MP Mohammad Al-Huwailah

KUWAIT: The National Assembly's foreign relations committee said yesterday that it will submit an investigation report on problems with the Philippines government regarding the deployment of the Filipino workers in Kuwait before the start of the next parliamentary term in October.

Rapporteur of the committee MP Mohammad Al-Huwailah said that the panel discussed the issue of the Filipino workers in accordance with a decision by the national assembly. He said the report of the discussion will be ready soon and before the start of the next term.

Kuwait and the Philippines were involved in a diplomatic row a few months ago over allegations of mistreatment of Filipina domestic helpers. The dispute intensified amid fiery statements from the Philippine president and after Philippine embassy staff helped smuggle a number of maids from their employers claiming they had been abused. The dispute was resolved later and diplomatic relations returned to normal. During the crisis, the national assembly asked the foreign relations committee to investigate the issue.

By B Izzak