Marcos Jr. orders intensified efforts vs human trafficking

FILE PHOTO: President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. | PHOTO: official facebook page of President Marcos

MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. has ordered two government bodies to step up and harmonize government and private sector efforts in combating human trafficking.

Marcos issued the order during his meeting with the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT) and the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) in Malacañang on Monday, saying human trafficking could compromise the country’s economy and national security.

Marcos said the IACAT and PAOCC must “take the lead” in harmonizing government efforts and public-private partnerships to stop human trafficking “in its multifarious operations on the ground and now becoming more and more important online.”

In a Twitter post, Marcos said the government would fight for the welfare of Filipinos everywhere.

“Hindi hahayaan ng administrasyong ito ang pagtapak sa karapatan ng mga Pilipino saan man sila naroroon kaya ipaglalaban natin ito sa abot ng ating makakaya,” he said.

(This administration will not allow the trampling of the rights of Filipinos wherever they are, that’s why we will fight for them the best we can.)

Marcos also directed the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) to assist the IACAT in launching a communication campaign that will educate the public about the danger posed by syndicates engaged in the trafficking of persons.

He noted how good information is always a key element in preventing all the terrible abuses being committed against victims of human trafficking.

“So heightened public awareness is key. That’s what we spoke about a little bit earlier. The Presidential Communications Office must assist IACAT in its communication campaign against trafficking in persons in order to amplify the effort,” the President said.

Marcos also directed the agencies to halt the operation of human traffickers who exploit the physical and economic weaknesses of vulnerable people, especially women and children.

“We are honoring women this month. So let us make sure that we take this time to look after their collective rights and interests in the enforcement and in the measures to remedy all that we implement,” he said.

The Chief Executive noted how trafficking in persons had been an ongoing problem for many countries, especially as the global economy recovers from the coronavirus pandemic, which made life harder for many people.

People without work and a source of livelihood, he said, make them more vulnerable to human traffickers and it’s time for government intervention and protection.

“I think the room for improvement here is that we can work together more and coordinate together more and where – that puts meat on the bones of what we have come to call the whole-of-government approach and bring everything to bear to the problems that we are facing,” Marcos said.

He added it is fortunate that the country managed to repatriate human trafficking victims from Myanmar despite its ongoing civil unrest.

Marcos also raised the need for the Philippines to maintain its status in the tier system and “we must make sure that we do not fall out of Tier 1 into another tier.”

“I remember Secretary Toots and I started on this campaign to remove us from Tier 2. We are in danger coming down to tier 3 at the time. So we managed to take us back up to Tier 1. And let’s just make sure that the Tier 1 categorization or status of the Philippines is not put in any danger,” he said.

The Trafficking in Persons Office within the US Department of State conducts a yearly assessment to monitor all countries’ efforts to combat human trafficking and provides each country with a grade according to a 3-tier scale.

Countries and territories under Tier 1 fully comply with the minimum standards while those under Tier 2 do not fully comply with the minimum standards but are making significant efforts to bring themselves into compliance with them.

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JPV/abc