The Religious of the Good Shepherd (RGS) Province of Philippines and Japan joined the Blue Heart Campaign to commemorate the World Day Against Trafficking in Persons last July 30, 2019. The Blue Heart Campaign is a global initiative of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) to raise awareness and fight human trafficking and its impact on society. The Blue Heart represents the sadness experienced by the victims of human trafficking.

A prayer service was held at the Good Shepherd Convent grounds in solidarity with the victims and survivors of human trafficking. During the service, a report on the human trafficking situation in the Philippines was shared with the participants, followed by a reading of a survivor’s story of online sexual exploitation of children (OSEC). OSEC is a fast-emerging type of human trafficking in the country where children are made to perform sexualized acts in front of a computer camera while being broadcasted to paying customers all over the world. The Philippines is in the top ten list of countries with the most incidence of OSEC globally.

Orientation sessions on human trafficking for Filipino migrant workers were also conducted at the Center for Overseas Workers from July 26 to July 30. Some participants shared their own stories and experiences of human trafficking to help educate their fellow workers.

Trafficking in persons is one of the six priority issues of RGS Philippines-Japan Province.

Contributed by Advocacy Unit (smeidfi2019@gmail.com). Responsible for this article is Ciara Marie Borja.