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FM AMEMBASSY PARIS
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 8352
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEATRS/DEPARTMENT OF TREASURY WASHDC PRIORITY
RHMFIUU/DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEHC/DEPARTMENT OF LABOR WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEAWJA/DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE WASHDC PRIORITY
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 06 PARIS 000198
SIPDIS
DEPARTMENT FOR G/TIP (JENNIFER DONNELLY), G (LAURA PENA),
EUR/PGI (JODY BUCKNEBERG), INL, DRL, PRM
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KTIP KCRM PHUM KWMN SMIG KFRD ASEC PREF ELAB
,KMCA, FR
SUBJECT: FRANCE: INPUT FOR THE 2010 TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS
REPORT (PART 2 OF 3)
REF: STATE 2094
PARIS 00000198 001.6 OF 006
PROTECTION AND ASSISTANCE TO VICTIMS
-------------------------------------
5. (SBU) Responses are keyed to reporting questions specified
in paragraph 28 of reftel.
What kind of protection is the government able under existing
law to provide for victims and witnesses? Does it provide
these protections in practice?
-- A. Victims' assistance is primarily handled by NGOs in
close association with the French government. Once a
trafficking victimQ identified by the police or social
services to the NGOs that work with the victims, the
individual is given shelter, access to legal counsel, food,
and medical care. Since the Council of Europe's Convention
to Fight Trafficking in Persons entered into force in 2008 in
France, victims have a 30-day reflection period after
receiving medical and psychological assistance and the right
to compensation to consider whether they wish to cooperate
with authorities and to decide a course of action.
Does the country have victim care facilities (shelters or
drop-in centers) which are accessible to trafficking victims?
Do foreign victims have the same access to care as domestic
trafficking victims? Where are child victims placed (e.g.,
in shelters, foster care, or juvenile justice detention
centers)? Does the country have specialized care for adults
in addition to children? Does the country have specialized
care for male victims as well as female? 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.
-- B. Most victim care facilities in France take the form of
temporary shelters maintained by the network of NGOs, which
are supported by government funding and private sources.
Specifically, France works with the Association (ALC), the
Committee Against Modern Slavery (CCEM), and L'Amicale du Nid
among others to shelter and aid victims. The CCEM contacts
noted that they often require the aid of religious groups in
different regions to provide temporary lodging for victims,
as they only have a handful of emergency apartments for use
and do not maintain permanent shelters. In cooperation with
Zero Tolerance on Modern Slavery (ETZ) in the south of
France, the CCEM works with pro-bono medical and social
service professionals to assist victims of forced labor. For
child victims, Action Teams Against Pimping (EACP) runs an
SOS prostitution helpline and provides support for sexually
exploited minors. The government provides training through
the Minister of Social Action to NGOs and social workers to
help victims of trafficking. The CCEM also works with local
charities to provide interpretation services via telephone
for victims in Arabic, Spanish, and Wolof, recognizing that
the majority of victims are foreign nationals who may not
speak French when they call hotlines.
Does the government provide trafficking victims with access
to legal, medical, and psychological services? If so, please
specify the kind of assistance provided. 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.
-- C. The GOF sends victims to NGOs for assistance with
temporary shelter and access to legal, medical, and
psychological services. General medical attention, including
emergency care, is also provided through the national health
care system. In addition to such assistance, victims are
also given a stipend by the GOF through NGOs, with the
amounts varying per NGO. CCEM contacts reported that they
provide victims with a stipend of 100 euros ($137) a month.
According to the OCRTEH, the government does not release
complete figures on how much it contributes to anti-TIP NGOs
every year. However, contacts at the CCEM reveal that they
received 46,000 euros ($63,020) in 2009, representing roughly
20 percent of their annual budget.
PARIS 00000198 002.6 OF 006
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.
-- D. As French nationals are rarely victims of trafficking,
the majority of the assistance is provided to foreign
trafficking victims. Under article R316-1 of the code of
entry and stay of foreigners and asylum seekers (CESEDA),
victims of trafficking or pimping may receive a temporary
residence permit labeled "private and family life" for a
minimum of six months by the local prefect if they file a
complaint against the perpetrators of the crime or testify in
criminal proceedings against a person prosecuted for a
similar offense. The OCRTEH stated that the temporary
residence permits were typically valid for one year and are
renewable every six month, for the duration of the criminal
procedure provided that the conditions for its issuance
continue to be met. In the event of a final conviction of
defendants for trafficking-related offenses, a permanent
resident card may be issued to foreign national victims. The
French government does not report the number of residence
cards given each year. As in previous years, Fondation
Scelles continued to express frustration with the fees
required for the residency permit and renewal of the permit.
The residency permit granted to victims that is valid for one
year costs 300 euros ($411) and 55 euros ($79) to renew it
every six months.
Does the government provide longer-term shelter or housing
benefits to victims or other resources to aid the victims in
rebuilding their lives?
-- E. The government does not provide longer-term shelter or
housing benefits to victims.
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)?
-- F. The government has an NGO-run referral program to
transfer victims detained, arrested, or placed in protective
custody by law enforcement authorities to institutions that
provide short-term care. The GOF also provides witness
protection services for victims of trafficking who work with
police to prosecute traffickers. Case-specific protection in
France must be authorized by a judge and can take the form of
complete 24-hour-a-day protection for victims who will
testify or a mixed protection program in which police work
with NGOs to assure the protection of victims. In order to
qualify for the more robust protection program, victims must
fulfill certain criteria that involve being the primary
witness or essential to the outcome of a trial.
What is the total number of trafficking victims identified
during the reporting period? Of these, how many victims were
referred to care facilities for assistance by law enforcement
authorities during the reporting period? By social services
officials? What is the number of victims assisted by
government-funded assistance programs and those not funded by
the government during the reporting period?
-- G. The government identified 822 trafficking victims in
2008. There is no official number of victims assisted by
government-funded assistance programs and those not funded by
the government during the reporting period.
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)? 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?
-- H. The pocket-sized cards distributed by the MiQstry of
Economy, Industry, and Employment instruct border police and
NGOs on how to correctly identify trafficking victims.
Does the country have a mechanism for screening for
trafficking victims among persons involved in the
legal/regulated commercial sex trade? Are the rights of
victims respected? Are trafficking victims 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?
-- I. Law enforcement contacts in the Ministry of Interior
PARIS 00000198 003.6 OF 006
report that the anti-soliciting law, which was criminalized
in the 2003 Internal Security Law (LSI) is used as a means to
evaluate the situation of prostitutes and screen for
potential victims of trafficking. There is evidence that
victims may be inadvertently penalized for unlawful acts that
were committed as a direct result of being trafficked. NGOs
reported that women in prostitution are sometimes arrested
and fined for solicitation without being screened to
determine whether they are trafficking victims.
Does the government encourage victims to assist in the
investigation and prosecution of trafficking? How many
victims assisted in the investigation and prosecution of
traffickers during the reporting period? May victims file
civil suits or seek legal action against traffickers? 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?
-- J. The GOF encourages victims to assist in the
investigation and prosecution of traffickers and provides
temporary residence permits to those victims who provide
information essential to the investigation and prosecution of
traffickers. The law also permits trafficking victims to
remain in the country for the duration of the trial if they
agree to testify against their perpetrators. Victims are
allowed to stay long-term if they aid in the conviction of
their perpetrator. The Ministry of Justice did not provide
specific numbers on the number of victims who assisted in the
investigation and prosecution of traffickers during the
reporting period.
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? Does the
government provide training on protections and assistance to
its embassies and consulates in foreign countries that are
destination or transit countries? 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).
-- K. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the
French government has officials in 100 embassies around the
world who function as a liaison with the host government on
trafficking issues. In addition, there are also French
police officers embedded in French embassies in source
countries who work on trafficking in persons issues.
Although the GOF did not provide the number of trafficking
victims assisted by French embassies abroad during the
reporting period, an example of French cooperation with other
governments in the investigation of a trafficking case would
be the successful dismantling of a child prostitution network
in Cambodia by French and Cambodian police. The joint sting
operation against the pedophilia ring operating in Phnom Penh
was carried out on January 21, 2010. The existence of the
network, in place since 2003, was revealed by an anonymous
source of the French NGO "Innocence in Danger," which
identifies suspected pedophiles on the internet. For six
months, Cambodian authorities investigated the case with the
help of the French Embassy, leading to the arrest of two
Cambodian citizens charged with child prostitution and an
American suspected of indecent acts with three minors. The
MFA spokesperson said that "France is thrilled by the success
of the operation...and will pursue such actions in
partnership with the local authorities of the countries
affected in order to fight human trafficking." The victims
have placed under the protection of NGOs in Cambodia.
Does the government provide assistance, such as medical aid,
shelter, or financial help, to its nationals who are
repatriated as victims of trafficking?
-- L. There were no reports of French nationals as
trafficking victims during the reporting period.
Which international organizations or NGOs, if any, work with
trafficking victims? What type of services do they provide?
What sort of cooperation do they receive from local
authorities?
-- M. NGOs and the GOF work very closely to combat
trafficking and to provide assistance to victims. The
inter-ministerial commission on anti-trafficking established
PARIS 00000198 004.6 OF 006
in 2008 is comprised of the following NGOs: the Committee
Against Modern Slavery (CCEM), Dispositif ACSE, L'Amicale du
Nid, Fondation Scelles, Hors la Rue, Les Amis du Bus des
Femmes, and Amnesty International, which all work with
trafficking victims in some form. In addition, the
commission involves the participation of the International
Organization for Migration, the International Labor
Organization (ILO), the Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the European Commission, and
the Council of Europe.
PREVENTION
----------
6. (U) Responses are keyed to reporting questions specified
in paragraph 29 of reftel.
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)?
-- A. The organization to End Child Prostitution, Child
Pornography, and Trafficking of Children for Sexual Purposes
(ECPAT) unveiled its new public campaign in March 2009.
Courtesy of BETC Euro RSCG and Partizan, the new ECPAT
campaign was launched in cooperation with Air France, a
partner of ECPAT for the past 15 years. The campaign
developed several shocking and poignant themes in regards to
sex tourism, child pornography, and child prostitution. In
both film and in print ads, the campaign against sexual
tourism depicted the horrible reality of the sexual
exploitation of children and the chain of violence they
suffer as a result of the abuse. The ads which have been
strategically placed throughout Paris, show a disturbing
series of photographs of a young Asian girl and the different
stages of abuse she suffered before forced into prostitution.
In the hopes of shaming consumers of cyber child
pornography, the film and print ad examples featured the
often violent and painful ways in which children are forced
to strip against their will and the immoral pleasure of
adults viewing the content on-line. Prison sentences and the
legal consequences of sex with a minor were stressed
repeatedly through the use of visual ad campaigns and radio
spots to highlight the problem of the prostitution of minors.
All elements of the ECPAT campaign highlighted the strong
French laws against the sexual exploitation of children.
Program Coordinator for ECPAT Carole Bartoli stated that the
campaigns seek to "hold consumers (of child sexual
exploitation) accountable" and will keep them from
"insulating themselves or minimizing the scope of their
actions." Launched on April 6, 2009, the campaign was
distributed widely on television, in movie theatres, in the
major dailies, via radio, and on the internet. In June 2009,
Air France aircraft and cars showcased the new campaign.
ECPAT also distributed flyers and posters to all major
tourism agencies in France. In addition, Air France
continues to show anti-sex trade films on buses
and shuttles between downtown Paris and major airports while
also distributing anti-sex trade pamphlets on flights to
sex-tourism destinations. Airports similarly feature
anti-trafficking and anti-sex trade posters inside terminals.
On October 9, 2009, Secretary of State for Sports Rama Yade
announced the creation of the public-private French "sports
fund for the international protection of children,"
committing two million euros ($2.74 million) to the cause.
She noted that foreign players, particularly from Africa, are
recruited as early as age 13 by European training centers and
an overwhelming majority of them do not reach professional
levels, leaving them penniless and without official papers.
Yade proposed working with FIFA and the African countries in
the lead up to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa to become
more active in fighting the practice of child sports
trafficking. She personally committed herself to bringing
together all those actors who are willing to promote social
development within communities and strengthen local
organizations by providing essential infrastructure through
outreach to clubs, leagues, federations, businesses, and
fans.
Does the government monitor immigration and emigration
PARIS 00000198 005.6 OF 006
patterns for evidence of trafficking?
-- B. The GOF does not have a designated border monitoring
unit that focuses specifically on trafficking in persons.
But border officials are trained to spot trends in
trafficking in persons, as well as organized crime and
narcotics. The OCRTEH also works with immigration officials
to report increases in trafficking and to combat trafficking.
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?
-- C. The General Secretariat for European Affairs created
the inter-ministerial working group to ensure GOF compliance
with the Council of Europe Convention on Action against
Trafficking in Human Beings. The convention states that
"each Party shall take measures to establish or strengthen
national coordination between the various bodies responsible
for the prevention and the fight against trafficking in human
beings." The parties must therefore adopt "measures
necessary to ensure the coordination of policy and
administration of public agencies in the fight against the
trafficking of human beings as necessary by establishing
coordinating bodies." To meet this requirement, the French
multi-disciplinary working group, established in December
2008, drafted a decree establishing greater inter-ministerial
coordination and the text was forwarded to the Prime
Minister. As in previous years, the government also
sponsored a nationwide conference at the Supreme Court on
January 22, 2010, that brought together enfor
cement officials, magistrates, and NGOs to discuss how better
to improve communication and cooperation in protecting
victims and preventing trafficking.
Does the government have a national plan of action to address
trafficking in persons? 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?
-- D. The multi-disciplinary group, composed of experts from
French government ministries and European NGOs, meet on a
regular basis to define the structure of a national
coordination and action plan to place the protection of
trafficking victims at the center of the fight against
organized crime. Government offices also meet with NGOS
under the aegis of the Cooperation Committee Against Sexual
Exploitation to develop new proposals and encourage best
practices that Qld update a 2002 national action plan to
fight trafficking. Ministry of Justice contacts stated that
they plan to have a draft action plan ready for approval by
the end of 2010.
Required of all Posts: What measures has the government taken
during the reporting period to reduce the demand for
commercial sex acts?
-- E: On November 25, 2009, Prime Minister Francois Fillon
declared that combating violence against women would be the
great national cause in 2010. Every year, the GOF selects
one major issue to represent the "grande cause nationale" and
grants NGOs a special budget to lead the awareness campaign.
The group of 25 NGOs assigned to lead the campaign against
violence against women includes Fondation Scelles and
L'Amicable du Nid, which have already promoted the need to
raise awareness about the violence perpetrated against women
exploited in the commercial sex industry and modern slavery.
Fondation Scelles also works with the university system in
France to engage directly with French youth and sensitize
20,000 to 30,000 students to the issue of prostitution and
the problem of human trafficking.
Required of all Posts: What measures has the government taken
during the reporting period to reduce the participation Q
international child sex tourism by nationals of the country?
-- F. The French government continues to fund programs
through airlines and tourism operators describing the
penalties for child sex tourism. Pamphlets given to tourists
feature a picture of a child and the message, "she is not
merchandise." The OCRTEH reported that the MFA researches
and reports on indicators of child sex tourism abroad and
uses this data to warn French tourists of child sex tourism
sites and to monitor increases in sexual tourism. All Air
France buses and shuttles between Paris and Roissy-Charles de
Gaule and Orly airports show a video reminding tourists that
their actions on foreign soil are subject to prosecution in
PARIS 00000198 006.8 OF 006
France. Club Med sends tourists traveling with their company
to source countries documents detailing the penalties for
engaging in sex with a minor. All tourism students in France
must do course work on sex tourism.
To respond to the surge in prostitution on the internet, the
center for the national child sexual abuse database (CNAIP),
which is run by the National Gendarmerie in Rosny-sous-Bois,
has granted gendarmes the right to pass themselves off as
minors on web forums to track down internet pedophiles as of
March 30, 2009. In cooperation with international
counterparts, the cyber-patrol units are responsible for
examining all illegal content collected during criminal
investigations of child abuse to identify perpetrators and
victims. Using a pseudonym or avatar, the on-line
investigators will connect with chat rooms and forums to
identify pedophiles and prevent potential offenses involving
sexual proposals to minors.
Required of posts in countries that have contributed over 100
troops to international peacekeeping efforts: What measures
has the government adopted to ensure that its nationals who
are deployed abroad as part of a peacekeeping or other
similar mission do not engage in or facilitate severe forms
of trafficking or exploit victims of such trafficking?
-- G. French military personnel receive training on
trafficking and sexual abuse during their basic training.
There is also a three-week training course given to
peacekeepers before their departure. During this course,
instructors recount problems of sexual abuse and
exploitation, and soldiers are given a card that reminds them
of international human rights. France also supplies a legal
advisor to deployed units who doubles as a human rights
officer. In this position, the officer assures that troops
respect international norms and human rights. The French NGO
L'Amicale du Nid reported that it continues to work with the
Ministry of Defense to organize more specific trafficking
training.
RIVKIN