Press Release No. 201-03
29 April 2003

OPLE CALLS FOR INFORMATION SHARING, BROADER ALLIANCES AGAINST HUMAN
TRAFFICKING AND PEOPLE SMUGGLING

Bali, Indonesia – Foreign Affairs Secretary Blas F. Ople called on the international community to strengthen mechanisms for information sharing on the modus operandi of human trafficking and people smuggling syndicates and the routes used.

The Secretary also urged other international organizations and multilateral fora like the ILO, ASEAN and ASEM to help in current efforts to stop trafficking of women and children. “We can expand the theater of cooperation to include trade unions, employers, women’s groups, and other non-government organizations,” Ople stressed.

Dr. Hassan Wirajuda, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Republic of Indonesia and Minister Alexander Downer of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Australia are co-chairpersons of the Second Bali Regional Ministerial Conference on People Smuggling, Trafficking in Persons and Related Transnational Crimes.

Despite an ongoing international conference on SARS held in Thailand, the Second Bali Conference received 300 registered delegates from 45 countries including observer countries from the Middle East, Africa, Europe and North America.

“The broad spectrum of participating countries in this conference reflects the global concern on the problems of human trafficking and people smuggling. It is only through effective regional and international cooperation and coordination with countries of origin, transit and destination that we could hope to win this battle against syndicates who are well-connected across the globe,” Ople stressed in his speech.

During the conference, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported that the volume of migration flows in the Asia and Pacific region has dramatically increased over the decades both in terms of numbers of migrants smuggled from the region and in terms of the number of migrants hosted by countries of the region.

The IOM said major countries of origin include the Philippines, India, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Thailand, Sri Lanka and Pakistan. The IOM representative said the annual outflow of migrant workers has more than tripled in a decade to almost 900,000 people in 2001.

China is identified as an emerging country of origin after a relaxation of its immigration and related passport policies since the year 2000. Chinese migrants now rank as the largest nationality group of newly entering migrants in New Zealand and Canada.

The IOM also reported that some countries have reduced its migrants to the Gulf region but that it still remains as the major receiving region of Asian migrants. The report noted a drop by 40% of Filipino migrant workers to the Middle East as compared to the early 80’s. On the contrary, the gulf region accounts for more than 90% of all Indian migrant workers for the last decade.

Of particular concern to the participants in the Bali conference is the continued growth of irregular migration, which the IOM described as “a response to migration pressure that can not be met through regular channels”.

Ople said there is a need to provide women especially in the countryside with local jobs and livelihood opportunities to thwart the scheme of human traffickers to prey on women from poor communities.

He also cited the lack of information on the dangers of human trafficking as a major reason behind the continued increase in the number of victims of people smugglers and traffickers.

Secretary Ople informed the participants to the Bali conference about the impending passage of the anti-trafficking law in the Philippines as well as the convening of a Senior Government Working Group led by the Department of Foreign Affairs to fight trafficking of women and children.