Anti-trafficking tipsters rewarded

THE porters who tipped off police about suspected trafficking yesterday received cash rewards of P3,000 each from the Cebu province’s inter-agency task force against human trafficking.

Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, task force chairperson, turned over the cash to eight porters whose names were kept confidential for security reasons.

Carmelita Rabaya, president of the Universal Integrated Porters Association of Cebu, received the amount on their behalf. The association is part of the task force created under Executive Order No. 9 last Aug. 18.

The porters’ tips led to the rescue of 18 girls from Bohol and Leyte provinces from suspected illegal recruiters who accompanied them in Cebu’s pier 4 en route to Manila where the girls and women were promised jobs as nannies and housekeepers.

Task force members also signed an agreement that defined their roles in the fight against human trafficking.

The signatories included the International Justice Mission, Aboitiz Transport System, Hotel Resort and Restaurant Association of Cebu, Visayas Forum Foundation Inc. and the porters’ association.

Government signatories included the Department of Labor and Employment, Department of Tourism, Philippine Overseas Employment Agency, Bureau of Immigration and Deportation, Maritime Industry Authority, National Bureau of Investigation, Police Regional Office in Central Visayas, Philippine Coast Guard Central Eastern Visayas, Cebu Ports Authority and Mactan-Cebu International Airport Authority.