CAMEROON: 2009 TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS REPORT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 10 YAOUNDE 000152 DEPARTMENT FOR G/TIP, G-ACBLANK, PRM, AF/RSA, AF/C AND DRL DEPT. PLEASE PASS TO USAID PARIS AND LONDON FOR AFRICA ACTION OFFICERS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KTIP KCRM PHUM KWMN SMIG KFRD ASEC PREF ELAB CM SUBJECT: CAMEROON: 2009 TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS REPORT REF: 08 STATE 00132759 09 STATE 00005577 ¶1. Summary: The Government of the Republic of Cameroon (GRC) acknowledges that Cameroon is a country of origin, transit and destination for trafficked women and children. In 2005, the National Assembly passed Anti-Child Trafficking legislation. A number of sections of the penal code apply to trafficking-related crimes, and traffickers have been prosecuted and convicted under those provisions. The government continues to build awareness and work to eradicate trafficking. It cooperates with foreign governments, including the U.S., international organizations and non-governmental organizations (NGO),to combat trafficking. End Summary ¶2. The information presented below follows the format of the questions in reftels. Section 23. Overview -------------- ¶A. The press, including print and electronic media, local and international NGOs, international organizations, and government agencies are the leading sources of available information on trafficking in persons. Post also collects information during field trips to sensitive areas. Post has had the opportunity to crosscheck available information through meetings with various stakeholders and comparison of information from various sources. ¶B. Cameroon is a country of origin, transit and destination for trafficked children. It is a country of origin for trafficked women. Cameroon's trafficking targets have traditionally been, and continue to be, women and children. Children, however, are at greater risk of being trafficked. -- The majority of child trafficking occurs within Cameroon's borders, while most trafficked women are transported out of the country. Girls are often trafficked from Anglophone areas, particularly the North West, to the Francophone cities of Douala and Yaounde to work as domestics or to provide cheap childcare. The language barrier makes it easier for employees to control them. Children are also trafficked from the Grand North (Far North, North and Adamaoua Regions) to the Center, South West and Littoral Regions to work on the streets and on cocoa plantations. One internally trafficked child was kidnapped in the Center Region and released in the Littoral Region, where her kidnapper was arrested by gendarmes. -- Cameroon is a country of transit for trafficked children. Most of them originate from Nigeria and Benin. They are often in transit to Gabon or Equatorial Guinea, where they are used as household help. There were about 18 cases of known trafficked children in transit situations between July and November 2008. -- Cameroon is also a country of destination for trafficked children, most of whom originate from Nigeria. Such children are often forced to work in agriculture, fishing (Bakassi area), spare-parts shops in large cities, or selling water, tissues and other goods at urban street intersections. In February 2008, Post learned from a gendarme who recently served in the Bakassi Peninsula that dozens of Nigerian children age 8 and above were smuggled into Cameroon for fishing. The concerned children reportedly work for Nigerian fishermen in the Bakassi Peninsula. -- Cameroon is a country of origin for trafficked women. Most women are trafficked to Europe, lured by fraudulent marriage proposals or offers of housekeeping jobs. Often these women bribe officials to obtain the required documents. Women have been trafficked primarily out of Cameroon's two principal cities, Yaounde and Douala. Clandestine European prostitution networks, principally in Switzerland and France, target young women looking for lucrative marriages through the internet or marriage brokers. The Cameroon government is aware of this phenomenon; however, precise statistics on the number of trafficked women are not available. -- The government, in collaboration with international organizations, has taken some action against TIP. This includes: returning street children to their homes, repatriating foreign children, and equipping former trafficked children with tools to assist in reintegration. Observers believe that these actions have contributed to a slight drop in the magnitude of the TIP problem. ¶C. According to local NGOs in the North West Province (a source province for trafficked children),the 2005 anti-child trafficking YAOUNDE 00000152 002 OF 010 legislation is deterring traffickers because more people are informed about methods used to traffic children. Trafficked children are often recruited as babysitters. To combat trafficking, advertisements for babysitters in the North West province specify that the babysitter must be above 18 years of age. ¶D. Children are the leading victims of trafficking in Cameroon. The majority are Cameroonian and are trafficked from rural to urban areas. Trafficking almost exclusively involves very small scale operations (2-3 children at most) and frequently is the result of a rural parent agreeing to send a child to the city to work under the assumption that the child would be paid for his or her labor, which is often not the case. Women are also trafficked, lured by promises of lucrative marriages or jobs abroad. ¶E. Trafficking in Cameroon is largely controlled by individuals or small groups. Post has no evidence to suggest that large international crime syndicates are involved in trafficking in Cameroon. Trafficked children are usually transported from rural areas via a "middle man" who introduces himself as a person of good will. Posing as a church leader or sports director, the trafficker promises the parents he will provide their child with an education and a better life outside of their rural village. Grateful parents hand over their child in hopes of providing him or her with a better life. Occasionally, the traffickers are extended family members who force the children to work for them or hire the children out to perform domestic work for others. Officials from the Ministry of Social Affairs (MINAS) report that in some large rural families, parents or other family members will "loan" a child in exchange for monetary compensation. That bondage may be life-long, or may last for a number of years. These children are normally forced to work as domestic servants, street vendors, prostitutes, or nannies in more urban areas. Transited children are trafficked typically between Gabon and Nigeria. Typically, marriage brokers front for traffickers and use the Internet to lure trafficked women with the prospect of lucrative marriages Section 24. Setting the Scene for the Government's Anti-TIP Efforts -------------- -------------- -------------- ¶A. The Government of Cameroon acknowledges that trafficking is a problem in Cameroon, although this acknowledgement has come piecemeal from various Ministries. Awareness is being further raised among local government and security officials serving in the areas where trafficking is an issue. ¶B. The Ministries of Social Affairs, Labor and Social Security, Women's Empowerment and the Family, Basic Education, Secondary Education, and Justice are involved in anti-trafficking efforts. Security agencies are also key actors, including the General Delegation for National Security (DGSN),its National Interpol Bureau (BCN-Interpol),and the National Gendarmerie. The Ministry of Labor and Social Security has the lead in anti-trafficking efforts. ¶C. Although the government has expressed its desire to combat trafficking, a lack of funds and trained personnel seriously limits its ability to address TIP and aid trafficking victims. Additionally a lack of awareness by law enforcement officials about the anti-trafficking law inhibits the government from addressing this problem. The GRC does not have sufficient resources to support extensive prevention programs. -- Corruption is a serious problem in Cameroon, although the government has made some efforts to address it. On May 31, 2005, President Biya created the National Agency for the Investigation of Financial Crimes (ANIF, French acronym). The leading mission of the Agency is to fight money laundering and funding of international terrorism. It also helps track down corruption-related enrichment and embezzlement of public funds. In March 2006, President Biya created the National Anti-corruption Commission (CONAC, French acronym),which is under his direct authority. CONAC collects information from any individual, institution, or organization that has a case to denounce. In March 2008, for instance, CONAC organized a forum against corruption in the transportation sector. On February 23, 2007, the Government and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) signed a convention to implement an anti-corruption program named Change Habits-Oppose Corruption (CHOC). Through that program, Cameroon will receive $2 million (one billion CFA francs) within three years, to conduct anti-corruption actions. -- There were publicized prosecutions of government officials accused of corruption during the year. The Delegate General for National Security (DGSN) sanctioned dozens of police officers for corruption, pending trials. In August, the police arrested and YAOUNDE 00000152 003 OF 010 detained a former minister of state and secretary general of the Presidency for corruption and embezzlement. His trial is pending. In July, the Yaounde High Court sentenced Joseph Edou, the former general manager of Credit Foncier, the government's real estate funding company, and Andre Boto'o a Ngon, the former board chairman of the company, to 40 years imprisonment each for corruption. ¶D. The GRC does not have a crime monitoring system in place. There is no central database for crime statistics, including trafficking crimes. Regional law enforcement bodies are not required to report cases or incidents to a central authority. Interpol's National Branch Office has begun collecting data, which it hopes to release soon. There were, however, significant improvements. During the year, the Ministry of Justice began putting in place a system for collecting law enforcement data, including the number of traffickers arrested, prosecuted and convicted. However, implementation is slow, as the computerization of the various courts just started recently. On November 11, the Prime Minister and the Minister of Justice visited the pilot center located in the Yaounde First Instance Court, and the training center for computer specialists at the National School of Administration and Magistracy (ENAM). The computerization process is expected to be completed by 2012. Section 25. Investigation and Prosecution of Traffickers -------------- -------------- ¶A. The GRC does not have a law specifically prohibiting trafficking in persons. However, on December 14, 2005, the National Assembly passed specific legislation on child trafficking and slavery. The President ratified the law on December 29, 2005. Until there is legislation prohibiting trafficking in persons, courts use Article 293 and other provisions of the Penal Code that address crimes related to trafficking such as slavery, prostitution and violations of minimum age requirements for workers. On June 4, 2007, Cameroon signed on to the Anti-Sex Tourism Charter, which provides for ethics rules in the management of tourist activities. Hotels are supposed to begin verifying the identification of suspected juvenile female clients and barring access to unaccompanied minor children. Traffickers can be prosecuted under articles 3, 4, 5, and 6 of the Penal Code, which covers bondage and trafficking/slavery. The following is the text of the child trafficking law. Begin Text. Article 1: This law is on the fight against child trafficking and slavery. Article 2: For the purpose of this law, the following terms shall mean: (a) child: any person of either sex below 18 years (b) child trafficking: the act of moving or helping to move a child within or outside Cameroon with a view to directly or indirectly reaping any financial or material benefit whatsoever; (c) child slavery: the recruitment, transfer, accommodation or reception of children from exploitative purposes through threat, use of force or other forms of duress, through kidnapping, fraud, deceit, abuse of authority, or taking advantage of a situation of vulnerability or through offer or acceptance of benefits to obtain the consent of a person having authority over a child. (d) child exploitation: comprises, at least the use or procurement or offering of children or any other forms of sexual exploitation, exploitation of child labor or forced labor, slavery or practices similar to slavery, serfdom or organ removal. (e) consent of the person is vitiated: where acts of violence were committed on the victim himself or on the persons having legal or customary custody; (f) debt bondage of children; the act of pledging a child before a creditor as security for a loan or debt for exploitative purposes. Article 3 of the Child Trafficking Law provides that: (1) Whoever submits a child to debt bondage shall be punished with imprisonment for from five to ten years and with fines from 10,000 to 500,000 CFA francs ($20 to $1,000). (2) The penalties provided for in Article 3 (1) above shall be doubled where the offender is an ascendant, a guardian, or the person having even customary custody over the victim. (3) Any person who boards a child in debt bondage shall be punished with imprisonment for (ten) years and with fine of from 10,000 to one million CFA francs ($20 to $1,000). Article 4 provides that: Any person who practices child trafficking or slavery, even occasional1y shall be punished with imprisonment YAOUNDE 00000152 004 OF 010 for terms ranging from 10 to 20 years and with fines from 50,000 to one million CFA francs ($100 to $2,000). Article 5 provides that child trafficking and slavery shall be punished with imprisonment for 15 to 20 years and with a fine of one hundred thousand to ten million CFA francs ($200 to $20,000) in the following cases: a) where the offense is committed against a minor below 15 years of age; b) where the offender is the victim's legitimate, natural or adoptive ascendant; c) where the offender has authority over the child or is expected to participate by virtue of his duties in the fight against slavery or in peacekeeping; d) where the offense is committed by an organized gang or an association of criminals; e) where the offense is committed with the use of weapons; f) where the victim has sustained injuries set forth in Section 277 of the Penal Code or has died as a result of the offense. Article 6 provides that the offenders, co-offenders and accomplices of child debt bondage, trafficking and slavery shall be sentenced to additional penalties provided for by Article 30 of the Penal Code, which deals with "Forfeitures," and reads as follows: 1) Removal and exclusion from any public service, employment or office; 2) Incapacity to be a juror, assessor, expert referee or sworn expert; 3) Incapacity to be guardian, curator. Deputy guardian or committee, save of the offender's own children, or member of a family council; 4) Prohibition on wearing any decoration; 5) Prohibition on serving in the armed forces; 6) Prohibition on keeping a school, on teaching in any educational establishment, and in general on holding any post connected with the education or care of children. -- Part of Article 293 of the Penal Code provides that whoever enslaves or engages, whether habitually or otherwise, in the traffic in persons shall be punished with imprisonment for ten to twenty years. Article 342 adds that where an enslaved victim is under eighteen years of age, the penalty shall be imprisonment for fifteen to twenty years and a fine of fifty thousand CFA francs (approximately $100) to one million CFA (approximately $2,000). In addition, the court may impose forfeitures described in article 30 including, removal and exclusion from public service; inability to be a juror, assessor or sworn expert; and general prohibition on holding a post connected with the education or care of children. The second half of the Article forbids the act of using people as "security" on loans and that offenders shall be punished by imprisonment for one to five years and a fine of 10,000 to one million CFA francs (approximately $20 to $2,000). The court may also impose the forfeitures described in article 30 (see above). End Text ¶B. In the Child Trafficking Law, child exploitation includes forms of sexual exploitation: (d) child exploitation: comprises, at least the use or procurement or offering of children or any other forms of sexual exploitation, exploitation of child labor or forced labor, slavery or practices similar to slavery, serfdom or organ removal. ¶C. Article 2 (3) of the Labor Code forbids forced or compulsory labor. Under the code, any labor or service demanded of an individual under threat or penalty, be it a labor or service, which the individual has not freely offered to perform, and any person committing an infringement of that provision shall be punished with a fine of fifty thousand CFS ($100) to five hundred thousand CFA ($1,000)(Article 166). The law punishes employers who switch contracts without the worker's consent as a means to keep the worker in a state of service. Article 168 (5) of the same Code provides that any person who forces a worker to take up employment against his will or who prevents a worker from taking up employment, going to work or discharging, in a general manner, any obligations imposed by his contract shall be punished with a fine from two hundred thousand CFA ($ 400) to 1.5 million CFA ($ 3,000). Few such cases have been reported. Cameroon is not considered a labor source country. ¶D. Rape or forcible sexual assault is a punishable crime. It is sanctioned by the Penal Code in Article 296, which provides that whoever by force or moral ascendancy compels any female whether above or below the age of puberty to have sexual intercourse with him shall be punished with imprisonment for five to ten years. YAOUNDE 00000152 005 OF 010 Article 296 adds that these penalties shall be doubled where the offender has authority or custody over the victim by law or custom. The penalties are also doubled if the offender is a public servant, religious minister, or is assisted in his malfeasance by one or more others. Due to lack of statistical data, there is no data on convictions of sex traffickers. ¶E. The government has investigated reported cases of trafficking. There have been reports of individuals being arrested for their involvement in trafficking during the period covered by this report. -- On September 5, 2008, a woman kidnapped a 12-year-old girl in Gondong, a village of the Mbam and Inoubou Division of the Center Region, and smuggled her into the city of Edea, in the Littoral Region. Her younger sister, who witnessed the kidnapping, alerted their family. Edea gendarmes arrested the smuggler, who was presented to the prosecutor. Investigations are still going on, and it is suspected that the smuggler could be a member of a child trafficking network. -- In November, press reports covered the story of a 12 year old Cameroonian boy and his younger brother who were kidnapped in Kotonou, Benin by a woman. The two children were smuggled into Cameroon, Kousseri, Far North Region in transit to an unknown destination, likely Gabon. The young boy was able to escape, leaving his younger brother in the vehicle. The Association for the Protection of Children Living Away From Their Families in Cameroon (APEEC, French acronym) took care of the boy, while the judicial police and the National Office of Interpol are conducting the investigations. -- Between July and November 2008, the government investigated the case of 15 Beninese children who were among the 54 survivors of a boat from West Africa, which capsized in Cameroonian territorial waters off the coast at Londji, South Region. There were strong suspicions of child trafficking due to the fact that the children ranged in age from 8 to 19. During the investigation, the Cameroonian government took care of the children in the Centre d'Accueil et d'Observation (CAO) of Douala, which is under the authority of the Ministry of Social Affairs. The fifteen children were repatriated to their country on November 18. Investigations continue. -- In mid-January 2008, gendarmerie officers of the Santa brigade in the North West Province arrested three traffickers who were driving a vehicle with seven children aged 12 to 17. The three traffickers were sent to the Prosecutor of the Bamenda court. This case is pending. -- In December 2007, Bamenda gendarmerie officers arrested a trafficker, who trafficked children to Idenau, a district of the South West Province. The arrest was linked to a specific case of trafficking in which the victim died. The trafficker was released on bail pending formal charges and trial. -- In 2007, the Yaounde court held hearings on six child trafficking-related cases. These are still pending in court. -- Gendarmes, police officers, and prosecutors in Yaounde and Bamenda used the provisions of the Labor Code, the Penal Code and the 2005 anti-child trafficking legislation to arrest and prosecute traffickers. -- It is probable that Cameroonian authorities have prosecuted and convicted additional traffickers during the year; however, because such individuals can be prosecuted under many different sections of the penal code, it is difficult to report the rates of prosecution. Furthermore, the GRC does not keep criminal statistics. ¶F. The government does not provide any specialized TIP training for government officials. Government officials concur that training should be a requirement and welcome foreign training or resource assistance. In June 2008, the American Bar Association (ABA), through a G/TIP FY06 grant trained prosecutors, judges and police in the North West Province (a source area of trafficking) about trafficking issues, such as how to identify trafficking and pertinent laws. In September 2008, the ABA trained law enforcement officers and magistrates in investigation and prosecution. The project ended in October 2008. In October, the National Commission on Human Rights and Freedoms also conducted a TIP training seminar, which targeted the same groups. ¶G. The Cameroonian government cooperates with other governments in the investigation and prosecution of trafficking cases. Between YAOUNDE 00000152 006 OF 010 July and November 2008, the government cooperated with the Government of Benin to investigate the abovementioned case of 15 Beninese children who were among the 54 survivors of a boat which capsized in Cameroonian territorial waters, and their later repatriation. In September 2008, the government cooperated with the Nigerian consular and diplomatic authorities, for the repatriation of a 12 year old Nigerian girl, who had been kidnapped in Nigeria and smuggled into Cameroon. ¶H. The Government extradites persons charged with trafficking in other countries; however, Cameroonian law prohibits the extradition of Cameroonian nationals. There have been no known cases of extraditions from Cameroon to the U.S. in recent years. I/J. There is no indication that governmental authorities facilitate or condone trafficking, nor is there indication that they are complicit in such activities. While Post has received anecdotal reports that frontier police sometimes accept bribes from traffickers, Post has not been able to verify such reports. There have also been anecdotal reports that the frontier police, particularly at the two major airports in the country, have become increasingly vigilant in combating trafficking and in requiring parental authorizations for children who are traveling with someone other than a parent. Post is unaware of the prosecution or conviction of governmental officials involved in trafficking activities. ¶K. Prostitution is illegal but widely practiced in urban areas and places frequented by tourists. There are no well-established brothel or pimp networks in the country, and most prostitutes are poor women and girls who are forced into the sex trade by perceived economic necessity. Prostitution is also punishable through the Penal Code. Article 294 provides that whoever procures, aids or facilitates another person's prostitution, or shares in the proceeds of another's prostitution, whether habitual or otherwise, or who is subsidized by any person engaging in prostitution shall be punished with imprisonment for six months to five years and a fine of 20,000 CFA francs (approximately $40) to one million CFA francs (approximately $2,000). Article 346 adds that these penalties shall be doubled when the victim is less than 16 years of age. ¶L. Cameroon contributes troops to international peacekeeping efforts. Post is unaware of any cases of Cameroonian peacekeepers that engaged in or facilitated severe forms of trafficking or exploited victims of such trafficking. ¶M. Post is not aware of an identified child sex tourism problem; however, as a preventive measure, on June 4, 2007, the GRC signed the Anti-Sex Tourism Charter, which provides for ethics rules in the management of tourist activities. Hotels are supposed to begin verifying the identification of suspected juvenile female clients and barring access to unaccompanied minor children. Section 26. Protection and Assistance to Victims -------------- -------------- ¶A. When informed, the government provides assistance to victims, including temporary residency status, shelter and medical care. The GRC does not discriminate on the basis of country of origin in the assistance it provides to trafficking victims. Social programs exist in the country to assist in the removal of children engaged in the worst forms of child labor. Local NGOs are particularly active in that field. ¶B. The government has very few victim care facilities in Yaounde and Douala, and other regional capitals. However it started making efforts during the year. On December 30, 2008, the Prime Minister enjoined the Minister of Social Affairs and the Minister of Youth and Sports to build the operational capacities of centers that cater for children in distress in order to foster their social integration. He also instructed them to finalize the legal and statutory framework for the protection, supervision and socio-professional reintegration of street children. The government also cooperates with several NGOs active in regions where trafficking is an issue. An NGO in Yaounde told Post in December 2007 that since its creation, it had provided shelter to 840 vulnerable and trafficked children most of who were referred to them by the Ministry of Social Affairs. One local NGO in the North West reports that it provides shelter for over 150 children annually and provides healthcare and counseling in as many cases as possible. Another NGO in the South West provides vocational training for street children in Kumba. Children who have been recovered from trafficking situations by the state are either cared for in centers sponsored by the Ministry of Social Affairs or are sent to local NGO centers while the Ministry tries to locate the children's parents. YAOUNDE 00000152 007 OF 010 Local NGOs report that they have generally good relationships with local law enforcement and are normally contacted when trafficking cases arise. The government does not discriminate trafficking victims based on their nationality. In September 2008, during a visit to the 15 Beninese children who were among the 54 survivors of a boat which capsized in Cameroonian territorial waters, the Minister of Social Affairs stated that it is the policy of Cameroon to give priority to the protection of children, and that protection has no borders. She added that whenever a child, regardless of origin, is in distress it is the mission of the Ministry of Social Affairs to protect him. ¶C. The government lacks the funds to implement its own anti-trafficking programs and therefore does not provide financial support to NGOs working to combat trafficking. Most international NGOs and faith-based NGOs, who are the leaders in assisting victims of trafficking, receive financial assistance from international organizations and religious communities in other countries. However, in the few centers that it runs, the government makes efforts to provide trafficking victims with access to medical and psychological assistance, and food. That was the case with the 15 Beninese children who were taken care of at the Centre d'Accueil et d'Observation (CAO) of Bepanda in Douala, Littoral Region, between July and November 2008. The center belongs to the Ministry of Social Affairs. D/E. The government provides assistance to foreign trafficking victims. It provides temporary residency status, until repatriation process is finalized. Post is not aware of cases of victims that required long-term shelter or housing benefits. ¶F. The GRC has an informal system to refer victims to its own facilities and to NGOs for shelter. Once security forces have identified individuals as trafficking victims, they send a report to the local administrative authority, which in its turn directs the victims to the appropriate government agency, for further action. This includes providing them with shelter, medical care, and food. ¶G. There were at least 18 cases of victims identified during the rating period. 15 among them were referred to care facilities for assistance by social services officials. One was taken care of by an NGO specialized in the protection of children living away from their parents. Another one was taken care of by his country's consulate and embassy in Cameroon. ¶H. The government's law enforcement, immigration and social services personnel do not have a formal system of actively identifying victims of trafficking. However, border police at airports appear to be more and more vigilant. Travel documents including the passports of foreign persons likely of having violated immigration laws, are better checked, especially when travelling with young children. On October 21, the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Justice, Keeper of the Seals, announced a revision of the law on adoption. He revealed that until the law is revised, conservative measures had been put in place to address any case of trafficking. It is hoped that training, which the ABA and the NCHRF provided law enforcement officials with in June, September and October will develop and raise their skills. ¶I. The GRC generally respects the rights of trafficked children. Post is not aware of any victims that were detained for longer than was required for protective custody, jailed, fined, deported or prosecuted for violating laws governing issues like illegal immigration or prostitution. ¶J. The government encourages victims to assist in the investigation and prosecution of trafficking. Post has no record of trafficking victims acting as eyewitnesses and is not aware of any legal protections that they would be entitled to beyond those accorded to all eyewitnesses. Victims may file suits or seek legal action against traffickers, and law enforcement officers encourage them to do so. However since children are the main victims of trafficking, it is family members of trafficking victims who may bring civil suits against traffickers. Post is aware of one case in the North West Region where gendarme officers encouraged the family of a victim to sue a trafficker, who did not pay the child as promised when he took him away. In December 2007 in Bamenda, North West Region, the aunt of a trafficked child sued a trafficker who failed to pay the child for more than a year. The case is currently pending in the Bamenda court. ¶K. The government, through the National Commission on Human Rights and Freedoms, provided specialized training for government officials in identifying trafficking victims. NGOs have included government officials, including law enforcement, in some of their training YAOUNDE 00000152 008 OF 010 programs. Post is unaware of any training that the government provides to its embassies and consulates in foreign countries that are destination or transit countries. However, those embassies and consulates cooperate with host countries. ¶L. Post is not aware of any cases of Cameroon's nationals who have been repatriated as victims of trafficking. Were such cases to occur, the government would provide assistance such as medical aid, shelter, or financial help to those victims, as it has always done with emergency repatriation of Cameroonians who were the victims of xenophobia-related violence abroad. ¶M. Several international organizations and NGOs work with trafficking victims, directly or indirectly. SOS Kinderhof, an Austrian international NGO, is involved in the protection of vulnerable children. The organization runs a "Children's Village" in the Center Province (Mbalmayo) and one in a Douala suburb. Catholic Relief Services (CRS) funds the activities of rehabilitation centers, like Nkumu Fed Fed's in Bali, North West Region. The Raoul Follereau Children Foundation and the Episcopal Conference of Italy co-fund organizations run shelters as well. Some of these shelters provide children with vocational training in carpentry, masonry, mechanics, electronics, and tailoring, to prepare them to future positive reinsertion in the society. They also sponsor the education of those wanting to continue their schooling. The government does not have the means to fund the activities of NGOs or any other organizations. The government trusts these organizations which have had a good track record and transfers trafficking victims to these organizations. The "Foyer de l'Esperance," the "Fondation Emmanuel", which are religious NGOs, and "Noah's Ark" (through Nkumu Fed Fed) focus on trafficked children. These NGOs operate freely and are tax exempt. There are also numerous NGOs who work on child labor issues. These NGOs also work to identify trafficking victims and increase awareness of trafficking. The government holds regular consultations with the organizations concerned, in order to make sure that all regulations are fully respected. Cooperation between the government and those organizations is generally good. Section 27. Prevention -------------- ¶A. The government acknowledges that TIP is a problem in Cameroon. And because children are the leading victims of trafficking, all the efforts focus on anti-child trafficking/child labor actions. Awareness is being further built among local government and security officials serving in the areas where trafficking was an issue. -- Anti-trafficking ads are broadcast on government radio and television. In government offices in Bamenda, North West Province, there are posters by NGO Nkumu Fed Fed (with support from the G/TIP funding) which depict common scenarios used to lure children into trafficking. The Red Card Against Child Labor initiative is also continuously visible in Cameroon. This ILO-sponsored program includes a television advertisement campaign wherein well-known soccer players denounce child labor. These ads air regularly on the national television station, CRTV. -- During the year, the government made some efforts to protect children's rights and welfare, including participation in seminars on children's rights. During the year the Prime Minister, the Minister of Social Affairs and other senior leaders made statements and presented government action plans regarding the improvement of the condition of children. The government continued to build awareness among local government and security officials serving in the areas where trafficking was an issue. Vigilance and anti-trafficking actions were among their priorities. In June and September, the American Bar Association (ABA) organized seminars to train law enforcement officers and magistrates in investigation and prosecution of trafficking offenses. In October, the National Commission on Human Rights and Freedoms also conducted an anti-trafficking seminar, which targeted the same group. There were anti-trafficking educational on rural and regional radios, and anti-trafficking spots were broadcast on government radio and television. -- On the occasion of the celebration of the Day of the African Child (June 16),Child Parliamentarians held their tenth session at the National Assembly under the theme, "Children's participation". In June, the Child Parliamentarians passed a number of resolutions including a call for increased dissemination of all legal instruments covering children's rights, and the creation of structures to care for trafficking victims. -- From March 24-28, and in the framework of the "Explorons le Droit YAOUNDE 00000152 009 OF 010 Humanitaire" (EDH) program, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the Ministry of Secondary Education organized a training seminar on humanitarian law and how it can be taught for 60 pedagogy inspectors from all the 10 regions. Those inspectors became trainers who taught teachers on how to teach humanitarian law in schools. ¶B. The government monitored immigration and emigration patterns for evidence of trafficking. The government's frontier police, customs officials and special gendarmerie units have made efforts to monitor Cameroon's borders, particularly at seaports and airports. Land borders are less well controlled and in the North and North West individuals report being able to pass freely between Nigeria, Chad and Cameroon. During the February 17-18, 2004 seminar on the IRSA study, the representative of National Security acknowledged that due to limited resources, security forces are unable to control the entire border. He added that at some borders, it is hard to differentiate between Cameroonians, Chadians, or Nigerians because of a shared ethnic and linguistic background. The Government also fully cooperates with Interpol, of which it is a member. Because of increased awareness, frontier police are becoming more vigilant and anecdotal evidence suggest that frontier police are increasingly strict in requiring parental authorizations for children traveling without their parents. ¶C. There is a mechanism for coordination and communication between various agencies, internal, international, and multilateral on trafficking-related matters. However, this mechanism is rarely used. Ten governmental agencies work within an inter-agency TIP group. They include: the Ministries of Labor and Social Insurance (MTSS); Social Affairs (MINAS); Women and Family Promotion (MPFF); Justice (MINJUSTICE); External Relations (MINREX); Territorial Administration and Decentralization (MINATD); and Tourism (MINTOUR). Also included among the inter-agency group is the Secretariat of State for Defense, in charge of the National Gendarmerie (SED); the General Delegation for National Security (DGSN),which includes border police; and the Customs Services for both seaports and airports. The group does not meet on a regular basis. ¶D. The Government continues to work on a national plan of action, entitled the "National Strategic Plan against Child Trafficking." In early November 2007, the Ministries of Economy and Planning, Basic Education, Women Empowerment and Family, Public Health, and UNICEF were finalizing the "National Policy Framework Document for the Full Development of the Young Child." This Policy Framework is designed to provide a holistic solution to the plight of children in the country. The Ministry of Economy and Planning, which leads the project, is putting together results from fieldwork. It is hoped that the final document will be adopted before the end of the year. ¶E. By law, all children born of Cameroonian parents, are Cameroonian citizens. At birth, the parents of the newborn must register the birth at the mayor's office, and a birth certificate is subsequently issued. There are places in rural areas and the Northern regions where parents fail to declare their children's births. For several years, the government, in collaboration with international NGOs (Plan International) and international organizations (UNICEF),has been conducting programs to issue birth certificates and National Identity Cards Q the law requires that all citizens age 18 and older carry one permanently with them Q to such groups. -- On September 11, 2008, Plan Cameroon signed a USD 48 million (CFA francs 240 million) agreement with 8 councils of the North Region which, in addition to building and equipping schools, installing water facilities, and conducting immunization campaigns, would also facilitate the issuance of birth certificates. -- During the year, the government created special civil status centers in several remote rural areas and Bakassi, in order to facilitate the issuance of birth certificates. ¶F. Before they leave the country, Cameroonian nationals who are deployed abroad as part of a peacekeeping or other similar mission get briefed on International Humanitarian Law and the international requirements governing peacekeeping missions. In order to keep military and police leadership abreast of the rules and regulations in force, the government in collaboration with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC),regularly organizes seminars in Yaounde. ¶G. On June 4, 2007, Cameroon signed the Anti-Sex Tourism Charter, which provides for ethics rules in the management of tourists activities. Hotels are supposed to begin verifying the identification of suspected juvenile female clients and barring YAOUNDE 00000152 010 OF 010 access to unaccompanied minor children. ¶H. CHILD SOLDIERS Not applicable to Cameroon. Section 28. HEROES -------------- We have no individual proposals for this year, but would like to nominate a non-governmental organization. Nkumu Fed Fed, an anti-child trafficking NGO based in Bali, North West Province, has demonstrated exceptional commitment to fighting trafficking in persons in an outstanding manner. The NGO's rehabilitation actions have allowed many children, especially young girls, to acquire professional skills in fields like sewing, carpentry, etc. The most important aspect of their rehabilitation policy is that some of the former victims that now earn a living from their profession come back to the center teach newcomers, talk to them, and be a living testimony that victims can overcome the trauma. Additionally, Nkumu Fed Fed has developed educational posters which are posted in government offices to educate about the dangers of trafficking and common tricks used by traffickers to lure children from their families. Post TIP contact officer is Poloff Heather Watson-Ayala. She can be reached at +237 220-1500 Ext. 4081 or faxed at +237 2220-1605. Her e-mail is watsonayalah@state.gov. The LES political specialist spent approximately 80 hours contributing to this report and the poloff spent approximately 15 hours. Reviews and clearances by the Pol/Econ Chief and Front Office approximately 5 hours. GARVEY