the region much more
accessible from Asia and are likely to pose increased risks to not
only Fiji, but the wider Pacific region.

Should illegal immigration syndicates be successful in moving
trafficked workers from Micronesia to Fiji or other Polynesian or
Melanesian countries, it is likely that attempts will be made to
facilitate secondary movement to New Zealand. This could be done
through either visa case-load fraud, or through the use of false
visa free passports. Given that most of the victims of people
trafficking in Micronesia have been of east-Asian ethnicity, the
visa free passports of Japan, Malaysia, Singapore and South Korea
are the most likely candidates for fraudulent use.


10. DS CRIMINAL FRAUD INVESTIGATIONS

Post has very few referred cases. Since Suva is a small post, the
consular fraud manager follows up with the RSO directly.


11. HOST COUNTRY PASSPORT, IDENTITY DOCUMENTS, AND CIVIL REGISTRY

Fiji issues machine readable passports, but the passports do not
contain biometric information. Since Fiji has two "registrars" - one
national and one tribal (for indigenous Fijians) - it is possible to
get a new birth certificate from the tribal registrar to obtain a
new birth certificate from the national registrar to get a new
Fijian passport. Only Fiji Immigration in Suva can issue full
validity Fijian passports. A recent discussion with the Fiji
Immigration Director revealed Fiji's plans to make it's passports
more secure with a new design. The new design includes a digital
photo, machine readable bio information and other anti-fraud
devices. Fiji immigration hopes to obtain funds to implement the
design change soon.

Fiji replacement (emergency) passports are usually issued for
limited validity. Emergency passports are limited in duration and
may be limited to one-way travel back to Fiji. Per ALDAC 067353,
Fijian emergency passports are not authorized for visa issuance due
to a lack of security. Fiji issues an emergency document called a
Certificate of Identity (CI) with very basic information and a
picture. Although the CI would allow a citizen of Fiji to board a
flight to return to Fiji, it is not a document accepted for visa
issuance by the United States. The CI lacks integrity due to poor
security features. The document is produced using ordinary bond
paper and issued manually (hand-written). The photo is glued on
(easy photo substitution),and the control number on the biodata
page is handwritten (number comes from the front cover). Two wet
seals, easily counterfeited, are placed on the photo and on page 6
"endorsement/ observations." Although the INA does not contain
passport security requirements, it defines a passport as a document
issued by a competent authority that shows the bearer's origin,
identity, and nationality (see INA section 101(a)(30)). In light of
the lack of security features of the CIs, a consular officer cannot
be confident a CI originated from a competent issuing authority.
Furthermore, since the CI lacks basic, necessary security features
and can easily be counterfeited, it does not credibly establish the
bearer's origin, identity, or nationality.


12. COOPERATION WITH HOST GOVERNMENT AUTHORITIES

Post enjoys excellent cooperation with host governments in our
consular district in all consular matters. The Embassy maintains and
develops its working relationships through regular outreach, sharing
of fraud information, and anti-fraud training programs at airports.
A quarterly anti-fraud round table meeting involving the diplomatic
community allows exchange of information about the fraud trends seen
by other foreign missions.


13. AREAS OF PARTICULAR CONCERN

Economic conditions and political uncertainties in our consular
district will continue to be an influential factor for NIV
applicants. Post has seen an increase in the number of Fijian female
NIV applicants who have no funds trying to get to California to work
in home health care.

Embassy Suva will begin a Laptop Non-Immigrant Visa (LNIV) program
in Tonga late 2009. While the implementation of the program will
provide valid benefits, it will also remove barriers that prevented
unqualified applicants from attempting entry into the United States.
After initial implementation, Post anticipates a rise in
applications and fraudulent attempts to gain entry from Tonga. The
anticipated increase will most likely come as a result of decreased
cost and time necessary to apply for a NIV since applicants no
longer need to spend the time and money necessary to travel to
Fiji.
Fiji does not require Chinese nationals to have visas or prior
approval for entry into Fiji. With the increase in flights between
Fiji and other East Asian countries, post expects there may be an
increase in the number of Chinese or Filipino nationals attempting
to transit Fiji and other South Pacific countries on false visa-free
passports in the medium to long term.


14. STAFFING AND TRAINING

The consular section at Embassy Suva is composed two full-time
consular officers and one part-time consular officer. The section
is supported by nine locally engaged staff. At the time of this
report there is one vacancy in the office for a Consular Visa Clerk.
All three Foreign Service Officers working in the Consular Section
arrived in August, 2009.

PRUETT