PH-KSA INDUSTRY CONFAB. Senator Cynthia Villar addresses officers and members of the Philippine Recruitment Agencies Accredited to Saudi Arabia (PRAASA) and their counterparts during the opening ceremony of the Joint PH-KSA Industry Conference on Welfare & Protection of OFWs at Travelers Hotel and Event Center, Subic Bay Freeport Zone on Sunday (April 22, 2018). The conference seeks to identify major issues and concerns to protect the welfare of Filipino domestic workers in Saudi Arabia. (Photo by Malou Dungog)
SUBIC BAY FREEPORT -- Recruitment agencies in the Philippines and from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) on Sunday started discussing issues and concerns to protect the welfare of the overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).
"These are crucial times when we need to work together. Our industry faces threats, both internal and external. There are many bumps on the road, but with a unified vision, we can hurdle all challenges," saidImelda Enriquez, president of the Philippine Recruitment Agencies Accredited to Saudi Arabia (PRAASA), during the opening of the three-day joint PH-KSA Industry Conference on the Welfare and Protection of OFWs at the Travelers Hotel and Event Center, here on Sunday.
Keynote speaker Senator Cynthia Villar said the conference is a good venue to discuss the various problems and issues confronting the Saudi labor market and PRAASA.
“Dialogues and discussions such as this conference will really help in settling issues, addressing concerns, finding solutions to problems and implementing policies. At the end of the day, we are all here to protect our respective citizens and countries,” Villar said.
The senator said that it is quite distressing to learn about the sad, sometimes tragic fate of the OFWs.
“Many of whom encountered problems with their employment terms and even many more were hurt, maltreated, abused or molested by their employer," she said.
In recent years, Villar said the cases of OFW abuse seem to have even worsened, as a number of them, are not distressed anymore, but already dead.
She particularly cited the case of Joanna Demafelis who was found dead and stuffed in a freezer at her employer's home in Kuwait.
“The incident prompted our government to issue a deployment ban to Kuwait," she added.
Villar said, while she agreed on the deployment ban given the recent situation, it is just a "temporary solution" to the "perennial problem" faced by OFWs.
"We should really do a comprehensive review and assessment of the plight of OFWs in all countries where they are working, so that we can implement reforms and find lasting solutions,” she added.
The senator also said that she is pushing for the creation of a separate government department that will cater solely to the needs of OFWs.
"I have filed Senate Bill No. 146, or the proposed "Department of Migration and Development Act of 2016. It remained pending in the Committee on Labor and Employment chaired by Senator Joel Villanueva,” she said.
The bill also seeks to create the PHP1-billion Special Assistance Revolving Fund for Filipino Migrants, for both documented and undocumented individuals.
“There are over 12 million OFWs out there that remit billions of dollars annually that prop up the country's economy. Last year, OFWs' cash remittances, those course through banks, reached USD28.1 billion,” Villar added. (PNA)
