Migrante International, a global alliance of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), today said that it is time for the Aquino administration to review its current export labor policy. In a press statement, the organization said that with the recent developments in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the government should start deviating from its labor export policy. They added that the government should instead focus on creating decent and sustainable local jobs in order to end the cycle of forced migration. Saudi recently set a 6-year work permit cap for foreigners, which will affect at least 35,000 OFWs.[http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/global-filipino/05/31/11/saudi-sets-6-yr-work-limit-foreigners-migrante] “We view statements from concerned government agencies stating that they are unworried and unperturbed as plain empty bravado,” said Gerry Martinez, Migrante International chairperson. ' “Our economy is so dependent on labor export and the influx of OFW remittances that it cannot simply just brush aside the loss of revenue from at least 35,000 OFWs.” He also criticized the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), saying that its reintegration program did not help in addressing the problem of unemployment or job generation. Martinez said that there are no jobs available for returning OFWs, given that there are already 12 million unemployed workers. “The government’s recourse is to once again seek markets for them abroad despite the ongoing global financial crisis,” added Martinez. “It’s a never-ending vicious cycle.” Source:- http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/global-filipino/06/02/11/pnoy-urged-end-forced-migration-create-more-jobs
Exactly end this legalised slave trade, stop being the worlds servants and start building a strong economy inside the Philippines, export goods not people.
