30-year-old cap will not address plight of OFWs
MANILA, Philippines - Three migrant advocacy groups on Wednesday were one in saying that raising the minimum age requirement for domestics won’t solve the worsening problem of exploitation being suffered by overseas Filipino workers (OFW).
The three groups — Migrante, the Initiatives for Dialogue and Empowerment Through Alternative Legal Services (IDEALS), and the Kapisan ng mga Kamag-anak ng Migranteng Manggagawang Pilipino (KAKAMMPI) — said the problem lies not with the age of OFWs but with the Arroyo administration’s neglect of migrant workers.
Labor undersecretary Rosalinda Baldoz said the Department of Foreign Affairs had asked the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration's governing board to increase the age limit for overseas household service workers from 23 to 30 due to the increasing cases of suicides and runaways.
“Kahit 30, 40, or 50 pa ‘yan hindi naman nirerespeto ang edad do’n. Ang dapat gawin ng gobyerno, asikasuhin ang support mechanisms sa receiving countries," said Migrante chairperson Concepcion Bragas-Regalado.
(Abusers and exploiters do not respect the age of OFWs even if they are 30, 40, or 50. What the government has to do is to ensure support mechanisms for OFWs in the receiving countries)
Regalado said that in Bahrain, the minimum age requirement for OFWs was raised but that did not prevent employers from abusing Filipinos.
“It doesn’t matter that they’re matured already. Sa cases nga naming may 30, 40 or nasa retirement age na pero naa-abuse pa rin. It’s time for the government to look at bilateral agreements with receiving countries. Nagde-deploy pa sila sa mga may gyera tapos nag-i-impose lang ng ban kapag may pumuna
(It doesn’t matter that they are matured already. We have cases wherein OFWs already in their 30s, 40s, or retirement age who are still being abused. It’s time for the government to look at bilateral agreements with receiving countries. The government even deploys OFWs to war-torn areas and only impose a ban if its action is already being criticized)", added Regalado.
Ultimate solution
Lawyer Bernard Gregorio of the IDEALS echoed Migrante’s position.
It’s good for the CBCP (Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines) to make efforts to protect OFWs by setting a standard age. But age doesn’t matter in migration. Mas maganda kung ang tingnan ay ang policies in deploying OFWs, (It would be better if the government reviews policies in deploying OFWs)," he said.
Gregorio was referring to a statement issued by CBCP’s Episcopal Commission on Migrants and Itinerants on Wednesday supporting the proposed re-imposition of higher age limits for OFWs.
For Gregorio, the ultimate solution is for the Arroyo administration to create decent jobs for Filipinos so they will no longer be enticed to work abroad. “The government should create jobs in the country para hindi na lumabas ng bansa ang mga tao."
For her part, Fe Nicodemus, KAKAMMPI executive director, said that changing the age of OFWs won’t change their plight. “Ganun pa rin ‘yon, third class citizen ka pa rin sa abroad, maaabuso ka pa rin (It’s still the same, you will still be a third class citizen abroad, you will still be abused)."
Institutionalization
The Arroyo administration is being criticized by several cause-oriented groups in the Philippines for allegedly institutionalizing labor migration as a solution to the economic crisis being faced by the country.
The groups claim that while Filipinos are enduring hardships and risking their lives working abroad, the Philippine government is enjoying a big chunk of the money being sent home by OFWs.
As of 2007, the stock estimate of Filipinos overseas was 8.2 million. The Philippines is the world’s number one sender of Filipino workers abroad.
The government charges a 0.15-percent documentary stamp tax for every OFW remittance transaction. Groups such as Migrante claim that for every US$1-billion remittance, the government reaps US$1.5 million or about P62 million.
Migrante also claims that banks and other private businesses rake in profits from remittances. For every US$200 remittance sent monthly, US$15 to US$22 is charged as service fee. For 10 million OFWs sending remittances, banks earn a staggering $1 billion monthly.
A recent study by the National Statistics Office showed that thousands of unskilled OFWs such as domestic helpers and construction workers were among the biggest contributors to the Philippine economy.
Money sent home last year by Filipinos working abroad was nearly one-fifth more than the official figures reported by the government, according to a study by a London-based organization.
Instead of receiving US$14.45 billion, the Philippines actually got some US$17 billion in remittances last year, the research unit of the London-based Economist Magazine said in its July 2008 report. - Kimberly Jane T. Tan, GMANews.TV
The three groups — Migrante, the Initiatives for Dialogue and Empowerment Through Alternative Legal Services (IDEALS), and the Kapisan ng mga Kamag-anak ng Migranteng Manggagawang Pilipino (KAKAMMPI) — said the problem lies not with the age of OFWs but with the Arroyo administration’s neglect of migrant workers.
Labor undersecretary Rosalinda Baldoz said the Department of Foreign Affairs had asked the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration's governing board to increase the age limit for overseas household service workers from 23 to 30 due to the increasing cases of suicides and runaways.
“Kahit 30, 40, or 50 pa ‘yan hindi naman nirerespeto ang edad do’n. Ang dapat gawin ng gobyerno, asikasuhin ang support mechanisms sa receiving countries," said Migrante chairperson Concepcion Bragas-Regalado.
(Abusers and exploiters do not respect the age of OFWs even if they are 30, 40, or 50. What the government has to do is to ensure support mechanisms for OFWs in the receiving countries)
Regalado said that in Bahrain, the minimum age requirement for OFWs was raised but that did not prevent employers from abusing Filipinos.
“It doesn’t matter that they’re matured already. Sa cases nga naming may 30, 40 or nasa retirement age na pero naa-abuse pa rin. It’s time for the government to look at bilateral agreements with receiving countries. Nagde-deploy pa sila sa mga may gyera tapos nag-i-impose lang ng ban kapag may pumuna
(It doesn’t matter that they are matured already. We have cases wherein OFWs already in their 30s, 40s, or retirement age who are still being abused. It’s time for the government to look at bilateral agreements with receiving countries. The government even deploys OFWs to war-torn areas and only impose a ban if its action is already being criticized)", added Regalado.
Ultimate solution
Lawyer Bernard Gregorio of the IDEALS echoed Migrante’s position.
It’s good for the CBCP (Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines) to make efforts to protect OFWs by setting a standard age. But age doesn’t matter in migration. Mas maganda kung ang tingnan ay ang policies in deploying OFWs, (It would be better if the government reviews policies in deploying OFWs)," he said.
Gregorio was referring to a statement issued by CBCP’s Episcopal Commission on Migrants and Itinerants on Wednesday supporting the proposed re-imposition of higher age limits for OFWs.
For Gregorio, the ultimate solution is for the Arroyo administration to create decent jobs for Filipinos so they will no longer be enticed to work abroad. “The government should create jobs in the country para hindi na lumabas ng bansa ang mga tao."
For her part, Fe Nicodemus, KAKAMMPI executive director, said that changing the age of OFWs won’t change their plight. “Ganun pa rin ‘yon, third class citizen ka pa rin sa abroad, maaabuso ka pa rin (It’s still the same, you will still be a third class citizen abroad, you will still be abused)."
Institutionalization
The Arroyo administration is being criticized by several cause-oriented groups in the Philippines for allegedly institutionalizing labor migration as a solution to the economic crisis being faced by the country.
The groups claim that while Filipinos are enduring hardships and risking their lives working abroad, the Philippine government is enjoying a big chunk of the money being sent home by OFWs.
As of 2007, the stock estimate of Filipinos overseas was 8.2 million. The Philippines is the world’s number one sender of Filipino workers abroad.
The government charges a 0.15-percent documentary stamp tax for every OFW remittance transaction. Groups such as Migrante claim that for every US$1-billion remittance, the government reaps US$1.5 million or about P62 million.
Migrante also claims that banks and other private businesses rake in profits from remittances. For every US$200 remittance sent monthly, US$15 to US$22 is charged as service fee. For 10 million OFWs sending remittances, banks earn a staggering $1 billion monthly.
A recent study by the National Statistics Office showed that thousands of unskilled OFWs such as domestic helpers and construction workers were among the biggest contributors to the Philippine economy.
Money sent home last year by Filipinos working abroad was nearly one-fifth more than the official figures reported by the government, according to a study by a London-based organization.
Instead of receiving US$14.45 billion, the Philippines actually got some US$17 billion in remittances last year, the research unit of the London-based Economist Magazine said in its July 2008 report. - Kimberly Jane T. Tan, GMANews.TV
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