Leyte town checks drainage to address flooding, growing businesses

PALO, Leyte, July 30 – The local government has created an area management committee to check the status of the town’s drainage system, to find a solution to flooding and the growing number of businesses here.

The committee is composed of Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) personnel, village officials, business group leaders, and residents.

The group will regularly meet to discuss problems in their respective area and provide solution and interventions.

“There should be convergence so that all stakeholders will know what the problems are and they’ll be able to assist or help in solving it,” Mayor Remedios Petilla added.

“This is to strengthen coordination between stakeholders. The DPWH can look into the problem on drainage and effectively solve it if the local government, businessmen, and community members are aware of what’s going on,” Petilla added.

The local government will require establishments and property developers to present their drainage plans before the issuance of business permits and licenses.

“We will not issue permits and licenses if a business don’t have a drainage plan and parking space,” Petilla told reporters on Monday.

The local chief executive noted that some waterways have been blocked by the town’s rapid development, which may result in massive flooding in the future.

“If there are creeks with blocked outlets, this should be looked into by the area management committee,” the mayor said.

Flooding is a perennial problem, submerging some of its low-lying villages, including the town center. Binahaan, one of the largest rivers in Leyte with tributaries from four towns, drains in the sea of Palo town.

The flood-prone villages are Arado, Cangumbang, San Antonio, Cogon Zone 2, Salvacion, Zone 5, Tacuranga, San Miguel, Cabarasan Guti, Guindapunan, Luntad, Gacao, and San Joaquin.

The town, which is 12 kilometers away from Tacloban, has become an alternative investment destination of the regional capital. From January to June 2018, the local government registered 80 new businesses. (RTA/PNA)

32 human trafficking victims rescued in Pangasinan

TACLOBAN CITY, July 30 – The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) have rescued a total 32 residents from Eastern Visayas forced into labor at a fish farm in Pangasinan.

The 32 individuals rescued by Region 1 authorities returned home on Monday after three weeks of working in Chinese-run milkfish farms.

Of the 32 human trafficking victims, 24 are from Tacloban City, five from Dagami town, one from Mahaplag, one from Palo and one from Calubian, all in Leyte province. Six of the victims are minors.

The victims were promised comfortable working environment, a monthly salary of PHP5,000, PHP200 weekly allowance, and free meals, an offer that is hard to resist considering that most of them have no stable jobs.

The recruiters transported them in a van, bearing logos of a television network and humanitarian organization Philippine Red Cross to prevent authorities from flagging them down.

“I thought that the job they offered to me could help my family especially my parents,” said 18-years old Gelo (not his real name).

Gelo said his parents were worried when they learned of his situation. He constantly informed them through text messaging about his work condition.

He recalled that at night, they have to squeeze their body to fit six to seven people in room that looks like a cage and were being watched by armed men.

Another victim, Rey, who used to work as barker at the city’s shopping area, said they were promised that their task is just to feed the milkfish in fish pens, but the actual work was like hell. “We have to stay at the fish pen rain or shine.”

“I really want the recruiter to be put to jail because he fooled us. I thought I would never see my children again. I prayed hard to God for help so we could go home,” Rey added.

The victims narrated that they were made to work in a milkfish production site in the middle of the sea as early as 4 a.m. until 6:00 p.m. They also have to pay for their meals.

The raid stemmed from a plea for help by a victim’s mother, who went to the City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO), to report about their working condition.

The CSWDO immediately informed the DSWD regional office in Tacloban which, in turn, contacted officials in Pangasinan on July 13. The NBI and DSWD rescued the victims on the night of July 19.

Government agencies promised to help them by providing livelihood assistance and to facilitate the filing of charges against their recruiters.

A representative from the Department of Justice informed the victims that they are entitled to PHP10,000 cash assistance from the agency if they will file cases against the recruiters.

DSWD Regional Director Restituto Macuto said awareness is still the best defense to prevent human trafficking.

“People should know how to identify human trafficking, when to report and to whom it should be reported,” Macuto said.

“Although government agencies are determined to file charges against illegal recruiters, sometimes we are having hard time due to political interventions,” he added.

This year alone, the region has already recorded 60 human trafficking cases, higher than the 35 individuals who fell into the hands of illegal recruiters last year. Of the total cases in the region, 71 were documented from 2015 to 2017.

Most of the victims, including minors, were forced to engage in hard labor and sexual exploitation, pornography, and prostitution.

“The government is doing all it can to address this problem with the help from the non-government organization. I hope that all sectors in the community will help, including the media to disseminate information to prevent cases of human trafficking,” Macuto said.

Trafficking in persons, according to the United Nations, is a serious crime and a grave violation of human rights. Every year, thousands of men, women and children fall into the hands of traffickers, in their own countries and abroad. (RTA/PNA)

Coastal residents undergo training on solar-powered kit use

TACLOBAN CITY, July 30 -- The Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities (ICSC) and residents of storm surge-prone Costa Brava community in this city learned how to use the solar-powered kit meant for lighting and powering emergency communications and medical equipment.

The use of portable kit, dubbed as TekPak, is the highlight of evacuation drill culminating the observance of National Disaster Resilience Month on Saturday, in a community near the city’s airport that suffered the brunt of super typhoon Yolanda in 2013.

TekPak is one of the 40 innovations supported under the Tuklas Innovation Labs, a program of Plan Philippines in disaster-hit areas. The initiative aims to encourage ideas to meet the needs of vulnerable groups.

They are part of the five innovations from Eastern Visayas picked to receive PHP1 million in seed capital, training, and mentorship to test their disaster preparedness innovations from March to November 2018.

“Just like food and water, access to energy is also important in times of disaster. It plays important role in humanitarian response and development both in communication and medical situations,” said Jayson Mendiola, RE-Serve Humanitarian Corps member.

RE-Serve Humanitarian Corps is a volunteer group composed of respondents from various local government units, humanitarian organizations, community groups and students. The group helped the community by training them on how to use the TekPak.

“Electricity is one of the neglected aspects in disaster preparedness. We in RE-Serve advocates the use of alternative energy in times of disaster once the regular source of electricity backs down,” Mendiola said.

“The technology is already here and we can use it by harnessing energy from the sun through solar panels for us to have electricity to charge our mobile phones and other means of communication devices. This is vital to relay information to the villages from the town center.”

Mendiola added that the ICSC is developing a handier TekPak comparable to the size of a first-aid kit box. The solar panel is foldable and easy to carry.

The earthquake drill coincided with the power-outage in Tacloban that lasted for 14 hours. Participants use TekPak to charge their gadgets like the two-way radio and mobile phones. It was also used to power nebulizers.

Village chief Emelita Montalban said they were blessed to be selected as the site of the drill and to receive one unit of TekPak from the humanitarian organization.

“Having this TekPak will really help our village by ensuring that our places is lighted and communication continues because we have source of electricity to power our communication devices even there is no power from regular energy source,” Montalban said.

The entire Costa Brava community is classified by the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office as a danger zone due to its location, which is in the middle of Cancabato Bay and San Pedro Bay.

More than 900 families in the village are still living in the community since housing construction in resettlement areas has yet to be finished. (RTA/LAAA/PNA)

Partylist steps up Eastern Visayas’ tourism promotion

TACLOBAN CITY, July 28  -- Huge banners featuring top tourism destinations in Eastern Visayas have been installed in public and private terminals in this city to raise awareness among locals on must-see places.

Florencio Noel, founder of An Waray Parylist, has observed that many locals have yet to visit top destinations in the region since they are unaware of these attractions, activities, and how to get there.

“Many people in Region 8 (Eastern Visayas) have visited destinations in other parts of the country and even abroad, but never visited local destinations. These banners are placed in bus and van terminals because our intention is to attract local tourists,” Noel, a former congressman, told reporters during the unveiling on Friday.

The project is in partnership with the Department of Tourism (DOT), Tacloban city government, and terminal operators. The banners contain photos, basic information, tour rates, and contact details.

“To encourage tourists to visit a site, they just don’t need pictures, but basic facts as well,” Noel added.

At the city’s new bus terminal, officials unveiled the banner of Biri Rock Formations in Northern Samar and Sambawan Island in Maripipi, Biliran.

Considered as the icon destination of Northern Samar province, Biri’s gigantic rock formations sculpted by ferocious waves of the Pacific Ocean is perfect for those who wish to find solitude.

Sambawan Island is endowed with white sands, thriving marine life and warm blue waters lapping up the tree-lined shore.

A tourism banner featuring Kalanggaman Island in Palompon, Leyte was also set up at the private terminal of Duptours, a major transport service provider in the region.

Kalanggaman Island, a one-hour boat ride from the mainland, is a postcard-perfect virgin island endowed with powder white sand and crystal clear waters. It has a long sandbar that is stretching on both sides of the island.

The partylist will also install banners in terminals in Southern Leyte and Northern Samar.

City tourism officer Malou Tabao welcomed the initiative, citing its benefits to the regional capital where big hotels, malls, and regional offices of government are located.

“This will benefit Tacloban being the commercial center of Region 8. Let us help promote destinations to create more opportunities in the region. At the end of the day, these visitors would stay in hotels in Tacloban before heading back home,” Tabao said.

Norberto Lumbre, DOT regional office senior tourism operations officer, said this initiative will complement their tourism promotion efforts.

“This is a big help to traveling public for them to have an idea how much they need to spend to get to our local destinations,” Lumbre said.

The region consists of the provinces of Biliran, Eastern Samar, Leyte, Northern Samar, Samar, and Southern Leyte, and the cities of Baybay, Borongan, Calbayog, Catbalogan, Maasin, Ormoc and Tacloban, the Eastern Visayas’s regional center.

The region remains relatively overlooked compared to other tourist destinations in the Philippines, but this has been slowly changing in the past years as demand for raw nature tourism grows.

Among its popular destinations are Kalanggaman Island, San Juanico Bridge, Leyte Landing Memorial in Leyte; Sambawan Island in Biliran; dive sites in Southern Leyte; Calicoan Island in Eastern Samar; Sohoton Cave and Natural Park in Samar; and Biri Rock Formations in Northern Samar. (SQM/PNA)

Anti-endo drive gains ground in Eastern Visayas

TACLOBAN CITY, July 28 -- At least 5,148 workers in Eastern Visayas have been regularized from January to the first week of July year as the central government stepped up its drive to end labor-only contracting or “endo”, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) here reported Friday.

Of the number, 2,594 benefitted from the campaign when their employers voluntarily complied with the directive to stop “endo”, while the remaining 2,554 workers attained regular employment status after labor inspection activities.

DOLE 8 (Eastern Visayas) Director Cyril Ticao has expressed confidence about hitting the target of 9,000 regularized before the end of this year.

“President Rodrigo Duterte’s call to Congress to pass legislation ending the practice of illegal contractualization is a big boost to our goal to meet or even exceed the target this year,” Ticao told the Philippine New Agency (PNA).

The Chief Executive, in his State of the Nation Address on Monday, asked lawmakers to pass legislation that will "once and for all" stop illegal contractualization.

Contributing to the remarkable performance in the region is the regularization of more than a thousand of these workers, who were given permanent employment status by the Philippine Associated Smelting and Refining Corp., the country’s largest copper smelter based in Isabel, Leyte.

The priority in the campaign are shopping malls, hotels, restaurants, food chains, gas stations, manufacturing, construction, transport, and fishing industry since these are the establishments vulnerable to labor-only contracting.

The regional office is largely counting on voluntary compliance since it only has 20 labor inspectors tasked to check the compliance of thousands of business establishments in the region’s six provinces.

The DOLE adopted two tracks in eliminating labor-only contracting or “endo”.

In the first track, its regional offices conduct a series of consultations and meetings to encourage employers to voluntarily regularize workers.

For the second track, labor law compliance officers inspect establishments, principals and contractors practicing labor-only contracting arrangements.

Those found to be engaged in labor-only contracting are subjected to mandatory conferences to assist them in their compliance with labor standards.

In 2017, about 1,733 workers were given regular employment status in the six provinces of Eastern Visayas. (SQM/PNA)

Leyte’s remote villages to have new roads

CARIGARA, Leyte, July 27  -- Three upland villages in Leyte will soon have new roads with the allocation of PHP39.4 million from the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP).

The OPAPP-funded Payapa at Masaganang Pamayanan (Pamana) roads will cover remote villages affected by armed conflict in the past. It will be implemented by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) – Leyte’s second district engineering office.

DPWH district engineer Carlos Veloso said Friday the three projects recently bid out are farm-to-market roads leading to Lanawan village in Macarthur, Leyte (PHP19.7 million); Patag village in Burauen, Leyte (PHP9.85 million); and Villaconzoilo village in Jaro, Leyte (PHP9.85 million).

“The program is being implemented by the government to reduce vulnerabilities, improve governance, and empower fragile communities. This involves socio-economic interventions to isolated and conflict-affected areas not only to foster sustainable development but also to avoid recurrence of sources of conflict,” Veloso added.

Lanawan is an upland community in Macarthur town, with 67 families grouped into a farmers’ organization managing two hectares of land and developed it into an organic farm supplying high-value vegetables in some stores in Tacloban City.

Patag is a far-flung village in Burauen town known for its variety of farm products. The community is also endowed with crystal-clear water rivers.

Villa Conzoilo in Jaro town is a budding farm-tourism destination in Leyte that has attracted both foreign and local visitors since it opened in May last year. It is the farthest village in the town at the foot of Mount Amandewing, and was once a hotbed of insurgency in Leyte Island.

The association of farmers transformed the former war zone of rebellion into thriving gardens planted with high-value crops.

Pamana is the national government’s convergence program that extends development interventions to isolated, hard-to-reach and conflict-affected communities, ensuring that they are not left behind. (LAAA/PNA)

Tacloban road works to cause 12-hour power outage

TACLOBAN CITY, July 26  -- Road expansion will cause 12-hour power interruption in this city and two nearby towns on Saturday, the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) said on Thursday.

The power outage, scheduled from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., will disrupt the activities of 66,744 business establishments and households in this city, and towns of Palo and Babatngon, Leyte.

“This is due to the relocation of structures affected by the construction of a four-lane by-pass road by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH),” the NGCP said in a statement.

The four-lane Tacloban bypass road designed to decongest the city’s major thoroughfare will be completely passable next year, according to DPWH.

The NGCP earlier scheduled the interruption on July 21. However, it was postponed due to the conduct of site re-survey of the new six-lane road.

The PHP924.55-million project, which has been implemented in five phases since 2015, is up for completion in August 2019.

Three phases of the four-lane road opening and concreting project have been completed since last year. Still ongoing are phase 4 (85.54 percent) and phase 5 (4.90 percent).

The 6.4-kilometer bypass road, which starts at Tigbao village and ends at Caibaan village, was constructed to decongest traffic along the Maharlika Highway, said DPWH. (LAAA/PNA)

One-way traffic scheme to end in 3 major Tacloban roads

TACLOBAN CITY, July 26  -- Both lanes of three major streets in the city’s downtown will be open to two-way traffic starting August 1 after they were turned into one-way streets for eight months.

In a press statement issued Thursday, the city government said the change in traffic rule will cover MH del Pilar, Sto. Niño, and Paterno streets within the city’s central business district.

“The implementation of the new traffic management and re-routing scheme is aimed at easing traffic along roads within the downtown area,” the city government said.

The city, in December last year, turned Juan Luna, Paterno, Sto. Niño, MH del Pilar, and Salazar streets into one-way streets. The traffic rule was supposed to end in January 2018, but was extended until July.

While MH del Pilar, Sto. Niño, and Paterno streets return to two-way traffic, Juan Luna and Salazar will remain one-way streets.

The temporary conversion was part of the ongoing study by the University of the Philippines National Center for Traffic Studies (UPNCTS) to aid the city in coming up with a permanent solution to traffic congestion.

The city has been implementing a one-way traffic scheme in four other major thoroughfares since 2014 when authorities noticed the increasing number of vehicles after Super Typhoon Yolanda struck.

As part of the recommendation of the Traffic Management Study conducted by the UPNCTS, motor cabs for hire (MCH) will be restricted from entering Justice Romualdez, JP Rizal Ave., Avenida Veteranos, and Real.

The truck ban ordinance will strictly be enforced, such that trucks and other large vehicles covered by the ordinance will only be allowed to enter the downtown area through Real St.

“We have just discussed the issue with the committee on Transportation and Terminal Administration. We are eagerly awaiting the final proposed Traffic Management Program from UPNCTS so that we can enact ordinances that will legalize all traffic schemes,” Tacloban Vice Mayor Jerry Yaokasin said in a text message.

Major thoroughfares in the capital of Eastern Visayas have been used by thousands of vehicles daily, including the 2,000 registered MCH.
Tacloban is a first-class, highly urbanized city in the country.

It serves as the regional center of Eastern Visayas. According to the 2015 census, it has a population of 242,089, making it the most populous city in the region. (LAAA/PNA)

DPWH expects timely completion of Korean-funded Samar road

TACLOBAN CITY, July 26  -- The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) is optimistic that the nearly PHP1-billion Samar Pacific Coastal Road will be completed on time, drawing lessons from delayed infrastructure projects in Northern Samar.

DPWH Eastern Visayas Regional Director Edgar Tabacon said on Thursday that Korea-based contractor, Ilsung Construction Co. Ltd., has mapped out strategies to deal with all factors that may cause delay to the road works.

Since the project started May 26 until June 25 this year, the contractor already reported 1.22 percent accomplishment, just a little behind the 1.59 percent target for the first 30 days of project implementation. The activities include mobilization of equipment, clearing, and excavation.

“This is a big contractor and they have the capability to implement this kind of project. I believe they have learned lessons from previous projects, including the road construction of the road that links Samar and Eastern Samar provinces implemented by the US government,” Tabacon told the Philippine News Agency in a phone interview.

The official was referring to the 222-km Samar Road Rehabilitation Project under the US government’s Millennium Challenge Corporation funding. The road, which was completed 2015, was delayed due to frequent rains in Samar Island.

Among six provinces, Northern Samar posted the lowest accomplishment in building DPWH projects in 2018.

For Northern Samar second legislative district, where the Korean-funded road is located, the field office reported a 2.89 percent accomplishment - way below than the 50 percent target for the first semester.

Last May, DPWH Secretary Mark Villar and South Korean Ambassador to the Philippines Han Dong-man led the groundbreaking ceremony of the project.

The PHP997.50-million road project, funded through a loan from the South Korean government, will open an 11.6-km. two-lane road and build three bridges. The Korean contractor aims to complete the project by March 2020.

The project, which begins at Simora junction in Laoang town and Palapag town junction, traverses remote villages of Laoang, Catubig, and Palapag towns.

Under the agreement, the DPWH shoulders the cost of road right-of-way acquisitions.

To reach the capital town of Catarman, residents of Palapag and three other Pacific towns -- Mapanas, Gamay, and Lapinig -- need to cross the river twice through a pump boat ride.

From the port in Pangpang village in Palapag, travelers need to cross the river to Calomotan village of Laoang, then take a boat ride to the port in the town center and ride another pump boat to cross the river going to Rawis village.

Last year, the DPWH pushed for the extension of the validity of a Korean-funded loan for the Samar Pacific Coastal Road due to pre-construction delays.

The National Economic and Development Authority-Investment Coordination Committee-Cabinet Committee approved last Dec. 6, 2017 the loan validity extension of the foreign-funded project from Jan. 18, 2018 to Jan. 17, 2020.

The extension of the implementation from September 2017-July 2019 to January 2018-December 2019 was also approved.

The project has been delayed due to security issues, bidding failures, concerns on hiring of consulting services, and late submission of deliverable bidding documents. (SQM/PNA)

Disaster preparedness innovation on exhibit in Leyte

PALO, Leyte, July 25  -- Innovations designed to enhance family disaster preparedness and response are on display here as part of the National Disaster Resilience Month celebration.

Five of the 10 innovations from the Visayas group of island are from Eastern Visayas and are featured in the week-long “Tuklas” (discover) Innovation Labs held at the Oriental Hotel de Leyte.

Among the innovations displayed is the “Bakwit (evacuation) Kit” a flat-packed evacuation kit made of plastic pipes for easy transportation and set-up. The kit was designed by DesignNovators from the Philippine Institute of Interior Designers-Eastern Visayas Chapter.

Heidrun Milan, one of the “Bakwit” Kit designers said on Wednesday their innovation prototype was tested in the city’s Fatima Village, where residents contributed ideas to upgrade the design.

Milan said the design came about after they held discussions on their contribution to disaster response.

The “Bakwit” Kit fits all the evacuation essentials like soft partition, sleeping mattress, dining set and storage shelving. It was also designed in a way that children, women or even persons with disabilities can easily assemble it.

“Evacuation center is within our scope as interior designers. Our measurement in the ‘Bakwit’ Kit is a size of two plywood. We used this measurement to lessen the wastage of plywood and everything can be stored inside the boxes,” Milan explains.

The “Bakwit” Kit can fit a family of four, but it is expandable for families with more members.

“We also would like to promote dignity, convenience and privacy for the families. What we have in the evacuation centers are camp spaces already, so we like to have comfort and convenience for the family.
 That is very important, previously we already have issues on privacy and there was no demarcation between one family to another,” Milan said.

Another innovation presented is the intelligent flood warning monitoring system developed by TECH4DRRM (Technology for Disaster Risk Reduction and Management) from Cebu City. It is a flood warning system that uses sensors to send real-time alert.

The warning device works when the river water reaches critical level. The system automatically broadcasts in local dialect to warn the community of possible flooding in the area. This will allow the residents to set priorities of securing their properties and livestock and evacuate their family to safer place.

The developer of the software said that although they had received assistance from “Tuklas”, the government should also provide the same to encourage more innovators to create designs that could help communities in disaster preparedness and response.

“Developing this kind of software needs support. We are thankful that ‘Tuklas’ is here to help us. I hope that the government will come-up with a program that will support innovators and inventors to showcase their talents, although there is the Department of Science and Technology but the more government agencies providing funds for the development of innovations and invention will have a better result because they have good resources,” Jonathan Cartilla, the technology developer.

“Tuklas”, which is an acronym for “Tungo sa Kahandaan ng Pilipinas”, is a community-centered innovation project that aims to support local solutions on disaster risk reduction and management. It was launched last year and winners were selected from the 260 proposals from 17 regions in the country.

The selected innovation will be provided with up to PHP1 million in seed capital, training, and mentorship to test their disaster preparedness innovations from March to November 2018.

“The selected proposals revolve in the four themes of Disaster Risk Reduction and Mitigation which are preparedness, mitigation, response and rehabilitation. So, in the innovations that were selected you can see food security, water, shelter, sanitation and hygiene and self-protection,” said Michael Anthony Cruz, “Tuklas” Project Manager. (RTA/PNA)

Eastern Visayas human trafficking cases alarm DSWD

TACLOBAN CITY, July 25  -- The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) regional office here has expressed alarm over human trafficking cases in Eastern Visayas as it urged law enforcers and local government units to immediately put a stop to the crime.

In a press briefing Wednesday, DSWD Regional Director Restituto Macuto said the region has already recorded 131 human trafficking cases from 2015 to third week of July 2018.

“This crime persists in the region due to poverty, lack of awareness, persuasion by family members and peers, and desire to earn more money. The number of reported cases has been increasing, but from our point of view, this happens because more people are aware of their rights,” Macuto told reporters.

The latest case was documented on July 19 where 40 people, including minors, were rescued while heading to Pangasinan to work as laborers in illegal fish pens. At least 32 of the victims are from Eastern Visayas region.

This year alone, the region has already recorded 60 human trafficking cases, higher than the 35 individuals who fell into the hands of illegal recruiters last year. Of the total cases in the region, 71 were documented from 2015 to 2017.

"The fight to end human trafficking is a responsibility we all must share, from law enforcement and policymakers to service providers and faith-based leaders. Our main responsibility and social obligation is to offer the victims of human trafficking a chance to remember good things. However, the issue of human trafficking is complex in nature, and cannot be addressed only by one organization, or by government alone,” Macuto said.

The DSWD vowed to continue supporting trafficking victims through the implementation of the Recovery and Reintegration Program for Trafficked Persons (RRPTP).

The RRPTP is a comprehensive program that ensures adequate recovery and reintegration services for those who have been victims of human trafficking. It includes a case management, where the problems and needs of the victims are analyzed, in order to implement appropriate interventions.

The services provided by the DSWD for trafficked persons under the program include capital assistance, referral to employers and business partners, and the provision of financial assistance for employment and during skills training.

In addition, auxiliary services given to the victims or witnesses include board and lodging, documentation, and incidental expenses.

The department also accommodates victims in search of temporary shelter to recover from their trauma, as well as those with ongoing court cases.

The DSWD renewed its call for stronger ties to fight the crime as the world will celebrate the Day against Trafficking in Persons on July 30 as set by the United Nations.

Trafficking in persons, according to the United Nations, is a serious crime and a grave violation of human rights. Every year, thousands of men, women and children fall into the hands of traffickers, in their own countries and abroad. (SQM/PNA)