Posted at 06/15/2010 7:01 PM | Updated as of 06/15/2010 9:20 PM
US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton announces the release of the 2010 Trafficking in Persons Report at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C., on June 14, 2010. [US State Department photo/ Public Domain]
MANILA, Philippines - The latest US State Department report on human trafficking has identified corruption in government and the collusion between authorities and syndicates among the factors to the unsuccessful prosecution of cases.
At the same time, the State Department’s 2010 Trafficking in Persons report also takes to task Philippine Congress for failing to allocate funds to combat human trafficking.
The Philippines remains in the Tier 2 “watch list” of countries that “do not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.”
Although the report notes “progress in convicting sex trafficking offenders,” it points out that the “vast majority of initiated trafficking prosecutions are usually unsuccessful” because of lack of political will and corruption.
“Corruption remained pervasive in the Philippines and there were reports that officials in government units and agencies assigned to enforce laws against human trafficking permitted trafficking offenders to conduct illegal activities…. It is widely believed that some government officials partner with traffickers and organized trafficking syndicates,” the report said.
The report did not cite any particular example of government officials colluding with traffickers, but mentioned the case of an immigration officer caught facilitating the illegal movement of domestic workers to Malaysia.
Funding is key
Newsbreak, in an investigative report in March last year, detailed the web of corruption involving law enforcers, govern officials, and those in the judiciary to scuttle human trafficking cases.
Indications or suspicions of corruption have prompted some of the victims to desist from pursuing the cases or to stop cooperating with the authorities.
The US report says protection for the victims is severely hampered—either for lack of concern and or lack of budget from the authorities.
The Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking or IACAT coordinates the anti-human trafficking campaign, in partnership with non-government and civil society groups. IACAT is composed of government agencies, with the Department of Justice as head of the body.
However, IACAT is only a policy-making body at best, with no specific funding for its operations.
The US State Department report notes this. It observes that Congress did not allocate funding this year for IACAT “in a notable failing of political support for the nation’s anti-trafficking effort.”
It added: “Member agencies also failed to earmark funding for the IACAT, but did allocate staff resources, personnel time, and funding for specific IACAT initiatives.”
In a previous interview, a justice official observed that IACAT’s efforts are not fully explored because of lack of funding. Attempts to propose budgets for the body was met with lukewarm response from lawmakers.
In its recommendation, the Trafficking in Persons report pushes for government to “demonstrate greater progress on efficiently investigating, prosecuting and convicting both labor and sex trafficking offenders” and to “increase efforts to investigate and prosecute government officials complicit in trafficking.” - abs-cbnNews.com/Newsbreak
RP authorities collude with human trafficking syndicates -- US | ABS-CBN News Online Beta
No comments:
Post a Comment