MANILA, Philippines â The Philippine government may consider suspending the deployment of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to Middle East countries that would refuse to heed President Rodrigo Duterteâs call to abolish the Kafala system, Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said Wednesday.
Bello said Duterte may order him to suspend the deployment of OFWs if the Kafala system, which requires migrant workers to have a sponsor in the country of employment to get a visa and workerâs permit, would not be abolished.
âHindi malayo na kapag hindi pinagbigyan ang panawagan ng ating Pangulong Duterte, baka bibigyan ako ng kautusan na magsuspend muna ng deployment sa mga bansang ayaw tanggalin âyung Kafala system,â Bello said in an interview on ABS-CBNâs Teleradyo.
(Itâs possible that if they wonât heed the call of President Duterte, I may be ordered to suspend the deployment of OFWs to countries that donât want to abolish the Kafala system.)
Duterte earlier pushed for the , calling it âunjustâ and âexploitative.â
The President said the system places thousands of migrant workers, particularly household service workers at the âmost vulnerable position.â
He added that it has also led to non-payment of wages, restriction of movement, denial of healthcare, sexual exploitation, and outright murder.
Bello noted that Duterte had made this call for the protection of OFWs.ĚýâKaya kung hindi nila pagbigyan âyan, maliwanag na âyung aming direksyon, and that is to suspend or at least slow down âyung deployment ng ating mga OFW dyan,â Bello added.
(Thatâs why if they wonât grant that request, our direction is clear, and that is to suspend or at least slow down the deployment of our OFWs to those countries.)