The Provincial Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking in Persons  has urged the mayors of the 10 local government units identified as trafficking hotspots in Negros Oriental to crack down on trafficking and exploitation activities in their areas.

Marlene Pepino, a PIACAT member and provincial coordinator of Visayan Forum Foundation, said a gathering sponsored by the Philippine Information Agency recently, that it was formed by the provincial government because of the growing cases of trafficking in persons.

She named the 10 hotspots as the cities of Bayawan, Guihulngan and Dumaguete, and the towns of Sta. Catalina, Siaton, Zamboanguita, Sibulan, San Jose, Amlan, and Mabinay.

Pepino said PIACAT is currently assisting the LGUs in creating their Municipal Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking in Persons, in coordination with non-government organizations.

The local law enforcement has already intercepted several trafficking victims in various transit points in the province, she added.

Meanwhile, SPO2 Josefa Lacandula of the Women and Children’s Concerns Desk at the Dumaguete City Police Office said that her office has rescued around 22 victims – aged 14 to 17 years old – from trafficking.

Lacandula said most of the victims were rescued from the house of recruiters, and others from bus terminals.

She said that the perpetrators have learned new tricks of the trade by letting the victims travel on their own instead of being accompanied by the recruiter.

Another new trick was exposed when the city police force, together with the local Department of Social Welfare and Development, intercepted at a bus terminal a group of trafficked victims who were on their way to Bacolod City.

The victims were allegedly recruited from Mabinay to be brought to Manila to work, but instead of traveling on the boat that leaves Dumaguete to Manila, the victims were instructed to travel to Bacolod first where they will then board a ship going to Manila.

The perpetrators make their victims take circuitous routes as transit points in the province, but they are now under the tight watch of the police, Lacandula said.

Traffickers lure victims into their net by promising them easy work and expensive cellphones, she added.

Trafficking of young children and cybersex trafficking are now some of the problems in the province, Bridget Frederix, paralegal officer of Gender Watch Against Violence and Exploitation, said.

GWAVE is a non-government organization that has been extending free legal services to trafficking victims rescued by the police.*RG

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