Fast track repatriation of undocumented Pinoys in Kuwait, PHL govt urged

As Kuwaiti authorities strengthen their efforts to clamp down illegal and undocumented Filipinos abroad, a Filipino migrants' rights group has urged Philippine labor officials to fast-track the repatriation of distress overseas Filipino workers there. "The Philippine Embassy in Kuwait should double its time... for the mass repatriation of distress and undocumented Filipino workers who are now under its care [and] temporarily staying at the Filipino Workers Resource Center," John Leonard Monterona, Migrante-Middle East regional coordinator, said in a statement Wednesday. Monterona noted that as announced by the Kuwaiti government, the Amiri amnesty will be ending on June 30. The Amiri amnesty allows residency violators to modify their status or leave the country without paying any fines unless they are banned from travel due to lawsuits. "We are calling on the Aquino [administration] through the Department of Foreign Affairs to think about sending additional support staff to help the Philippine post in Kuwait in attending the formality requirements for the mass repatriation of OFWs," said Monterona. Monterona said based on their monitoring there are more than 200 OFWs — distress and undocumented combined — who sought to avail the Amiri amnesty. "There could be more out there who were not informed about the amnesty," he added. "I have asked our Migrante officers and members in Kuwait to conduct massive information dissemination campaign by distributing leaflets and posters to various OFWs tambayans and places where they normally converge urging the undocumented to avail the Amiri amnesty," Monterona said. - JE, GMA News