Philippines seeks ‘mutually satisfactory solution’ with Kuwait on deployment, visa issues
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines will continue discussions with Kuwait to resolve issues that have led the Gulf country to stop issuing new work and entry visas to Filipinos, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Friday.
The suspension of new visas, which Kuwait has already officially informed the Philippines of, over alleged and unspecified violations by Manila of a 2018 bilateral labor agreement risks reducing workers to a "bargaining chip" between the two countries, according to migrant workers' group Migrante.
"The Philippines remains committed to discussing and resolving bilateral issues with all countries in an amicable manner," DFA said Friday.
"In the case of Kuwait, we are confident that with our friendly relations and strong people-to-people links, we shall be able to find a mutually satisfactory solution that will take into account the need to provide maximum protection and access to justice for all our nationals working in the country."
READ: DFA working to resolve Kuwait visa suspension
Neither side has given details, but the Department of Migrant Workers stopped the deployment of newly-hired domestic workers to Kuwait in February "until more safeguards are in place for their protection and welfare." The deployment ban was prompted by the killing of overseas Filipino worker Jullebee Ranara in Kuwait in January.
DMW said in January that it is not in favor of a deployment ban but also said that the 2018 labor agreement could be revised "so that it would be similar to the bilateral agreement with Saudi Arabia, which has more safeguards for our workers."
Kuwait Times reported that the suspension was imposed "because Philippines has not complied with the provisions of the labor agreement between the two countries."
In an interview on ANC's Rundown, Migrante chairperson Arman Hernando said the group will ask the DMW about the visa suspension before deciding on what to do next to help its members in Kuwait or who are to be deployed there.
"Migrante has always taken the position that entry bans and employment bans are not the solution to protecting our compatriots," he said in Filipino, saying these measures "treat migrant workers line ping pong balls and they become a bargaining chip." He said that migrant workers' conditions have not improved significantly despite the bans.
"The issue is not with the bilateral labor agreement, but with the system of work there, particularly the kafala system," he also said.
The kafala system, which is in place in Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, requires migrant workers to be sponsored by a citizen or company in the host country. Saudi Arabia previously used the kafala system, but abolished it in March.
Sponsors have nearly total control over workers’ employment and immigration status, leaving them prone to abuse and exploitation.
"It prohibits the exercise of so many rights of our fellow Filipinos and gives employers in Kuwait license to abuse them," Hernando, who described the policy as "very stringent", said. "That is beyond the bilateral labor agreement," he also said.
The Kuwait Progressive Movement is quoted by Kuwait Times as decribing the system as "a form of slavery, where foreign workers are forcibly bonded to their employers."
Hernando said the Philippines should not be deploying workers to countries that do not treat workers well, but also said that deployment bans and similar measures should not be done. He said there are many Filipinos working in Kuwait and many more who have already spent their time and money in preparation for deployment.
"These steps should be well planned, calibrated and should have long-term projections," he said.
The Philippines has been sending workers abroad for decades as Filipinos seek better work conditions and opportunities overseas. Remittances from Filipinos abroad reached $36.14 billion in 2022.