by UNTV News and Rescue | Posted on Thursday, 6 December 2018 04:57 PM
(file photo)
MANILA, Philippines – The 2018 Global Slavery Index report shows a significant rise in the number of victims of human trafficking in the Philippines.
Most notable was the incident of 13 minors, including a two-month-old baby, who were trafficked by their own relatives and were rescued in March last year by operatives of the National Bureau of Investigation
Specifically, the minors were used to promote child pornography.
“Masakit, kasi ang mga perpetrators ay mga magulang at mga relatives. So, sino pa ang pagkakatiwalaan ng mga kabataan natin ngayon kung even ang magulang nila ay kinakalakal sila?” said Atty Janet Francisco, chief of the NBI Anti-Human Trafficking Division.
Their case is just one of the more than 700,000 victims of human trafficking based on the report.
This puts the Philippines in the 12th rank among countries with the highest incidence of modern-day slavery in the entire Asia Pacific.
The report notes that among the 44 million people trafficked across the globe, 73% were victims of forced sexual exploitation; 68% were victims of forced labor; 64% were victims of labor exploitation; while 42% were led to forced marriages.
“It is no wonder that slavery has broken the very fabric of nations…It has destroyed families and communities and brought war to the mightiest of economies. The inherent injustice in building fortunes from the misfortune of some, presents one of the strongest compulsions for the abolition of slavery,” explained Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra.
Meanwhile, the Department of Justice (DOJ) takes pride in the rescue of a 9-year-old girl and the arrest of her French pedophile perpetrator who spread lewd photographs online.
“This information was transmitted to the Philippines and Australia and was subsequently corroborated with the Philippine women and children protection center,” narrated Secretary Guevarra.
Four months after the trial and 9 months after rescue of the child, a conviction for qualified trafficking was handed down by our courts” he added referring to the success of the case.
Guevarra, meanwhile, calls on the international community to unite to protect the poor who are the most susceptible to human trafficking. – Marje Pelayo (with reports from Mai Bermudez)
Source: UNTV
