Human trafficking cases decreasing - PNP

MANILA, Philippines - The number of human trafficking cases has significantly decreased, police said yesterday.

Data from the Philippine National Police Women and Children Protection Center (WCPC) showed a 65.11 percent decrease in the trafficking of women and an 18.92 percent reduction in cases involving trafficked children.

The WCPC said from January to September this year, 43 cases of trafficking in women were reported, as compared to 71 cases during the same period last year.

Between January and September this year, the WCPC also handled 74 cases of trafficking in children, as compared to 88 cases for the same period last year, the WCPC added.

The WCPC attributed the decrease to inter-agency cooperation among the various law enforcement agencies and the massive information campaign to make the public aware of human trafficking.

Rosenda Ayson of the WCPC said a majority of rescued trafficked women were lured into brothels and forced to work as prostitutes.

A bulk of the cases filed against traffickers did not prosper as the victims did not want to file complaints after they were rescued, she added.

Of the cases handled by the WCPC from January to September this year, 85 percent were filed in court, two percent were referred to another law enforcement agency, five percent were settled, while eight percent remains under investigation.

Earlier, Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez and his brother Maximo, who represents Abante Mindanao, warned that the country would lose up to $250 million in aid from the United States unless it makes a serious effort to curb human trafficking.

“(The US) has an anti-human trafficking law that directs the State Department to monitor efforts of every country against trafficking, and from 2009 until now, we have been on the Tier 2 watch list,” they said.

“Under that same law, if a country has been on the Tier 2 watch list for two consecutive years, they are automatically downgraded to Tier 3 in the third year unless there are significant efforts to curb human smuggling.”