US embassy cable - 05MANILA4984

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MANILA 004984 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPT FOR EAP/MTS, G/TIP, EAP/MLS, EAP/RSP, INL, DRL/IL, 
DRL/CRA 
DEPARTMENT PLEASE PASS USAID FOR ANE/TS - L. SAULS 
LABOR FOR ILAB 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, PHUM, KWMN, ELAB, KCRM, ECON, RP 
SUBJECT:  TIP:  USG-FUNDED TRAINING AIMS TO ASSIST HUMAN 
TRAFFICKING-RELATED PROSECUTIONS 
 
REF: A. MANILA 4831 
 
     B. MANILA 3500 
     C. MANILA 3011 
     D. MANILA 2200 
 
1.  (U) This message is Sensitive But Unclassified -- 
Please handle accordingly. 
 
2.  (SBU) Summary:  GRP prosecutors and NGO lawyers continue 
to make limited headway in prosecuting traffickers under 
anti-trafficking laws.  The slow pace of progress is due in 
part to inadequate training of local law enforcement 
personnel, and ineffective coordination between police and 
prosecutors.  A USG-funded project aims to improve training 
of law enforcement personnel on TIP cases, while a broader 
USG/GRP initiative seeks to address key flaws in the 
Philippine justice system that hamper TIP-related 
prosecutions.  Mission continues to highlight the need for 
all levels of the GRP to assert strong leadership in 
combating TIP.  End Summary. 
 
-------------------------- 
Slow Progress on TIP Cases 
-------------------------- 
 
3.  (U) The GRP's Department of Justice (DoJ) and the 
Philippine office of the NGO International Justice Mission 
(IJM) are making slow progress in pursuing trafficking- 
related cases under the terms of the 2003 Anti-Trafficking 
Law (R.A. 9208) and other statutes.  (Note:  In a local 
innovation, NGO lawyers may file TIP cases on behalf of 
victims, augmenting the limited number of government 
prosecutors.  End Note.)  IJM recently reported that it is 
working on 11 cases under R.A. 9208, up from the nine cases 
that it was pursuing when Mission last reported on this 
matter on August 1 (Ref B).  In addition, the DoJ's Task 
Force on Anti-Trafficking in Persons, a government team of 
14 state prosecutors, has filed seven cases under R.A. 9208 
and is currently investigating another 10 cases.  Thus far, 
there have been no convictions under R.A. 9208. 
 
4.  (SBU) Despite the passage of R.A. 9208, the 
comprehensive anti-TIP law in 2003, prosecutors have been 
slow to file cases against suspected traffickers.  Many have 
chosen instead to pursue cases under statues they are more 
familiar with such as the anti-illegal recruitment law.  In 
addition, police often lack the skills to build solid cases 
under R.A. 9208, resulting in many cases being dismissed 
(ref A).  Systemic weaknesses in the judicial system and the 
slow pace of cases compound the problem of obtaining 
convictions in a timely fashion. 
 
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Mission to Train Police on TIP 
------------------------------ 
 
5.  (U) In order to help ameliorate these problems, Mission 
is planning a major training project to raise understanding 
of the anti-TIP law, with the goal of increasing the number 
of prosecutions and convictions of traffickers.  On November 
7-8, the USAID-funded Rule Of Law Effectiveness (ROLE) 
project will conduct two days of seminars for members of the 
police Women and Children's Concerns Division (WCCD) at the 
Philippine National Police (PNP) headquarters in Manila. 
High-level DoJ and PNP officials are scheduled to kick off 
the training, which is geared toward officers most likely to 
have day-to-day contact with trafficking victims.  Training 
seminars will cover: 
 
-- Implementing rules and regulations of R.A. 9208 
-- Guidelines for law enforcers in TIP cases 
-- Rights of trafficking victims and advice on dealing with 
them 
-- Elements and evidence in prosecuting TIP cases 
-- Proper preparation of sworn testimony in TIP cases 
 
6.  (U) The training builds on work conducted over the past 
yeas by several USG-funded projects implemented by NGOs, 
including the Visayan Forum Foundation, End Child 
Prostitution and Trafficking (ECPAT), and the American 
Center for International Labor Solidarity (ACILS).  These 
groups have trained hundreds of police, prosecutors, local 
officials, and workers who provide assistance to victims. 
The goal of this training is to enable these "front line" 
responders to identify instances of human trafficking and to 
prosecute traffickers more effectively (Ref D). 
 
--------------------------------------------- - 
Building Closer Police-Prosecutor Coordination 
--------------------------------------------- - 
 
7.  (SBU) Mission is also working on a longer-term strategy 
meant to address one of the major weaknesses in prosecuting 
TIP cases -- ineffective coordination between prosecutors 
and judges.  A high percentage of TIP cases that are filed 
are eventually dismissed, often due to insufficient evidence 
due, in part, to the lack of coordination between police and 
prosecutors (a factor common in other kinds of criminal 
cases in the Philippines as well).  Mission is currently 
working to build support among officials at the highest 
levels in the PNP, DoJ, and Malacanang Palace to encourage 
greater coordination between police and prosecutors in 
criminal cases.  In early October, Justice Secretary Raul 
Gonzalez and Chief State Prosecutor Jovencito Zunio agreed 
to begin implementing a policy in the DoJ's TIP prosecution 
unit that would require police and prosecutors to coordinate 
closely during the investigative and trial period.  If this 
project proves successful, the DoJ plans to expand the 
policy throughout the Department to include areas outside of 
TIP.  Mission is also planning a series of seminars in 2006 
to be led by officials from the U.S. Department of Justice. 
These officials would share best practices with Philippine 
police and prosecutors on how to work together to build more 
effective cases. 
 
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Comment 
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8.  (SBU) The ineffective prosecution of TIP cases by the 
GRP and a lack of convictions under the 2003 anti- 
trafficking law have been flagged as key reasons for the 
Philippines' continued Tier Two Watch List rating in 2005. 
Improving the GRP's performance will require sustained 
efforts both to upgrade training of law enforcement 
personnel on TIP cases and to address some of the more 
serious flaws in the Philippine justice system such as the 
chronically ineffective coordination between police and 
prosecutors.  In the meantime, Mission continues to 
highlight the need for all levels of the GRP to assert 
strong leadership in combating TIP. 
 
BELLARD