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| Protesters say the Philippine goverrnment is punishing victims, not the traffickers |
A group of Filipino domestic workers staged a rally this afternoon outside the Philippine Consulate holds offices, to condemn an attempt by the government’s Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT) to revise rules for all Filipinos departing the Philippines, including requiring those traveling as tourists to show proof of their financial capacity, or migrant workers to provide additional documents showing they have visas to work abroad.
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The rules were suspended on August 31 by the Department of Justice, and by IACAT itself on September 1, but the protesters said this was not enough.
“Scrap, not suspension of additional requirements
for all Filipino travellers,” was what the protesters from United Filipinos in
Hong Kong (Unifil-Migrante) demanded during their brief rally, which appeared
to have received support from other Filipinos transacting business at the
Consulate.
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One protester from Mission Movers held up a poster
that said, “OEC (overseas employment certificate) nga hirap na kaming kumuha,
yun pang dagdag na requirements pa kaya!”
Another’s poster read, “Go after human traffickers,
not their victims!”
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| Protesters want the the revised rules scrapped, not just suspended |
In defending their attempt to specify the additional
documents that may be asked from outbound Filipinos, both the IACAT and the DOJ,
which supervises the Bureau of Immigration, said they were merely protecting
travelers from falling prey to human trafficking.
However, the Philippines is among a few countries in
the region that has consistently received Tier 1 ranking from the US State
Department Report on Human Trafficking, indicating its ability to trump the
menace.
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Hong Kong, which rarely, if ever, requires departing
residents proof of their ability to support themselves while abroad, is in Tier
3.
Unifil-Migrante said that although the DOJ suspended
the rules due to criticism from various sectors including OFWs, “the fear of
Filipinos that this will be implemented again is always there.”
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The group cited as an example the difficulty imposed
by the revised rules on OFWs who want to invite their children and spouses to their
workplace. Under the suspended rules, the visiting spouse and the children will
have to present original marriage or birth certificates issued by the
Philippine Statistics Authority before they are allowed to leave the Philippines.
For those who are not immediate family members, like
parents or siblings, the OFW will have to go to the Consulate or embassy
concerned and obtain a notarized affidavit of support which must then be sent
to the Philippines - as only original documents will be accepted by immigration
officers at the departure gates.
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“If the Marcos Jr. government is really sincere in
suppressing human trafficking in the country, it should go after the
recruitment agencies and not the ordinary travellers who just want to work or
spend vacation with their family,” said the protesters.
What the government should prioritize are the
long-standing demands by OFWs to be spared of mandatory exactions and be given
proper and adequate services, said the protesters.
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