The Bureau of Immigration (BI) has thwarted an attempt to traffic a woman under the guise of marriage to China, unearthing a scheme targeting Filipinas through a mail-order bride syndicate.
According to the agency’s press release on Friday, BI officers intercepted the woman at Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3 on March 15, just before she boarded a flight to Guangzhou, China, operated by China Southern Airlines.
Detailing the incident, the immigration protection and border enforcement section of BI reported, “As per marriage certificate, the wedding was solemnized by a female preacher but in a wedding picture she presented that solemnizing officer appears to be a man.”
The woman had presented a marriage certificate from a purported civil wedding in Pasig City in January, claiming she was joining her supposed spouse in China. However, disparities in her documents, such as the officiant’s gender in the wedding photo differing from the marriage certificate, raised suspicions.
Upon questioning, the victim confessed that the marriage was arranged by a recruiter who promised her half a million pesos upon arrival in China. She admitted to never having met her “husband” before his vacation to the Philippines and never engaging in a long-distance relationship with him.
Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco shed light on the prevalent exploitation, stating, “The mail-order bride scheme that victimizes Filipinas often ends up with them working as domestic helpers and being subjected to unfair labor practices by their employer-spouse.” He emphasized the harm caused by false promises of financial gain that are never fulfilled upon their arrival in foreign countries.