Human trafficking remains serious problem in Philippines

October 24, 2004

Manila - The crime of human trafficking remains a serious problem in the Philippines and poses as a big threat to Philippine women, said a woman's legal rights expert on Saturday.

Former Judge Adoracion Cruz-Avisado said at a seminar on human trafficking held in Davao, southern Philippines, that human traffickings in the Philippines include recruitment, transport, transfer and harboring of persons by threat, force or coercion or abduction, fraud or deception for exploitation.

The most prevalent forms of sex trafficking in the Philippines are prostitution, sex tourism and mail order brides including bonded labor and domestic work, she said.

Child sexual exploitation is also growing "exponentially" in the Philippines, she said, citing researches showing that some travel agencies, airlines, and child protectors also being involved in sex tourism or playing a part in "organized sex tours."

Cruz-Avisado called on the Philippine government to avoid any policy which can promote prostitution, whether through legalization or decriminalization of sexual industry, or through the acceptance of mail-order bride business or sex tourism enterprises.

She also called on the government to eliminate structural factors that push women into trafficking networks, such as povertyand gender discrimination in employment.

The Philippines punishes human traffickers with penalties up to life imprisonment and 5 million pesos (90,000 US dollars) in fines, as the country has abolished death penalty.

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