69 ALIEN SEX OFFENDERS BARRED FROM ENTERING PH

THE Bureau of Immigration (BI) said its officers at the airports barred from entering the country a total of 69 foreigners for being sex offenders from January to June this year.

In a statement, Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco said the number of foreign sex offenders denied entry during the first semester is lower compared to the 84 alien sex predators who were excluded in the same period last year.

Tansingco added that 58 of the excluded passengers are registered sex offenders (RSOs) or persons with record of convictions for sex crimes in their respective countries.

The rest are either subjects of pending complaints or are under investigation or prosecution for various sex offenses.

According to the BI chief, the Philippine immigration act provides for the outright exclusion of foreigners who have been convicted of crimes involving moral turpitude.

Statistics showed that 48 Americans topped the list of the excluded sex offenders, followed by four Britons and two Australians.

Also in the list is a German national, an Indonesian, an overseas British national, and one from Papua New Guinea.

All of them were placed in the immigration blacklist and banned from reentering the country for being undesirable aliens.

It will be recalled that last year the BI launched a program called Project #Shieldkids which aims to conduct an intensified drive against foreign sexual predators attempting to stay or enter the country.

The program aims to harmonize government efforts against foreign sex offenders in the country by institutionalizing a network of communication amongst government agencies involved in investigating and arresting pedophiles and traffickers.

It also solidifies the BI’s drive against sexual predators by prioritizing cases against foreign nationals that might be involved in sex trafficking of children.

As part of the campaign, the BI has opened up the Commissioner’s helpline via Facebook.com/immigration.helpline.ph, encouraging concerned citizens to report potential cases of child exploitation and abuse involving foreign nationals.