Is Taipei turning hostile to OFWs?

By Ma. Fe Nicodemus/Kakammpi

If the Philippines wouldn't give in to Taiwan’s demands, Taipei might turn hostile to Filipinos planning to work in this neighboring territory. At midnight Tuesday or when the first minute of Wednesday –May 15 –strikes, without an “appropriate” response from Manila, this host country will suspend applications of would-be OFWs.

Taiwanese Foreign Minister David Lin last Monday said: if Manila won’t issue an "appropriate response" by midnight Tuesday, Taipei will "immediately" suspend the processing of applications by Filipino workers seeking employment in Taiwan.

The killing of a Taiwanese fisherman, who supposedly strayed within our territorial waters, by Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) personnel had incensed Taipei to bark the following orders:

- Issue of a formal apology;

- Pay for the losses;

- Punish the killers, and

- Initiate open fishery talks between the Philippines and Taiwan soonest

As of early Tuesday morning, Manila was still silent. Despite Malacañang’s "expression of heartfelt sorrow at the unfortunate incident" and an assurance that the case has been investigated, Taiwan did not budge at bit.

Of course, Malacañang’s or the Department of Foreign Affairs’ silence so far shouldn't be misinterpreted as irresponsible apathy.

The incident should be investigated thoroughly as it happened in disputed waters and in that part of the sea where the PCG was so convinced was part of the Philippines.

But the problem is, Taiwan has a handle against the Philippines – the overseas Filipino workers, and sadly, Manila has none of this sort against Taipei and other countries hosting OFWs.   

There almost 100,000 Filipinos in Taiwan, a place that for the longest time has become a home to OFWs. Would it still be the same after the shooting of a Taiwanese “intruder?”

We still remember how Hong Kong treated the Philippines after the bloody hostage-taking of HK tourists in Manila on August 23, 2010 by a disgruntled cop. Until now, HK has not stricken the Philippines off of its black list. In some instances, Filipino domestic helpers there were looked down on as criminals.

Other countries hosting OFWs are likely to use our workers as a handle against us every time Manila runs in conflict with them.

But don’t get me wrong. I deeply recognize, too, the fact that other countries have been treating OFWs as if they were their own.  To our workers who have found a homeland in a foreign land, my deepest joy for your better luck goes out to you.

However, the Philippine government must begin to think seriously about this fact: Over 10 million Filipinos are scattered in over 200 countries in search of a “homeland” because their own country is “hostile” –here, there is so much poverty and no equal economic and social opportunities. There is injustice.

It has remained a harsh place that spells untimely death to many children whose parents would likely give away their last breath in dishonor because of poverty.

In the Bible, a foreign land is a hostile land. In this sense, even the Philippines is a foreign land to Filipinos.

In his book “We Drink from our Own Wells” liberation theologian Gustavo Gutierrez said: Land is one object of the promise of life. The children of God are promised a land of their own in which they will lie as the proper inhabitants and not as outsiders or strangers.

A foreign land…  is a place of injustice and death (for the Jewish people the prototypes of such a land were, first, Egypt and, later on, Babylon, as in Psalm 137.

A foreign land is one that is hostile and has therefore lost its meaning as a gift from God.