PH Embassy Boosts Advocacy vs. Human Trafficking, Illegal Recruitment to Lebanon
BEIRUT 10 December 2018 — Despite the ban to deploy workers to Lebanon since 2007, hundreds of Filipino workers land in Beirut in search of jobs. The Philippine Embassy in Beirut estimates that at least 30,000 OFWs, mostly women, are working in households, spas and restaurants. A great majority of them had left the Philippines as tourists, going through third countries before finally arriving in Lebanon.
To address this single most challenging issue, the Embassy, in cooperation with Caritas Lebanon organized seminars on Trafficking-in-Persons (TIP) and Illegal Recruitment (IR) on 02 to 04 November 2018.
The seminars were held separately for Embassy personnel, shelter clients and Filipino Community leaders and FILCOORD-Lebanon members—a group of volunteers committed to assist the Embassy in implementing its cultural and assistance-to-national (ATN) activities.
The seminars expounded on international and Philippine perspectives on human trafficking and provided participants a safe and open platform to share their experiences and discuss their concerns.
The Palermo Protocol, the Philippine TIP and anti-illegal recruitment laws and regulations, and illegal recruitment modes, schemes and punishments and penalties were elaborated by the resource persons from Caritas Lebanon and the Embassy. The session for the shelter wards included a special lecture on Violence Against Women and Children (VAWC).
Resource persons during the seminars were Ms. Noha Roukoss of Caritas Lebanon, and Vice Consul Edward Chan, Asst. Labor Attache Firma Bantilan, and Mr. Junaid Ali of the Philippine Embassy.
The participants lauded the holding of the seminars as these increased their awareness on the concepts, laws and regulations, and enlightened them on the vulnerable situations of TIP and IR victims.
Mindful of its benefits to jobseekers overseas, the Embassy intends to intensify its campaign by conducting seminars for OFWs in Lebanon. END
For more information, visit www.beirutpe.dfa.gov.ph or https://www.facebook.com/PHLinLebanon/
