President to repatriate workers within 72 hours

By Paulo Loreto Lim

After the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) suspended the deployment of overseas Filipino workers (OFW) to Kuwait last month, following reports surrounding the deaths of several migrant workers, a “total deployment ban” will be formally ordered today, February 12, by DOLE Secretary Silvestre Bello III.

The most recent death occurred when the body of OFW Joanna Daniela Dimapilis was found inside a freezer last week.

“We do not seek special treatment or privileges for our workers, but we do expect respect for their dignity and basic human rights,” President Rodrigo Duterte said in a press conference last week. “How come my countrymen are suffering brutality [and] cruelty there?”

“We send to you a Filipino worker, hale and hearty, determined to work his heart out in order to give his family a decent and comfortable life in the Philippines,” he added. “Do not give us back a battered worker or a mutilated corpse.”

DOLE Spokesperson Raul Francia noted, the DOLE secretary plans to repatriate workers within 72 hours and is currently speaking with airlines to provide assistance in the matter.

“He’s meeting with PAL (Philippine Airlines) and Cebu Pacific because they signified willingness to help,” the spokesperson said.

Both carriers have since agreed to provide special flights between Manila and Kuwait for the purpose of bringing OFWs back home.

Meanwhile, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said around 800 Kuwait-based OFWs will be on their way home in the coming days.

According to a DFA spokesperson, “That’s the first batch.”/PLL, WDJ