EVERY seventh of June, the Philippines commemorates the “heroism” of
compatriots who have been a visible reason for the steady growth of
their motherland’s economy.
National Migrant Workers’ Day marks the anniversary of a law to protect
the rights and welfare of overseas Filipinos and their families, which
resulted from the execution of domestic worker Flor Contemplacion by
Singapore back in March 1995.
That episode created diplomatic tension between the two countries, as
well as national shame for a country that then had no enabling law for
migrant workers’ protection. Over the decades since Contemplacion’s
execution, the Philippines has come to “excel” in migration management.
The current Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act, revised twice
since then, spells out regulations and bureaucratic responsibilities to
ensure safe and orderly labour migration.
Filipinos are now in over-200 countries and territories, in all sorts of
occupations, with their migration status either legal or irregular.
Filipinos have contributed to countries’ economic growth, especially
countries facing demographic shortfalls and labour shortages.
The estimated 10.3 million overseas Filipinos have, unfortunately,
become the Philippines’ top export. As the country’s agriculture and
manufacturing sectors continue to struggle, overseas migration is a
search for more gainful opportunities in low-skilled work.
The Philippines has lobbied for better rights for its citizens abroad,
including pushing Hong Kong to stop domestic workers cleaning windows of
high rise buildings. Source: AP
Remittances have been the reason for overseas Filipinos’ symbolic tag as
“heroes” since a formal labour export program began in 1974.
From the 1970s to the mid-2000s, remittances helped shore up the
economy’s fiscal issues, mitigated the impacts of domestic unemployment,
and somewhat help buoy the Philippines’ gross national product.
Since the 2008 Global Financial Crisis, however, the Philippine economy
has become one of the top economic performers in the world. Sustained
GDP growth at an annual average of 6 percent over the past decade has
coincided with a larger workforce.
This gives the Philippines a chance —a 30-year window, says some
demographic projections— to attract investment and keep workers at home.
Yet the story remains largely unchanged.
The Philippines recently saw itself in a standoff with Kuwait, as it
demanded better protections and employment regulation for Filipina
domestic workers. A four-month diplomatic saga started with the
discovery of Joanna Demafelis’ brutal murder by her Arab employers, her
body mutilated and left in a refrigerator for a year. It angered
President Rodrigo Duterte.
Last month, a memorandum of agreement on hiring domestic workers was
finally signed between the two countries and diplomatic relations were
restored. But implementation of the legislative changes by Kuwaiti
authorities is another matter.
Migrant workers from Southeast Asia hold a banner and flags as they
attend a workers rights rally in Hong Kong on December 16, 2012. Source:
Antony Dickson / AFP
Many Filipinos abroad remain viewed as “lowly” domestic workers; spouses
found online by partners from richer countries and who migrated for
economic security; or men trafficked into occupations that are different
to those promised in their work contracts.
They have also been understood as bearers of the Christian faith:
selfless workers enduring tough conditions to please employers and earn
more for their families; behaved foreigners in host country societies.
Even in the age of social media, these narratives remain unchanged.
Filipinos back home continue to send souvenir items known as balikbayan boxes – meaning “returning home” in Tagalog – a generation-old practice. Many pity their compatriots abroad.
Filipinos’ overseas migration has already brought about socio-cultural,
economic and institutional changes in Philippine society, sociologist
and historian Filomeno Aguilar, Jr. writes in his anthology The Migration Revolution. It has seen class structures totally reconfigured.
Given the Philippine economy’s demographic transition and recent success, will narratives about Filipinos abroad ever change?
Domestic workers from Indonesia and the Philippines on their day off. Source: Flickr.
Will Filipino food be mainstreamed in host societies and capture the imagination curious foreign taste buds?
With Filipinos abroad now an influential force for their motherland, and
them being exposed to better systems abroad, how can gruesome migration
tales be changed for the better?
Or will there be more of a new breed of Filipino migrant entrepreneurs
braving the riskier agricultural sector back home, while Filipino banks
remain averse in handing out credit?
The homeland and its institutions, especially the Philippine government,
have their work cut out to fulfill ambitions of comfortable living for
Filipinos.
But so do Filipinos abroad: they can chart newer tales and knock down
ageing stereotypes of themselves. That will be through the love they
usually show to their families, through better remittance management,
through improved and sustained relations with locals in host countries,
and through a renewed sense of Filipino citizenship even while they’re
away.
Jeremaiah Opiniano is a doctoral
student (geography) at The University of Adelaide in Australia. He also
handles a nonprofit research group on migration and development issues
in the Philippines: the Institute for Migration and Development Issues
(IMDI).
** This is the personal opinion of the writer and does not reflect the views of Asian Correspondent
Source: Reuters/Dondi Tawatao
