MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine National Police is revitalizing its Task Force against Illegal Recruitment as it intensifies its crackdown on human trafficking amid the pandemic, the agency said on Friday.
In a statement, Police General Guillermo Eleazar said he signed a memorandum circular revitalizing the task force following orders from Interior Secretary Eduardo Año.
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Eleazar noted that despite the pandemic, many still fall as victims to illegal recruiters that sometimes lead to pile of debts for their families or the danger.
Under the memo, the task force is ordered to “analyze and aggressively initiate police operations against the modus operandi of illegal recruiters in coordination with other law enforcement agencies.”
The memo also “directs the [Criminal Investigation and Detection Group] to conduct a crackdown against these unscrupulous persons taking advantage of our [countrymen] who aspire to work overseas as a means to escape poverty and sufficiently provide for their families,” the PNP chief said.
The task force is also mandated to conduct surveillance and entrapment operations on persons engaging in illegal recruitment, including “escort” services in different ports of departure in the country.
The PNP also said the team is also asked to draw up a priority target list based on intelligence-gathering, including information that can be obtained from the victims.
Eleazar urged the public to be careful in dealing with recruiters and immediately report to authorities if they are victimized by them. He said those who wish to work abroad can check the status of their recruiter through the Philippine Overseas Employment Agency.
In 2020, the Bureau of Immigration reported that it stopped 11,706 Filipino passengers from leaving the country.
BI Intelligence chief Fortunato Manahan Jr., who supervises the bureau’s travel control and enforcement unit, explained in January that passengers are barred from leaving the country commonly due to failure to present required documents, carrying fraudulent documents and misrepresentation.
He also said that 295 passengers were turned over to the Inter-Agency Council against Trafficking (IACAT) as possible victims of trafficking.
The bureau also continues to report that its officers in different ports uncover new trafficking schemes by illegal recruiters such as faking itineraries or flying out in tourist visas. — Kristine Joy Patag