VZCZCXRO4249
PP RUEHTRO
DE RUEHTRO #0154/01 0481344
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P R 171344Z FEB 09
FM AMEMBASSY TRIPOLI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 4502
INFO RUEHEG/AMEMBASSY CAIRO 1405
RUEHTU/AMEMBASSY TUNIS 0763
RUEHAS/AMEMBASSY ALGIERS 0898
RUEHRB/AMEMBASSY RABAT 0836
RUEHRO/AMEMBASSY ROME 0492
RUEHVT/AMEMBASSY VALLETTA 0384
RUEHAR/AMEMBASSY ACCRA 0015
RUEHBP/AMEMBASSY BAMAKO 0023
RUEHUJA/AMEMBASSY ABUJA 0060
RUEHC/USAID WASHDC
RHMFIUU/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHINGTON DC
RUEFHLC/DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY WASHINGTON DC
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC
RUEHC/DEPT OF LABOR WASHINGTON DC
RUEHTRO/AMEMBASSY TRIPOLI 5027

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 05 TRIPOLI 000154 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR NEA/MAG, G/TIP, G (ACBLANK), INL, DRL, PRM, INR, AND NEA/RA (CHATTERJI) 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KTIP KCRM KWMN KFRD ASEC PREF PHUM PGOV SMIG
ELAB, LY 
SUBJECT: LIBYA 2009 TIP REPORT SUBMISSION 
 
REF: 08 STATE 132759 
 
¶1. (SBU) Below is Embassy Tripoli's submission for the 2009 
Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report.  Responses are keyed to 
reftel questions: 
 
LIBYA'S TIP SITUATION 
 
--23A.  International Organizations, such as the International 
Organization for Migration (IOM) and the UN High Commission for 
Refugees (UNHCR) are the most reliable sources for information 
on trafficking in persons.  During the year, IOM commissioned a 
study on migration written by a Libyan scholar in collaboration 
with a high-ranking military official.  The study included 
previously unpublished statistics and legislation on migration 
in general, providing a useful baseline for understanding 
trafficking as a phenomenon in Libya.  Libya's large irregular 
migration problem dwarfs its trafficking issues.  As such, 
several authorities within the government deal with 
trafficking-related issues and legislation ancillary to 
counter-smuggling work.  The authorities include the General 
People's Committee (GPC; Ministry-equivalent) for Foreign 
Liaison and International Cooperation, the GPC for Justice, the 
GPC for Public Security and the GPC for Manpower and Labor. 
Both migrants and trafficking victims are routinely smuggled to 
Europe, especially Italy and Malta, en route to varied locations 
on the continent. 
 
-- 23B.  Libya is both a transit and destination country for men 
and women from sub-Saharan Africa and Asia.  While most 
foreigners in Libya are economic migrants, in some cases large 
smuggling debts and illegal status leave them vulnerable to 
various forms of coercion, resulting in cases of forced 
prostitution and forced labor.  As in previous years, there were 
isolated reports that women from sub-Saharan Africa were 
trafficked to Libya for the purposes of commercial sexual 
exploitation.  Precise figures are unavailable, though foreign 
observers estimate that one-half to one percent of Libya's 1.5 
to 2 million foreigners may be victims of trafficking, primarily 
migrants who became victims due to labor fraud or smuggling 
debts. 
 
-- 23C.  Migrants generally come to Libya in transit to Europe 
or to find employment as laborers and domestic employees.  In 
the isolated cases of sub-Saharan African women trafficked to 
Libya, victims were lured to Libya with the promise of 
legitimate employment. 
 
-- 23D.  Economic migrants without formal contracts are at 
highest risk of becoming victims of trafficking through labor 
fraud due to their lack of legal status and protections under 
labor laws.  International organizations report isolated cases 
of sub-Saharan African women being lured to Libya with the 
promise of legitimate work; smugglers then tried to coerce those 
women into sex work in Europe. 
 
-- 23E.  Libya is both a transit and destination country for 
economic migrants.  Migrants, especially those of sub-Saharan 
origin, often seek the services of smugglers to cross Libya's 
desert border and travel onward the Mediterranean Sea to Europe. 
 Smugglers can use their leverage over migrants to make them 
victims of trafficking.  Labor fraud and abuse constitute the 
highest trafficking threat.  Libyan individuals employing 
irregular migrants sometimes withhold payment or travel 
documents, creating trafficking victims out of economic migrants. 
 
SETTING THE SCENE FOR THE GOVERNMENT'S ANTI-TIP EFFORTS 
 
-- 24A.  Libyan officials and citizens suffer from a general 
lack of awareness of trafficking as a phenomenon distinct from 
illegal immigration and smuggling.  International organizations 
made some inroads with individual officials through workshops 
and trainings, but the lack of awareness on an institutional 
level continues to be the greatest obstacle to tackling the 
trafficking portfolio. 
 
 
TRIPOLI 00000154  002 OF 005 
 
 
-- 24B.  The GPC for Foreign Liaison and International 
Cooperation, the GPC for Justice, the GPC for Public Security 
and the GPC for Manpower and Labor are all involved in 
anti-trafficking efforts.  The GPC for Public Security often 
takes the lead on trafficking-related issues, though the 
government lacks a formal mechanism for managing its response to 
trafficking. 
 
-- 24C.  Libyan officials and citizens suffer from a general 
lack of awareness of trafficking as a phenomenon distinct from 
illegal immigration and smuggling.  The Government lacks a 
framework to both prosecute trafficking and to manage victim 
assistance.  Corruption is thought to be a factor in smuggling 
operations; it is unknown whether corruption contributes to 
trafficking.  With a migrant population estimated at over 35% of 
the overall population, the government lacks the capacity to 
effectively address trafficking. 
 
-- 24D.  Government migration records are not centralized and 
the government lacks capacity to systematically monitor its 
nascent anti-trafficking efforts.  Skeptical of outside 
interference, the government does not publicly release records 
or assessments, though IOs have formed relationships with 
authorities who have begun to release some information privately. 
 
INVESTIGATION AND PROSECUTION OF TRAFFICKERS 
 
-- 25A.  Libya does not have a single law specifically 
prohibiting trafficking in persons; however, it does have laws 
criminalizing prostitution and sexual exploitation.  In 
addition, the 1970 labor law lays out specific rights of workers 
and criminalizes exploitative labor practices, such as holding 
an employee's passport.  IOM held workshops with government 
officials in January and February 2009 aimed at developing new 
laws to effectively manage migration and reduce the level of 
irregular migration.  One day was devoted to the phenomenon of 
trafficking, though no draft legislation has been distributed. 
IOM will execute a G/TIP grant to provide training for up to 100 
prosecutors and judges to discuss strategies and frameworks for 
combating trafficking.  A new criminal code is reportedly in 
draft and circulating through the GPC system.  The draft has not 
been made available to diplomatic missions and its scope has not 
been publicly disclosed. 
 
-- 25B.  No information was available about specific punishments 
for trafficking-related sexual exploitation. 
 
-- 25C.  Libyan laws on smuggling impose stiff penalties for 
convicted smugglers, including confiscation of all assets, 
including property, located in Libya.  While no information was 
available about specific penalties for trafficking for labor 
exploitation, the Government sometimes used other areas of its 
criminal code to prosecute perpetrators of labor fraud. 
Offenders were made to repatriate victims of trafficking to 
their country of origin and provide back pay. 
 
-- 25D.  The law criminalizes rape and forcible sexual assault; 
however, it does not specify a punishment. 
 
-- 25E.  The Government did not publicly release statistics on 
investigations, prosecutions, or convictions of traffickers. 
Press reports indicated that some traffickers were tried under 
other criminal statutes for trafficking-related offenses, though 
the disposition of those cases is unknown. 
 
-- 25F.  IOM manages a G/TIP grant to provide training to GOL 
officials to recognize, investigate, and prosecute trafficking. 
The Government of Italy and the European Commission sponsored 
workshops through IOM to develop strategies and legislation to 
manage migration in general, with sessions devoted to training 
on combating trafficking.  IOM partnered with the Libyan NGOs 
the Waatasimu Charity Association and the International 
Organization for Peace, Care, and Relief to deliver training for 
semi-official civil society activists. 
 
 
TRIPOLI 00000154  003 OF 005 
 
 
-- 25G.  No information was available on the GOL's cooperation 
with other governments in the investigation and prosecution of 
trafficking cases. 
 
-- 25H.  Post is not aware of any cases in which a Libyan 
national has been extradited from Libya for a 
trafficking-related offense. 
 
-- 25I.  There is no evidence of government involvement in or 
tolerance of trafficking on any level. 
 
-- 25J.  There is no evidence that government officials are 
involved in trafficking. 
 
-- 25K.  The law criminalizes prostitution; however, the law was 
not consistently enforced. 
 
-- 25L. The government does not participate in international 
peacekeeping operations. 
 
-- 25M. The government does not have an identified child sex 
tourism problem. 
 
PROTECTION AND ASSISTANCE TO VICTIMS 
 
-- 26A.  The government does not have a framework or standard 
procedure to identify and provide for victims and witnesses.  In 
practice, the government allows international organizations 
assisting refugees and migrants to provide assistance to 
vulnerable Eritreans, Ethiopians, Somalis, Sudanese, and Iraqis 
to screen for evidence of trafficking. 
 
-- 26B.  The government maintains a network of migrant detention 
centers throughout the country.  International observers with 
regular access to detention facilities described the conditions 
as adequate and noted improvement in detention conditions since 
¶2005.  In particular, trafficking victims in detention centers 
generally receive satisfactory medical care.  The government 
does not provide victims with access to either legal or 
psychological services. 
 
-- 26C.  The government regularly cooperated with the IOM office 
in Tripoli and provided in-kind assistance with IOM-hosted 
anti-trafficking training.  In-kind assistance included free use 
of government-owned conference facilities, free meals for 
training participants, free in-country travel for participants, 
and free interpretation and use of interpretation equipment.  In 
addition, the government provides diplomatic support to the 
UNHCR mission in 
 
Tripoli, which, despite the lack of a formal MOU, enjoys regular 
access to government facilities and migrant detention centers in 
which victims of trafficking sometimes intermingle with the 
general migrant population. 
 
-- 26D.  The government continues to fail to provide adequate 
protective services to victims of trafficking.  Like other 
irregular migrants, trafficking victims may be susceptible to 
punishment for unlawful presence in Libya as a result of 
trafficking.  The government does not adequately distinguish 
between trafficking victims in need of protective services and 
other migrants. 
 
-- 26E.  Post is unaware of any long-term benefits the 
government makes available to victims of trafficking. 
 
-- 26F.  The government does not have a specific referral 
process to transfer victims detained by authorities to NGO-run 
facilities.  In practice, NGOs and International Organizations 
had developed relationships with officials to provide care for 
some individuals identified as victims of trafficking and 
self-identified victims of labor fraud trafficking availed 
themselves of IOM-run Assisted Voluntary Return and 
Reintegration programs. 
 
 
TRIPOLI 00000154  004 OF 005 
 
 
-- 26G.  The government continues to seek clarification on what 
might constitute a formal victim recognition program. 
Working-level officials from the GPC for Public Security and the 
GPC for Manpower and Labor participated in workshops designed to 
build awareness of the problem of trafficking and formulate 
responses to manage a response. 
 
-- 26H.  The government continues to seek clarification on what 
might constitute a formal victim recognition program. 
 
-- 26I.  Trafficking victims were susceptible to punishment for 
unlawful acts committed as a result of being trafficking.  For 
instance, victims, intermingled with illegal migrants, may have 
been deported without receiving medical, psychological or legal 
aid.  Detention and deportation data is not centralized and is 
incomplete.  Statistics do not differentiate between irregular 
migrants and victims of trafficking. 
 
-- 26J.  The government does not actively encourage victims to 
participate in the investigation and prosecution of trafficking 
offenders. 
 
-- 26K.  During the year, the government cooperated with IOM a 
workshops for law enforcement officials designed to raise 
awareness of trafficking.  The government provided in-kind 
assistance, including conference and catering facilities, to 
other training programs designed to equip prosecutors with tools 
to both investigate and prosecute trafficking and for GPC 
employees to help formulate legal and policy responses to 
trafficking.  During the year, the government at times contacted 
either IOM or UNHCR to alert them to situations involving 
vulnerable migrants and to solicit assistance on either 
voluntary repatriation or resettlement to third countries. 
 
-- 26L.  Post knows of no Libyan nationals that have been 
repatriated as victims of trafficking. 
 
-- 26M.  IOM and UNHCR both work with potential victims of 
trafficking in Libya.  Both organization provide training for 
government officials responsible for implementing 
counter-trafficking programs and provide protective services to 
vulnerable migrant populations.  Both IOM and UNHCR receive 
adequate funding from external sources, obviating the need to 
seek funding from the government. 
 
PREVENTION 
 
-- 27A.  The government did not conduct any anti-trafficking 
public information campaigns during the reporting period.  The 
government allowed IOM to conduct anti-smuggling and 
anti-trafficking campaigns in the irregular migrant community 
through their civil society organizations. 
 
-- 27B.  Law enforcement officials informally screen migrants 
for potential victims of trafficking, focusing on nationality 
and fraudulent documents.  Detention facility managers began 
proactive notification of International Organizations for 
vulnerable populations, including potential victims of 
trafficking. 
 
-- 27C. The Government designated an anti-trafficking 
coordinator in early 2007.  Libyan bureaucracy is not 
regularized and depends on personal connections.  The extent to 
which the various offices charged with managing Libya's response 
to trafficking coordinate action remains unknown.  The death of 
a key official in early 2008 slowed international cooperation on 
migration issues. 
 
-- 27D.  The government does not have a national plan of action 
to address trafficking in persons. 
 
-- 27E.  No information was available on steps the government 
took during the reporting period to reduce the demand for 
commercial sex acts. 
 
 
TRIPOLI 00000154  005 OF 005 
 
 
-- 27F.  No information was available on steps the government 
took during the reporting period to reduce participation in 
international child sex tourism by nationals of the country. 
 
¶2. (U) Post spent a total of 23 hours in the preparation of the 
TIP report: 
 
FS-04 Officer: 20 hours 
 
FS-06 EFM: 1 hour 
 
LES-9 FSN: 1 hour 
 
FS-02 Officer: 30 minutes 
 
FS-01 Officer: 30 minutes 
 
¶3. (SBU) The point of contact for TIP issues is Pol/Econ Officer 
Chris Andino (AndinoCL@state.gov; cell phone: +218-91-220-3092). 
CRETZ