OFW FORUM
Jun Concepcion
How to serve millions of OFW constituents literally spread across the whole wide world, including remote parts of Africa, South America and Central Asia, makes the job portfolio of Ms. Toots Ople, newly-appointed secretary of the Department of Migrant Workers, one of the toughest and most daunting in the entire civil service.
The multi-faceted problems and issues plaguing OFWs in one region, notably the Middle East, differ from those in other parts of the world, such as Russia and Shanghai in China. Thus, a set of potentially curative solutions for one region cannot and should not be applied in another region with a different set of factors that affect OFWs.
Needless to say, the complexity and gravity of problems plaguing OFWs vary from country to country and from one region to another.
Simply maintaining the status quo and continuing the policies and programs of the outgoing administration is the easiest route to take.
But is this policy direction and strategy thrust fair and reasonable to the most distressed and needy OFWs, especially those employed as domestic helpers? The clear answer is a huge NO.
Why so? Because records of the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) will likely show dozens, maybe hundreds, of OFWs across the Middle East who cry out daily for help and speedy repatriation back home to end atrocities that they suffer from their employers.
No access to POEA and OWWA records? No problem. Just surf Facebook and different OFW-focused chat groups on social media, and a keen and dedicated researcher will easily get a firm grasp of the gravity of the generally harsh work conditions in the Middle East.
I should know because I’ve been engaged in this exercise for several decades until today. I’ve also actively assisted and intervened in various crisis OFW situations. They include the case of a single mother bent on committing suicide due to daily beatings by her employer, lack of food, excessive work, depression, lack of communication with family members back home and inexplicable government delayed response to her repeated pleas for rescue and repatriation.
In another case, I “battled” senior officers of a Manila insurance company which initially refused to provide benefits to an ex domestic helper in Hong Kong who was nearly completely paralyzed due to a major aneurysm attack.
The incoming government hopefully ushers in fresh changes for the general improvement of overseas Filipino affairs. But this is easier said than done. In a bid to help uplift the general work conditions of OFWs, especially those in the Middle East, I’ve cobbled the following suggestions and recommendations. Hopefully, they'll help OFWs in general and Ms Ople in particular in her herculean tasks:
1] Set up an OFW think tank
Why set up this body? Easy. Without the assistance of a core group of experts, OFW issues can be likened to building or refurbishing a two- or three-story house or building without a blueprint or master plan. Appointing senior officials to the DOMW and its units isn’t tough as it mainly requires scrutinizing credentials and track records of each candidate. A more critical and vital task in my view is how to draw up a holistic, comprehensive, cohesive and effective blueprint, especially for the low- and semi-skilled OFWs, comprised mainly of domestic helpers and construction workers.
2] Identify most pressing OFW problematic issues
Dozens, maybe hundreds or thousands, of OFWs cry out for immediate help and repatriation from the Middle East. Physically battered and sexually abused OFWs can’t wait for DOMW officials to get cozy and comfortable in their new posts.
3] Immediately draw up a holistic scheme to deal with – not fight -- the “Kafala” scheme in the Middle East
Why are the most serious cases of OFW abuses occurring in the Middle East, not in other regions? The biggest culprit is the Middle East’s Kafala system. Originally intended to monitor movements of imported labor decades ago, Kafala has evolved into a modern-day “slavery” scheme which has unwittingly made wayward employers treat their domestics as “slaves” or domesticated animals. A critical and incisive analysis of the decades-old abuses of OFWs across the Middle East will inevitably lead to Kafala as major culprit.
4] Arrange deployments with Asia Pacific governments
5] Scale down deployments of domestic helpers in favor of caregivers
(To be continued)
Contact this writer at [email protected]