MANILA, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- One hundred seventy-seven more distressed Filipino workers from Kuwait arrived in Manila on Sunday, bringing the number of repatriated overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to 1,700.
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said the OFWs, the majority of whom are household service workers who availed of the Kuwaiti government's amnesty program, were repatriated from their employers in the Gulf state.
"Many of the distressed OFWs are victims of illegal recruitment who entered Kuwait through neighboring countries," the DFA said.
The DFA continues to negotiate with the Kuwaiti government for an extension of the amnesty program which will allow undocumented OFWs to process the documents needed to work legally in Kuwait.
The repatriated OFWs will be leaving for their home provinces after receiving 5,000 pesos (96 U.S. dollars) in financial assistance from the DFA.
The Philippine government has recently launched an aggressive campaign to educate and inform Filipinos about human trafficking to prevent them from falling prey to unscrupulous groups and individuals who take advantage of Filipinos who wish to work abroad especially in the Middle East.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered a total ban on new deployment of Filipino workers in Kuwait after the body of a Filipino was found in a freezer in an abandoned apartment unit.
But the Department of Labor and Employment later clarified that those with existing contracts on vacation in the Philippines can still go back to Kuwait.
Duterte's order prompted the Philippine embassy in Kuwait to quickly respond to reports of abuses from distressed OFWs.
The number of distressed OFWs has increased in recent years, prompting the embassy there to set up a temporary shelter for OFWs who escape from abusive employers and who seek refuge in the embassy.
"The DFA and the embassy continue to work closely with the Kuwaiti government in protecting and promoting the rights and welfare of OFWs in Kuwait," the DFA said.
The most recent batch of repatriated OFWs are among the 10,000 overstaying OFWs that DFA and the embassy are working hard to repatriate as soon as possible.
There are approximately 250,000 Filipinos working in Kuwait, 75 percent of which are domestic helpers, according to government records.
Despite the grim plight of workers in Kuwait, the government said some 300 Filipinos continue to apply for work in Kuwait every day.
