BI officers rescue nine Korea-bound 'human trafficking' victims at NAIA

Philippines Immigration officers have rescued nine South Korea-bound Filipinos at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, believed to be victims of human trafficking syndicate.

In a report to Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente, Bureau of Immigration Port Operations Division Chief Grifton Medina said the passengers were about to board an Air Asia flight to Taipei last Thursday when they were intercepted by members of the bureau's travel control and enforcement unit (TCEU).

"They admitted that they were actually destined for Korea where they were illegally recruited to work as orange pickers in a plantation on Jeju Island," Medina said.

According to Medina, the passengers initially claimed they were traveling as tourists to watch a Nanta acrobatic exhibition show on the island.

"When asked, they could not explain and had no idea what the Nanta show is all about and their answers to questions by immigration officers were highly inconsistent," said Medina, adding that "When pressed on the actual purpose of their trip, they confessed that they were hired to work with a promised monthly salary of P65,000."

All the nine victims, whose identities were not disclosed, have been turned over to the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT) for assistance and further investigation.

NAIA Terminal 3 BI-TCEU Chief Glen Comia observed that the apprehension occurred barely three days after immigration officers also intercepted eight trafficking victims who were illegally recruited to work in Cyprus.

"It appears that only one syndicate was behind the recruitment of these victims," Comia said.

"This is a well-entrenched trafficking syndicate that operates in both Europe and Asia," she added, noting that the Cyprus-bound victims and the Korea-bound passengers also did not know each other and related that they only met at an office in Ermita where they were briefed by their recruiters before their trip.

All the victims hail from far-flung areas in the provinces, she said. —LBG, GMA News