THE Department of Labor and Employment on
Friday said it is seeking a re-assessment of the deployment ban
on overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) entering Iraq as the number
of undocumented OFWs continues to rise despite the said ban laid
down by government in 2004.
"From the reports we received, nasa 15,000 na
ang OFWs natin doon," Labor Secretary Marianito Roque said.
He said all these workers are undocumented
and mostly employed in military camps, based on reports from
Philippine Overseas Labor Offices (POLOs) in countries near
Iraq. He said most OFWs entered Iraq from neighboring Kuwait,
Bahrain, Qatar and Dubai.
He admitted that the high pay is what is
fueling the illegal entry of Filipino workers to Iraq. "How
could you refuse kung ang offer naman sa iyo ay malaking suweldo?
Imagine, washing machine operator lang doon ay kumikita ng
US$800 per month. Mayroon pa ibinibigay ang mga sundalo minsan
na tip kaya hindi mo talaga sila mapipigilan na pumasok sa
Iraq."
In the face of this reality, Roque said he
will ask the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Middle East
Preparedness Team to re-assess the current situation in Iraq to
determine if they should lift or maintain the deployment ban. He
said DOLE is interested in finding out if there has been a drop
in the number of violent incidents or not.
"Dumadalang na daw ang incidents of violence
so we are asking for re-assessment," Roque said.
The ban on the deployment of OFWs to Iraq came in 2004 due to
the abduction and threatened beheading of truck driver Angelo
dela Cruz by Iraqi militants who only released him after
President Arroyo pulled out of the coalition of countries
militarily supporting the US war against Saddam Hussein. –
Gerard M. Naval
