Illegal recruiters on 'watchlist'

Manila: As part the government's new measures against human trafficking, the Bureau of Immigration announced that it will place illegal recruiters, as well as their victims, in its "watchlist," of suspected offenders.

Commissioner Marcelino Libanan of the Bureau of Immigrations (BI) said personnel at all ports of exit in the country will be furnished a watchlist of persons suspected to have been involved in human smuggling.

"They will remain in the watchlist until they can show substantive and convincing proof that they are not involved in illegal recruitment and human trafficking," he said. While particularly focused on monitoring the movements of human traffickers, the watchlist will also include victims, because he said that most often than not, human traffickers and illegal recruiters travel with their prey. "Suspected illegal recruiters and their victims caught attempting to leave the country will now be placed in the watchlist as part of the agency's intensified campaign to stop the trafficking and exit of undocumented overseas Filipino workers," he said.

He added that the guideline will be enforced at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in Manila and other ports of exit.

According to Libanan, passengers will be photographed and that the circumstances and reasons for their being taken off from a particular flight be recorded for future references.

Libanan said the BI adopted the tougher policy to discourage Filipinos wishing to work abroad from falling prey to the schemes of syndicates engaged in the illegal recruitment and deployment of undocumented workers abroad.

He added the immigrations bureau will continue to strictly monitor departing passengers to make sure that those who leave for overseas jobs are properly documented and registered with the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA).

Statistics showed that nearly 400 Filipinos were barred from leaving the country from January to September this year.

Labour workers in Iraq

The Philippines labour secretary says the country has no immediate plan to lift a ban on its citizens working in Iraq.

His comments come after a plea from an Iraqi diplomat for more foreign labourers to help with the war-torn country's reconstruction. Labour Secretary Marianito Roque said on Friday there would be no deployment of Filipino workers pending an assessment of the security situation in Iraq.

- AP