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Migrante hits gov’t reaction on OFW slays

BAGUIO CITY (Sept. 30) — Migrante-Cordillera this week criticized the Philippine government’s response to the successive death of three overseas Filipino workers (OFW) this last week of September.

Migrante Spokesperson Flora Belinan stressed that three deaths in a week is very disturbing and yet the government instead of pushing for a thorough investigation put out statements discounting foul play in the death of OFW.

Two Filipinas died in Singapore and one in Spain in just a span of one week. National daily reports said that investigations are still going on.

Belinan reiterated that despite alarming statistics of OFWs murdered and maltreated abroad the government encourages more jobs abroad for Filipino workers. She said that the government continues to deny its labor export program but earlier national daily reports show Department of Labor Secretary Patricia Sto. Tomas had bargained with some host countries to increase the quota for OFWs.

Belinan said that the government should seriously think of ways to create more jobs in the country rather than sending thousands of Filipinos abroad daily.

“Our countrymen are going abroad because there are no jobs and the prevailing wages here could not feed their families. If only there are enough decent paying jobs here then Filipinos do not have to go abroad,” she added.

According to Migrante, 3,000 Filipinos leave the country daily and 6 to 10 of these come home dead.

“The government admitted that OFW remittances is the saving grace of the country’s dollar reserve. Disturbingly, records show that the government fails to protect OFWs abroad,” she said in Filipino. # via NORDIS

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