VZCZCXRO8896
OO RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM RUEHNH
DE RUEHPF #0846/01 3201013
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 161013Z NOV 09
FM AMEMBASSY PHNOM PENH
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 1365
INFO RUCNASE/ASEAN MEMBER COLLECTIVE PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 PHNOM PENH 000846 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EAP/MLS, EAP/RSP, G/TIP, DRL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL KTIP KJUS CB
SUBJECT: CAMBODIA: 2009 TIP INTERIM ASSESSMENT 
 
REF: A. STATE 111958 
     ¶B. PHNOM PENH 744 
     ¶C. PHNOM PENH 709 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED 
 
¶1.  (SBU) SUMMARY:  As part of its anti-trafficking efforts 
since April 2009, the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC) has 
implemented a broad training initiative to reach law 
enforcement, judicial, and other government officials.  The 
RGC consolidated its policy structure under a single umbrella 
known as the National Committee on the Supression of Human 
Trafficking, Smuggling, Labor Exploitation,and Sexual 
Exploitation (the National Committee), and issued new 
national minimum standards for the protection of victims of 
human trafficking.  Police arrested at least 28 perpetrators 
since April 2009, and the courts convicted at least 4 
perpetrators on human trafficking charges during the same 
period. The RGC also passed a new Penal Code in October that 
includes anti-trafficking statutes, and police sources have 
said the broader Penal Code improves anti-trafficking efforts 
because it "fills some gaps" that existed in the 2008 Law on 
the Supression of Human Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation. 
The RGC has been receptive to the recommendations contained 
in the 2009 TIP Report and is setting in place a sustained 
policy and implementation effort that is designed to go the 
distance in combatting TIP in Cambodia.  END SUMMARY. 
 
-------------------------------------------- 
Training for Police and Government Officials 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
¶2.  (SBU)  The RGC implemented an extensive training 
initiative to educate police officers and other government 
officials on the enforcement of human trafficking provisions 
in the 2008 Law.  Under the leadership of the Cambodian 
National Police and the Secretariat of the National 
Committee, the RGC held 87 separate training sessions 
throughout the country that reached 4,000 government 
officials, 2,500 of whom were police officers.  The RGC 
designed curriculum for various courses with assistance from 
non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and RGC trainers 
directed and implemented the courses.  For example, the 
Anti-Human Trafficking and Juvenile Protection (AHTJP) Unit 
of the Cambodian National Police maintains a staff of seven 
full-time trainers.  These seven trainers, together with the 
Director of the AHTJP Unit and the Deputy Commissioner 
General of the National Police, work with NGOs to develop 
curriculum for national and provincial police officers, and 
travel the country implementing these training courses. 
According to the Director of the AHTJP Unit, the initial 
emphasis has been training for anti-human trafficking police 
officers and other judicial police, such as the criminal 
investigative division officers.  In 2010, the focus will 
expand to front-line officers, in particular the 
administrative police, immigration police, and border police. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Training for judicial professionals on the 2008 Law 
began in August 2009 and will reach Cambodia's entire 
complement of 240 judges and prosecutors by the end of the 
calendar year.  The Royal Academy for Judicial Professionals 
(RAJP) directed the creation of a one-day TIP module within 
its two-week continuing education course, which all judges 
and prosecutors must attend once each year.  The module is an 
ASEAN-approved judicial training course, taught by RAJP 
judges and lawyers, and Cambodia is the first ASEAN nation to 
implement the course.  Furthermore, the RAJP developed a TIP 
module for inclusion in the one-year judicial intake program 
that trains all incoming judicial professionals.  The module 
will be used for the first time in the judicial intake 
program that starts November 30. 
 
-------------------------------------- 
Improving Prosecutions and Convictions 
-------------------------------------- 
 
¶4.  (SBU) The RGC is improving prosecutions and convictions 
on trafficking, though its emphasis remains on prosecuting 
child sex tourists.  Courts convicted at least four 
traffickers since April 2009, and at least 28 cases are 
pending action by investigating judges.  This includes the 
conviction and sentencing to 10 years in jail of Chan Phally, 
a mother who prostituted her minor daughter to a foreign 
pedophile, one of the first such convictions in Cambodia. 
Reporting of such statistics from the courts remains 
difficult due to resource and technical limitations.  Thus, 
the RGC and most observers believe the total number of cases 
is higher than those reported.  On November 20, the Ministry 
of Justice will train court clerks and prosecutors from 19 
provinces with courts on the 2008 Law and on correct data 
 
PHNOM PENH 00000846  002 OF 003 
 
 
gathering and submission formats in order to improve 
provincial court reporting.  In an effort to resolve the 
court backlog resulting from the lack of judges and 
prosecutors, the RAJP created a five-year plan to increase 
the number of judicial professionals, and the RGC committed 
to the planned increase in its budget.  In September, the 
Ministry of Justice and Ministry of Interior formed a 
criminal justice working group to examine all types of cases, 
including TIP, for evidence of improper charging, sentencing 
or dismissal.  Formed at the order of the Prime Minister, the 
working group is intended to resolve concerns of case 
mishandling raised by police, judicial officials, NGOs, and 
donors.  According to the National Committee Secretariat, the 
working group has completed its examination of courts in 19 
provinces and is in the process of compiling its reports. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) The Ministry of Justice continues to work on a 
first-ever "Explanatory Note" regarding the anti-TIP law, 
which should help police, prosecutors, and judges distinguish 
between TIP crimes and other related crimes of sexual 
exploitation.  One goal of this new initiative is to increase 
understanding of TIP crimes and maximize prosecutions and 
convictions.  The "Explanatory Note" is expected to be 
published in early 2010. 
 
----------------------- 
Interagency Cooperation 
----------------------- 
 
¶6.  (SBU) On September 25, the Prime Minister signed the 
sub-decree merging the former National Task Force and 
High-Level Working Group into one policy-making structure, 
the new 18-member National Committee.  The National Committee 
is chaired by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior 
Sar Kheng, with deputy chairmanships held by the Ministers 
for Womens Affairs, Social Affairs, and Labor.  The 
Secretariat for the National Committee, which leads the 
day-to-day policymaking and coordination work of the RGC's 
anti-TIP efforts, has six working groups with 
interministerial membership.  Each group also has a permanent 
vice-chair for an NGO representative, to ensure inclusion and 
dialogue between the RGC and TIP NGO community. 
 
----------------- 
Victim Protection 
----------------- 
 
¶7.  (SBU) On August 31, the Ministry of Social Affairs 
promulgated a new Policy and National Minimum Standards for 
the Protection of the Rights of Victims of Human Trafficking. 
 The document specifies 10 rights that must be protected by 
all persons working with victims, including police, social 
workers, health-care workers, and judicial officials (Ref B). 
 According to the Minister of Social Affairs, these standards 
provide guidelines for all government authorities in their 
efforts to identify victims among vulnerable populations, and 
ensure victims receive protection and rehabilitation.  In 
response to needs expressed by the NGO community, the 
Ministry of Social Affairs and Ministry of Justice have begun 
work on a policy to provide legal protections to shelters 
that accept victims referred by the government, shielding the 
shelters from legal actions brought by disgruntled parents, 
traffickers, or others.  Finally, an MOU between the 
Governments of Cambodia and Vietnam on victim identification 
and repatriation is under negotiation, and the Ministry of 
Social Affairs indicated it may be completed by year's end. 
 
---------------- 
Public Awareness 
---------------- 
 
¶8.  (SBU) The RGC continues strong public education and 
awareness efforts nationwide to discourage commercial sex 
acts, particularly by tourists.  These efforts include 
billboard advertisements, television and radio commercials, 
and outreach to hospitality and hotel owners and workers to 
report suspect activity.  The effort yields results, as 
police in Siem Reap Province indicated they received and 
investigated over 300 calls regarding suspect activity so far 
this year.  There has also been a highly visible crackdown by 
the government on child sexual exploitation, including by 
Cambodians and other Asians.  Earlier this year, police 
arrested a Cambodian man for purchasing sexual favors from 
boys in his community.  In July, the Sihanoukville court 
convicted a Japanese national for commercial production of 
child pornography, and in September, police in Phnom Penh 
arrested another Japanese national for commercial sexual 
exploitation of a minor girl.  Media attention is 
particularly high for foreign arrests and convictions, which 
contributes to the public awareness campaign. 
 
PHNOM PENH 00000846  003 OF 003 
 
 
 
------- 
COMMENT 
------- 
 
¶9.  (SBU) The RGC has been receptive to the recommendations 
contained in the 2009 Annual Trafficking in Persons report, 
and the suggested steps in the Action Plan released in 
August.  The government committment to combating trafficking 
was apparent in frequent meetings with the many government 
officials who work on these efforts, including with 
Ambassador CdeBaca.  It is apparent that the RGC is setting 
in place a sustained policy and implementation effort that is 
designed to go the distance in combating TIP, and not just a 
one-off campaign to keep up appearances or satisfy short-term 
expectations.  The greatest obstacles continue to be lack of 
resources and technical capacity in reporting court activity 
in a timely and usable way, and the lack of capacity in the 
legal system overall, which will continue to result in slow 
processing of cases. 
RODLEY