Sex Predators, Pimps, & Prostitution Ring in the Middle East at Philippine Embassies

Overseas Filipino Workers mostly domestic helpers are easy prey for employers that are sexual predators thus they escape. If they are not caught by the police forcibly retuning them against their will to their employer where they are more likely than ever to be raped, they become runaways. Quite a number end up as runaways and desperate seeking the help of our embassies to repatriate them back home.

Distressed OFWs are those we watched on television and read about in newspapers living in squalid tents, full of hope and dreams for a better life only to end up victimized in untenable working conditions, their contracts violated and becoming prey to all sorts of exploitations. Perhaps it’s the culture that’s foreign to them as some desperately tries to rationalize but rape and outright cruel treatment to fraudulent contract violations is not exactly cultural but criminal. It is bad enough that Filipinos become prey to these greedy inhumane exploitative employers and outright criminal sex predators but to be victimized further by our own people cloaked in authority is the vilest and despicable that one can heap on their very own people.

When Walden Bello an Akbayan party list representative broke the news on sex predators at Philippine embassies regarding some officials having sex with distressed OFWs, pimping, and operating a prostitution ring in return for plane fare tickets for repatriation, the reaction we expect should be that of being scandalized and anger. Unfortunately, instead of being incensed enough to act some are just too numb and dense as if these are normal daily occurrence and that Walden Bello was just grandstanding at the expense of the people he is accusing. Worse one of the accused Mario Antonio, welfare officer of the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) in Jordan in denying his wrong doing, brazenly accused human traffickers and manpower recruitment agencies as those behind the “smear” against his “reputation.” In so declaring, he of course implied if not literally saying that Walden Bello is being used by the human traffickers and recruitment agencies. In effect Antonio is saying that Bello was hoodwinked or is one of them only show the pervasive culture of corruption and criminality afflicting government officials.

Of course that brazen counter accusation against Walden upsets him and probably most people will get upset too. It is understandable and as expected when he threatened Mario Antonio with a libel suit if he continues to blabber nonsense. Mr. Bello is within his rights to file a criminal libel suit against Mario Antonio but it will be better to just ensure that they have all the evidence to pin down all the culprits, enough to land them in prison. He can then file a libel suit after their conviction to add to their sentences and maybe enough to lock them up for good so they can throw away the key.

Anyway, what kind of people takes advantage of an already distressed fellow Filipino becoming so desperate that leaves them with a very limited option to refuse the sexual advances of these embassy sexual predators? They went there to seek greener pastures and they end up victimized further as subject of human trafficking ending in a prostitution ring courtesy of the embassy prostitution ring operator and pimp when they are tasked to assist and help them. OFWs dutifully contributed to OWWA funds so that if they find themselves in a desperate situation that very contribution will at least be their insurance that they can fly back home. Since these plane tickets are covered and paid for by OWWA , these predators are defrauding not just OWWA but the OFW contributors as well while denying distressed OFWs the benefit that rightfully belongs to them. Worst they are scammed and forced to pay through sexual favors or prostituting themselves robbing them of whatever dignity is left of them when they should not be paying in the first place? Now let me ask this question if I may, did the Philippines set up a Mafia prostitution and racketeering front in the Middle East courtesy of the Philippine Embassies?

Unfortunately government people seem to operate and think like they are or in creating their own reality that we normal mortals do not see or understand such as this statement attributed to DFA Secretary Albert Del Rosario as “disconcerting” but still “hearsay.” Although he changed his tone when he spoke to Mr. Bello that defensive attitude only encourages criminals in their outfit to be more brazen. Recalling the named individuals accused of sexual molestations to actually exploiting the weaknesses of the distressed OFWs by having sex ,pimping, and operating a prostitution ring to explain themselves is moving in the right direction. Calling all the Ambassadors in the region to shed light and come up with policies to avoid a repetition of the scandal is also a move in the right direction. Yes, forming a fact-finding body is indeed what they need and it should be applauded. While at it I hope they also realized that the reason we have distressed OFWs ending up victimized further by the sexual maniacs, pimp, and prostitution ring operator predators cloaked in diplomatic immunity is because the pleas of the desperate OFWs fell on deaf ears? Criminal predators are very keen on seizing the opportunity and are only encouraged further when pleas and complaints by OFWs are not attended to making them more desperate enough to fall victim to their exploitation and probably even thanking them just to get out of the hellish situation they are in.

While those moves are in the right direction, they are not enough because we are talking not just about policy breach here but a criminal act. A criminal act of fraud, estafa, sexual molestation or having sex with desperate , pimped and trafficked to prostitution scammed into believing they have no other option but to submit to the pervert's demand using their position and the embassy for their nefarious sick criminal activities. Is it too much to ask that the DoJ should get involved here instead of the jokers at the senate and for them to instruct the NBI to conduct a criminal investigation by gathering evidence since that is their expertise and not some wannabe jokers trying to impress the gullible public? Is it also too much to ask that said "parallel investigation" be conducted by the palace for them to just ensure that investigations by criminal investigators are conducted professionally in a fair and balanced manner in accordance with what is allowed by the law to ensure that if the accused are indeed guilty of the crime, they are not able to escape justice via technicalities?

The “swift action” by the DFA in forming a fact-finding body is serious business but a little too late because had they listened to earlier pleas of the OFWs this kind of problem would not have escalated into a huge international embarrassing scandal. That is if indeed they are really serious and not just doing the usual damage control since most in government still believe that people are so gullible. The OFWs deserve better, their contribution consistently kept the Philippine economy afloat and is this really how some in the government repay them for their sacrifice to their family and the nation? Oh, and if you are wondering why the US has not removed the Philippines from tier 2 for human trafficking, look no further but to the Philippine embassy people using our embassies as front for prostitution ring exploiting distressed OFWs.

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