VZCZCXYZ0000
OO RUEHWEB

DE RUEHQT #2428/01 2752144
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 022144Z OCT 06
FM AMEMBASSY QUITO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 5376
INFO RUEHC/DEPT OF LABOR WASHDC IMMEDIATE
RUEAHLC/HOMELAND SECURITY CENTER WASHDC IMMEDIATE
RUEHBO/AMEMBASSY BOGOTA PRIORITY 6018
RUEHCV/AMEMBASSY CARACAS PRIORITY 2056
RUEHLP/AMEMBASSY LA PAZ OCT 0111
RUEHPE/AMEMBASSY LIMA PRIORITY 0991
RUEHGL/AMCONSUL GUAYAQUIL PRIORITY 1220
RHMFISS/CDR USSOUTHCOM MIAMI FL

UNCLAS QUITO 002428 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR WHA/PPC, WHA/AND, AND G/TIP 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM PGOV PREL EC
SUBJECT: ECUADOR TIP: A GOE PRIORITY 
 
REF: 05 QUITO 316 
 
This is an action request for G/TIP. See para 9. 
 
¶1.  (SBU) Summary:  The GOE has shown steady progress 
arresting and prosecuting TIP cases under new anti-TIP 
legislation.  Approximately 127 cases are in some stage of 
prosecution since the new law went into effect in June 2005. 
President Palacio continues to stress TIP as a priority for 
his administration, recently signing an executive decree that 
will fund and coordinate a national anti-TIP strategy among 
several government agencies.  Victim assistance, awareness 
and prevention efforts also recently improved with the 
establishment of new publicity campaigns, a hotline for TIP 
tips and information, and GOE assistance to TIP victim 
shelters.  Press has recently highlighted Colombia-to-Ecuador 
trafficking concerns.  Disbursement of approved INCLE funds 
to support the Ecuadorian specialized investigative units 
would be a welcome boost to already significant law 
enforcement efforts.  End Summary. 
 
GOE Maintains Commitment to TIP Arrests and Prosecutions 
--------------------------------------------- ----------- 
 
¶2.  (U) The GOE continues to demonstrate commitment to 
combating TIP under its new anti-TIP statute.  Attorney 
General Cecilia Armas has appointed special TIP prosecutors 
in the provinces with the greatest TIP problems:  Guayas, 
Pichincha, El Oro and Manabi.  The Public Ministry has also 
created and trained a 36-member specialized police unit, 
spread over seven major cities, dedicated to victim and 
witness protection, a crucial component of successful 
prosecutions.  The child welfare police (DINAPEN) and the 
Embassy-vetted alien smuggling unit (COAC) both issued 
internal operating instructions to collaborate on TIP 
investigations.  The special TIP prosecutors in El Oro and 
Pichincha provinces have begun supplying detailed case 
information to the Embassy, including the status of each 
case, the names of defendants and victims, and a synopsis of 
the evidence and charges.  Working with ConGen Guayaquil, 
post is attempting to gain similar information from the TIP 
prosecutors in Guayas and Manabi provinces. 
 
¶3.  (U) Since the new anti-TIP law was enacted in June 2005, 
approximately 127 TIP arrests are in some stage of 
prosecution (this includes arrests for child pornography 
production, considered to be a TIP crime under Ecuadorian 
law).  Prosecutors are confident convictions will come soon. 
Ecuadorian police, prosecutors and judges have been trained 
in August by the American Bar Association to process these 
cases. 
 
¶4.  (U) Typical of many of the latest arrests includes an 
operation by DINAPEN on August 10th which busted two adjacent 
brothels in Quito: seven underage girls and eight 
undocumented Colombian women were found working in the 
brothels.  In Portoviejo, Manabi province, police arrested 
five men on September 2 who were alleged to have kidnapped 
two girls and forced them into prostitution in a hotel.  In 
Guayaquil, DINAPEN arrested a brothel owner on September 12 
who had forced an underage girl into prostitution and 
falsified her identification documents to show she was 18 
(note: "voluntary" prostitution by workers over age 18 is 
legal in Ecuador). 
 
GOE Commitment at Highest Levels 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶5.  (U) On August 30, President Palacio signed an Executive 
Decree codifying Ecuador's National Action Plan to Combat 
Trafficking in Persons.  The Plan provides funding and a 
strategy for an integrated GOE response to the TIP problem. 
The President ordered the Ministries of Government, Foreign 
Affairs, Social Welfare, Labor and the National Institute for 
Child and Family to work together implementing and monitoring 
the plan.  During the signing ceremony, the President 
publicly declared fighting TIP a GOE priority and policy. 
President Palacio mentioned combating TIP as a national 
political priority in his address to the UN General Assembly. 
 Ambassador Carlos Lopez Damm, Undersecretary for Migratory 
Issues, also highlighted TIP during his address to the UN 
High Level Dialogue on Migration in New York. 
Victim Assistance and Awareness a High Priority 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
¶6.  (U) Ecuador is steadily improving its victim assistance 
infrastructure.  In addition to creating the witness and 
victim protection police unit mentioned above, the Public 
Ministry signed a cooperative agreement with a Quito shelter 
dedicated exclusively to TIP victims.  The Public Ministry 
will provide per victim funding for lodging, meals and 
educational workshops.  The NGO "Our Youth Foundation" will 
run the shelter and provide professional services including 
social work, psychological counseling, and legal and medical 
assistance.  A pilot program funded by USAID, and provided 
for by the Trafficking Victims Protection and Reauthorization 
Act of 2005, will provide $250,000 to work with INNFA to 
identify, renovate and upgrade other shelters around the 
country dedicated to TIP victims. 
 
¶7.  (U) Anti-TIP awareness and prevention efforts recently 
expanded.  The GOE has established a three digit national 
"101" hotline to serve as a clearinghouse for tips on 
trafficking cases.  Call centers will also be able to provide 
limited victim assistance such as referrals to shelters and 
other information.  INNFA is spending over $1 million 
promoting the 101 number and in other anti-TIP awareness 
campaigns.  The Ministry of Tourism also announced a TV, 
radio and other media campaign against sexual tourism. 
Finally, the Ministry of Economy and Finance is providing 
$60,000 for a "Look into my Eyes" children's rights campaign 
that includes anti-trafficking themes. 
 
Trafficking Growing Across Colombia Border 
------------------------------------------ 
 
¶8.  (U) Recent press reports have identified a growing 
trafficking problem near the Colombian border in northern 
Carchi province.  Colombian sex workers reportedly cross the 
border into Ecuador, undocumented or with false documents, to 
earn more money for their services.  Twenty-three Colombian 
sex workers were reportedly recently deported from Carchi for 
being undocumented and working illegally in Ecuador. 
 
Action Request for G/TIP 
------------------------ 
 
¶9.  (SBU) The Embassy appreciates G/TIP approval of 
additional FY 2006 support to the GOE child welfare police 
(DINAPEN) and the Embassy-vetted alien smuggling unit (COAC). 
 Funds would support joint COAC-DINAPEN TIP investigations 
and law enforcement efforts (for additional detail, see 
RefTel).  COAC and DINAPEN have already moved ahead to 
cooperate on investigations and arrests, but hope to do more 
with additional funding.  Embassy requests speedy allocation 
of these funds to build on existing progress. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶10.  (SBU) TIP remains a key area of bilateral cooperation 
with the GOE, and this cooperation is bearing fruit.   The 
GOE is energized at all levels and continues to work hard to 
maintain momentum in the fight against TIP.  We believe the 
motivation to improve comes more from within than from 
Embassy prodding.  We are seeing evidence of this in law 
enforcement, where prosecutors with limited USG contact are 
building and pushing TIP cases.  The police chief of 
Portoviejo, in populous but impoverished Manabi province, 
recently declared a major local initiative to combat TIP. 
With national elections approaching, we are hopeful that 
enhanced public awareness and improved government efforts to 
address TIP will be preserved and sustained, despite the 
change of national government. 
JEWELL