Maids crisis looms; Ramadan is nearing – No to Manila demand

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KUWAIT CITY, Jan 31: The Kuwaiti Federation of Domestic Labor Recruitment Agencies has warned of the consequences of falling into the crisis again – the crisis of the shortage of domestic workers in the labor market during the next stage, citing the inability to provide workers at reasonable prices in light of closing the door on other domestic labor exporting countries and continue dealing with one or two countries.

Speakers at a press conference held in the office of the union’s president, Khaled Al Dakhnan, in Salwa a difference emerged during the meeting of Kuwait and the Philippines sides two days ago about adding a new condition in addition to adhering to the memorandum of agreement between the two countries.

Condition
The sources said the Philippines demanded imposing a condition on recruitment agencies requiring them to pay a financial guarantee of $10,000 that can be used of when a dispute occurs between the sponsor and the worker, which means the arrival of the workers will be delayed much after the holy month of Ramadan which falls in April.

Those who addressed the meeting indicated their absolute rejection of this condition, even if it meant stopping to bring in workers from the Philippines, especially since there are many false allegations made by some workers, stressing the offices are committed to the systems, regulations and clauses of Kuwaiti law and will not submit to the Philippines, which continues to raise false claims and tries to defame Kuwait in front of human rights organizations.

Al-Dakhnan stressed one of the objectives of the Union is to try to reduce the prices of bringing in domestic workers, but this seems to have reached a point of no return so as to say due to lack of cooperation from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, indicating that the Union sought as much as possible during its visit to many countries to provide domestic workers at reasonable prices, but there is still one agreement from the countries that export domestic workers, which is the Philippines, noting that neighboring countries have open agreements.

Al-Dakhnan said, “We have become bound by a certain nationality, which makes it control and impose its conditions without deterrence, calling on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to open dealing with African countries and to sign agreements with other countries if everyone wants to reduce prices, saying ‘do not put us at the mercy of the Philippines’.”

Reduction
Director General of the Union of Domestic Workers’ Offices Abdulaziz Al-Ali ruled out the possibility of reduction in domestic labor prices in light of ‘difficulties’ in dealing with labor-exporting countries, and put the ball in the government court for failure to sign memoranda of understanding with the countries that export domestic workers. Secretary of the Union, Ali Shamouh, said that the issue of domestic workers is thorny and requires concerted efforts, while the Vice-President of the union Abdullah LafiAl-Habaj stressed on the need for the government to move towards signing memoranda of understanding with new countries.

By Faris Al-Abdan Al-Seyassah Staff

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