RIYADH, 4 May 2005 — Jose S. Brillantes, the Philippine foreign undersecretary for migrant workers affairs, yesterday said he has met with officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Justice on behalf of the more than 900,000 Filipinos in the Kingdom.

Brillantes, who was accompanied by Ambassador Bahnarim A. Guinomla, said he asked Saudi officials for “better understanding and accommodation for Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs), especially by the local recruitment agencies.”

“We entrusted our OFWs to you by deploying them in the Kingdom, so we hope the sponsors should also take care of them and give them a chance to be helpful to them,” he recalled having said.

The officials, in turn, suggested that the Philippines hold pre-departure seminar for OFWs about to be deployed so that they know what to do when they arrive in Saudi Arabia, Brillantes told Arab News yesterday.

He added, however, that the Philippines had long been giving pre-departure orientation, known as PDOS, to all outgoing OFWs.

“Before they leave, OFWs are told what to expect in the Kingdom. We tell them about the nature of life here and what are allowed and what are not. We tell, them for instance, that a man and a woman who are not legally married could not go out together. But many of our countrymen may fall into situation wherein they act as if they are in the Philippines. So I told the Saudi authorities that there has to be some tolerance and understanding,” he said.

Brillantes left the Kingdom last night. Before visiting Riyadh, he passed by the Eastern Province and met with Filipino community leaders to know more about the problems facing OFWs there. He said he was told that the most common problems raised include delayed or non-payment of salaries, long working hours, and maltreatment.

Brillantes assured the community that the embassy, consulate and the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) and even non-government organizations (NGOs) have been continuously working to address the problems of compatriots.

He added that the service which the Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs (OUMWA) renders includes legal protection for OFWs with legal problems in the Kingdom and other countries.

Brillantes said he skipped the Western region since he was there last year.

“But I would be there the next time that I visit the Kingdom,” he said.

Brillantes arrived in the Kingdom Sunday morning after attending the Convention for the Protection of Rights of Migrant Workers and their Families on April 24-28. He was elected vice chairman of the ten-member convention.