Kuwait must protect Pinoys; PHL needs to reduce OFW deployment
Kuwait must sign the long-delayed bilateral agreement that will ensure better protection for Filipino overseas contract workers (OCWs) and significantly reduce the "brutal" cases of abuse in the Gulf state.
But the Philippines, Blas F. Ople Policy Center President Susan Ople said Thursday on television, must also reduce the number of Filipinos deployed overseas and prepare them for high-wage work.
No signs of bilateral deal
Ople said executing a bilateral agreement is crucial as, based on data from the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), 50,000 of the 65,000 workers deployed to Kuwait in 2016 were domestic workers.
"Ngayon, they say they're willing to talk. Tingnan natin," Ople said. "What is important is we build a strong case and we also know what we want."
While Ople agrees that a total ban on deployment of new OFWs should be imposed to pressure Kuwait into signing an agreement, past actions by the Gulf state does not inspire confidence in such an action.
"In 2016, our Ambassador, Ambassador (Rene) Villa wrote to the Ministry of Interior of Kuwait to show the results of a fact-finding mission showing repeated abuses. Sinagot ba o na-acknowledge man lang yung sulat natin? Hindi," she said.
Kuwait condemned Manila's deployment ban and Duterte's consequent remarks.
The Philippines currently has bilateral agreements with Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates, among others.
Recurring problem
OWWA data shows that there were 65 reported cases of rape and 243 cases of sexual abuse in 2017, a huge leap from the 34 rape and 157 sexual abuse cases in 2014.
The existing "khafala" or sponsorship system and large fees associated with hiring domestic workers are believed to have contributed to the seeming further dehumanization of OCWs.
"Dun sa Kuwaiti recruitment agency, 'pag nakuha nila yung kasambahay natin, ang tingin nila diyan, teka, ang laki ng ginastos ko sa 'yo, ba't nagpapahinga ka?" Ople said.
"[A worker] becomes a possession. Hindi na siya person, a woman with a family, with children. Nade-dehumanize na."
OCWs are further endangered by employers who swap the prescribed contract of the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) for contracts with disadvantageous terms once they arrive in Kuwait.
In addition to physical abuse, some OCWs suffer mental health problems due to their employees exerting full control of their movements by withholding their passport, sim card, and cellphones.
"Yung mental health din at emotional health — it's not just physical abuse eh, yung fact lang na 'di mo matawagan anak mo, graduation kasi ayaw ni madam, mainit yung ulo," she said.
A Filipina maid was recently admitted to the National Mental Hospital after repatriation for the severe trauma and abuse she experienced while working abroad.
Several OFWs with mental health problems in Jeddah were also put under the care of the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA).
Protect and retrain workers
Aside from policy changes, Ople said the Philippine government must prioritize quality over quantity for the sake of OCWs and foreign service posts monitoring their welfare abroad.
"We need a paradigm shift. Let's go for quality employers no matter how long it takes to validate. No matter how stringent our screening measures would be kasi padami ng padami," Ople said.
The Philippines breached the 300,000 mark last year in deploying OCWs.
"If you keep adding to those numbers, hirap talaga yung embassy mag-monitor ng lahat. And even yung recruitment agency dito, dahil sa volume ng job orders nila, palabas lang 'yan ng palabas, hindi na rin nave-vet yung quality at yung kahandaan ng domestic worker," Ople said.
Filipino domestic workers and other low-wage laborers should also be retrained to help them find work as skilled workers in the Philippines or other countries, and in the latter, better equip them against abuse.
Ople said the Philippines can take cues from the "Domestic Worker Roadmap 2017," set into motion in 2012 to fulfill Indonesian President Joko Widodo's vision of stopping the deployment of Indonesians abroad as domestic workers.
Along with rehabilitating the image of Indonesians, the road map includes plans for improving the skills of domestic workers to help them find work as skilled workers, trained nannies, or caregivers in other countries.
It also provides for regular work hours, public holidays, and days off for Indonesians employed as domestic workers prior to 2017.
The Philippine government estimates that there are at least 250,000 legal OCWs in Kuwait, with 75 percent working as domestic workers. —LBG, GMA News
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