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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 12 KAMPALA 000163 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR G/TIP-RYOUSEY, G, INL, DRL, PRM, IWI, AF/RSA 
PASS TO USAID 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KTIP KCRM PHUM KWMN SMIG KFRD ASEC PREF ELAB PGOV
UG 
SUBJECT:  UGANDA: TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS REPORT 2009 
 
REF:  A. 07 STATE 132759 B. KAMPALA 27 
 
KAMPALA 00000163  001.2 OF 012 
 
 
¶1.  Embassy POC for Trafficking in Persons (TIP) issues is 
Political/Economic Chief Kathleen FitzGibbon, Tel: 256-41-306-214, 
Mobile: 256-772-220-030, Fax: 256-41-345-144.  To prepare this 
report, P/E Chief Kathleen FitzGibbon (FS-02), spent 30 hours, 
political assistant Gracie Jaasi spent 15 hours, and DOJ Police 
Advisor spent 10 hours. 
 
¶2.  Following responses are keyed to ref A paras 23-27. 
 
¶3.  Overview of Uganda's TIP Situation: 
 
23A:  There are sources available on trafficking in persons in 
Uganda.  A number of international organizations and local 
non-governmental organizations partner with the Government to do 
assessments on various aspects of trafficking.  We have found these 
sources to be reliable.  These studies make estimates of numbers of 
victims, but basically provide descriptions of trafficking trends, 
types of victims, how trafficking occurs, and profiles of 
traffickers.  The Government of Uganda (GOU) established its 
anti-trafficking unit in February 2008, which will be responsible 
for documenting trafficking cases. 
 
In 2008, the African Network for the Prevention and Protection 
Against Child Abuse and Neglect (ANPPCAN) published its "Report on 
Child Trafficking in Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda, and Tanzania."   The 
report's objective was to gain a thorough understanding of child 
trafficking in the four countries to guide the development of 
advocacy strategies and programs to respond to the problem.  The 
methodology consisted of 1,500 interviews at the household level and 
at border posts.  The key finding is the lack of awareness among 
adults on child trafficking (38%) compared to children (80%).  The 
report found that children learn about trafficking in their schools, 
from other children, or from public campaigns.  This finding is 
salient because in Uganda, parents unknowingly traffic their 
children to urban areas for work and education.  This movement of 
children for labor is considered "normal" practice and a means of 
family survival.  The report recommended community sensitization and 
addressing the "push" factors that lead to children being 
trafficked; training for government and local officials on 
trafficking, particularly in border areas; and development of strong 
networks of civil society organizations to raise awareness and 
provide victim protection. 
 
The Ugandan Government's Ministry of Gender, Labor, and Social 
Development (MGLSD) and the UN Fund for Population Activities 
(UNFPA) Gender Project published a study on "Gender Issues in 
Trafficking of Human Persons in Uganda."  Rogers Kasiyre, the 
Director of the Ugandan Youth Development Link (UYDEL) and a recent 
U.S. International Visitor Program participant, led the research 
team.  The research was conducted in October 2007.  The report was 
published in 2008.  The report methodology consisted of interviews 
with over 30 adult and child trafficking victims and eight focus 
group discussions in Kampala.  The report notes recent progress made 
in Uganda: the drafting and tabling of the Bill to Prohibit 
Trafficking in Persons, U.S. Government support to various 
stakeholders, UN Office of Drugs and Crime efforts to train various 
government officials and non-governmental actors on trafficking, and 
the inception of victim support programs through the International 
Organization for Migration (IOM) and local NGOs. 
 
The report showed that trafficking in Uganda is poverty-driven and 
that deep-seeded gender discrimination makes women and girls more 
vulnerable to trafficking than males.   It highlighted the need for 
victim-support networks, public awareness campaigns that utilize the 
experiences of former victims, and livelihood and vocational skills 
training for former victims and to prevent others from falling prey 
to traffickers. 
 
Prior to these two reports, the most comprehensive studies on 
trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation of children were 
conducted in 2004 and 2006 by the MGLSD and the International Labor 
Organization's International Programme on the Elimination of Child 
Labor (ILO-IPEC).  The 2004 report on Commercial Sexual Exploitation 
of Children (CSEC) estimated that 7,000-12,000 children in Uganda 
were sexually exploited for commercial purposes.  The study noted 
 
KAMPALA 00000163  002.2 OF 012 
 
 
that 28% of the trafficked children in the sample were assisted by a 
third party. 
 
The ILO-IPEC Rapid Assessment Report on child trafficking in 2006 
(released in 2007) noted an increase in cross-border trafficking. 
Save the Children Uganda reported on child trafficking from Karamoja 
in northeastern Uganda.  Another NGO, OASIS, also conducted research 
in Karamoja in 2006.  All of the studies on trafficking indicated 
that statistics that determine the scope and magnitude of the 
problem were difficult to obtain.  Instead, the reports focused on 
trends in trafficking and recommended actions for the GOU and 
non-governmental organizations.  These studies indicated that girls 
were at a higher risk of being trafficked than boys.  Trafficking in 
persons from Karamoja was tied to the distortion of seasonal 
migration patterns and is a coping mechanism in response to 
insecurity resulting from an ongoing disarmament program. 
 
23B:  Uganda is a country of origin, transit, and destination for 
trafficked children and adults.  The major types of trafficking were 
children exploited for commercial sex and forced labor and adults 
trafficked for labor.  CSEC occurs internally in Uganda and victims 
generally move from rural villages to border towns and urban 
centers, where they are exploited.  The GOU pushed the Lord's 
Resistance Army (LRA) out of northern Uganda in late 2005, though 
some abductions took place to August 2006.  There have been no LRA 
abductions in Uganda since then, but the LRA continued to abduct 
children and adults to serve as sex slaves, porters, and combatants 
in southern Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and 
Central African Republic.  The UN Office of the Coordinator for 
Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) reports that between December 2007 and 
January 2009, the LRA killed 900 people and abducted 711 women and 
children in the DRC, CAR, and southern Sudan.  Three LRA leaders 
were indicted in 2005 for crimes against humanity, including forced 
recruitment of children to serve as sex slaves and child soldiers. 
On December 14, 2008, after LRA leader Joseph Kony failed several 
times to sign a peace deal, the Governments of Uganda, DRC, and 
southern Sudan launched a joint military operation to capture or 
kill the LRA leadership.  The operation is ongoing.  The allied 
forces have rescued 280 abductees from the LRA to date. 
 
With the exception of these military operations, there have been no 
major changes in Uganda's trafficking situation.  The studies done 
on the trafficking problem do not give estimated numbers of each 
type of victim. 
 
23C-D-E:  Unwitting families send their children to urban centers, 
where they are exploited for sex or labor.  For children under 12 
years of age, the traffickers used the consent of the parents, sold 
on promises of a better life.  In most situations, the parents 
placed their children with an intermediary known to the community. 
The intermediaries were mostly relatives, peers or well-established 
individuals.  In addition to family members, the ILO, MSLSD, UYDEL, 
and the Ugandan Police Force (UPF) have identified traffickers as: 
pimps, bar and brothel owners; employment bureaus and recruitment 
agencies; formerly trafficked victims who recruit others; peers and 
friends; intermediaries in villages; farmers and fishermen at 
landing sites, churches and religious people, transporters, document 
forgers, and non-governmental organizations, such as orphanages. 
Many children are enticed into prostitution by their friends, who 
benefit financially from recruiting others. 
 
Girls and boys between the ages of 8 and 18 are the most vulnerable 
to trafficking. 
 
The head of Uganda's newly established anti-trafficking unit reports 
trafficking of Pakistani, Indian, and Chinese workers by importers 
and construction firms.  Police confirm the existence of trafficking 
rings in which Indian minors are forced into prostitution or 
pornography by Indian traffickers.  When discovered, the 
perpetrators of these rings are generally charged with obtaining 
money under false pretenses, defilement, and sex with a minor. 
 
Immigration and Police officials continue to follow trafficking in 
Uganda that involves the use of legal means to take children out of 
Uganda for illicit purposes.  A non-governmental organization 
reportedly locates children and gains the agreement of their 
families by telling them the children will get an education or a 
 
KAMPALA 00000163  003.2 OF 012 
 
 
better life.  An expatriate then comes into Uganda on a tourist visa 
for a few weeks and gets a guardianship order through the courts, 
usually with the permission of the family.  The magistrates, at the 
insistence of the "guardian," require the passport office to issue 
the child a passport.  The children may become victims of organ 
harvesting or other forms of exploitation.  Immigration officials 
have a taskforce to examine this trend and make recommendations to 
the Ministers of Internal Affairs and Justice on ways to stop the 
movement of children out of the country for illicit purposes through 
legal means.  The children may become victims of organ harvesting or 
other forms of exploitation. 
 
However, Ugandan justices use the same procedures to facilitate 
legitimate inter-country adoptions, granting legal guardianship to 
foreign citizens and permitting them to reside with the child abroad 
for full and final adoption abroad.  Some Ugandan Government 
officials opposed to inter-country adoption of Ugandan orphans for 
cultural and other reasons will sometimes mention these types of 
cases when discussing trafficking.  Regardless, the practice of 
granting legal guardianship to foreign residents has very little 
oversight and is problematic. 
 
Employment agencies are receiving extra government scrutiny through 
the External Labor Unit (ELU) at the MGLSD.  Emboffs have met with 
the ELU and a number of security companies in Uganda recruit 
Ugandans to serve as security guards for U.S. facilities in Iraq. 
Two of these companies are sub-contractors for U.S. companies.  The 
Commissioner for Labor and Parliament meet regularly with companies 
exporting labor to Iraq.  Over 1,500 Ugandans are serving as 
security guards, drivers, and medical personnel at U.S. facilities 
in Iraq.  The ELU follows up on and discusses complaints it receives 
from the Ugandan recruits about withholding travel documents and 
withholding or deducting pay against the terms of the contract.  The 
Government suspended the license of one company for dubious 
recruiting practices. 
 
¶4.  Setting the Scene for the Government's Anti-TIP Efforts: 
 
24A:  The GOU fully acknowledges the country's TIP problem.  There 
is political will at the highest levels of Government to stop 
trafficking in persons.  The Minister of Internal Affairs worked 
with Uganda's 102 female parliamentarians to advance the draft 
comprehensive anti-trafficking legislation in Parliament.  The bill 
has moved quickly through Parliament and was reviewed by the 
Committee on Defense and Internal Affairs from October to November 
¶2008.  On November 13, 2008, Committee Chairman Mathias Kasamba 
tabled a USG-funded documentary and U.S.-provided documents, 
including the annual Trafficking in Persons Report and the 
Department of Justice's annual report on U.S. anti-trafficking 
efforts, when presenting the bill to the entire house.  During the 
tabling, a procedural issue prevented Parliament from voting on the 
bill.  The issue was resolved and the legislation will be re-tabled 
for passage on February 24. 
 
President Museveni spoke out against child sacrifice and trafficking 
during several appearances over the holiday season.  On January 5, 
Minister of State for Internal Affairs Matia Kasaija and Kayihura 
held a press conference to publicize law enforcement's response. 
Kayihura announced the establishment of an anti-human trafficking 
police unit to be housed under the Child and Family Protection 
Department.  This move comes in advance of the passage of the 
anti-TIP law, which legally provides for its creation.  On February 
3, 2009 the 15-member inter-ministerial committee was formally 
established.  It is housed in the Criminal Investigation Division of 
the UPF, is headed by a detective assistant commissioner in 
conjunction with the head of the Child and Family Protection Unit of 
the UPF.  It is comprised of police, immigration, and MGLSD 
officials. 
 
The police have begun proactive law enforcement measures to counter 
trafficking, according to Kayihura.  This includes placing 
investigators with uniformed officers at checkpoints on roads 
leading into Kampala to identify potential victims and human 
traffickers beginning in January.  The IGP plans to train the 
Community Policing Unit to develop public awareness strategies and 
procedures for the gathering and sharing of information between the 
police and the public on trafficking issues. 
 
KAMPALA 00000163  004.2 OF 012 
 
 
 
The police established a hotline for tips from the public on 
trafficking and announced the hotline telephone numbers on February 
¶3.  In addition, Kayihura is in the process of establishing an 
"Amber Alert" system, which will allow the transmission of missing 
children alerts on cellular telephones.  He will be presenting a 
plan to make these alerts regional at the upcoming East African 
Police Chief's meeting.  (Note: The cellular phone companies cover 
all the East African countries.  End Note.)  Kayihura invited the 
head of Tanzania's anti-trafficking unit to conduct training in 
Uganda from February 15-20. 
 
The UPF developed a 25-page anti-trafficking first responder pocket 
manual which was distributed to each of the 2,010 law enforcement 
personnel during the training programs. The manual contains the 
United Nations Protocol and current Ugandan laws, the duties of a 
first responder, and victim/suspect interviewing questions. 
 
The media, including the Government newspaper, have conducted 
investigations and are reporting more on trafficking cases. 
 
24B: The Ministry of Internal Affairs, which oversees the Ugandan 
Police Force, Immigration, and the Criminal Investigation Division, 
has the lead on law enforcement efforts to combat trafficking.  The 
MGLSD has the lead on the development of policy. 
 
The Ministry of Justice and the Directorate for Public Prosecutions 
(DPP) prosecutes trafficking cases.  The Ministry of Gender, Labor, 
and Social Development takes the lead on labor and child trafficking 
cases.  In northern Uganda, the military, which still provides 
security in most of the region, is the lead agency on assisting 
victims of LRA abductions.  The military still processes returning 
victims of the LRA. 
 
24C:  Lack of resources continues to hamper the Government's 
protection efforts.  A G/TIP-funded police training program, 
however, has kick-started a significant push by Government to have 
all police, immigration officers, and labor inspectors trained to 
identify and investigate trafficking.  Trainers were trained and the 
GOU is now using them and trained officers of the UPF's Child and 
Family Protection Unit (CFPU) to conduct additional training.  The 
Government lacks resources to provide assistance to victims, but 
refers victims to non-governmental organizations.  The Minister of 
Internal Affairs has granted permission for victims of trafficking 
to remain in Uganda when needed for an investigation.  The UPF has a 
memorandum of understanding with a prominent non-governmental 
organization to place its social workers in Central Police Station 
and in stations in two other districts to assist children and other 
trafficking victims.  The NGO reports that the system is working 
well.  The UPF's CFPU continued training of police constables on 
child rights, protection issues, and trafficking during the 
reporting period.  Ugandan Government officials continued to assist 
returning abductees from the LRA.  The Government, in conjunction 
with non-governmental organizations, transferred Karamojong children 
from Kampala to shelters in Karamoja. 
 
Inadequate resources and significant court backlogs also constrain 
efforts of prosecutors and the judiciary to pursue convictions 
against internal traffickers involved in child prostitution. 
Corruption is a serious problem in government institutions in 
Uganda.  However, there is little indication that officials were 
bribed or otherwise improperly influenced by traffickers. 
 
24D: In January 2008, the Government launched a public campaign on 
child sacrifice and child trafficking and made public its statistics 
on the disappearance of children.  (See Section 24A).  The newly 
established anti-trafficking unit will be responsible for tracking 
and publicizing trafficking statistics and trends.  We expect the 
first report in January 2010.  Uganda immigration officials have a 
watch list and a computerized system, which allows border officials 
to stop individuals on the list.  Within Immigration, there is a 
task force that monitors the issuance of passports to children and 
has blacklisted several NGOs and orphanages for possible trafficking 
offenses. 
 
The Government more systematically monitors anti-trafficking efforts 
in the northern conflict as it processes former abductees among LRA 
 
KAMPALA 00000163  005.2 OF 012 
 
 
defectors.  The military's Child Protection Unit in Gulu is the 
first stop for rescued or escaped children.  In 2007, the military 
processed 546 victims before turning them over to NGO-run 
rehabilitation centers.  From 2008 to date, there were approximately 
60 former abductees and ex-combatants processed by the UPDF and 
international organizations.  The Government and donors also provide 
financial, medical, psychological, and rehabilitation services to 
ex-abductees, including child soldiers, for resettlement into 
Ugandan society.  The UPF's CFPU at the national police headquarters 
monitors sex crimes involving children and local police efforts to 
rescue children from exploitative forms of labor.  The DPP maintains 
statistics on the number of prosecutions and convictions on the 
crime of sex with a minor, which includes trafficking victims. 
Since comprehensive anti-trafficking legislation has not yet passed, 
trafficking cases are charged under other statutes, and specific 
trafficking statistics are not broken out.  Uganda cooperates with 
INTERPOL and with regional law enforcement initiatives.  Once the 
TIP law is passed, statistics on trafficking will be kept by the 
anti-TIP unit. 
 
¶5.  Investigation and prosecution of traffickers: 
 
25A.  Uganda does not have a comprehensive anti-trafficking law, but 
draft anti-trafficking legislation is expected to pass in March 
¶2009.  Parliamentary committee hearings on The Bill to Prohibit 
Trafficking were completed in November 2008.  The bill was tabled on 
the floor of Parliament for passage on November 13, but a procedural 
technicality meant it had to be sent back to committee just before 
Parliament adjourned for recess.  The bill has been re-tabled and 
must wait three weeks before passage. 
 
Uganda does have statutes under which trafficking can be prosecuted. 
 The Penal Code Act contains penalties for several 
trafficking-related offenses including procurement of a woman to 
become a prostitute, detention with sexual intent, sex with a minor 
girl (defilement), dealing in slaves, and compelling unlawful labor. 
 Taken together, these laws cover the full scope of trafficking in 
persons.  However, lack of investigative resources and technical 
capacity in the criminal justice system limit effective enforcement 
of the different laws. 
 
25B-C:  Trafficking cases are usually prosecuted under the following 
statutes; Section 131 of the Penal Code Act, which prohibits the 
procurement of any woman or girl to become a common prostitute or to 
work in a brothel, either in Uganda or elsewhere.  The penalty for 
this offense is up to seven years imprisonment.  Section 134 
prohibits the unlawful detention of another person for the purpose 
of sexual intercourse, including in a brothel.  The penalty for this 
offense is up to seven years imprisonment. 
 
Section 249 prohibits the import, export, purchase, sale, receipt, 
or detention of persons as slaves.  The penalty for such activities 
is imprisonment for up to 10 years.  Section 250 prohibits the 
compulsion of any person to labor against his or her will; however, 
this is a misdemeanor offense.  Acting Commissioner for Labor 
Harriet Luyima said that there have not been any convictions for 
labor violations because the labor inspectors are being used to 
raise awareness of labor regulations and are not yet in a position 
to conduct full-scale enforcement without training. 
 
25D:  Rape carries a maximum penalty of death.  This sentence is 
sometimes imposed but has not been carried out in many years. 
Defilement (sex with a minor girl even if consensual) likewise 
carries a maximum penalty of death.  These penalties are more severe 
than those for procuring a woman to be a prostitute (up to seven 
years imprisonment) or for dealing in slaves (up to 10 year's 
imprisonment). 
 
25E:  The following TIP cases occurred during the reporting period. 
In October 2008, the Joint Anti-Terrorism Squad (JAT) and Rapid 
Response Unit of the police arrested Ibrahim Ali Adan, a Swede of 
Somali origin, on suspicion of trafficking and obtaining money by 
false pretense.  Fifteen Somalis file complaints against Adan, 
saying he had fleeced them of over $100,000.  Adan reportedly 
promised his victims new permanent resident visas to Italy, Germany, 
France, the United Kingdom, and The Netherlands.  He charged between 
$5,000 and $12,000 for the false documents.  The Criminal 
 
KAMPALA 00000163  006.2 OF 012 
 
 
Investigation Division continues to investigate to see if there were 
others involved in the operation.  He is being charged with 
obtaining money by false pretenses. 
 
On November 24, 2008, police in Rakai District arrested Scovia 
Mbabazi, a Rwandan national when she attempted to sell Frank 
Hagirimaana, also a Rwandan national.  Mbabazi was on remand at 
Luzira Prison in Kampala while the case was pending before the 
court. In February 2009, Ugandan authorities extradited Hagirimaana 
to Rwanda. 
 
In 2008, there were 18 suspected ritual murder cases.  These 
primarily involved children, believed to be trafficked or kidnapped. 
 Fifteen of these cases were investigated and the cases are now in 
the High Court.  During the same period, the police investigated 256 
cases of child disappearance.  There were two convictions. 
 
On January 4, police in Gulu District arrested Pastor Florence 
Gerinya on charges of related to trafficking.  A parent, who was 
enticed by Gerinya to give her two children to the pastor, 
complained to police that she had not seen her two children since 
April 2007.  Pastor Gerinya allegedly promised to educate the 
children in Kampala.  On January 5, police in Gulu arrested Pastor 
Experito Bulaamu on charges of trafficking 25 children from Gulu 
under the pretext of providing them with education.  On January 14, 
Gerinya and Bulaamu were charged with abduction and granted bail. 
The case was pending before court.  On January 10, the police traced 
the families of the 25 children in this case and returned 16 other 
children found with the pastors to their homes. 
 
On January 7, 2009, police in Kayunga District arrested Sylivia 
Kampiire, a Rwandan national on allegations of stealing a 
three-month old baby Diana Nyokiti.  Nyokiti was handed over to the 
Rwandan authorities in February. 
 
On January 27, 2009, police in Mubende District arrested Florence 
Nyamwize for attempting to sell a six month-old child.  The police 
also arrested Edison Kanoweri who was allegedly assisting Nyamwize 
to find a buyer.  The case is pending in court. 
 
The Immigration's Legal and Inspection Services Department was 
investigating several cases of illegal trafficking in persons during 
the reporting period, but could not give the details of an ongoing 
investigation.  Another case involved the recovery of 12 Tanzanian 
children, who had been brought to Uganda by an individual who 
promised to pay their school fees.  The suspect and children were 
handed over to Tanzanian authorities. 
 
25F: The GOU provided specialized training for government and law 
enforcement officials on who to recognize, investigate, and 
prosecute trafficking case.  U.S. Department of Justice ICITAP 
trainers provided the initial training for 27 Ugandan instructors 
from the UPF, Immigration Department, and MGLSD, who then trained 
over 2,000 of the colleagues in November and December 2008 (ref B). 
The IGP has mandates that all Ugandan police officers receive 
specialized TIP training and it is being incorporated into the 
curriculum at the Masindi Police Training Academy.  The CFPU 
completed training for 50 police officers on human trafficking, 
domestic violence, and child abuse in January. 
 
25G: The GOU has cooperated with the governments of Rwanda, Burundi, 
DRC, Kenya, Tanzania, Yemen, Botswana, and Poland on trafficking 
cases.  The GOU, DRC, and southern Sudanese governments are working 
together in a joint military operation to capture or kill LRA 
leaders and rescue abductees.  The national police also participate 
in the East African Police Chiefs Organization (EAPCO), which 
includes nine countries in the region.  The organization provides 
mutual legal assistance, training, and a forum to discuss 
trans-national crime.  The INTERPOL unit of the national police also 
participates in multilateral investigations of cross-border crimes 
including drug and firearms trafficking, although none have so far 
included human trafficking crimes.  Through the U.S.-facilitated 
Tripartite Plus process, the governments of Uganda, Democratic 
Republic of Congo, Burundi, and Rwanda have drafted a common 
extradition treaty.  The head of Tanzania's anti-trafficking unit 
will be in Kampala from February 15-20 assisting the UPF in setting 
up its anti-TIP unit and providing guidance and training. 
 
KAMPALA 00000163  007.2 OF 012 
 
 
 
25H: The GOU extradited two traffickers to Rwanda in 2008.  The GOU 
belongs to INTERPOL and has in the past, in other crime cases, 
honored extradition warrants.   The EAPCO is currently developing an 
extradition treaty for the nine member countries that should 
facilitate the extradition of criminals.  Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, 
and DRC have developed a draft common extradition treaty. 
 
25I:  Post continues to investigate allegations that a prominent 
Indian businessman has bribed a government official to allow him to 
bring Indian workers into Uganda.  We have no evidence to 
substantiate the claims, but are following up with law enforcement 
authorities to get more information.  We have no indications of 
government collusion with traffickers at an institutional level. 
 
25J:  Once the pending legislation is passed, if a police officer or 
other government official is involved in trafficking in persons, 
they may receive a sentence of life imprisonment. 
 
25K:  Section 139 of the Penal Code Act prohibits any person from 
practicing or engaging in prostitution.  The penalty for 
prostitution is up to seven years imprisonment.  Similarly, Section 
137 prohibits any person from operating a brothel with a penalty of 
up to seven years imprisonment.  Section 136 prohibits any person 
from living on the earnings of a prostitute, which includes aiding, 
abetting, or compelling prostitution.  The penalty for this offense 
is also up to seven years imprisonment.  On occasion, the police 
will conduct "sweeps" in urban centers where prostitutes commonly 
work and arrest as many prostitutes as they encounter. 
 
25L: Uganda has 1,700 peacekeepers in Somalia.  The Ugandan Peoples 
Defense Forces (UPDF) reports no cases of trafficking involving 
peacekeepers in Somalia.  Human rights groups in Uganda collaborate 
the UPDF's assertion.  The UPDF investigated a case in which a 
Somali woman and child came to Uganda after the re-deployment of a 
Ugandan soldier back home.  The investigation determined that she 
was not trafficked.  She had traveled voluntarily on her own to 
Uganda. 
 
In August 2008, Radhika Coomaraswamy, Special Representative of the 
UNSG for Children in Armed Conflict, issued a press statement 
regarding child soldiers in Uganda during her visit to Kampala. 
Coomaraswamy condemned the LRA's recruitment and use of children. 
She stated that she found that the Ugandan Government had no 
conscious policy, program, or project to specifically to recruit 
children.  She claimed that children were being absorbed into the 
UPDF and local defense units.  In her meeting with President 
Museveni, it was agreed that the GOU and UNICEF would work out an 
Action Plan for the prevention, removal and reintegration of any 
child soldier found in the UPDF or local defense units.  The plan 
includes disciplinary action against any soldier that knowingly 
recruits children, access for UNICEF, the UN Office for the High 
Commissioner on Human Rights, and the Uganda Human Rights Commission 
to UPDF facilities. 
 
On January 16, 2009, the GOU finalized the Action Plan for the 
Uganda Country Task Force on Monitoring and Reporting Regarding 
Children Associated with Armed Forces in Uganda.  The Action Plan 
sets the stage for Uganda to be removed from the UN list of 
countries with child soldiers.  The UNICEF-led verification teams 
are currently visiting UPDF facilities and monitoring recruitment 
exercises.  UNICEF provides reports every four months to 
Coomaraswamy and stated that there have been no reports of child 
soldiers in its quarterly reports.  There was only one case reported 
in 2007 of a 17-year old who falsified documents to get into the 
army.  He was identified and removed.  UNICEF is confident that the 
current verification mission will not find any children in the UPDF 
and that Uganda will be "de-listed" from UNSC 1612 when the 
committee meets on February 16. 
 
25M: Uganda does not have an identified problem of sex tourism.  The 
anti-TIP law draft has an extraterritorial provision to allow 
prosecution of Ugandans for trafficking-related offenses in another 
country. 
 
¶6.  Protection and Assistance to Victims: 
 
 
KAMPALA 00000163  008.2 OF 012 
 
 
26A:  Uganda does not currently have a formalized witness protection 
program; however, in some cases they are able to relocate a victim 
within the country.  Currently, the UPF is providing protection to a 
victim of an attempted child sacrifice as the child received death 
threats from the suspects.  Additionally, the IGP has advised that 
he plans to develop a witness protection program in anticipation of 
the passage of the anti-TIP law. 
 
During the reporting period, the UYDEL, a local NGO, received 60 
victims of trafficking in persons for protection.  The UPF referred 
six of the victims. 
 
The Government assisted the International Organization of Migration 
(IOM) in repatriating two female trafficking victims, one from Yemen 
and the other from Botswana.  Both victims and their children needed 
government travel documents to return to Uganda.  Staff members of 
the President's Office and Immigration were instrumental in ensuring 
that the travel documents were received.  In 2008, IOM repatriated 
88 Congolese women together with 124 dependents to DRC.  These women 
were brought to Ugandan by soldiers returning from the war in Congo 
(1998-2003). 
 
26B: The GOU provides assistance to former LRA abductees, including 
children.  The Ugandan military has a Child Protection Unit, which 
facilitates the reception and debriefing of former child soldiers, 
as well as their subsequent transfer to NGO-run reintegration 
centers.  Child soldiers who surrender or are captured are provided 
with shelter and food during the short period (one or two days) 
before they are transferred to NGO custody.  NGOs are notified by 
the military as soon as the military has a child under its care. 
The amnesty program has been an important method to encourage the 
surrender of LRA rebels and has led to a significant reduction in 
LRA strength. 
 
Under the MGLSD, two transit shelters for internally displaced 
Karamojong, including those children who were used for begging or 
trafficked to Kampala, were established in Karamoja.  In February 
2009, there were 50 Karamojong at the Mpigi facility near Kampala 
awaiting transfer to one of the two facilities in Karamoja.  They 
were transferred as part of a group of two thousand others to two 
transit centers in Karamoja. These transit centers are predominantly 
for children and adults who migrated out of the region for better 
economic opportunities.  Many of the children were sent by their 
families to beg in the major urban areas. 
 
26C:  The CFPU provides limited counseling services once a victim 
has been identified.  They then refer the victim to available NGO's 
for additional services. 
 
The Government does not have the resources to fund foreign or 
domestic NGOs for services to trafficking victims.  However, the 
Government works closely with NGOs that assist former LRA abductees 
at reception centers and Karamojong children removed from the 
streets. 
 
26D: Currently, Ugandan law does not protect foreign trafficking 
victims.  The Minister of Internal Affairs can allow a foreign 
victim to remain in Uganda to assist an investigation.  However, in 
most cases, victims are returned to their home of origin. The new 
legislation will remedy the current limitations on handling foreign 
victims.  The government does not have the resources or services to 
provide a livelihood or other assistance to foreign victims. 
 
26E: The GOU lacks the resources to provide longer-term shelter or 
housing benefits to trafficking victims.  The Government, in 
conjunction with NGOs, provides vocational training and other 
services to victims of the LRA in the north. 
 
26F:  The Ugandan military's Child Protection Unit screens children 
who were trafficked by the LRA and refers them to NGO-run assistance 
programs.  National and local level officials, especially district 
child labor committees, support the efforts of ILO/IPEC by 
identifying children for withdrawal from the worst forms of child 
labor.  Local governments also have child labor committees to 
monitor the working conditions of children and to identify at risk 
children.  As previously stated, the police conduct public awareness 
campaigns and remain in touch with schools, which assist in 
 
KAMPALA 00000163  009.2 OF 012 
 
 
identifying victims.  A U.S. non-governmental organization placed 
5,000 children at risk for trafficking or other worst forms of child 
labor into schools.  District labor committees assisted in 
identifying vulnerable children and following up with parents if the 
children did not go to school. Another program targeting 11,000 
children is set to begin in northern Uganda.  NGOs and the local 
district officials are currently identifying at risk children. 
 
The Ugandan Police Force refers trafficking victims to NGOs.  The 
UPF's CFPU works closely with UYDEL, which has placed social workers 
in the Central Police Station in Kampala and in two other locations 
to provide legal, medical, and psychological assistance to victims. 
The UPF has referred six victims to UYDEL's shelter in Kampala. 
 
26G: The number cannot be identified at the present time as the bill 
has not been passed.  Once passed, the UPF has committed to 
documenting these offenses in their statistics.  The UPF 
investigated 103 cases of child disappearances and ritual murders in 
2007, recovered 7 children, and secured no convictions.  In 2008, 
321 cases were investigated, 146 children recovered, and two 
convictions secured.  Over the next year, the statistics will be 
disaggregated further pursuant to the new TIP law. 
 
26H:  The GOU does not have formal system of identifying victims 
from high risk groups.  Hwever, it is proactively trying to 
identify victims at entry/exit points into Uganda and Kampala. 
 
26I:  The rights of victims are generally respected in Uganda. 
Child victims of criminal activity are referred to the CFPU and 
social workers within police stations.  Sometimes victims are 
detained, particularly when police conduct sweeps to remove street 
children or prostitutes from bars.  Potential victims are sometimes 
prosecuted for immigration or prostitution violations.  The GOU can 
detain individuals for 48 hours.  Prostitutes are sometimes fined. 
 
The majority of children over the age of 12, and others abducted by 
the LRA are granted amnesty through a government-supported program. 
After a period of residence at NGO reception centers, generally 
about six weeks, they are released so that they can be reunited with 
their families and reintegrated into society.  NGOs and others 
provide limited additional assistance, including psychosocial 
counseling.  Child sex workers rounded up with adult prostitutes 
during police sweeps are generally released without charge.  Under 
current law, immigration officials are required to deport 
individuals in violation of the immigration code.  The Legal Affairs 
Department at Immigration recognizes the problem, which will be 
rectified with the new anti-trafficking legislation. 
 
As part of the ongoing reform program, IGP Kayihura has initiated 
changes that will improve respect for the rights of victims and 
at-risk individuals.  He has decided that the UPF hold regular 
meetings on gender-based violence for its personnel to sensitize 
police officers on a range of issues, including gender-based 
violence, domestic violence and child abuse.  These in-house 
meetings aim to reinforce the UPF's commitment to protecting the 
rights of women and children. 
 
26J:  The GOU encourages victims to assist in the investigation and 
prosecution of trafficking through referrals to NGOs, which can 
provide shelter and counseling while investigations proceed. 
Victims can get restitution through the Ugandan Human Rights 
Commission.  Under the new law, a victim's fund will be established. 
 
 
In northern Uganda, the government has offered amnesty to LRA rebels 
who renounce rebellion.  The amnesty program is strongly supported 
by the civilian communities subject to LRA abductions and attacks. 
Returnees receive non-food items and a small some of money for 
resettlement ($50). 
 
The government encourages victims in sexually related trafficking 
cases to testify.  A medical exam, which can be conducted by a 
police physician, is necessary to provide evidence of the crime. 
However, the police employ few physicians due to resource 
constraints.  As a result, victims of defilement and rape often have 
to pay for their own medical exams.  The cost deters many from 
following through with legal action.  There is also social stigma 
 
KAMPALA 00000163  010.2 OF 012 
 
 
against victims of sexual crimes in some communities.  Other factors 
believed to inhibit reporting and prosecution of sexual crimes 
include fear of retribution, lack of support services, and use of 
alternative restitution procedures. 
 
Rescued victims of LRA trafficking are provided with initial care 
and support to assist in their rehabilitation and reintegration. 
After victims are reintegrated into communities, they are not 
provided any special protection beyond the general Ugandan military 
action to prevent overall LRA activity.  The government can provide 
safehouses and other forms of witness protection when it is 
determined that there is a threat. 
 
26K:  In November 2008, an ICITAP trainer and the G/TIP-funded 
resident Police Advisor provided a two week train-the-trainer course 
with participants from the UPF, Immigration, Directorate of Public 
Prosecutions (DPP), and the MGLSD.  The course emphasized the 
process of human trafficking, current and pending Ugandan 
legislation, victims' rights, and duties of a first responder.  The 
27 participants were tasked with preparing a portion of the training 
materials to customize it for the Uganda environment.  Thirteen of 
the newly trained instructors hit the road to provide a series of 
one-day sessions on "Combating Human Trafficking: First Responder 
Courses" in four locations throughout Uganda.  The new trainees from 
the four core law enforcement agencies, with strong support from the 
Minister of Internal Affairs, Inspector General of Police, 
Immigration Director, DPP, and MGLSD enthusiastically worked 
together to teach the course to 2,010 trainees in Kampala, Masindi, 
Mbarara, and Mbale, which had been identified as top priority areas 
for training.  One of the Ugandan trainers was so committed, he 
participated despite being hit by a car and seriously injured days 
before training others. 
 
The UPF has begun to institutionalize the training within its 
in-service training bureau.  Between January and February 2009, CFPU 
trainers trained an additional 50 officers on being a first 
responder in human trafficking cases.  The CFPU conducted the class 
in Kampala, but it contained participants from various districts 
within Uganda.  The second course iteration was conducted in Mbale, 
and included officers from Karamoja.  Godfrey Sasagah, Director, 
Citizenship and Immigration Control, informed post in writing that 
he has noticed significant progress "in the enhancement of skills 
and creating awareness about aspects of human trafficking."  He 
noted that his newly trained officers are helping their colleagues 
identify trafficking cases. 
 
Upcoming USG training includes a two week criminal investigation 
course beginning in February 2009.  The goal of this training is to 
enhance the skills of law enforcement in investigating and 
prosecuting human trafficking related offenses.  Furthermore, 
beginning in March 2009 for five consecutive months, ICITAP will 
provide training to 150 trainers at the Masindi police academy in 
combating Human Trafficking Instructor Development. 
 
The Government provides training to its military troops through its 
Child Protection Units, which are included in every unit.  Ugandan 
troops deploying outside Uganda receive additional training, 
including on trafficking in persons (see 27G).  On a regular basis, 
Ugandan soldiers are given specific training on the rights of 
children and carry a code of conduct.  The code states: soldiers 
must apply and reinforce all practical and legal measures to protect 
children and their mother's lives and property before, during, and 
after conflict; soldiers should inspire confidence and let children 
know they are protected; soldiers should never neglect child 
protection issues and know children's rights; soldiers should stop 
the use of child soldiers and never give children ammunition to 
carry; soldiers should not rape children; soldiers should not 
maltreat, massacre, or mutilate children or separate them from their 
families; and soldiers should give children good advice.  Police 
officers are actively participating in a specialized training 
program on the worst forms of child labor. 
 
The Ugandan Embassy in Cairo assisted the three victims with travel 
documents in 2007.  The GOU assisted victims found in Yemen, 
Botswana, and Poland in 2008-2009.  The GOU does not offer training 
in trafficking of persons for its foreign service officers, but 
there immigration officers posted in Ugandan embassies are being 
 
KAMPALA 00000163  011.2 OF 012 
 
 
trained as part of current training programs.  Ugandan embassies are 
called upon to assist in the tracking of cases when needed and 
provide necessary travel documents to repatriate victims. 
 
26L:  The GOU provides assistance, including medical aid, to former 
abductees returning from LRA captivity. 
 
26M:  UNICEF, Save the Children, World Vision, International 
Organization for Migration, International Labor Organization, 
Kitgum, Gulu, and Kira's Concerned Women's Associations, Gulu 
Support the Children Organization, Give Me a Chance, the 
International Rescue Committee, Uganda Youth Development Link, Busia 
Compassionate Friends, Kids in Need, Restore International, 
International Justice Mission, and a number of other NGOs work with 
formerly abducted children in northern Uganda, children in 
situations of commercial sex exploitation, and other at risk 
individuals.  These organizations provide food, shelter, 
psychosocial counseling, and vocational training.  The Government 
support fully with these activities. 
 
¶7.  Prevention. 
 
27A:  The Parliamentary Committee on Defense and Internal Affairs 
conducted extensive and well-publicized hearings on the Bill for the 
Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons in October and November 2008. 
 
The joint Government-Population Services International's (PSI) 
campaign against "sugar daddies" and cross-generational sex appears 
to be having an impact.  The campaign is focusing on decreasing both 
supply and demand.  At Makerere University, intermediaries locate 
young students for older men for sexual relationships.  The 
intermediaries are paid between $100 and $200 to recruit students. 
The campaign has several objectives, which include embarrassing men 
from recruiting younger sexual partners with promises of a better 
standard of living, including education, money, mobile phones, and 
clothes.  It is educating students about the health and emotional 
risks to cross-generational sex.   PSI reported that incidences of 
cross-generational sex had been reduced from 7.6% in March 2007 to 
5.3% in July 2008. 
 
In northern Uganda, government uses local-language radio programs to 
attempt to reach abducted children and their captors to persuade 
them to return from the bush.  The GOU dropped flyers to LRA 
abductees in eastern DRC directing them to report to the nearest 
churches, military, or police units for rescue.  To date, public 
awareness campaigns focused on addressing the supply side of 
trafficking because the GOU identified "ignorance" of the issue as 
the primary driver. 
 
27B:  Immigration officials discovered trafficking cases through 
monitoring of passport issuance.  In 2000, Uganda required that all 
children have their own passports as a means to prevent child 
smuggling and trafficking.  This has helped identify potential 
external trafficking victims. The Government monitors its borders 
and has cooperated in a US-financed program to increase border 
security.  Traffickers have been apprehended at Uganda's border with 
Kenya and Rwanda.  Uganda's INTERPOL unit disseminates international 
alerts on suspects to Uganda's border officials for screening 
immigrants.  Immigration officials are monitoring flights to Dubai, 
which have been used to traffic children.  The Uganda police also 
cooperate closely with their counterparts in the region to 
investigate and arrest suspects involved in cross-border crime. 
 
27C: Coordination mechanism in government.  The Minister of Internal 
Affairs through the anti-trafficking department will be tasked with 
coordinating TIP efforts.  Currently, the Ministry of Gender, Labor, 
and Social Development oversees national policy efforts. 
 
27D:  Government officials have participated in a national 
anti-trafficking working group formed in 2005.  In 2006, the working 
group participated in the drafting of the anti-trafficking law.  The 
Government has a Minister of State for Ethics and Integrity and an 
Inspectorate General of Government that are tasked with 
investigating corruption. 
 
The Ministry of Labor is working with police, local governments, the 
Ministries of Justice and Immigration, and non-governmental and 
 
KAMPALA 00000163  012.2 OF 012 
 
 
international organizations to develop a draft National Plan of 
Action aimed specifically at disseminating anti-TIP resources 
throughout the country.  Different ministries have national action 
plans that address trafficking problems in Uganda.  The Ministries 
of Defense and Internal Affairs implement plans to end the LRA 
insurgency.  The MGLSD also has a five-year plan that includes 
assisting children so that they do not become vulnerable to 
traffickers.  NGOs have been consulted in these discussions. 
 
27E: In October 2007 the GOU started to draft a law to address 
sexual exploitation.  The Ugandan Penal Code prohibits procuring of 
a female and causing her to become a prostitute, to leave the 
country to frequent a brothel elsewhere, or become an inmate of a 
brothel.  Punishment for those offenses is imprisonment for up to 7 
years.  The same punishment applies in cases in which a female below 
age 21 is procured for the purpose of unlawful carnal connection 
with any other person in Uganda or elsewhere.  The code also 
prohibits procuring any person by using threats, intimidation, false 
pretense or false representation or by administering drugs.  Owning 
or occupying premises where a girl younger than 18 years is induced 
to have unlawful sex with any man is punishable by imprisonment for 
5 years.  Under the code, no person can be convicted of procurement 
based on evidence provided by only one collaborating witness. 
Ministry of Gender, Labor and Social Affairs officials said the law 
is difficult to implement.  Most people who were previously arrested 
in the act of prostitution were charged with being idle and 
disorderly.  The government continues community awareness-raising 
efforts to target poor rural areas where girls and women are most 
likely to be recruited. 
 
27F:  On February 29, 2009, the Minister of Ethics and Integrity 
announced that the Government will soon table the Anti-Pornography 
Bill 2009 in Parliament.  According to the Bill, individuals found 
guilty of the act risk being sentenced to prison for 10 years or to 
pay a fine of $5,000. 
 
27G:  The Ugandan Peoples Defense Forces (UPDF) provides 
anti-trafficking instruction as part of its human rights and child 
protection training for Ugandan troops deploying overseas.  From 
2007 to 2008, two Ugandan battalions (2,400 troops) serving in the 
African Union Mission in Somalia received human rights training and 
instruction on trafficking in persons from the UPDF's Human Rights 
Desk and Child Protection Unit personnel prior to deployment.  In 
addition, the State-Department's ACOTA training package, which 
trained the second Ugandan battalion and subsequent battalions, 
provided Command and Staff Operations Skills training to prepare the 
battalion commander and thirty members of his staff for the Somalia 
mission.  The senior leadership of the Ugandan battalions was taught 
the specific duties and principle responsibilities of senior 
officers to protect human rights, understand gender-based violence, 
eliminate of sexual exploitation, provide protection for children, 
and prevent of trafficking in persons.  This training was mandated 
by the U.S. Congress for all USG-funded peace support operations. 
 
Ugandan forces deployed to the DRC in December 2008 for "Operation 
Lightening Thunder" received refresher briefings on the treatment of 
children and others abducted by the LRA.  Each Ugandan unit that 
deployed contained two to five Child Protection Unit officers.  The 
UPDF, UNICEF, Save the Children, and IOM developed a protocol to 
protect victims that it has rescued from the LRA.  The UPDF and 
Congolese military rescued over 280 former abductees between 
December 14, 2008-February 13, 2009 and turned them over to UNICEF, 
COOPI (an Italian NGO), and IOM. 
BROWNING