AirAsia Philippines said Wednesday it teamed up with the Bureau of Immigration, the National Bureau of Investigation and the Manila International Airport Authority to combat human trafficking in the country.
“AirAsia Philippines is one with the government in safeguarding our fellow Filipinos against human trafficking. There will be no room for complacency,” said AirAsia Philippines communications and public affairs country head Steve Dailisan.
“To ensure the safety of our guests, we have 20,000 Allstars across ASEAN trained to identify signs of human trafficking during check-in procedures and onboard flights,” he said.
Data from the Bureau of Immigration revealed that 6,000 Filipinos were suspected to have fallen victim to human trafficking in the first two months of 2023. Of the said figure, only 0.6 percent were offloaded while the rest continued with their journey ending in other ASEAN countries and the Middle East.
MIAA assistant general manager for security and emergency services Manuel Gonzales said NAIA Terminals 1 and 3 were the usual gateway used by human traffickers victimizing mostly women and children. Airport police are being trained to implement thorough inspection and surveillance, he said. Darwin G. Amojelar