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

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 09 SAO PAULO 000283 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR WHA/BSC AND DRL 
STATE PASS TO USAID 
STATE FOR G, INL, DRL, PRM AND IWI 
STATE FOR G/TIP 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KCRM PHUM KWMN ELAB SMIG KFRD PREF TIP
SUBJECT: THE TIP REPORT 
 
REF: 03 STATE 27013 
 
¶1. (U) This is version II of the Brazil TIP report, 
incorporating answers to questions raised by version I, and 
additional information.  This report was a coordinated effort 
between Sao Paulo and Embassy Brasilia, which supplied much 
of the new information. 
 
¶2. (SBU) Begin Summary: Brazil continues to be a source 
country for internationally and domestically trafficked 
women, children andQQJI7QGOB has manifested its will to 
combat trafficking and to provide support for victims.  In 
addition, the Brazilian effort has improved with more 
training for police, creation of state offices and with 
prosecution of traffickers.  Coordination between the various 
levels of government continues to improve.  Though the GOB 
continues to be resource-strapped, it has devoted more 
resources to this issue during the last year.  The Mission 
recommends that Brazil be designated Category II again.  End 
Summary. 
 
¶3. (U) Mission point-of-contact for trafficking in persons 
issues is Labor Officer Patrick Del Vecchio, Tel: 55-11-5186- 
7256, Fax: 55-11-5186-7171; email: delvecchiopl@state.gov. 
Mission backup is Human Rights Officer Bisola Ojikutu, Tel: 
55-61-312-7300; email ojikutubx@state.gov. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Information is keyed to question in paras 18-22 
reftel: 
 
Overview: 
------------ 
¶A. Brazil is a country of origin for international 
trafficking of adults and children for the sex industry. 
Though the evidence is sketchy, the best estimate is that 
roughly 70,000 Brazilians, the vast majority women, work in 
the sex industry outside Brazil.  The majority of these women 
are probably trafficking victims.  While some of these women 
are under 18 and, accordingly, count as children for this 
report, the vast majority are adults.  Internal and external 
trafficking of Brazilian men and women exists.  Young women 
and girls are usually trafficked overseas for prostitution 
while young men and boys are trafficked internally as slave 
laborers. In the sex trafficking industry, research suggests 
that recruiting techniques vary based upon the state of 
origin.  Women who are recruited from states with an active 
sex tourism industry, such as Ceara or Pernambuco, are 
usually from the sex industry and are convinced to continue 
working abroad.  Women who are recruited in states without an 
active sex tourism industry are sometimes tricked into 
prostitution and do not have previous experience in the sex 
industry.  Recruiters sometimes convince women to work 
overseas as dancers, male escorts, beauticians, maids, or 
other service related positions to improve their lives. After 
arriving at their destination, all travel and identification 
documents are confiscated and the women or slave laborers are 
forced to work. 
 
In 2003 and 2004, the Special Secretariat for Human rights, 
in conjunction with the University of Brasilia and UNICEF, 
conducted a comprehensive study on TIP in Brazil, leading to 
the creation of the "Inter-sectorial Matrix to Combat Sexual 
Exploitation of Children and Adolescents" in January of this 
year.  The Matrix found that 932 municipalities (out of 5,563 
municipalities) had an active commercial sexual exploitation 
market and most commercial sexual exploitation took place in 
the Northeast.  This study will likely be used during the 
creation of future GOB policies to combat sexual exploitation 
and TIP.  In 2003, the Reference Center on Children and 
Adolescents (CECRIA), with the support of the Organization of 
American States, USAID and DePaul University, published a 
study on the trafficking of women, adolescents and children 
for the purpose of sexual exploitation.  The report focused, 
however, on victim profiles, and the routes and methods used 
by traffickers.  Other sources came up with the estimate of 
70,000 Brazilian prostitutes in Europe.  The Brazilian 
Federal Police, utilizing immigration records, estimated that 
900 women a year leave Brazil to be sex workers in other 
countries.  Anecdotal evidence from television and newspaper 
reporting seems to confirm that the vast majority of TIP 
victims serve under conditions tantamount to slavery.  NGO 
sources report that black and brown women between the ages of 
12-24 are more likely to be sex trafficking victims because 
they are more likely to be less educated and poor.  Young 
brown and black males are more likely to be trafficked to the 
interior as slave laborers for the same reasons. 
 
¶B. Women are trafficked from all parts of Brazil.  The 
Brazilian government reports that trafficking routes from all 
of Brazil's 27 states exist. CECRIA identified 241 routes 
used for the trafficking of women, adolescents, and children. 
Thirty-two routes go to Spain, where the majority of the 
victims go.  Eleven of the routes identified lead to the 
Netherlands.  The study also named France, Portugal, 
Switzerland, Germany, Italy, Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, 
Japan, Israel, and Iraq as destinations for Brazilian 
trafficking victims.  Venezuela, Suriname, and Guyana are 
identified as "way stations" for persons trafficked to Spain, 
the Netherlands, and Germany.  The report identified the 
cities of Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, Belem, Forteleza, 
Salvador, and Recife as exit points for persons trafficked to 
Europe.  The report identified Rio and Sao Paulo as exit 
points for the United States.  According to the federal 
police in Goias, Goiania, Goias is also used as an exit point 
for trafficking victims who transit through Mexico to reach 
the U.S.  Traffickers routed persons destined for Argentina, 
Chile, and Paraguay through the city of Foz do Iguacu. Most 
internally trafficked slave laborers originate from Maranho 
and Piaui states.  Para and Matto Grosso states receive the 
highest number of internally trafficked slave laborers. 
 
¶C. Authorities have detected no significant change in the 
direction of trafficking during the last year.  They believe, 
however, that trafficking has increased during the last year. 
 
¶D. The Ministry of Justice's Office of the Comprehensive 
Program for the Prevention of and the Fight Against TIP, in 
cooperation with UNDOC has begun a program to counter 
trafficking and to develop a databank.  The Ministry hopes to 
include information concerning both solicitors and victims, 
where victims are found, and how they are lured.  The 
databank also would gather information in one place from the 
various federal agencies dealing with trafficking, such as 
the Ministry of Justice (including the federal police), the 
Ministry of Labor, and the Special Secretariat for Human 
Rights. .  The program, which will receive USG funding, will 
begin in Ceara, Goias, Rio de Janeiro, and Sao Paulo states 
and should be fully operational in 2005. 
 
¶E. While Brazil generally is not a destination point for 
trafficked victims, in Sao Paulo trafficking of Bolivians by 
Koreans continues to be a problem.  During 2004 the Sao Paulo 
Civil Police's unit dedicated to dealing with trafficking and 
prostitution-related crimes authorities found several cases 
of Bolivians working in sweatshops in Sao Paulo.  The 
Bolivians included men, women, and children who had been 
brought in, placed in rented houses and forced to work 14-16 
hours a day producing garments for shops owned by Korean 
immigrants in Sao Paulo.  Reportedly, on occasion, Chinese 
and Koreans have been trafficked into the country to work in 
sweatshops as well. 
 
¶F. Internationally trafficked sex workers tend to be 
relatively unsophisticated brown and black women and girls 
from the interior and Northeast of Brazil.  Traffickers 
usually lure victims through marriage proposals and are known 
to promise victims lucrative pay as dancers, male escorts, 
models (beauty contestant winners have been cited as common 
targets), waitresses, nannies, maids, or other positions in 
the service industry.  Traditional organized crime syndicates 
may be involved in some of this type of trafficking, but 
according to local law enforcement sources, much of this type 
of trafficking also takes place on a more "informal" basis by 
owners of nightclubs and prostitution houses in destination 
counties.  According to media reports, these owners often 
present the employment as an opportunity to be a male escort 
in a five-star hotel, and present a rosy picture of the life 
in Europe.  Upon arrival, the women serve in virtual 
indentured servitude in prostitution houses.  Domestically 
trafficked sex industry workers are kept restrained through 
debt, isolation, threats of bodily injury, and other forms of 
coercion. 
 
Domestically trafficked rural workers and domestic servants 
are often tricked into working in substandard conditions or 
for illegally low pay in isolated areas.  Often, debt is used 
as a coercive tool to maintain control over the worker.  In 
some cases, force may be used to ensure that the victim does 
not flee, but often the isolation of the wok site and the 
distance from the worker's home serve as effective deterrents 
to flight.  Trafficking of rural workers occurs most commonly 
in the North, Northeast, and Center-West of Brazil, although 
cases have been reported in nearly every Brazilian state. 
Labor recruiters generally recruit laborers from small 
municipalities in the North and Northeast and transport them 
long distances to large ranches and plantations in remote 
areas in central Brazil. 
 
¶G. The political will definitely exists to combat trafficking 
in persons, beginning at the highest level of the GOB. 
President Lula personally has engaged himself on the issue, 
stressing publicly again and again that trafficking and the 
resulting forced labor conditions are unacceptable in Brazil. 
His most recent iteration came after the murder of a group of 
labor inspectors in the State of Minas Gerais in 2004.  The 
Lula administration also announced a government-wide 
initiative to combat sexual exploitation of minors.  This 
program will clearly help to combat internal TIP in Brazil. 
In addition, the government continues to push a bill 
providing for the expropriation of land where forced labor is 
used.  The Ministry of Labor and Employment (MLE) continues 
to conduct very successful raids on worksites suspected. 
 
While the government approved a National Plan to Eliminate 
Forced Labor in 2004, establishing an inter-agency road map 
to eradicating forced labor by 2007, the plan has not 
translated into a vast infusion of resources for efforts. 
The MLE's mobile inspection group continues with less funding 
and equipment than it needs.  The lack of resources has 
seriously limited the number and quality of investigations 
that the MLE conducts.  Inspectors have been asked to pay 
lodging and M&IE expenses while on official duty.  Since the 
GOB has not been able to finance MLE mobile inspection unit 
travel, the federal police announced that they would no 
longer accompany inspectors, thus making inspections less 
secure.  The Federal Police, a force of only 9,000 agents 
that has the responsibilities of the FBI, DEA, Secret 
Service, Federal Marshals and DHS in a country the size of 
the continental United States is spread too thin.  While 
resources have increased, these agencies still need more 
funding. 
 
¶H. Governmental authorities do not facilitate or condone 
trafficking activities.  NGOs allege that individual 
officials have been involved in prostitution rings, 
particularly state uniformed and civil police.  The 
Congressional Investigations Committee on Sexual Exploitation 
(CPMI) found that mayors, city councilmen, and other local 
authorities were involved in sexual exploitation cases, 
although not all involved human trafficking.  Of the 832 
accusations that the CPMI received, 543 were accepted and 289 
were dismissed due to a lack of evidence.  Senators and 
representatives visited each of Brazil's 27 states for more 
than one year to hold meetings with public authorities, civil 
society representatives, offenders, and sexual exploitation 
and TIP victims. 
 
¶I.  See above on resources.  Corruption is not a significant 
problem on this issue. 
 
¶J.  The Ministry of Justice is in the process of establishing 
a database on trafficking that will cover many of these 
issues.  This is the first significant government effort to 
monitor the effort to prevent trafficking. 
 
¶K.  Adult prostitution is not illegal, but soliciting or 
engaging in sexual acts with a young woman under the age of 
18 is a crime.  The legal minimum age for prostitution is 18. 
Under the current legal statute, it is not illegal to traffic 
or solicit sex with a young male under the age of 18.  Adult 
women can engage in prostitution if she chooses to do so, but 
the law forbids earning a profit from the prostitution of 
others.  Pimping and owning or managing prostitution houses 
are illegal. 
 
PREVENTION 
 
¶A.  The GOB has acknowledged that trafficking in persons is 
both a national and international problem.  President Lula 
has addressed the problem on numerous occasions.  In 
addition, GOB officials have participated in conferences on 
the problem, including one in Bogota, Colombia in November 
2003 and one in Sao Paulo, organized by the US Consulate at 
around the same time.  In 2004, the GOB participated in an 
anti-trafficking seminar sponsored by the Embassy of Sweden 
and the US Embassy in Brasilia with participation from 
Brazilian National Secretary of Justice Claudia Chagas, the 
diplomatic community, and Brazilian law enforcement and 
government officials. 
 
¶B.  GOB agencies involved in anti-TIP efforts include: the 
Ministry of Justice (including the Federal Police), the 
National Human Rights Secretariat (attached to the 
presidency), the Ministry of Labor and Employment, the 
Ministry of Tourism, and the Ministry of Social Development. 
The criminal prosecutor's office at The Federal Public 
Ministry is responsible for prosecuting sex traffickers.  The 
labor prosecutor's office at The Public Ministry of Labor is 
responsible for prosecuting forced labor TIP cases. The 
Federal Highway Police are responsible for checking documents 
and monitoring movement along the nation's highways and 
roads, although they rarely apprehend traffickers of rural 
laborers. Special Children's Courts are responsible for 
handling cases involving children and adolescents. These 
special courts exist in each state. 
 
¶C. Anti-TIP information campaigns have been conducted by the 
National Human Rights Secretariat and the Ministry of 
Tourism.  Until recently, the campaign focused on sex 
tourism.  In early 2004 the government began a campaign aimed 
at deterring international traffickers and sensitizing their 
potential victims to the dangers. In addition, the Lula 
administration has conducted a government-wide initiative to 
combat the sexual exploitation of children.  This initiative 
has included an information campaign.  Further, the Sentinela 
program, a nationwide Ministry of Social Development project 
that assists victims of sexual exploitation and TIP, 
distributes information against sex tourism and underage 
prostitution.  A large number of local and international 
NGOs, organizations, and groups work with local schools 
throughout the country teaching children and adolescents 
about the dangers of being trafficked. 
 
During Carnival season, the Ministry of Tourism launched a 
three-phase anti-sex TQ>|Gp:QmQloQradio ads.  The 
second phase, which occurred during Carnival, distributed 
pamphlets, distributed pamphlets, T-shirts, hats, and other 
informative material in coastal cities.  The last phase 
focused on educating employees in the tourism industry, such 
as hotel and restaurant owners and employees, and taxi 
drivers, about the dangers of sex tourism.  Local authorities 
in Rio de Janeiro launched campaigns against sex tourism and 
arrested several persons involved in promoting prostitution 
during the year. 
 
In October, the Secretariat for Human Rights and the Ministry 
of Justice launched a nationwide anti-trafficking in persons 
publicity campaign in Goiania, Goias, to prevent the 
trafficking of women for sexual exploitation abroad. 
Approximately 60 percent of women trafficked abroad came from 
Goias State.  The program was co-sponsored by the U.N. Office 
of Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the Government of Portugal. 
Female passport recipients receive a brochure that states 
"first they take your passport, then your freedom."  The 
campaign includes radio advertisements and large warning 
signs in airports in Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Brasilia, 
Recife, Fortaleza, and Goiania.  Police officers, judges, and 
foreign consulates in the country received training under 
this program. 
 
In May, the Sao Paulo State Secretary of Justice inaugurated 
the Sao Paulo Office for the Prevention of Trafficking in 
Persons.  This office conducted public education campaigns, 
assisted victims of human trafficking and sexual 
exploitation, and referred individual trafficking cases to 
the federal police and state attorneys. 
 
Labor organizations and NGOs continue to conduct campaigns. 
The Pastoral Land Commission (CPT) distributes pamphlets to 
rural workers in areas that have historically served as 
targets for traffickers.  The pamphlets warn rural workers 
about the methods of traffickers and offer practical advice 
to avoid this situation.  A number of local unions instruct 
laborers to register with them and the police before leaving 
with a labor recruiter. 
 
¶D.  The GOB sponsors many other programs that are directed at 
the social problems underlying TIP.  The government has made 
a major effort to consolidate and improve programs designed 
to combat child labor.  The Sentinela Program, instituted by 
the GOB, and supported by USAID Brazil, to reduce sexual 
exploitation of children and adolescents, now has more than 
400 centers to assist victims of sexual abuse and 
exploitation. 
 
¶E.  The GOB supports prevention programs as outlined above. 
 
¶F.  Particularly with the advent of the Lula administration, 
the relationship between the government elements of civil 
society on issues relating to trafficking in persons has 
improved.  Labor inspectors act usually in response to 
allegations of trafficking from members of union, churches, 
the media, and NGOs.  The Executive Group to Reduce Forced 
Labor (GERTRAF) continues to improve coordination between 
public and private entities.  The Ministry of Justice 
coordinates closely with NGOs, as do the state-level offices 
that have been established to combat trafficking. 
 
¶G.  The borders and coasts of Brazil are so extensive they 
are not easily monitored.  Brazil maintains immigration and 
border control services (it is primarily a Federal Police 
function with some help from the armed forces), but they are 
thinly spread in many areas.  Federal Police are now 
monitoring the borders with an increased awareness of the 
profile of trafficking victims.  Border controls are not a 
factor in domestic trafficking and Brazil is not a 
destination for the internationally trafficked sex industry 
or rural workers. 
 
¶H.  Coordination and cooperation between various agencies is 
carried out by the Ministry of Justice, under the 
Comprehensive Program for the Prevention of and Fight Against 
TIP, and GERTRAF as outlined above, as well as the National 
Plan Against Infant-Juvenile Sexual Violence and the Office 
to Combat Transnational Crime (COCIT) at the Ministry of 
Foreign Relations.  The GOB does not have a task force to 
fight corruption. 
 
¶I.  The GOB coordinates with and participates in 
multinational working groups and in efforts to prevent, 
monitor, and control trafficking. 
 
The National Forum Against Rural Violence, which includes the 
participation of various government agencies, NGOs, and 
unions, is another mechanism of coordination and 
communication on trafficking and forced labor.  The National 
Forum for the Prevention and Eradication of Child Labor has 
developed a national strategy to combat the worst forms of 
child labor, including activities linked to trafficking in 
children. 
 
ILO: The ILO contributed to the CECRIA study published in 
¶2003.  The ILO with USDOL funding supported a child labor 
survey by the Brazil's national statistics agency (IBGE) 
giving the first comprehensive view of child labor in Brazil. 
The study serves as a baseline for measuring the success of 
government programs.  In September 2004, the ILO launched the 
Strengthening Strategies to Combat the Trafficking of Women, 
Children, and Adolescents in Brazil program with the Ministry 
of Justice.  A number of NGOs, international organizations 
(UN and UNODC), foreign Embassies (Spain, Portugal, and 
U.S.), the Federal Police, and Ministries took part in the 
seminar that launched the event. 
 
UNDOC:  The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime has a 
project in partnership with the Ministry of Justice with 
joint financial resources from the governments of Brazil and 
Portugal.  The project will focus on developing activities in 
four areas: research, elaboration of a data bank, training 
and awareness campaigns.  The UNDOC launched a national 
publicity campaign in conjunction with the Government of 
Portugal and the Secretariat for Human Rights in the Ministry 
of Justice (see Prevention, C). 
 
¶J.  The GOB has promulgated the Comprehensive Program for 
Combating TIP and the National Council Against Infant- 
Juvenile Violence Sexual Violence, outlined above.  The 
government has developed a National Plan Against the Sexual 
Exploitation of Minors.  The plan will involve the Ministries 
of Justice, Social Assistance, Education Culture and Sports, 
as well as the National Secretariats of Human Rights and 
Women's Affairs, both of which are cabinet level agencies 
attached to the presidency. 
 
¶K.  See responses above.  In general, the National Secretary 
for Justice in the Ministry of Justice develops anti-TIP 
programs, although other ministries and agencies are engaged 
as well. 
 
Investigation and Prosecution of Traffickers 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
¶A.   The law prohibits the transport of persons for illicit 
reasons within and outside the country.  The law does not 
specifically prohibit trafficking of men or the internal 
trafficking of women, although Congress was considering 
legislation to criminalize all forms of trafficking. 
 
¶B.   The Penal Code establishes a prison sentence of 3 to 8 
years for transporting women in or out of the country for the 
purposes of prostitution.  The Statute on Children and 
Adolescents requires the permission or presence of both 
parents for children to leave the country; it also prohibits 
children from leaving the country with a foreigner unless the 
authorities grant prior approval. 
 
¶C.  Only rape against women is considered a crime and carries 
a  six to ten year prison sentence.  All sex crimes charges 
are dismissed if the victim marries the accused or a third 
person. 
 
On March 1, the Brazilian Senate approved three bills on 
combating sexual exploitation of children and adolescents. 
The proposed amendment defines photography or filming 
children and adolescents under circumstances that compromise 
their sexual integrity as a criminal felony.  The proposal 
merges the crimes of rape and violent indecent assault and 
makes rape against women and men a crime.  The bill revokes 
the current statute that dismisses sex crimes charges if the 
victim marries the accused or a third person and increases 
penalties by 1/3 if the victim is younger than 18 years of 
age.  These changes have not been approved by Congress and 
are not yet enforceable law. 
 
¶D.  In the area of forced labor there have been three 
convictions for trafficking since 1995.  During 2002 we are 
aware of five convictions for trafficking, with 23 people 
charge.  Partial statistics for 2003 indicate one conviction 
and jail sentence with four cases of trafficking prosecuted 
in criminal court.  At present, no one is serving a prison 
sentence in Brazil for either domestic forced labor or 
international trafficking.  Numerous people were tried and 
convicted in labor court in 2003, including a federal deputy. 
Statistics have not changed significantly during the past few 
years. 
 
There have been two cases of convictions of traffickers for 
international trafficking on women.  One case in Goiania, 
Goias in September, 2004, and another in Fortaleza in 
December. 
 
¶E. Domestic trafficking of agricultural workers is reportedly 
carried out by labor "brokers," who act as middlemen between 
laborers and landowners.  Domestic and international 
trafficking of sex industry workers is reportedly conducted 
by traditional organized criminal groups and by more informal 
efforts of owners of bars and establishments of prostitution. 
 
¶F.  The GOB actively investigates reports of trafficking, 
although in many cases efforts are hampered by lack of 
resources and ineffective state and federal cooperation 
(though efforts are being made to improve this).  The federal 
police have conducted surveillance and undercover operations 
with other countries to investigate and prosecute offenders. 
Federal police have also been known to infiltrate sex tourism 
rings although this rarely occurs due to a lack of personnel 
and resources.  Allegations of trafficking and forced labor 
in rural areas are investigated primarily by the Ministry of 
Labor and Employment's special mobile inspection unit.  The 
unit liberated 2,743 slave laborers in 2004.  The government 
uses active investigative techniques to the full extent 
possible in trafficking cases. 
The Federal Police are in the process of implementing special 
training programs for TIP investigations and creating a 
special team to target forced labor.  In addition, the state 
offices that have been created to combat trafficking have 
trained special units to investigate trafficking cases. 
 
¶G. The Ministry of Justice has trained more than 360 judges, 
police, social workers and psychologists on how to recognize 
and combat the crime of trafficking in persons.  The Ministry 
has organized an online course through the University of 
Brasilia that will train 700 more officials and will begin in 
March of 2005. 
 
¶H. The GOB has signed treaties providing for legal 
cooperation and assistance with 15 countries and similar 
agreements are being negotiated with other countries.  The 
Federal Police cooperate with Interpol in international 
trafficking cases.  The Federal Police have worked with the 
governments of Spain, Italy, Canada, and Portugal, and 
Switzerland to combat trafficking and sex tourism.  While the 
actual number of cooperative international investigations on 
trafficking is unknown, the federal police have worked with 
foreign countries to conduct anti-trafficking investigations. 
 
¶I. The GOB cooperates with foreign governments to extradite 
non-citizens and has willingly done so.  The GOB and the 
Italian government conducted a joint investigation under an 
Italian version of the 2004 U.S. Child Protect Act that lead 
to the extradition of an Italian citizen involved in sex 
tourism.  The Italian citizen was extradited to Italy is 
currently awaiting prosecution.  Both the GOB and the Federal 
Police have stated to post they are willing to extradite and 
assist in investigating and prosecuting non-citizens involved 
in sex tourism and TIP.  The Brazilian Constitution prohibits 
the extradition of Brazilian citizens.  Naturalized citizens 
may be extradited if the offense took place prior to 
naturalization.  No efforts are underway to modify this 
provision of the Constitution. 
 
¶J. The CPMI denounced a number of mayors, vice-mayors, 
judges, city council members, and a governor, who were 
involved in the sexual exploitation of minors and 
prostitution rings. Former Goias mayor, Boadyr Veloso, was 
charged with rape and pandering; the rape charge was 
dismissed after he arranged the marriages of the seven girls 
he had exploited (under current law, rape charges can be 
dropped if the victim marries another man).   The former 
president of the Federal District's legislative assembly, 
representative Benicio Tavares, took participated in a sex 
tourism scheme in November.  He continues to work as a 
representative at the Federal District's legislative 
assembly.  None of those cited in the CPMI report have been 
prosecuted as some cases are still under investigation and 
others have been dismissed due to a lack of evidence. 
Concerning slave labor, federal and government authorities 
such as House Representative Inocencio Oliveira and Senator 
Joao Ribeiro were convicted and fined between 550,000 to 
730,000 Reais (USD 211,000 to 281,000).  Both are appealing 
their sentences.  State authorities such as the Rio de 
Janeiro State Assembly President Jorge Piccani and his son 
are being prosecuted for slave labor. 
 
¶L.  Brazil is a destination country for child sex tourism. 
Two cases have been identified and prosecuted to date.  The 
Brazilian legislation does not have extraterritoriality like 
the U.S. act.  The GOB has actively deported and/or 
extradited non-citizens involved in child sex tourism.  The 
GOB has also willingly assisted foreign governments in 
prosecuting non-citizens abroad under similar U.S. Child 
Protect Acts (see paragraph "Investigation and Prosecution of 
Traffickers," I). 
 
¶M.   The GOB has signed and ratified ILO Conventions 182,29 
and 105, which were ratified on April 1957, June 1965, and 
February 2000.  Brazil signed and ratified the Sale of 
Children Protocol, supplementing the Rights of the Child 
Convention, and the Protocol to Prevent Suppress and Punish 
Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children, 
supplementing the U.N. Convention Against Transnational 
Organized Crime.  They came into force in late February 2004. 
 
Protection and Assistance to Victims 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶A. Several GOB programs assist the victims of trafficking, 
although efforts are often spotty and under-funded.  The 
Ministry of Social Development, with USAID funding operates 
more than 600 centers to assist victims of sexual abuse and 
exploitation and domestic violence through the Sentinel 
Program. The Sentinela program is a service network 
organization that offers immediate assistance to sexually 
abused children and adolescents and provides psychological 
support and development activities for community 
reintegration.  There are over 441 Sentinela centers 
throughout the country.  To assist the GOB and strengthen the 
Sentinela Program, USAID partnered with the Ministry of 
Social Development and the National Secretariat for Human 
Rights under the Program for Integrated Action to Combat 
Sexual Violence Against Children and Adolescents (PAIR), 
which has been implemented by Partners of the Americas (POA) 
since 2002.  Under this program, POA has helped local 
organizations develop a pilot program for integrating 
programs and services as well as for strengthen social 
assistance networks aimed at combating sex trafficking six 
key municipalities.  There are also a large number of NGOs 
that operate throughout the country that focus on sexual 
exploration and human trafficking and offer assistance to 
victims.  The number of victims placed into these shelters is 
unknown. 
 
The Director of the DOL funded project against child 
prostitution in Foz do Iguacu said that all victims are 
tested for HIV/AIDS.  Anecdotally, the rate of infection is 
very low.  Though victims who test positively are placed in 
the GOB's program, featuring free retrovirals.  The program 
has been extremely effective in containing HIV and preventing 
the onset of full-blown AIDS. 
 
¶B. The federal government funds the Sentinala centers 
described above. In July 2003, the Brazilian Ministry of 
Justice and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime 
(UNODC) launched a pilot-program to combat international sex 
trafficking of women, which includes the establishment of 
victim's assistance centers in Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, 
Goias and Ceara states in partnership with the state 
government.  The Sao Paulo and Goiania centers have been 
launched, and the others are expected to be functioning by 
year's end.  The state offices work with and fund NGOs in 
providing services to victims. 
 
¶C. The Sentinela program has a screening process for victims. 
In addition, the state offices refer those arrested to NGOs 
that provide victim services and protective custody if 
necessary. 
 
¶D. Brazil, in general, is not a destination for 
internationally trafficked persons.  Victims of TIP are not 
treated as criminals, though some NGOs have alleged that 
local police officers are at times dismissive of TIP victims 
that are forced to work in the sex industry, saying that they 
are "just prostitutes."  Victims are not usually detained, 
jailed, fined, or prosecuted for other violations. 
 
¶E. The government encourages victims to testify against 
traffickers.  Most trafficked Brazilian women were trafficked 
internationally and cannot file suit.  Brazilian law does not 
provide for such suits.  There is no victim restitution 
program although some NGOs and GOB funded programs provide 
education and training to TIP victims. 
 
¶F. Brazilian authorities afford the trafficking victims the 
same protections that other at-risk witnesses receive. The 
GOB maintains a witness protection program.  In practice, the 
effectiveness of this program is limited by its small size, 
lack of resources, and other priorities of the Government. 
The program is overseen by an NGO, GAJOP, which works in 
coordination with the Brazilian authorities.  The program is 
currently operating in all Brazilian states. 
Several NGOs receiving GOB or municipal (as well as USAID or 
DOL) funding are active in the area of victim assistance, but 
resources are scarce and the demand great.  But TIP victims 
do not usually participate in the witness protection program. 
 
¶G. The GOB provides specialized training to law enforcement 
officials in Brazil, and also specialized training to 
diplomats who work in embassies in destination countries. 
The Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs 
have combined on training for diplomats serving in those 
countries. 
 
¶H. As noted above, the Office of the Comprehensive Program 
for the Prevention of and the Fight Against TIP operates 
seven reference centers for the purpose of providing 
assistance to TIP victims.  The centers assist victims of 
both internal and international trafficking.  In addition, 
the state of Sao Paulo opened an office at the Sao Paulo 
international airport in early 2005 to assist trafficking 
victims as they arrive. 
 
¶I. ILO, Catholic Relief Services and other religious 
organizations such as the CPT assist trafficked slave labor 
victims.  The NGOs that work with the Sentinela and the PAIR 
programs assist sex trafficking victims. Local authorities 
cooperate closely with organizations that assist victims. 
 
 
DUDDY