The United States’ recognition of the Philippine government’s gains against human trafficking showed that the Duterte administration was doing the “right thing,” Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano said yesterday.
In a statement, he said the Philippines would intensify efforts to go after human traffickers as it welcomed its third consecutive Tier 1 status in the latest “Trafficking In Persons Report” released by the US State Department on Thursday.
The US government grants Tier 1 status to any country in “full compliance” of Public Law 106-386, or the “Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act (TVPA) of 2000.”
“The 2018 Trafficking in Persons Report that placed the Philippines in Tier 1 for the third consecutive year goes to show that the Duterte administration is doing the right thing,” Cayetano said.
He said the report, which was issued by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in Washington, “validates the effectiveness of the holistic and aggressive approach taken by the Duterte administration to eliminate human trafficking in the country.”
“This affirmation strengthens our resolve to protect our people from trafficking by institutionalising preventive measures, protecting vulnerable groups, and bringing the traffickers and their accomplices to justice,” Cayetano said.
Cayetano said the Philippines will focus on efforts to fight trafficking in persons in co-operation with the US and the international community.
Ambassador to Washington Jose Manuel Romualdez said the State Department retained the Tier 1 status for the Philippines in recognition of the “sustained efforts” of the Duterte administration to address human trafficking in the country.
The report cited, among others, the conviction of human traffickers and the effective co-ordination, identification, referral and provision of services to trafficking victims.
Romualdez said the report also mentioned efforts to prevent trafficking of Filipino migrant workers, assist trafficking victims abroad and implementing procedures to reduce backlog of trafficking cases in court.
“Being in Tier 1 for three consecutive years validates the effectiveness of our victim-centered and multi-agency approach to address human trafficking,” he said.
“It also speaks to the determination of the Philippine government to uphold and protect human rights,” the ambassador added.
The report, which the State Department has been releasing annually since 2001, is mandated by the US Congress under the TVPA.
The TVPA identifies minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking applicable to the government of a country of origin, transit, or destination for victims of severe forms of trafficking.
There are four tier placements signifying level of compliance with TVPA standards, namely, Tier 1 (full compliance); Tier 2 (no full compliance but making significant efforts to comply with standards); Tier 2 Watchlist (no full compliance and absolute number of victims increasing); and Tier 3 (no full compliance, no significant efforts to comply).
Cayetano: assurance on human trafficking crackdown
