MANILA, Mar. 8 (PNA) - President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today stood up for the welfare of Filipino domestic helpers and said she would not take sitting down a perceived unjust slash in the minimum pay of foreign workers in Hong Kong.
The President sought for more time to work on countless positive ways to decide on the issues besetting the welfare of domestic helpers in the former British colony.
In her speech on the occasion of International Women's Day at the jampacked Marikina City Sports Complex gym, the President cited reports that neighboring Asian nations and government groups in Hong Kong have been pushing for the suspension of a Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) decision to slash the minimum wage for foreign workers.
She asked her critics to better understand the issues before opposing government moves to temporarily suspend the processing of all contracts for domestic helpers bound for Hong Kong and review existing policies on the deployment of OFWs in other problem areas abroad.
"Many of our domestic helpers in Hong Kong expressed support for this move. But many have also asked to lift the suspension of the deployment of domestic helpers to Hong Kong. Kaya malaking desisyon ang kailangan ko (I need to work on a major decision on the matter)," she stressed.
She noted that even Indonesia, which also deploys domestic workers to the former crown colony, had opposed the move of the Hong Kong SAR to impose a levy on new foreign labor.
"At sa Abril, baka ang Sri Lanka ay sasama sa boykot (And by April, Sri Lanka might stop deploying their workers to Hong Kong)," she added.
The President also informed her all-female audience that "employers in Hong Kong are giving in and joining the domestic helpers" and they are organizing a signature campaign in favor of maintaining the present level of wages.
"The People,s Opportunities Commission is speaking against the levy, a recognition that a levy, however disguised, is unfair and discriminatory," she said.
"Kaya duon sa mga tumututol sa suspension, bigyan pa ninyo ako ng kaunti pang pisi, dahil baka umubra ito (I am asking those against our moves to temporarily stop the deployment of domestic helpers to Hong Kong to give me more room to decide on the matter. The boycott might still work)," she added.
The Philippines has Indonesia and Sri Lanka on its side. Foreign domestic helpers also have the sympathy of Hong Kong employers and non-government groups.
"But even if I should need to lift the suspension, and that is still something that I have to make a decision about, I can assure you that we will intensify our lobby to
protect the rights of our overseas Filipinas," the President said.
She said the Philippine government would bring its case before the International Labor Organization, which incidentally is being chaired by Labor and Employment Secretary Patricia Sto. Tomas.
She added that the same case would be brought before the Hong Kong courts. "After all, Hong Kong is a democracy."
In the domestic front, the President also ordered Secretary Sto. Tomas "to study how to reduce what our overseas domestic helpers pay their recruiters to make up, at least partially, for the levy that will be imposed for those who will be hired (in Hong Kong) this April." (PNA)
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