Campaign on Preventing Trafficking of Women and Girls I. Background The Commission on Human Rights, as Gender and Development Ombud under the Magna Carta of Women undertakes regular monitoring of women’s human rights, especially women in the marginalized sectors. Since the establishment of its Center for Gender Equality and Women’s Human Rights Center, sectoral monitoring of women, girls, and LGBTQI human rights have been undertaken. Initial situationers were released on indigenous and rural women, women with disability, LGBTQI, girlchildren, women in detention, urban poor women, and older women. From these sectoral monitoring, policy recommendations are forwarded to key government agencies. Reports drawn from women’s insights and identified issues also inform submissions to human rights treaty bodies and inputs to reports of human rights mandate holders. As Gender Ombud, the Commission is also mandated to advocate for the promotion and protection of women’s and girls human rights in accordance with the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Agaisnt Women (CEDAW) and the Magna Carta of Women (RA 9710). One of the key provisions of the CEDAW directs the State to address the issue of trafficking and exploitation of prostitution as forms of violence against women and girls. Under Article 6 of CEDAW, States are specifically mandated to ‘take all appropriate measures, including legislation, to suppress all forms of traffic in women and exploitation of prostitution of women.’ As observed, however, by the General Recommendation 38 of CEDAW on trafficking - despite the ‘plethora of existing anti-trafficking legal and policy frameworks at the national, regional, and international levels, females continue to comprise the majority of detected victims, and perpetrators enjoy widespread impunity. In the Philippines, our amended Anti-Trafficking law (RA10364) adopted in 2012 strengthened the country’s anti-trafficking laws through higher penalties and further strengthening of the Inter-agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT). This notwithstanding, global and domestic trafficking data highlight the magnitude of the problem. The 2018 UN Office of Drugs and Crime report states that women and girls account for 72% trafficking victims detected globally. Most women and girls are trafficked for the purpose of sexual exploitation.1 Guidance from CEDAW General Recommendation 38 and 2016 Concluding Observations The most recent guidance from the CEDAW Committee on Trafficking can be found in General Recommendation 38, released in 2020. The GR expounds on the State’s obligation under Article 6 of CEDAW, and further detailing actions that the State can undertake in addressing trafficking of women and girls. At the onset, GR 38 stresses the importance of a gendered analysis of the crime of trafficking. It reiterates that continuing gaps ‘persist’ due to the lack of appreciation of trafficking’s gendered dimension, as seen particularly in cases of trafficking of women and girls who are exposed to different types of exploitation, including sexual exploitation. The GR links the persistence of the trafficking to prevailing economic and patriarchal structures, adverse impact of gender-differentiated labor, 1 UN Women. Facts and Figures Ending Violence Against Women. https://www.unwomen.org/en/what-wedo/ending-violence-against-women/facts-and-figures. Accessed 18 May 2021 3