VZCZCXRO6254
PP RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHNH
DE RUEHHM #0756/01 2350621
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 220621Z AUG 08
FM AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH CITY
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 4812
INFO RUEHHI/AMEMBASSY HANOI PRIORITY 3239
RUCNASE/ASEAN MEMBER COLLECTIVE
RUEHHM/AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH CITY 5040

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 HO CHI MINH CITY 000756 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EAP/MLS AND G/TIP 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KTIP PREL PGOV SOCI VM
SUBJECT: SLOW AND STEADY PROGRESS COMBATING TIP IN SOUTHERN VIETNAM 
 
REF: A) HCMC 936   B) HCMC 806 AND PREVIOUS 
 
HO CHI MIN 00000756  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1. (U) Summary:  The GVN made positive strides in combating 
trafficking-in-persons (TIP) during the first half of 2008, with 
provincial police busting four trafficking rings in Tay Ninh and 
HCMC police conducted their biggest raid yet against an illegal 
marriage brokering agency catering to Korean men.  Additionally, 
complementary efforts between the Vietnam's Women Union and the 
International Organization for Migration (IOM) to assist 
Vietnamese women considering marriage to foreign husbands are 
providing alternatives to illegal marriage broker operations 
that can be fronts for trafficking and prostitution.  Government 
officials and NGOs all agreed more resources are needed to raise 
awareness and improve Vietnam's law enforcement efforts in 
combating TIP and illegal marriage broker schemes.  End Summary. 
 
Arrests Are Increasingly Frequent -- and Public 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
¶2. (SBU) In Tay Ninh province, located on the border with 
Cambodia, police broke up 4 trafficking rings, arresting a total 
of 11 suspects and rescued 15 TIP victims in a series of raids 
carried out during the first half of 2008.  Two of the 
trafficking groups posed as marriage brokers recruiting 
Vietnamese women for marriage to Malaysian men.  On July 17 in 
Ho Chi Minh City, a 3am police raid disrupted a meeting where 
112 women were gathered in a 15x2 meter room in a mini-hotel for 
the perusal of three Korean clients. 
 
¶3. (SBU) These recent law enforcement efforts illustrate the 
strides Southern officials are making to implement the GVN's 
anti-trafficking policies by cracking down on illegal marriage 
schemes.  Recently, HCMC People's Committee Vice Chair Nguyen 
Thanh Tai called upon city officials to impose strict penalties 
on illegal marriage brokers.  Efforts to foster greater 
inter-agency collaboration against trafficking and recognition 
that men need to be included in Vietnam's legal framework 
indicates that Vietnam is "getting it" and steadily moving on 
the right path to build capacity towards eventual ratification 
of the International Convention Against Trafficking. 
 
Raising Awareness, Empowering Women 
----------------------------------- 
¶4. (SBU) Complementing law enforcement efforts to combat TIP and 
crack down on illegal marriage brokers, the Vietnam Women's 
Union (VWU) and the International Organization of Migration 
(IOM) combine public awareness campaigns, counseling/assistance 
programs, and pre-departure orientation programs to promote a 
safe, transparent and free way to assist women who choose to 
pursue foreign marriages.  Spurred on by the glamorous 
lifestyles depicted in increasingly popular Korean soap operas, 
music videos and movies, Korea is now a destination of choice 
for many young Vietnamese women seeking marriage abroad.  Thanh 
Nien newspaper reported 10,000 Vietnamese brides migrated to 
Korea last year, up 74 percent from the previous year. 
 
¶5. (SBU) PolOffs recently visited the HCMC Marriage Assistance 
Center to discuss the Center's efforts to provide an alternative 
way for Vietnamese women interested in foreign marriages to meet 
potential spouses in a safe and supportive environment (ref A). 
The Center, which receives funding from the Korean government, 
provides a matchmaking service that not only introduces 
Vietnamese women to their future spouses, but also provides 
counseling and classes in Korean culture, language and legal 
regulations.  The Center asks prospective brides and grooms to 
fill out profiles and then arranges for the couples to exchange 
emails and chat via Webcam, if both mutually agree. 
Interpretation assistance is also available if needed.  While 
the Center is small and resources are scarce (there is only one 
computer station thus far), the services are free and much more 
comprehensive than those provided by commercial matchmakers. 
 
¶6. (SBU) IOM's pre-departure workshops for young women and 
user-friendly website (www.vovietchonghan.org) are intended to 
set appropriate expectations and dispel the popular illusions 
promulgated by commercial marriage brokers and the glamorous 
lifestyles depicted in popular Korean entertainment media.  The 
IOM website depicts a "wheel of life" that illustrates two 
different scenarios--one side of the wheel shows a happy 
Vietnamese bride with a handsome young Korean husband at a fancy 
modern wedding, another shows an older Korean man with hoe in 
hand standing in front of a rural farmhouse.  The Vietnamese, 
Korean and English-language website has hotline numbers, recent 
news articles and testimonials from Vietnamese brides living in 
Korea.  IOM has also compiled a wealth of information about 
Korean law, housing, transportation, foods and customs in a 
handbook given to every young woman who participates in their 
pre-departure workshops. 
 
¶7. (SBU) Women entering into marriages based on uninformed and 
overly glamorous images of life abroad represents only part of 
 
HO CHI MIN 00000756  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
problem posed by commercial marriage brokers.  As in the case of 
the trafficker of "brides" to Malaysia who was recently busted, 
commercial matchmakers are frequently fronts for criminal groups 
that entrap women via promises of marriage to rich men only to 
sell them into forced prostitution.  Programs organized by the 
Vietnam Women's Union and IOM target these scams as well through 
a combination of public awareness campaigns and individual 
counseling.  By offering a safe, legal alternative to commercial 
brokers, support centers run by the VWU and programs operated by 
IOM serve to help women avoid becoming unwitting victims of 
traffickers.  Unfortunately, these programs are only reaching a 
fraction of the estimated 12,000 Vietnamese women who immigrate 
for purposes of marriage each year. 
 
¶7.  Comment:  While anti-TIP efforts are improving, they are far 
from perfect.  Continued improvements in the collection of 
statistics, more resources and improved coordination between 
Vietnamese officials and regional governments are needed in 
order to combat trafficking-in-persons more comprehensively and 
effectively.  As in other poor developing countries, poverty 
will remain a strong force in pushing women into situations 
where there are at risk of being trafficked.  The accurate and 
well intentioned messages broadcast by local and international 
NGOs simply are not as convincing to many poor rural women as 
are the glamorous imagery promulgated in popular Korean TV 
shows, movies and music videos.  Fortunately, Vietnam's news 
media is playing an increasingly constructive role by reporting 
extensively on marriage broker schemes, TIP arrests and 
convictions, and by articles retelling the tragic stories of 
failed cross-cultural marriages.   End comment. 
FAIRFAX