Church group welcomes end of ‘kafala’ system

Published May 5, 2021 6:37pm The Churches Witnessing With Migrants — Philippines (CWMM-PH) on Wednesday welcomed Saudi Arabia’s abolition of the “kafala” sponsorship system for foreign workers, saying it would further protect overseas Filipino workers. advertisement “For us who have long been advocating for the rights and welfare of migrants, this is a positive step for the protection of our Filipino migrant workers, and other migrant workers as well,” Rev. Marie Sol Villalon, CWWM-PH spokesperson, said in a statement. “We hope that this will set precedent to other countries in the Gulf region who have implemented the same,” she added. Under the “kafala” sponsorship system, Arab nationals and companies in Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, and Lebanon are permitted to employ overseas workers instead of recruitment agencies. The system has been branded by critics as a modern form of slavery that binds workers to their Saudi employers. The abolition of the sponsorship system took effect on March 14, 2021. Meanwhile, the CWWM-PH urged Saudia Arabia to extend the abolition to cover household workers, saying they “bear the brunt of the kafala system.” According to Villalon, the “kafala” system has brought the discrimination of domestic workers to “a more horrific and grim state.” “In essence, this system has defined the relationship of domestic workers with their employer,” she said. “They were practically under their employer’s monitoring, supervision, and mercy, subjecting them to further exploitation and slave-like working conditions,” she added.—Joahna Lei Casilao/LDF, GMA News

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