Remarks of Ambassador Kristie A. Kenney

at the Capsule Laying Ceremony of the Visayan Forum Foundation’s

Halfway House for Victims of Trafficking in Persons

Ninoy Aquino International Airport, Manila

May 7, 2007

 

 

Magandang hapon sa inyong lahat.  Thank you for being here today.  I was thinking as we heard the chorale sing earlier that we are a little bit like a chorus singing together to represent the voices of people who cannot sing.  To free our citizens – the vulnerable members of our society who have been sold into slavery and who have been trafficked and exploited – is not something that one voice alone can fix.  

 

And for that very reason we have here today people from all walks and segments of our society.  No less than the airport general manager and the head of the Visayan Forum Foundation are here.  We also have officials from customs, officials from immigration, officials and members of NGOs, and officials from the Philippine National Police.  And we have our very important friends from the media, because the first thing we have to do is prevent this crime.  We need to let people who would be trafficked – women, children, and other vulnerable people – know that this is a crime and that they must say no; they must resist. And we must protect those who have been victims.

 

Today we join forces to take another step forward in that protection by offering victims a safe place and a sanctuary – somewhere they can get their voice back and again be able to sing as members of society.  And we have to help them come forward with their story so that we can prosecute the criminals who are responsible.

 

It is a tremendous responsibility we all bear.  But society depends on us because these are not people who can fight for themselves.  The people who perpetrate this crime are of every nationality and from every country.  But we do know something – they use gateways, airports, and ports to traffic their victims.  So right here we are beginning our work.

 

A few months back we launched an important task force at this airport to try to catch the perpetrators, prevent the crime, and protect victims.  Today we are taking it a step further, launching a wonderful new facility where the victims can recover.  We join society in hopefully helping put the perpetrators behind bars.  This is a real example of a partnership that you don’t see in many places in the world, and I think it is because we all care – we are compassionate people who do not want others to suffer from this crime.

 

I think we should be proud of what we are doing today, but we cannot be complacent because one person who suffers is one too many.  This is a crime that cannot go on, and as we heard just a few minutes ago it has become a multi-million dollar crime.  People make a lot of money from abusing the innocent.

 

I thank all of you for your caring and your commitment.  I thank those of you who tell your stories so people know what to prevent.  I thank those of you who work to protect victims, and I thank those of you who prosecute so we can bring to justice those who engage in this crime.

 

Thank you for singing to provide voice and hope to those who right now cannot sing. Thank you very much.  Maraming salamat; it is an honor to be here with you today.

 

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