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US Ambassador to the Philippines Kristie Kenney will meet with the
Batangas anti-human trafficking network in a ceremony today at the
Port Halfway House at the Batangas International Port. Kenney is
eager to demonstrate her solidarity with the group’s initiatives
to curb the trafficking problem.
During the ceremony, Kenney will sign in behalf
of the US Government a commitment to support the Visayan Forum’s
anti-trafficking program.
“We are grateful for the US State
Department’s support to our anti-trafficking program,” said
Visayan Forum President Ma. Cecilia Flores-Oebanda. “This grant
will complement the commitment and current efforts of the Philippine
Ports Authority [PPA] and Visayan Forum in the intensification of
our anti-trafficking efforts in the province.”
Gov. Vilma Santos-Recto of Batangas, who also
heads the Provincial Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (PIACAT),
has been invited to grace today’s ceremony. Governor Recto has
allocated a P200,000 annual budget for the operation of the council.
The program will also showcase the model
anti-trafficking initiatives of
the local group in some municipalities.
Established in January 2004, the Batangas Port
Halfway House is one of the five halfway houses across the country
that the PPA had constructed and currently being managed by the
Visayan Forum.
Over 20,000 persons in trafficking situations,
mostly women and children, have been served by these halfway houses
since 2001.
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