This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 06 PANAMA 000338 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR WHA/CEN 
WHA/PPC MICHAEL PUCCETTI 
G/TIP ANTHONY ETERNO CARLA MENARES BURY 
A/LM/AQM/IP JOANNA PISCIOTTA SNEARLY 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ASEC ELAB EAID KWMN KCRM KDEM PHUM SMIG PM
SUBJECT: PANAMA RESPONSE TO TIP PROTECTION (ESF) PROPOSAL 
SOLICITATION 
 
REF: A. 04 STATE 265981 
 
     ¶B. 04 STATE 247994 
 
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SUMMARY 
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¶1.  (U)  Embassy is pleased to submit three anti-TIP 
bilateral project proposals (including two from the same 
government ministry), chosen from five submissions.  Since 
the passage of the GOP's groundbreaking anti-TIP law in March 
2004, the GOP has worked hard with its limited resources to 
promote citizen awareness of the new law and to provide 
services to the victims identified through the law's 
implementation.  Embassy is confident that the following 
bilateral proposals will create a sustainable increase in TIP 
prevention and victims' services.  The institutions involved 
already have taken marked steps to implement the new law on a 
shoe-string budget.  Also, the new law provides for a special 
funding source that post expects will be fully functional as 
the projects end.  A list of the unsubmitted projects will be 
sent by electronic mail, as per reftel A. 
 
---------- 
PROJECT #1 
---------- 
 
¶2.  (U)  Name of the Project:  "Optimizing Victim Attention 
by Improving Expertise and Coordination in Sex Crime Cases." 
This is post's top funding priority. 
 
¶3.  (U)  Name of Government Agency:  Attorney General's 
Office, specifically the Public Ministry (Prosecutor's 
Office) and Judicial Technical Police (PTJ). 
 
¶4.  (U)  Objective:  Optimize attention and minimize stress 
to TIP victims by elevating an entire prosecutor's office to 
the status of "Specialized Prosecutor's Office for Sex 
Crimes" and integrating it with the PTJ's Sex Crimes Unit. 
 
¶5.  (U)  Duration of the Project:  18 months. 
 
------------- 
JUSTIFICATION 
------------- 
 
¶6.  (U)  Victims of sex trafficking are easily 
"re-victimized" by the justice system if the investigators 
and prosecutors who work their cases are not trained in or do 
not have the vocation for interviewing victims.  Similarly, 
victims suffer if they are forced to constantly repeat their 
stories as they struggle through an endless maze of 
bureaucrats unable to orient them to assistance resources. 
 
¶7.  (SBU)  Despite having several prosecutors and 
investigators trained in and with the vocation for working 
trafficking cases, Panama's criminal justice bureaucracy 
needs to be restructured to better serve victims.  Since 
March 2004, both PTJ investigators and individual prosecutors 
have the authority to open investigations into sexual 
trafficking cases.  Unfortunately, cases worked by the PTJ 
Sex Crime Unit are often assigned to prosecutors who have no 
specialization in this area. Prosecutors with a 
specialization in sex crimes are burdened with case loads in 
other areas.  Prosecutors with no experience in sex crimes 
open investigations without help from the PTJ's specialized 
sex crimes unit.  Victims fortunate enough to have the 
assistance of expert investigators and prosecutors still must 
shuttle from an overcrowded and dingy PTJ office to a similar 
prosecutor's office, repeating their stories with almost no 
privacy.  Placing authority for all TIP cases in a 
specialized prosecutor's office near the PTJ Sex Crime Unit 
is critical to making sure that victims are empowered, rather 
than "re-vitimized" by the system. 
 
¶8.  (U)  Activities: 
 
- Take an entire prosecutor's office and turn it into a 
Specialized Prosecutor's Office for Sex Crimes for the entire 
country. 
 
- Integrate the Specialized Prosecutor's Office with the PTJ 
Sex Crimes Unit. 
 
- Name Prosecutor Maruquel Castroverde as Special Sex Crimes 
Prosecutor.  (Castroverde, who helped pass the new anti-TIP 
law, has expertise in investigating and prosecuting TIP cases 
and in working with TIP victims). 
 
-  Remodel office space (to integrate PTJ staff, create 
private interview areas, and victim reception areas). 
 
-  Add, equip, and train two additional assistants for the 
Specialized Prosecutor (to assist the Specialized Prosecutor 
in the training and supervision of all investigators and 
prosecutors working sex crimes cases within Panama). 
 
-  Train prosecutors and investigators involved in 
trafficking cases (emphasizing skills in working with victims 
and drawing on lessons learned from Costa Rican counterparts) 
 
- Publish and distribute pamphlets (to prevent trafficking 
and to inform victims of services). 
 
-  Design and introduce a legal proposal to give prosecutors 
more tools to prosecute TIP cases that do not involve sexual 
exploitation.  (bringing these TIP victims under the 
attention of the Specialized Prosecutor's Office). 
 
-  Assign only investigators and prosecutors to work TIP 
cases who have a vocation for working with TIP victims. 
 
¶9. (SBU) Sustainability:  This project will permanently 
improve treatment of TIP victims by permanently enhancing the 
method of assigning TIP cases to prosecutors, the structure 
and case load of a prosecutor's office, and interview rooms 
and reception areas.  Most of the project funds are for 
start-up costs associated with changing the facilities, 
equipment, and training needed to make the Specialized 
Prosecutor's Office and its personnel fully functional and 
responsive to victim's needs.  Panama's new anti-TIP law also 
provides for a commission, CONAPREDES, empowered with an 
independent tax source for training, prevention, and victim's 
assistance.  Once the commission is fully functional and 
begins to accumulate funds (the new Attorney General convoked 
CONAPREDES on February 15 (see septel)), the Specialized 
Prosecutor's Office can seek funding to maintain and improve 
its assistance to victims.  Embassy expects that 
implementation of the new tax and accumulation of funds will 
take approximately one year.  Panama's new Attorney General 
told Embassy that addressing TIP issues, particularly in 
Darien province, is one of her top priorities.  Prosecutor 
Castroverde and the PTJ's Sex Crimes Unit have already taken 
steps to improve prevention and protection of victims under 
the new anti-TIP law without special funding. 
 
¶10.  (U)  Performance Indicators:  Creation of a Specialized 
Prosecutor's Office integrated with the PTJ Sex Crimes Unit, 
number of private interview rooms, number of victims rescued 
and placed in shelters or substitute families, number of 
personnel trained in attention to victims, and number of TIP 
cases investigated by the PTJ Sex Crimes Unit and prosecuted 
under the supervision of the Specialized Prosecutor's Office. 
 
¶11.  (U)  Evaluation Plan:  Representatives from Embassy will 
meet with the Special Sex Crimes Prosecutor and investigators 
from the PTJ Sex Crimes Unit every four months to verify 
integration of the offices, review the status of the cases 
detected, and identify critical areas of the country where 
TIP (whether or not involving commercial sexual exploitation) 
is a problem.  The Specialized Prosecutor's Office will 
present a final report of its achievements in providing 
victim's assistance under the new anti-TIP law and any other 
new anti-TIP laws. 
 
¶12.  (U)  Budget/Government Contribution:  The Attorney 
General's Office is requesting $114,000.  The Attorney 
General will devote at least the entire 15th Circuit's 
Prosecutor's Office, with an actual annual budget of $107,100 
(or $160,650 for 18 months).  While appointment as a Special 
Prosecutor generally involves a substantial increase in 
salary, Prosecutor Maruquel Castroverde has agreed to go 
forward with organizing the office and training personnel in 
these cases without the additional $44,000 in salary and 
representational funds that would ordinarily come with the 
position of Specialized Prosecutor.  The PTJ's Sex Crime 
Unit's annual budget is approximately $750,000.  The 
following is a budget breakout: 
 
 
Remodel Facilities        $30,000 
Assistant Equipment       $14,000 
Office Equipment          $ 6,000 
Two Assistants - 18 mos.  $30,000 
at half salary 
Training 
  Panama City             $ 9,000 
  Provinces, Costa Rica   $25,000 
                          ------- 
                         $114,000 
 
¶13.  (U)  Proposed Funding Mechanism:  Cooperative agreement. 
¶14.  (U)  Embassy Point of Contact:  Debra Steigerwalt, 
Political Office, (507) 207-7183, SteigerwaltDA@state.gov. 
 
¶15.  (U)  Other Donors:  The Attorney General's Office has 
received technical assistance in the past in combating TIP 
from the International Labor Organization and the Spanish 
Embassy. 
 
---------- 
Project #2 
---------- 
 
¶16.  (U)  Project Title:  "Protection and Assistance to 
Victims of Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation."  This is 
post's second funding priority. 
 
¶17.  (U)  Name of Government Agency:  Ministry of Youth, 
Women, Children and the Family (MINJUMFA) - Office of 
Childhood and Adoption.  (Note: MINJUMFA also submitted a 
prevention project, Project #3). 
 
¶18.  (U)  Duration of Project: A new, one-year project. 
 
¶19.  (U)  Objectives: 
 
-  Assist TIP victims by creating secure TIP shelters staffed 
by social, psychological, and legal specialists. 
 
-  Improve civil society's and foster families' ability to 
assist TIP victims. 
 
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JUSTIFICATION 
------------- 
 
¶20.  (SBU)  Panama's March 2004 anti-TIP law increased law 
enforcement capabilities and prohibited additional TIP 
activities.  As a result, MINJUMFA has had to work hard, 
despite limited resources, to provide immediate services to 
new victims.  The new victims differ from the abused and 
abandoned children MINJUMFA usually helps.  TIP victims are 
often older, have suffered sexual trauma, confront a complex 
legal process, are located in remote locations, or face 
retaliation from criminal elements. 
 
¶21.  (SBU)  Although MINJUMFA has one 40-person shelter and 
cooperates with a non-governmental shelter, these shelters 
are full with abused and abandoned children.  When not full, 
the shelters are not structured to meet the needs of TIP 
victims.  Moreover, shelter staff are not trained in special 
protocols for victims of commercial sexual exploitation. 
Although MINJUMFA has placed TIP victims with foster 
families, such families lack specialized training to assist 
TIP victims. 
 
¶22.  (SBU)  Moreover, despite the fact that a 1998 Panamanian 
law gives victims the right to participate actively in the 
prosecution of their cases, MINJUMFA lacks resources to 
provide legal assistance.  MINJUMFA believes there are as 
many as 100 child and adolescent victims of TIP (child 
commercial exploitation) in the Darien region alone who need 
victim assistance.  Nonetheless, MINJUMFA lacks a full 
understanding of the scope and nature of TIP victims in 
Panama. 
 
¶23. (U)  Activities: 
 
-  Remodel MINJUMFA's child shelter to accommodate TIP 
victims. 
 
-  Construct a 50-person shelter for child TIP victims on the 
campus of NGO shelter Casa Malambo.  (Casa Malambo's pleasant 
campus includes psychological assistance, a clinic, a primary 
school, and pool). 
 
-  Train foster families in assistance to TIP victims. 
 
-  Train MINJUMFA and shelter staff in assistance to TIP 
victims. 
 
-  Coordinate with relevant government and civil society 
groups. 
 
-  Provide legal assistance to victims in the prosecution of 
their cases.  (Panamanian law allows victims an active role 
in prosecution). 
 
-  Provide social and psychological assistance to victims. 
 
-  Profile the nature of TIP victims. 
 
-  Conduct pre-treatment and post-treatment evaluations. 
 
 
¶24.  (U)  Sustainability:  The project will permanently 
increase shelter space and institutional capacity for 
assisting TIP victims at MINJUMFA and at Casa Malambo. (Casa 
Malambo is a well established NGO with an annual budget of 
approximately $650,000, only 20% of which is subsidized by 
MINJUMFA.  The Director of Casa Malambo also also sits on 
CONAPREDES, the new anti-TIP commission.)  Moreover, the new 
anti-TIP law requires MINJUMFA to provide legal assistance to 
TIP victims and MINJUMFA traditionally provides services to 
abused minors.  When the CONAPREDES fund is fully functional 
(see para 9 above), MINJUMFA can solicit additional funds for 
victim's assistance.  Despite a shoe-string budget, MINJUMFA 
already provides services to victims under the new anti-TIP 
law.  In addition, MINJUMFA is member of networks that will 
help sustain its actions, including the Committee for the 
Eradication of Child Labor and the Ombudsman's Network to 
Combat Commercial Sexual Exploitation. 
 
¶25.  (U)  Performance Indicators:  Number of beds available 
to TIP victims at shelters; number of victims in the program 
(including victims not staying at the shelters); number of 
TIP victims receiving legal, psychological, and social 
services; results of pre-treatment and post-treatment 
evaluations; and final evaluation results. 
 
¶26.  (U)  Evaluation Plan:  The Director of MINJUMFA's Child 
and Adoption Office, the project coordinator, and a 
representative from Casa Malambo will meet with Embassy 
personnel every three months to review performance 
indicators.  The program will conduct a final evaluation. 
 
¶27.  (U)  Budget Breakout/Host Government Contribution:  The 
requested funding is $126,624, but does not include 
MINJUMFA's provision of technical assistance, transportation, 
and a new help/support line for abuse victims.  MINJUMFA is 
also purchasing a vehicle to transport service providers to 
victims.  Moreover, MINJUMFA provides approximately $130,000 
per year in funding to the non-profit shelter Casa Malambo. 
The project proposes using students studying social work, 
psychology, and law to help implement the project. 
 
Remodel MINJUMFA's Victim Center: $10,000 
Build TIP Shelter at Casa Malambo:$50,000 
Staff Training                    $ 3,000 
Studies                           $ 3,500 
Administrative Personnel          $ 3,600 
Program Coordinator               $ 8,400 
Social Workers                    $ 7,200 
Students in Social Work           $     0 
Psychologists                     $ 7,200 
Psychology students               $     0 
Lawyers                           $ 9,600 
Law Students                      $     0 
Equipping Victim's Center         $10,342 
Office Supplies                   $ 8,200 
Teaching Materials                $ 5,600 
                                  ------- 
                                 $126,624 
 
¶28.  (U)  Proposed Funding Mechanism:  Cooperative agreement. 
 
¶29.  (U)  Embassy Point of Contact:  Debra Steigerwalt, 
Political Office, (507) 207-7183, SteigerwaltDA@state.gov. 
 
¶30.  (U)  Other Donors:  Under the project, the non-profit 
shelter Casa Malambo will incorporate shelter facilities for 
TIP victims onto its campus.  Casa Malambo's annual budget is 
approximately $650,000, 20% of which is subsidized by 
MINJUMFA.  MINJUMFA will also seek technical assistance from 
the International Labor Organization. 
 
---------- 
PROJECT #3 
---------- 
 
¶31.  (U)  Title of Project: "Campaign Against Sexual 
Commercial Exploitation of Children and Adolescents" 
¶32.  (U)  Name Of Recipient Government Agency: MINJUMFA - 
Women's Office.  (Note: MINJUMFA also submitted a protection 
project, Project #2). 
¶33.  (U)  Duration of the Project: April 2005 - December 
¶2005.  Supplements ongoing TIP prevention program. 
 
¶34.  (U)  Objectives: 
 
-  Create anti-TIP awareness, especially with hotel, 
restaurant, tourist, and nightclub establishments; public 
transportation, security, and government officials; and civil 
society. 
 
- Disseminate information about the March 2004 anti-TIP law, 
especially the provisions against child sexual exploitation. 
 
¶35.  (SBU)  Justification:  Panama's March 2004 anti-TIP law 
requires MINJUMFA to take measures to prevent TIP.  Despite 
limited resources and disruption due to a change in 
government, in November MINJUMFA conducted an 
intergovernmental forum to study the best approach to TIP 
prevention.  In November, MINJUMFA also launched a campaign 
to publicize the new anti-TIP law and the problem of 
commercial sexual exploitation of children.  MINJUMFA 
discovered during its campaign that the tourist and 
entertainment sectors resisted informing their patrons about 
the new law.  MINJUMFA believes Panama is at a crucial time 
for TIP prevention, as it pushes to become a preferred 
tourist destination and seeks to avoid entrenched problems 
with TIP tourism experienced by some of its neighbors.  The 
project will permit MINJUMFA to make its anti-TIP campaign 
more comprehensive and bring special attention to sectors 
resistant to prevention.  The project will also set a high 
standard for prevention programs once the new law's special 
anti-TIP funding is implemented (see paragraph 9). 
 
¶36.  (U)  Activities: 
 
-  Design campaign materials. 
 
-  Conduct press conferences at airports, ports, and frontier 
areas. 
 
-  Distribute anti-TIP tourist postcards at airports, ports, 
and frontier areas. 
 
-  Place TIP awareness ads at the GOP's bus stop kiosks in 
Panama City. 
 
-  Distribute promotional items (hats, T-shirts, etc.) in 
tourist sector establishments. 
 
-  Create accords with tourist sector establishments to 
continue to warn clients about TIP. 
 
-  Distribute a popular version of the new anti-TIP law. 
 
-  Conduct a radio campaign (to reach the largest audience). 
 
-  Hold an anti-TIP Folk Rhymes Contest (to target the rural 
population). 
 
-  Transmit TIP victim human interest stories. 
 
-  Conduct a TV-spot campaign (that examines masculine values 
that create TIP). 
 
-  Place anti-TIP banners strategically. 
 
 
¶37.  (SBU)  Sustainability:  MINJUMFA started a prevention 
campaign on its own initiative, is required by law to prevent 
public sexual exploitation, and will be able to solicit funds 
for prevention programs from the new anti-TIP commission once 
the commission's anti-TIP fund is fully functional (see 
paragraph 8).  MINJUMFA has a sustainable strategy: to 
develop agreements with hotels, clubs, and transportation 
companies to continue distributing prevention literature to 
their patrons.  Also, at the end of the program MINJUMFA will 
have campaign material designs that it can continue to use. 
 
¶38.  (U)  Performance Indicators:  Distribution of 34,000 
promotional items; 20,000 posters, 100,000 post cards; 129 
public ads; and 5,000 copies of a popular version of the 
anti-TIP law; transmission of 2,160 15-second radio spots on 
6 stations and 284 television spots; recording of Folk 
Rhymes; transmission of victim stories; and mid-term and 
final evaluations. 
 
¶39.  (U)  Evaluation Plan:  MINJUMFA will contract a 
consultant to design the campaign and perform mid-term and 
final evaluations and will meet with U.S. Embassy personnel 
regarding the project every 3 months.  (MINJUMFA suggested 
the use of an outside contractor to evaluate the program 
because of the technical material involved and because the 
European Union required an outside evaluator for a past 
project). 
 
¶40.  (U)  Budget Breakout/Host Government Contribution. 
MINJUMFA is requesting $151,300 and will contribute $65,132. 
The total cost of the project is $216,432.  In addition, the 
MINJUMFA will contribute use of the GOP's public notice areas 
at bus stops throughout Panama City. 
 
¶A.  Amount Requested:         $151,300 
 
    PLANNING 
    Campaign Plan              $15,000 
    Popular Version of new law $ 2,000 
    Folk Rhyme Prizes          $ 5,000 
 
    NATIONAL CAMPAIGN 
    Printing/publicity         $31,900 
    Promotional items          $19,900 
    Television ads             $49,500 
    Radio Ads                  $ 9,000 
    Print Media                $ 9,000 
 
    CAMPAIGN EVALUATION        $ 5,000 
 
¶B.  Government Contribution:   $65,432 
 
    Technical Team             $43,200 
    Secretarial Team           $ 5,352 
    Transportation Costs       $ 6,000 
    Office Materials           $ 6,180 
    Per Diem                   $ 1,400 
    Video history              $ 3,000 
 
 
¶41. (U)  Proposed Funding Mechanism:  Cooperative agreement. 
 
¶42. (U)  Embassy Point of Contact:  Debra Steigerwalt, 
Political Office, (507) 207-7183, SteigerwaltDA@state.gov. 
 
¶43. (U)  Other Donors: MINJUMFA received technical assistance 
from the International Labor Organization and funding from 
the United Nations Population Fund for the initial stages of 
its campaign and will request UN assistance with additional 
publicity materials. 
 
WATT