Special
Report on Filipino Migrants’ Situation
Arroyo’s Betrayal of OFWs’ Interests Will
Spell Her Doom
As
2003 starts, overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) continue to feel neither support
nor genuine recognition from the Arroyo government. The so-called “bagong
bayani” (new heroes) are among most harshly affected by President Gloria
Macapagal-Arroyo’s dogged support for George W. Bush’s “war on terror”
and by her government’s equally terror-inducing globalization policies.
BY
MAITA SANTIAGO*
Bulatlat.com
When
the hijacked planes punctured the Twin Towers in New York, causing them to
crumble to dust on that fateful day on Sept. 11, 2001, the world mourned the
death of thousands. Yet from the ashes of Ground Zero sprang a more dangerous
form of terrorism – the intensified onslaught of U.S. imperialism.
In
this strain of terror, millions the world over have been and are being
victimized. The Bush administration, capitalizing on its people’s
profound grief, launched punitive measures ostensibly to stamp out terrorism. A
wave of jingoism swept across the U.S. as the Bush government began beating the
drums of “war against terrorism.”
In
the Philippines, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo promptly vowed support of
Bush’s war. Amidst strong condemnation from various sectors of society, the
Arroyo government offered our country as a springboard for U.S. attacks against
its enemies. It also sought U.S. military interference in crushing Abu Sayyaf
bandits. But more importantly, it wanted greater U.S. involvement in defeating
the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the Communist Party of the Philippines –
New People’s Army (CPP-NPA).
Meanwhile,
as the Arroyo government pursues its globalization policies, rising unemployment
and worsening working conditions force more and more Filipinos to leave the
country to seek jobs elsewhere in the world. In line with the labor-export
policy of previous regimes, Arroyo launched her own Labor Export Program (LEP).
Under such program, the economy has increasingly become dependent on foreign
currency remittances from overseas Filipinos.
New
Heroes, New Victims
Yet
despite the economy’s utter dependence on remittances of overseas Filipinos
for survival, they are among are most affected by Arroyo’s dogged support for
the “war on terror.” Since 9/11, OFWs,
especially those working in airports and airlines in the U.S., were among the
first ethnic groups to be laid off.
The
U.S. government also set its sights on undocumented migrant workers in the name
of “heightened security.” Overseas Filipinos were profiled as suspected
terrorists simply because of their ethnic origin. Filipino migrant workers,
tourists, even diplomats and celebrities (like Senate President Franklin Drilon
and the Apo Hiking Society) have been subjected to humiliating searches in
airports.
But
most victimized of all were the undocumented overseas Filipinos. The U.S.
government legitimized the attacks on undocumented overseas workers through its
Absconder Apprehension Program, which essentially tags immigration status
violators as possible terrorists. Under the U.S. list of over 316,000 names are
100,000 Filipinos bound to be arrested, detained for indefinite periods of time.
Last
June 2002, U.S. authorities deported 63 undocumented Filipinos, airlifting them
to Clark Field in Pampanga. These Filipinos were treated worse than common
criminals, forced to eat and defecate while hand-cuffed. Despite the inhumane
treatment, the Arroyo government did not lift a finger of protest.
Just
recently 87 more overseas Filipinos were deported from the U.S. At least 100
more are scheduled to be deported, according to U.S. immigration authorities.
The U.S. embassy in the Philippines has in fact revealed that more than 4,000
Filipinos have already been deported back here.
Wave
of terrorism
Outside
the U.S., allied countries have followed suit. Many have their own versions of
“anti-terrorism laws,” including the Philippines, whose own proposed law is
pending in Congress.
Malaysia
for one has succeeded in exploiting the wave of “anti-terrorist” paranoia to
deport more than 3,000 Filipinos from Sabah. These deportees were subjected to
the most humiliating circumstances. They were arrested without due process,
jailed in cramped detention centers where they were severely maltreated, and
shipped home like cattles to slaughterhouses.
A
number of children died due to various health complications resulting from the
inhumane conditions in Sabah detention. Many women deportees complained that
they were sexually harassed, even raped, by members of the Malaysian police.
Amidst
these, however, the Arroyo government did little to make the Malaysian
government accountable for their brutal treatment of Filipino deportees.
The
militant Migrante International has documented been similar cases of unjust
arrests and racial profiling leveled against Filipinos. For instance, on Sept.20, 2001, a few days after the terrorist attacks, Belgian police
raided 19 houses, arresting and unjustly detaining Honorato Calacapa and 29
other Filipinos there.
In
Canada, Filipino organizations have been branded by the Canadian government as
among the groups having terrorist links.
In
Korea, 14,000 undocumented Filipinos who registered in the Korean government’s
new amnesty program are being forced to leave the country until March 2003.
Italy, Hong Kong, and Israel have threatened to send back more than 200,000
undocumented Filipinos.
Threatened
in the Middle East
In
the Middle East, more than 1.5 million Filipinos are being threatened by the
impending U.S. war against Iraq. During the 1991 Gulf War, hundreds of thousands
of migrant Filipinos were forced to flee the conflict, especially the U.S.
bombing of Iraq. Until now, majority of these Gulf war victims have yet to
receive compensation from the government for their massive economic
dispossession and displacement wrought by the war.
To
make matters worse, overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Saudi Arabia are already
being burdened by the many anti-OFW actions undertaken by both the Saudi and
Philippine governments. In April last year, both governments agreed to cut off
about 25 percent of the wages of OFWs in Saudi, or from $200 to $130 a month.
Overseas
Filipinos see Labor Secretary Patricia Sto. Tomas as someone who virtually sold
the soul of Saudi-based OFWs to the Saudi government. She agreed to the Saudi
government’s position that "waivers" and "quit claims"
signed by OFWs in Saudi are legally binding. This, in effect, surrendered the
OFWs’ right to press charges or petition for salary and other claims against
abusive employers and recruiters before the Philippine Overseas Employees
Administration (POEA) and the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC).
Sto.
Tomas also approved Saudi Arabia's proposal declaring as illegal all existing
halfway centers for male OFWs who have ran away from alleged abusive employers.
It can be recalled that the halfway centers were established by non-government
organizations (NGO) to provide shelter for OFW "runaways" in Saudi
Arabia who cannot be accommodated in the Philippine embassy.
OFWs
who help and accommodate "runaway" OFWs in Saudi Arabia could
also be charged criminally, based on the agreement. In signing the accord, Sto.
Tomas effectively abandoned the OFWs languishing in jails, including those who
are in death row and scheduled for beheading.
Because
of this and many more, Sto. Tomas is now the subject of an intensifying ouster
campaign led by militant organizations.
Wooing
votes
Amidst
all these, the Arroyo administration has done nothing to address the problems
faced by the at least eight million overseas Filipinos.
Many
have been victimized by their abusive employers and host governments. But as of
Nov. 28, 2002, 1,400 claimant families of OFWs victimized abroad have yet to
receive any financial assistance from government, including the basic burial and
disability aid.
The
government has not given assistance to families of victims, yet it can afford to
shell out P1.2 M for an upcoming OFW congress intended to woo OFW votes for
President Arroyo’s 2004 reelection bid.
In
cases where OFWs were abused by their employers or unjustly imprisoned by
foreign authorities, Arroyo has also not done anything to save their lives or,
in some cases, had even sided with the abusers. Such had been the case of
Joselito Alejo, Idan Diaz Tejano, Primo Gasmen, and many others in Saudi Arabia,
who had been unjustly imprisoned and put on death row.
The
president has also been denying the existence of massive human rights violations
among OFWs. Her government denies the fact that there are more than a thousand
OFWs currently stranded in Saudi Arabia and they have nowhere to run due to the
closure of the welfare centers.
Because
of Arroyo’s anti-OFW positions and policies, the Migrante International has
vowed to campaign against the Arroyo regime. Its betrayal of OFWs’ interests
– which has caused misery and threatened lives of OFWs – has spelled its
doom. Bulatlat.com
*Maita
Santiago was recently elected secretary-general of Migrante International, a
militant alliance of organizations of Overseas Filipino Workers, during its 3rd
Congress last December 16-20.
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