Filipinos 'willing victims' of scam hubs - DMW

Filipinos continue to become willing victims of scam hubs across Southeast Asia even as the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) insists on employing "non-punishment principles".

- By JOSEPH PEDRAJAS

During a House Committee on Appropriations budget hearing on Friday, Sep. 12, DMW reported that at least 1,434 Filipinos were recruited to work as scammers in three Southeast Asian countries.

DMW said it already rescued and repatriated 332 Filpinos from Cambodia, 387 from Laos, and 715 from Myanmar.

Myanmar recorded the highest number of Filipinos who were illegally recruited. This happened despite the Philippines' imposition of Alert Level 4, which prohibited the deployment of Filipino workers there.

"Marami po sa kanila, mga (Many of them are) willing victims, in spite of the aggressive campaigns against the deployment of workers to these places," DMW Undersecretary Bernard Olalia said during the hearing.