http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-34671118

Simple formula:
* Security plants bullets into unsuspecting passenger's bag
* Passenger's bag is flagged for physical search
* Passenger is given the option to pay up or face arrest.

The behavior of security staff makes TSA look like angels! Please be careful if you're traveling in the Philippines. The Filipino communities all over the world are aware of this problem.

Other than not going there how do you defend yourself?

People should probably just avoid going there. Just gets worse if you don't pay and make an incident. It's your word against theirs.

Not surprising to me. Extortions like this have been going on as long as I can remember, with the 'bullet scam", also known as “laglag bala” or “tanim bala" being the latest vehicle du jour.

http://globalnation.inquirer.net/130...#ixzz3pvRjessR

Is there a defense? Not really, other than to shine light on the situation. But that only works if you've got nothing to lose.

Every time I tell them I am traveling, my elderly family members start talking about the days when they had to put some cash in their passport in order to get past immigration in various Asian countries, and how they would laugh at the newbies who were being held up for hours

Do you have the right to film the security process in MNL?

Glad we don't get that from TSA, as annoying as they are.
I notice in America the corruption is "under the letter of the law,"
such as cops fining someone for having a crooked tag or tinted
windows (or some such BS) in San Diego, whereas 15 miles south in Tijuana it would be cops taking open bribes; no courtroom, no judge, etc. Two different styles of corruption, not sure which I find more awful.

Keep your stuff in sight at all times. Seal your bags with plastic and/or lock all zippers before dropping your bag off into the x-ray machine. The politicians are getting involved and investigating.

I'll be headed there in December and will be very vigilant.

The Filipino OFWs and balikbayans (ex-pats) are very strong and can put enough pressure inside the Philippines to enact change.

Growing up in the 80s, I remember my mother and godmother putting USD10 bills into their passports before giving it to customs. Customs would then do a quick, pretend inspection. Customs have gotten better since the 1990s.

The USA system sucks but with typical American pride, it sucks less than in other countries.

The first time I landed in Manila was 1976, traveling with most of my family to attend a wedding there. One of my brothers, who is an MD, had refused to get a smallpox vaccination, which was required at that time. Immigration threatened to quarantine and/or deport my brother. Fortunately we were met by one of the staff of the father of the bride, who "somehow" managed to get through the various layers of security and immigration to join us in the holding area. He asked my Dad for $100 in small bills, and then took the immigration supervisor aside for a few minutes. Then suddenly the supervisor decided that since my brother did not have a fever or signs of active smallpox, he would be allowed to enter the country.

The rest of our Asian trip went smoothly, as long as we kept a supply of $1's, $5's and $10's handy for bribes.

Yeah. Traveling in Africa the group leader knew to give us faked smallpox stamps (he had a rubber stamp made up for the purpose) in our health cards to avoid such shakedowns. Their laws still required smallpox shots even though this was long enough after smallpox was wiped out that even those of us who were vaccinated no longer had current shots.