Help rescue 40 other sex slaves in Malaysia, VP asks DFA
Vice President Manuel “Noli" de Castro on Tuesday asked the Department of Foreign Affairs to help rescue at least 40 Filipino women working in a sex den in Labuan, Malaysia.
In a press statement, the Vice President, also presidential adviser on overseas Filipino workers, said he had sought the help of the Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs to immediately coordinate rescue operations for the Filipino women left behind in the sex den.De Castro took the move after meeting in his office three women who were rescued on November 9 from the same sex den in Labuan.
The women returned to the country on Nov. 15. During the meeting, De Castro vowed to relentlessly pursue a campaign against illegal recruiters who exploit fellow Filipinos with tempting job offers overseas only to end up as sex slaves.
The three Filipino women De Castro met said they were recruited to work as waitresses, but were forced to work in a sex den upon their arrival, radio dzBB reported on Tuesday.
Their recruiter was purportedly a Filipina with connections to a Malaysian immigration officer.The three, whose names were withheld, had sought the help of De Castro’s office in ending their ordeal. They left the Philippines through Zamboanga where they took a ferry to Kota Kinabalu, and then to Labuan.
Once they arrived in Malaysia, they were made to work in a karaoke lounge in Labuan, about three hours away from the capital of Kuala Lumpur where the Philippine embassy is based. They however managed to seek help from Philippine authorities there.
The women said they were not allowed to go out of the building where they were housed. They said more than 40 other Filipino women were kept there, and more were being recruited.
They said they wanted to tell their ordeal so that potential recruits would be properly warned.
“Mabuti na lang at naging mabilis ang pagkilos ng mga ahensya ng gobyerno kasama ang CFO at DFA katuwang ang aking tanggapan, pati ang Filipino community sa Malaysia upang hindi na lalo pang mapariwara ang ating mga kababayang nasadlak sa imoral na gawain," the Vice President said in a statement.
The families of the victims were first contacted through cell phones and the victims relayed the unexpected sufferings they are being subjected to. The families, in turn, asked the help of the OVP for the plight of their loved ones.
“Nakakahiya talagang may kapwa Filipino tayo na nagtutulak sa ating kaawa-awang mga kababayan na naghahanap lamang ng disenteng pagkakakitaan. Kaya inuulit ko ang aking panawagang makipag-ugnayan sa POEA at sumunod tayo sa tamang proseso ng paghahanap ng trabaho sa ibang bansa," he stressed.Wrongfully confinedThe Malaysian Star also reported in Tuesday about three Filipino singers who were rescued by police from an apartment in Batu Uban in Penang, Malaysia last Friday.
The women, aged between 18 and 22, claimed that they were poorly fed and did not have beds to sleep on. They said the door of the apartment where they were kept was padlocked on the outside whenever they were in the unit.
One of them said they were only given two meals of rice, some vegetables and a small piece of salted fish a day and that they slept on comforters on the floor. She said she was forced to dress in short skirts while performing.
Another singer said he arrived in Penang eight months ago. The second arrived six months ago and the third three months ago. He said two of them worked for about three months at various hotels here while the other had yet to start working.
“In the Philippines, we were told that we would only owe the agency money for providing each of us with a laptop and for the expenses incurred to bring us here.
“But when I arrived, I was told that I owed the agency RM15,971 (about P205,000) not only for expenses incurred to bring me here but also for costumes and second-hand music equipment," he said yesterday. On Monday, the Star reported that the police detained a man for wrongfully confining the three singers, two of them women, after one of them sent an SMS to alert a friend about their predicament. Police picked up the suspect at 9.30pm on Friday after the friend tipped off the authorities. The police released the three Filipinos after taking their statements. - GMANews.TV
In a press statement, the Vice President, also presidential adviser on overseas Filipino workers, said he had sought the help of the Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs to immediately coordinate rescue operations for the Filipino women left behind in the sex den.De Castro took the move after meeting in his office three women who were rescued on November 9 from the same sex den in Labuan.
The women returned to the country on Nov. 15. During the meeting, De Castro vowed to relentlessly pursue a campaign against illegal recruiters who exploit fellow Filipinos with tempting job offers overseas only to end up as sex slaves.
The three Filipino women De Castro met said they were recruited to work as waitresses, but were forced to work in a sex den upon their arrival, radio dzBB reported on Tuesday.
Their recruiter was purportedly a Filipina with connections to a Malaysian immigration officer.The three, whose names were withheld, had sought the help of De Castro’s office in ending their ordeal. They left the Philippines through Zamboanga where they took a ferry to Kota Kinabalu, and then to Labuan.
Once they arrived in Malaysia, they were made to work in a karaoke lounge in Labuan, about three hours away from the capital of Kuala Lumpur where the Philippine embassy is based. They however managed to seek help from Philippine authorities there.
The women said they were not allowed to go out of the building where they were housed. They said more than 40 other Filipino women were kept there, and more were being recruited.
They said they wanted to tell their ordeal so that potential recruits would be properly warned.
“Mabuti na lang at naging mabilis ang pagkilos ng mga ahensya ng gobyerno kasama ang CFO at DFA katuwang ang aking tanggapan, pati ang Filipino community sa Malaysia upang hindi na lalo pang mapariwara ang ating mga kababayang nasadlak sa imoral na gawain," the Vice President said in a statement.
The families of the victims were first contacted through cell phones and the victims relayed the unexpected sufferings they are being subjected to. The families, in turn, asked the help of the OVP for the plight of their loved ones.
“Nakakahiya talagang may kapwa Filipino tayo na nagtutulak sa ating kaawa-awang mga kababayan na naghahanap lamang ng disenteng pagkakakitaan. Kaya inuulit ko ang aking panawagang makipag-ugnayan sa POEA at sumunod tayo sa tamang proseso ng paghahanap ng trabaho sa ibang bansa," he stressed.Wrongfully confinedThe Malaysian Star also reported in Tuesday about three Filipino singers who were rescued by police from an apartment in Batu Uban in Penang, Malaysia last Friday.
The women, aged between 18 and 22, claimed that they were poorly fed and did not have beds to sleep on. They said the door of the apartment where they were kept was padlocked on the outside whenever they were in the unit.
One of them said they were only given two meals of rice, some vegetables and a small piece of salted fish a day and that they slept on comforters on the floor. She said she was forced to dress in short skirts while performing.
Another singer said he arrived in Penang eight months ago. The second arrived six months ago and the third three months ago. He said two of them worked for about three months at various hotels here while the other had yet to start working.
“In the Philippines, we were told that we would only owe the agency money for providing each of us with a laptop and for the expenses incurred to bring us here.
“But when I arrived, I was told that I owed the agency RM15,971 (about P205,000) not only for expenses incurred to bring me here but also for costumes and second-hand music equipment," he said yesterday. On Monday, the Star reported that the police detained a man for wrongfully confining the three singers, two of them women, after one of them sent an SMS to alert a friend about their predicament. Police picked up the suspect at 9.30pm on Friday after the friend tipped off the authorities. The police released the three Filipinos after taking their statements. - GMANews.TV
Comments