More than 21,000 prospective overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) were stopped at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport from Aug. to Dec. last year as part of the government’s intensified campaign against human trafficking, the Bureau of Immigration said.
In a statement posted on its website, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said the OFWs — all women, the youngest being 21 years old — arrived aboard a Qatar Airways flight.
“The OFWs, all women, have complained of maltreatment and abuse from their employers and of unpaid salaries and unreasonably long working hours. The OFWs stayed at the Filipino Workers Resource Center (FWRC). The youngest among the repatriated OFWs was 21 years old," the DFA said.
The department said the OFWs “were all very happy to be back in Manila."
“They (OFWs) said they were very grateful to the efforts of the Embassy in saving them from the quagmire they were in," the DFA said.
Lebanon is one of five countries covered by Philippine labor deployment ban. The others are Afghanistan, Nigeria, Iraq and Jordan. The Philippine government issued the ban to Lebanon in 2006.
According to the DFA, the Philippine Embassy in Beirut is currently negotiating a bilateral labor cooperation agreement with the Lebanese government to ensure protection of the welfare of Filipino workers.
“Some stipulations being negotiated include the minimum wage, reasonable rest periods and decent working and living conditions for the Filipino workers," it said.
The DFA said it shouldered the airline tickets of the OFWs through the Assistance to Nationals (ATN) fund. “The DFA, through the Embassy, made strong representations with the Lebanese government resulting in the waiver of deployment cost and immigration penalties."
The Philippine embassy provided the OFWs with food, toiletries, medical provisions and appropriate assistance while waiting for their exit documents to be processed and for their expedited repatriation, the DFA said.
A total of 74 OFWs have already been repatriated from Lebanon this year, with the first batch having arrived last Jan. 13.
The DFA said it continues to work closely with the Philippine Embassies and Consulates General around the world in facilitating the immediate repatriation of distressed OFWs.
