VZCZCXYZ0000
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHBU #1302/01 3342221
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 302219Z NOV 09
FM AMEMBASSY BUENOS AIRES
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0117
INFO MERCOSUR COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS BUENOS AIRES 001302 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM KCRM KTIP KWMN SMIG AR
SUBJECT: ARGENTINA: 2009 TIP Interim Assessment Response 
 
REF: STATE 110433 
 
¶1.  Per Reftel instructions, below is post's interim assessment of 
Argentina's progress in its efforts to combat trafficking in 
persons (TIP).  Our response is keyed to points found in reftel. 
 
 
 
A)   Implementing the new anti-trafficking law: 
 
 
 
As of August 21, 2009, coordination for the Office for Rescue and 
Caring of Victims of Trafficking falls under the Secretary of 
Justice within the Ministry of Justice, Security and Human Rights. 
The Office is comprised of an interdisciplinary group of 
specialists from all security forces, psychologists, social 
workers, policy experts, doctors, and lawyers.  As a result of this 
coordination, psychologists, social workers, and policy experts are 
included in law enforcement raids or immediately included in cases 
where a victim has managed to escape and goes to the authorities. 
This assists in the identification of victims and enables the 
authorities to provide the physical and mental support they need. 
Shelter for rescued victims is coordinated through the Office, and 
psychologists remain with victims throughout the process - 
including for initial interviews and legal testimony.  After 
providing video testimony (so that the victim will not have to face 
the trafficker), the victim is assisted by programs geared toward 
victims of trafficking and child sex exploitation run by the 
Ministry of Social Development. 
 
 
 
According to the Specialized Prosecutors' Office for the 
Investigation of Kidnapping and Trafficking in Persons crimes 
(UFASE), lack of action by municipal governments regarding the 
enforcement of a 1932 federal law prohibiting brothels is directly 
connected with the core of the trafficking problem. In May, Santa 
Rosa municipality in La Pampa province ordered the closure of 
brothels and night bars in order to combat trafficking in persons. 
 
 
 
 
B)  Intensifying law enforcement efforts to dismantle trafficking 
networks: 
 
 
 
While the statistics are not broken down in a manner that would 
enable us to single out arrests and rescues specifically during the 
interim reporting period, from the enactment of the law on 
trafficking on April 28, 2008 until the end of October 2009, there 
have been 319 raids resulting in 344 arrests; 190 of the raids have 
occurred since January 1, 2009, resulting in 199 arrests.  In the 
same time periods 488 trafficking victims have been rescued (359 
adults, 129 minors); 331 of those have been rescued since January 
1, 2009 (258 adults, 73 minors). 
 
 
 
C)  Increasing judicial and prosecutorial efforts to investigate, 
prosecute, convict, and punish trafficking offenders, including 
corrupt officials who may facilitate or be involved with 
trafficking: 
 
 
 
On November 27 in Santa Fe province, Julia Nunez was sentenced to 
10 years in jail in Argentina's first conviction for human 
trafficking.  As a result of testimony during the trial, 
prosecutors have decided to investigate two more individuals in 
relation to the case.  Another TIP case was scheduled to begin in 
Eldorado City, Misiones province on November 25. 
 
 
 
According to the Federal Office of Rescue and Support to Victims of 
Trafficking, courts initiated 318 TIP case; 8 of which are 
scheduled for oral trial (meaning that a lower court has already 
determined there are sufficient grounds to prosecute).  Partial 
statistics provided by the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights in 
Misiones province in late July indicated there were 33 individuals 
indicted for TIP nationwide - 15 in Buenos Aires province, 10 in 
Misiones, 6 in the city of Buenos Aires, 1 in Salta, and 1 in 
Corrientes.  According UFASE chief Marcelo Colombo, that number had 
increased to 34 by mid-November. 
 
On August 11, Prosecutor General Esteban Righi approved a 
standardized protocol for the investigation of TIP cases, a set of 
guidelines drafted by UFASE and the Specialized Prosecutors' Office 
for the Integral Assistance to Victims of Crime (OFAVI).  This 
protocol helps orientate federal prosecutors' work when 
investigating human trafficking cases and interviewing the victims, 
taking appropriate action to secure private interviews, with the 
presence of a multi-professional group of experts.  The protocol 
provides guidelines for identifying trafficking cases throughout 
all their stages:  recruitment, transportation, receiving, lodging, 
and exploitation of victims. 
 
 
 
On August 24, Prosecutor General Righi signed a resolution 
instructing federal prosecutors to seek the closure of all 
brothels.  Righi also instructed prosecutors to request judges of 
TIP cases involving sexual exploitation seize control of the 
location in question, holding the premises as property bond until 
the case is decided by the judiciary, thus preventing the 
resumption of operations with new potential victims.  He also urged 
the Justice Minister and the Interior Minister to take appropriate 
action to help provinces and municipalities bring their legislation 
into compliance.  Additionally, Righi ordered prosecutors to 
identify and press charges against any officials that may have 
participated in or covered up TIP crimes. 
 
 
 
In late May a Federal Court of Appeals in Mar del Plata, Buenos 
Aires province, ruled that TIP victims cannot provide consent when 
their social or economic background limits free choice.  In the 
case decided, the court determined that despite the Paraguayan and 
Dominican girls' consent to work as prostitutes, their living 
conditions demonstrated they were kept as slaves rather than sexual 
workers, and therefore their original consent could not be 
considered valid. 
 
 
 
D)  Increasing investigations of forced labor and domestic 
servitude crimes: 
 
 
 
The National Migrations Office under the Ministry of the Interior 
reported that in the city of Buenos Aires alone, they carried out 
11,076 inspections during the year to monitor living and working 
conditions of migrants residing in the country, far surpassing the 
906 inspections performed during 2008. 
 
 
 
E)  Dedicating more resources for victims assistance: 
 
 
 
Trafficking victims' needs are attended to by the Office for Rescue 
and Caring of Victims of Trafficking - including food and clothing. 
Shelter is coordinated between the Office and local authorities. 
In some cases, NGOs run shelters that are operated with local 
government financing.  A soon-to-open shelter in Cordoba province 
will benefit from training and technical assistance provided by the 
Maria de los Angeles Foundation.  The Stop Trafficking and Human 
Smuggling NGO (RATT)signed an agreement with the City of Buenos 
Aires to run a shelter for minors who are victims of TIP; the 
location is currently being renovated and authorities hope to have 
it open by February 2010.  A shelter run by the Maria de los 
Angeles Foundation in Tucuman was up and running prior to this 
reporting period. 
 
 
 
F)  Sustaining anti-trafficking training for law enforcement, 
judges, and other public officials, including labor inspectors. 
 
 
 
The Ministry of Justice, Security and Human Rights provides ongoing 
training to officials and law enforcement officers through its 
"Victims against Violence Program."  During the year, the following 
training seminars took place: 
 
 
 
-          "Prevention and Combat of Human Trafficking Seminar" 
 
addressed to law enforcement agents in the provinces of Misiones, 
Salta, and Santa Cruz. 
 
 
 
-          TIP training for judges and prosecutors in Santa Fe 
province conducted by experts in the Office for Rescue and Support 
of Victims of Human Trafficking and the UFASE. 
 
 
 
-          Seminar on TIP and Victims Assistance addressed to 
police agents and other law enforcement officials in Formosa 
province by the Office for Rescue and Support of Victims of Human 
Trafficking, the Secretariat of Interior Security and the National 
Border Patrol. 
 
 
 
-          Participation of the "Victims against Violence program" 
at the first Regional Seminar on Trafficking in the framework of 
the XXI Specialized Meeting of Women in MERCOSUR which took place 
in Asuncion, Paraguay, in May. 
 
 
 
-          Seminar on Prevention and Fight against Trafficking in 
Persons for law enforcement agents hosted jointly by the Victims 
against Violence program and the Government of Santa Cruz province 
in May. 
 
 
 
-          With USG support, in September the NGO Unidos por la 
Justicia trained 30 judges and prosecutors with trainers from other 
NGOs observing.  Additionally, since May 2009, NGO Maria de los 
Angeles Foundation has trained 300 police officers and will be 
training another 100 by the end of December 2009. 
 
 
 
G)  Improving data collection on trafficking: 
 
 
 
The Federal Office for Rescue and Support of Victims of Human 
Trafficking collects information and produces statistical reports 
regarding raids or action on trafficking cases by all four federal 
law enforcement agencies:  the Federal Police, the Border Patrol 
Office, the National Coast Guard, and the Police for Airport 
Security through a centralized database.  The Office shares these 
reports with the federal courts.  The database is for internal use 
of the Office only. 
 
 
 
The National Migration Office (NMO) signed agreements with the 
General Prosecutor's Office and some provincial judicial branches 
to make their database available to prosecutors and judges.  In the 
coming months, the NMO is scheduled to sign a similar agreement 
with the National Supreme Court.  The "sistema integral de captura 
migratoria" (integral system for migration register) database is a 
cross-reference database developed to provide information about the 
entry, exit, and movement of people; the means of transportation 
used; prior administrative or judicial records the person may have; 
and the names of people accompanying the individual when entering 
or exiting the country.  All information is available for 
prosecutors and judges. 
 
 
 
H)   Other significant developments: 
 
 
 
     On November 26, the City of Buenos Aires passed a law making 
March 26-April 3 the "Week for the Fight against Trafficking."  The 
dates were selected to coincide with the anniversaries of a fire in 
a clandestine factory that resulted in the death of a woman and 
four children who were victims of forced labor (March 26) and the 
disappearance of Marita Veron on April 3, 2002 (believed to be a 
victim of sexual trafficking).  The goal of the week is to raise 
public awareness of human trafficking issues. 
MARTINEZ