VZCZCXRO1294
PP RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM
DE RUEHJA #1909/01 1940008
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 130008Z JUL 07
FM AMEMBASSY JAKARTA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 5409
INFO RUEHZS/ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS
RHHMUNA/HQ USPACOM HONOLULU HI
RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA 0893
RUEHWL/AMEMBASSY WELLINGTON 1579
RUEHC/DEPT OF LABOR WASHDC
RUEAWJB/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHDC
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
ZEN/AMCONSUL SURABAYA

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 JAKARTA 001909 
 
SIPDIS 
 
FROM AMCONSUL SURABAYA 0072 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EAP, EAP/IET, EAP/RSP, G/TIP, DS/IP/EAP, DS/CR/VF, 
DS/CR/PF, DS/ICI/CI, DS/ICI/CR 
ALSO FOR USAID ANE/SPOTS, ANE/SEA, IGAT/WID, DCHA/DG 
DEPT OF JUSTICE FOR ICITAP AND OPDAT 
DEPT PASS TO DEPT OF LABOR FOR ILAB 
 
E.O. 12958: NA 
TAGS: ASEC PGOV PHUM ELAB EAID KJUS KCRM KCOR ID
SUBJECT: East Java - Joint Police Anti-Human Trafficking Operations 
Commence 
 
Reftel: Jakarta 1130 
 
        Operation Triple X 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: ConGen Surabaya launched a joint operation with 
local police May 29 targeting East Java human trafficking (TIP) 
rings.  The primary goal is rescuing some of the thousands of child 
prostitutes in Surabaya and arresting traffickers, pimps and child 
sex tourists.  Operation XXX initiative is beginning to show results 
with four raids completed.  Police are also displaying greater 
awareness and enthusiasm for investigating and arresting 
traffickers.  Previously strained relations between our NGO contacts 
and police are improving with increased cooperation.  We see the 
success of the first joint operation as an excellent first step and 
are planning another in Surabaya's Kendungdoro prostitution district 
for September.  END SUMMARY 
 
ConGen Surabaya Supports Anti-TIP Operation 
------------------------------------------- 
 
¶2. (SBU) Local anti-human trafficking (TIP) NGOs and the East Java 
provincial government estimate there are thousands of child 
prostitutes in Surabaya and thousands more transiting through 
Surabaya to acquire false documents before shipment to Malaysia or 
the Middle East.  As a part of ConGen Surabaya's on-going Operation 
XXX, combating document fraud associated with visa fraud and 
trafficking in persons (TIP) in eastern Indonesia, RSO Kevin 
Whitson, Pol/Econoff Dave Williams and, DOJ ICITAP launched a May 29 
joint operation with 29 East Java provincial police detectives 
targeted at rescuing child prostitutes and arresting human 
traffickers and child sex tourists in Surabaya's Dolly/Jarak red 
light district. This ongoing joint undercover surveillance operation 
is designed to identify, target, apprehend and prosecute American 
citizens and Indonesian citizens who are actively involved in the 
child sex tourism child sex exploitation, trade and child 
pornography in the Dolly, Jarak and, Kedungdoro areas. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Prior to these child sex tourism raids and arrests, 
Operation XXX has led to police raiding 28 organized criminal groups 
involved in counterfeit documents, ID's, fraudulently obtained 
Indonesian Passports operations and the arrest of 107 suspects.  The 
continuation of Operation XXX is also intended to promote strong 
police action against human traffickers, child prostitution brothel 
owners and child sex tourists and to rescue child victims from the 
brothels and place them in TIP victim shelters.  Post is working 
closely with police to support aggressive use of Indonesia's new 
anti-TIP legislation, signed by President Yudhoyono in April 2007 
(Reftel).  Police had not felt able to aggressively pursue human 
traffickers prior to the new legislation. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Police, using intelligence provided by ConGen Surabaya 
anti-TIP NGO contacts and information gathered from interviewing 
document fraud suspects, and street contacts, began surveillance of 
the most notorious child prostitution brothels in Dolly/Jarak. 
ConGen Surabaya and DOJ ICITAP officers, posing as potential "sex 
tourist" clients, entered several brothels to gather information on 
the location and numbers of underage girls in each establishment. 
Officers also gathered information on the numbers and nationalities 
of sex tourist clients in the different brothels.  This information 
was relayed to police for further investigation and follow-up. 
Police decided to focus surveillance on several brothels catering to 
child sex tourism rather than make immediate raids and risk tipping 
off other brothel owners.  RSO maintains close contacts with 
provincial and local police working on the joint project. 
 
ConGen Intelligence Prompts TIP Raids 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) In June, police began raiding identified child prostitution 
brothels in Dolly/Jarak.  The first two raids produced arrests of 
four human traffickers, two pimps selling child prostitutes and the 
rescue of two child prostitutes.  Surabaya Metro Police raided a 
brothel named "Setia 22-an" in Jarak. The police arrested two 
traffickers named Erni Armindi and her husband Sobri. They were 
caught selling two girls to a brothel, 13 and 15 years old, 
receiving payment of $167 for the 13year-old and $83 for the 15 
 
JAKARTA 00001909  002 OF 003 
 
 
year-old. They also admitted selling 5 or 6 girls to the same 
brothel on prior occasions. Armindi told police she acquired false 
ID cards from a Surabaya document vendor, changing the girls' ages 
and their home addresses to the brothel's address.  The rescued 
child prostitutes were taken to a USAID-funded shelter for TIP 
victims run by Genta Foundation.  The shelter provides psychological 
counseling and reintegration assistance to successfully return the 
girls to their villages and prevent re-trafficking back to Surabaya. 
 
 
¶6. (SBU) East Java police leaders have come out publicly with strong 
directives to go after human traffickers in the province even prior 
to issuance of implementing regulations for the new anti-TIP law. 
East Java Police Chief Herman Sumawiredja told RSO in a recent 
meeting that one of his top priorities is to combat human 
trafficking and child sex tourism in the city of Surabaya.  Though 
prodded to start the operation, police have willingly participated 
and have begun providing leadership in the investigation.  Police 
are receiving positive local media feedback for their role in 
combating human trafficking. 
 
Building Trust Between NGO's and Police 
--------------------------------------- 
 
¶7. (SBU) An important aspect of Operation XXX is developing positive 
working relationships between anti-TIP NGOs working in Surabaya's 
red light districts and police.  Both civilian and military police 
have long histories of profiting from the Surabaya sex trade through 
providing protection to and actually partnering with brothel owners. 
 Police regularly harassed NGOs assisting sex workers and directly 
collected debt bonds on behalf of pimps from girls trying to escape. 
 Girls unable to pay their debt bond were returned to their 
brothel's owner by police.  Through Operation XXX, we have 
identified police precincts willing to take action against 
traffickers and their police colleagues.  It took our long-standing 
relationships with local anti-human trafficking NGOs and assurances 
that we had thoroughly vetted police before the NGOs agreed to 
participate in the operation.  As the operation delivers results and 
anti-TIP NGOs see police acting to free girls and bring them to 
shelters, we believe that ConGen Surabaya's role as a liaison 
between police and NGOs will diminish.  We have at least one report 
of an anti-TIP NGO directly offering police information on recent 
TIP victims arriving in Surabaya. 
 
ConGen Surabaya's Anti-TIP Plans 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶8. (SBU) Local police remain enthusiastic to expand the cooperation 
to other prostitution areas in Surabaya.  Police raids on 
Dolly/Jarak brothels and our NGO contacts have developed specific 
information on the Kedungdoro prostitution area of Surabaya, which 
caters specifically to child prostitution and sex tourism.  Police 
estimate 600-1,000 child prostitutes work in this three-block area 
of Kedungdoro.  NGO contacts have identified brothels specializing 
in child prostitution for ex-pat clients.   Our joint operation in 
Kedungdoro is scheduled for September.  Police hope to continue 
regular operations in the 5 or 6 largest prostitution areas in the 
city. 
 
A Good Start 
------------ 
 
¶9. (SBU) Operation XXX is successfully supporting police to more 
actively pursue human traffickers and establishing positive 
connections between NGOs and police.  Provincial police leadership 
directives are increasing local police awareness of human 
trafficking as a crime.  Police see high profile media attention 
from trafficking arrests as potentially career enhancing and seem 
motivated to use the new trafficking law.   While NGOs continue 
urging police to be more ambitious arresting traffickers, they have 
not reported any recriminations by police for participating in the 
joint operation.  We see this positive result from the joint 
operation as an important first step in Indonesia's fight against 
human trafficking. 
 
 
JAKARTA 00001909  003.2 OF 003 
 
 
¶10. (SBU) Comment:  To date, this brings a total of 30 police raids 
of Surabaya-area criminal groups done in cooperation with Surabaya 
city Police.  Indonesian police support to these anti-fraud/criminal 
operations continues to be outstanding.  These arrests bring to 113 
the total number of individuals arrested in connection with criminal 
activities. 
 
¶11. (SBU) Additional information will be reported SEPTEL.  THE POC 
for this cable is RSO Kevin Whitson; Pol/Econ TIP Officer David 
Williams and can be reached at 62-31-295-6400. 
 
WHITSON/HUME