Arroyo: Going abroad should be a career option, not a must
by CARMELA FONBUENA, abs-cbnNEWS.com/Newsbreak
Even as President Arroyo said that the Philippines “stands ready to champion the cause of migrant workers,” she told world leaders participating in a global migration forum in Manila that she “longs for the day when going abroad for a job is a career option, not the only choice, for a Filipino worker.”
“That is why we remain so stubbornly focused on the economy. We need to create and spread the wealth and keep the people working here at home,” she told participants at the 2nd Global Forum on Migration and Development on Wednesday.
The forum was also attended by United Nations secretary general Ban Ki-Moon.
President Arroyo said the government is trying to attract more investments that will make available high-income jobs like business process outsourcing (BPO). She said the BPO sector alone provided around 400,000 jobs since she assumed the presidency in 2001.
President Arroyo said her administration has created almost seven million jobs or an average of one million jobs for every year of her administration.
“By continuing down this path, we hope to increasingly be keeping our best and brightestest here in the Philippines, closer to friends and families, helping to build our communities and providing the next generation of leadership,” she said.
RP a Model in Protecting Migrants?
President Arroyo also said that the Philippines is a model for other countries in terms of protecting migrant workers.
“We have established what is considered one of the best-regulated expatriate worker programs in the world. On the basis of their contributions and of the nation’s humanitarian responsibilities to its people wherever they are, our government works doubly hard to strengthen migrant workers’ protection—protection from the depredations of domestic recruiters as well as of overseas employers, agents and officials, and protection from physical harm.
“Our comprehensive and multi-dimensional 'life-cycle' strategy covers all facets of the overseas employment process, from pre-departure orientation to post-return reintegration and retraining. The effectiveness of this approach in terms of protecting workers has been repeatedly acknowledged by international bodies,” she said.
The Philippines was chosen as the venue for the global forum because of its rich experience in migration. According to government statistics, there are around eight million Filipino migrants that can be found in various countries worldwide.
Seeking Host Countries’ Cooperation
President Arroyo also called for the cooperation among origin and host countries, acknowledging that the efforts by the Philippine government are not enough to protect the Filipino migrant workers, especially at a time when there is a global financial crisis,
She urged countries to ratify the convention that protects migrant workers. “We urge all countries, which have not yet done so, to ratify the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families,” she said.
“The global financial crisis currently taking place challenges us again to gather our forces, within government and in partnership with other countries, to better protect our people abroad against financial and economic shocks, and the side effects of such shocks—exploitation, abuse, and other forms of ill treatment.
“The full protection and empowerment of migrants is a task that goes far beyond what individual countries of origin can do on their own,” she said.
“All eyes may be glued on the stock market, but we must never lose sight of the often unseen impact of the global credit crunch on the long-term needs of the poor, including the migrant poor,” she said.
“Whether there’s a financial crisis or not, instead of viewing migrants as depersonalized movable components of globalization, or worse, as inconvenient necessities, we must embrace them a human beings who contribute to our essential well-being in this age of vast movement and change. We must prepare them for and make them full partners in our world of developmental, demographic and democratic transformation,” the President said.
“Our Global Forum [on Migration and Development] offers us a community space to explore those challenges together and to find the best policies, the best practices to meet the challenges of migration in mutually beneficial ways,” she said.
Even as President Arroyo said that the Philippines “stands ready to champion the cause of migrant workers,” she told world leaders participating in a global migration forum in Manila that she “longs for the day when going abroad for a job is a career option, not the only choice, for a Filipino worker.”
“That is why we remain so stubbornly focused on the economy. We need to create and spread the wealth and keep the people working here at home,” she told participants at the 2nd Global Forum on Migration and Development on Wednesday.
The forum was also attended by United Nations secretary general Ban Ki-Moon.
President Arroyo said the government is trying to attract more investments that will make available high-income jobs like business process outsourcing (BPO). She said the BPO sector alone provided around 400,000 jobs since she assumed the presidency in 2001.
President Arroyo said her administration has created almost seven million jobs or an average of one million jobs for every year of her administration.
“By continuing down this path, we hope to increasingly be keeping our best and brightestest here in the Philippines, closer to friends and families, helping to build our communities and providing the next generation of leadership,” she said.
RP a Model in Protecting Migrants?
President Arroyo also said that the Philippines is a model for other countries in terms of protecting migrant workers.
“We have established what is considered one of the best-regulated expatriate worker programs in the world. On the basis of their contributions and of the nation’s humanitarian responsibilities to its people wherever they are, our government works doubly hard to strengthen migrant workers’ protection—protection from the depredations of domestic recruiters as well as of overseas employers, agents and officials, and protection from physical harm.
“Our comprehensive and multi-dimensional 'life-cycle' strategy covers all facets of the overseas employment process, from pre-departure orientation to post-return reintegration and retraining. The effectiveness of this approach in terms of protecting workers has been repeatedly acknowledged by international bodies,” she said.
The Philippines was chosen as the venue for the global forum because of its rich experience in migration. According to government statistics, there are around eight million Filipino migrants that can be found in various countries worldwide.
Seeking Host Countries’ Cooperation
President Arroyo also called for the cooperation among origin and host countries, acknowledging that the efforts by the Philippine government are not enough to protect the Filipino migrant workers, especially at a time when there is a global financial crisis,
She urged countries to ratify the convention that protects migrant workers. “We urge all countries, which have not yet done so, to ratify the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families,” she said.
“The global financial crisis currently taking place challenges us again to gather our forces, within government and in partnership with other countries, to better protect our people abroad against financial and economic shocks, and the side effects of such shocks—exploitation, abuse, and other forms of ill treatment.
“The full protection and empowerment of migrants is a task that goes far beyond what individual countries of origin can do on their own,” she said.
“All eyes may be glued on the stock market, but we must never lose sight of the often unseen impact of the global credit crunch on the long-term needs of the poor, including the migrant poor,” she said.
“Whether there’s a financial crisis or not, instead of viewing migrants as depersonalized movable components of globalization, or worse, as inconvenient necessities, we must embrace them a human beings who contribute to our essential well-being in this age of vast movement and change. We must prepare them for and make them full partners in our world of developmental, demographic and democratic transformation,” the President said.
“Our Global Forum [on Migration and Development] offers us a community space to explore those challenges together and to find the best policies, the best practices to meet the challenges of migration in mutually beneficial ways,” she said.
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