Philippines: Life Imprisonment for the Country’s 11th Human Trafficking Convict

From ABS-CBN:

By Gemma Bagayaua

A Batangas court recently sentenced a woman to life imprisonment after finding her guilty of trafficking minors for sexual exploitation.

Apart from the prison sentence, Batangas Regional Trial Court Judge Florencio S. Arellano also ordered the accused to pay a fine of P2million apart from P50,000 for moral damages to each of her victims in a decision promulgated June 30, 2008.

The verdict was the culmination of a three-year case that began in March 2005, when the woman was nabbed by authorities at the Batangas pier while accompanying seven girls.

The suspect in this case is only the 11th person convicted of human trafficking since the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act was enacted in 2003.

The accused and her victims were en route to Sabang, Puerto Galera when a security guard on duty at the passenger terminal noticed the “young looking” girls and tipped off authorities.

The girls later told authorities they were recruited by the accused in Quezon City and Mandaluyong City, and were initially promised employment as waitresses in Batangas City. En route, they learned that their actual destination was Sabang Disco in Puerto Galera were they were supposed to work as Guest Relations Officers (GROs) with instructions to entertain guests and have sex with them in exchange for large sums of money.

At the time, two of the victims were minors—aged 15 and 16. We’re withholding the names of both the accused and the victims due to the law’s provisions on confidentiality.

Read the full article

Philippines: Anti-Trafficking Movement Hails Landmark Conviction

From the Visayan Forum Foundation:

A multi-sectoral network against trafficking in the Philippines led by Visayan Forum Foundation Inc. (VFFI) hails a landmark verdict handed down by a local judge in Batangas City last June 30 against a female trafficker who was sentenced serve life imprisonment and pay two million pesos for violating the anti-trafficking law.

Judge Florencio Arellano found the trafficker guilty of qualified trafficking defined under Section 4-A of RA 9208 known as Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003 based on the complaint of two victims, who were then minors. They testified that they were supposed to be recruited as sex workers in Puerto Galera contrary to the original promise of being employed as waitresses in Batangas City.

Last March 2005, the victims, including two other minors and three women, were rescued by Batangas port security guards who later alerted the law enforcement to investigate on the trafficker who failed to explain the suspicious nature of the recruitment and present necessary details of the travel.

The court also ordered the trafficker to pay fifty thousand pesos for moral damages to each of the two victims who pursued the case with the assistance of the local anti-trafficking task force authorities and the half-way house protection services of VFFI.

VFFI President and Executive Director, Ma. Cecilia Flores-Oebanda considers the promulgation as a “landmark conviction because the court gave weight to the testimony of the victims that their trafficker, during the initial stages of the recruitment, forced to check on their virginity and ages then told them they are fit to work as guest relations officers and that foreigners would demand them highly for sex-related services.”

“The court interpreted this as trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation, even if the victims have not actually landed into prostitution. This should serve as a stern warning against traffickers that authorities are ready to warn, help and protect vulnerable victims as they pass through hotspots so we can prevent further exploitation,” says Flores-Oebanda.

The case was handled by the International Justice Mission (IJM) and the Batangas City Prosecutor’s Office with the support of the Batangas Anti-Trafficking Task Force.

Prior to this conviction, the Batangas Regional Trial Court has already sentenced two traffickers to six months of community services after pleading guilty to Section 11 of RA9208 for “use of trafficked persons.” According to Department of Justice tally, there have only been 11 convicted traffickers in seven cases under the RA 9208 in the country.

VFFI, a non-government organization established in 1991, works for the welfare and security of marginalized migrants, specifically the trafficked women and children and the domestic workers or kasambahays. VFFI provides assistance to trafficking victims through the halfway houses it operates in Manila, Batangas, Matnog, Davao, and Zamboanga.

VFFI will soon open the doors of three more halfway houses at the ports of Iloilo and Surigao and at the Manila International Airport . Trafficking victims are also given psycho-social services, trainings and legal assistance to name a few.

More info on VFFI

Support the HTP in Ashoka's Changemakers Ending Global Slavery Competition

Dear friends,

We need your support!

We are very excited to be entrants in Ashoka's Changemakers Ending Global Slavery: Everyday Heroes Leading the Way collaborative competition.

This is a global competition that aims to find holistic, innovative solutions to global slavery by seeking out and recognizing individuals and organizations that raise awareness of slavery’s root causes, liberate those in bonded labor, and reintegrate former slaves into their communities. By being part of this competition, we have a great opportunity to get the word out about our work to leaders in the field, investors, the media, potential partners, and other supporters.

The competition winners will be decided by online voting, so the more people we can inspire, the better!

Please help us rally support for our work by visiting our project entry HERE and leaving us your comments and feedback.

Here's how:

1. If you do not have a Changemakers account, please click here to register on the site. It only takes a couple of minutes.
2. Login at the Changemakers website: http://www.changemakers.com.
3. Visit my entry, read about what I do and post feedback! (http://www.changemakers.net/en-us/node/8064)
   
4. Spread the word to your colleagues and friends through your emails, blogs, or websites.

We greatly appreciate your support as this contest can give our work a great boost.

Thank you very much for your help!

Justin
Founder
The Human Trafficking Project

Should Prostitution Be Legalized at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa?

From Business Day:

By Chantelle Benjamin

A RESEARCHER on organised crime has warned that the legalisation of prostitution for the 2010 Soccer World Cup could lead to a boom in human trafficking and the commercial sex industry such as that seen in Germany, if it is not regulated.

With the World Cup looming nearer, discussions about the decriminalisation of prostitution have intensified, supported by advocacy groups.

An international conference on prostitution and trafficking, specific to the 2010 Soccer World Cup, is to be held in East London next month to discuss the problem.

Shanaaz Parker, a researcher for the organised crime and money laundering programme of the Institute of Security Studies, said on Friday the legalisation of prostitution in Australia, Germany and the Netherlands was not a decision taken lightly, but in the case of the latter two countries human trafficking has increased.

Discussions about the legalisation of prostitution have been promoted by advocacy groups such as the Sex Workers Education and Advocacy Task Force , which believe it would prevent unnecessary arrests of sex workers and improve conditions in the sector.

“The argument is that the World Cup will push up the demand for sex workers and the services they provide, so we should simply decriminalise this form of work and give the sex industry some dignity,” Parker said.

“But even then, if sex work is recognised as a profession, there is no guarantees that the women (or men) engaged in it will be treated with respect and that human trafficking in terms of the commercial sex industry will decrease. On the contrary, Germany and the Netherlands have seen an expansion of human trafficking and commercial sex industries during its legislation.”

The situation is of particular concern as SA had been identified as a transit destination for human trafficking.

Read the full article

OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine fosters local police, NGO co-operation on anti-trafficking measures

KHMELNYTSKY, Ukraine, 16 July 2008 - The OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine has launched a series of training courses for local precinct police inspectors on combating human trafficking, with the first session starting in Khmelnytsky in western Ukraine today.

The series of 72 training and networking meetings for up to 1,800 police officers will take place in 12 regions of Ukraine until October. The meetings will provide training opportunities for local level officers and facilitate their co-operation with anti-trafficking non-governmental organizations to prevent trafficking as well as to identify and refer trafficked persons.

"Through this co-operative effort with the Interior Ministry, the OSCE is assisting Ukraine to fulfil its commitments as reflected in the OSCE Action Plan to Combat Trafficking in Human Beings," said Ambassador Lubomir Kopaj, OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine.

The course targets precinct police inspectors, who work to prevent crime in local communities through raising public awareness, assisting with the criminal investigations and helping people whose rights have been infringed. Much of their work is carried out in close contact with public authorities and civil society groups.

"The precinct police inspectors' service is ideally positioned to play a key role within the national referral mechanism for victims of trafficking - they work in local communities and are most likely to come in contact with potential and possible victims of trafficking," added Kopaj.

"The co-operation between anti-trafficking NGOs and community-level police will help 'rank and file' precinct police officers understand the problem and strengthen their outreach work. We have developed a specialized training programme for this branch of the Ukrainian police force in order to ensure their inclusion in the national anti-trafficking effort."

During the first stage of the project, which is implemented in partnership with the Interior Ministry, the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine also conducted one-day training courses for the heads of regional and district Precinct Police Inspectors Services.

The training sessions are funded by the Danish Foreign Ministry as part of the Danish Programme Against Human Trafficking in Eastern and South Eastern Europe.

OSCE Project Coordinator in Ukraine

Working with law enforcement has been one of the more active areas of the OSCE's anti-trafficking efforts in Ukraine this year. During interviews with several Ukrainian NGOs that carry out victim reintegration programs, there was an expressed concern about the relationship between law enforcement and victims. Although victim identification by law enforcement is on the rise and cooperation between NGOs, IOs, and law enforcement is improving under programs such as these, there is still an overwhelming mistrust for law enforcement by victims. At least three of the NGOs interviewed will be taking part in the OSCE project.

Illegal Immigrants Face Threat of No College

From USA Today:

By Mary Beth Marklein

USA- Some states are making it harder for illegal immigrants to attend college by denying in-state tuition benefits or banning undocumented students.

In the past two years, Arizona, Colorado, Georgia and Oklahoma have refused in-state tuition benefits to students who entered the USA illegally with their parents but grew up and went to school in the state. That represents a reversal from earlier this decade, when 10 states passed laws allowing in-state rates for such students.

This summer, South Carolina became the first state to bar undocumented students from all public colleges and universities. North Carolina's community colleges in May ordered its 58 campuses to stop enrolling undocumented students after the state attorney general said admitting them may violate federal law.

"The new trend is to kick illegal aliens out of college altogether," says William Gheen of Americans for Legal Immigration Political Action Committee, which opposes taxpayer subsidies for undocumented immigrants.

Opponents say students shouldn't be penalized for their parents' actions. Helping them is "the right thing to do even if it's unpopular," says North Carolina state Rep. Pricey Harrison, a Democrat who introduced a bill that would prevent state institutions from asking about students' immigration status.

Read the full article

Should illegal immigrants be able to attend college?

Interrupting Your Regular Radio Broadcast

By Tonya Graham

Radio stations across Zambia and Mozambique will soon play host to an exciting new radio drama, titled Dealers in Zambia and Troco in Mozambique. The drama, a project of the International Organization for Migration’s (IOM) Southern African Counter-Trafficking Assistance Programme (SACTAP) and produced by Johannesburg-based Community Media for Development (CMFD) Productions, uses a blockbuster storyline to raise awareness around human trafficking, migration and related issues in the Southern African region.

The drama follows a family of cross-border traders who inadvertently get caught up in a mafia scandal and underground trafficking ring. The drama takes listeners on a roller coaster ride of love, lies, betrayal and daring escapes, while subtly passing on information about human trafficking, how it happens, what to look out for, and how to support survivors.

With the upcoming 2010 FIFA World Cup to be held in South Africa, organisations and activists are gearing up for a likely increase in trafficking activities. Borders in Southern African countries are notoriously porous, and this coupled with high rates of poverty, pervasive gender inequalities and nonexistent or ineffective trafficking laws make the region ripe ground for human traffickers. Zambia and Mozambique are both key source and transit countries for human trafficking activities to South Africa and Europe. According to the IOM, at least 1000 people are trafficked from Mozambique into South Africa each year.



Dealers/ Troco aims to encourage people to make sure that when they want to migrate, they find out exactly what they are getting into; it promotes safe migration practices in order to prevent people from getting into trafficking situations. It also aims to give people the tools they need to support survivors of trafficking, report cases and get help if they need it.

The drama was developed through a participatory process involving consultation with migrants, trafficking experts and potential audiences. As part of the early stages of development, CMFD conducted interviews with 100 migrants living in Johannesburg about their experiences with migration as well as related issues such as xenophobia. The stories these interviews yielded were used to inform the Dealers/ Troco storyline and ensured it was grounded in lived experience.


The cast and crew of Dealers on location in Lusaka, Zambia.

CMFD held focus groups in Zambia and Mozambique before recording began to make sure the drama was appealing, exciting, and that the characters and situations reflected reality. Feedback from the focus groups was overwhelmingly positive, with participants saying that they enjoyed the story, and that it reminded them that even though you think it won’t happen to you, trafficking is real.

During the recording, the response from the actors involved was much the same. Interestingly, one of the actors in Zambia had recently been offered a lucrative-sounding job in Canada, and was considering taking it. After recording the drama, and discussing the job offer with other people on the team, she decided the offer was not worth the potential risk, and turned it down.



Though it is too early to make a definite judgment, this may be an indication of the effectiveness of this story, and of radio drama in general, to talk about human trafficking in a way that encourages people to really think about the issues.

The drama also includes an original theme song that both complements the story and stands alone as a strong message for people seeking to migrate to be sure of what they are getting into before they leave home.

Accompanying the drama is a media guide that will give radio presenters or community organisations the information they need to initiate discussion about the characters and the issues they face. Radio stations will be encouraged to have live phone-in discussions after each episode, and CMFD has set up a blog for the drama in both English and Portuguese. The blogs contain images, audio and information about both the project and human trafficking, and can be found at www.dealersradio.org and www.trocoradio.org.



Since the drama was to be developed for Zambia, a land-locked English-speaking country and Mozambique, a coastal Portuguese-speaking country, careful adaptation was also key to the process. Cultural, geographic and linguistic details were fleshed out both in focus groups and in consultations with the translator and Mozambican project coordinator. For example, in Dealers one of the characters unknowingly trafficks a Congolese girl through Zambia to South Africa; Mozambique does not see traffic in Congolese, so this detail was changed to a girl being taken from Northern Mozambique through Maputo to South Africa. The media guide was also adapted to reflect local issues and affairs.

Troco had its official launch in Maputo, Mozambique on 20 June 2008. Dealers is expected to launch in line with the Zambian government’s national anti-trafficking campaign, ‘Break the Chain’ of Human Trafficking. In addition to airplay in the two target countries, Troco has been picked up by RDP-Africa, an Portuguese service based in Lisbon that broadcasts in Portuguese-speaking African countries. This will increase the reach of the drama exponentially. Dealers has also been picked up by an English radio service in Dakar, Senegal.

Listen to the Dealers theme music

Listen to the Dealers trailer

Visit the Dealers website

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