By Meshaal Al-Enezi and Ben Garcia

KUWAIT: At a meeting with Filipino community leaders late Saturday, Philippine Department of Labor and Employment Secretary Silvestre Bello III reiterated his country's desire to get justice for murdered Filipino housemaid Jeanelyn Villavende, saying Manila is not backing down on the total labor deployment ban to Kuwait until justice is served to Villavende.

"We are clear on our position - we will not back down. We will lift the ban only if justice is given to Villavende, and also more importantly, the long-overdue implementation of the standard or harmonized employment contract which we've been discussing between the technical working groups of both countries in accordance with the provision of the memorandum of agreement signed in 2018," Bello said.

Yesterday, Kuwaiti Finance Minister and Acting State Minister for Economic Affairs Mariam Aqeel met Bello and his delegation in the presence of Kuwait's Ambassador to Manila Musaed Al-Thuwaikh. Aqeel said several issues were discussed with the visiting minister, including the killing of Villavende. The minister stated her rejection to what the maid was subjected to, adding that "what happened cannot be accepted and the entire Kuwaiti people do not accept any violations of labor rights in the country".

The minister said the case is in the courts now, expressing confidence in the Kuwaiti judiciary "which restores rights to those who deserve them and applies the law on all". She also lauded bilateral relations between Kuwait and the Philippines, adding that the death of the helper is a "rare case" that must not affect relations between the two countries.

Aqeel said Kuwait receives a large number of Filipino workers every month to work in a stable market where labor rights are safeguarded, adding nearly 10,000 Filipinos of both genders entered Kuwait the previous month. She said the Filipino delegation will discuss the implementation of the labor agreement between Kuwait and the Philippines to reach the best results with regards to domestic helpers.

Some Filipino observers in Kuwait are confused. Speaking to Kuwait Times on the condition of anonymity, one of them said the Philippines is implementing the total deployment ban and demanding justice for Villevende, yet at the same time the delegation of Philippine officials is meeting several Philippine- and Kuwait-based recruitment agencies to talk business and the welfare of Filipino workers.

"It means business as usual - they want business to continue," he argued. "It means we are not serious on the ban and probably the call for justice for Villavende is far from reality. We are giving false hope to Villavende's family, or maybe it will follow later - I don't know.

If we are indeed serious on justice for our kabayan (countrymen), which we all want, the Philippine government should wait until justice is served regardless of the pace or how many years the trial takes. As we all know, justice has to undergo a process - let us wait for that to be served before bringing these recruitment agencies to talk about business and opportunities," he added.

Sandigan Kuwait Domestic Workers Association's Founding Chairperson Anne Abunda, who is actively campaigning for a "moratorium" to be implemented on the deployment of Filipino domestic helpers in Kuwait, expressed dismay over the fact that many foreign and Manila-based recruitment agencies were present at the event.

"We are supporting the ban, and we are happy with the decision of Secretary Bello; however, you can see foreign recruitment agencies and Philippine-based agencies trying to lobby for the immediate lifting of the ban," Abunda said. Is Bello giving false hope to recruitment agencies or maybe the lifting of the ban has already been planned? I see it as unfair to the sacrifices of many OFWs who are affected by the ban - returning OFWs who were unable to go back to their employers," she said.

On Saturday, the delegation from Manila arrived in Kuwait and immediately set a meeting with concerned parties. First on the list of appointments in Kuwait was the joint meeting of the technical working groups of both countries. Yesterday and today, the TWG discussed the welfare and protection of household service workers, which includes the standard employment contract to prevent abuse and mistreatment by employers.

Through this contract, housemaids can keep their passports, mobile phones, have a day off a week and prevent being transferred from one employer to another without the written consent from the workers subject to approval by the Philippine Labor Office in Kuwait. Before meeting the community, Bello was accorded a warm welcome at an event organized by the Kuwait Union of Domestic Labor Offices (KUDLO), along with groups of foreign and Philippine recruitment agencies.

At the community meeting, a majority of Filipino community leaders wanted the total deployment ban to be downgraded to a partial ban and allow returning domestic workers to go back to their employers. "The government should ban the deployment of domestic helpers, but should lift the ban on returning workers," one community leader said at the meeting.