BI intercepts 8th victim of trafficking for surrogacy

Manila: The Bureau of Immigration (BI) expressed alarm over the rising cases of trafficking of women for illegal surrogacy abroad after the apprehension of an eighth victim last week. In a news release Wednesday, Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado said the 37-year-old victim was intercepted last Oct. 15 at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 in Pasay City after attempting to board a Turkish Airlines flight to Batumi, Georgia. The BI's immigration protection and border enforcement section (I-PROBES) reported that the victim initially presented herself as a sales associate, traveling to Georgia for business purposes. However, the primary inspection officer noticed discrepancies in her statements and referred her for a secondary inspection. During interviews, she confessed to being recruited as a surrogate mother for an unidentified client. The victim admitted a male recruiter contacted her via messaging platform WhatsApp, offering PHP28,000 per month during pregnancy and a final payment of more than PHP500,000 after childbirth. The recruiter had enticed her with promises of covered medical treatments and other benefits, apart from covering her documentation and travel costs. The intercepted victim was referred to the inter-agency council against trafficking (IACAT) for assistance and filing of cases against her recruiters. I-PROBES chief Mary Jane Hizon noted that this case represents a new type of human trafficking scheme, linking forced labor to surrogacy arrangements. Female victims are initially offered favorable living conditions but ultimately face exploitation and abuse. She noted this is the eighth recorded case of surrogate mothers intercepted at the airports, showing a troubling trend of individuals being misled into these roles under pretenses. Immigration authorities earlier intercepted two victims last Oct. 12, while another was intercepted on Oct. 3 last year. On Jan. 1, 2017, BI officers stopped four victims from leaving the country. Earlier this month, Cambodian authoritie s rescued 20 Filipino women who were reportedly brought by a Philippine agency to become surrogate mothers in the Southeast Asian country. Source: Philippines News Agency