New legal task force established to combat human trafficking

The Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT), the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) and the Office of the Attorney General (OPG) agreed on Monday (October 7) to establish a legal task force.

Department of Justice (DOJ) Usec. Nicholas Felix Ty, Assistant Attorney General Thomas Laragan and Officer-in-Charge Attorney General Richard Anthony Fadullon signed the memorandum of understanding on the establishment of the IACAT-OPG-OSG Legal Task Force.

“The Department of Justice is committed to combating this issue by continuing to build partnerships with other government agencies and the private sector,” said IACAT Undersecretary-in-Charge Ty.

Although the Philippines has been on the first list of the United States Trafficking in Persons Report for nine years in a row, Ty lamented that “we continue to face emerging human trafficking threats and increasing cases of online sexual abuse and exploitation of children. for the vulnerabilities we face as a nation.”

“The signing of this MOA for the establishment of the IACAT-OPG-OSG Legal Task Force signifies our strong determination to not only provide justice to all victims of human trafficking, but also send a message to perpetrators of how serious we are in prosecuting and condemn them. so that we can completely eradicate this crime,” he said.

Fadullon said human trafficking “is a heinous crime that requires a strict and very rigorous approach.”

“To successfully investigate, prosecute and obtain convictions for human trafficking, a multi-agency approach is needed to ensure the desired outcome is achieved,” he said.

“Coordination, cooperation and collaboration between the various government agencies is essential,” he added.