VZCZCXRO6521
RR RUEHCD RUEHGD RUEHHO RUEHMC RUEHNG RUEHNL RUEHRD RUEHRS RUEHTM
DE RUEHME #3423/01 1721931
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 211931Z JUN 06
FM AMEMBASSY MEXICO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1780
INFO RUEHXC/ALL US CONSULATES IN MEXICO COLLECTIVE
RUEAWJA/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHDC
RUEAHLA/DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MEXICO 003423 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
FOR WHA/MEX, ALSO FOR G/TIP 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM PGOV PREL PINR MX
SUBJECT: TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS CONFERENCE IN MEXICO LAYS 
OUT CHALLENGES AHEAD 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary:  With support from U.S. Immigration and 
Customs Enforcement (ICE), Mexico's National Commission for 
Human Rights (CNDH) and the International Organization for 
Migration (IOM) sponsored a comprehensive conference on 
trafficking in persons (TIP) in Tapachula, Chiapas, June 
14-15.  Speakers and attendees ranged from high-level Mexican 
federal officials to the directors of local shelters, and 
included persons from both Mexico and Guatemala as well as 
abroad. The conference succeeded in its objective of bringing 
together experts, provoking frank discussion of trafficking, 
and establishing a network among officials and academics. 
While these steps will contribute to building a stronger 
coalition among government and civil society, Mexico needs to 
build on this momentum and take the necessary action 
reflected in the consensus of the experts who participated in 
this conference.  End Summary. 
 
A Well-Attended Event with Frank Discussion 
------------------------------------------- 
 
¶2. (U) On June 14 and 15, Poloff attended a conference on TIP 
sponsored by CNDH and IOM in Tapachula, which drew more than 
200 attendees. These included the Governor of Chiapas, 
representatives of the Attorney General's office (PGR), state 
and federal offices of CNDH, the Mexican and Guatemalan 
police, local NGOs, international consultancies, law schools, 
and international organizations.  U.S. attendees also 
included ICE, USAID, and DOJ.  The setting of the conference 
in a border city established a sense of immediacy: this 
particular corner of Mexico is a bustling crossing point for 
migrants, weak on law enforcement, and extremely vulnerable 
to trafficking. 
 
¶3. (U) CNDH President Dr. Jose Luis Soberanes Fernandez spoke 
of his organization's (first) official TIP complaint made 
recently against two branches of government and involving two 
Chinese workers in a Guanajuato factory.  Soberanes is a 
well-known figure in Mexico, and the CNDH, according to 
national opinion polls, is one of the country's most 
respected institutions.  Chiapas Attorney General Mariano 
Herran Salvatti described state reforms carried out to 
address TIP (although legal experts mentioned afterwards that 
Chiapas still lacks the necessary legal framework). 
 
¶4. (U) Speakers detailed the challenges facing Mexico 
(documented in the 2006 TIP Report), including: the lack of a 
federal law against trafficking; insufficient awareness and 
sensitivity among the general public; corruption and impunity 
among authorities; and the increasing size and sophistication 
of criminal organizations and the clandestine nature of 
trafficking. Jose Luis Santiago Vasconcelos, chief of the 
PGR's organized crime unit, bluntly stated  Mexico has a long 
way to go in fighting TIP.  He noted the lack of a federal 
TIP law and national strategy and poor interagency 
cooperation.  Vasconcelos reiterated his commitment to 
overcoming these challenges.  The experts often agreed on 
remedies, which included passage of the Senate-approved TIP 
legislation now pending in the lower house of Congress; 
police training, including victim identification; social 
services to victims, including medical, social and 
psychological assistance; and voluntary repatriation or 
reintegration into society, including training and economic 
opportunities.  Many of these remedies are in place in 
various programs in the country: the special federal police 
investigative task force established with help from ICE; an 
integrated victims assistance program in Nuevo Leon; IOM 
shelter and social services; and USAID-sponsored judicial 
reform efforts. 
 
The Other Border 
---------------- 
 
¶5. (U) Following the conference, a Mexican immigration 
official took Poloff on a tour of the nearby Mexico-Guatemala 
border. While the formal crossing point was bustling with 
activity, the real commercial enterprise seemed to be located 
downstream.  Using rafts made of inner tubes and plywood, 
merchants moved foodstuffs across the river in a 
do-it-yourself free trade zone.  Federal authorities watched 
but did not interfere.  According to the Mexican official, a 
few kilometers farther downstream Central American (as well 
as Brazilian and Cuban) migrants regularly cross into Mexico. 
Once past the river, they walk north along the railroad 
tracks until they can hop a train or find other means of 
transportation north. Immigration officials detain or 
otherwise encounter about 500 migrants a day in the Tapachula 
region but seemed sure a significantly larger number of 
 
MEXICO 00003423  002 OF 002 
 
 
migrants were actually moving through the area.  It is common 
for migrants to be killed or injured jumping the trains. 
Rape and robbery are also common perils. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶6. (SBU) This was a successful conference and owed much to 
the support provided by ICE.  Participants highlighted 
effective programs now in place as well as spelling out the 
challenges Mexico must overcome to better combat trafficking. 
Key among these is clearly the passage of the pending federal 
TIP legislation. Traffickers can now only be prosecuted on 
TIP-related crimes, such as corruption of minors. Passage of 
a comprehensive federal law would not only provide the legal 
tools but would increase public awareness of the problem and 
send the message that TIP is not to be tolerated.  We will 
continue our efforts to encourage congressional action on 
this important measure. 
 
 
Visit Mexico City's Classified Web Site at 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/wha/mexicocity 
 
GARZA