The Inter-Agency Council Against Human Trafficking on Sunday said it has filed cases against two recruitment agencies and rescued a total of 176 victims of human trafficking and illegal recruitment.
In a report to the Department of Justice, the council’s Operations Center head Ramon Yap identified the two recruitment agencies as Global Connect Manpower Resources and Development Inc. and Liszil International Manpower Agency.
The agencies were recommended for prosecution for violation of the Expanded Trafficking in Persons Act and the Migrant Workers and Overseas Act.
Yap said IACAT was able to rescue Global’s 137 victims, 25 of whom were minors, who were each offered jobs as household service workers in Saudi Arabia with a P20,000 salary.
However, they were found padlocked inside an accommodation house while awaiting deployment.
IACAT was also able to rescue 39 female recruits, seven of whom were minors, from Liszil’s accommodation house in San Andres Bukid, Manila.
The minor-victims have been brought to the Department of Social Welfare and Development.
In its 2017 Trafficking in Persons Report, the United States government ranked the Philippines under the Tier 1 level, which means the country “fully meets the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.”
“The government continued to demonstrate serious and sustained efforts during the reporting period; therefore, the Philippines remained on Tier 1,” the US State Department said in its report.