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

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 DAR ES SALAAM 000369 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR G/TIP, G, INL, DRL, PRM, IWI, AF/RSA, AF/E 
 
AIDAC 
 
E.O. 12598: N/A 
TAGS: KCRM PHUM KWMN SMIG KFRD PREF ELAB TZ ASED
SUBJECT:  Tanzania TIP report 
 
REFTEL:  STATE 03836, STATE 25229 
 
¶1.  (U) Post submits the following responses to questions 
posed in reftel A regarding the sixth annual trafficking in 
persons report.  Point of contact for trafficking issues in 
Tanzania is Political Officer Maureen B. Latour who may be 
reached by telephone at 255.22.2668001, extension 4107 and 
by fax at 255.22.2668224.  The responses herein were 
prepared by one Political Officer and one Political 
Assistant over approximately 40 hours each. 
 
¶2.  (SBU)  Tanzania is a country of origin, transit and 
destination for women and girls trafficked for forced labor 
and sexual exploitation and, to a lesser extent, boys 
trafficked for forced labor.  Most trafficking is internal 
and young girls are at a higher risk of being trafficked. 
Victims are lured by the promise of an income, the 
opportunity to attend school and better living conditions, 
especially from rural to urban areas.  Boys are trafficked 
for exploitative work on farms, in mines, and in the large 
informal sector.  Girls from rural areas are trafficked to 
urban centers for involuntary domestic labor, but many flee 
abusive employers and turn to prostitution for survival. 
Tanzanian girls are also reportedly trafficked to South 
Africa, Oman, the United Kingdom, and possibly other 
European or Arabian countries for forced domestic labor. 
 
¶3. (SBU)  In order to determine the extent and magnitude of 
the trafficking problem, a data collection project began in 
six regions in February 2005.  Conducted by Research 
International through the International Organization for 
Migration and with the cooperation of the government, the 
systematized data collection project will result in an 
integrated database on human trafficking.  The reliability 
of the numbers and the sources of data are anticipated to be 
very high. 
 
¶4. (SBU)  The political will to address trafficking in 
persons in Tanzania increased from the prior year.  A low 
level of knowledge about the full extent of the problem 
(which the March-April research assessment will address) 
persists, but officials recognize the term "trafficking in 
persons", acknowledge that persons are trafficked in 
Tanzania and are particpating in the March research 
assessment to .  A few key officials are taking active roles 
in increasing awareness of the problem and proposing revised 
legislation and tracking of prosecutions. 
 
¶5. (SBU)  The Ministry of Foreign Affairs assumed the lead 
in coordinating government agencies and chairs the inter- 
ministerial committee on trafficking in persons.  A cross- 
section of government officials, NGO representatives and 
media attended a three-day off-site conference "Concepts, 
Challenges and Strategies to Combat Human Trafficking in 
East Africa."  The government named an assistant 
superintendent of police as Research Coordinator for Human 
Trafficking.  The Research Coordinator and an official from 
the Ministry of Justice attended a three-day training of 
legal experts on the formulation and implementation of the 
SADC Declaration and Plan of Action against Trafficking in 
Persons.  A review of Tanzanian law on the subject prompted 
debate in several ministries regarding whether and how to 
revise the law to better address trafficking in persons. 
 
¶6. (SBU)  At least some traffickers are based in urban areas 
and travel to rural areas specifically to recruit young 
girls.  Traffickers frequently make an agreement with the 
child's parents, agreeing to pay between 10,000 shillings 
(approximately 8 USD) and 30,000 shillings (approximately 25 
USD) to take the child with the additional promise that the 
child will be earning an income which could be shared with 
the family.  Traffickers indicate this income would be paid 
to the child but in reality no income is paid to anyone for 
the child's work. 
 
¶7. (SBU)  Trafficked victims are transported by various 
means.  Some traffickers put the recruited children on 
trucks transporting produce to the urban areas because this 
is cheaper than buses.  When the truck arrives at the city 
or town, another trafficker meets the truck and they are 
offered to persons as domestic servants.  Other children are 
rescued from railway stations, found by police and referred 
to NGOs for assistance.  Other trafficking victims are 
picked up by truck drivers on long runs of up to one month. 
The drivers sexually abuse the trafficked victims and then 
abandon them. 
 
¶8. (SBU)  The government's ability to address this problem 
is limited by funding constraints, a lack of comprehensive 
legislation concerning trafficking in persons and a lack of 
knowledge beyond a central core of key officials.  Training 
of police and prosecutors is needed and the possibility of 
corruption must be addressed.  Increased awareness and 
prosecutions will necessitate increased capacity for 
assisting victims. 
 
¶9. (SBU)  The government acknowledges that trafficking is a 
problem in Tanzania.  The Ministry of Foreign Affairs chairs 
an inter-ministerial committee on trafficking in persons. 
Other participating ministries are: Justice; Public Safety 
and Security; Home Affairs; Labor, Youth and Employment; 
Community Development, Gender and Children; Education and 
Vocational Training; and Natural Resources and Tourism. 
Additionally, representatives from the President's Office, 
Tourism Commission of Zanzibar, Zanzibar Chamber of 
Commerce, NGO's and the media participated in a training 
workshop on trafficking in persons. 
 
¶10. (SBU)  The government does not have the resources to 
undertake an anti-trafficking education campaign; however, 
the government welcomes the information disseminated by 
NGOs.  The government does not yet monitor its anti- 
trafficking efforts as they are at the beginning stages. 
 
¶11. (SBU)  The Ministry of Education and Vocational Training 
has assumed responsibility for over 300 centers that keep at- 
risk children in school.  The Time-Bound program funded by 
the U.S. Department of Labor funded the creation of over 300 
centers as well as printed and recorded educational 
materials for use in Interactive Radio Education (IRE). 
This method has proved effective in reaching children in 
remote areas and without fully-trained teachers.  The 
Ministry of Education and Vocational Training and Radio 
Tanzania have committed to continue this program for the 
coming school year. 
 
¶12. (SBU)  The relationship between government officials, 
NGOs and other elements of civil society is good; however, 
the NGOs are convinced the problem is severe while the 
government officials believe trafficking in persons to be 
serious, but relatively infrequent.  The relationship 
between NGOs and the Dar es Salaam police is particularly 
cooperative. 
 
¶13. (SBU)  The government needs additional training and 
resources in order to monitor immigration and emigration 
patterns for evidence of trafficking.  Law enforcement 
agencies do not screen for potential trafficking victims 
along borders. 
 
¶14. (SBU)  The government's inter-ministerial committee on 
trafficking in persons provides a mechanism for 
communication and coordination between various agencies. 
The committee designated a Research Coordinator for Human 
Trafficking who serves as the point of contact for 
trafficking in persons issues.  The Prevention of Corruption 
Bureau, a semi-autonomous department under the supervision 
of the President's Office, addresses and combats public 
corruption. 
 
¶15. (SBU)  Key government officials met and discussed the 
drafting of a national plan of action to address trafficking 
in persons.  The meeting yielded an outline of 
recommendations for a national plan. 
 
¶16. (SBU)  The law criminalizes "trafficking in persons"; 
however, the term is defined so as to include some acts that 
are not considered trafficking in persons under the 
international definition and excludes most other acts that 
are so considered.  The law states any person who engages in 
the buying, selling or bartering of any person, or in the 
promoting, facilitating or inducing the buying or selling or 
bartering or the placement in adoption of any person commits 
the offense of trafficking.  The law addresses both internal 
and transnational movement of persons.  Sexual offenses and 
forced labor offenses are addressed in separate sections of 
the penal code and are not linked to any definition of 
trafficking in persons.  Tanzanian law is inadequate to 
cover the full scope of trafficking in persons as it lacks 
precise definitions and significant parts of the offense. 
In order to effectively address trafficking in persons, the 
following provisions of Tanzanian law should be reviewed and 
harmonized:  Penal Code, Criminal Procedure Act, Extradition 
Act, Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Act, 
Evidence Act, Immigration Act, Passport and Travel Documents 
Act, Transfer of Prisoners Act and other subsidiary 
legislation. 
 
¶17. (SBU)  The Tanzanian definition of trafficking in 
persons is punishable by imprisonment for not less than 20 
and not more than 30 years, a fine of not less than 100,000 
shillings (approximately USD 85) and not more than 300,000 
shillings (approximately USD 255), or both.  In addition, 
the court may order the convicted trafficker to pay 
compensation to the victim in an amount determined by the 
court.  Sexual offenses, including forcible sexual assault, 
are punishable by imprisonment of a term from three years to 
life.  Forced labor offenses are punishable by imprisonment 
for from one to ten years.  The penalty for rape is 
imprisonment for up to 30 years and restitution to the 
victim.  Therefore, forced labor offenses have a less 
stringent penalty than trafficking, but sexual offenders may 
incur a penalty either more or less stringent than for 
trafficking. 
¶18. (SBU)  Prostitution is criminalized and carries a 
penalty of imprisonment for a term of not less than ten 
years and not exceeding twenty years, a fine of not less 
than 100,000 shillings (approximately USD 85) and not more 
than 300,000 shillings (approximately USD 255), or both. 
The law addresses any person who "procures or attempt to 
procure" a person to become a prostitute or who transports a 
person for the purpose of prostitution, but does not 
specifically address clients or enforcers.  The laws are 
enforced occasionally, but not consistently. 
¶19. (SBU)  The government prosecuted two cases against 
suspected traffickers in 2004, and both resulted in 
acquittals.  The Research Coordinator for Human Trafficking 
cannot identify any specific pending cases against 
traffickers.  The different definition of "trafficking in 
persons" used in Tanzanian law and the lack of comprehensive 
legislation in this area makes tracking prosecution of 
trafficking in persons offenses particularly difficult. 
 
¶20. (SBU)  Reports of who is behind the trafficking are 
speculative.  There are no reports of organized crime 
groups, and no connection with narcotics or arms trafficking 
is suspected.  The limited information available indicates 
trafficking occurs in Tanzania due to freelance operators 
working individually or in small groups and government 
officials willing to turn a blind eye for a price. 
 
¶21. (SBU)  The government does not actively investigate 
cases of trafficking due to the confusion of the legislative 
definition.  Techniques such as electronic surveillance, 
undercover operations and mitigated punishment or immunity 
for cooperating suspects exceed the capacity of Tanzanian 
law enforcement.  The criminal procedure code does not 
prohibit the police from engaging in covert operations.  The 
government would appreciate training in how to recognize, 
investigate and prosecute instances of trafficking but does 
not yet have the capacity to provide such training itself. 
Interpol is present in Tanzania but no cooperative 
international investigations of trafficking in persons have 
occurred.  The government is not prohibited by law from 
extraditing its own nationals, but had no information on any 
extraditions regarding trafficking in persons. 
 
¶22. (SBU)  Government involvement in, or tolerance of, 
trafficking is suspected but not proven.  The most common 
accusation is that law enforcement officers will overlook 
prostitution in exchange for a fee. 
 
¶23. (SBU)  Child sex tourism is not identified as a problem 
in Tanzania. 
 
¶24. (SBU)  Tanzania signed and ratified the following 
international instruments on the dates listed: 
 
ILO Convention 182 concerning the prohibition and immediate 
action for the elimination of the worst forms of child 
labor, October 2000; 
ILO Convention 29 and 105 on forced or compulsory labor, 
1962; 
The Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the 
Child (CRC) on the sale of children, child prostitution, and 
child pornography, April 2003; 
United Nations' Convention Against Transnational Organized 
Crime, July 28, 2005; 
Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in 
Persons, especially Women and Children, July 28, 2005; and 
Protocol Against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and 
Air, July 28, 2005; 
¶25. (SBU)  The government provides assistance to victims 
through NGOs.  The government provides family planning 
services, condoms and medical supplies, including drug 
regimens for sexually transmitted diseases and HIV test 
kits, to NGOs that assist trafficking victims.  The 
government also trains the NGO staff members on health and 
family planning issues and provides trafficking victims 
access to health clinics.  This assistance is also available 
to repatriated nationals who are being assisted by the NGOs. 
Government authorities refer trafficking victims to NGOs 
where there are NGOs providing services; however, there are 
areas without any such assistance and the fate of victims in 
those areas is not known. 
 
¶26. (SBU)  The government respects the rights of victims; 
however, some individuals who are deported may have been 
victims of trafficking but were deported before an 
assessment can be completed.  Victims may file civil suits 
against the traffickers and there is at least one such case 
(for sexual offenses) pending.  No one impedes victims' 
access to legal redress and a victim is allowed to appear in 
camera. 
 
¶27. (SBU)  The government sent four police officials (the 
head of the Interpol Unit and three prosecutors) and four 
immigration department to training on conducting trafficking 
investigations in October 2004.  These individuals have been 
sharing their training with their colleagues informally, 
thereby increasing awareness of trafficking in persons. 
 
¶28. (SBU)  Victim assistance is provided by local NGOs 
KIWOHEDE (Kiota Women's Health Center), CHODAWA 
(Conservation Hotel Domestic and Allied Workers Union) and 
the International Office of Migration.  These organizations 
enjoy cooperation from local authorities, having formed task 
forces with local leaders, police and government officials. 
 
RETZER