VZCZCXYZ0032
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHMN #0092/01 0531451
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 221451Z FEB 08
FM AMEMBASSY MONTEVIDEO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 7973
INFO RUCNMER/MERCOSUR COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS MONTEVIDEO 000092 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR WHA/BSC AND G/TIP - KBRESNAHAN 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL ELAB KTIP EINV SOCI UY
SUBJECT: IOM PROPOSAL FOR G/TIP-FUNDED PROJECT 
 
REF: DOUTRICH-SIGMON/BRESNAHAN E-MAIL ON 02/07/08 
 
SUMMARY 
------- 
 
¶1.  (U) SUMMARY:  IOM proposed a third-phase of its 
successful previous G/TIP-funded projects.  The Embassy fully 
endorses the proposal, which is summarized in this cable. 
The GOU has also emphasized its support for continued 
cooperation in this vital area.  Post submitted the full 
proposal with required attachments and fully itemized budget 
in early February (ref).  Phase III is a two-year program 
designed to build on the increased awareness and willingness 
of national and local officials, civil society and the 
private sector to combat trafficking in persons (TIP) in 
Uruguay and regionally.  The project will include:  a) 
conduct research in high-risk areas for trafficking, at 
tourist and border localities; b) conduct training activities 
for decision-makers; c) provide technical assistance to the 
institutions in order to promote and support services of 
direct assistance and protection for victims and their 
families and strengthen skills among law enforcement 
officials, prosecutors and the judiciary; d) help 
prevent child pornography through the promotion of the 
responsible use of the Internet.  END SUMMARY. 
 
URUGUAY'S TIP LANDSCAPE 
----------------------- 
 
¶2. (U) Uruguay generates migration and has internal 
migration, both motivated by the search for better economic 
opportunities.  Uruguay's political, legal and regulatory 
environment is conducive to engagement on trafficking issues. 
 The challenge for the GOU is the lack of resources and a low 
awareness within the general population of the extent of the 
problem.  Uruguay's public institutions lack the economic 
means to combat exploitation (insufficient victim care 
centers, lack of police and judicial protocols to follow, 
lack of specific training and assistance to victims of sexual 
exploitation and of trafficking.) 
 
¶3.  (U) Uruguayan leaders from all sectors have told Post 
that they are interested in continuing/expanding the efforts 
and results of Phases I and II.  This positive response was a 
notable first since Embassy Montevideo began coordinating 
G/TIP-funded activities in Uruguay and came despite a change 
of government since the process began in 2003.  Among those 
who requested continued engagement were law enforcement 
officials at the Ministry of the Interior, the National 
Institute for Minors and Adolescents of the Ministry of 
Social Development, the Human Rights office within the Bureau 
of Political Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the 
Human Rights Bureau of the Ministry of Education and Culture, 
provincial Mayors (Intendentes), prominent members of the 
business community, Congressmen and NGOs.  Both earlier 
phases developed a network of local experts, engaged the 
private tourist sector to help fight trafficking within their 
domain, achieved government acceptance of the project input, 
and increased wil 
lingness and commitment to work further in drafting public 
policies. 
 
THE PROPOSAL "PHASE III" 
------------------------ 
 
¶4.  (U) The Embassy and IOM seek to build on the successes of 
Phase I and II to deepen awareness of trafficking, smuggling, 
and sexual and labor exploitation in Uruguay and border 
countries (Argentina and Brazil), and to build to the 
capacity of government institutions, NGOs and civil society, 
both at the regional and national levels, generating concrete 
tools for regional coordination in the prevention and the 
direct assistance to victims. 
 
In order to achieve this objective, the project will expand 
the achievements of Phases I and II along the following 
project objectives: 
 
A) To identify the risks associated with the social 
vulnerability that influence the potential victims of traffic 
in areas of migrant population, particularly border areas 
with Argentina and Brazil and areas where recent large 
investments have been concentrated - e.g. the provinces of 
Paysandu, Rio Negro and Colonia. 
 
B)  To enhance local capacities on counter trafficking 
through training key stake holders concerned with the issue. 
Offer protection and reintegration services for victims and 
their families. 
C)  To strengthen the judicial system and the ability of key 
stake-holders to prosecute offenders and direct assistance to 
victims of trafficking. 
 
D)  To prevent TIP by alerting within the educational field 
about the dangers faced by boys and girls and their 
households when navigating the Internet.  This is especially 
critical in light of the nation-wide rollout of "Plan 
Ceibal," a government initiative to provide a laptop with an 
Internet connection to each student in Uruguay. 
 
BACKGROUND ON PHASES I and II 
----------------------------- 
 
¶5.  (U) Phase I (October 2003-September 2004) was an 
anti-internet child pornography project with regional scope. 
The purpose was to inhibit internet child pornography in 
Uruguay and other OAS member states.  It was jointly 
sponsored by the Embassy, the OAS Inter-American Institute of 
the Child (headquartered in Montevideo), and ECPAT (an NGO) 
and was implemented within the framework of Mercosur.  The 
project coordinated research on the problem in a regional 
context and helped create/implement legislation and 
enforcement within Uruguay, Paraguay, Argentina, Brazil, 
Chile and Bolivia. 
 
¶6.  (U) Phase II (October 2006-November 2007) was coordinated 
and carried out by the Office of International Migration 
(OIM) and included a series of seminars to develop and 
educate a network of key policy makers throughout Uruguay on 
trafficking issues.  The geographical coverage included 
Mercosur countries (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, 
Bolivia and Chile). The network allows participants to share 
information and raise awareness of TIP issues when developing 
and/or implementing public policies.  Phase II also included 
the development of a special research component covering the 
tourist resort of Punta del Este, Uruguay. 
 
¶7.  (U) The one-year program of seminars on Phase II included 
a workshop to promote regional cooperation held April 23-25, 
2007, in Montevideo, with sixty-five representatives from 
Uruguay, Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Brazil, and Paraguay. 
During the workshop, IOM introduced a new web forum which 
offers participants the ability to exchange documents, follow 
up on specific cases, coordinate efforts and discuss best 
practices.  The web forum contains all workshop presentations 
and conclusions and can be accessed at www.puntosur.org.  The 
website is in Spanish.  A one day (September 28) TIP training 
workshop requested by the Uruguayan National Institute for 
Children and Adolescents (INAU) was held in the city of 
Rivera, directly across the border from the Brazilian city of 
Santana do Livramento.  Two workshops and a final seminar in 
November in the province of Maldonado where Uruguayan INAU 
and municipal authorities, as well as members of the public 
and private tourism sectors of Maldonado, pledged to devote 
gre 
ater resources to combating TIP throughout Uruguay. 
 
¶8.  (U) The team of experts in charge of these workshops was 
the same for both phases and is expected to join OIM if a 
Phase III is approved.  For working purposes, they used the 
concept of "social vulnerability" focused on trafficking. 
The work of law enforcement officials is now showing the 
results of Phase I since more and more individuals have been 
prosecuted for producing and selling child pornography on the 
Internet. 
 
COMMENT 
------- 
¶9.  (SBU) COMMENT: Post earnestly solicits G/TIP funding for 
IOM's proposal for a third phase of our efforts to combat TIP 
in Uruguay.  Thus far we have enjoyed measurable success in 
the main objectives as well as positive benefits to our 
bilateral relationship.  TIP has proven to be an excellent 
subject for bilateral cooperation with the left-leaning 
Frente Amplio government and promises to remain a subject 
they will engage on proactively, something we aim to cement 
through this proposal. 
 
Baxter