Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. on Sunday thanked those who advocated for the abolition of the ‘kafala’ system in Saudi Arabia which will take effect beginning today, March 14, 2021.
(PCOO / FILE PHOTO)
“Thank you unreservedly to those who fought the kafala system tirelessly for decades. From the start you did not take the once official response: abuse is an inviolable custom,” Locsin said in a tweet.
Kafala is a system that binds a migrant worker to only one employer and has been repeatedly criticized by human rights groups as a form of indentured servitude.
Locsin agreed with the observation of Overseas Workers Welfare Administration chief Hans Leo Cacdac who said that the abolition of kafala was a “hard-fought battle” that did not happen overnight.
“I complained about it and was told we should not disturb national customs but live with it-which is easy because we’re diplomats, we don’t work there, we just hang out in the Middle East. F___ that. Next, blood money You are among the few who fought for it. I bow to you,” the foreign affairs chief told Cacdad in a separate tweet.
Over the weekend, Migrante International called the Saudi decision to remove the kafala as a “historic action” which would now allow foreign workers, including thousands of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), to secure exit and entry visa, receive the last passport exit stamp and be employed in another job sans the approval of a Saudi national sponsor.
It was in November last year when the Saudi government announced the abolishment of Kafala stringent labor contracting system, including the kafala.
The Saudi move earned praises from various international organizations and rights advocates, specifically the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in the Philippines, calling it a “game-changer”.
“This is a game-changer in terms of worker protection. Kafala has been used to abuse too many OFWs (overseas Filipino workers), IOM Philippines Chief of Mission Kristin Dadey said in a tweet.
It was earlier reported that another salient point of the new Saudi policy is the removal of the employers’ authority to file cases against the “runaways,” or those workers who stop showing up to their jobs that effectively rendered them fugitives.
Meanwhile, labor-contracting consultant Emmanuel Geslani joined other advocacy groups in hailing the Saudi government's decision to liberate Filipino workers from the ‘slavery-like system.