Lack of opportunities makes women vulnerable to traffickers

MANILA, Philippines — The lack of economic opportunities for Filipino women makes them vulnerable to human trafficking, according to the Center for Women’s Resources (CWR).

The CWR issued the statement yesterday in reaction to a recent survey by the Thomson Reuters Foundation that ranked the Philippines as one of the 10 most dangerous nations in the world in terms of human trafficking.

The Philippines joined India, Libya, Myanmar, Nigeria, Russia, Afghanistan, Thailand, Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan.

According to the CWR, the number of Filipino women who are in precarious employment remains high.

In 2015, 2.3 million women were employed in short term, seasonal or casual work where they are poorly paid and unprotected, it said.

The group added that the lack of job opportunities is aggravated by the continuous increase in prices of commercial goods.

“As poverty worsens, many women fall victim to illegal recruiters and traffickers,” the CWR said, adding that many victims of human trafficking come from far-flung provinces where poverty is widespread.

“The misogynistic attitude prevailing in the current Philippine society today – peddled by President Duterte himself – makes it harder to uplift women’s condition. Misogyny or the contempt for or ingrained prejudice against women reinforces inequality not simply between men and women but more so between the powerful and the powerless,” it said.