President Rodrigo Duterte delivers a speech during the 60th founding anniversary of Cor Jesu College (CJC) at the CJC Almendras Gym in Digos City, Davao Del Sur on December 30, 2019. (Presidential Photo)
DIGOS CITY – President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday said he wanted to kill illegal recruiters who send Filipino domestic helpers to the Middle East, where they end up as slaves.
“Kayong mga recruiter gusto ko talagang patayin kayo. Kasi ito ‘pag may makita problema niya, she will say punta ka ng Middle East. Pagdating doon sa Middle East, nagkaproblema, or are sold to questionable Arab families (I really want to kill (these illegal) recruiters who seize every problem to convince people to go to the Middle East. But when the recruit arrives in the Middle East, the problem develops or they are being sold to questionable Arab families),” he said in a speech Monday at the 60th founding anniversary of Cor Jesu College here, where he spent his high school years in the 1960s.
Duterte said his heart bleeds every time he hears stories of Overseas Filipino Workers jumping off the windows of their employers' homes because they could no longer take the punishment of being slaves.
“How many…? Almost once, twice a week tumatalon lang sa ano (they jump off). So maybe the human degradation is really at its worst. What I know is that if he cleans the master’s house, he still has to clean the house of the daughter-in-law, and the house of another son, and the house of another relative,” he said.
Worst, Duterte said OFWs were also being raped aside from being made to work 21 hours a day.
“Kasali ang rape. Kaya makita mo ‘yung mga kasa --- ating kababayan diretso tumatalon sa labas. Wala ng seremonya, talon ‘yan diretso (There is rape. That is why you see our countryment, they just jump off (the buidings). No more ceremony, they just do it),” he added.
He said the fate of many OFWs has also caused family dysfunction back home.
“How many families are broken? How many families are…? When the father starts to take drugs, his family is out at risk. At risk because he would start craving for it. Usually, itong mga (these illegal recruiters) --- gusto ko ring patayin ‘yan (I also want to kill them),” he added.
Duterte then clarified that not all Arabs were abusive.
“Remember ha? Not all but there are Arabs who still practice slavery. And if you are a paid handler or an outright slave na binili sa African market of slavery, ‘yang rape na ‘yan (that rape) is inevitable,” he said.
The practice by some Arabs of slavery, he said, had also led to the disappearance of many OFWs.
“And there are Filipina girls who went there who cannot be accounted for anymore. Ang sabi nila kung hindi na makita, ipinagbili ‘yan doon sa slave market sa Africa (They said if you fail to find them, they had been sold to the slave market in Africa). And I just cannot imagine for the life of me to think that a Filipina is being --- made a slave and being raped every day,” he said.
Duterte said the problem faced by OFWs had been going on for years already.
He said when he was Davao City mayor, he had personally encountered parents desperate to have their children freed from prison in their host-countries.
“You know why? When I was mayor, may dalawang --- there were two ladies sa (in) Toril and one dito sa Digos (here in Digos), nakulong ang mga anak nila (Their children were sent to jail) because of this recruit --- recruitment na kabulastogan (that is foolishness). So they were there at the gate crying day and night. Pagka bukas nandiyan (When I open the gate, they were there). Early morning they are there,” he said.
Duterte said it was his wife, Elizabeth, who asked him to do something.
“So I went to Saudi. I invited my Muslim brothers sa Congress to be with me. Tapos nag… King Fahd was already in the advanced stage of dementia. But may (he had) lucid interval siya, nakakaintindi siya, pumayag siya (he can understand and he agreed to release the OFWs),” he said.
Duterte said unscrupulous recruiters who usually cause the problem confronting OFWs must be stopped.
“Sabagay itong illegal recruitment no bail ‘yan. Pero mas gusto kong mag --- bigyan ng sample. Para talaga huminto na (Illegal recruitment is non bailable. But I want to give them a sample. So that it will already stop),” he added. (PNA)
