PHL retains Tier 1 ranking in latest US human trafficking report

The Philippines has retained its Tier 1 status in the US government's list of countries that comply with international standards to combat human trafficking.

Manila has been in the top tier category for four consecutive years since 2016.

The Philippines narrowly escaped stiff sanctions that include the withholding of millions of dollars in American aid after the US removed the Philippines from a trafficking blacklist three years ago.

"We are heartened by the fact that the US government continues to recognize our country’s resolute anti-trafficking in persons effort," Philippine Ambassador Jose Manuel Romualdez said in a statement from Washington. The report was released by Secretary of State Michael Pompeo on Thursday.

For several years, the Philippines had been in a dreaded watchlist and it would have ended in a more severe blacklist had it not taken drastic measures to address the problem during the time of former President Benigno Aquino III.

"The government of the Philippines fully meets the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking," the State Department report said. "The government continued to demonstrate serious and sustained efforts during the reporting period; therefore the Philippines remained on Tier 1."

Washington lauded the country's prosecution procedures "that reduce the potential for further harm to child sex trafficking victims; convicting and punishing traffickers; and robust efforts to prevent trafficking of Filipino migrant workers and to assist those who become victims of trafficking overseas."

The report, released annually by the US Department of State since 2001, is mandated by the US Congress under Public Law 106-386, otherwise known as “Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act (TVPA) of the year 2000”.

The law identifies minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking applicable to the government of a country of origin, transit, or destination for victims of severe forms of trafficking.

There are four tier placements in the annual US report: Tier 1 (full compliance), Tier 2 (no full compliance but making significant efforts to comply with standards), Tier 2 Watchlist (no full compliance and absolute number of victims increasing), and Tier 3 (no full compliance, no significant efforts to comply).

Although the government meets the minimum standards, the report said "it did not vigorously investigate and prosecute officials allegedly involved in trafficking crimes."

It also failed to "consistently criminally prosecute labor traffickers, or increase the availability of specialized protection and assistance services for child victims of sex trafficking or services for male victims."

Access to mental health services, employment training, and job placement for survivors also remained inadequate, the report said.

To further improve the Philippines' fight against the worldwide scourge, the State Department recommended the following:

• Increase efforts to investigate, prosecute, and convict perpetrators of trafficking, particularly complicit officials and labor traffickers.
• Provide increased support to government and non-government organization shelter programs that provide specialized shelter and psycho-social care for child victims of online sexual exploitation and male trafficking victims.
• Expand the use of investigative methods that reduce the number of victim interviews and collect corroborative evidence to reduce the reliance on victim testimony in court.
• Increase resources for anti-trafficking task forces to conduct timely, coordinated operations and preliminary investigations while ensuring robust victim protection, including support for law enforcement logistics and sufficient prosecutors.
• Increase efforts to identify and assist child labor trafficking victims.
• Expand government support for reintegration services for trafficking victims, including access to job training and in-country employment.
• Increase the number of victim-witness coordinators to assist anti-trafficking task forces.
• Develop and implement programs aimed at increasing awareness of the harmful impact of online child sexual exploitation and child sex tourism.
• Increase efforts to protect children demobilized from armed groups.
• Implement comprehensive, unduplicated data collection across agencies.

Romualdez assured that the Philippines remains committed to engaging and cooperating with concerned US agencies in advancing the global anti-trafficking agenda.

"The Philippine Embassy in Washington, D. C. sustains its cooperation and engagement with US stakeholders in order to communicate our priorities, including the importance with which we consider the role of labor-receiving countries in the fight against human trafficking," Romualdez said. — BAP, GMA News