Philippines, UAE sign pact vs human trafficking

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) vowed to cooperate and strengthen measures to combat human trafficking and ensure the protection of women and children.

The memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the two countries was signed by Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro "Teddyboy" Locsin Jr and UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan on Thursday, September 26, on the sidelines of the 74th United Nations (UN) General Assembly in New York.

Under the agreement, the Philippines and the UAE are expected to do the following:

This is in line with the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime, and the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children (Palermo Protocol) which both the Philippines and the UAE have ratified.

In a statement Friday, September 27, the Philippines' Department of Foreign Affairs said the MOU is seen to strengthen bilateral ties between the two countries.

The UAE is among the countries with a large number of overseas Filipino workers. As of 2017, there were more than 600,000 Filipinos in UAE, over 100,000 of whom were employed as household service workers. – Rappler.com