PerryScope
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Perry Diaz
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Maid To Order
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In 2005, Human Rights Watch published a critical report on the abuses
suffered by women domestic workers. The report, "Maid to Order: Ending
Abuses Against Migrant Domestic Workers in Singapore," outlined the research
made on the "abusive conditions facing many domestic workers in Singapore."
Although the report was limited to the study of abuses in Singapore, human
trafficking is as widespread as the common cold; that is, no country is
immune to this abhorrent "disease." There are approximately two million
people -- mostly women and girls -- who are trafficked into slavery every
year.
The United States has its share -- or more than its share -- due to the fact
that lots of people around the world dream of going to America where the
streets are paved with gold. People from third world countries are brought
to the U.S. in various -- mostly illegal -- ways. According to the U.S.
Department of Justice about 15,000 women and girls are trafficked into the
U.S. every year.
The United States -- the "land of the free" -- is not as free as one would
think it is. Yes, slavery is still being practiced in America today but in
more subtle ways. The slave masters could be some of the most successful and
respectable model citizens.
One of the celebrated cases of human trafficking involved James J. Jackson,
vice president of legal affairs at Sony Pictures Entertainment, and his
Filipina wife, Elizabeth Nicolas Tagle Jackson. Their victim, Nena Ruiz, a
former Philippine teacher, filed a lawsuit in 2003 against the couple for
"involuntary servitude, false imprisonment, invasion of privacy, negligence,
fraud, assault and battery, and violation of labor laws." Ruiz claimed that
she was only paid $300 for one year's work. She also claimed that she worked
seven days a week from 5:30 AM to 10:00 PM, slept in a sleeping bag in the
living room, and ate days-old food while she prepared fresh food for the
Jacksons' two dogs.
Ruiz was recruited by her cousin-in-law, who worked for Mrs. Jackson in the
Philippines, to become the traveling companion and caretaker of Mrs.
Jackson's mother in Sacramento, California. However, shortly after her
arrival in the U.S., the Jacksons took her to their home in Culver City in
Southern California. After a year of enslavement, Ruiz ran away and sought
the help of the Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking. She filed a
lawsuit against the Jacksons and a jury awarded her $825,000. In addition,
she was awarded another $825,000 for compensatory and punitive damages.
However, she was unable to collect because the Jacksons filed for bankruptcy
protection before the trial began.
Another celebrated case of human trafficking involved a rich
Filipino-American couple, Dr. Jefferson Calimlim, Sr. and his wife Dr.
Elnora Calimlim of Brookfield, Wisconsin. In March of 2006, the Calimlim
couple were convicted in a Federal court for using "threats of serious harm
and physical restraint" to coerce a Filipina -- Irma Martinez -- to serve as
their domestic servant for 19 years. Each of them was sentenced to four
years in prison.
Martinez testified that the Calimlims paid her $1,200 a year for the first
10 years and $4,800 a year for the last nine years, way below the minimum
wage rates. The judge ruled that Martinez was entitled to restitution of
more than $900,000 and the Calimlims were ordered to pay $1.25 million in
fines.
Recently, another case of human trafficking made it to the front page of
Filipino-American newspapers. In a press release issued by the New Jersey
Attorney General, a Filipina named Angelita Reyes of West Windsor, New
Jersey, pleaded guilty to a charge of third-degree criminal restraint. Under
the plea agreement, Reyes will get a sentence of probation and pay $78,000
in back wages to the victim, Arlene Gado, a 23 year-old Filipina.
A report published by the Attorney General stated, "In 2005, Gado signed an
employment contract in the Philippines, witnessed by her parents, that
provided that she would travel to the U.S. to work in the home of Anthony
Mandap, a vice consul in the Consulate General of the Philippines in San
Francisco. The contract provided that her duties would focus on the care of
Mandap's three children and she would receive $8 per hour for a 40-hour work
week, with overtime paid at a rate of time-and-a-half."
Shortly after Gado arrived in California, she was transferred to the home of
Mandap's in-laws, Angelita and Norberto Reyes, in New Jersey." For two
years, she worked for the Reyeses and provided care to Norberto who was
incapacitated and needed assistance in feeding and bathing.
Gado contacted a cousin in Michigan and told her of her problems. Her cousin
then contacted the New Jersey Department of Labor and reported Gado's low
wages. On May 2, 2007, Criminal Justice agents rescued Gado and placed her
in a shelter. Reyes is scheduled for sentencing on October 12, 2007.
What is really disturbing is that these three cases of human trafficking
involved Filipinos -- the victims as well as the traffickers. Are we looking
at the tip of an iceberg here? It is estimated that there are about 500,000
Filipino undocumented immigrants in the U.S. today. Since most of them are
employed clandestinely, they're vulnerable to abuses and exploitation.
Assuming that only 10% are victims of human trafficking, there may be as
many as 50,000 Nena Ruizes, Irma Martinezes, and Arlene Gados working as
virtual slaves in the U.S.
What is deplorable as the human traffickers themselves are their recruiters
-- or accomplices -- in the Philippines, some of whom are related to the
victims or traffickers. Indeed, without the assistance of these recruiters,
the "maid to order" business would not be as rampant -- and lucrative -- as
it is today.
In 2000, the U.S. Congress passed the Trafficking Victims Protection Act
(TVPA). The goals of TVPA are: 1) Prevent human trafficking overseas; 2)
Protect its victims and help them rebuild their lives in the U.S. with
Federal and state support; and 3) Prosecute traffickers of persons under
stiff Federal penalties. In addition, they may be granted temporary
residency (T-visas). An Information and Referral Hotline has been
established for anyone who have come in contact with a victim of human
trafficking. The number is 1-888-3737-888.
(PerryDiaz@gmail.com)
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ofw-connect/pending?view=1&msg=4758
