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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider PH ready to work with Bahrain to advocate reforms in kafala system

PH ready to work with Bahrain to advocate reforms in kafala system

Published Jan 2, 2021 07:51 am

President Duterte expressed the Philippines' readiness to help the Kingdom of Bahrain advocate reforms in the "egregious" kafala or sponsorship system.

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte
(KING RODRIGUEZ/ PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO / MANILA BULLETIN)

Duterte, in his letter to His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, thanked Bahrain for upholding migrant workers’ rights. The President’s letter was handed by Presidential Assistant on Foreign Affairs Robert Borje, who was granted a 30-minute audience by the Crown Prince on Thursday.

Borje said Duterte, in particular, commended the Kingdom for its efforts to dismantle the kafala system while reiterating the President's stand that Filipinos are not slaves to anyone.

"President Duterte recognizes Bahrain’s leadership in upholding migrant workers’ rights and in reforming the sponsorship system," Borje said.

The Crown Prince and Prime Minister highlighted the importance of cooperation on human rights and migrant workers’ rights in multilateral fora in order to effectively end the kafala system and address related issues, including human trafficking.

The kafala, or sponsorship, system regulates the lives of millions of migrant laborers in the Middle East. However, exploitation, human rights abuses, racism, and gender discrimination have fueled calls for reform.

According to Borje, the Crown Prince said that Bahrain "will not abuse that trust", citing that respect for humanity and human dignity was a core Bahraini value.

The Bahraini monarch likewise added that the kingdom continues on the path of labor and migrant reforms that other nations can follow.

Meanwhile, Borje highlighted Bahrain’s role as a global leader in migrant workers’ rights. He said the country’s influence in promoting labor reform in the Middle Eastern region has transformed the lives of many Filipinos through empowerment and freedom.

He, in particular, commended Bahrain for its effective and efficient management of the COVID-19 pandemic that has seen tracing, testing, treatment, and now vaccination extended to everyone residing in the Kingdom, including the 50,000 Filipinos living and working in Bahrain regardless of their legal status.

Borje also welcomed the landmark conviction and sentencing of eight individuals in April 2020 by the Bahrain High Criminal Court for the human trafficking case filed by Filipino nationals.

He described the decision as a testament to the strong determination and partnership between Bahrain and the Philippines to the prevention, interdiction, arrest, prosecution, and conviction in order to end the trafficking of human persons.

The audience granted by the Crown Prince capped the four-day Official Visit to Manama spearheaded by Borje as President Duterte’s special envoy to the Kingdom of Bahrain.

At the end of the special mission, the Philippine delegation brought 234 Filipinos from the United Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Bahrain back to Manila on the first day of the new year.

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