DOJ urges more trafficking victims to come forward

Justice Sec. Jesus Crispin Remulla —Photo from DOJ’s Facebook page/Boying Remulla

MANILA, Philippines — Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla on Monday called on abuse victims, their families, and members of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KJC) to come forward, after the Philippine National Police rescued over the weekend suspected trafficking victims from the sect’s compound.

Officers of the PNP’s Davao regional office have gathered outside the KJC compound since Saturday in another attempt to arrest the sect’s leader, fugitive televangelist Apollo Quiboloy.

According to them, the suspected trafficking victims they rescued were a 21-year-old man from Samar province and a woman of unspecified age from Midsayap town, Cotabato province.

READ: Alleged human trafficking victims rescued from KJC Compound

In a statement, Remulla commended the PNP for the rescue and assured the victims and their families of their safety on the watch of the Department of Justice (DOJ).

The suspected trafficking victims are currently being evaluated by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).

Remulla called for “stronger collaboration” between the DOJ, PNP, DSWD and the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking “to ensure airtight cases against the… human trafficking menace.”

Pastor’s cases

The televangelist and five of his associates are facing charges of violation of Republic Act No. 7610, or the Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination Act, now being heard by a Quezon City court.

They also face a nonbailable qualified human trafficking charge before a Pasig City court, which reissued an arrest warrant against Quiboloy on Aug. 20 after the earlier warrant could not be served since the fugitive could not be found.

In the United States, Quiboloy is wanted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation for “conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking by force, fraud and coercion,” “sex trafficking of children,” “conspiracy,” and “bulk cash smuggling,” among other charges.

VP’s ‘sympathies’

On Monday, the DSWD cautioned public officials against playing down “horrific acts” against trafficking victims.

“It is particularly painful when public figures, who should be champions of justice and defenders of the vulnerable, seem to downplay these horrific acts or align themselves with those accused of such egregious crimes,” the agency said.

“We must never forget that behind every case are real children, real mothers, and real families who are suffering,” the DSWD said.

For her part, House Deputy Majority Leader Janette Garin expressed concern over Vice President Sara Duterte’s apparent choice to side with Quiboloy instead of the women and children whom the pastor allegedly preyed on.

“While Vice President Duterte expresses concern over the police’s implementation of lawful warrants, I find it troubling that her sympathies appear to lie more with a powerful figure wanted for serious crimes rather than with the vulnerable women and minors who have suffered at the hands of an accused predator,” the Iloilo representative said in a statement. —reports from Jane Bautista, Jeannette I. Andrade, Dempsey Reyes and Inquirer Research