THE country’s Chief Executive has reiterated his appeal before the United Nations (UN) to abolish the “kafala” system, which exploits and oppresses Filipino migrant workers.
In his virtual address at the 76th United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday, September 22, President Rodrigo Duterte noted that millions of Filipinos seek for employment opportunities across the world even “under the most difficult and inhumane” circumstances.
While Filipino diaspora has long been existing and cannot be denied especially in countries where Kafala system takes place such as Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Duterte stressed that no reason shall be a license to continue the “unjust” scheme.
“The kafala system is one such behemoth that chains the weak, the desperate, and the voiceless to an existence of unimaginable suffering. Nothing can justify the continued existence of this unjust system,” Duterte expressed.
“While reforms have been made, the kafala system must be dismantled – sooner rather than later – in the name of justice and basic decency,” he added.
Kafala is an Arabic word with its etymological meaning of “sponsorship” which—when referred as a system—pertains to a scheme in the Gulf countries where migrant workers are required to have a sponsor in the host country for the issuance of their visa and worker’s permit.
The kafala system then allows the monitoring of migrant workers including household service, construction, and service industry workers by controlling their employment and immigration status, which makes them vulnerable to exploitation.
In April, Duterte has first called to dismantle the Kafala system as it ensues “inhumane working conditions” such as those that concern non-payment of workers’ wages, restriction of their movements, denial of access to quality healthcare, sexual abuse, outright murder, racism, and several kinds of discrimination.
He further underscored on the previous speech that the COVID-19 pandemic pushed Filipino migrant workers at the edge and “more precarious” condition under the Kafala scheme.
Believing that no Filipino shall be a slave to anyone nor anywhere, Duterte told the UN that the Philippines will strengthen its diplomatic ties with other countries to ensure the rights and protection of its workers around the globe.
Based on the 2019 data of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), there were about 2.2 million Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) whose remittances primarily contribute to the country’s economic growth.
(PHOTO CREDIT: pna.gov.ph)