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RUZEJAA/JAC MOLESWORTH RAF MOLESWORTH UK

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 13 KINSHASA 000248 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
PASS TO G/TIP, G-LAURA PENA, INL, DRL, PRM, AF/RSA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM PREF KTIP KCRM KWMN KFRD KMCA SMIG ASEC ELAB CG
SUBJECT: DRC: RESPONSE TO QUESTIONS FOR THE TENTH ANNUAL TRAFFICKING 
IN PERSONS (TIP) REPORT 
 
REF: 10 STATE 2094 
 
¶1.  (U) This message contains Embassy Kinshasa's responses keyed to 
questions in reftel on trafficking in persons. 
 
THE COUNTRY'S TIP SITUATION 
 
¶2.  (SBU) Begin responses to paragraph 25: 
 
--A. What is (are) the source(s) of available information on 
trafficking in persons?  What plans are in place (if any) to 
undertake further documentation of human trafficking?  How reliable 
are these sources? 
 
The following are generally considered reliable sources for TIP 
reporting: UNICEF, Solidarity Center, Save the Children UK, IOM, 
the Implementing Agency for the National DDR Program (UEPN-DDR), UN 
Group of Experts November 2009 Report, Medecins du Monde, UN Office 
for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Congolese 
National Ministry of Labor, War Child, World Peasants/Indigenous 
Organization (WPIO) and the UN Joint Human Rights Office (UNJHRO). 
 
Numbers maintained by these sources were estimates based on limited 
surveys.  Estimates appeared to be reasonable given the size, lack 
of infrastructure, and the depth of the problems in the DRC. 
 
--B. Is the country a country of origin, transit, and/or 
destination for men, women, or children subjected to conditions of 
commercial sexual exploitation, forced or bonded labor, or other 
slave-like conditions? 
 
Yes, the DRC is a country of origin, transit, and destination. 
 
Are citizens or residents of the country subjected to such 
trafficking conditions within the country?  If so, does this 
internal trafficking occur in territory outside of the government's 
control (e.g. in a civil war situation)? 
 
Yes, trafficking occurred inside and outside areas of GDRC control. 
Outside of government control, Congolese armed rebel groups 
continued to recruit and maintain child soldiers and operated in a 
situation of rebellion against the government.  Also, a number of 
foreign armed groups operated in the DRC due to the government's 
inability to defend its own territory. 
 
From where are people recruited or from where do they migrate prior 
to being subjected to these exploitative conditions? 
 
Reliable sources indicated that most people were trafficked 
internally within the DRC.  Some girls and women were trafficked to 
Uganda and Southern Sudan.  Others were trafficked to South Africa. 
There was sex trafficking of girls between Angola and the DRC. 
 
To what other countries are people trafficked and for what 
purposes?  Provide, where possible, numbers or estimates for each 
group of trafficking victims. 
 
Medecins du Monde estimated that 9 out of 10 girls (average age 12) 
living on the streets in Kinshasa survive by prostitution.  This 
was based on a survey conducted among their target population.  The 
UN Group of Experts stated that from November 2008 to October 2009, 
there were 623 cases of child soldier recruitment attributable to 
the FARDC or ex-CNDP elements of the FARDC.  Mai-Mai groups were 
also responsible for recruiting child soldiers.  UNICEF estimated 
that there remained 3,000 child soldiers with armed groups in North 
and South Kivu Provinces.  OCHA estimated that the Lord's 
Resistance Army (LRA), a Ugandan rebel group, had abducted over 
1486 people including 185 children in 2009.  The WPIO estimated 
that nearly 200 enslaved Pygmies were working in the agricultural 
and mining sectors in Eastern DRC. 
 
Have there been any changes in the TIP situation since the last TIP 
 
KINSHASA 00000248  002 OF 013 
 
 
Report (e.g. changes in destinations)? 
 
No. 
 
--C. To what kind of conditions are the trafficking victims 
subjected? 
 
Among rebel groups, women and children work in makeshift military 
camps.  Women and girls work as domestics in maintaining the camps, 
collecting firewood, and cooking.  They are also used as sex 
slaves.  Boys work either on the front lines as soldiers or are 
running ammunition and supplies between the rebel troops.  At 
artisanal mining sites, boys work nine to ten hours a day digging 
tunnel mines and open-pit mines using rudimentary equipment and 
without any safety gear.  Outside mining sites, girls involved in 
prostitution work in tents or small huts that are organized as 
brothels.  Street children (girls) involved in prostitution are 
forced to turn over their earning to gangs who offer "protection" 
or to madams.  Pygmies continued to be abused and forced to work as 
agricultural or domestic workers in some parts of the country. 
 
--D. Vulnerability to TIP: Are certain groups of persons more at 
risk of human trafficking (e.g. women and children, boys versus 
girls, certain ethnic groups, refugees, IDPs, etc.)? If so, please 
specify the type of exploitation for which these groups are most at 
risk. 
 
Children were the most at risk to be trafficked in the DRC.  Boys 
were most likely to be recruited for child soldiering and in 
working in the mines.  Girls were most likely to be found working 
in prostitution or as sexual slaves in armed groups.  Of all the 
ethnic groups, Pygmies were the most likely to be exploited and 
sometimes enslaved. 
 
--E. Traffickers and Their Methods: Who are the 
traffickers/exploiters?  Are they independent business people? 
Small or family-based crime groups?  Large international organized 
crime  syndicates? 
 
Traffickers included insurgent armed groups, both Congolese and 
foreign, such as various Mai Mai groups,  LRA and the Democratic 
Front for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR).  Another group of 
traffickers were middle men in the mining sector who enticed 
children into working in the mines or who manipulated them into 
debt bondage.  With regards to girls working in prostitution, the 
traffickers were street gangs and madams.  Elements of the National 
Congress for the Defense of the People (CNDP), which have 
integrated into the Congolese Armed Forces (FARDC), have also been 
suspected of continuing to recruit child solders. 
 
What methods are used to gain direct access to victims?  For 
example, are the traffickers recruiting victims through lucrative 
job offers? Are victims sold by their families, or approached by 
friends of friends?  Are victims "self-presenting" (approaching the 
exploiter without the involvement of a recruiter or transporter)? 
 
Child soldiers were abducted, enticed to join by being promised 
money, or sent by their parents.  Middlemen in the mining sector 
enticed children into working in the mines by promising them wages. 
They also manipulated them by forcing them into debt bondage. 
Street gangs often offer protection to girls on the street. 
However, the girls often end up working in prostitution.  Madams in 
brothels also offer protection to homeless girls as well as food 
and shelter. 
 
If recruitment or transportation is involved, what methods are used 
to recruit or transport victims (e.g., are false documents being 
used)?  Are employment, travel, and tourism agencies or marriage 
brokers involved with or fronting for traffickers or crime groups 
to traffic individuals? 
 
The majority of victims were trafficked internally.  Little or no 
 
KINSHASA 00000248  003 OF 013 
 
 
documentation is used, even for international trafficking. 
 
End responses to paragraph 25. 
 
SETTING THE SCENE FOR THE GOVERNMENT'S ANTI-TIP EFFORTS 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Begin responses to paragraph 26: 
 
--A. Does the government acknowledge that human trafficking is a 
problem in the country?  If not, why not? 
 
Yes. 
 
-- B. Which government agencies are involved in efforts to combat 
sex and labor trafficking - including forced labor - and, which 
agency, if any, has the lead in these efforts? 
 
No one government agency had the lead on anti-trafficking efforts, 
although in many instances the Ministry of Justice has the 
responsibility to investigate and prosecute suspected cases of  the 
use of children in illicit activities.  The Ministry of Social 
Affairs is responsible for overseeing and investigating child 
trafficking cases.  The Ministry of Gender, Families, and Children 
is responsible for overseeing and investigating cases of commercial 
sexual exploitation of children.  The Ministry of Labor is 
responsible for investigating hazardous child labor and forced 
child labor cases. 
 
The following is a description of what government agencies are 
doing to combat TIP: 
 
The Ministry of Human Rights drafted a document on the current 
state of trafficking in the DRC, efforts by the government to stop 
the practice, challenges, and government recommendations on taking 
action to prevent trafficking.  The Ministry of Gender directed the 
development of the GDRC's first annual National Strategy Against 
Sexual Violence.  The Ministry of Labor facilitated the creation of 
the National Committee to Combat the Worst Forms of Child Labor. 
 
The government body responsible for DDR (Unite d'Execution du 
Programme National de DDR, UEPNDDR) has a specific program 
dedicated to children associated with armed forces and groups 
(CAAFAG). Their role is to coordinate the identification, 
verification and release of child soldiers by collaborating with 
MONUC, UNICEF and partner NGOs. UNICEF has supported UEPNDDR in an 
advocacy campaign to end the use of child soldiers, the deployment 
of CAAFAG program coordinators into the field, and the functioning 
of the DDR working group.  UEPNDDR's partnership with UNICEF in 
2009 supported the release and care of 2816 children (47% of all 
new releases were UNICEF assisted). 
 
The Katangan Provincial Ministry of Interior helped to fund and 
operate a center for homeless and street children in Lubumbashi. 
The Provincial Ministries of Education in Orientale, Kasai 
Oriental, and Katanga are working closely with Save the Children UK 
and Solidarity Center in implementing projects that aim to reinsert 
children working in mines into the formal education system. 
 
Bukavu police arrested a nightclub owner for allegedly prostituting 
10 girls and seven boys in his facility.  The Kipushi Military 
Tribunal sentenced Kynugu Mutanga (aka Gedeon) to death for crimes 
against humanity, including illegal child conscription. Seven of 
his codefendants received sentences ranging from seven to 10 years' 
imprisonment for complicity in these crimes, 11 received lesser 
sentences, and five were acquitted. 
 
-- C. What are the limitations on the government's ability to 
address these problems in practice?  For example, is funding for 
police or other institutions inadequate?  Is overall corruption a 
problem?  Does the government lack the resources to aid victims? 
 
Corruption:  Corrupt officials siphoned meager financial resources 
 
KINSHASA 00000248  004 OF 013 
 
 
available to government agencies to combat human trafficking. 
Police and soldiers often were not paid.  Due to corruption, there 
was little room for training, capacity building, and assistance to 
victims in government ministries. 
 
Financial:  The government lacked sufficient financial, technical, 
and human resources to address not only trafficking, but even basic 
levels of security and services. 
 
Security services:  The police and military were poorly trained, 
supplied, paid, and managed.  The FARDC lacked sufficient command 
and control to compel many FARDC commanders, much less militia 
commanders, with child soldiers serving under them to comply with 
standing orders to release them. 
 
-- D. To what extent does the government systematically monitor its 
anti-trafficking efforts (on all fronts -- prosecution, victim 
protection, and prevention) and periodically make available, 
publicly or privately and directly or through 
regional/international organizations, its assessments of these 
anti-trafficking efforts? 
 
The GDRC does not have the ability to systematically monitor or 
assess anti-trafficking efforts.  However, it did work with MONUC, 
UNICEF and international NGOs to demobilize child soldiers.  Some 
provincial ministries also worked with international NGOs to 
encourage children working in the mines to return to school.  The 
GDRC is working with international organizations to assess the 
current state of child labor and to develop a national strategy 
against this practice.  In 2009, the government designated UNICEF 
and Save the Children to maintain the database of children who have 
been separated from armed groups and forces. 
 
-- E. What measures has the government taken to establish the 
identity of local populations, including birth registration, 
citizenship, and nationality? 
 
The GDRC adopted the National Plan of Action on Birth Registration. 
 
 
--F. To what extent is the government capable of gathering the data 
required for an in-depth assessment of law enforcement efforts? 
Where are the gaps?  Are there any ways to work around these gaps? 
 
The government lacks the capacity for an in-depth assessment of law 
enforcement efforts.  Judiciary and penitentiary statistics are 
difficult to compile and access in the DRC justice system. The 
UNJHRO is trying to put this issue on the agenda of the Ministry of 
Justice.  However, in line with the DRC's Action Plan for Justice 
Reform, the government's efforts are underway with regard to the 
following: 1)  the establishment of new judicial institutions, with 
an emphasis on developing the procedures for recruitment, 
selection, evaluation and promotion of magistrates, as well as the 
basic organizational procedures for the Judicial Council (CSM) and 
the Constitutional Court; 2) enhancing the skills and procedures in 
the judiciary and Ministry of Justice and strengthening management 
skills among magistrates and judicial personnel, with an emphasis 
on developing more transparent financial management and budget 
procedures; 3) striving towards improving  the transparency, 
accessibility and effectiveness of court operations in pilot 
jurisdictions outside of Kinshasa, including developing procedures 
and budgets for mobile courts; and 4) increasing access to justice 
for vulnerable populations, including allowing for civil society 
efforts to expand access to justice (often with support from 
donors.) 
 
End responses to paragraph 26. 
 
INVESTIGATION AND PROSECUTION OF TRAFFICKERS 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Begin responses to paragraph 27: 
 
KINSHASA 00000248  005 OF 013 
 
 
-- A. Existing Laws against TIP: Does the country have a law or 
laws specifically prohibiting trafficking in persons -- both sexual 
exploitation and labor?  If so, please specifically cite the name 
of the law(s) and its date of enactment and provide the exact 
language [actual copies preferable] of the TIP provisions. 
 
There is no specific law on human slavery or Trafficking in 
Persons, however Article 162 of the Law No 09/001 on Child 
Protection prescribes and imposes penalties up to 20 years of 
imprisonment, for trafficking of children for exploitation 
purposes.  Also, the DRC's new draft Criminal Code imposes 
sanctions. 
 
Please provide a full inventory of trafficking laws, including 
non-criminal statutes that allow for civil penalties against 
alleged trafficking crimes (e.g., civil forfeiture laws and laws 
against illegal debt). Does the law(s) cover both internal and 
transnational forms of trafficking?  If not, under what other laws 
can traffickers be prosecuted?   For example, are there laws 
against slavery or the exploitation of prostitution by means of 
force, fraud, or coercion?  Are these other laws being used in 
trafficking cases? 
 
The Child Protection Code, Law 09/001, enacted January 10, 2009, 
prohibits all forms of forced child labor, child prostitution, and 
the use of children in any illicit activity.  In Article 131, this 
law provides for 1 to 5 years of imprisonment as a sanction against 
child kidnapping.  In Article 162, it prescribes penalties of 10 to 
20 years of imprisonment for child slavery trade or trafficking; 
Article 183 imposes penalties ranging between 10 and 20 years of 
imprisonment for cases of sex slavery. The worst forms of child 
labor (forced labor) have penalties ranging between 1 and 3 years 
of imprisonment, and the enlistment of children into the armed 
forces and the police have penalties ranging between 10 and 20 
years of imprisonment. 
 
The 2006 Sexual Violence code, Law 6/018, enacted July 20, 2006, 
includes provisions against, and penalties for, trafficking in 
persons for sexual purposes, forced prostitution, procuring or 
supporting prostitution (i.e. pimping), sexual slavery, and the 
prostitution of minors.  It applies to all relevant trafficking 
activities within Congolese jurisdiction. 
 
The Congolese Constitution expressly forbids involuntary servitude. 
In addition, it forbids enlistment of persons less than 18 years of 
age into the armed forces. 
 
The Labor Code prohibits the employment of children under the age 
of 15, including as apprentices, unless exempted by a labor 
inspector. It also prohibits employment of children between the 
ages of 15-18 without parental consent. 
 
-- B. Punishment of Sex Trafficking Offenses: What are the 
prescribed and imposed penalties for the trafficking of persons for 
commercial sexual exploitation, including for the forced 
prostitution of adults and the prostitution of children? 
 
Trafficking people for sexual exploitation carries a minimum 
sentence of 10 years and a maximum of 20 years. 
 
-- C. Punishment of Labor Trafficking Offenses:  What are the 
prescribed and imposed penalties for labor trafficking offenses, 
including all forms of forced labor? 
 
To the best of our knowledge, the government did not impose 
penalties for labor exploitation. 
 
If your country is a source country for labor migrants, do the 
government's laws provide for criminal punishment -- i.e. jail time 
-- for labor recruiters who engage in recruitment of workers using 
knowingly fraudulent or deceptive offers with the purpose of 
subjecting workers to compelled service in the destination country? 
 
KINSHASA 00000248  006 OF 013 
 
 
We know of no laws that punish recruiters for trafficking. 
 
If your country is a destination for labor migrants (legal/regular 
or illegal/irregular), are there laws punishing employers or labor 
agents who confiscate workers' passports or travel documents for 
the purpose of labor trafficking, switch contracts without the 
worker's consent as a means to keep the worker in a state of 
compelled service, or withhold payment of salaries as means of 
keeping the worker in a state of compelled service? 
 
N/A 
 
-- D. What are the prescribed penalties for rape or forcible sexual 
assault? 
 
The penalties in accordance with the law (Article 170 of the 
Criminal Law, as modified and completed by July 20, 2009, Law NC,B0 
06/018, on Sexual Violence) range between 5 and 20 years of 
imprisonment. Punishment for trade slavery or trafficking of 
children for commercial exploitation ranges between 10 and 20 years 
of imprisonment. 
 
-- E. Law Enforcement Statistics: Did the government take legal 
action against human trafficking offenders during the reporting 
period?  If so, provide numbers of investigations, prosecutions, 
convictions, and sentences imposed, including details on plea 
bargains and fines, if relevant and available.  Also, if possible, 
please disaggregate numbers of cases by type of TIP (labor vs. 
commercial sexual exploitation) and victims (children under 18 
years of age vs. adults).  What were the actual punishments imposed 
on convicted trafficking offenders? Are they serving the time 
sentenced?  If not, why not? 
 
The Kipushi Military Tribunal sentenced Kynugu Mutanga (aka Gedeon) 
to death for crimes against humanity, including illegal child 
conscription. Seven of his codefendants received sentences ranging 
from seven to 10 years' imprisonment for complicity in these 
crimes, 11 received lesser sentences, and five were acquitted. 
 
Please note the number of convicted trafficking offenders who 
received suspended sentences and the number who received only a 
fine as punishment. 
 
Per our knowledge, no traffickers received suspended sentences. 
 
Please indicate which laws were used to investigate, prosecute, 
convict, and sentence traffickers. 
 
Article 41 of the law on defense and the armed forces prohibits the 
maintenance of armed groups formed by young combatants less than 18 
years.  This is also found in the Constitution. 
 
The Child Protection Code of 2009 specifically prohibits the 
recruitment and use of children by the armed forces, armed groups, 
and the police.  The GDRC has not yet applied the law for 
prosecution.  Although the law was passed Jan 10, 2009, it was not 
officially published until May 25, 2009. 
 
-- F. Does the government provide any specialized training for law 
enforcement and immigration officials on identifying and treating 
victims of trafficking?  Or training on investigating and 
prosecuting human trafficking crimes? 
 
 The government provided training to some police and military 
personnel on preventing sexual violence and child soldiering, but 
there is no specific training related to trafficking. 
 
Specify whether NGOs, international organizations, and/or the USG 
provide specialized training for host government officials. 
 
KINSHASA 00000248  007 OF 013 
 
 
The Defense Institute for International Legal Studies is training 
FARDC investigators, prosecutors, and magistrates.  The focus is on 
the investigation, prosecution, and trial procedures for a wide 
range of military justice issues including TIP.  MONUC provided 
training to FARDC troops for demobilizing child soldiers.  The 
International Labor Organization provided capacity training to the 
members of the National Committee Against the Worst Forms of Child 
Labor. 
 
--G. Does the government cooperate with other governments in the 
investigation and prosecution of trafficking cases? 
 
Per our knowledge, the GDRC did not participate in any cooperative 
international investigations of trafficking. 
 
If possible, provide the number of cooperative international 
investigations on trafficking during the reporting period. 
 
N/A 
 
-- H. Does the government extradite persons who are charged with 
trafficking in other countries?  If so, please provide the number 
of traffickers extradited during the reporting period, and the 
number of trafficking extraditions pending. In particular, please 
report on any pending or concluded extraditions of trafficking 
offenders to the United States. 
 
Per our knowledge, no requests for extradition were made. 
 
-- I. Is there evidence of government involvement in or tolerance 
of trafficking, on a local or institutional level?  If so, please 
explain in detail. 
 
-- J. If government officials are involved in human trafficking, 
what steps has the government taken to end such complicity?  Please 
indicate the number of government officials investigated and 
prosecuted for involvement in trafficking or trafficking-related 
criminal activities during the reporting period.  Have any been 
convicted?  What sentence(s) was imposed? Please specify if 
officials received suspended sentences, or were given a fine, 
fired, or reassigned to another position within the government as 
punishment. Please indicate the number of convicted officials that 
received suspended sentences or received only a fine as punishment. 
 
It should be pointed out that there is no GDRC judicial presence in 
many areas where TIP occurs.  The generalized impunity for 
violations perpetrated against children remains a major challenge. 
Despite the existing legal provisions, there are few systematic 
investigations, convictions or sanctions against those responsible 
for grave crimes against children. 
 
-- K. For countries that contribute troops to international 
peacekeeping efforts, please indicate whether the government 
vigorously investigated, prosecuted, convicted and sentenced 
nationals of the country deployed abroad as part of a peacekeeping 
or other similar mission who engaged in or facilitated severe forms 
of trafficking or who exploited victims of such trafficking. 
 
N/A 
 
-- L. If the country has an identified problem of child sex 
tourists coming to the country, what are the countries of origin 
for sex tourists?  How many foreign pedophiles did the government 
prosecute or deport/extradite to their country of origin?  If your 
host country's nationals are perpetrators of child sex tourism, do 
the country's child sexual abuse laws have extraterritorial 
coverage (similar to the U.S. PROTECT Act) to allow the prosecution 
of suspected sex tourists for crimes committed abroad?  If so, how 
many of the country's nationals were prosecuted and/or convicted 
during the reporting period under the extraterritorial provision(s) 
for traveling to other countries to engage in child sex tourism? 
 
KINSHASA 00000248  008 OF 013 
 
 
N/A 
 
End responses to paragraph 27. 
 
PROTECTION AND ASSISTANCE TO VICTIMS 
 
¶5. (SBU) Begin responses to paragraph 28: 
 
-- A.  What kind of protection is the government able under 
existing law to provide for victims and witnesses? Does it provide 
these protections in practice? 
 
The Katangan Provincial Ministry of Interior provided food and 
shelter to street children in Lubumbashi through its center for 
street children.  The Government also works with NGOs and religious 
entities throughout the country that provide such activities. 
 
-- B.  Does the country have victim care facilities (shelters or 
drop-in centers) which are accessible to trafficking victims? 
 
Yes, please see above. 
 
Do foreign victims have the same access to care as domestic 
trafficking victims? 
 
Yes, in principle, although it is hard to verify, particularly in 
border areas. 
 
Where are child victims placed (e.g., in shelters, foster care, or 
juvenile justice detention centers)? 
 
Child soldiers were handed over to MONUC, UNICEF, Save the Children 
UK, and other NGOs for assistance, rehabilitation, and 
reunification with their families.  UNICEF supported over 270 
foster families and 17 temporary care centers in 2009 to provide 
protection and care to children separated from armed forces and 
groups, pending their reunification with families. 
 
Does the country have specialized care for adults in addition to 
children? 
 
No. 
 
Does the country have specialized care for male victims as well as 
female? 
 
No, however, the DDR program does provide services for both male 
and female children. 
 
Does the country have specialized facilities dedicated to helping 
victims of trafficking?  Are these facilities operated by the 
government or by NGOs?  What is the funding source of these 
facilities?  Please estimate the amount the government spent (in 
U.S. dollar equivalent) on these specialized facilities dedicated 
to helping trafficking victims during the reporting period. 
 
Yes. NGOs operated centers to help rehabilitate demobilized child 
soldiers.  Their funding source was from international donors. 
UEPNDDR received funds from the World Bank for child DDR.  It also 
received funds from ADB, but we are unsure if those monies were for 
adults only.  Funding amounts are not known. 
 
-- C.  Does the government provide trafficking victims with access 
to legal, medical and psychological services?  If so, please 
specify the kind of assistance provided. 
 
No.  The government-issued Operational Framework for DDR includes 
specific standards for child DDR including medical screening and 
psychosocial care. Government funds from the World Bank for child 
DDR programs ensure access to holistic services during temporary 
care and reunification. 
 
KINSHASA 00000248  009 OF 013 
 
 
Does the government provide funding or other forms of support to 
foreign or domestic NGOs and/or international organizations for 
providing these services to trafficking victims?  Please explain 
and provide any funding amounts in U.S. dollar equivalent.  If 
assistance provided was in-kind, please specify exact assistance. 
Please specify if funding for assistance comes from a federal 
budget or from regional or local governments. 
 
The GDRC allowed, and in some cases worked closely with, NGOs and 
international organizations to provide these services.  These 
organizations informed the GDRC of their activities. 
 
-- D. Does the government assist foreign trafficking victims, for 
example, by providing temporary to permanent residency status, or 
other relief from deportation?  If so, please explain. 
 
No, but in practice victims are very rarely subject to deportation. 
 
-- E. Does the government provide longer-term shelter or housing 
benefits to victims or other resources to aid the victims in 
rebuilding their lives? 
 
No. 
 
-- F. Does the government have a referral process to transfer 
victims detained, arrested or placed in protective custody by law 
enforcement authorities to institutions that provide short- or 
long-term care (either government or NGO-run)? 
 
When child soldiers were apprehended or showed up to brassage 
centers, the FARDC and UEPN-DDR referred them to MONUC, UNICEF and 
NGOs for care. 
 
-- G. What is the total number of trafficking victims identified 
during the reporting period?  (If available, please specify the 
type of exploitation of these victims - e.g. "The government 
identified X number of trafficking victims during the reporting 
period, Y or which were victims of trafficking for sexual 
exploitation and Z of which were victims of nonconsensual labor 
exploitation.)  Of these, how many victims were referred to care 
facilities for assistance by law enforcement authorities during the 
reporting period? 
 
Per UNICEF, approximately 5,000 children were demobilized during 
the year. 
 
By social services officials? 
 
To our knowledge, none. 
 
What is the number of victims assisted by government-funded 
assistance programs and those not funded by the government during 
the reporting period? 
 
The government-run child center in Lubumbashi held a capacity of 
800 children. 
 
-- H. Do the government's law enforcement, immigration, and social 
services personnel have a formal system of proactively identifying 
victims of trafficking among high-risk persons with whom they come 
in contact (e.g., foreign persons arrested for prostitution or 
immigration violations)? 
 
Per our knowledge, no. 
 
For countries with legalized prostitution, does the government have 
a mechanism for screening for trafficking victims among persons 
involved in the legal/regulated commercial sex trade? 
 
N/A. 
 
-- I. Are the rights of victims respected?  Are trafficking victims 
 
KINSHASA 00000248  010 OF 013 
 
 
detained or jailed?   If so, for how long?  Are victims fined?  Are 
victims prosecuted for violations of other laws, such as those 
governing immigration or prostitution? 
 
The FARDC occasionally detained demobilized child soldiers on 
charges of being members of illegal armed groups.  However, they 
were released quickly if discovered by MONUC, UNICEF or NGOs. 
 
-- J. Does the government encourage victims to assist in the 
investigation and prosecution of trafficking? 
 
We are not aware of any government encouragement. 
 
How many victims assisted in the investigation and prosecution of 
traffickers during the reporting period? 
 
We are not aware of any assistance by victims. 
 
May victims file civil suits or seek legal action against 
traffickers? 
 
Yes.  Although, not aware of any cases filed during reporting 
period. 
 
Does anyone impede victim access to such legal redress?  If a 
victim is a material witness in a court case against a former 
employer, is the victim permitted to obtain other employment or to 
leave the country pending trial proceedings?  Are there means by 
which a victim may obtain restitution? 
 
Not aware of any cases filed. 
 
-- K. Does the government provide any specialized training for 
government officials in identifying trafficking victims and in the 
provision of assistance to trafficked victims, including the 
special needs of trafficked children? 
 
Not aware of any specialized training. 
 
Does the government provide training on protections and assistance 
to its embassies and consulates in foreign countries that are 
destination or transit countries? 
 
Not aware of any training. 
 
What is the number of trafficking victims assisted by the host 
country's embassies or consulates abroad during the reporting 
period?  Please explain the type of assistance provided (travel 
documents, referrals to assistance, payment for transportation 
home). 
 
Not aware of any cases. 
 
-- L. Does the government provide assistance, such as medical aid, 
shelter, or financial help, to its nationals who are repatriated as 
victims of trafficking? 
 
Not aware of any government assistance to repatriated victims. 
 
-- M. Which international organizations or NGOs, if any, work with 
trafficking victims? 
 
MONUC, UNICEF, IOM, BVES, CAJED, Save the Children UK, Lazarius, 
COOPI, REEJER, AASD, Aiglons, Simama Developpement, Reconfort, 
APEDE, BICE, Caritas, Don Bosco, Midima, CRB, and more. 
 
What type of services do they provide? 
 
Services included:  community re-integration, vocational training, 
re-enrollment in primary or secondary education, conflict 
resolution seminars, sexual violence counseling, psychological 
counseling, mediation between children and families, medical 
 
KINSHASA 00000248  011 OF 013 
 
 
treatment, and income generating activities. 
 
What sort of cooperation do they receive from local authorities? 
 
They usually received full cooperation. 
 
End responses to paragraph 28. 
 
PREVENTION 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Begin responses to paragraph 29: 
 
-- A. Did the government conduct anti-trafficking information or 
education campaigns during the reporting period?  If so, briefly 
describe the campaign(s), including their objectives and 
effectiveness.  Please provide the number of people reached by such 
awareness efforts, if available.  Do these campaigns target 
potential trafficking victims and/or the demand for trafficking 
(e.g. "clients" of prostitutes or beneficiaries of forced labor)? 
 
-- B. Does the government monitor immigration and emigration 
patterns for evidence of trafficking? 
 
Not aware of any government monitoring. 
 
-- C. Is there a mechanism for coordination and communication 
between various agencies, internal, international, and multilateral 
on trafficking-related matters, such as a multi-agency working 
group or a task force? 
 
Not specifically.  The DDR working group at the central level is 
chaired by UEPNDDR; such coordination groups are functional in some 
provinces.  However, FARDC, UEPN-DDR, UNICEF,  MONUC DDR, MONUC 
Child Protection, and international NGOs have created communication 
links between themselves and with host country officials to quickly 
demobilize child soldiers once they are discovered. 
 
-- D. Does the government have a national plan of action to address 
trafficking in persons? 
 
No.  There is a national strategy to combat sexual violence. 
 
If the plan was developed during the reporting period, which 
agencies were involved in developing it?  Were NGOs consulted in 
the process?  What steps has the government taken to implement the 
action plan? 
 
N/A 
 
-- E: Required of all Posts: What measures has the government taken 
during the reporting period to reduce the demand for commercial sex 
acts?   (see ref B, para. 9(3) for examples) 
 
None. 
 
-- F. Required of all Posts: What measures has the government taken 
during the reporting period to reduce the participation in 
international child sex tourism by nationals of the country? 
 
N/A - No sex tourism here. 
 
-- G. Required of posts in countries that have contributed over 100 
troops to international peacekeeping efforts: 
 
N/A 
 
End responses to paragraph 29. 
 
PARTNERSHIPS 
 
¶7. (SBU) Begin responses to paragraph 30: 
 
KINSHASA 00000248  012 OF 013 
 
 
-- A.  Does the government engage with other governments, civil 
society, and/or multilateral organizations to focus attention and 
devote resources to addressing human trafficking?  If so, please 
provide details. 
 
During the year government officials participated in a tripartite 
dialogue on child labor in Katanga Province with unions, 
enterprises, and the International Labor Organization. 
 
-- B.  What sort of international assistance does the government 
provide to other countries to address TIP? 
 
None that we are aware of. 
 
End responses to paragraph 30. 
 
NEW REQUIREMENTS FOR CHILD SOLDIER PREVENTION ACT 
 
¶8. (SBU) Begin responses to paragraph 31: 
 
--A.  Report if the following occurred: conscription or forced 
recruitment of persons under the age of 18 into governmental armed 
forces; voluntary recruitment of any person under 15 years of age 
into governmental armed forces; the extent to which any person 
under the age of 18 took a  direct part in hostilities as a member 
of governmental armed forces; recruitment (forced or voluntary) of 
persons under the age of 18 by armed groups distinct from those of 
the governmental armed forces, including paramilitary forces, 
illegal paramilitary groups, guerrillas, or other armed groups. 
 
All of the above mentioned violations took place in 2009 by both 
the armed forces and armed groups. The 1612 Monitoring and 
Reporting Mechanism and the Task Force, led by MONUC and UNICEF, 
report regularly on six grave violations against child rights, 
including abduction, recruitment, and sexual violence. 
 
--B.  Describe trends toward improvement of the above-mentioned 
practices, including steps and programs the government undertook or 
the continued or increased tolerance of such practices, including 
the role of the government in engaging in or tolerating such 
practices. 
 
The government allowed EUSEC to conduct a census of troops allowing 
for the identification of child soldiers.  The UEPNDDR government 
agency is engaged in advocacy to end the use and recruitment of 
children.  The national army has resumed the recruitment of 
children, a practice which observers thought ended by 2008. This is 
a major step, rolling back progress with the Government of DRC. 
Simultaneously, no progress has been made in the development of an 
Action Plan with the Government to end recruitment of children, 
despite a letter from the UN Mission to the Minister of Defense. 
However, MONUC was able to obtain from the higher military command 
of Kimia II, orders for the release of all children, asking all 
commanders to cooperate. That support, in some cases, facilitated 
access to children for their release. 
 
--C.  Report abuse of children recruited by armed forces or the 
armed groups noted above (e.g., sexual abuse or use for forced 
labor). Describe the manner and age of conscription. 
 
Children recruited and used by armed forces and groups face a 
variety of abuses from forced labor to sexual abuse. The ranking of 
uses of children is as follows: combatants, escorts, domestic 
labor, porters, and sexual exploitation.  Voluntary recruitment, 
forced recruitment and abduction are all used to associate children 
into armed conflict. 
 
--D.  In discussing activities of armed groups distinct from those 
of governmental armed forces, explain the position of the 
government towards the armed group (opposition, tolerance, support, 
etc.) in detail. 
 
KINSHASA 00000248  013 OF 013 
 
 
The Government does not tolerate the presence of armed groups or 
their use of children. 
 
End responses to paragraph 31. 
 
POST CONTACT 
 
¶9.  Post's contact officer is Political Officer Lisa Overman, 
+243-81-556-0151 ext. 2620 (Embassy phone) and OvermanLL@state.gov. 
Time spent preparing report by Polcouns, Poloff, Political LES, and 
USAID: 40 hours. 
GARVELINK