ASIAN-POLITICS: Kuwait reaches out to Duterte – OFFERS COOPERATION ON LABOR ISSUES

Kuwait offered to smooth the frayed relations with the Philippines as the state-owned Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) said Kuwaiti Deputy Foreign Minister Khaled Al-Jarallah said Kuwait was ready to cooperate with Manila to explore all means to address labor issues, including 800 Filipino citizens who are currently in shelter centers.

Al-Jarallah said Kuwait shared President Duterte’s desire to maintain deeply-rooted relations, citing the country’s support of Kuwait during the 1990-91 Iraqi invasion. KUNA said the statement was in reference to remarks by President Duterte regarding the pull out of Filipino workers from the Gulf State.

Al-Jarallah, however, said “Kuwait rejects any breach against its sovereignty or laws and would act decisively against any relevant attempt.”

He added that Kuwait is keen on “maintaining safety and rights of all expatriates including the Filipino community, within the labor laws of the country, which have been praised by international human rights agencies.
KUNA said “Al-Jarallah appreciated the contributions of the Filipino community who were working in different sectors.”
He said “the historic friendship” between the two countries “could help overcome this exceptional circumstance.”
Al-Jarallah said Kuwait looks “forward to working with the Philippines to honor mutual interest.”
Presidential spokesman Harry Roque, meanwhile, said until a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the protection of Filipino workers in Kuwait is signed, the deployment ban on new workers to the Gulf state stays.
Mr. Duterte said Sunday the deployment ban to Kuwait stays “permanently” in the wake of the diplomatic spat between the Philippines and the Gulf state.

“What the President announced is the maintenance of the status quo. Until we have reached or signed a memorandum of [understanding] providing for the minimum terms and conditions of employment for our nationals, the ban stays,” Roque said.
Roque explained that the lifting of the deployment ban is “conditional” to the signing of the MOU.
“Is this permanent as reported by some media outfits? Well, let’s just say it stays right now because the precondition set by the President is really the signing of that memorandum of [understanding],” he added.
Roque said that Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III and other Cabinet officials will be meeting with their counterparts in Kuwait on May 7 to ease the diplomatic spat.

“Secretary Bello and other cabinet members will be leaving for Kuwait on the 7th (of May), which means that the process of diplomatic negotiations and conversations continues as we speak,” Roque said.

OFWs get assurance
Roque, meanwhile, assured that the Philippine government has laid out mechanisms to protect Filipino workers in Kuwait despite Philippine Ambassador Renato Villa’s expulsion from Kuwait.
”We don’t have an ambassador but there is a chargé d’affaires, there is a diplomatic mission, diplomatic ties remain, which means that we have a mission there to protect our nationals; and Kuwait also is duty-bound to protect aliens under the standards dictated by international law, under terms and conditions which are not inferior to the way they treat their own nationals,” Roque said.
Roque said that the Philippine government was trying to “normalize” its ties with the Kuwaiti government but maintained that Filipino workers there should be treated properly.

“We cannot afford another Demafelis. It is the duty of the state to protect our nationals,” Roque said, referring to Joanna Demafelis, whose body was stuffed inside a freezer.
Roque also pointed out that Duterte did not want to pick a fight with Kuwait and even expressed gratitude to the fact that Kuwait has employed many Filipinos.
Roque also confirmed that Duterte is going to use the P4.8 billion worth of funds given by Chinese President Xi Jinping as travel fund for Filipino workers in Kuwait who want to return home.

However, he said that Duterte’s call for Filipino workers in Kuwait to come home is still “voluntary.”
“This is voluntary. He (Duterte) is not compelling anyone to come home. The context is, if Kuwait doesn’t want Filipinos there, they can come home and we’ll help them,” Roque said.
“Nothing is permanent. Until there is an MOU, there is no lifting of the deployment ban,” he added.
The Philippines and Kuwait are supposed to sign an MOU on the protection of overseas Filipino workers (OFW) in the Gulf state after this year’s Ramadan in June.

However, Roque earlier said that he could only “surmise” on the MOU’s fate.
Tension between the Philippines and Kuwait started after the Kuwaiti government hit the action taken by the staff of the Philippine embassy for conducting rescue operations of distressed overseas Filipino workers.
Duterte earlier imposed a total deployment ban on new workers to Kuwait after the murder of Demafelis, along with a series of reported abuse and maltreatment inflicted upon Filipino domestic workers.

More clarifications
Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III also clarified that the ban on Filipinos going to Kuwait remains temporary saying the chief executive was again taken out of context.
Bello explained that the President had previously declared that the ban would be lifted, once Kuwait signs a labor deal and gives justice to a Filipina maid whose body was found stuffed in her employer’s freezer.
When a clip of the president sound byte was played where the president said, “The ban stays permanently. There will be no more recruitment for especially domestic helpers,” Bello insisted that the president was taken out of context.
Nevertheless, the labor secretary said he will clarify the issue with the president.
In a separate interview, Labor Undersecretary Jacinto “Jing” Paras confirmed that the MOU between the Philippines and Kuwait now hangs in the balance.

He said that the president was “hurt” by the abuses being committed against Filipino domestic helpers.
In an interview over ABS-CBN’s Umagang Kay Ganda, Paras said the government is now looking at other countries, such as Russia, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan and Poland as alternate countries where the OFWs can move to.
“Around 90 percent of the domestic helpers in Kuwait are maltreated,” he said.
Around 262,000 Filipinos work in Kuwait, nearly 60 to 70 percent of them domestic workers, according to the foreign ministry.
Last week, the Philippines apologized over the rescue videos but Kuwaiti officials announced they were expelling Manila’s ambassador and recalling their own envoy.

House ready for funding
The House of Representatives, meawnhile, is ready to provide a supplement to the budget this year to support President Duterte’s position to persuade Filipino workers to return from the Gulf state, Quezon City Rep. Winston Castelo said..
Castelo said the Kuwaiti government should not consider Mr. Duterte’s order for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to leave their work as a breach of relations but a action of the Philippine government to account for the safety of its citizens.
Kuwait has effectively suspended diplomatic relations with the recall of its ambassador to the Philippines Musaed Saleh Ahmad Althwaikh and the expulsion of Philippine Ambassador Renato Villa.

“Since the President said that he will raise the funds needed to provide for the repatriation from Kuwait of all Filipino workers plus the provision for their livelihood once they return home, the House is prepared to provide the legislation that will give the financial muscle through a budget supplement to Mr. Duterte’s policy move,” Castelo, vice chairman of the House committee on OFW concerns, said.
Castelo has consistently maintained that the retrieval of distressed Filipino workers should not be a subject for apology of the government since it is merely protecting the welfare of Filipinos who are victims of abuse in the Gulf state.
Castelo, however, encouraged the government to pursue with Kuwait negotiations for the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the protection of OFW to make permanent the safety of Filipino workers in that country.
He said that many Filipinos are happily working in Kuwait but some cases show that extreme actions are needed to nudge its officials into guaranteeing work safety.

Pimentel seeks normalization
Senate President Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel said that he looks forward to normalizing ties between the Philippines and Kuwait as soon as possible.
“I am inspired by the Korean example. If, after a full-blown war and decades of tension, two countries can make peace, what more two countries that have always enjoyed good relations and have strong economic ties? The Philippines and Kuwait need each other”, said Pimentel.

The Senate President however said that the current situation must first be defused.
Pimentel said, “Let’s look at the Koreas – we need high-level contacts, honest discussions, and most importantly, no posting on social media or anywhere else on the Internet.”

The Senate leader said that for relations to be repaired, public relations stunts must be avoided.
Pimentel said, “This is a highly-charged issue that is very tempting to politicize. Let’s put the country’s interests first and let the Department of Foreign Affairs take charge so that only one voice is heard by the Kuwaitis.”
The Senate leader, who proposed the creation of a department for OFW affairs, said that OFW welfare must remain the highest priority in any agreement with Kuwait.
Pimentel said, “There are many OFWs in the region. Perhaps we can ask the help of Saudi Arabia or Qatar to act as our intermediaries with the Kuwaitis.”

S. Arabia put on notice
After Mr. Duterte’s threat to duplicate his policy in dealing with Kuwait if another OFW dies from abuse of an employer, Malacañang called on the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to assure Filipinos there to respect their rights and dignity.
The Philippine Consulate in Jeddah confirmed over the weekend the death of a Filipina household worker in the Holy City of Madinah with injuries sustained after falling from the sixth-floor flat of her employer.
Roque said the administration will not allow this incident go forgotten nor will it tolerate another incident that happened similarly to Filipina worker Joanna Demafelis who was killed and kept for nearly a year by her employers in a refrigerator in an abandoned flat in Kuwait.
“We could ask for any notifications on other things that are called for but we will never let the protection of our countrymen pass. We will never ever allow another Demafelis,” Roque said as a response to the incident in Saudi.
Roque said the government is demanding Saudi authorities to treat the case as if it happened to a Saudi national.
“If a Filipino dies, [the Saudi government] should treat that case the way they treat it if it happened to a citizen of their,” he said.
“All that we’re asking is for them not to go unwarranted,” he added.
Consul General Edgar Badajos said authorities are still investigating the death of the Filipina domestic helper which took place on Friday afternoon.
The Filipina, whose name is being withheld pending notification of next of kin, was brought to the hospital at around 3:30 p.m. but died shortly after from head injuries.
Consul General Badajos immediately dispatched a team from the Consulate General which will coordinate with authorities investigating the case.