Chapter 4

CHAPTER 4
HUMAN TRAFFICKING
The trade in human persons constitutes a shocking offense against human dignity and a
grave violation of fundamental human rights… Such situations are an affront to
fundamental values shared by all cultures and peoples, values rooted in the very nature
of the human person.
John Paul II, 2002
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
At the end of the Chapter, the reader should be able to:
a. Compare and contrast human trafficking from people smuggling;
b. Discuss the origins of human trafficking;
c. Enumerate and discuss the causes of human trafficking victimization;
d. Recognize and elucidate the forms of human trafficking;
e. Identify the schemes in human trafficking and
f. Outline important legal instruments against human trafficking.
Keywords: human trafficking, people smuggling, tier placement, debt bondage, slavery,
sexual exploitation, illegal recruitment
INTRODUCTION
The United Nations Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons,
especially Women and Children (one of three "Palermo Protocols"), defines trafficking in
persons as:
The recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring or receipt of persons, by

means of threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of
fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of
the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a
person having control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation.
Exploitation shall include, at a minimum, the exploitation of the prostitution of
others or other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labor or services, slavery or
practices similar to slavery, servitude or the removal of organs. 1
There are also the so called "severe forms of trafficking," which includes:
“sex trafficking in which a commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud, or

coercion, or in which the person induced to perform such an act has not attained
18 years of age; or the recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or
obtaining of a person for labor or services, through the use of force, fraud, or
coercion for the purpose of subjection to involuntary servitude, peonage, debt
bondage, or slavery” (Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000). 2
1
US State Department, 2006, "Trafficking in Persons Report", Washington
2
U.S. Department of Justice, 2002, "Information for Victims of Trafficking in Persons and Forced Labor", Office of Justice Programs,
Violence Against Women Grants Office, U.S. Department of Justice.
Human Trafficking 101
It is certain that human trafficking is a global and transnational problem for different
nations. Across the globe there must be an international collaboration to address the
problem, to stop the recruitment and entry of trafficked persons on their assigned
location; to identify and prosecute syndicates involved and offer a system of protection
to victims and potential victims of human trafficking.
The United States of America, Department of State in their Trafficking in Persons report
(TIP) for year 2012 estimates that there are as much as 27 million women and children
who are enslaved and victims of human trafficking. Human trafficking comes in many
guises, it may come in the form of compelled commercial sexual exploitation, the
prostitution of minors forced labor or debt bondage.3
Exploitation is the core of human trafficking. It may be in the form of prostitution or the
person may be held in a worksite, the victim here suffers an infringement of his or her
rights to be free from enslavement. Victims of human trafficking are deprived to leave
their employers or exploiters; they have been deprived of their basic rights. 4
Women and girls comprise 80% of the persons trafficked across international borders.
Approximately 70% of victims are trafficked for commercial sexual exploitation (TIP
Report 2010, 2011 & 2012). This can be attributed to inherent physical weakness of
women in defending themselves and the prospect economy for prostitution and slavery.
Moreso, it can be said that most victims of human trafficking are uneducated, poor and
comes from broken, dysfunctional family.
Trafficking in persons is the fastest-growing and second largest criminal industry

in the world today. Trafficking is second only to drug trafficking and fluctuates from 2nd
to 3rd along with the illegal arms industry (TIP, 2012). 5
Human trafficking or Trafficking in Persons should be understood primarily as a serious

violation of fundamental human rights and freedoms: the right not to be held in slavery
or servitude, the right to liberty and security, the right to be free from cruel or inhumane
treatment and the freedom of movement.6
DEFINITION OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING (R.A. 9208)

Under Section 3 of R.A. 9208 it defines human trafficking as the recruitment,
transportation, transfer or harboring, or receipt of persons with or without the victim’s
consent or knowledge, within or across national borders by means of threat or use of
force, or other forms of coercion, abduction, fraud, deception, abuse of power or of
position, taking advantage of the vulnerability of the person, or, the giving or receiving of
payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another
3
UNODC, 2012"Trafficking in Persons-Global Patterns", UN.http://www.unodc.org/pdf/traffickinginpersons_report_2012-04.pd
4
Id.
5
US State Department, 2011, "Trafficking in Persons Report", Washington & US State Department, 2012, "Trafficking in Persons Report",
Washington
6
O’Neill M., 2001, Trafficking Prostitution and Feminism: Towards A Politics of Feeling, Polity Press, Cambridge.
Philippines: Research and Action", Final Report, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Anti-Human Trafficking Unit, Geneva:
UNODC.
102 Perspectives on Transnational Organized Crime
person for the purpose of exploitation which includes at a minimum, the exploitation or
the prostitution of others or other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labor or services,
slavery, servitude or the removal or sale of organs. 7
The recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring or receipt of a child for the purpose
of exploitation shall also be considered as “trafficking in persons” even if it does not
involve any of the means set forth in the preceding paragraph. 8
Under Philippine laws, it shall be unlawful for any person, natural or juridical, to commit
any of the following acts:
1. To recruit, transport, transfer; harbor, provide, or receive a person by any means,
including those done under the pretext of domestic or overseas employment or
training or apprenticeship, for the purpose of prostitution, pornography, sexual
exploitation, forced labor, slavery, involuntary servitude or debt bondage.
2. To introduce or match for money, profit, or material, economic or other
consideration, any person or, as provided for under Republic Act No. 6955, any
Filipino woman to a foreign national, for marriage for the purpose of acquiring,
buying, offering, selling or trading him/her to engage in prostitution, pornography,
sexual exploitation, forced labor, slavery, involuntary servitude or debt bondage.
3. To offer or contract marriage, real or simulated, for the purpose of acquiring, buying,
offering, selling, or trading them to engage in prostitution, pornography, sexual
exploitation, forced labor or slavery, involuntary servitude or debt bondage.
4. To undertake or organize tours and travel plans consisting of tourism packages or
activities for the purpose of utilizing and offering persons for prostitution,
pornography or sexual exploitation.
5. To maintain or hire a person to engage in prostitution or pornography.
6. To adopt or facilitate the adoption of persons for the purpose of prostitution,
pornography, sexual exploitation, forced labor, slavery, involuntary servitude or debt
bondage. (Conviction by final judgment of the adopter for any offense under this law
shall result in the immediate rescission of the decree of adoption).
7. To recruit, hire, adopt, transport or abduct a person, by means of threat or use of
force, fraud, deceit, violence, coercion, or intimidation for the purpose of removal or
sale of organs of said person.
8. To recruit, transport or adopt a child to engage in armed activities in the Philippines
or abroad.9
The penalty is imprisonment for a period of 20 years and a fine of not less than P1
Million but not more than P2 Million.10
Trafficking in persons as a transnational crime, being a new crime in the international

community has not yet gained an official definition. Despite the differences in definition it
has some common elements:
7
Section 3, Republic Act No. 9208 An Act To Institute Policies To Eliminate Trafficking In Persons Especially Women And Children,
Establishing The Necessary Institutional Mechanisms For The Protection And Support Of Trafficked Persons, Providing Penalties For Its
Violations, And For Other. Third Regular Session, May 29, 2003
8
Section 4, Id.
9
Id.
10
Section 10, Id.
1. Person or human is involved;

2. Profit is the primary objective;
3. There is coercion, deception, violence or intimidation;
4. There is intent to sell, exchange or use for any illegal purposes;
5. There is an illegal entry of individuals to another border;
6. Organized crime groups are involved; and
7. Money laundering is present.11
Trafficking could be analyzed in terms of the structural inequality between the Third
World countries and industrialized countries, which has made of the impoverished
populations of poor countries mere labor and sexual commodities.12
FORMS OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING

1. Labor Trafficking is sometimes also referred to as labor trafficking,
encompasses the range of activities—recruiting, harboring, transporting,
providing, or obtaining—involved when a person uses force or physical threats,
psychological coercion, abuse of the legal process, deception, or other coercive
means to compel someone to work. Once a person’s labor is exploited by such
means, the person’s previous consent or effort to obtain employment with the
trafficker becomes irrelevant. Migrants are particularly vulnerable to this form of
human trafficking, but individuals also may be forced into labor in their own
countries. Female victims of forced or bonded labor, especially women and girls
in domestic servitude, are often sexually exploited as well. This includes acts
such as:
a. Domestic Servitude;
b. Agriculture;
c. Sweatshop labor;
d. Janitorial services;
e. Food service industry; and
f. Begging. 13
Debt Bondage defined.

It refers to the pledging by the debtor of his/her personal services or labor or
those of a person under his/her control as security or payment for a debt, when
the length and nature of services is not clearly defined or when the value of the
services as reasonably assessed is not applied toward the liquidation of the
debt.14
2. Sexual Trafficking occurs when an adult is coerced, forced, or deceived into

prostitution—or maintained in prostitution through one of these means after
initially consenting—that person is a victim of trafficking. Under such
11
O’Neill M., 2001, Trafficking Prostitution and Feminism: Towards A Politics of Feeling, Polity Press, Cambridge.
Philippines: Research and Action", Final Report, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Anti-Human Trafficking Unit, Geneva:
UNODC.
12
Id.
13
Id.
14
Id.
circumstances, perpetrators involved in recruiting, harboring, transporting,

providing, or obtaining a person for that purpose are responsible for trafficking
crimes. Sex trafficking also may occur within debt bondage, as women and girls
are forced to continue in prostitution through the use of unlawful “debt”
purportedly incurred through their transportation, recruitment, or even their
crude “sale”—which exploiters insist they must pay off before they can be free. A
person’s initial consent to participate in prostitution is not legally determinative: if
one is thereafter held in service through psychological manipulation or physical
force, he or she is a trafficking victim and should receive benefits outlined in the
Palermo Protocol and applicable domestic laws. Examples are as follows:
a. Street work;
b. Brothels;
c. Mail order brides;
d. Dancers;
e. Pornography; and
f. Massage parlors.15
3. Sex tourism refers to a program organized by travel and tourism-related

establishments and individuals which consists of tourism packages or activities,
utilizing and offering escort and sexual services as enticement for tourists. This
includes sexual services and practices offered during rest and recreation periods
for members of the military.16
4. Child Sex Trafficking occurs when a child (under 18 years of age) is induced
to perform a commercial sex act, proving force, fraud, or coercion against their
pimp is not necessary for the offense to be characterized as human trafficking.
There are no exceptions to this rule: no cultural or socioeconomic rationalizations
should prevent the rescue of children from sexual servitude. The use of children
in the commercial sex trade is prohibited both under U.S. law and by statute in
most countries around the world. Sex trafficking has devastating consequences
for minors, including long-lasting physical and psychological trauma, disease
(including HIV/AIDS), drug addiction, unwanted pregnancy, malnutrition, social
ostracism, and even death.17
5. Bonded Labor or Debt Bondage is one form of coercion is the use of a bond
or debt. U.S. law prohibits the use of a debt or other threats of financial harm as
a form of coercion and the Palermo Protocol requires its criminalization as a form
of trafficking in persons. Some workers inherit debt; for example, in South Asia it
is estimated that there are millions of trafficking victims working to pay off their
ancestors’ debts. Others fall victim to traffickers or recruiters who unlawfully
exploit an initial debt assumed as a term of employment. Debt bondage of
migrant laborers in their countries of origin, often with the support of labor
agencies and employers in the destination country, can also contribute to a
15
UNODC, "Trafficking in Human Beings", United Nations on Drugs and Crime.
http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/trafficking_victim_consents.html
16
Id.
17
Id.
situation of debt bondage. Such circumstances may occur in the context of

employment-based temporary work programs when a worker’s legal status in the
country is tied to the employer and workers fear seeking redress. 18
6. Involuntary Domestic Servitude is a form of human trafficking found in

unique circumstances—informal work in a private residence—these
circumstances create unique vulnerabilities for victims. Domestic workplaces are
informal, connected to off-duty living quarters, and often not shared with other
workers. Such an environment, which can isolate domestic workers, is conducive
to exploitation because authorities cannot inspect homes as easily as they can
compared to formal workplaces. Investigators and service providers report many
cases of untreated illnesses and, tragically, widespread sexual abuse, which in
some cases may be symptoms of a situation of involuntary servitude. 19
7. Forced Child Labor happens despite the fact that children may legally engage
in certain forms of work, forms of slavery or slavery-like practices continue to
exist as manifestations of human trafficking, despite legal prohibitions and
widespread condemnation. A child can be a victim of human trafficking
regardless of the location of that nonconsensual exploitation. Some indicators of
possible forced labor of a child include situations in which the child appears to be
in the custody of a non-family member who requires the child to perform work
that financially benefits someone outside the child’s family and does not offer the
child the option of leaving. Anti-trafficking responses should supplement, not
replace, traditional actions against child labor, such as remediation and
education. When children are enslaved, however, their abusers should not
escape criminal punishment by taking weaker administrative responses to child
labor practices.
8. Unlawful Recruitment and Use of Child Soldiers or Child soldiering is a

manifestation of human trafficking when it involves the unlawful recruitment or
use of children—through force, fraud, or coercion—by armed forces as
combatants or other forms of labor. Some child soldiers are also sexually
exploited by armed groups. Perpetrators may be government armed forces,
paramilitary organizations, or rebel groups. Many children are forcibly abducted
to be used as combatants. Others are unlawfully made to work as porters, cooks,
guards, servants, messengers, or spies. Young girls can be forced to marry or
have sex with male combatants. Both male and female child soldiers are often
sexually abused and are at high risk of contracting sexually transmitted
diseases.20
18
Amnesty International & Anti Slavery International (2004), “Enhancing the Protection of the Rights of Trafficked Persons”, Amnesty
International and Anti- Slavery International’s Recommendations to strengthen provisions of the July 2004 draft European Convention
Against Trafficking in Human Beings, UK: Amnesty International.
http://web.amnesty.org/library/pdf/IOR610162004ENGLISH/$File/IOR6101604.pd
19
Hughes, D. M., 2003, "Hiding in Plain Sight: A Practical Guide to Identifying Victims of Trafficking in the U.S. with Particular
Emphasis on Victims of Sexual Trafficking as Defined by the Trafficking Victims Protection Act 2000", Providence, R.I.: University of
Rhode Island, USA. http://www.uri.edu/artsci/wms/hughes/hiding_in_plain_sight.pdf
20
Id.
ECONOMICS OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING

Organized crime as mentioned on the earlier chapters of this book is an enterprise or
simply a business. It is dependent on the demand from the consumers and as such the
OCG provides products and services which the legitimate market cannot provide. The
economics of human trafficking is simply SUPPLY drives DEMAND. 21
Some of the supply factors which drives the demands for human trafficking are:
a. Poverty;
b. Political instability/armed conflict;
c. Real/perceived opportunity for a better life;
d. Absence of a social safety net;
e. Absence of employment opportunities; and
f. Status of violence against women & children.
Supply factors drive poor, innocent and unnoticing victims thru a vicious cycle of abuse,
threat and violence. They are controlled by a group of persons who continually use them
for their own personal interest without regard to their basic human rights. 22
If supply factors exist there are also demand factors which are in the form of the
foregoing:
a. Demand for prostitution and other aspects of the sex industry is high
throughout the world
b. Demand for cheap labor; corporations seek to produce products the
lowest possible cost.
c. Potential profits are very high – trafficked persons can be bought and
sold many times.
These demand factors continue to lure syndicates in captivating and enslaving people
from the lower rungs of society to perform acts against their will at the whims of their
captivators. There are methods which the organized crime groups use to control their
victims and make them stay in their custody. They may coerce them to stay by putting
them into debt bondage or under duress of financial obligation which they are compelled
to pay beyond their capacity. This can be made by luring them to borrow money and
promising them good paying jobs. The money they will lend shall be used as starting
fund for the “ideal” job they are looking for in cities. They are told to work as sales
representatives, office clerks or office employee, it is however, saddening that they are
placed in prostitution, slavery or jobs very far from that promised. Most of the victims
who want to return to their provinces are prevented by way of threat or intimidation and
they are always demanded to pay their debt which increases by way of percentage every
month, thus they are placed in a perpetual debt. They are also ashamed to return since
their families are relying on the money they sent for their everyday needs. They are
victimized by the OCG’s and the circumstances of poverty, absence of employment
opportunities and safety social nets. More importantly, they do not know where to go
21
International Labour Organization , 2002, "Forced Labour, Child Labour and Human Trafficking in Europe: An ILO Perspective", Paper
presented at the European Conference on Preventing and Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, Global challenge for the 21st century,
Brussels, 18-20 September, ILO.http://www.ilo.org/public/english/standards/ipec/publ/policy/brussels_traffpaper2002.pdf
22
Id.
and ask for help. They are trapped in a web of abuse and exploitation having very little
knowledge of legal remedies and public assistance to victims of human trafficking. 23
Most of the OCG who are involved in human trafficking control the money of their victims
and makes sure that they have no access to it. Thus, they are deprived of the ability to
mobilize and plan their escape. They are also isolated from family members, members of
their ethnic/religious communities; they are brought to an unfamiliar place where they
cannot ask for help or rescue. In addition, they are isolated from the public or they
limited contact if not monitored contact so as to paralyze them and ensure that they are
not to escape nor report to the authorities. OCG’s confiscate passports, visas and other
identification documents of their victims. They also tell their victims they will be
imprisoned or deported if they contact authorities. They also use of threats of violence
towards victims and their family member. All of these acts are committed by the OCG’s to
ensure that the victims stay in their custody and treat them as if they are properties
which can be owned, transferred and disposed. As the US Catholic Bishops say “Human
trafficking will never be truly defeated without eliminating the consumerism that feeds it
and prosecuting those actors in receiving countries, including our own, that benefit
because of the exploitation of vulnerable human beings.”24
HISTORY OF ANTI- HUMAN TRAFFICKING EFFORTS

The history of efforts to suppress and prohibit human trafficking and any and all its forms
is a protracted one. The British Government were pioneers in the drafting laws against
slavery which was in 1807; they have created the Transatlantic Slave Trade illegal and
punishable. The United States soon followed and made laws that makes slavery a crime
with the penalty of death.25
At around 1899 and 1902 several international conferences about white slave trade were
arranged in Paris, France, as a result in 1904 an international agreement against white
slave trade with focus on women and children ensued. This even lead to the signing of
the International Convention for the Suppression of White Slave Trade in 1910 agreed
upon by thirteen countries.26
When the First World War broke out this halted the efforts on human trafficking
suppression, it was only in June 1921 when an international conference in Geneva,
Switzerland was held by the League of Nations to discuss white slavery. The convention
lead to the amendment of white slave trade to traffic of “women and children” making
sure that even males are protected by such measure. The International Convention for
the Suppression of the Traffic in Women and Children was signed then at that time by 33
countries.27
23
International Labour Organization , 2002, "Forced Labour, Child Labour and Human Trafficking in Europe: An ILO Perspective", Paper
presented at the European Conference on Preventing and Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, Global challenge for the 21st century,
Brussels, 18-20 September, ILO.http://www.ilo.org/public/english/standards/ipec/publ/policy/brussels_traffpaper2002.pdf
24
Id.
25
Kangaspunta, K., 2003, "Mapping the Inhuman Trade: Preliminary Findings of the Database on Trafficking in Human Beings", Forum on
Crime and Society, vol. 3, no.1 and 2: 81-104. United Nations Office on Drug Control.
26
Id.
27
Hughes, D. M., 2002, "The Corruption of Civil Society: Maintaining the Flow of Women to the Sex Industries", Paper, Encunetro
Internacional Sobre Trafico De Mujures y Explotacion, Malaga
The League of Nations in 1923, commissioned researchers to carry out a study on the
trafficking of women and children which seeks to answer the foregoing:
a. Is there a serious incidence of women selling sex in foreign countries;
b. Is there a demand for the purchase of sex and why are they motivate to sell
sex; and
c. Where these women do came from and did someone transport them or did
they go on their own?28
When the results came out it revealed that most of the women came from different
European countries and were sent to countries in South America and Central America,
and to Egypt, Algeria, and Tunis. It also showed that very few Asian women were
trafficked to Europe or America, and instead, much of the trafficking victims were
Americans and Europeans that were trafficked to Asian countries. It showed a pattern of
Asian women being trafficked from one Asian country to the next, and of Asian women
trafficked to men of their own ethnic background who were living in or visiting places
outside of Asia. The studies show that the main ways traffickers used to convince women
to be trafficked was the use of force and deception. 29
The United Nations Convention of the Traffic in Persons and the Exploitation of the
Prostitution of Others was passed in 1949. This was a pioneer convention about human
trafficking that was legally binding to the countries that signed it and required the
countries to make prostitution illegal. However, the convention only deals with human
trafficking that had a sexual purpose. In 2000, the Protocol against Trafficking in Persons
was passed by the United Nations to curb and suppress human trafficking. It made all
forms of human trafficking illegal.30
While human trafficking is internationally recognized and there have been many
international laws passed against it, it is still a very serious issue around the world.
According to a report given in 2004 by the US Department of State, 600,000 to 800,000
people are trafficked across international borders every year and more people are
trafficked within their home countries.31
Human traffickers currently still use methods for obtaining their victims that are similar to
the methods that were seen the League of Nations 1923 study. According to Linda Woolf,
a professor of Psychology at Webster University, the methods include coercion, which
includes promises of a job or marriage, kidnapping, and some girls are sold to traffickers
by their own parents.32
Immigration vs. Emigration
28
Woolf,L.M(n.d.)Sex Trafficking. Retrieved February 24,2010 from Women and Global Human
Rights:http://www.webster.edu/~woolfln/trafficking.htmld
29
Id.
30
Cree,V.E.(2008).Confront Sex Trafficking:Lessons from History.International Social Work ,763-776.
31
Id.
32
Id.
Victims of human trafficking are usually migrants. A migrant is defined as a person who
moves from one place or country to another with the objective of making profit or
improvement of life. Immigration is the coming of a person into a country of foreigners
for the purpose of permanent address. Emigration is the act of removing from one
country to another, with no intention to return. 33
Human Trafficking vs. People Smuggling

Human trafficking differs from people smuggling. In the latter, people voluntarily request
the smuggler's service for fees, and there may be no deception involved in the (illegal)
agreement. On arrival at their destination, the smuggled person is usually freed. On the
other hand, the trafficking victim is enslaved, or the terms of their debt bondage are
highly exploitative. The trafficker takes away the basic human rights of the victim. 34
What is the difference between human trafficking and illegal recruitment?
Trafficking in Persons Illegal Recruitment

May or may not involve coercion, Does not usually involve coercion but uses
fraud, deception, abuse of more deception, promises and fraud
vulnerability, etc.
It is characterized by subsequent It is characterized by facilitating entry of
exploitation after the illegal entry of one person from one country to another
one person from one place to another through an unauthorized or unlicensed
or one country to another agency.
There is a need to prove the Mere recruitment without
presence of exploitation or that the license is punishable, no need to prove the
recruitment was facilitated for the consequential exploitation
purpose of exploitation
It is a human rights issue. It is a migration issue.
With higher penalty: Life With lower penalty: Life imprisonment
imprisonment for qualified only when large scale or syndicated 12
trafficking 20 years maximum for years maximum for regular illegal
regular trafficking recruitment
CAUSES OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING

The causes of human trafficking are complex and often reinforce each other. Viewing
trafficking in persons as a global market, victims constitute the supply, and abusive
employers or sexual exploiters (also known as sex buyers) represent the demand. 35
The supply of victims is encouraged by many factors including poverty, the attraction of
perceived higher standards of living elsewhere, lack of employment opportunities,
organized crime, violence against women and children, discrimination against women,
government corruption, political instability, and armed conflict. In some societies a
33
Human Rights Watch, 2000, "Owed Justice: Thai Women Trafficked into Debt Bondage in Japan", Human Rights Watch, New York.
34
Id.
35
Id.
tradition of fostering allows the third or fourth child to be sent to live and work in an
urban center with a member of the extended family (often, an "uncle"), in exchange for
a promise of education and instruction in a trade. Taking advantage of this tradition,
traffickers often position themselves as employment agents, inducing parents to part
with a child, but then traffic the child to work in prostitution, domestic servitude, or a
commercial enterprise. In the end, the family receives few if any wage remittances, the
child remains unschooled and untrained and separated from his or her family, and the
hoped-for educational and economic opportunities never materialize. 36
On the demand side, factors driving trafficking in persons include the sex industry and
the growing demand for exploitable labor. Sex tourism and child pornography have
become worldwide industries, facilitated by technologies such as the Internet, which
vastly expand the choices available to "consumers" and permit instant and nearly
undetectable transactions. Trafficking is also driven by the global demand for cheap,
vulnerable, and illegal labor. For example, there is great demand in some prosperous
countries of Asia and the Gulf for domestic servants who sometimes fall victim to
exploitation or involuntary servitude.37
A similar source of demand for the trafficking of young women is a consequence of

widening gender gaps in densely populated India and China. In China, this gap is due in
part to the one-child policy, while in India, it is due to the perception that a girl child is
an economic liability. Foreign girls and women from Burma, North Korea, Russia, and
Vietnam reportedly are trafficked into China as forced brides, concubines, and
prostitutes. Sources in India report a similar pattern: the trafficking of girls from West
Bengal and Assam to the more prosperous states of Punjab and Haryana, which have the
most acute gender gaps.38
The most common destinations for victims of human trafficking are Thailand, Japan,
Israel, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Turkey and the US, according to a
report by the UNODC (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime). The major sources of
trafficked persons include Thailand, China, Nigeria, Albania, Bulgaria, Belarus, Moldova,
and Ukraine. 39
SCREENING AND IDENTIFICATION OF TRAFFICKING VICTIMS

As governments, law enforcement, relief or health workers, and NGOs work to combat
human trafficking, it is essential to properly screen for victims of human trafficking. 40
36
U.S. Department of Justice, 2002, "Information for Victims of Trafficking in Persons and Forced Labor", Office of Justice Programs,
Violence Against Women Grants Office, U.S. Department of Justice.
37
Amnesty International (2004) "'So does that mean I have rights?': Protecting the human rights of women and girls trafficked for forced
prostitution in Kosovo", London, UK: Amnesty International.
http://web.amnesty.org/library/pdf/EUR700102004ENGLISH/$File/EUR7001004.pdf
38
Protection Project, 2002, "Human Rights Report on Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children: A Country-By-Country
Report on a Contemporary Form of Slavery", Johns Hopkins University, Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies.
39
United Nations (UN), 2005, "A Comprehensive Strategy to Eliminate Future Sexual Exploitation and Abuse in United Nations
Peacekeeping Operations", United Nations, New York.
40
UNOHCHR, 2002, "Recommended Principles and Guidelines on Human Rights and Trafficking", E/2002/68/Add.1. Geneva:
UNOHCHR. http://www.unhchr.ch/huridocda/huridoca.nsf/e06a5300f90fa0238025668700518c
a4/caf3deb2b05d4f35c1256bf30051a003/$FILE/N0240168.pdf
The screening process begins with an assessment of indicators that can be evaluated
before interviewing an individual. The Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS)
"Look beneath the Surface" anti-trafficking public awareness campaign recommends that
the following indicators can flag potential victims:
 Evidence of being controlled, evidence of inability to move or leave job;
 Bruises or other signs of physical abuse;
 Fear or depression;
 Not speaking on own behalf and/or not speaking local language; or
 No passport or other forms of identification or documentation. 41
If one or more of these indicators is present, the interviewer should pursue questions
that will help identify the key elements of a trafficking scenario. HHS recommends the
following questions:
1. Why type of work do you do?
2. Are you being paid?
3. Can you leave your job if you want to?
4. Can you come and go as you please?
5. Have you or your family been threatened?
6. What are your working and living conditions like?
7. Where do you sleep and eat?
8. Do you have to ask permission to eat/sleep/go to the bathroom?
9. Are there locks on your doors/windows so you cannot get out?
10. Has your identification or documentation been taken from you? 42
EFFECTIVE STRATEGIES IN COMBATING TRAFFICKING

To be effective, anti-trafficking strategies must target both the supply side, the traffickers
— and the demand side — the owners or, in the case of trafficking for sexual
exploitation, the sex buyers — of this ugly phenomenon.
On the supply side, the conditions that drive trafficking must be dealt with through
programs that alert communities to the dangers of trafficking, improve and expand
educational and economic opportunities to vulnerable groups, promote equal access to
education, educate people regarding their legal rights, and create better and broader life
opportunities.43
Regarding traffickers, law enforcement must vigorously prosecute traffickers and those

who aid and abet them; fight public corruption which facilitates and profits from the
trade; identify and interdict trafficking routes through better intelligence gathering and
coordination; clarify legal definitions of trafficking and coordinate law enforcement
responsibilities; and train personnel to identify and direct trafficking victims to
appropriate care.44
41
U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), 2002, "Trafficking in Persons: USAID’s Response", USAID, Washington, DC.
42
Id.
43
Id.
44
Id.
On the demand side, persons who exploit trafficked persons must be identified and

prosecuted. Employers of forced labor and exploiters of victims trafficked for sexual
exploitation must be named and shamed. With regard to sex slavery, awareness-raising
campaigns must be conducted in destination countries to make it harder for trafficking to
be concealed or ignored. Victims must be rescued from slave-like living and working
situations, rehabilitated, and reintegrated into their families and communities. 45
Local, state, national, and regional programs to fight trafficking must be coordinated. By
drawing public attention to the problem, governments can enlist the support of the public
in the fight against trafficking. Anti-trafficking strategies and programs developed with
input from stakeholders (civil society and NGOs) are the most effective and likely to
succeed as they bring a comprehensive view to the problem. Coordination and
cooperation—whether national, bilateral, or regional—will leverage country efforts and
help rationalize the allocation of resources. Nations should cooperate more closely to
deny traffickers legal sanctuary and facilitate their extradition for prosecution. Such
cooperation should also aim to facilitate the voluntary and humane repatriation of
victims.46
Knowledge about trafficking must be continually improved, and the network of anti-
trafficking organizations and efforts strengthened. Religious institutions, NGOs, schools,
community associations, and traditional leaders need to be mobilized and drawn into the
struggle. Victims and their families are important stakeholders in the fight against
trafficking. Governments need to periodically reassess their anti-trafficking strategies and
programs to ensure they remain effective to counter new methods and approaches by
traffickers.47
Finally, government officials must be trained in anti-trafficking techniques and methods,

and trafficking flows and trends must be closely monitored to better understand the
nature and magnitude of the problem so that appropriate policy responses can be crafted
to tackle trafficking.48
TIER PLACEMENT
The US Department of State places each country in the annual TIP Report onto one of
four tiers, as mandated by the Trafficking Victim’s Protection Act (TVPA). This placement
is based more on the extent of government action to combat trafficking than on the size
of the problem. The analyses are based on the extent of governments’ efforts to reach
compliance with the TVPA’s minimum standards for the elimination of human trafficking
which are consistent with the Palermo Protocol. 49
45
Abramson, K., Summer 2003, "Beyond Consent, Toward Safeguarding Human Rights: Implementing the United Nations Trafficking
Protocol", Harvard International Law Journal, (44 Harv. Int'l L.J. 473).
46
Gallagher, Anne, November 2001, "Human Rights and the New U.N. Protocols on Trafficking and Migrant Smuggling: A Preliminary
Analysis", Human Rights Quarterly, Vol. 23, No. 4, pp. 975-1004.
47
Brown, T. Louise, 2000, Sex Slaves: The Trafficking of Women in Asia, Virago Press Ltd.
48
Kempadoo, K., J.Doezema (Eds.), Global Sex Workers Rights, Resistance, and Redefinition, Routledge, London, 1998.
49
US State Department, Trafficking in Person Report (2012). Washington D.C.
While Tier 1 is the highest ranking, it does not mean that a country has no human
trafficking problem. Rather, a Tier 1 ranking indicates that a government has
acknowledged the existence of human trafficking, has made efforts to address the
problem, and meets the TVPA’s minimum standards. Each year, governments need to
demonstrate appreciable progress in combating trafficking to maintain a Tier 1 ranking.
Indeed, Tier 1 represents a responsibility rather than a reprieve. A country is never
finished with the job of fighting trafficking. 50
Tier rankings and narratives in the 2013 TIP Report reflect an assessment of the
following:
 enactment of laws prohibiting severe forms of trafficking in persons, as
defined by the TVPA, and provision of criminal punishments for trafficking
offenses;
 criminal penalties prescribed for human trafficking offenses with a
maximum of at least four years’ deprivation of liberty, or a more severe
penalty;
 implementation of human trafficking laws through vigorous prosecution of
the prevalent forms of trafficking in the country;
 proactive victim identification measures with systematic procedures to guide
law enforcement and other government-supported front-line responders in
the process of victim identification;
 government funding and partnerships with NGOs to provide victims with
access to primary health care, counseling, and shelter, allowing them to
recount their trafficking experiences to trained social counselors and law
enforcement in an environment of minimal pressure;
 victim protection efforts that include access to services and shelter without
detention and with legal alternatives to removal to countries in which
victims would face retribution or hardship;
 the extent to which a government ensures victims are provided with legal
and other assistance and that, consistent with domestic law, proceedings
are not prejudicial to victims’ rights, dignity, or psychological well being;
 the extent to which a government ensures the safe, humane, and to the
extent possible, voluntary repatriation and reintegration of victims; and
 governmental measures to prevent human trafficking, including efforts to
curb practices identified as contributing factors to human trafficking, such
as employers’ confiscation of foreign workers’ passports and allowing labor
recruiters to charge prospective migrants recruitment or placement fees. 51
Tier rankings and narratives are NOT affected by the following:

 efforts, however laudable, undertaken exclusively by non-governmental
actors in the country;
 general public awareness events—government-sponsored or otherwise—
lacking concrete ties to the prosecution of traffickers, protection of
victims, or prevention of trafficking; and
50
51
Id.
 broad-based law enforcement or developmental initiatives.52
A GUIDE TO THE TIERS

The Tier system defined by the TVPA evaluates governments around the world and their
actions toward elimination of human trafficking. It focuses more on government action
rather than the extent of the problem.
Tier 1 are countries whose governments fully comply with the TVPA’s minimum
standards for the elimination of trafficking.53
Tier 2 includes countries whose governments do not fully comply with the TVPA’s
minimum standards but are making significant efforts to bring themselves into
compliance with those standards.54
Tier 2 Watch List is record of countries where governments do not fully comply with
the TVPA’s minimum standards, but are making significant efforts to bring themselves
into compliance with those standards, and
a. the absolute number of victims of severe forms of trafficking is very
significant or is significantly increasing;
b. there is a failure to provide evidence of increasing efforts to combat
severe forms of trafficking in persons from the previous year, including
increased investigations, prosecution, and convictions of trafficking
crimes, increased assistance to victims, and decreasing evidence of
complicity in severe forms of trafficking by government officials; or
c. the determination that a country is making significant efforts to bring itself
into compliance with minimum standards was based on commitments by
the country to take additional steps over the next year.55
Tier 3 these are countries whose governments do not fully comply with the TVPA’s
minimum standards and are not making significant efforts to do so. The TVPA lists
additional factors to determine whether a country should be on Tier 2 (or Tier 2 Watch
List) versus Tier 3. First, the extent to which the country is a country of origin, transit, or
destination for severe forms of trafficking. Second, the extent to which the country’s
government does not comply with the TVPA’s minimum standards and, in particular, the
extent to which officials or government employees have been complicit in severe forms
of trafficking. And third, reasonable measures required to bring the government into
compliance with the minimum standards in light of the government’s resources and
capabilities to address and eliminate severe forms of trafficking in persons. 56
A 2008 amendment to the TVPA provides that any country that has been ranked Tier 2
Watch List for two consecutive years and that would otherwise be ranked Tier 2 Watch
List for the next year will instead be ranked Tier 3 in that third year. This automatic
52
Id.
53
54
Id.
55
Id.
56
Id.
downgrade provision came into effect for the first time in last year’s report. The
Secretary of State is authorized to waive the automatic downgrade based on credible
evidence that a waiver is justified because the government has a written plan that, if
implemented, would constitute making significant efforts to comply with the TVPA’s
minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is devoting sufficient resources
to implement the plan. The Secretary can only issue this waiver for two consecutive
years. After the third year, a country must either go up to Tier 2, or down to Tier 3.
Governments subject to the automatic downgrade provision are noted as such in the
country narratives.57
Penalties for Tier 3 countries

Pursuant to the TVPA, governments of countries on Tier 3 may be subject to certain
sanctions, whereby the U.S. government may withhold or withdraw nonhumanitarian,
non-trade-related foreign assistance. In addition, countries on Tier 3 may not receive
funding for government employees’ participation in educational and cultural exchange
programs. Consistent with the TVPA, governments subject to sanctions would also face
U.S. opposition to assistance (except for humanitarian, trade-related, and certain
development-related assistance) from international financial institutions such as the
International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.58
Imposed sanctions will take effect upon the beginning of the U.S. government’s next
Fiscal Year—October 1, 2013—however, all or part of the TVPA’s sanctions can be waived
if the President determines that the provision of such assistance to the government
would promote the purposes of the statute or is otherwise in the United States’ national
interest. The TVPA also provides for a waiver of sanctions if necessary to avoid significant
adverse effects on vulnerable populations, including women and children. 59
No tier ranking is permanent. Each country, including the United States, can do more. All
countries must maintain and increase efforts to combat trafficking. 60
WHO CAN IDENTIFY TRAFFICKING VICTIMS?

It is important for a variety of government officials, private sector professionals,
community workers, and others who may encounter trafficking victims to be trained,
legally empowered, and given incentives to identify victims. Individuals who maybe
particularly well placed to identify trafficking victims include:
1. Government officials who inspect or have access to establishments where
trafficking may occur are uniquely positioned to identify trafficking victims: labor
inspectors, port inspectors, factory inspectors, food industry inspectors, consular
officers, agricultural inspectors, housing inspectors, tax authorities, and postal
workers.
57
58
Id.
59
Id.
60
Id.
2. Private sector employees who may encounter trafficking victims in the places

in which they work— employees of hotels, restaurants, bars, beauty parlors, and
grocery stores.
3. Law enforcement officers who are on the front lines of crime and are often
those who have primary contact with trafficking victims—all police (sometimes
trafficking victims are identified through investigations of non-trafficking crimes),
immigration officers, and border guards.
4. Health care professionals who often encounter trafficking victims—emergency
room personnel, health clinics, doctors, nurses, dentists, OB/GYNs, and
practitioners at family planning clinics and HIV/AIDS clinics.
5. Transportation professionals who often encounter trafficking victims either
being transported or otherwise exploited—truck, taxi, and bus drivers; train
attendants; flight attendants; and employees at truck and rest stops.
6. Education officials who are uniquely positioned to identify children who are
being exploited—principals, guidance counselors, teachers, and school nurses. 61
Trafficking victims may seek assistance from institutions for related matters. Those well
positioned to identify human trafficking victims can include religious leaders; officials in
organizations that work with immigrants, children, the homeless, refugees, and other
vulnerable populations; social workers; and employees and volunteers in shelters for
victims of domestic violence or sexual assault, runaway youth, or the homeless. 62
HUMAN TRAFFICKING: THE PHILIPPINE EXPERIENCE

The Philippines is a source country and, to a much lesser extent, a destination and transit
country for men, women, and children subjected to sex trafficking and forced labor. A
significant number of Filipino men and women who migrate abroad for work are
subsequently subjected to conditions of involuntary servitude. Men, women, and children
are subjected to conditions of forced labor in factories, at construction sites, on fishing
vessels, on agricultural plantations, and in the shipping industry, as well as in domestic
service and other service sector jobs in Asia and increasingly throughout the Middle East.
A significant number of Filipina women working in domestic service in foreign countries
also face rape, physical violence, and sexual abuse. Skilled Filipino migrant workers such
as engineers and nurses are also subjected to conditions of forced labor abroad. Filipina
women were subjected to sex trafficking in Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Republic of
Korea, China, Japan, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, and Syria. 63
Trafficking of men, women, and children within the country also remains a significant
problem. People are trafficked from rural areas to urban centers including Manila, Cebu,
the city of Angeles, and increasingly cities in Mindanao, as well as within other urban
areas and tourist destinations such as Boracay, Olongapo, Puerta Galera, and Surigao.
Men are subjected to forced labor and debt bondage in agriculture, including on sugar
cane plantations, and in the fishing industry. Women and children were trafficked within
the country for forced labor as domestic workers and small-scale factory workers, for
61
Sharma, Anita, March 2003, "Combating Human Trafficking Centerpoint: Woodrow Wilson", International Center for Scholars
Newsletter, pp. 1-2.
62
Id.
63
forced begging, and for exploitation in the commercial sex trade. Hundreds of victims are
subjected to sex trafficking each day in well-known and highly visible business
establishments that cater to Filipinos’ and foreign tourists’ demand for commercial sex
acts. Filipino migrant workers, both domestically and abroad, who became trafficking
victims are often subjected to violence, threats, inhumane living conditions, nonpayment
of salaries, confinement, and withholding of travel and identity documents. 64
Traffickers, at times in partnership with organized crime syndicates and corrupt

government officials, recruit family and friends from villages and urban neighborhoods,
sometimes masquerading as representatives of government-registered employment
agencies. During the year, traffickers increasingly used email and social networking sites
to fraudulently recruit Filipinos for overseas work. Fraudulent recruitment practices and
the institutionalized practice of paying recruitment fees leave workers vulnerable to
forced labor, debt bondage, and commercial sexual exploitation. Reports that illicit
recruiters used student, intern, and exchange program visas to circumvent the Philippine
government and receiving countries’ regulatory frameworks for foreign workers are not
uncommon. Recruiters continued to employ various methods to avoid government-run
victim detection units at airports and seaports. Traffickers utilized budget airlines, inter-
island ferries and barges, buses, small private boats, and even chartered flights to
transport their victims domestically and internationally. Organized crime syndicates
transported sex trafficking victims from China through the Philippines en route to third-
country destinations.
Child sex tourism remained a serious problem in the Philippines, with sex tourists coming
from Northeast Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Europe, and North America to engage in
the commercial sexual exploitation of children. Increasingly, Filipino children are coerced
to perform sex acts for internet broadcast to paying foreign viewers. An NGO reported an
increasing risk of boys becoming victims of commercial sexual exploitation.
Children in conflict-afflicted areas were particularly vulnerable to trafficking. The Moro

Islamic Liberation Front, a separatist group, and the New People’s Army were identified
by the UN as among the world’s persistent perpetrators of violations against children in
armed conflict, including unlawfully recruiting and using children. During the year, the UN
reported on the Abu Sayyaf Group’s continued targeting of children for conscription as
both combatants and noncombatants. There were reports that, in one incident, the
Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) forced two children aged 12 and 13 to serve as
guides; the children were reportedly released the same day. There were also reports that
one child was inadvertently recruited into a paramilitary entity operational under the AFP
during the year.65
The Government of the Philippines does not fully comply with the minimum standards for
the elimination of trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to do so. The
government sustained its levels of funding for the Inter-Agency Council Against
Trafficking (IACAT) at the equivalent of approximately $1.2 million in 2012 and continued
64
Aronowitz, A., 2003, "Coalitions Against Trafficking in Human Beings in the Philippines: Research and Action", Final Report, United
Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Anti-Human Trafficking Unit, Geneva: UNODC.
65
Id.
efforts to implement anti-trafficking laws and policies at the national, regional, and
provincial levels. It undertook notable efforts to prevent the trafficking of overseas
workers and to protect Filipino victims exploited abroad, and increased many of its
financial and human resource allocations to combat trafficking. It did not, however, make
significant progress in addressing the underlying weaknesses in its judicial system, which
stymied efforts to hold trafficking offenders accountable, and the overall number of
prosecutions and convictions remained disproportionately low for the size of the problem.
It enacted amendments to its anti-trafficking legislation that could facilitate prosecution
of a wider range of cases, but the excessive length of trials and lack of public prosecutors
dedicated to trafficking cases continue to limit progress. The government identified and
provided protections to trafficking victims but did not make significant efforts to increase
the availability of specialized services. Rampant corruption at all levels enabled traffickers
and undermined efforts to combat trafficking. 66
Government experts in the Philippines have identified several methods and strategies
which facilitate exit from the Philippines and entry into the destination countries. Some
are legal means of exit and entry into the destination country (such as the use of
legitimate tourist visas) while other means are illicit (the use of fraudulent documents).
These include:
1. Illegal recruitment, promise of non-existing jobs or jobs differing from those
promised;
2. Airport escorting scheme (where airport personnel ‘escort’ individuals without
proper documentation through Immigration check points);
3. Pre-arranged passage (Immigration officials ignore fraudulent documents or lack of
proper documentation and allow persons to pass through Immigration check
points);
4. Transit travel (nationality switch or conversion, whereby individuals switch
nationalities to one for which a visa is not required for the destination country);
5. Photo-substitution and look-alike (passport tampering);
6. Matchmaking for marriage (a spouse visa provides an individual with the possibility
to remain legally for, often, an undisclosed period of time in the destination
country);
7. Adoption;
8. Foreign training / internships;
9. Religious pilgrimages / movements;
10. Family tours (where individuals pose as family members to secure visas) ;
11. Cultural exchange / promotion.67
The last 3 methods are often utilized to bring groups of people out of the Philippines and
into the destination country on legitimate visas. Upon entry, smuggled persons disappear
and trafficked persons are forced into exploitative situations.68
66
Coalition Against Trafficking in Women, 1993, "'Women empowering women', proceedings from the Human Rights Conference on the
Trafficking of Asian Women", 2-4 April, Quezon City, Philippines, CATW: Asia.
67
Raymond, Janice G. & als, 2002, "A Comparative Study of Women Trafficked in the Migration Process: Patterns, Profiles and Health
Consequences of Sexual Exploitation in Five Countries (Indonesia, The Philippines, Thailand, Venezuela And The United States)",
Coalition Against Trafficking In Women.
68
Id.
Means of transportation
According to government experts, about 71% of smuggled persons are transported by
air, through regular commercial flights and 29% by sea, via big sea vessels, pump boats,
speed boats and fishing boats. The same means are also observed when transporting
trafficked individuals whereby 70% use air and 30% use the sea routes to exit the
Philippines. 69
Ports of Exit
Government experts enumerated the exit ports used by traffickers. The most frequently
used is the Ninoy Aquino International Airport. This is followed by those using the
Zamboanga ports who travel by sea to Malaysia (as a transit or destination country). The
Mactan International Airport (Cebu) came in third.70
Based on reports of the Philippines National Police (PNP) and Philippines Centre on
Transnational Crime (PCTC), the following ports are used in smuggling and trafficking of
both Filipinos and foreigners:
 Ilocos Sur (Salomague Island)
 Zambo del Sur (Zambo Port, Bauin Point)
 Davao del Sur (Davao Gulf, Digos Point, Panabo Port)
 Misamis Oriental (Port of Aplaya, Jasaan)
 Bicol (Pio Duran, Albay)
 Dagupan City 71
Transit and Destination Countries

The following information is being provided for trafficked as well as smuggled persons.
When travel is by sea, Malaysia, the closest country geographically to the Philippines, is
the most accessible and serves as a destination country as well as the ideal transit point
from the Philippines to other countries. According to government experts, Bangkok,
Thailand; Hong Kong; and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia are most commonly used for transit
purposes. Other transit countries cited are Singapore Morocco and Eastern European
countries. Several also included Jakarta, Indonesia; France; Casablanca, Morocco; Mexico
and China.72
The top destination countries are USA, Japan, South Korea, European countries - in
particular Italy - Jordan, Taiwan and Malaysia. Except for those travelling to Korea, there
are no specific patterns of routes observed in case files. Those travelling to Korea, often
pass through Bangkok or Hong Kong before going to Korea. 73
69
Coalition Against Trafficking in Women, 1993, "'Women empowering women', proceedings from the Human Rights Conference on the
Trafficking of Asian Women", 2-4 April, Quezon City, Philippines, CATW: Asia.
70
Id.
71
Id.
72
Id.
73
Id.
Almost all victims in the government case files made use of the services of a recruiter,
placement agency, or a travel agency. All clients of these agencies agreed to the terms
provided by the recruiter/employer while in the Philippines and left the country
voluntarily. 74
However, upon entering the destination country, the majority were deceived with respect
to the actual work they ended up doing (as opposed to what they had been promised) as
well as the conditions of their work and living environment. Most of the time the victims
were recruited to work as "entertainers" but ended up being sexually exploited and
forced to work as strippers, night-club/or karaoke hostesses and prostitutes. The women
reported to government officials that they did not consent to physical and sexual
contacts and other forms of violence committed against their persons by employers or
customers but were forced by circumstances into submission.75
Further, the majority of victims trafficked to Korea revealed that their employers in the
destination country did not adhere to the salary that had been agreed upon prior to their
departure from the Philippines.76
LAW ENFORCEMENT ACTION ON HUMAN TRAFFICKING

Smuggling and trafficking in human beings, as a crime, is very loosely defined and
sometimes misunderstood by law enforcers. Even the method of categorizing cases
relating to smuggling and trafficking in human beings in law enforcement agencies is
poorly organized making statistics on the subject inaccurate.
The four law enforcement agencies in the Philippines have their own format of receiving
complaints of trafficked victims making comparative analysis of cases difficult. The case
files contain a variety of information which is often not comparable. Since the Philippines
Centre on Transnational Crime (PCTC) has the mandate of establishing and maintaining a
trafficking database (per Executive Order 216), it is recommended that the standardised
format now being developed and adopted by the Philippines Centre on Transnational
Crime (PCTC) be used by the Philippines National Police (PNP), the National Bureau of
Investigation (NBI), the Bureau of Immigration (BI) and all other agencies involved in the
campaign against smuggling and trafficking.
Aside from the official complaints filed in police offices, the trafficking case file database
currently being developed by PCTC include complaints and/or testimonies of victims from
consular offices/ embassies, letter to relatives, and newspaper reports. It is therefore
recommended, that a similar complaint format be adopted by agencies
receiving/entertaining complaints of this nature (such as consular offices, embassies of
the Department of Foreign Affairs, and the POEA).
Since victim complaints focus on the abuses and exploitation in the destination country,
very little information is contained in case files on the involvement of organised crime
74
ASEM, 2001, "ASEM Action Plan to Combat Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children: An initiative from Sweden,
Thailand and the Philippines", ASEM Foreign Ministers. Meeting, Beijing, 24-25 May.
75
No author (2013) PCTC paper on Human Trafficking available at www.pctc.gov.ph
76
Id.
groups, manner of travel, cost, etc. A standard interview format should be developed to
include this information and it must be made available to law enforcement agencies. 77
Based on law enforcement statistics there have been a numbers of arrests of individuals
involved in smuggling in persons and the use of fraudulent documentation. Most of the
arrests were made after officers zealously scrutinised travel documents. However, even
the immigration chief admitted that more trafficking incidences may be foiled if officers
are equipped with high technology machines to aid them in detecting fraudulent
documentation.
There is also a need for an automated inter-agency security file checking. Only a fraction
of cases are filed in court. If filed, suspects are charged with other related crimes (illegal
recruitment, illegal entry, violation of passport laws, etc.) as there is no specific anti-
trafficking law. Adding to this problem, the level of co-operation between law
enforcement officers and prosecutors is quite low, resulting in dismissal of cases.
The government continued to prosecute sex and labor trafficking offenders and to
impose stringent sentences on convicted offenders, but it convicted fewer offenders than
it did during the previous year. The Philippines criminally prohibits sex and labor
trafficking through its 2003 Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act, which prescribes penalties
that are sufficiently stringent and commensurate with those prescribed for other serious
crimes, such as rape. In February 2013, the government enacted an amendment to its
2003 law that defined additional acts as constituting trafficking in persons and included
provisions for the prosecution of attempted trafficking; the new law also provides for
extraterritorial jurisdiction of trafficking crimes committed by Filipino citizens or legal
residents or against Filipino citizens abroad. During the reporting period, 227 cases were
filed with the DOJ for potential prosecution, but it is unknown how many cases were
prosecuted. The government convicted 24 trafficking offenders, a decrease from the 29
traffickers convicted during the previous year; three convictions were for labor
trafficking, a slight increase from the two labor trafficking convictions obtained during the
previous year. An international NGO assisted the government with seven of the 19 cases
that resulted in convictions. Sentences for those convicted ranged from 17 years to life
imprisonment, with the majority of offenders sentenced to life imprisonment. In one
successful case, a sex trafficking conviction was obtained in the Philippines for a local
Filipina recruiter, and IACAT support was given to the court in Malaysia that reportedly
convicted her Singaporean counterpart for human trafficking violations in Malaysia. The
government’s anti-money laundering law could be used to file a civil action requesting
courts freeze and seize assets of suspected traffickers, but there were no reports that
victims received this form of redress during the year. Nonetheless, hundreds of victims
continue to be trafficked each day in well-known, highly visible establishments, many of
which have never been the target of anti-trafficking law enforcement action. 78
Although the DOJ encouraged courts’ expedited processing of trafficking cases based on
a 2010 supreme court circular setting a six-month limit, inefficiencies in the judicial
77
78
Id.
system posed serious challenges to the successful prosecution of some cases;

government and NGO observers estimated the average length of trafficking cases to be
between three-and-a-half and five years. The DOJ, which houses the IACAT secretariat,
is responsible for the prosecution of suspected offenders and protection of witnesses in
trafficking cases and assigned 93 prosecutors to work on trafficking in persons cases, a
significant increase from 58 in the previous year. Nineteen of these prosecutors were
with the IACAT secretariat, while 74 were assigned to airport and regional taskforces.
Most of these prosecutors, however, were given this responsibility in addition to their
regular workloads. The government continued to employ a taskforce model, in which
prosecutors were assigned to assist law enforcement in building cases against suspected
trafficking offenders; eight new taskforces were established during the year, bringing the
total to 14. Observers reported that constant collaboration between law enforcement
officers and prosecutors led to more organized investigations during the reporting
period.79
The government continued strong efforts to provide anti-trafficking training to

government officials: IACAT independently conducted 90 training sessions for
government and NGO stakeholders and 14 in cooperation with other partners, police
trained 1,616 officers working on women and children’s desks, and NGOs and foreign
donors provided additional training to law enforcement officers. Nonetheless, NGOs
continue to report a lack of understanding of trafficking and the country’s anti-trafficking
legal framework among many judges, prosecutors, social service workers, and law
enforcement officials; low awareness and high rates of turnover among officials continue
to pose a significant impediment to successful prosecutions. Philippine officials
cooperated with counterparts in other countries to rescue victims and pursue law
enforcement action against suspected traffickers; two such cases led to convictions of
recruiters in China and Malaysia for labor and immigration infractions.
Law enforcement officials’ complicity in human trafficking remained a problem in the

Philippines, and corruption at all levels of government enables traffickers to prosper.
Officials in government units and agencies assigned to enforce laws against human
trafficking reportedly permitted trafficking offenders to conduct illegal activities, allowed
traffickers to escape during raids, extorted bribes, facilitated illegal departures for
overseas workers, and accepted payments or sexual services from establishments known
to traffic women and children. During the year, a judge was reported to have criminally
mishandled trafficking cases, and a city prosecutor allegedly accepted a bribe to
downgrade a human trafficking charge to child abuse. There were ongoing allegations
that police officers at times conducted indiscriminate or fake raids on commercial sex
establishments to extort bribes from managers, clients, and female victims in the sex
industry, sometimes threatening the victims with imprisonment. 80
During the year, the government took some steps to identify and prosecute officials
complicit in human trafficking, and it dismissed officials who may have facilitated
trafficking, though no public officials were criminally convicted for trafficking or
trafficking-related corruption. Two officials were charged under the anti-trafficking law
79
80
Id.
for facilitating illegal departures of overseas workers, but these cases had not been
concluded by the close of the reporting period. A Philippine ambassador abroad, accused
of sexual exploitation of a domestic worker, was investigated for possible trafficking; the
ambassador was recalled and currently faces charges in the Philippines for sexual
harassment.81
LAWS ON HUMAN TRAFFICKING

The Philippines has a long history of legislation aimed at protecting the rights and
welfare of children. The 1974 Labor Code of the Philippines (Presidential Decree No. 442)
set the minimum age of employment at 15 years and prohibited the employment of
persons below 18 years of age in hazardous undertakings.
Presidential Decree No. 603 (The Child and Youth Welfare Code) permits the
employment of children aged 16 years and below only if they perform light work, which
is not harmful to their safety, health or normal development, and which is not prejudicial
to their studies. Strict rules and regulations were issued on their rates of pay, hours of
work and other conditions of employment. An employment permit also has to be secured
from the Department of Labor and Employment.
The 1992 child protection law, Republic Act No. 7610 (Special Protection of Children
against Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination Act) provides protection of children
against abuse, commercial sexual exploitation, trafficking, and employment in illicit
activities.
Republic Act No. 7658 (amending RA 7610) set minimum age of employment to 15
years, and 18 years and above for hazardous work.
Republic Act 7160 (The Local Government Code of 1991) includes provisions for the
proper development and welfare of children at the basic political level, the Barangay. It
enjoins local officials to promote and support activities for the protection and total
development of children, particularly those below seven years of age, and adopt
measures to prevent and eradicate drug abuse, child abuse, and juvenile delinquency.
Republic Act No. 9231 (19 December 2003 - An Act Providing for the Elimination of the
WFCL and Affording Stronger Protection for the Working Child) - amends R.A. No. 7610
by embodying the State policy to provide special protection to children from all forms of
abuse, neglect, cruelty, exploitation and discrimination, and conditions prejudicial to their
development, including child labour and its worst forms. It also provides stiffer penalties
for their commission. It spells out the WFCL, consistent with Convention No. 182; the
hours of work of working children; and ownership, usage and administration of the
working child’s income. Further, it ensures working children’s access to education and
training, and immediate legal, medical and psychosocial services.
In September 1995, then President Fidel V. Ramos signed Executive Order No. 275
creating a special oversight committee for the special protection of children from all
81
ASEM, 2001, "ASEM Action Plan to Combat Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children: An initiative from Sweden,
Thailand and the Philippines", ASEM Foreign Ministers. Meeting, Beijing, 24-25 May
forms of neglect, abuse, cruelty, exploitation, discrimination and other conditions

prejudicial to their development
Republic Act Number 9208 or the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003 is a

consolidation of Senate Bill No. 2444 and House Bill No. 4432, a landmark legislation that
institutes policies to eliminate and penalize acts of human trafficking particularly on
women and children. The law created mechanisms for the protection and support of the
victims of human trafficking.
The law aspires “to promote human dignity, protect the people from any threat of
violence and exploitation, and mitigate pressures for involuntary migration and servitude
of persons, not only to support trafficked persons but more importantly, to ensure their
recovery, rehabilitation and reintegration into the mainstream of society” (Republic Act
No. 9208). The law established an Inter-Agency Council against Trafficking (IACAT)
which is composed of government agencies, non-government organizations and other
civic organizations for the effective formulation of a comprehensive and integrated
program to prevent and suppress the trafficking in persons.
OTHER LAWS ON HUMAN TRAFFICKING

1. Republic Act 10364
An act expanding Republic Act No. 9208, Entitled "An Act To Institute Policies To
Eliminate Trafficking In Persons Especially Women And Children, Establishing The
Necessary Institutional Mechanisms For The Protection And Support Of Trafficked
Persons, Providing Penalties For Its Violations And For Other Purpose

An act to strengthen the regulatory functions of the Philippine Overseas
Employment Administration (POEA), amending for this purpose Republic Act No.
8042, other wise known as the "Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipino Act of
1995"

Inter-Country Adoption Act of 1995
An act establishing the rules to govern inter-country adoption of Filipino children,
and for other purposes

Mail Order Bride Law
An act to declare unlawful the practice of matching Filipino women for marriage
to foreign nationals on a mail order basis and other similar practices including
the advertisement, publication, printing or distribution of brochures, fliers and
other propaganda materials in furtherance thereof and providing penalty
therefore

Philippine Passport Act of 1996

An Act Prohibiting The Employment Of Children Below 15 Years Of Age In Public
And Private Undertakings, Amending For This Purpose Section 12, Article VIII Of
R. A. 7610.

Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act of 1995
8. Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation
of the Prostitution of Others
Approved by General Assembly resolution 317(IV) of 2 December 1949 entry into
force 25 July 1951, in accordance with article 24
9. Convention against torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or

punishment
United Nations, 1987
10. Body of Principles for the Protection of All Persons Under Any Form of Detention
of Imprisonment
UN General Assembly, 1988
11. Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish trafficking in persons, especially

Women and Children, Supplementing the United Nations Convention Against
Transnational Organized Crime
Adopted by a Conference of Plenipotentiaries convened by Economic and Social
Council resolution 608(XXI) of 30 April 1956 and done at Geneva on 7
September 1956 entry into force 30 April 1957, in accordance with article 13
12. DOLE Department Order No. 63-04, Series of 2004

Guidelines in Enhancing the existing protective mechanisms for land-based OFWs

Operational Guidelines to strengthen security measures for all OFWs in war torn
or high risk countries and consistent with the One Country Team Approach

System of Certification and Deployment of Overseas Performing Artists
SALIENT FEATURES OF RA 9208

What is the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003?
The Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003, also known as Republic Act 9208, institutes
government policies to eliminate trafficking in persons, especially women and children. It
establishes the necessary mechanisms to protect and support trafficked persons, and
provides penalties for violators. 82
82
Republic Act No. 9208. Anti- Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003.
What is Trafficking in Persons?

Trafficking in persons is an illegal act and is considered a violation of human rights and
inimical to human dignity and national development. It consists of the following
elements:
1. It involves the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring or receipt of a
person or persons;
2. It is committed with or without the victim’s consent or knowledge;

3. It is done within or across national boundaries;
4. It is committed by means of threat or use of force, or other forms of coercion,
abduction, fraud, deception, abuse of power or position, giving or receiving of
payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having actual control
over another person; and
5. It is done for the purpose of exploitation such as sexual exploitation, forced labor
or services, slavery, and removal or sale of organs or other similar acts. 83
What are three categories of human trafficking?

The Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003 provides for the punishment of three
categories of trafficking:
1. Acts of trafficking in persons;
2. Acts that promote human trafficking; and
3. Qualified trafficking in persons 84
What are the prohibited acts of trafficking in persons and what is the
penalty?
It shall be unlawful for any person, natural or juridical, to commit any of the following
acts:
1. To recruit, transport, transfer; harbor, provide, or receive a person by any
means, including those done under the pretext of domestic or overseas
employment or training or apprenticeship, for the purpose of prostitution,
pornography, sexual exploitation, forced labor, slavery, involuntary servitude or
debt bondage.
2. To introduce or match for money, profit, or material, economic or other
consideration, any person or, as provided for under Republic Act No. 6955, any
Filipino woman to a foreign national, for marriage for the purpose of acquiring,
buying, offering, selling or trading him/her to engage in prostitution,
debt bondage.
3. To offer or contract marriage, real or simulated, for the purpose of acquiring,
buying, offering, selling, or trading them to engage in prostitution, pornography,
sexual exploitation, forced labor or slavery, involuntary servitude or debt
bondage.
83
Section 3, Republic Act No. 9208. Anti- Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003.
84
Section 4, Id
4. To undertake or organize tours and travel plans consisting of tourism packages

or activities for the purpose of utilizing and offering persons for prostitution,
pornography or sexual exploitation.
5. To maintain or hire a person to engage in prostitution or pornography.
6. To adopt or facilitate the adoption of persons for the purpose of prostitution,
debt bondage. (Conviction by final judgment of the adopter for any offense
under this law shall result in the immediate rescission of the decree of adoption).
7. To recruit, hire, adopt, transport or abduct a person, by means of threat or use
of force, fraud, deceit, violence, coercion, or intimidation for the purpose of
removal or sale of organs of said person.
8. To recruit, transport or adopt a child to engage in armed activities in the
Philippines or abroad.85
The penalty is imprisonment for a period of 20 years and a fine of not less than P1
Million but not more than P2 Million.
What are the punishable acts that promote trafficking in persons and what is
the penalty?
The following acts which promote or facilitate trafficking in persons, shall be unlawful:
1. To knowingly lease or sublease, use or allow to be used any house, building or
establishment for the purpose of promoting trafficking in persons.
2. To produce, print and issue or distribute unissued, tampered or fake counseling
certificates, registration stickers and certificates of any government agency which
issues these certificates and stickers as proof of compliance with government
regulatory and pre-departure requirements for the purpose of promoting
trafficking in persons.
3. To advertise, publish, print, broadcast or distribute, or cause the advertisement,
publication, printing, broadcasting or distribution by any means, including the
use of information technology and the internet, of any brochure, flyer, or any
propaganda material that promotes trafficking in persons.
4. To assist in the conduct of misrepresentation or fraud for purposes of facilitating
the acquisition of clearances and necessary exit documents from government
agencies that are mandated to provide pre-departure registration and services
for departing persons for the purpose of promoting trafficking in persons.
5. To facilitate, assist or help in the exit and entry of persons from/to the country at
international and local airports, territorial boundaries and seaports who are in
possession of unissued, tampered or fraudulent travel documents for the
purpose of promoting trafficking in persons.
6. To confiscate, conceal, or destroy the passport, travel documents, or personal
documents or belongings of trafficked persons in furtherance of trafficking or to
prevent them from leaving the country or seeking redress from the government
or appropriate agencies.
85
7. To knowingly benefit from, financial or otherwise, or make use of, the labor or
services of a person held to a condition of involuntary servitude, forced labor, or
slavery.86
The penalty is imprisonment for 15 years and a fine of not less than P500,000, but not
more than P1 Million.
What acts are considered as “qualified trafficking in persons” and what is the
penalty? The following are considered as qualified trafficking:
1. When the trafficked person is a child.
2. When the adoption is effected through Republic Act No. 8043, otherwise known
as the “Inter-Country Adoption Act of 1995″ and said adoption is for the purpose
of prostitution, pornography, sexual exploitation, forced labor, slavery,
involuntary servitude or debt bondage.
3. When the crime is committed by a syndicate, or in large scale. Trafficking is
deemed committed by a syndicate if carried out by a group of three (3) or more
persons conspiring or confederating with one another. It is deemed committed in
large scale if committed against three (3) or more persons, individually or as a
group.
4. When the offender is an ascendant, parent, sibling, guardian or a person who
exercises authority over the trafficked person or when the offense is committed
by a public officer or employee.
5. When the trafficked person is recruited to engage in prostitution with any
member of the military or law enforcement agencies.
6. When the offender is a member of the military or law enforcement agencies.
7. When by reason or on occasion of the act of trafficking in persons, the offended
party dies, becomes insane, suffers mutilation or is afflicted with Human
Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) or the Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome
(AIDS).87
In these cases, the penalty is life imprisonment and a fine of not less than P2 Million, but
not more than P5 Million.
When is trafficking considered a large scale or committed by a syndicate?

Trafficking is deemed committed by a syndicate if carried out by a group of three (3) or
more persons conspiring or confederating with one another. It is deemed committed in
large scale if committed against three (3) or more persons, individually or as a group. 88
Who may be punished for trafficking in persons?

Any person, natural or juridical, found guilty of trafficking under R.A. 9208 may be
punished. If the offender is a corporation, partnership, association, club, establishment or
any juridical person, the penalty shall be imposed upon the owner, president, partner,
manager, and/or any responsible officer who participated in the commission of the crime,
or who knowingly permitted or failed to prevent its commission. If the offender is a
86
Id.
87
88
Sec 17, Id
foreigner, he or she shall be immediately deported after serving his/her sentence and
barred from entering the country.89
Who can file cases for Trafficking in Persons?

The following persons may file cases of trafficking in persons:
1. the trafficked person;
2. the parents, spouse, siblings, children or legal guardian of the trafficked person;
and
3. anyone who has personal knowledge of the commission of any offense under
R.A. 9208. 90
Where can Trafficking in Persons cases be filed?

Trafficking in persons cases under R.A. 9208 may be filed in any of the following places:
1. where the offense was committed;
2. where any of the elements of the offense occurred; or
3. where the trafficked person resides at the time of the commission of the crime. 91
What is the prescriptive period for filing of cases?

Trafficking cases can be filed within 10 years after they are committed. If trafficking is
committed by a syndicate or on a large scale, cases can be filed within 20 years after the
commission of the act. The so-called “prescriptive period” is counted from the day the
trafficked person is delivered or released from the conditions of bondage. 92
What are the penalties for violations of R.A. 9208?

ACT PENALTY
Acts of Trafficking 20 years imprisonment and a fine of P 1
Million to P 2 Million
Acts that Promote Trafficking 15 years imprisonment and a fine of P500,
000 to 1 Million pesos
Qualified Trafficking Life Imprisonment and a fine of P 2 Million
to P 5 Million pesos
Breach of Confidentiality Clause Six (6) years imprisonment and a fine of P
500, 00 to 1 Million pesos.
1st Offense
Use of Trafficked person Six Months community service and a fine
of P 50, 000
2nd Subsequent Offense
One (1) year imprisonment and a fine of P
100, 00
What protection is given to trafficked persons under R.A. 9208?

Trafficked persons are recognized as victims and shall not be penalized for crimes directly
related to the acts of trafficking or in obedience to the order of the trafficker.
89
Id.
90
Id. Republic Act No. 9208. Anti- Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003.
91
Section 9, Id
92
Section 12, Id
The consent of the victim to the intended exploitation is irrelevant. Victims are also
entitled to the witness protection program provided under R.A. 6981.93
What happens to Filipino victims of trafficking living in other countries?

Trafficking victims living in other countries, whether documented or not, may be
repatriated. The Department of Foreign Affairs shall be responsible for repatriating
trafficked victims.
If, however, the repatriation of trafficked persons shall expose them to greater risks, the
DFA shall make representations with the host government for the extension of
appropriate residency permits and protection of the victim. 94
What happens to the fines, proceeds and properties derived from trafficking in
persons?
All fines imposed, and the proceeds and properties forfeited and confiscated pursuant to
R.A. 9208 shall accrue to a trust fund to be administered and managed by the Inter-
Agency Council against Trafficking. These shall be used exclusively for programs that will
prevent acts of trafficking, and will protect, rehabilitate and reintegrate trafficked persons
into the mainstream of society. 95
What are the mandatory services to trafficked persons?

The concerned government agencies shall make available the following services to
trafficked persons:
1. Emergency shelter or appropriate housing.
2. Counseling.
3. Free legal services which shall include information about the victims’ rights and
the procedure for filing complaints, claiming compensation and such other legal
remedies available to them, in a language understood by the trafficked person.
4. Medical or psychological services.
5. Livelihood and skills training.
6. Educational assistance to a trafficked child.96
Repatriation of Trafficked Persons. The DFA, in coordination with DOLE and other

appropriate agencies, shall have the primary responsibility for the repatriation of
trafficked persons, regardless of whether they are documented or undocumented. If,
however, the repatriation of the trafficked persons shall expose the victims to greater
risks, the DFA shall make representation with the host government for the extension of
appropriate residency permits and protection, as may be legally permissible in the host
country.97
93
Section 17, Id
94
95
Section 19, Id.
96
Section 14, Id
97
Section 25, Id
Legal Protection to Trafficked Persons. Trafficked persons shall be recognized as

victims of the act or acts of trafficking and as such shall not be penalized for crimes
directly related to the acts of trafficking enumerated in this law or in obedience to the
order made by the trafficker in relation thereto. In this regard, the consent of a trafficked
person to the intended exploitation set forth in this law shall be irrelevant. 98
What is the Inter-Agency Council against Trafficking (IACAT) and its

composition?
The Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT) is the primary body mandated to
coordinate, monitor and oversee the implementation of R.A. 9208. It is composed of the
heads of the following departments/agencies:
 Department of Justice (DOJ), Chair

 Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Co-Chair
 Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA)
 Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE)
 Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA)
 Bureau of Immigration (BI)
 Philippine National Police (PNP)
 National Commission on the Role of Filipino Women (NCRFW) 99
Three (3) representatives from NGOs, who shall be composed of one (1) representative
each from among the sectors representing women, overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and
children. These representatives are nominated by the government agency
representatives of the Council, for appointment by the President for a term of three (3)
years. 100
What is the task force responsible for operations against human trafficking?
The Task Force against Human Trafficking (TFHT) is an inter-agency body created by
Executive Order No. 548-A. It is based at the Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO)
and complements the functions of the IACAT. The TFHT is composed of the CFO as
Chair, and members from the National Bureau of Investigation, the Philippine National
Police, and other relevant government agencies as may be determined by the CFO
Chairman.101
The TFHT has the following functions:

a. Recommend to the IACAT policies, programs and services to enhance
government initiatives against trafficking in persons;
b. Conduct surveillance and entrapment operations in consultation and
coordination with the IACAT;
c. Cause or direct the immediate apprehension, investigation and speedy
prosecution of persons involved in, or of cases involving trafficking in
persons, and monitor progress of such cases;
98
Section 17, Id
99
100
Id.
101
d. Provide adequate legal, psycho-social and other forms of assistance to

trafficked persons, subject to rules and regulations as may be implemented;
e. Consolidate various sources of data and statistics on trafficking, and establish
a comprehensive databank for the effective monitoring, documentation and
prosecution of trafficking incidents;
f. Conduct a community education and information campaign program against
trafficking in persons; and
g. Perform such other acts as may be necessary for the effective discharge of
its functions and responsibilities. 102
Government Agencies concerned to the Implementation of Anti- Human Trafficking

Initiatives
1. Philippine National Police
The Philippine National Police (PNP) serves on the Inter-Agency Council Against
Trafficking, as mandated by the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003. The Act
states that the PNP shall be the primary law enforcement agency to undertake
surveillance, investigation and arrest of individuals or persons suspected to be
engaged in trafficking.
2. Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA)
The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), as a member of the
Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking, undertakes to provide education,
information dissemination campaigns and free legal assistance to victims of
trafficking in persons in the guise of overseas employment.
3. Bureau of Immigration
The Bureau of Immigration serves on the Inter-Agency Council Against
Trafficking, as mandated by the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003.
4. Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO)
The Commission on Filipinos Overseas is an agency under the Department of
Foreign Affairs and is mandated to promote the interest and well-being of
Filipinos overseas, particularly those of Filipino permanent residents abroad
including those in intermarriages.
5. Department of Foreign Affairs: Office of the Legal Assistant for Migrant Workers
Affairs (OLAMWA)
OLAMWA works in coordination with various sectors - elected officials, other
government agencies, OFWs and their families, mass media, private
organizations, international organizations, NGOs and religious group - to deliver
timely assistance to Filipino nationals.
6. Department of Justice (DOJ)
The Department of Justice is the Chair of the Inter-Agency Council Against
Trafficking (IACAT).
7. Department of Labor and Employment: Bureau of Women and Young Workers
(BWYW)
The Bureau of Women and Young Workers (BWYW), under the Department of
Labor and Employment, protects every child employed in the movie, television,
radio and entertainment industries against exploitation, improper influences,
102
hazards and other conditions or circumstances prejudicial to his/her physical,

mental, emotional, social and moral development.
8. Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG)
Amongst other responsibilities, the Department of the Interior and Local
Government (DILG) is responsible for enforcing laws and regulations; preventing,
suppressing and solving crimes; and assisting in the successful prosecution of
criminal cases.
9. Department of Tourism
The Department of Tourism (DoT) has advocacy programs that are designed to
provide information to tourists for an enjoyable but safe trip to the Philippines.
10. National Commission on the Role of Filipino Women (NCRFW)
The NCRFW acts as the coordinating office on issues of trafficking.
11. Office of the President: Council for the Welfare of Children
The Council for the Welfare of Children (CWC) is the primary Philippine
government agency mandated, among others, to coordinate programs and
interventions among government and non-government institutions that have
a stake in the welfare and development of Filipino children.
12. Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA)
The OWWA is a government agency attached to the Department of Labor and
Employment.
13. Philippine Center on Transnational Crime (PCTC)
The PCTF is under the Office of the President, but falls under the supervision of
the National Police Commission.
__________o0o__________
SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES:
1. Check out the Tier placement of developing countries and developed countries.
Determine their differences and response to human trafficking.
2. Using internet resource, answer the foregoing “food for thought”
a. What types of challenges do you think exist in the fight to end trafficking?
b. Where human trafficking victims might be found in your community?
c. Why might adults choose to take advantage of children by trafficking them?
d. How could knowing about their rights help children to combat trafficking?
ASSESSMENT/ CHAPTER REVIEW

TEST I. SIMPLE RECALL/ IDENTIFICATION. Read the questions carefully and
identify or supply what is being asked. In your test booklet write your answer in
uppercase letters. (30 items, 2 points each/ 60 points total).
1. It is characterized by facilitating entry of one person from one country to another
through an unauthorized or unlicensed agency.
2. This are countries whose governments fully comply with the TVPA’s minimum
standards for the elimination of trafficking.
3. This law permits the employment of children aged 16 years and below only if they
perform light work, which is not harmful to their safety, health or normal
development, and which is not prejudicial to their studies. Strict rules and
regulations were issued on their rates of pay, hours of work and other conditions
of employment. An employment permit also has to be secured from the

Department of Labor and Employment.
4. This is the Special Protection of Children against Abuse, Exploitation and
Discrimination Act which provides protection of children against abuse, commercial
sexual exploitation, trafficking, and employment in illicit activities.
5. This law set minimum age of employment to 15 years, and 18 years and above for
hazardous work.
6. This law includes provisions for the proper development and welfare of children at
the basic political level, the Barangay. It enjoins local officials to promote and
support activities for the protection and total development of children, particularly
those below seven years of age, and adopt measures to prevent and eradicate
drug abuse, child abuse, and juvenile delinquency.
7. An Act Providing for the Elimination of the WFCL and Affording Stronger Protection
for the Working Child) - amends R.A. No. 7610 by embodying the State policy to
provide special protection to children from all forms of abuse, neglect, cruelty,
exploitation and discrimination, and conditions prejudicial to their development,
including child labour and its worst forms.
8. An order creating a special oversight committee for the special protection of
children from all forms of neglect, abuse, cruelty, exploitation, discrimination and
other conditions prejudicial to their development
9. An act expanding Republic Act No. 9208, Entitled "An Act To Institute Policies To
Eliminate Trafficking In Persons Especially Women And Children, Establishing The
Necessary Institutional Mechanisms For The Protection And Support Of Trafficked
Persons, Providing Penalties For Its Violations And For Other Purpose.
10. An act to strengthen the regulatory functions of the Philippine Overseas
Employment Administration (POEA)
11. Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipino Act of 1995
12. Inter-Country Adoption Act of 1995, An act establishing the rules to govern inter-
country adoption of Filipino children, and for other purposes
13. Philippine Passport Act of 1996
14. Guidelines in Enhancing the existing protective mechanisms for land-based OFWs
15. This is committed is a syndicate if carried out by a group of three (3) or more
persons conspiring or confederating with one another to commit human trafficking.
16. This includes countries whose governments do not fully comply with the TVPA’s
minimum standards but are making significant efforts to bring themselves into
compliance with those standards.
17. This is otherwise known as the United Nations Protocol to Prevent, Suppress, and
Punish Trafficking in Persons.
18. This is otherwise known as the “Anti Human Trafficking Law of the Philippines.
19. This is the largest criminal industry of the world.
20. This law penalizes the matching of Filipina women to a foreign national, for
marriage for the purpose of acquiring, buying, offering, selling or trading him/her
to engage in prostitution, pornography, sexual exploitation, forced labor, slavery,
involuntary servitude or debt bondage.
21. These are countries whose governments do not fully comply with the TVPA’s
minimum standards and are not making significant efforts to do so. It refers to the
pledging by the debtor of his/her personal services or labor or those of a person
under his/her control as security or payment for a debt, when the length and
nature of services is not clearly defined or when the value of the services as
reasonably assessed is not applied toward the liquidation of the debt.
22. This refers to a program organized by travel and tourism-related establishments
and individuals which consists of tourism packages or activities, utilizing and
offering escort and sexual services as enticement for tourists.
23. This occurs when a child (under 18 years of age) is induced to perform a
commercial sex act, proving force, fraud, or coercion against their pimp is not
necessary for the offense.
24. This occurs when a person uses force or physical threats, psychological coercion,
abuse of the legal process, deception, or other coercive means to compel someone
to work.
25. A manifestation of human trafficking when it involves the unlawful recruitment or
use of children—through force, fraud, or coercion—by armed forces as combatants
or other forms of labor.
TEST II. ENUMERATION. List down what is being asked.
1. Enumerate the three categories of human trafficking under Philippine Laws.

2. List down five acts which could constitute human trafficking in the Philippines.
3. Who can file cases for Trafficking in Persons? (3 points)
4. Where can Trafficking in Persons cases be filed? (3 points)
5. What is the prescriptive period for filing of cases? (2 points)

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CHAPTER 4

The recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring or receipt of persons, by

“sex trafficking in which a commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud, or

Trafficking in persons is the fastest-growing and second largest criminal industry

Human trafficking or Trafficking in Persons should be understood primarily as a serious

DEFINITION OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING (R.A. 9208)

Trafficking in persons as a transnational crime, being a new crime in the international

1. Person or human is involved;

FORMS OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING

Debt Bondage defined.

2. Sexual Trafficking occurs when an adult is coerced, forced, or deceived into

circumstances, perpetrators involved in recruiting, harboring, transporting,

3. Sex tourism refers to a program organized by travel and tourism-related

situation of debt bondage. Such circumstances may occur in the context of

6. Involuntary Domestic Servitude is a form of human trafficking found in

8. Unlawful Recruitment and Use of Child Soldiers or Child soldiering is a

ECONOMICS OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING

HISTORY OF ANTI- HUMAN TRAFFICKING EFFORTS

Immigration vs. Emigration

Human Trafficking vs. People Smuggling

What is the difference between human trafficking and illegal recruitment?

Trafficking in Persons Illegal Recruitment

CAUSES OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING

A similar source of demand for the trafficking of young women is a consequence of

SCREENING AND IDENTIFICATION OF TRAFFICKING VICTIMS

EFFECTIVE STRATEGIES IN COMBATING TRAFFICKING

Regarding traffickers, law enforcement must vigorously prosecute traffickers and those

On the demand side, persons who exploit trafficked persons must be identified and

Finally, government officials must be trained in anti-trafficking techniques and methods,

Tier rankings and narratives are NOT affected by the following:

 broad-based law enforcement or developmental initiatives.52

A GUIDE TO THE TIERS

Penalties for Tier 3 countries

WHO CAN IDENTIFY TRAFFICKING VICTIMS?

2. Private sector employees who may encounter trafficking victims in the places

HUMAN TRAFFICKING: THE PHILIPPINE EXPERIENCE

Traffickers, at times in partnership with organized crime syndicates and corrupt

Children in conflict-afflicted areas were particularly vulnerable to trafficking. The Moro

Transit and Destination Countries

LAW ENFORCEMENT ACTION ON HUMAN TRAFFICKING

system posed serious challenges to the successful prosecution of some cases;

The government continued strong efforts to provide anti-trafficking training to

Law enforcement officials’ complicity in human trafficking remained a problem in the

LAWS ON HUMAN TRAFFICKING

forms of neglect, abuse, cruelty, exploitation, discrimination and other conditions

Republic Act Number 9208 or the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003 is a

OTHER LAWS ON HUMAN TRAFFICKING

2. Republic Act 9422

3. Republic Act 8043

4. Republic Act 6955

5. Republic Act 8239

6. Republic Act 7658

7. Republic Act 8042

9. Convention against torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or

11. Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish trafficking in persons, especially

12. DOLE Department Order No. 63-04, Series of 2004

13. DOLE Department Order No. 64-04, Series of 2004

14. DOLE Department Order No. 67-04, Series of 2004

SALIENT FEATURES OF RA 9208

What is Trafficking in Persons?

2. It is committed with or without the victim’s consent or knowledge;

What are three categories of human trafficking?

4. To undertake or organize tours and travel plans consisting of tourism packages