Manila sending team to resolve Kuwait row

Visiting officials expected to push for Filipino workers’ right to retain passports

Philippine officials are headed to Kuwait today to seek greater protection for migrant workers after a diplomatic row over the alleged mistreatment of Filipinos in the country.

Labour secretary Silvestre Bello told reporters yesterday that one of his deputies would lead the delegation, which is also due to make stops in Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

Topping the list are demands that Filipino workers be allowed to keep their cellphones and passports, which can be confiscated by employers.

The trip comes after Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte last week announced a departure ban for Filipinos planning to work in Kuwait. He was responding to the murder of a Filipina maid whose body was found stuffed in a freezer in Kuwait. The ban sparked a diplomatic dispute and although Kuwait invited Duterte for a visit, he is yet to respond.

Authorities say some 252,000 Filipinos work in Kuwait, many as maids. They are among over two million employed in the region, whose remittances are a lifeline to the Philippine economy.

Key demands

“We are going to Kuwait tomorrow, Saudi Arabia and then on to Qatar to ensure that our overseas Filipino workers have sufficient protection,” said labour undersecretary Ciriaco Lagunzad, who will helm the delegation.

Lagunzad said Duterte had ordered the team to ensure that the passports of Filipino workers are deposited with the Philippine embassy.

Duterte also wanted Filipinos to have access to cellphones so they can call for help in case of abuse, Lagunzad said.