During his third State of the Nation Address (SONA) at the Batasang Pambansa Complex in Quezon City, on Monday, July 23, President Rodrigo Duterte directly addressed overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and vowed to protect their welfare.
The president extended his gratitude towards OFWs for their “selflessness and courage” in toiling hard in unknown lands “day in and day out”, he said.
“We admire our Filipino migrant workers for their selflessness and courage in enduring the hardships of living away from home to provide for their families,” Duterte said.
The president said that OFWs have significant contribution to the national economy through their remittances. He said: “OFWs contributed to the national economy in small and big ways.”
Latest report released by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed that OFW remittances continue to grow as of May 2018. In May, remittances from OFWs reached $2.7 billion, 6.1 percent higher compared to remittances from the same month last year. The figure was also higher than the $2.6 billion recorded remittances in April 2018.
BSP also noted that UAE and Saudi Arabia are among the top sources of cash remittances to the Philippines, alongside the United States, Japan, Singapore, United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, and Kuwait.
Remittances from the above mentioned countries make up 80 per cent of the total cash remittances to the country for the said month.
Cases of abuse towards OFWs
During his speech, Duterte also condemned the cases of abuse and death of OFWs overseas from the hands of their foreign employers.
He added that their protection is the priority in drafting bilateral policies and deals with other countries. “I am a worker of government. And it is my vow to make sure that your (OFWs) well being remains our foremost foreign policy concern,” Duterte said.
One of the most controversial case of OFW abuse during Duterte’s term is the murder of Joanna Demafelis whose body was found stuffed inside a freezer in an abandoned apartment in Kuwait.
Following the discovery of Demafelis’ body in February this year, Duterte issued a deployment ban to Kuwait until a labor deal was signed three months after.
Under the deal, OFWs will be allowed to keep their cellphones so they could call for help in cases of emergency. They will also be allowed to have a minimum of 8 hours of sleep and ample food.
Aside from these, OFWs will likewise be asked to have their passports deposited at the Philippine Embassy.
The Kuwaiti government has agreed to create a special unit within their police force which the Embassy can coordinate with in times of emergency calls from OFWs.
Moreover, another labor deal was also signed between the Philippine and UAE government to protect OFWs, particularly household service workers, in the Gulf state.
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