Philippines once again bans OFWs from going to Kuwait
The Philippines will stop sending new overseas workers to Kuwait until further notice, effective January 3, after another Filipino domestic worker was killed in the Middle Eastern country.
However, the ban is only partial as the Philippines will indeed not deploy new Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW), especially domestic helpers, but will exempts skilled workers. Filipinos who are already in Kuwait for work can stay there, Philippine labour secretary Silvestre Bello said.
The ban was triggered by the tragic death of Jeanelyn Villavende, a domestic worker who has allegedly been beaten to death last month by the wife of her Kuwaiti employer. Villavende has been complaining about maltreatment and underpayment by the family to her recruitment agency since September, but her cries went unanswered.
“Now whether this will ripen into a total deployment ban will depend on what the Kuwaiti authorities will do to give justice to our countrywoman,” Bello added.
The office of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has expressed “outrage” over the death of the Filipino worker.
“We consider Jeanelyn’s tragic death a clear disregard of the agreement signed by both our country and Kuwait in 2018 which seeks to uphold and promote the protection of the rights and welfare of our workers in Kuwait,” Duterte’s spokesperson Salvador Panelo said.
Kuwait is a major labour destination for Filipinos in the Middle East, with over 250,000 currently working there, mostly as domestic helpers.
However, incidents of abuses against Filipino maids, some of which resulted in deaths, prompted Manila to enforce a deployment ban for Filipino workers to Kuwait early in 2018. The ban was lifted in May 2018 after the Philippines and Kuwait inked an agreement that provides legal protection for Filipino maids in the Gulf state.
Filipino maids waiting for repatriation from Kuwait The Philippines will stop sending new overseas workers to Kuwait until further notice, effective January 3, after another Filipino domestic worker was killed in the Middle Eastern country. However, the ban is only partial as the Philippines will indeed not deploy new Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW), especially domestic helpers, but will exempts skilled workers. Filipinos who are already in Kuwait for work can stay there, Philippine labour secretary Silvestre Bello said. The ban was triggered by the tragic death of Jeanelyn Villavende, a domestic worker who has allegedly been beaten to death last...
The Philippines will stop sending new overseas workers to Kuwait until further notice, effective January 3, after another Filipino domestic worker was killed in the Middle Eastern country.
However, the ban is only partial as the Philippines will indeed not deploy new Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW), especially domestic helpers, but will exempts skilled workers. Filipinos who are already in Kuwait for work can stay there, Philippine labour secretary Silvestre Bello said.
The ban was triggered by the tragic death of Jeanelyn Villavende, a domestic worker who has allegedly been beaten to death last month by the wife of her Kuwaiti employer. Villavende has been complaining about maltreatment and underpayment by the family to her recruitment agency since September, but her cries went unanswered.
“Now whether this will ripen into a total deployment ban will depend on what the Kuwaiti authorities will do to give justice to our countrywoman,” Bello added.
The office of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has expressed “outrage” over the death of the Filipino worker.
“We consider Jeanelyn’s tragic death a clear disregard of the agreement signed by both our country and Kuwait in 2018 which seeks to uphold and promote the protection of the rights and welfare of our workers in Kuwait,” Duterte’s spokesperson Salvador Panelo said.
Kuwait is a major labour destination for Filipinos in the Middle East, with over 250,000 currently working there, mostly as domestic helpers.
However, incidents of abuses against Filipino maids, some of which resulted in deaths, prompted Manila to enforce a deployment ban for Filipino workers to Kuwait early in 2018. The ban was lifted in May 2018 after the Philippines and Kuwait inked an agreement that provides legal protection for Filipino maids in the Gulf state.
