Ten More Trafficking Victims from Syria Now Home Safe

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) - Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs (OUMWA) team welcomes the 10 trafficking survivors from Syria on 27 March 2021. (DFA-OUMWA Photo)

PASAY CITY 27 March 2021— The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) - Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs (OUMWA), together with representatives from the Office of the President, the Inter-Agency Council against Trafficking (IACAT), as well as the Office of Senator Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go, welcomed the arrival of the third batch of Filipina victims of trafficking in persons from Syria this afternoon. 

“The DFA continues to work hard to combat trafficking in persons, especially women household service workers. For our repatriates from Syria, the DFA will work with partner agencies and the IACAT in the filing of criminal charges against their human traffickers” said Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs Sarah Lou Y. Arriola.

Undersecretary Arriola highlighted the Philippines’ Tier 1 ranking in the recently-released US Trafficking in Persons report which is a testament to the government’s serious commitment to fight and eradicate human trafficking.

The 10 Filipina survivors of trafficking were earlier rescued by and sheltered at the Philippine Embassy in Damascus.  Two other successful repatriation efforts have been carried out from Syria on 6 and 27 February 2021, notwithstanding the challenge of securing exit visas for the repatriates. END