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The Philippines authorities have rescued two Filipinas who were allegedly illegally recruited online to work as factory workers in Bahrain.
The Bureau of Immigration (BI) intercepted the two – referred to as ‘Annie’ and ‘Aiza’ – at Terminal 3 of Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) last Friday.
The victims, in their mid-30s, were reportedly promised a monthly salary of BD130.
Officials said yesterday that the trafficker misled recruits by promising them legitimate Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW) processing.
However, they were first instructed to pose as tourists to bypass immigration scrutiny.
Giving details, BI Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado said the two females claimed to be friends travelling to Hong Kong for a short vacation.
Mr Viado
“However, their responses during primary inspection raised red flags, prompting a secondary inspection,” he added, according to a report in the Philippine Information Agency yesterday.
“During the follow-up interview, the pair admitted their actual destination was Bahrain, where they had been recruited for factory work promising a monthly salary of BD130.”
Furthermore, during questioning the duo revealed that the online trafficker handed them two envelopes – one containing standard travel documents, and another containing a Bahrain-bound airline ticket and visa application – all under the pretense of legal overseas employment.
“This case has also exposed the same recruiter as the mastermind behind another group supposedly scheduled to leave for Thailand on April 29,” said Mr Viado.
“More than 20 individuals who are said to have been recruited under this scheme are now under surveillance.
“This information has been forwarded to Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT) and we are fully committed to dismantling this trafficking ring,” he added.
The two women were referred to IACAT to pursue legal action against their recruiters.
Mr Viado emphasised that this case reflected the Manila government’s intensified efforts to combat trafficking, in line with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr’s directive to synchronise anti-trafficking initiatives across agencies.
“The BI stands united with IACAT in the relentless pursuit of illegal recruiters,” he said.
“We are committed to securing justice for our people and protecting Filipinos from exploitation at home and abroad.”
Earlier this year, the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) shut down more than 70,000 illegal online job postings on Facebook and TikTok, saving potentially thousands of Filipinos from paying hard-earned money for non-existent jobs, or poor working conditions abroad.
The 71,653 fake job postings and accounts taken down included 50,220 suspicious posts on Facebook and 21,433 on TikTok.
A total of 22 human trafficking cases were dealt with by Bahraini authorities from January 2024 until January this year resulting in the arrest of 50 individuals.
The Anti-Human Trafficking Directorate of the General Directorate of Criminal Investigation and Forensic Science said that additionally 41 victims were provided assistance during the above period.
sandy@gdnmedia.bh
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