In celebration of International Migrants Day on December 18, 2021, the Commission on Human Rights of the Philippines stands by and is in solidarity with overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and members of their families, who sacrifice their time away from home to provide for their loved ones as skilled healthcare workers, domestic workers, construction workers, agricultural workers, peacekeepers, and seafarers. With over 10 million Filipinos abroad, OFWs provide the mass labor fueling the economies of the Philippines and the receiving countries where they work through the remittances, taxes and services OFWs pay for. The COVID-19 pandemic has tested the rigor and resilience of OFWs and their families, and like many migrant workers around the world, they have also experienced challenges and abuses against their human rights in the midst of global, transborder and national responses and restrictions imposed by governments.
The Commission recognizes the invaluable contribution of migrants on the frontlines of COVID-19. But as OFWs continue to play a critical role in key sectors such as health, transport and delivery services, agriculture, domestic work, and caregiving, which allowed countries across the world to continue operating and provide essential services during the crisis, it is more important to call attention to the disproportionate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on migrants and their families.
Migrants, especially those in irregular situations, face a higher risk of experiencing negative impacts of the pandemic on their ability to access healthcare services, social protection, decent work, and adequate living conditions. Many migrants, especially female migrant workers, face an even higher risk of exploitation, abuse, and sexual or gender-based violence, based on the cases reported to the Commission. Many migrants also risk being exposed to precarious and unhealthy living or working conditions exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Many others are forcibly returned against international standards and without any health, social and financial support.
The Commission recognizes recent policies that the Philippine government has implemented to respond to the needs of OFWs and their families. Recently, the COVID-19 Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) announced to raise the annual ceiling of deployment of newly hired healthcare workers from 6,500 to 7,000, through IATF Resolution 153, signed on December 9, 2021. In the beginning of the pandemic, the government imposed a deployment ban for Filipino health workers so they can assist in the pandemic response in the country instead of seeking employment abroad, to which various healthcare worker groups protested against. The Commission supports the lifting of this restriction in order to fulfill the right of freedom of movement and the right of healthcare workers to pursue decent work abroad, as much as it supports the added 500 more slots for the deployment of health workers outside the country.
While many of us only learned to live with the pain of being away from friends and family, struggled to adapt with the “new normal” and the threat of unemployment because of COVID-19, migrants have been living this reality long before the pandemic. The emerging impacts of the pandemic includes an estimate of over 600,000 OFWs and counting are affected by lay-offs and non-payment of wages. In 2020 alone, the Department of Foreign Affairs reported that there were 327,511 overseas Filipinos were repatriated, including migrant worker repatriates who returned to the country empty-handed and unemployed.
The Commission also acknowledges the government efforts to ease the plight of repatriated OFWs through different forms of aid. Social amelioration programs such as the one-time cash grant of PHP 10,000 to displaced OFWs can temporarily assist in the economic struggles of OFWs and their families but a more sustainable approach to reintegration and provision of decent jobs in the country would prove more effective in resolving the social and economic impacts.
The Commission recognizes the efforts of the Department of Health to provide health services for migrants and overseas Filipino returnees but we also urge the government to closely monitor the situation of our migrants and ensure their access to vaccines and other health services in receiving countries as well, and enhance the education campaign on the importance of COVID-19 vaccines.
The Commission continues to engage with the government and civil society to find human rights-based solutions and access to justice and redress for labor rights and human rights issues and violations experienced by migrants and members of their families, particularly at this time of the pandemic. The Philippine Government is under the intersessional period of reporting to the UN Committee on Migrant Workers for the monitoring of the implementation of the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families (Convention). We call on the government to respond to the List of Issues Prior To Reporting, and organize consultations with the CHR and civil society so together we can assess the compliance of the State to the Convention. The Philippines is also active in the process of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM), and we urge the government to remain transparent and collaborative in implementing the national action plan with civil society, the CHR and other stakeholders to achieve the objectives of the GCM.
On this special occasion for migrants, the Commission calls for the government and all stakeholders to use the pandemic as an opportune time to recalibrate our strategies in realizing the human rights of migrants and members of their families. There is a need for whole-of-society approach to determine and address the gaps involved in the migration phenomenon, especially in this time of pandemic. The Commission commits to continuously: receive, document, and investigate migrant cases within its jurisdiction; recommend human rights-based policies to the government; and strengthen sending and receiving country- coordination among fellow national human rights institutions. Let this International Migrants Day serve as a strong reminder that States and relevant stakeholders still have enormous responsibilities to ensure that human rights and labor rights of migrant workers and members of their families are respected, protected and fulfilled.