By Yoon Won-sup
Staff Reporter

The Philippine Embassy in Seoul on Monday submitted a petition to South Korean Foreign Affairs and Trade Ministry, urging the South Korean Embassy in Manila to stop issuing entertainment visas or E-6 visas to unqualified applicants, which allegedly help the illegal trafficking of Filipino women into Korea.

``Our embassy has received information that Filipino entertainers were able to obtain visas from the South Korean Embassy in Manila or in other countries with forged documents through bribery,’’ Philippine Ambassador to Seoul Aladin Villacorte told The Korea Times.

The envoy added, ``Though the South Korean government agreed last year to limit the issuance of E-6 visas to only musicians and singers who will be performing at reputable establishments including five-star hotels, it has not been properly implemented.’’

The E-6 visas are issued by Korean Embassies overseas to local people who will come to work as entertainers in South Korea. However, they were reportedly misused as a tool for Korean recruiters to pursue an illegal human trade.

Villacorte stressed that many Filipino women, who have come here with illegal visas, suffer physical abuse and other inhumane treatment. In particular, his concerns are focused on women forced to work as prostitutes.

``We have piled up documents of abuse cases involving Filipino entertainers employed to clubs and bars around the United States military bases here,’’ the ambassador continued. ``Such events keep happening, one after another.’’

The ambassador said that the South Korean Embassy in Manila keeps issuing E-6 visas without much consideration of applicants’ identification, which aggravated the situation.

Meanwhile, the top Philippine envoy pledged to solve the trafficking of women and related concerns by appealing to South Korean authorities, including the Foreign Affairs-Trade Ministry, the Justice Ministry, the police and prosecution.

``I’ll stop by the Foreign Affairs-Trade Ministry soon to make sure the issue is not shelved by its officials,’’ he said. ``The issue is my greatest concern now.’’

In the petition, the Philippine Embassy also conveyed the exasperated sentiment of the Filipino communities here by the inability of a number of club owners and promoters to live up to their repeated promises of protecting human rights.

The Philippine government, for a start, has decided to completely stop the processing of documents involving women entertainers to South Korea, except those contracted by major hotels and with duly authenticated contracts.

yoonwonsup@koreatimes.co.kr