By Vir B. Lumicao
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| New teachers taking their oath |
Hong Kong-based OFWs returning home to teach should tell the
students, parents and other adults about the hardships and risks they would
face if they work illegally abroad, Consul General Bernardita Catalla said.
Catalla warned that illegal recruitment was again rearing
its head, luring Filipina domestic helpers in Hong Kong with promises of high
pay and better benefits, and leaving them high and dry in faraway countries
like Russia and Turkey.
“Hanggang ngayon
marami pa ring nai-illegal recruit. Dapat ipaalam natin kung ano ang buhay sa
abroad, kung sino ang dapat nating paniwalaan, sino ang hindi dapat, in
terms of yung recruitment process
(Until now, many are still being recruited illegally.
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| CG Catalla shares joke with teachers |
“We should tell them how life is abroad, who we should
listen to and who to avoid, in terms of recruitment process,” Catalla told about
75 aspiring teachers who took their oath on Mar 26 at the Consulate.
The consul general discussed illegal recruitment as she disclosed
she would leave Hong Kong late this year to serve as Philippine ambassador to
Lebanon where, she said, 90% of Filipino helpers were working illegally due to
a ban on hiring foreign maids since 2007.
China has also banned imported domestic workers, but illegal
recruiters have devised ways to get Filipinas into that country to work as
house help, Catalla said.
“May bagong imbensiyon
sila ngayon, puwedeng mag-hire ng domestic workers ang high-salaried expats. Totoo,
malaki ang suweldo pero magiging illegal naman kayo,” the consul general said.
The consul general advised the teachers to read about
countries where they want to go, as it is important to know the laws and
traditions of those places.
Catalla said she learned about the illegal recruitment
problem in Lebanon when she started researching about the Middle Eastern
country to prepare herself for her posting.
“Noong binabasa ko nga
ang tungkol sa Lebanon, eh, ang laki ng binabayad sa atin, sila ang gagastos ng
kanilang pamasahe, gagastos sila ng lahat, tapos hindi maganda ang kondisyon
nila doon, di tulad sa Hong Kong. Nagtataka nga ako eh, bakit sila pupunta ng
Lebanon
Some illegal recruiters deployed Filipina helpers to Russia and
Turkey and, as soon as the workers arrived in those countries, the agencies left
them on their own.
“Pagdating doon,
nagpupunta sila sa embahada at ang sasabihin ay galing sila sa Hong Kong.
We have made representations with the Turkish consul general at medyo natigil na iyan,” Catalla said.
Catalla recalled that there was a Russian who used to
recruit Filipinas for purported jobs in Russia or Turkey. When they got there,
the Filipinas had to move from one employer to another and they were in worse
conditions than in Hong Kong, she said.
“Kaya siguro isa na
ang Hong Kong sa pinakamagandang lugar na pinatatrabahuhan dahil protected tayo,” Catalla said.
Yet there were still Filipinos who come to Hong Kong and use
it as a springboard for illegal work on the mainland, Catalla said, citing two
incidents just months ago.
First, in December last year, two Filipinas disappeared in Shenzhen
while on a group tour and a CCTV review showed them being fetched by a man.
