Saudi-bound Pinays barred from leaving

Immigration authorities stopped two would-be OFW from leaving the country because of false credentials.

The Bureau of Immigration (BI) recently intercepted two women bound for Saudi Arabia via Dubai after they failed to pass pre-boarding scrutiny at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 2.

BI Commissioner Jaime Morente said the duo was discovered lying about their real age.

The duo claimed they are both 26 years old as reflected in their passports and other documents like visas, job contract and Overseas Employment Certificates.

However, further inquiries by the Port Operations Division (POD) and Travel Control and Enforcement Unit (TCEU) forced the women to admit they are only 19 ad 20, lower than the 23 years old minimum age requirement for household service workers.

The women also bared they were kept by their handlers in a safehouse in Paco, Manila for two months before they were booked for their flight on 21 September.

Morente commended the airport personnel, under BI-POD chief Grifton Medina, and instructed them to always conduct strict profiling and inspection of all departing passengers.

BI-TCEU chief Timotea Barizo said that the women also said they were briefed and taught by their recruiters how to respond to questions from immigration officers.

“We’ve heard this in the past, usually victims would be briefed a few days before their flight. But now they’re actually housed for months to train on how to evade immigration questioning,” Barizo said.

“The two victims admitted that their documents were given prior to departure only and that they were told to open it only after check in. This forced them to go on and just comply with the scheme despite the discrepancy since they are already there.”