US embassy cable - 05MANILA4199

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MANILA 004199 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR EAP/PMBS, EAP/IET, EAP/RSP - SU, G/TIP - 
TAYLOR/NORIN, AND DRL/CRA 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/07/2015 
TAGS: PGOV, PHUM, KWMN, KCRM, ELAB, RP, JA 
SUBJECT: NUMBER OF FILIPINO "ENTERTAINERS" GOING TO JAPAN 
DECLINES 
 
REF: A. MANILA 3500 
 
     B. MANILA - G/TIP 07/11/05 E-MAIL 
     C. MANILA 3011 
     D. MANILA 1950 
     E. MANILA 1747 
 
Classified By: Political Officer Timothy L. Cipullo 
for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). 
 
1.  (SBU) Summary:  The number of Filipino "entertainers" 
traveling to Japan has fallen sharply as a result of tighter 
Japanese visa regulations.  This trend is expected to 
accelerate as applications filed under the older, more 
lenient rules phase out and all applications become subject 
to the new rules.  The Japanese Embassy is reviewing a 
proposal that the Philippine Gaming Commission has developed 
and says is aimed at reducing trafficking in Filipino women. 
The reduction in the number of Filipinas going to Japan under 
the "entertainer" rubric is a positive development that will 
likely lead to fewer incidences of trafficking.  End Summary. 
 
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"Entertainer" Visas Down by 15,000 
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2.  (U) The number of Filipino "entertainers" departing to 
Japan from January to July 2005 decreased by almost 15,000 
compared to the same period last year.  According to the 
GRP's Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), 
only 23,359 Overseas Performing Artists (OPAs) left the 
country for Japan during the first seven months of 2005, down 
38 percent from the first seven months of 2004 when 37,958 
OPAs were deployed.  The drop was especially sharp in July, 
as a higher percentage of the cases adjudicated fell under 
the new, stricter rules.  The number of OPAs deployed to 
Japan fell 73 percent from July 2004.  According to the POEA, 
only 291 OPAs have been granted visas under the GoJ's new 
policies.  (Note:  The GoJ tightened its immigration policies 
on March 15, 2005, by refusing to recognize the Artist's 
Records Book issued by the Technical Education and Skills 
Development Authority of the Philippines as valid proof of 
competence of Filipino artists, among other areas.  The GoJ 
implemented the rule changes in order to reduce the number of 
Filipino "entertainers" being trafficked to Japan, many of 
whom end up working in the commercial sex trade - see ref e. 
End Note.) 
 
3.  (C) In a September 2 meeting, Japanese Labor Attache 
Tomoaki Noguchi confirmed to poloff that there had been a 
sharp reduction in the number of Filipino entertainers 
traveling to Japan.  He added that he expected the numbers to 
slow even more between now and December 2005 by which time 
nearly all visa applications will be handled under the new 
regulations and applications submitted prior to March 15 will 
have been phased out.  Poloff asked Noguchi about the 
possibility of Filipino recruiting agencies possibly using 
nursing/caretaker visas as a backdoor to make up for lost 
entertainer visas, as some observers have suspected.  Noguchi 
said he did not anticipate that this would be a problem, 
pointing out that nursing and caretaker jobs were more 
appealing and lucrative than illegal alternatives.  In any 
case, the low number of nursing/caretaker visas available 
(likely less than 1000 per year - see ref d) are unlikely to 
have a significant impact on the total number of Filipino 
"entertainers" in Japan, he said. 
 
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GoJ Reviews Gaming Commission Proposal 
-------------------------------------- 
 
4.  (C) In a recent meeting with poloff, Ephraim Genuino, the 
Chairman of the GRP's Philippine Amusement and Gaming 
Corporation (PAGCOR), expressed concern over the Tier II 
Watch List status of the Philippines in the latest 
Trafficking in Persons Report.  He said PAGCOR had recently 
sent delegations to Japan to meet with club owners and GOJ 
officials there to discuss steps to reduce the number of 
entertainers being lured into illegal prostitution.  Genuino 
shared a copy of a PAGCOR-crafted proposal that would have 
Japanese club owners pay recruiting agency fees, Japanese 
taxes, lodging, and other costs of Filipino entertainers 
up-front.  Currently, many Filipinas arrive in Japan owing 
large sums of money to recruiters and club owners for agent 
fees, food, lodging, etc., and Genuino claimed that this 
situation leads many entertainers into prostitution to pay 
off their debts.  Genuino related that he had given this 
proposal to the GoJ to review.  Noguchi confirmed that the 
GoJ was reviewing the proposal, but noted that it may be 
difficult to enforce the terms of such agreements given that 
club owners often disregard contracts and pay their 
performers under the table. 
 
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Comment 
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5.  (C) The reduction in the number of Filipino 
"entertainers" going to Japan is a positive development that 
will likely lead to fewer incidences of trafficking.  The 
failure of the new rules to produce immediate results (ref e) 
appears to have been caused by a surge in applications filed 
just prior to March 15 when the stricter procedures went into 
effect.  The sharp drop in the number of visas issued under 
the new rules appears to confirm that the GoJ has made it 
much harder to obtain an OPA visa.  So far, we have not seen 
any significant moves by Filipino recruiters to circumvent 
these restrictions.  PAGCOR's proposal to pay entertainers' 
expenses up-front may be a positive step if it were 
implemented and enforced effectively.  The GoJ seems very 
skeptical -- with ample justification given the issue of 
enforcement -- and has not yet indicated whether it plans to 
support the proposal. 
 
Visit Embassy Manila's Classified SIPRNET website: 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eap/manila/index. cfm 
 
You can also access this site through the State Department's 
Classified SIPRNET website: 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/ 
 
JOHNSON