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United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime

Human Trafficking
Trafficking in persons is a serious crime and a grave violation of human rights. Every year,
thousands of men, women and children fall into the hands of traffickers, in their own countries
and abroad. Almost every country in the world is affected by trafficking, whether as a country of
origin, transit or destination for victims. UNODC, as guardian of the United Nations Convention
against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC) and the Protocols thereto, assists States in their
efforts to implement the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in
Persons (Trafficking in Persons Protocol).
What is Human Trafficking?
UNODC's Response to Human Trafficking
Human Trafficking FAQs
Further Information

What is Human Trafficking?

Article 3, paragraph (a) of the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in
Persons defines Trafficking in Persons as the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring
or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of
abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of
the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having
control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation. Exploitation shall include, at a
minimum, the exploitation of the prostitution of others or other forms of sexual exploitation,
forced labour or services, slavery or practices similar to slavery, servitude or the removal of
organs
Elements Of Human Trafficking
 On the basis of
the definition given in the Trafficking in Persons Protocol, it is evident that trafficking in persons
has three constituent elements;
The Act (What is done)
Recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of persons
The Means (How it is done)
Threat or use of force, coercion, abduction, fraud, deception, abuse of power or vulnerability, or
giving payments or benefits to a person in control of the victim
The Purpose (Why it is done)
For the purpose of exploitation, which includes exploiting the prostitution of others, sexual
exploitation, forced labour, slavery or similar practices and the removal of organs.
To ascertain whether a particular circumstance constitutes trafficking in persons, consider the
definition of trafficking in the Trafficking in Persons Protocol and the constituent elements of the
offense, as defined by relevant domestic legislation.

Criminalization Of Human Trafficking

The definition contained in article 3 of the Trafficking in Persons Protocol is meant to provide
consistency and consensus around the world on the phenomenon of trafficking in persons. Article
5 therefore requires that the conduct set out in article 3 be criminalized in domestic legislation.
Domestic legislation does not need to follow the language of the Trafficking in Persons Protocol
precisely, but should be adapted in accordance with domestic legal systems to give effect to the
concepts contained in the Protocol.
In addition to the criminalization of trafficking, the Trafficking in Persons Protocol requires
criminalization also of:
 Attempts to commit a trafficking offence
 Participation as an accomplice in such an offence
 Organizing or directing others to commit trafficking.
National legislation should adopt the broad definition of trafficking prescribed in the Protocol. The
legislative definition should be dynamic and flexible so as to empower the legislative framework
to respond effectively to trafficking which:
 Occurs both across borders and within a country (not just cross-border)
 Is for a range of exploitative purposes (not just sexual exploitation)
 Victimizes children, women and men (Not just women, or adults, but also men and
children)
 Takes place with or without the involvement of organized crime groups.
For a checklist of Criminalization under the Protocol, click here.
For more resources, visit our Publications page.
To see how human trafficking is different to migrant smuggling, click here.
Top of Page
UNODC's Response to Human Trafficking
UNODC offers practical help to States, not only helping to draft laws and create comprehensive
national anti-trafficking strategies but also assisting with resources to implement them. States
receive specialized assistance including the development of local capacity and expertise, as well
as practical tools to encourage cross-border cooperation in investigations and prosecutions.
The adoption in 2000 by the United Nations General Assembly of the Protocol to Prevent,
Suppress and Punish Trafficking In Persons, Especially Women and Children marked a significant
milestone in international efforts to stop the trade in people. As the guardian of the Protocol,
UNODC addresses human trafficking issues through its Global Programme against Trafficking in
Persons. A vast majority of States have now signed and ratified the Protocol. But translating it
into reality remains problematic. Very few criminals are convicted and most victims are probably
never identified or assisted.
For an overview of UNODC's work in the human trafficking field and the real-life complexities
faced by people globally every day, please click on the following links:
Prevention of trafficking in persons
Protection of victims of human trafficking
Prosecution of trafficking offenders
Having worked on these issues since the late 1990s, UNODC has issued a comprehensive
strategy setting out the complementary nature of UNODC's work in preventing and combating
both human trafficking and migrant smuggling, and defining the immediate priorities for
UNODC's future action and engagement on these crimes. The new strategy complements
UNODC's Thematic Programme Against Transnational Organized Crime And Illicit Trafficking
(2011-2013).
As the guardian of the Organized Crime Convention and its Protocols on Trafficking in Persons
and Smuggling of Migrants, UNODC plays a leading role in strengthening and coordinating the
criminal justice response to both human trafficking and smuggling of migrants.
UNODC's strategic approach to combating trafficking in persons and the smuggling of migrants is
founded in the full and effective implementation of the Protocols, and can be best understood as
having three interdependent and complementary components:
(1) research and awareness raising;
(2) promotion of the Protocols and capacity-building; and,
(3) the strengthening of partnerships and coordination.

With regards to research and awareness-raising, UNODC will publish the next Global Report on
Trafficking in Persons in December 2012, and biennially thereafter. UNODC also
produces research and issue papers on trafficking in persons and migrant smuggling and
engages in both broad and targeted awareness-raising on these issues, notably through the Blue
Heart Campaign against Human Trafficking. UNODC's normative work on promoting the Protocols
and capacity-building engages with Member States and working-level practitioners in providing
legislative assistance, strategic planning and policy development, technical assistance for
strengthened criminal justice responses, and protection and support to victims of trafficking in
persons and smuggled migrants. Finally, UNODC initiatives on strengthening partnerships and
coordination occur through its participation in inter-agency groups such
as ICAT, UN.GIFT and GMG and its management of the UN Trust Fund for Victims of Trafficking
in Persons.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_trafficking

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Human trafficking and the prostitution of children is a significant issue in the Philippines, often controlled by organized
crime syndicates.[1][2] Human Trafficking in the Philippines is a crime against humanity.[3][4][5][6][7]

In an effort to deal with the problem, the Philippines passed R.A. 9208, the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003, a
penal law against human trafficking,sex tourism, sex slavery and child prostitution.[8] In 2006, enforcement was
reported to be inconsistent.[9]

Statistics[edit]
A 1997 report put the number of child victims of prostitution at 75,000 in the Philippines., [10] with other estimates
saying as many as 100,000.[11]

According to the United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) estimated 60,000 to 100,000 children in the Philippines
were involved in prostitution rings.[12] According to the International Labour Organization (ILO) about 100,000 children
were involved in prostitution as of 2009.[13] is a high incidence of child prostitution in tourist areas. An undetermined
number of children are forced into exploitative labor operations. [12]

It was estimated in 1995 that the Philippines was the fourth country with the most number of prostituted
children,[14] and authorities have identified an increase in child molesters travelling to the Philippines.[15]

In 2007, there were estimated to be 375,000 women and girls in the sex trade in the Philippines, mostly between the
ages of 15 and 20, though some are as young as 11.[16]

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies stated in 2003 that there were more than 1.5
million street children in the Philippines and many end up in prostitution and drug trafficking in places such as Manila
and Angeles City.[17]

Government and NGO estimates in 2007 on the number of women trafficked ranged from 300,000 to 400,000 and the
number of children trafficked ranged from 60,000 to 100,000. [18] According to the US government reports, the number
of child victims in the Philippines range from 20,000 to 100,000, with foreign tourists, particularly other Asians, as
perpetrators.[18]

In 2010, an estimated 60,000 to 100,000 children in the Philippines were involved in prostitution rings, according to
Minette Rimando, a spokeswoman for the U.N.'S International Labour Organization's Manila office. [19] A 2006 article
reported that based on statistics provided by the Visayan Forum Foundation, most victims were between 12 to 22
years old.[20]

The Philippines is ranked under Tier 2 Watch List in the 2009 Trafficking in Persons Report of the United States (US)
State Department due to the Philippine government’s alleged failure to show evidence of progress in convicting
trafficking offenders, particularly those responsible for labor trafficking. [21]
Quick Facts: Human Trafficking in the
Philippines
December 21, 2013 10:00pm
The recent “Reel Time” documentary “Misericordia” presented the story of “Sarah," a mother who sells her child
for adoption. The story showed that human trafficking is not only a reality in the Philippines, but that it happens
right under our noses.

This infographic illustrates the pervasiveness of human trafficking globally and in the Philippines.—Isabelle
Laureta/CM/PF, GMA News

http://www.humantrafficking.org/countries/philippines

humantrafficking.org

A web resource for combating human traficking

Philippines

The Situation
The Philippines is a source and, to a much lesser extent, a destination and transit country for men, women, and
children who are subjected to sex trafficking and forced labor.

Source
The ILO estimates that one million Filipino men and women migrate abroad each year for work opportunities, and
that 10 million Filipinos currently live and work abroad.1 A significant number of these migrants are subjected to
conditions of forced labor in factories, at construction sites, on fishing vessels, on agricultural plantations, and as
domestic workers in Asia and increasingly throughout the Middle East. Filipino women in domestic servitude abroad
face rape and violent physical and sexual abuse. Skilled Filipino migrant workers, such as engineers and nurses,
have also been subjected to conditions of involuntary servitude. Women were trafficked into the commercial sex
industry in countries such as Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong, South Korea, and Japan and in various Middle
Eastern countries.2

In the Philippines, traffickers, in partnership with organized crime syndicates and complicit law enforcement
officers, regularly operate through fraudulent recruitment agencies and practices to traffic migrants. Traffickers use
local recruiters sent to villages and urban neighborhoods to recruit family and friends, often masquerading as
representatives of government-registered employment agencies. These fraudulent recruitment practices and the
institutionalized practice of paying recruitment fees often leave workers vulnerable to forced labor, debt bondage,
and commercial sexual exploitation. There were reports in 2010 that illicit recruiters increased their use of student,
 intern, and exchange program visas to circumvent the Philippines government and receiving countries’ regulatory
frameworks for foreign workers.3

Transit
There are reports that organized crime syndicates have been heavily involved in the commercial sex industry, and
that international syndicates transited victims from mainland China through the Philippines to third country
destinations.4

Destination
The Philippines is a destination country for a small number of women who are trafficked from the People’s Republic
of China, South Korea, Russia and Eastern Europe for commercial sexual exploitation.5

Internal Trafficking
Internal trafficking of men, women, and children also remains a significant problem in the Philippines. People are
trafficked from rural areas to urban centers including Manila, Cebu, the city of Angeles, and increasingly to cities in
Mindanao, as well as within urban areas.6

Men are subjected to forced labor and debt bondage in the agriculture, fishing, and maritime industries. Women
and children are trafficked within the country for forced labor as domestic workers and small-scale factory workers,
for forced begging, and for exploitation in the commercial sex industry. Filipino migrant workers (both domestically
and abroad) who become trafficking victims are often subject to violence, threats, inhumane living conditions,
nonpayment of salaries, and withholding of travel and identity documents.7

Although prostitution is illegal, hundreds of victims are subjected to forced prostitution each day in well-known and
highly visible business establishments that cater to both domestic and foreign demand for commercial sex
acts.8 Child sex tourism in particular remains a serious problem in the Philippines, with sex tourists coming from
Northeast Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Europe, and North America to engage in the commercial sexual
exploitation of children.9

Child labor is a common problem in the Philippines. One government report estimates that there were more than
2.2 million working children ages 15 to 17 in the country in 2009. The majority of these children work as laborers
and unskilled workers, and are often exposed to hazardous working environments in industries such as mining,
fishing, pyrotechnic production, domestic service, garbage scavenging, and agriculture, especially sugar cane
plantations. A significant number of children are also employed in the informal sector of the urban economy as
domestic workers or as unpaid family workers in rural agricultural areas. NGO and government officials reported
cases in 2010 in which family members sold children to employers for domestic labor or sexual exploitation.10

Children are also vulnerable to various military groups in the Philippines. The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF),
a separatist group, and the New People’s Army (NPA) have been identified by the United Nations as among the
world’s persistent perpetrators of violations against children in armed conflict, including forcing children into
service. During 2010, there were continued reports to the United Nations that the Abu Sayyaf Group targeted
children for conscription as both combatants and noncombatants.11

Causes
There are a number of high-risk factors in the Philippines that can contribute to human trafficking. These include:

 Conflict between MILF and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) left between 128,000 and 160,000 vulnerable
individuals displaced in 2010;12
 Poverty, population growth, and dependency burdens have lead some parents to see child labor as a means to
cope with meager family incomes.13
 Pervasive and persistent poverty, especially in rural areas, high unemployment and underemployment and
constraints to small and medium enterprises growth are a few of the challenges facing the Filipino labor force that
have lead many to migrate for work.14
 Presence of a large informal economy, estimated to be between 40-80% of Filipino workers, who are for the most
part not registered or recorded in official statistics and are beyond the reach of social protection and labor
legislation.15
 An estimated 900,000 undocumented Filipinos, mostly based in Mindanao, whose lack of official documentation
contributes to the population’s vulnerability to trafficking.16
 An established organized crime network that plays upon the above factors and fraudulently recruits persons for
jobs that are in reality forced labor situations.17
 Persistent law enforcement officials’ complicity in human trafficking and corruption at all levels of government that
enables traffickers to prosper.18

The Philippine Government

The Philippine Government was placed in Tier 2 in the 2011 U.S. Department of State’s Trafficking in Persons
Report for not fully complying with the Trafficking Victims Protection Act’s minimum standards for the elimination
of trafficking but making significant efforts to do so.

The Philippines criminally prohibits both sex and labor trafficking through its 2003 Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act,
which prescribes penalties up to life in prison. The law allows private prosecutors, including NGOs, to file lawsuits
against traffickers. During 2010, the Philippine Department of Justice and Supreme Court issued directives to
expedite the disposition of backlogged trafficking cases and convicted 25 trafficking offenders. 19

In the case of child labor, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) issued new regulations in 2009 that
facilitate the immediate closure of establishments suspected of using children for commercial sex acts, with court
hearings to determine the validity of the complaint to be held at a later time. Between 2009 and 2010 DOLE
ordered the closure of 22 establishments for allegedly prostituting minors. Trials in these cases are ongoing. 20

Additionally, authorities made notable efforts in 2010 to address trafficking-related corruption, and several criminal
cases against Philippine officials were initiated and remain ongoing. The government enacted numerous measures
and policies aimed at improving institutional responses, including increased training of judicial, law enforcement,
and diplomatic officials on trafficking issues; the creation and funding of anti-trafficking task forces in airports,
seaports, regions, and localities; and an increase in dedicated staff to combating trafficking.21

However, there remains a substantial backlog in trafficking cases pending in Philippine courts; a lack of vigorous
efforts to pursue criminal prosecution of labor traffickers, including labor recruitment companies involved in the
trafficking of migrant workers abroad; rampant corruption at all levels that enables traffickers and undermines
efforts to combat trafficking; and uneven and insufficient efforts to identify and adequately protect victims of
trafficking – particularly those who are assisting with prosecutions.22

Prosecution
During 2011, the government convicted 25 trafficking offenders in 19 cases – compared with nine traffickers
convicted in six cases during the previous year – including the first ever conviction of a labor trafficker who sold
two women into domestic servitude in Malaysia. The labor trafficker was sentenced to 28 years’ imprisonment and
fined over $28,000. Sentences for the other 24 convicted offenders ranged from six years’ to life imprisonment.
Philippine courts have 338 pending or ongoing trafficking cases.23
In 2010, the Department of Justice ordered prosecutors to make trafficking cases a priority, designating 36
prosecutors to various national, regional, and airport task forces to work on anti-trafficking cases. This task force
model ensures that prosecutors assist law enforcement in building cases against suspected trafficking offenders.
The government also ran a mandatory training session on trafficking for over 400 judges and expanded anti-
trafficking training efforts to several hundred police and law enforcement officers, in partnership with NGOs and
foreign donors. However, NGOs reported that despite the trainings there continues to be a lack of understanding of
trafficking and the anti-trafficking law among many judges, prosecutors, social service workers, and law
enforcement officials.24

Widespread corruption and an inefficient judicial system continue to pose very serious challenges to the successful
prosecution of trafficking cases. Throughout 2010, there were reports that officials and police in anti-trafficking
units and agencies permitted traffickers to escape during raids; conducted fake raids in order to extort bribes from
traffickers and victims; and accepted payments or sexual services from establishments known for trafficking
women and children. During 2010, the government began to take steps to identify and prosecute officials complicit
in such abuses, filing criminal cases against eight officials and administrative cases against an additional 21 officials
(none of the cases had been concluded as of the end of the 2010 reporting period).25

Protection
The Philippine Government continues to operate 42 temporary shelters for victims of all types of abuse, and stays
at the shelters are at the victim’s discretion. However, the capacity to provide victim protection services remains
very limited, due to insufficient funding from the government. Additionally, through the Philippines Overseas Labor
Offices, the government provides emergency shelter, medical care, and legal assistance to Filipino trafficking
victims in several countries, including the UAE, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Jordan, Singapore, and Malaysia.26

The government encourages victims to assist in the investigation and prosecution of their traffickers, but the
government’s serious lack of victim and witness protection, exacerbated by a lengthy trial process and fear of
retaliation by traffickers, causes many victims to decline or withdraw cooperation. During 2010, the Department of
Justice only assisted three trafficking victims pursue cases.27

Prevention
The Philippine Government supports an array of prevention activities. During 2010, the government increased
training and public awareness campaigns on trafficking for judicial officials, law enforcement personnel, local
government units, and civil society groups. The government conducted pre-employment seminars for over 100,000
prospective and outbound overseas foreign workers. It also held training seminars for diplomats and embassy
personnel in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa on victim identification, reporting of trafficking
cases, victim-centered interview techniques, and options for filing trafficking cases against traffickers in the
destination countries or in the Philippines.28

In December 2010, the Philippine Congress appropriated $550,000 in the 2011 national budget to fund, for the first
time, the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (ICAT) and the Department of Social Welfare and
Development’s anti-trafficking programs. With this, ICAT was able to significantly increase staffing at its Ninoy
Aquino International Airport anti-trafficking task force, which now operates 24 hours per day, seven days per week.
The government also established four regional anti-trafficking task forces consisting of prosecutors, law
enforcement agents, social workers, and NGOs in trafficking hotspots around the country; and launched a new 24-
hour nationwide anti-trafficking hotline designed to respond to crisis calls from victims.29

In August 2010, the Bureau of Immigration instituted new screening guidelines for ports of exit, leading to the
interception of over 28,000 passengers identified as potential victims of trafficking, due to their lack of proper
 documentation and indicators of high risk for illegal recruitment and trafficking. Over 900 cases were referred on to
government entities for further investigation.30

International Cooperation
The Philippine Government works with international NGOs and foreign governments to combat human trafficking in
the Philippines and of Filipino migrants abroad.31

Recommendations
The U.S. Department of State recommends that the Philippine government enact the following measures in its
2011 TIP Report:

 Sustain the intensified effort to investigate, prosecute, and convict effectively an increased number of both labor
and sex trafficking offenders involved in the trafficking of Filipinos both within the country and abroad;
 Continue to fund and strengthen the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking and provide full-time staffing and
management for the IACAT Secretariat;
 Address the significant backlog of trafficking cases by developing mechanisms to track and monitor the status of
cases filed with the Department of Justice and those under trial in the courts;
 Strictly enforce anti-corruption laws and expedite adjudication of cases filed by the regional anti-trafficking task
forces;
 Conduct immediate and rigorous investigations of complaints of trafficking complicity by government officials and
ensure accountability for leaders that fail to address trafficking-related corruption within their areas of jurisdiction;
 Strengthen anti-trafficking training for police recruits, line officers, and police investigators;
 Make efforts to improve collaboration between victim service organizations and law enforcement authorities with
regards to law enforcement operations;
 Increase victim shelter resources to expand the government shelter system to assist a greater number of
trafficking victims, including male victims of both sex and labor trafficking;
 Increase funding for the Department of Justice’s program for the protection of witnesses and entry of trafficking
victims into the program;
 Increase efforts to identify trafficking victims in destination countries and to pursue criminal investigation and
prosecution of their traffickers; and
 Develop and implement programs aimed at reducing demand for commercial sex acts.32