Saudi Arabia Crown Prince and Deputy Prime Minister Mohammed Bin Salman Al Saud assured President Duterte that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) is committed to protecting and upholding the rights of Filipino workers in the Kingdom.
The Office of the President (OP) made the statement after the two leaders had a phone conversation Wednesday evening.
In a statement, the OP said that Bin Salman, colloquially known as MBS, called President Duterte. During their phone conversation, they noted the warm and friendly ties between the Philippines and Saudi Arabia and reaffirmed their commitment to further strengthen cooperation between the two countries.
The Crown Prince told President Duterte that the Saudi government is committed to promoting the welfare of Filipino workers in the Kingdom.
"Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman assured President Duterte that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is fully resolved to do its part in protecting and upholding the rights of Filipino workers in the Kingdom," the OP's statement read.
For his part, President Duterte recognized Saudi Arabia’s efforts to ensure that the rights, welfare, and well-being of Filipinos in the Kingdom are protected and upheld, including recent efforts aimed at labor reform.
Government partnerships for labor and migration reforms have been a key strategy in the President’s foreign policy pillar on emphasizing the protection of Filipinos overseas.
Economic partnership
Meanwhile, Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman emphasized the importance of strengthening bilateral economic partnership, stating that efforts will continue to increase trade and investments by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the Philippines.
President Duterte welcomed the Crown Prince’s recognition of bolstering economic engagement as an important part of the two countries' relations that needs to be sustained.
MBS's call came following the virtual forum entitled "Labor Mobility and Human Rights: Examining Migrant Labor Governance in the Middle East in the Context of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration" on April 20, 2021.
The forum, co-organized by the Philippines and Saudi Arabia Governments, provided an important opportunity to talk openly about the Kafala system and what countries, including Saudi Arabia, have been doing to address many systemic issues in the region.
In that forum, President Duterte strongly called an end to the kafala sponsorship system.
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.