Police urge Filipino expat community to help fight human trafficking

Dubai - Police told the office-bearers of various Filipino organisations to report any forms of human trafficking to authorities.

The Dubai Police have called on leaders of the Filipino expat community to help in its efforts to combat human trafficking locally and to enhance the UAE's role in eliminating cross-border human trafficking crimes.
At a town hall meeting conducted at the Philippine Consulate in Dubai on Monday, First-Lt Rashid Nasser Ali from the General Department of Human Rights at the Dubai Police, told the office-bearers of various Filipino organisations to report any forms of human trafficking to authorities.
"Immediately call the police. Dial 999. Remove the fear of calling the police, do not hesitate to communicate with the police - they are your friends," Ali said.
Ali noted that human trafficking "refers to situations where persons are coerced to work through the use of violence or intimidation, or by coercive means such as indebtedness, confiscation of identity papers and threats of denunciation to police and immigration authorities".
"The first thing that human traffickers do is to instil fear that the police will detain the victims," Ali explained. "But we are here to protect human rights and help anyone from all forms of human trafficking."
Ali said that in many cases, victims of human trafficking have expired visas. "They are told not to go to the police and they are made to think that the police will arrest them and that Immigration will deport them. But this is not true because the UAE has high standards for human rights. We have rehabilitation programmes and we provide legal protection," he underlined.
Ali noted that many of the victims of human trafficking come from poor backgrounds.
"They are mostly from the villages and their educational level is minimal. They come here with a promise of a good life. They enter the country with tourist or visit visa and then are only exploited," he said.
He added that human trafficking starts from the country of origin, particularly during the recruitment and deployment stage.
"My advice is to tell your kababayans (countrymen) not to come here with a tourist or visit visa if they are looking for work."
"If there is a job offer, there should be an employment visa. If you are contracted from the Philippines, make sure that there is a genuine contract and offer letter. Otherwise, you will be vulnerable and might become a victim of human trafficking."
Other advice that Ali gave are: "Not to sign any cheque that will put a jobseeker under pressure; make sure the passport issued is not fake and that the recruitment agency is accredited by the government.
Ali said the Dubai Police are strengthening its campaign against human trafficking by engaging the expat communities and the meeting with the Filipino community is the first in a series of town hall meeting and educational seminars.
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