Three Filipinas were returned to their homeland after being trafficked to Malaysia through illegal sea routes and forced to work in bars as guest relations officers, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) reported. Women aged between 30 to 32 years arrived at the Port of Zamboanga on April 5 aboard the MV Antonia from Sandakan, Sabah. According to preliminary data, they were brought online and promised legal work by officials in Malaysia with a monthly salary of 40,000 to 60,000 Philippine pesos.
Two of the women left the country in November 2024 through a so-called illegal migration corridor or 'backdoor,' bypassing border control, traveling from Palawan to Malaysia on small boats. They ended up working in a bar-restaurant in Sabah without necessary documents, and later were arrested by Malaysian authorities, where they spent five months in detention before deportation. One of the victims narrated that she had been exploited since 2021 and was constantly subjected to abuse abroad.
Immigration Commissioner Joel Antoin Viado warned about the dangers of illegal migration and the abusive recruitment of personnel, noting: "These young women fell for false promises of jobs, having been illegally transported out of the country via non-registered routes and were forced to endure degrading conditions abroad." The BI urged the public to remain vigilant and report any suspicious cases of trafficking humans or illegal recruitment, reaching out to the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT) through the hotline 1343, which operates around the clock.