PH airs ‘great displeasure’ over Kuwait move

MANILA - The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Thursday, April 26, served a diplomatic note to the Kuwait Embassy to convey “strong surprise and great displeasure” over the declaration of Ambassador Renato Pedro Villa as persona non grata, detention of four Filipinos and issuance of arrest warrants against three diplomatic personnel.

The department, which had summoned Kuwaiti Ambassador Musaed Saleh Ahmad Althwaikh over the expulsion of Villa from Kuwait, issued the diplomatic note after it was informed that Althwaikh has been recalled to his country for consultations.

“The department believes that these acts are inconsistent with the assurances and representations made by the Kuwaiti Ambassador on the various concerns that were brought to his attention by Secretary of Foreign Affairs Alan Peter Cayetano during their meeting in Manila on April 24, 2018,” the DFA statement read.

Earlier Thursday, Malacañang admitted that it was “disturbed” by Kuwait’s move to expel Villa and recall Althwaikh.

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque Jr. said the latest developments came as a surprise, as the Philippines was confident that “all kinks have been ironed out,” after the meeting with Althwaikh on Tuesday, April 24.

Roque nevertheless said the Duterte administration remained optimistic that the bilateral relations between Kuwait and the Philippines would not be injured by Gulf nation’s actions.

“We hope that this development will not lead to further worsening of bilateral ties between the two countries. We hope that this is Kuwaiti’s way of just expressing its anger,” the Palace official said in a press conference.

“And we believe and hope that the passage of time will heal all wounds and will lead to normalize ties,” he added.

During the April 24 meeting between the Philippines and Kuwait, the DFA said Cayetano had inquired on the status of Villa in Kuwait.

The Kuwaiti ambassador had stated that Villa was welcome to stay in Kuwait until the end of his tour of duty, and that the Government of Kuwait “likes” Villa very much.

In the same meeting, Althwaikh also committed the following measures that will immediately respond to the urgent requests by Filipino nationals:

1. To strengthen the Kuwaiti Government’s 24/7 Hotline to immediately respond to urgent requests for assistance by Filipino nationals in coordination with the Philippine Embassy;

2. To jointly establish additional centers or shelters, if needed, for distressed Filipino workers;

3. To jointly formulate mechanisms to ensure better and efficient coordination between the Philippine Embassy and Kuwaiti authorities in responding to any emergency case involving Filipino nationals;

4. To ensure immediate action by Kuwaiti authorities on pending requests for assistance from distressed Filipino workers;

5. To facilitate repatriation of the more than 800 Filipinos currently staying in shelters of the Philippine Embassy;

6. To assure justice for pending and future cases filed by Filipinos who are victims of serious abuse and other offenses;

7. To assure proper and humane treatment of Filipinos who may be taken into custody after the April 22 amnesty deadline and to repatriate them immediately with the assistance of the Philippine Embassy.

8. To release Filipino nationals hired by the Philippine Embassy who were taken into custody in recent days for their involvement in the actions taken by the Embassy in responding to the calls for assistance by Filipino nationals in distress; and

9. To ensure that diplomatic personnel of the Department of Foreign Affairs who are still in Kuwait are allowed to return to Manila without incident at the soonest possible time.

Given the latest developments, the department said it has asked to be clarified on the actions taken by Kuwait even as it emphasized “that the protection of the rights and the promotion of the welfare of Filipinos abroad would always be the guiding principle of the Philippines in its relationship with countries around the world, including Kuwait.”

The diplomatic tiff came about after Philippine officials “rescued” distressed Filipino workers in Kuwait amid persistent reports of maltreatment by Kuwaiti employers.

Duterte was earlier prompted to bar Filipinos from seeking jobs in Kuwait after the discovery of the gruesome death of Joanna Demafelis, whose body was stuffed in a freezer in an abandoned apartment.

In a bid to put an end to the reported cases of abuse of Filipino workers, the Philippines and Kuwait were supposed to sign a bilateral agreement that would protect and uphold the OFWs’ rights.

“We continue to hope that the MOA (memorandum of agreement) on the minimum terms and conditions of employment relative to the hiring of Filipinos in Kuwait will also be signed as scheduled after Ramadan,” Roque said. Ruth Abbey Gita With MVI/SunStar Philippines