Filipino citizens, primarily women and girls, have been sex trafficked to the various provinces of the Philippines, as well as other countries in Asia[2] and different continents.[3][4] Some are trafficked using student, intern, and exchange program visas. Children[5][6][7][8][4][9] and people in poverty[10][11] and with low education levels are vulnerable. Other vulnerable groups include indigenous peoples and those displaced by typhoons[6] and conflict and violence.[4] Sex trafficked victims are deceived[12] and forced into prostitution,[6] marriages,[11][7] pregnancies, and unfree labour.[4] Their documents, including passports, are often confiscated.[4] They are threatened[5] and tied or locked-up[8] and experience physical and psychological trauma.[4] Many suffer from post traumatic stress disorder and nightmares.[8] They contract sexually transmitted diseases from rapes,[8] and abuse, malnutrition, and poor living conditions,[13] including rooms with little ventilation,[14] are common.[4] Cybersex or online sex trafficking and victims being in pornography is a significant problem.[13][10][7][8] Sex trafficking victims are sometimes forced to perform sex acts on live webcams.[4][9] Some have been coerced into bestiality.[8] Traffickers use many different internet and social media sites and apps, as well as email, to lure victims.[4][11]
Officials and police have been complicit.[4] A number of traffickers are members of or facilitated by criminal syndicates.[6][4] Some government officials and workers, as well as foreigners, have profited from sex trafficking in the Philippines. The perpetrators are sometimes the victims' family members and friends.[9][7]Pedophiles travel to the country for child sex tourism.[14][4][7]
The scale of sex trafficking in the Philippines is difficult to know because of the dearth of data.[10] Corruption is pervasive.[3][4] The government has been criticized for poor anti-sex trafficking law enforcement in some areas and not providing enough victim protections and rehabilitation services.[3][6]
Filipino women and girls have been trafficked out the Philippines to South Korea and become sex slaves in 'juicy bars' that cater to military servicemen and contractors in United States Forces Korea.[19][20][21]
Non-governmental organizations
Destiny Rescue Pilipinas, an operational arm of Destiny Rescue International, rescues sex trafficked persons in the Philippines.[22][14]
^"Philippines 2018 Trafficking in Persons Report". U.S. Department of State. Archived from the original on July 30, 2018. Retrieved July 30, 2018. As reported over the past five years, the Philippines is a source country and, to a lesser extent, a destination and transit country for men, women, and children subjected to sex trafficking and forced labor.
