Cablegate: Tanzania/Tip: First Arrest Under New Anti-Tip Law

VZCZCXRO3920
RR RUEHBZ RUEHDU RUEHJO RUEHMR RUEHRN
DE RUEHDR #0890 3571051
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 231051Z DEC 09
FM AMEMBASSY DAR ES SALAAM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 9168
INFO RUCNSAD/SOUTHERN AF DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY COLLECTIVE
RUEHJB/AMEMBASSY BUJUMBURA 3055
RUEHKM/AMEMBASSY KAMPALA 0023
RUEHLGB/AMEMBASSY KIGALI 1526
RUEHNR/AMEMBASSY NAIROBI 1488
RUEAWJA/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS DAR ES SALAAM 000890

SIPDIS
SENSITIVE

DEPARTMENT FOR AF/E JTREADWELL, G/TIP RYOUSEY, INR FEHRENREICH

JUSTICE FOR OPDAT SILVERWOOD

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PHUM KTIP TZ
SUBJECT: TANZANIA/TIP: FIRST ARREST UNDER NEW ANTI-TIP LAW

1. (SBU) SUMMARY: On December 13, Tanzanian police arrested and
charged their first suspect under the 2008 Anti-Trafficking in
Persons Act. Although Tanzania has otherwise made little progress
in implementing the law, in part due to poor inter-ministerial
coordination, the recent arrest is a positive step. It may serve as
a catalyst for increased government efforts. We will continue to
encourage the government to improve coordination and enforcement
measures. END SUMMARY

2. (U) On December 13, police in the Tarime District (near Lake
Victoria) arrested a man for abducting two children, ages four and
eight, from Isebania, Kenya and attempting to sell them at a mining
site in the Nyamongo area. IOM has identified Isebania as a "hot
spot" for child trafficking due to the lack of stringent control at
the nearby border crossing. The suspect was charged with
trafficking. The suspect would be the first person to be tried
under the 2008 Anti-Trafficking in Persons law.

3. (SBU) Although the arrest is a positive step, inter-ministerial
coordination on anti-trafficking continues to be lacking.
Tanzania's Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act (2008), which came into
effect in February 2009, designates the Ministry of Home Affairs
(MHA) as responsible for its implementation. The Act provides for
the establishment of an Anti-Trafficking Secretariat to coordinate
inter-ministerial anti-trafficking efforts. To date, President
Kikwete has not named a Secretary, nor has MHA established a
Secretariat (or other organizational elements of the law, such as an
anti-trafficking fund to support victims).

4. (SBU) On December 8, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs hosted a
coordination meeting on counter trafficking, which brought together
representatives from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), mainland
and Zanzibar Departments of Social Welfare (DSW) and Public
Prosecution (DPP), international organizations, local NGOs, and the
diplomatic community. (Note: The MFA has held these stakeholder
meetings annually since 2006 as a means of generating discussion
about trafficking in persons. End Note.) MHA and DPP
representatives had been informed of the meeting only minutes before
it started and thus could offer no information regarding the
establishment of the Secretariat, ongoing investigations or
prosecutions, or other progress towards implementing the various
provisions of the law. (Note: The Tanzania National Police's former
lead officer on trafficking in persons had been transferred to
Kigoma region two months earlier; his replacement has yet to be
identified. End Note.) At the conclusion of the meeting, the MFA
host announced that coordinating responsibility for the
inter-ministerial meetings would be passed to the mainland DSW.
Although IOM and PolOff were aware of the planned handover, the DSW
representative was clearly taken off guard, commenting that "it
takes many hands to coordinate effectively." The meeting
demonstrated the lack of coordination among GOT agencies, as well as
a general lack of familiarity with the Act's provisions. Principal
State Attorney Anselm Mwampoma subsequently told Poloff that the GOT
is moving towards implementation of the law, but he could not
provide any details.

5. (SBU) With respect to protection, at the meeting NGOs and various
international organizations discussed their efforts to assist TIP
victims and build capacity within the DSW for prevention and
protection. Representatives from Child in the Sun, Dogo Dogo,
Daughters of Mary Immaculate, and Kiwohede are working to help young
victims of trafficking, undertaking fostering and reunification
efforts. (Note: Several of these NGOs receive USG funding through
IOM.) UNICEF, IOM, and ILO are building the capacity within the DSW
and immigration departments to identify and counsel trafficking
victims, while also raising awareness among local and district
authorities.

6. (SBU) COMMENT: The arrest of and charges against the suspected
child trafficker in Tarime is a good first step towards Tanzania's
full application of its Anti-TIP law. We will continue to support
the GOT's anti-trafficking efforts, specifically working with the
Ministries of Home Affairs and Justice to improve internal
coordination. END COMMENT

LENHARDT

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