Are people so desperate to leave the country that they’ll risk being at the mercy of human trafficking syndicates?
“Immigration authorities have thwarted an attempt by human trafficking syndicates to slip out of the country 16 undocumented overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA),” reports Jun Ramirez in the Manila Bulletin.
Bureau of Immigration (BI) Commissioner Siegfred B. Mison revealed that the victims were intercepted earlier this week when they presented dubious travel documents. He added that 11 of them were bound for Saudi Arabia. The other five of them claimed to be headed for Dubai, but their real destinations were actually Lebanon or Jordan.
Upon interrogation, the 11 Saudi-bound victims claimed that they were going to Saudi Arabia as household workers. Their Overseas Employment Certificates (OECs), however, described them as food attendants.
Photo by Jeroid Villacorta Gutierrez via WikiCommons
