VZCZCXRO1761
RR RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM RUEHNH
DE RUEHHI #0559/01 1690313
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 180313Z JUN 09
FM AMEMBASSY HANOI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 9770
INFO RUEHHM/AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH 5936
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 7377
RUCNASE/ASEAN MEMBER COLLECTIVE
RUEAWJA/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHINGTON DC
RHMFIUU/DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY WASHINGTON DC
RUEHC/DEPT OF LABOR WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 HANOI 000559 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR G/TIP, INL, DRL, EAP/MLS, and EAP/RSP 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KTIP KCRM PHUM PREL ELAB VM
 
SUBJECT:  Vietnam TIP Report Delivered to GVN 
 
REF:  STATE 60460 
 
HANOI 00000559  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: On June 16, poloff delivered copies of the Vietnam 
2009 Trafficking in Persons Report to Mr. Le Van Chuong, Head of the 
Central Coordination Office of the National Steering Committee 
Against Trafficking and Mr. Doan The Vinh, Deputy Head of Anti-Women 
and Children Trafficking Department, Bureau for Combating Social 
Evils, Ministry of Public Security.  For the first time, GVN 
officials agreed that sending laborers overseas may put these 
workers at risk for human trafficking and acknowledged that Vietnam 
does not yet have sufficient mechanisms to deal with this issue. 
End summary. 
 
¶2. (SBU) After highlighting Vietnam's progress over the reporting 
period, poloff cited Vietnam's weak response to labor trafficking 
and drew attention to the recommendations section of the TIP report. 
 Vinh responded that the global economic downturn has exacerbated 
export labor issues and agreed that Vietnam needs to amend the 
Criminal Code to better address these issues.  For example, Vinh 
pointed out that many workers are now going abroad only to find that 
their contracts are not valid or their jobs have disappeared.  He 
went on to cite cases of labor export companies recruiting and 
sending large numbers of workers abroad when, in reality, only a few 
jobs exist, resulting in workers stranded overseas.  Vinh added that 
fraudulent companies without a government license have established 
offices, collected fees from workers (largely unskilled workers from 
rural areas) and then disappeared with the money.  These offenses 
are considered labor trafficking according to Vinh, and are subject 
to Article 139 of the Criminal Code which deals with fraudulent 
appropriation of a person's property (penalties are imprisonment 
ranging from 2-7 years, 7-15 years, life or death sentence) and 
Decree 144 governing export labor (penalties are administrative). 
 
¶3. (SBU) Chuong reported that the GVN investigated 190 cases of 
human trafficking in the first six months of 2009, primarily 
involving sex trafficking.  Selling of infants and children 
accounted for approximately 20 percent of the cases.  Of the total 
number, 60 percent of the cases dealt with victims being sent to 
China; 13 percent were to Cambodia.  Chuong noted that a few cases 
involved men (but he could not say if these were for sex or labor 
exploitation) and the sale of organs.  He also highlighted actions 
taken by the GVN in the first half of this year, including: 
 
-  On January 7, GVN signed a Bilateral Agreement on 
Anti-Trafficking with Thailand (upgrading from the existing 
bilateral MOU) and held a bilateral conference on March 9 to discuss 
implementation. 
 
-  On March 16, the National Steering Committee met with Deputy 
Prime Minister Truong Vinh Trong on the role of the Committee and 
the Ministry of Public Security (MPS) in implementing the National 
Plan of Action against TIP.  Chuong said that the GVN decided to 
upgrade the National Plan of Action to a National Objective Plan, 
raising the profile of the TIP issue by increasing oversight of the 
National Steering Committee by the Office of the Government (Prime 
Minister's office). 
 
-  In June, the National Steering Committee completed the first 
draft of the new comprehensive trafficking in persons law and 
submitted the draft to the relevant government agencies for comment. 
 Chuong explained that the National Steering Committee should 
receive input over the summer and plans to submit the final draft to 
the National Assembly at the end of 2009.  The National Assembly 
will then consider the law during its next session, expected to take 
place in May/June 2010. 
 
- The National Steering Committee submitted amendments to Articles 
119 and 120 of the Criminal Code to the National Assembly.  The 
changes would include trafficking in men and human organs in the 
definition of human trafficking.  As the National Assembly is still 
in session, the amendments have not officially been approved; 
however, as all agree on the amendments, approval is expected at the 
close of this session at the end of June 2009.  Chuong noted that 
this brings the GVN more in line with the accepted international 
definition of trafficking. 
 
- In May, Vietnam entered final negotiation with China on a 
Bilateral Agreement on Anti-Human Trafficking that will upgrade the 
existing bilateral MOU.  The GVN expects to sign the agreement by 
the end of 2009.  Chuong added that, due to better cooperation 
between Vietnam and China, the two countries will conduct a joint 
public awareness campaign on preventing and combating human 
trafficking the areas along their shared border between July 15 and 
 
HANOI 00000559  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
September 15. 
 
- Also in May, the GVN and Cambodia drafted an Agreement on 
Identifying and Receiving Victims of Human Trafficking.  The draft 
agreement is being reviewed by both governments and is expected to 
be signed in Phnom Penh at the end of June or early July 2009. 
 
- In August 2008, MPS developed draft guidelines on Protection of 
Victims during Investigation and Prosecution in cooperation with 
IOM.  MPS organized a training course in the northern part of the 
country on May 20-24 to introduce the draft guidelines and will hold 
a similar course it the south on June 20-24.  MPS will take feedback 
from the course participants before submitting the final draft to 
the GVN for approval.  The guidelines are expected to be officially 
approved and published in July 2009. 
 
- Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Burma, and China make up the 
Senior Officials' Meeting (SOM), a venue to review progress made 
under the Coordinated Mekong Ministerial Initiative Against Human 
Trafficking (COMMIT).  In an effort to increase cooperation with 
Malaysia, SOM participants invited Malaysia (currently an observer) 
to become a full member.  Chuong also noted that under ASEAN mutual 
legal assistance agreements, Vietnam sent an MPS delegation to 
Malaysia to investigate labor trafficking cases. 
 
- The National Steering Committee is now working on its analysis of 
the successes and lessons learned during the implementation of the 
National Plan of Action during the first five years (2004-2009). 
Once this report is complete, the Committee will draft the 
implementation plan covering the next five years (2010-2015). 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶4. (SBU) As the GVN has not yet had time to digest the 2009 TIP 
Report, the officials' overall responses were noncommittal.  They 
seemed pleased about Vietnam maintaining its Tier 2 ranking, and 
asked questions about the performance of other nations in Southeast 
Asia.  Post will forward copies of the complete bound version of the 
2009 TIP Report when received. 
 
¶5. (SBU) This meeting was the first time GVN officials have 
recognized export labor as a part of the trafficking problem in 
Vietnam.  While this may seem a small gesture, officials had been 
very reluctant to recognize the problem within the scope of 
trafficking and to admit that existing laws and regulations are 
insufficient to address it.  Post hopes to build on this opening 
with specific recommendations for worker protections, suggestions 
for changes to Vietnamese laws and regulations, and greater 
engagement to raise awareness of this issue. 
 
PALMER