A non-government organization urged the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) to bring to the discussion table the cases of human trafficking in the next round of joint bilateral consultations with Malaysia.

“We urge the government to take this case seriously and to show to the world our fervent commitment to end human trafficking and modern-day slavery,” Susan Ople, head of the Blas F. Ople Policy Center said in a statement.

The statement was issued following the arrival last Monday of Filipino women from Malaysia, victimized by human trafficking syndicates.

The center urged government to take serious steps to address growing problem of illegal recruitment and trafficking of Filipino women to Malaysia. The victims were made to work as modern-day-slaves, the center said in a press statement.

The latest batch of OFWs who came home included nine women recruited by a notorious syndicate led by a Singaporean trafficker based in Malaysia who uses the alias, “Alfred Lim.”

“The victims have done their share. Assisted by our Center and the Department of Justice with the support of the Philippine Embassy, they bravely filed charges against their illegal recruiters here and in Malaysia. They have extended full cooperation and have in fact even filed complaints against immigration agents who escorted them out of DMIA (Diosdado Macapagal International Airport). The ball is now in the government’s court,” Ople said

The former labor undersecretary expressed confidence that the Malaysian government would not hesitate to arrest and prosecute human traffickers. She also urged the Police and Immigration Attaché assigned to the Philippine Embassy in Malaysia to be more aggressive in pursuing the case against Lim.

“Nakalaya na pala si Lim pero ni hindi kami nasabihan. Nalaman lang namin ito mula sa kanyang mga nabiktima,” Ople said.

The center expressed dismay that Lim’s syndicate continues to recruit and deploy women workers to exploitative jobs in Malaysia with some of the victims ending up as prostitutes.

Ople believes that Lim has already victimized more than a hundred Filipino women workers.

“He uses scouts, mostly women, in an elaborate scheme to recruit jobless Filipino women who are promised good jobs, quick deployment, and the freedom to switch employers if they are unhappy. But once the victims arrive in Malaysia, the syndicate confiscates their mobile phones and passports, and chooses their employers. The workers who returned to Lim by dissatisfied employers are maltreated and abused. No matter how hard they work, the victims don’t get salaries because the employers would say that they have already paid a full amount to Lim,” Ople said.

Ople also railed against a provision in the Anti-Trafficking Act of 2003 that provides for the right of privacy of the accused on equal footing with that of the victims.

“This confidentiality clause prevents us and even the government from warning more women about Lim and his cohorts despite outstanding warrants for their arrest,” she said.