Last week, DoLE chief Rosalinda Baldoz announced that they have agreed with the Lebanese govt. and signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) stipulating provisions that will provide protection to deployed Filipino domestic workers in its bid to lift the ban imposed by the PH govt.

Simultaneously, with the signing of a bilateral agreement with the Lebanese, the Philippine and Saudi governments signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that is expected to end the ban hiring Filipino domestic workers that was imposed by the Saudi govt. last year.

‘We came to know specific to PH-Saudi agreement on hiring Filipino domestic workers that the host govt. acceded on the minimum wage of $400/month, a weekly day-off, holiday time totaling to 30 days, and free ticket for the OFW upon completion of her contract,” Monterona noted.

Though, Monterona welcomed the above stipulated provisions of the PH-Saudi agreement, he said ‘the many cases of abuses and rampant labor malpractices were never thoroughly given much attention and serious consideration.’

“The effectiveness of these agreements with the Saudi and Lebanese governments hosting thousands of Filipino domestic workers cannot be determined in the absence of mechanisms of enforcement of what were stipulated in the agreements or MoU,” Monterona opined.

Monterona added the passage and ratification of legislation or local laws in adherence to international labor standards providing protection to migrant workers, including domestic workers, accompanied by specific implementing rules and regulations by the host governments are still desired.

“Protection of Filipino migrant workers is not simply a matter of signing off a MoU between the PH and the host governments; it is more of how to seriously implement the stipulated agreements care of the host governments by passing local laws that would guarantee migrant rights and their protection,” Monterona ended. # # #

Written:

John Leonard Monterona

Migrante-Middle East regional coordinator

Israel’s mechanism for deportation is unclear at this point. The UN High Commission on Refugees states that Israel must review each asylum seeker on a case-by-case basis to determine whether or not they are still refugees – in which case Israel cannot deport them without violating their own agreements as well as international law.

Israel has long claimed that the majority of African asylum seekers are economic migrants who, especially because of their often illegal status, can be forcibly and justly repatriated. The birth of South Sudan offers a convenient pretext to implement the controversial deportation policies the Knesset recently passed. But the potential dangers migrants face when they return home are unknown – thus it is crucial that migrants’ refugee status is reviewed individually, and without the bias that is present in much Israeli rhetoric.

Israel’s Sudanese community has reacted to the sudden announcement with understandable despair. Many lament the absence of any conceivable livelihood in the embryonic nation, preferring to delay their return until the country is both politically and economically secure.

OFW Carlo Dayrit Jose, in his late forties, has been imprisoned in Jaw prison, Bahrain’s central jail. He was convicted on the murder of OFW Maricel Garduque in 2000 after a heated argument broke out between them resulting in the woman’s killing.

As per court records, in the same year he has also been diagnosed with Psychological schizophrenia.

According to Bahrain’s Daily Tribune news reporter Mr. Roberto Carillo, OFW Jose is currently ‘the only Filipino to ever receive a life sentence from a Bahraini Court.’ Mr. Carillo conveyed OFW Jose’s pleading for assistance to John Leonard Monterona, Saudi-based Migrante-ME leader.

“I was informed that in 2010, OFW Jose obtained a letter of forgiveness from the mother of the victim in the Philippines and this was forwarded to the Royal court for appropriate action but until now nothing happened,” said John Leonard Monterona, M-ME regional coordinator.

Monterona said OFW Jose has been expecting that he will be released then since he obtained a written forgiveness from the kin of the aggrieved family by virtue of a Royal pardon which the Bahraini Royal family grants every year.

Speaking to Daily Tribune’s Carillo, OFW Jose said, “Almost two years and ten pardons have already passed since the forgiveness letter has been given to the Royal Court. Every time, my hopes are up that I will be included in the distribution of the royal pardons.”

Monterona calls on the Aquino III administration through the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and the PH embassy in Bahrain, and to Vice President Jejomar Binay, presidential adviser on OFWs concerns, to attend and closely follow the application of OFW Jose’s inclusion in the upcoming Royal pardon.

“We came to know that the Bahrain Royal family will issue a pardon this coming February 14, 2012. We are more than happy to see OFW Jose be included in the February 14 pardon grant by the Bahrain Royal family and eventually be released from prison and reunite with his family in the Philippines to start a new life,” Monterona added.

OFW Jose sent us an open letter, as stated below, which he hopes would reach His Majesty the King of Bahrain.

Your Majesty,

My name is Carlo Dayrit Jose, a Filipino national with CPR number 640538720 sentenced to life imprisonment in May 28, 2002 by the higher criminal court for the unpremeditated murder of my fellow Filipino Ms. Maricel Garduque. However, on April 26, 2010 I obtained a letter of forgiveness from the mother of the deceased, Mrs. Norma Garduque which was duly authenticated by the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs.

On October 18, 2010, the Philippine Ambassador to the Kingdom of Bahrain, Her Excellency Ma. Corazon Yap-Bahjin met personally the Minister for the Royal Court, Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa and handed the original letter of forgiveness.

The Minister told the Ambassador that he will forward the letter of forgiveness to His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa.

Your Majesty, numerous amnesties have already (pardoning of inmates) were given by your esteemed office since Ambassador Bahjin handed my letter of forgiveness to the Royal Court. As of this writing, I am still under incarceration.

Your Majesty, please, I am appealing to you to consider my letter. May almighty God bless you with good health and long life. Thank you.

Written by:

John Leonard Monterona

Migrante-Middle East regional coordinator

Minister Nahas’ “revolutionary” declarations came during a conference organized by Insan Association at La Sagesse University in Beirut on “Empowerment and Social Inclusion of Migrant Domestic Workers in Lebanon”, while sitting in between the Spanish Ambassador to Lebanon and the Dean of the Faculty of Law in La Sagesse. This is a major shift in policy with previous ministers of labor and came as a surprise to all conference participants.

Minister Nahas explained “so-called system of the sponsorship or guarantor (kafala) does not exist in Lebanese law.” He clarified that the term was imported from Arab countries where the practice is common, and brought into practice in Lebanon by the Lebanese General Security.

Today, Nahas reiterated via his Twitter account his refusal of a bill specific to foreign domestic workers. “Any labor law that takes into account the nationality of the worker is tantamount to racial discrimination,” he wrote in Arabic.

Earlier in 2011, UN Special Rapporteur on Contemporary forms of Slavery, Ms. Gulnara Shahinian, refrained from suggesting to abolish the sponsorship system in Lebanon because, as Ms. Shahinian has said, she did not have time to explore the alternatives to the sponsorship system, and she did not view labor laws as a viable alternative. Equally, minister Nahas is going against the current global legislative trend which separates domestic work from normal labor as embodied in the recent work towards a Convention on Decent Work for Domestic Workers.

Minister Nahas’ overarching policy in the ministry of labor is to favor Lebanese over foreign workers. This has recently led to a significantly higher rate of denial of work permits to foreigners requested by Lebanese employers. In the words of minister Nahas, “we cannot keep exporting our youth and importing foreign workers”.

In the first case, the Indonesian Consulate fell into its old habits - failing to intervene in the woman’s case until she had been sentenced death. In receiving no representation or even translation services throughout her trial, Mesi binti Dama Idon underwent a lonely journey in a foreign legal system that had disappeared so many migrants before her. While Indonesia ultimately secured her freedom, the unnerving, lengthy process could have been avoided if litigation assistance was provided from the trial’s commencement.

Migrant Care executive director Anis Hidayah has criticized Indonesia’s modus operandi in the past, most recently telling The Jakarta Post that:

Almost all the workers who have avoided beheading in Saudi Arabia had undergone a very long and arduous legal battle. Some of them had actually been imprisoned for more than 10 years [before having their sentences commuted].”

But in what may represent an incremental improvement in the full assumption of responsibility to its overseas citizens, the Indonesian task force provided Neneng Sunengsih with a lawyer, who was able to persuade the courts that there was not enough evidence to convict her. Migrants accused of similar crimes in Saudi Arabia are often sentenced to death.

The task force alo announced that seven other Indonesian citizens will soon receive pardons from the King. While Indonesia’s ad-hoc policy is problematic in that it avoids comprehensive legislation changes in Saudi Arabia, these efforts may designate a shift towards more assertive diplomacy.

The indefinite detention of illegal migrants dispossesses asylum seekers from their basic rights, including the right to trial as well as to timely deportation. The law only requires a review of detention within seven days, and once again every three years. Any crime committed by migrant workers – from graffiti to weapons possession – is grounds for detainment. This default criminalization of migrants and the terms of their detention contradict several international treaties. Mandated periodic reviews that are years apart fail to mitigate these abuses.

The amendment adds to the growing body of legislation targeting migrants, which includes a five to fifteen year prison sentence for individuals aiding or sheltering illegal migrants. The brute response to migrants is entangled in Israel’s ambiguous, ad-hoc refugee process which broadly condemns assylum seekers as economic profiteers; to date, less than 200 asylum seekers have been granted refuge status. Israel has failed to uphold its obligations as a signatory to the Convention on the Status of Refugees, which requires nations to implement substantive assylum law.

The Knesset’s heavy-handed approach to migration is driven by, and itself perpetuates, this misperception of migrant; statements by the Knesset members and citizens alike manufacture a disasterous image of Israel’s future if refugee migration is sustained, stoking fears in the hopes of justifying draconian and discriminatory laws.

The debate over asylum seekers is particularly intense in Israel as many of its own citizens are refugees from Europe. Israeli communities and international organizations have strongly voiced their discontent with the law; a homegrown initiative called STOP the Infiltration Prevention Law Campaign produced an awareness video featured on Care2.com’s politic’s cause page. See the video and responses from other Israeli NGOs here. Amnesty international also condemned the law in a public statement here.

The Indonesian embassy in Saudi paid the fine for Bayanah binti Bahnawi, who was accused of murdering her employer’s 4 year old son. The employer’s forgiveness, a prerequisite for her release under Saudi law, came with the payment of $14,670. Bayanah was cleared of charges in October, which led Indnoesia to question her continued imprisonment. However, Migrant Care director Anis Hidayah states that Bayanah had not received legal assistance from the government throughout her litigation. Bayanah’s father also reported difficulties in attracting his government’s attention while Bayanah underwent several hearings, though the Task Force’s last-minute efforts did prompt Saudi’s amnesty.

The other two migrants, Jamilah binti Abidin Rofi’i and Neneng Sunengsih binti Mamih, were also proven innocent, but did not have to a pay fine.

Tuti Tursilawati, another Indonesian on death row, still awaits her fate. Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal has promised former President BJ Habibie to devote his full efforts to securing Tuti a pardon.

Efforts to release migrants from the death penalty generally follow the same pattern: the migrant’s government appeals to the victim’s family for forgiveness, which often involves a “blood money” payment. Saudi government policy is to stay executions only if the conditions of forgiveness are met. In keeping with the pattern, former Indonesian president BJ Habibie landed in Riyadh Saturday to negotiate with the victim’s family, as well as the Saudi government, for Tuti’s life. Prior to Habibie’s efforts, the current President sent a letter to the regime in October, pleading for her release.

Tuti’s situation reflects the overall failure of Saudi migrant policies. Since few laws exist to protect migrants – especially domestic workers who exist in the hidden sphere of the household – abusive conditions run virtually unrestrained, with no effective means of redress or punishment. Domestic workers must often cope with exploitation and mistreatment in order to avoid further abuse or the loss of employment opportunities, isolated and subject to psychological agony that compounds over time. Domestic workers are at great risk of protracted abuse, which can easily erupt into life-threatening situations for either migrants or their employers. Had an avenue been available for Tuti to redress abuse, the situation in March 2010 may never have come to fruition.

But Indonesia also carries much of the responsibility. Tuti is one of five Indonesian migrants on death row in Saudi Arabia, and part of the 32 worldwide. Migrant Care, Indonesia’s leading migrant rights NGO, accuses the Indonesian government of doing too little, too late. While Indonesia assigned a Migrant Worker’s Task Force to handle death sentences in Saudi, and claims to have saved and repatriated 44 migrants, Migrant Care asserts that the Task Force represents an ineffective “ad-hoc” fix rather than a long term solution. The Task Force addresses problems as they arise, rather than working to enforce permanent policies that would prevent legal abuses.

Migrant workers do commit crimes, and some are truly guilty. But Saudi’s legal system tends to treat migrants in an entirely unequal framework, often barring them form proper representation and even translating services. Consequently, migrants, guilty or not, are barred from the rights that all accused parties deserve. The absence of migrant rights in the judicial process inflates the number of the guilty, and can result in harsher, iniquitous punishments.

Migrant Care executive directory Anis Hidayah emphasizes the necessity of ratifying the International Convention on the Rights of Migrant Workers, which will require Indonesia to institute legislation that establishes standards of migrant treatment in receiving nations. So far, Indonesia has shied away from permanent, long-term protective laws, instead pursuing indefinite bans that have historically had little lasting effect. Preventing abuse, minimizing the opportunity for exploitation, and ensuring evenhanded legal treatment would create a lawful environment favorable to both nations.

Earlier articles spotlighted GAMCA’s overly stringent and unfair TB policies, characteristics which appear to extend to many more of GAMCA’s medical requirements. StopGAMCA.org, initiated by a concerned citizen, highlights the absurd policies and the undue distress they cause applicants.The site lists several of the most extraneous disqualifications, many of which are not only non-infectious but also non-medical; physical disabilities that pose zero threat to Gulf societies, including vertigo, colorblindness, and deafness, render migrants ‘unfit’ by GAMCA standards.

StopGAMCA.org also hosts a petition urging the GCC countries to alter their guidelines. Among the signatories include migrants directly affected by the discriminatory regulations. Opponents recognize that while nations must protect themselves from disease, GAMCA’s current policies are erroneous and overly intrusive measures of health.