COMMUNITIES here are urged to be vigilant against human trafficking that victimizes young women for commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor.
The Regional and Davao City Inter-Agency Councils Against Trafficking also called on the public’s help and cooperation in a campaign addressing human trafficking or trafficking in persons (TIP).
The call corresponds to this year’s theme in the observance of the International Day Against Trafficking in Persons last Monday urging Komunidad Palakasin, Child Trafficking Sugpuin.
DCIACAT and RIACAT led the event at the People’s Park which brought together about a hundred advocates and children from about 43 member-agencies of the Councils of the government, non-government and civil society organizations.
The Councils raised the need to educate and mobilize communities following the increasing incidence of TIP in the region, noting that victims were as young as 14 years old lured to sexual trade in the guise of domestic or overseas employment.
“Many children were lured to work, especially outside the country,” said Raquel Nuñez, technical assistant division chief of the Department of Social Welfare and Development, one of the lead agencies in the RIACAT and DCIACAT.
Nuñez warned the public, especially parents of young children, to be waryof job recruiters, saying that people in the communities should scrutinize the legality of the recruiting agency or individuals.
“There were also professionals who fell victim to illegal recruitment and human trafficking,” she stated, adding that no one is an exemption to human trafficking.
Davao City-based Talikala, Inc. cited a documented case of a 25-year old woman who was promised a job as waitress in Cebu, but was forced into sexual exploitation.
Talikala executive director Jeanette Ampog disclosed that the victim was made to work as a waitress from 8:00 am to 2:00 pm. The waitress would turn into a guest relation officer (GRO) from 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm, and as a dancer from 8:00 pm to midnight.
The victim was rescued by a religious organization, Ampog said.
She reported that 90 percent of the 35 cases they have so far documented this year involved young girls aged 14-17 years who were deviously recruited to become call girls, guest relation officers (GROs), entertainers and dancers.
Talikala, a non-government organization that caters to prostituted women and children, goes to the barangays in Davao City to conduct preventive education and conduct forums on Republic Act 9208 or the Anti-Trafficking in Persons.
The DSWD has also strengthened its anti-human trafficking advocacy in the communities with the help of the agency’s municipal and provincial offices all over the Davao region.
Nuñez said that part of DSWD’s advocacy program is training children to say “no” to employment invitations and offerings.
She urges parents to give time to their children, including adult members of the family as a way for them to avoid being victimized by human trafficking syndicates.
Meanwhile, Department of Justice assistant regional prosecutor Barbara Mae Flores urge victims to come out in the open, adding that a lot of agencies are ready to assist them with services such as legal and psycho-social.
Flores said that victims who feel threatened need not worry because DOJ provides them a protection program and other services.
She said public or concerned individuals could report TIP incidents to RIACAT’s hotline numbers (082) 330-3058 and 0917-7185588. [PIA-11/CARINA L. CAYON]
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