MANILA, 19 April 2003 — Ten labor-exporting countries in Asia have agreed to develop a common stance on issues affecting migrant workers during an international conference in Sri Lanka recently, the Philippine Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said yesterday.
Acting Labor Secretary Manuel Imson said this was the consensus arrived at by representatives of Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam, China and the Philippines.
During the first Labor Migration Ministerial Consultations for Countries of Origin in Asia,” held from April 1-2 in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Imson said they all expressed a strong resolve “to forge greater cooperation to develop a common stance in addressing issues affecting migrant workers.”
The two-day consultations were sponsored by the International Organization on Migration (IOM), and was focused on optimizing benefits of organized labor migration, institutional capacity building, and interstate cooperation.
Its aim was to provide a forum for Asian labor sending countries to share experiences, discuss issues, and identify steps for follow up in the form of recommendations.
Imson said that in both senior officials’ and ministerial level meetings during the consultations, the Philippines discussed extensively the wage cut of domestic helpers in Hong Kong and other issues concerning migrant workers such as welfare and protection services.
“The participation of the Philippines in the consultations provided us with the opportunity to raise the level of awareness of labor sending countries to both existing and potential abuses and discriminatory practices of receiving countries, and to address the same not only through bilateral negotiations but more effectively through strong alliance among labor sending countries,” Imson said.
He said that in recognition of the Philippines’ leadership in this regard, it was the consensus that a follow-up meeting, also to be sponsored by the IOM, be held in Manila next year.
“To underscore the concerns of the participants, it was also the consensus to explore possible dialogues between sending and receiving countries in the Middle East,” Imson added.
For the Manila consultations, Imson bared that the main discussion topic would be on promoting countries that guarantee safe working conditions and protection of migrant workers as preferred destinations by sending governments and recruitment agencies.
The Philippine delegation to the Sri Lanka consultation was headed by Undersecretary Jose S. Brillantes, head of the Department of Foreign Affairs office for migrant workers’ concerns. It also included Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) chief Rosalinda D. Baldoz and labor attachés Bernardino Julve and Esther Guirao as members.
