Bureau Of Immigration (BI) Barred More Than 38,000 Travelers ,16 Percent Higher Than 2018, From Leaving The Philippines Due To Its Anti-Trafficking Drive
The Bureau of Immigration (BI) said it barred more than 38,000 travelers from leaving the country last year due to its unrelenting campaign against human trafficking in the different international ports. Bureau of Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente disclosed that the 38,522 persons whose departures were deferred last year is 16-percent more than the nearly 33,000 travelers who were stopped from leaving in 2018.
“The men and women manning our ports deserve to be commended for their vigilance. So long as there are people who are victimized by trafficking syndicates we will not relax our guard,” Morente said. “We are duty-bound to remove them from harm’s way.” The Bureau of Immigration chief specifically lauded personnel assigned to the bureau’s port operations division (POD) and travel control and enforcement unit (TCEU) for their accomplishments. BI-POD chief Grifton Medina said most of the passengers were not allowed to board their flights for failure to comply with requirements for overseas bound passengers which are spelled out in guidelines promulgated by the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT). Medina said the said guidelines have been implemented in the past few years in order to combat human trafficking and illegal migration in the country’s ports of exit. According to BI-TCEU chief Ma. Timotea Barizo, about 85 percent or nearly 33,000 of the said passengers were stopped at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) while the rest were stopped in the airports of Mactan, Clark, Iloilo, Kalibo, and Davao. Barizo said passengers were often intercepted for misrepresentation or for submitting fraudulent supporting and travel documents. She added that more than 400 passengers were turned over to the IACAT for investigation and filing of charges against their handlers and recruiters. It will be recalled that due to the government’s successful drive against trafficking,
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Port Operations Chief Grifton Medina "Four Aliens Were Caught At The NAIA Terminal 2 On Friday."
Bureau of Immigration (BI) officers at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) intercepted two Chinese and two Hongkong nationals for conspiring to transit to Canada with fraudulent travel documents. Bureau of Immigration port operations chief Grifton Medina said the four aliens were caught at the NAIA terminal 2 on Friday after they arrived aboard a Philippine Airlines (PAL) flight from Hongkong.
Medina said the passengers’ ruse was foiled when airline personnel who doubted their documents referred them to the Bureau of Immigration’s travel control and enforcement unit (TCEU) for questioning. According to Bureau of Immigration-TCEU chief Ma. Timotea Barizo, two of the passengers, Hongkong nationals identified as Lam Mik Ho and Mak Hin Chun Adrian were transiting in Manila, and were supposed to board their connecting flight to Toronto, Canada. The duo checked in with the airline's transfer desk upon landing, but airline representatives were surprised when another two, who were later identified as Chinese nationals Chen Kaihui and He Chaorong, presented Hong Kong passports bearing Lam and Mak's names. "There were two sets of Lam and Maks who wanted to transit to Canada, both sets carrying the same documents," Barizo shared. Upon forensic document examination, it was discovered that Chen and He presented fake Hong Kong passports, and merely assumed the identities. Chinese passports were later discovered in their possession. The four were stopped by immigration from boarding their flight to Canada. Canadian authorities likewise cancelled the electronic travel authorization (ETA) issued to Lam and Mak due to misrepresentation. Upon learning of the incident, Bureau of Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente ordered the inclusion of the four aliens in the immigration blacklist. “These undesirable aliens should be banned from entering our country. They have no right to use the Philippines as a jump off point to enter other countries illegally. Let this serve as a warning. You will be caught,” Morente said. The four were immediately sent back to Hong Kong and were barred from re-entering the Philippines.
"Two Female Passengers Attempt To Leave The Country, Officers Doubted The Age Of The Passengers Due To Inconsistencies In Their Answers." Bureau Of Immigration Port Operation Division Grifton Medina
PASAY, Philippines—Two more suspected human trafficking victims were stopped from leaving by immigration officers at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) for falsifying their birthdates. Bureau of Immigration (BI) Port Operations Division Chief Grifton Medina said the two female passengers, who presented valid overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) documents, were intercepted last Wednesday at the NAIA terminal 1 by members of the Bureau’s Travel Control and Enforcement Unit (TCEU). According to reports, the duo attempted to depart via a Scoot Airways flight to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia allegedly to work as household service workers when they were flagged for secondary inspection by frontline immigration officers. Medina said the officers doubted the ages of the passengers as indicated in the passports due to inconsistencies in their answers and their demeanor.
"Latest TIP Report Will Surely Inspire And Motivate Port Operations Division Personnel Manning The Ports To Sustain Their Efforts In Fighting Human Trafficking." Bureau Of Immigration Port Operations Division Grifton Medina
INTRAMUROS, Manila—The management of the Bureau of Immigration (BI) exhorted its officers assigned at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) and other ports to keep up their vigilance after it was announced that the Philippines retained its Tier 1 ranking in the US government’s human trafficking index for 2019. “I commend and congratulate the men and women of our port operations division (POD) who guard our ports day and night to ensure that countrymen are saved from the scourge of human trafficking,” Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente said in a statement. The Philippines retained for the fourth consecutive year its Tier 1 ranking in the recently-released 2019 Trafficking in Persons Report of the US Department of State. Morente said that the rating is “a tribute to your hard work and dedication to your duties as gatekeepers of our country.”
Morente urged Bureau of Immigration personnel in the different ports to “remain vigilant as there is no sign that these human trafficking syndicates who prey on the poor, including minors, will stop their nefarious activities.” Bureau of Immigration Port Operations Division Chief Grifton Medina, for his part, said “the latest TIP report will surely inspire and motivate POD personnel manning the ports to sustain their efforts in fighting human trafficking.” Medina said there will be no letup in the bureau’s anti-trafficking campaign even as he reported that more than 10,000 travelers were stopped from leaving the country from January to April this year, mostly for having incomplete travel papers and questionable purpose in going abroad. A Tier 1 rating means that the Philippine government fully meets the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and has continually demonstrated serious and sustained efforts to combat human trafficking. The Philippines leads the ranking in East Asia and the Pacific, sharing the Tier 1 status with Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan. Other countries mentioned in the report who were given a Tier 1 rating are Australia, Canada, France, Netherlands, New Zealand and Spain. "The Tier 1 status was given to only 33 countries all over the world," said Morente. "We are proud to be a big part in the government's efforts against human trafficking. We will not stop protecting our fellow Filipinos from this threat. The result of this report is a reminder why we do what we do," he added. The report also acknowledged the BI’s accomplishment in deferring the departure of 24,753 passengers due to incomplete or missing travel documents or misrepresentation, referring for investigation 286 potential cases of suspected trafficking, identifying 286 potential victims of trafficking, and arresting nine suspected traffickers. BI stopped 199 foreign registered sex offenders from entering the country last year, the same report stated.
Bureau Of Immigration Port Operations Deports 294 Illegal Aliens (294 Chinese Nationals)
PUERTO PRINCESA, Palawan—The Bureau of Immigration (BI) announced that it has deported 294 Chinese nationals in two chartered flights earlier today at the Puerto Princesa International Airport. Bureau of Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente, in a statement, announced the deportation of said aliens who were part of the 329 arrested in 8 different hotels and establishments last September 16 through an operation of Bureau of Immigration Intelligence agents with the assistance of the Armed Forces of the Philippines Western Command (WESCOM).
Bureau Of Immigration Port Operations Deports 294 Illegal Aliens (294 Chinese Nationals)
PUERTO PRINCESA, Palawan—The Bureau of Immigration (BI) announced that it has deported 294 Chinese nationals in two chartered flights earlier today at the Puerto Princesa International Airport. Bureau of Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente, in a statement, announced the deportation of said aliens who were part of the 329 arrested in 8 different hotels and establishments last September 16 through an operation of Bureau of Immigration Intelligence agents with the assistance of the Armed Forces of the Philippines Western Command (WESCOM).
