General Santos City (3 September) — Sarangani Representative Emmanuel “Manny” Pacquiao has declared war against human trafficking as he urged Congress to stiffen the penalties against human traffickers and illegal recruiters.
Citing the many incidents of abuses against the rights and dignity of Filipino men and women including children, Pacquiao stressed the urgent need to curb human trafficking activities which he described as “modern-day slavery.”
“Huwag tayong pumayag na ang mukha ng alipin sa makabagaong panahon ay mukha ng isang kayumangging Pilipino. Our citizens are not for sale! Not now, not ever!” Pacquio told the 15th Congress on Monday (August 23).
He also defined an illegal recruiter in Filipino as “nangangako upang manghuthot, laway ang puhunan sa pagtakas ng pera ng isang aplikante while a human trafficker “ay paulit-ulit na pinagsasamantalahan ang kanyang na-recruit?gamit and puwersa o panloloko— pilit na pinagtatrabaho ang mga biktima maski walang sweldo dahil ang bawat kita ay sa bulsa niya napupunta?.”
Based on the 2010 Trafficking in Persons Report released by the US State Department, the Philippines, for the second time has been placed in the Tier 2 watch list starting in 2009.
If this continues, Pacquiao lamented, the Philippines will likely be in the ranks of Somalia and Myanmar.
“Kapag nagkataon, maaring ipagkait sa atin ng Amerika—batay sa kanilang batas?ang P11 billion o $250 million bilang non-humanitarian aid,” he said. And this includes, according to him funds intended for peace and development projects in Mindanao.
The United States thru the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has been funding various projects in Mindanao to spur development in the area.
“Malaki ang ating maitulong upang ma-knockout ang human trafficking,” Pacquiao told Congress as he presented list of actions for members to mull over.
First in Pacquiao’s priority list was to increase the budget allocation of Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking, which he said has a “zero budget.”
He rationalized that allocating at least Php10 million to the Council will help strengthen its campaign against human trafficking and illegal recruitment making it functional.
Pacquiao also proposed to the Congress the review of the Anti-trafficking Act of 2003 citing some errors in Sec. 7 that gives equal “right to privacy” for victims and traffickers.
“This is so unfair. Ayos lang sana iyung sa biktima. Tama naman na huwag nang ungkatin pa ang kanilang totoong pangalan,” he said.
Pacquiao explained that providing human traffickers equal privacy rights is not justifiable because they are violators and people will not easily identify them if they were protected by law.
According to him, the government should recognize that human trafficking in the country is not just a mere “illegal recruitment” but a worsening issue to reckon with.
He noticed that since human trafficking Act became a law in 2003, there had only been 18 people who were convicted.
He then called for the improvement in figures of conviction rate and the strengthening of Witness Protection Program to encourage the victims as well as witnesses.
Pacquiao also urged Congress to consider the proposal from non-governmental organizations (NGOs) for the creation of “special courts” to expedite litigation on human trafficking and illegal recruitment cases.
He also proposed the allocation of some funds to be used under the Philippine Overseas Employment Agency (POEA) for a national toll-free 24-hour hotline for job applicants to call and verify the validity of the existing work being offered by recruitment agencies.
The Representative of the Lone District of Sarangani also encouraged the establishment of coordinative and collaborative links with NGOs to contribute in the crackdown of human trafficking activities at the local levels.
“If we work together, we can counteract the tapestry of lies woven by these syndicates,” Pacquiao said urging his colleagues to rally behind him in declaring an all-out war against human trafficking. (PIA SarGen)
