MANILA (UCAN): “We cannot just turn a blind eye to what happened to her,” said Bishop Narciso Abellana, head of Pastoral Care for Migrants and Itinerant People of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines.
He was remarking on the case of 35-year-old migrant worker, Jullebee Ranara, who was raped and murdered, and her body buried in the desert in Kuwait. Her body was found by Kuwaiti authorities on January 22. The Al Rai newspaper reported that the autopsy revealed she was pregnant when she died.
Bishop Abellana made his call along with Philippine labour activists
“All governments, regardless of religious denomination, should understand the importance of the dignity of the human person even if he or she is a domestic helper,” the bishop said.
Left-leaning labour group, Kilusang Mayo [May movement], organised a protest rally in front of the Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila on January 25, to pressure the Kuwait government to bring the perpetrators to justice.
“Although we are happy that the suspect has been arrested, we hope justice will be served to our fellow overseas worker after the brutal death and treatment she suffered,” the group’s spokesperson, Gerard Urbano, said.
Kilusang Mayo said Philippine migrant authorities should double-check labour contracts with Middle Eastern countries to safeguard the rights of Filipino workers.
All governments, regardless of religious denomination, should understand the importance of the dignity of the human person even if he or she is a domestic helper
Bishop Abellana
“A heinous crime was committed against a Filipino overseas worker… this is not an isolated case. There have been cases of abuse in the past, yet our government has not even revisited our laborers’ contracts to make sure they are protected,” Urbano pointed out.
According to a 2021 report from the Philippine Overseas Workers Welfare Administration, Filipino overseas workers have been experiencing rising sexual abuse in Middle Eastern countries.
As we celebrate the 500 years of Christianity in the Philippines. The Chaplaincy to Filipino Migrants organises an on-line talk every Tuesday at 9.00pm. You can join us at:
https://www.Facebook.com/CFM-Gifted-to-give-101039001847033
“Sadly, our domestic workers are excluded from labour laws in Middle Eastern countries. It is painful to see our workers move to the Middle East to work but face sexual abuse. Some tribes in the Middle East gave this notion that if you’re a domestic worker or a paid person working for them, sexual abuse becomes a part of your work,” Foreign Affairs undersecretary, Sarah Arriola, told reporters.
In January 2021, 60 per cent of Filipina women who work in the Middle East were subjected to the “kafala” system, which bound migrant workers to their employers, resulting in the confiscation of their passports until their contracts came to an end, according to the Philippine Information Agency.
Despite the danger, thousands of Filipino workers risked their lives to work in the Middle East just to make a better living, according to experts.
“It’s a human phenomenon of self-sacrifice. Our mothers would rather serve in a foreign country just to feed their children. Despite the overwhelming abuse that happens there, many of our mothers take the risk for a better future for their kids,” Filipino sociologist, David Cue, explained.
Government data shows that more than 2.22 million Filipinos were employed in various countries as of January 2021. Saudi Arabia had the highest number of Filipino migrant workers with an estimated 865,121 and followed by 648,929 workers in the United Arab Emirates.
In 2022, nearly 6,000 cases of maltreatment and abuse of overseas Filipino workers had been reported, the majority of which came from the Middle East with 5,201 cases, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority. Only about 200 cases made it to the courts.
In 2022, Filipino expatriates remitted about 155 billion pesos [$21.3 billion], according to the Finance Department.
