US embassy cable - 04CARACAS3025

C O N F I D E N T I A L  CARACAS 003025 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
NSC FOR CBARTON 
USCINCSO ALSO FOR POLAD 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/25/2014 
TAGS: PREL, PHUM, KWMN, VE 
SUBJECT: MFA RESPONDS TO TIP DEMARCHE 
 
REF: SECSTATE 194796 
 
Classified By: DCM STEPHEN G. MCFARLAND FOR REASONS 1.4 (d) 
 
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Summary 
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1.  (C) Responding to reftel demarche regarding trafficking 
in persons, September 21, Venezuelan MFA officials insisted 
that the TIP report had not accurately assessed Venezuela's 
anti-trafficking initiatives under its treaty obligations 
with the United Nations. PolOff reiterated USG reasoning 
behind placing Venezuela on Tier 3, and emphasized that the 
Embassy had sought to obtain required information from the 
GOV, but had been unsuccessful. The MFA officials offered to 
provide information if the USG would consider removing 
Venezuela from Tier 3. When PolOff noted that such 
information would be welcome for next year's report, the MFA 
official retracted the offer. One official said the GOV does 
not give information to foreign governments, only to the 
United Nations, with whom it has a treaty responsibility. 
Septel will report GOV police update on TIPs to our legatt. 
End Summary. 
 
2.  (C) PolOff delivered reftel demarche to the MFA Director 
for International Organized Crime, Drugs and Corruption Ana 
Cazzadore on September 21. Also present were assistant to the 
Foreign Minister Magali Garcia, North American Office 
Director Rebeca Guevara, and USA Desk Officer Reynaldo 
Pulido. Cazzadore and Guevara insisted that the TIP report 
had not accurately assessed Venezuela's anti-trafficking 
initiatives under its treaty obligations with the United 
Nations. PolOff told the MFA officers that failure to 
cooperate with the TIP reporting system is taken as evidence 
of a problem, and that the Embassy had made efforts to obtain 
information from various GOV agencies, but had been 
unsuccessful. Guevara said the GOV does not give information 
to foreign governments, it only gives it to the United 
Nations, with whom it has assumed a treaty responsibility. 
 
3.  (C) PolOff pointed to our demarche delivered on June 14 
which indicated the steps that needed to be taken to avoid 
sanctions. Cazzadore told PolOff that she chairs a 
semi-weekly meeting of 22 representatives from different GOV 
agencies on trafficking. She said there were serious problems 
implementing anti-trafficking initiatives in Venezuela 
because there was no law against it, and the Attorney 
General's office would not pursue it judicially. She said a 
law was being drafted. PolOff told Cazzadore that the Embassy 
was willing to work with the MFA to identify anti-trafficking 
initiatives, to ensure that next year's report was as 
accurate as possible. 
 
4.  (C) Guevara asked exactly what programs would be effected 
by the sanctions, and for clarification on whether the USG 
would oppose international loans. She noted that the reftel 
talking points clarified this question. Guevara insisted that 
the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 
2003 authorized the State Department to send an amended 
report at any time to Congress. She asked whether the Embassy 
would consider this, given her contention that the 2003 
report was in error due to our not getting the correct 
information. 
 
5.  (C) Guevara pushed for a promise to consider 
re-classifying Venezuela this year, in return for information 
from the MFA from 2003 in a subsequent conversation on 
September 22. She would not commit to cooperation next year, 
however, insisting that the GOV does not provide information 
formally to other governments, only to the United Nations. 
Informal cooperation would depend on a higher level decision, 
she said, which would depend on our response to the question 
of re-classification. (Note: In a separate exchange with the 
Ministry of Labor regarding information for the human rights 
report, the GOV also told us to look to the United Nations 
for information.) 
 
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Comment 
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6.  (C) The existence of an anti-trafficking task force at 
the MFA had not been mentioned in any previous meeting on the 
subject of trafficking in persons. If it indeed functions, it 
could serve as a clearinghouse of information on trafficking 
 
for us in the future. The suggested quid pro quo -- making 
information available if we agree to take Venezuela off the 
list -- strikes us as unacceptable, but possibly the GOV 
will come up with a better offer. For the moment, it appears 
that the GOV is carrying out a two-pronged strategy: public 
assertions that it is cooperating with a higher authority, 
the United Nations, and not responding to Washington; and 
indications by Venezuelan law enforcement that it is 
responding to TIPs issues (septel). 
Brownfield 
 
 
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      2004CARACA03025 - CONFIDENTIAL