Over 260,000 Filipinos work in Kuwait, of whom 60 percent are domestic laborers

KUWAIT: There have been no changes on the ground in the treatment and conditions of many Filipino domestic helpers in Kuwait despite a new working arrangement between the Philippines and Kuwaiti government being reached in 2019.

A dispute between Kuwait and the Philippines over the treatment of domestic helpers took place in 2018 wherein Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte had temporarily suspended deployment of Filipinos to Kuwait over allegations of abuse and mistreatment. His decision was based following the murder of a young maid whose body was found in an apartment freezer in February 2018, which was discovered only one year and a half after her murder.

The row was aggravated when videos surfaced on social media showing Philippine embassy officials helping domestic helpers abscond from their allegedly abusive employers. Philippine Ambassador to Kuwait Renato Villa was expelled and some embassy employees were arrested. About 260,000 Philippine citizens live and work in Kuwait, most as domestic servants.

The agreement initially signed between Kuwait and the Philippines include the right of workers to keep their passports and mobile phones, which are routinely confiscated by employers in Kuwait. The agreement also guarantees food, housing, clothing and health insurance - and employment contracts would be renewed only with approval from Philippine officials.

Kuwait Times spoke with Filipino domestic helpers working in Kuwait to see if any changes had taken place since. "I don't see any changes at all. It's the same as before. I don't have a day off, I don't hold my passport and to make it worse I don't receive salary on time. I don't know, maybe the changes can be felt only by people working in embassy, but on the ground, from us, we are puzzled as we don't feel any difference," said Anna Sarte who is a domestic helper in Kuwait. "To whom the agreement was crafted for? Is that really for us, or was that a protection for the embassy officials or recruitment agency only?" Sarte asked.

Glynn Lanticse said she felt no changes in the treatment of most of her friends in the house help sector. "I am very fortunate to have a kind-hearted employer. I have a day off although only once in every month, but I am fully satisfied with it, no more complaints. Many of my friends in the household sector do not have even one day off; not even once a month, and no passport as well. It is good that I have it for a long time, even way before the agreement was signed," she noted. "But if you were to follow the agreement, they have to provide the passport to us; no confiscation, and the day off must be once every week at least," she said.

Other domestic workers echoed the sentiment. "The same treatment; no changes. I am not surprised though and for me, as long as they are not treating us badly in the house, I can still stay and work patiently; after all, I came not for the day off but for the money that I need for the family," said Catherine Maganto.

Wilma Blancia said she hoped to see the regular monitoring at the Kuwaiti houses of agency owners and staff, if not from the embassy of Pinoy workers. "I know there is an issue of sovereignty if the embassy lead monitoring and visits to Kuwaiti houses, so if that is the case, if they are not permitted, there must be [monitoring] from the local agency's side, maybe accompanied by Kuwaiti civilians or if they allowed to, Kuwaiti police to accompany them. I really believe the need to monitor the condition of our Pinoy workers working inside homes. If they do not agree with it, we must reconsider deploying our workers in Kuwait," she said.

Marz Gonzales, a Philippine-based agency owner, who also sends domestic helpers to Kuwait, admitted that there have been rampant violations in the part of employers. "Yes, I think, very few are following that agreement. The government should make it a point to talk to the host country for the full implementation of what was really in the agreement and the contract of household service workers," she added. There are more than 260,000 Filipinos working in Kuwait, around 60 percent of them in domestic labor, according to Manila. More than two million Filipinos are employed across the Gulf.

By Ben Garcia