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The Bureau of Immigration (BI) appealed to the public to report foreigners suspected of involvement in human trafficking and illegal recruitment, saying aliens are among the top operators and financiers of human trafficking syndicates in the country.

BI officer-in-charge Ronaldo Ledesma made the appeal after he issued an order assigning 10 immigration intelligence agents to the bureau’s newly-formed trafficking in persons unit (TIPU) which was created last month to bolster the government’s anti-trafficking drive. He also vowed to keep the identities of informants confidential.

“We received intelligence information that foreigners are among the principal operators and financiers of these human trafficking syndicates,” Ledesma said.

He said that without the public’s cooperation, it would be very difficult for the bureau to track down these foreigners who are well-entrenched and believed to have the backing and protection of powerful people.

“Our intent in forming this team of operatives is to unmask the foreign human traffickers operating in our country so they can be investigated, prosecuted and jailed,” Ledesma said.

BI-TIPU head Epifanio Lambino Jr. also appealed to the various foreign embassies in Manila to share any information about foreigners involved in the human trafficking and illegal recruitment racket.

He likewise asked the bureau’s stakeholders, particularly its accredited travel agencies and consultancy firms, for similar information, which may be sent by email to [email protected] or [email protected] or through telephone numbers 527-4836, 522-4856 and 527-3273 or mobile phone numbers 0908-8612955.

A recent US State Department report included the Philippines among 58 countries on Washington’s "Tier 2" human trafficking watch list. The report said the Philippines is a "source country and, to a much lesser extent, a destination and transit country” for human trafficking, especially forced prostitution and labor.

“A significant number of Filipinos who migrated abroad for work were subjected to conditions of involuntary servitude and forced labor in factories, construction sites, and as domestic workers,” it said, adding that Filipino women had also fallen prey to sex trafficking in various countries. (PNA)

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