By Ferdinand Patinio/PNA
MANILA — Bureau of Immigration (BI) commissioner Jaime Morente alerted personnel in all international ports nationwide about the modus operandi of a human trafficking syndicate victimizing women wanting to work in South Korea.
He said they will not allow Filipino women to be trafficked abroad via the said scheme as previous cases have shown that many of these victims are lured into prostitution against their will.
“Our duty is to protect Filipinos who are vulnerable to being tricked by this scheme. We are sharing this story for awareness, so that aspiring OFWs will not accept offers from illegal recruiters,” the BI chief said in a statement Thursday.
The directive was issued after Immigration authorities at the Clark International Airport (CRK) in Angeles City, Pampanga last week intercepted six suspected human trafficking victims who attempted to leave for South Korea with fake travel papers.
BI Port Operations Division Chief Grifton Medina said the women were intercepted on November 8 before they could board a JinAir flight bound for Incheon.
Their identities were not divulged based on anti-trafficking laws. The passengers have been turned over to the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT) for investigation and assistance.
Initial investigation revealed that the women were recruited to work as nightclub entertainers in South Korea and that they were holders of entertainer’s visas issued by the Korean embassy.
However, the Overseas Employment Certificates (OECs) they presented turned out to be dubious, and details indicated in the documents did not match their records in the BI database.
Medina said the women identified a fixer named “Mercy” who lives in Cavite as the one who processed their travel documents.
Under the law, departing overseas Filipino workers are required an OEC from the POEA.
