Rescued Zamboanga Trafficking Victims Had ‘No Idea Where They Were Going’

The 48 would-be victims of human trafficking rescued here last week (February 11) composed of men, women and two boys were promised jobs in skilled labor, but they had no idea where they were going to work.

Ivan Salvador, chief of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) – 9 Social Marketing Unit, said as per the case worker, the victims were told by the recruiter that they will be given jobs in carpentry and construction and others requiring skilled labor, but were in the dark as to where they were headed. Salvador said that the victims could have been in danger of forced labor or other similar conditions if they were not rescued.

On February 11, the boat M/L “Moneza” was intercepted by government vessels and anti-trafficking authorities in Zamboanga City waters, Naval Forces Western Mindanao (NAVFORWEM) reported in a press statement. The boat was on its way to Taganak, Tawi-Tawi, where the victims would have disembarked before boarding another boat for Sabah, Malaysia.

Salvador said the victims come from Zamboanga City and Zamboanga del Sur, but their identities are withheld for their security.

The DSWD here has already provided counseling and psychosocial support to the victims, while transportation assistance ranging from Php2,000-5,000 were provided to help the victims return home.

The boat and its crew are in the custody of the Philippine Coast Guard in Zamboanga City.

Inter-agency councils have continuously warned the public against the dangers of human trafficking, particularly those perpetrated by shady individuals that promise job prospects abroad without elaborating, and without the legal placement processes.

The Protocol to prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons (TIPs) defines TIPs as the “recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring or receipt of persons by means of threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation.” (ALT/DIS/PIA9-Zamboanga City)