US embassy cable - 04GUATEMALA1573

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 GUATEMALA 001573 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR G/TIP, WHA/CEN, WHA/PPC, INL, DRL, PRM 
DEPARTMENT OF LABOR FOR ILAB 
AID FOR LAC 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KCRM, PHUM, KWMN, SMIG, KFRD, ASEC, PREF, ELAB, GT 
SUBJECT: TIP BILATERAL MINISTERIAL MEETING RESULTS 
 
 
This is an action request for G/TIP.  See para 2. 
 
1.  (SBU) Summary:  The Ambassador and Embassy anti-TIP team 
met with the Government of Guatemala inter-institutional 
group to combat TIP on June 22 to formally present the 2004 
TIP report and urge continued progress combating TIP.  The 
GOG's reaction to the release of the 2004 Trafficking in 
Persons Report was generally positive, although VP Stein 
publicly differed with the unilateral nature of the report's 
judgments.  The Ambassador conveyed Action Plan areas we hope 
to see progress in the remainder of 2004 and briefed the 
group on the Watch List interim report due in six months. 
MFA VM for Migration and Human Rights, Marta Altolaguirre, 
reaffirmed the Berger Government's commitment to combat TIP 
and described the GOG's new National Strategy against TIP and 
Alien Smuggling and Victims Assistance.  The strategy will be 
refined over coming weeks by a series of working groups, and 
will be presented with a request for funding assistance to 
the international donor community.  For our part, as we 
pressed the GOG for "actions, not words," we were once again 
in the awkward position of reporting "no decisions yet" on 
GOG funding requests.  End Summary. 
 
2.  (SBU) Action Request:  Embassy requests G/TIP support for 
pending project assistance for Guatemala to strengthen 
prosecutions and support GOG victims assistance efforts.  End 
Summary. 
 
Background 
---------- 
 
3.  (U) This was the Ambassador's fourth meeting with the 
inter-institutional group, organized at our request.  The GOG 
included 44 representatives from institutions from all three 
branches of government: high-level officials from the 
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Vice Minister of Government, 
the Supreme Court acting president, the director general of 
the Secretariat for Social Welfare, the Director General of 
the Immigration; and the governor of the province of 
Guatemala.  Officials from the National Civilian Police, 
Presidential Secretariat of Strategic Analysis, Secretariat 
for Women, Solicitor General's Office, and Department of 
Labor also attended.  This was the first time the GOG invited 
an NGO (ECPAT) to attend;  the IOM was also represented, as 
in a previous meeting.  The Ambassador was accompanied by the 
DCM, TIPCoord, HROff, PAOff, DHSOff, and an AID 
representative. 
 
4.  (U) In press outreach prior to the meeting TIPCoord and 
DHSOff credited the Berger government for its new commitments 
to combat TIP, which merited its inclusion in the Tier II 
Watch List.  Some political sensitivities remain on the GOG 
side, however, as demonstrated by VP Stein's public statement 
criticizing unilateral USG judgment of other countries' 
performance on this and other issues.  VM Altolaguirre 
publicly welcomed the report, cited the urgent need to 
strengthen weak statutes against TIP-related crimes, and 
stated that due to resource constraints, the GOG will request 
international assistance to help victims. 
 
GOG Presentation 
---------------- 
 
5.  (SBU) Vice Minister Altolaguirre opened the meeting and 
after introductions described the advances made by the GOG 
since the last bilateral meeting in February, including: 
 
-- Guatemala deposited the instruments of ratification of the 
TIP and Alien Smuggling Protocols of the Palermo Convention 
in the UN on April 1. 
 
-- The GOG signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Mexico 
to the Protection of Women and Minor Victims of TIP and Alien 
Smuggling on the Guatemala-Mexico border. 
 
-- The Directorate of Migration has entered into an agreement 
with the National Immigration Institute of Mexico for the 
Dignified, Secure and Ordered Overland Repatriation of 
Central Americans. 
 
-- On March 9, the Section for Crimes of TIP was created in 
the Criminal Investigative Service of the National Civilian 
Police. 
 
-- There are two proposals before Congress to broaden and 
stiffen sanctions against TIP and TIP-related crimes.  The 
government is considering developing an integrated proposal 
for comprehensive reform of the penal code. 
 
-- Since March, eleven joint operations (involving police, 
prosecutors, and immigration officials) have been carried out 
nationwide, with 217 women deported, two arrest warrants 
issued against nightclub owners, and 12 minors rescued from 
prostitution.  Prosecutors reported that five sentences have 
been issued against traffickers for the crime of pimping 
minors; the prosecutor's office has appealed one so far, 
seeking a stronger sanction.  (Note: Prosecutors earlier 
reported 23 cases opened against 17 individuals for 
TIP-related crimes.)  Police reported that in Guatemala City 
this year, there have been 306 detentions of foreign 
prostitutes (102 Hondurans, 97 Salvadorans, 96 Nicaraguans, 
five Brazilians, three Russians, one Costa Rican, and one 
Mexican; 25 people arrested for TIP-related crimes; and 10 
minors rescued from prosecution. 
 
-- The government will open a shelter specifically for 
integrated attention and social reintegration of victims of 
sexual exploitation in Coatepeque, Quetzaltenango province, 
which will have a capacity for 80 victims. 
 
-- The Secretariat of Social Welfare has developed a 
publicity campaign to prevent commercial sexual exploitation, 
with help from the Secretariat of Social Communication and 
from private sources. 
 
-- The Government has created a National Commission to Combat 
Sexual Exploitation of Minors and Adolescents, to implement 
its National Plan with the same goal. 
 
-- the GOG has developed a National Strategy Against TIP, 
Alien Smuggling and to Assist Victims. 
 
6.  (SBU) The goal of the National Strategy is to strengthen 
the capacity of the government to combat TIP and alien 
smuggling through coordinated efforts of government, 
international aid agencies and civil society.  The strategy 
includes eight priority areas, as follows:  legislation, 
prosecution and sanction, prevention, training, legal 
protection (of victims), information (sharing), and 
assistance to victims.  Goals have been developed for each 
area, and a sub-grouping of members of the 
inter-institutional group has been assigned responsibility to 
elaborate activities under each thematic area to achieve 
these goals (in addition, NGOs are to be invited to 
participate in the working group on victims assistance). 
Next steps include development and approval of a 
comprehensive Action Plan, which will be presented to 
international aid agencies with a request for financing. 
Implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the plan will 
follow.  General coordination of these efforts will remain in 
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which will be advised by the 
International Organization for Migration (IOM). 
 
7.  (SBU) Immigration DirGen Oscar Cordoba emphasized the 
importance of the new accord with Mexico on dignified return, 
which will return Central American deportees from Mexico 
(over 160,000 last year, more than half of whom were 
non-Guatemalan, and increasing) to cities inside their 
countries of origin.  This will cut down on Guatemala's TIP 
problem which was exacerbated by Mexico's former practice of 
leaving deportees at Guatemala's border, where many fell 
victim of TIP.  Cordoba said the Directorate General of 
Immigration had radically changed its focus under his 
leadership toward respecting the human rights of migrants and 
assisting victims, and working in a coordinated fashion with 
prosecutors and police in operations.  He said the GOG is 
considering granting amnesty to "regularize" illegal migrants 
currently in Guatemala and would be seeking advice on how to 
implement such an amnesty program from the U.S. and Mexico. 
 
Ambassador's Response 
--------------------- 
 
8.  (U) The Ambassador thanked the GOG for its efforts, and 
noted that the recently-issued USG TIP report reflects our 
view that the GOG is committed to addressing this problem. 
The reports contrasts the performance of the current 
government with the previous one, and took note of the 
memorandum of understanding with Mexico, stepped-up 
operations to rescue victims.  The Tier II rating reflects 
USG confidence in the GOG's commitment; its inclusion in the 
Watch List requires us to update progress made implementing 
these commitments within six months and so gives Guatemala 
the opportunity to improve its standing.  The Ambassador 
described ongoing USAID support to an NGO providing shelter 
and vocational training to over 100 victims and potential 
victims of TIP in Tecun Uman on the Mexican border, and said 
we hope to hear soon about additional USAID funding to build 
on this project.  DOJ specialized anti-TIP training will be 
offered in Guatemala, currently scheduled for October (Note: 
since advanced to August).  He said we are also considering 
ways to support the work of the anti-TIP prosecution unit. 
Finally, the Ambassador praised the GOG's planned prevention 
campaign, and offered Embassy technical assistance in 
support. 
 
9.  (U) After praising the GOG's anti-TIP strategy the 
Ambassador requested that the GOG keep the Embassy informed 
over the next six months of: 
 
--progress on rescues, arrests, prosecutions and sentences in 
the next six months; he requested the GOG to designate an 
official who might provide these statistics. 
 
--collaboration with NGOs including Casa Alianza. 
 
--any GOG estimates of the number of foreign sex workers 
resident in Guatemala.  (DirGen Cordoba pledged to look into 
this.) 
 
--prosecution of a corrupt police official arrested for 
kidnapping and TIP-related crimes.  (VM of Government Angel 
Conte hinted there would be further revelations in this case. 
 Press reported on June 24 that the arrested official is also 
being charged with involvement in a car theft ring.  Note: 
kidnapping, car theft and prostitution rings are mainstays, 
with narcotics trafficking, of organized crime here. 
 
--progress in implementation of GOG collaboration with Mexico 
on TIP. 
 
--progress of legislative reforms. 
 
10.  (U) The Ambassador also suggested to Altolaguirre that 
the GOG build on this cooperation with Mexico by establishing 
a direct bilateral TIP information exchange mechanism with 
the governments of Ecuador, Mexico, Belize, Honduras, El 
Salvador and Nicaragua.  In response to a query from VM 
Altolaguirre, the Ambassador encouraged the GOG to keep USG 
TIP officials informed through regular visits to Washington. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
11.  (SBU) The comprehensive planning and effort that went 
into the GOG presentation and strategy document is impressive 
and reflect the GOG's political will to combat trafficking in 
persons and is a good faith effort to seriously address 
trafficking.  In addition to the commitments expressed by the 
inter-institutional group, that political will has repeatedly 
been expressed by President Berger, Vice President Stein, and 
Foreign Minister Briz in meetings with the Ambassador.  The 
GOG is facing immense budgetary constraints and competing 
demands on the revenue base it is working hard to expand.  In 
this context we believe it essential to offer USG support 
where possible and look forward to early decisions from USAID 
and G/TIP on our funding requests.  It has become 
increasingly awkward to press the GOG for "actions, not 
words" while we have so far offered only words, not actions, 
on their requests for funding on victims assistance (USAID) 
and aid to the Office of the Special Prosecutor for Women 
(G/TIP). 
HAMILTON