Most of the speedboats in Taganak, an island town, are registered in Sandakan for easy access and market. PHOTOS BY JULIE ALIPALA
ZAMBOANGA CITY, ZAMBOANGA DEL SUR – Fifteen persons, including a 14 year old boy and a senior citizen, were rescued by the local anti-human trafficking body in Bongao, Tawi-Tawi before they could board a vessel to Sarawak and Sabah, Malaysia, where they could become an easy prey for human trafficking, officials said.
Rosabella Sulani, head of the Municipal Inter-Agency Committee Against Trafficking (MIACAT) in Bongao, said the 15 individuals were reportedly on their way to Sarawak and Sabah, Malaysia via a backdoor channel without the necessary documents for legal work and travel abroad.
“Their lack of legal documents revealed that they were potential illegal entrants and vulnerable to human trafficking. They were reportedly promised job opportunities in the destination country,” Sulani said, citing the report from the Naval Forces in Western Mindanao (NFWM).
Of the 15 rescued persons, six were females and nine were males.
The MIACAT team along with personnel from NFWM’s Naval Intelligence Operatives, Tawi-Tawi police, Air Force Intelligence Operatives and the Local Council Against Trafficking and Violence Against Women and Children (LCAT VAWC), intercepted the potential victims on board the M/V Trisha Kerstine II, M/V Everqueen of Asia and P/B Lady Mera docked at Bongao port on June 20 and June 21.
Sulani said nine among the rescued individuals came from Sulu, one of them the 14-year old boy; three from Dipolog City including a senior citizen; one from Molave, Zamboanga del Sur: one from Butuan, Agusan del Norte and one from Tungawan, Zamboanga Sibugay.
Lt. Chester Cabaltera, NFWM spokesperson, said the June 20 and 21 rescue was the fourth this year and brought to 40 the total number of persons the anti-trafficking body had rescued.
On February 7, five men most of them from Zamboanga del Sur and General Santos City, were rescued aboard the commercial boat MV Ever Queen at the seaport of this city barely three days after six women and three men were rescued on board MV Magnolia at the port of Bongao, Tawi-Tawi on February 4. Most of those rescued in Bongao were from Zamboanga del Sur and Maguindanao.
On January 26, nine men and two women mostly from here and Basilan, were also rescued inside MV Magnolia at the port of Bongao.
Cabaltera said port and boat personnel were already briefed on how to detect would-be victims of human trafficking, especially if passengers could hardly produce the necessary papers and documents for travel.
Once detected, authorities are immediately informed and rescued individuals are immediately brought to the maritime police station for further profiling and documentation.
They are later turned over to the Ministry of Social Welfare and Development Office (MSWDO) in Bongao, Tawi-Tawi for counseling and stress debriefing, especially if they are rescued in one of the ports of Tawi-Tawi.
Ryan Hasim, a speedboat operator for Sandakan said it was easy to reach Sandakan from Taganak as long as the person had enough money and documents.
Taganak mayor Mohamad Faizal Jamalul said they strictly monitor new faces in their area because of Tawi-Tawi’s proximity to Sandakan, a city in Sabah, Malaysia, known as drop off point for illegal entrants.
“It only takes about 30 minutes to reach Sandakan from here in Taganak, so we are very strict in monitoring the people here,” Jamalul said.
Jamalul said they had some verbal understanding with Sandakan officials for those who go there to buy goods. “You go there with your passport and you are granted the whole day for buying goods,” the mayor said. “Before sundown, you have to return. They also open their doors to us in cases of emergency,” he added.
Ryan Hasim, 28, a speed boat operator in Taganak but whose boat is also registered in Sandakan, charges P5,000 for a special trip to Sandakan. He said it was very easy to reach Sandakan as long as the traveler had enough money and documents.
“If you go there for business, you need some 2,000 ringgit but if you take your chances [as an illegal entrant], you need 5,000 ringgit,” he said.
READ: Human trafficking now a ‘global threat’ – Bureau of Immigration
Hasim said there were natives of Tawi-Tawi who would prefer to risk ferrying undocumented passengers for a fee. Operators used documented vessels with SN marking to evade scrutiny from port inspectors.
He said he witnessed an incident last year when some boat operators covered their passengers until it got dark “May mga contacts yan sila sa pantalan, magbibigay yan sila ng ringgit bayad sa mga sumusundo sa kanila sa Sandakan (They have contacts at the port, where they will pay in ringgits people who would fetch them in Sandakan,” he said.