News Release
28 January 2007

For reference:           Dolores Balladares
                          Chairperson
                          Tel. No.: 97472986, 31562447

“Scrap POEA guidelines! GMA, extortionist!”
Thousands in HK protest against POEA guidelines

Chanting “Scrap POEA guidelines” and “GMA, mangongotong! (extortionist)”, 5,000 Filipino migrants workers snaked through Central in Hong Kong today to protest the new POEA guidelines on the deployment of domestic helpers.

Dolores Balladares, chairperson of the militant United Filipinos in Hong Kong (UNIFIL-MIGRANTE-HK), said that the protest action was just the first in the series of bigger ones that they are planning to organize to scrap the new prequalification measures of the POEA for Filipinos applying for domestic work abroad.

“Whenever the government is in dire need of money due to its bankrupt and corrupt economic policies, we are the ones who are made milking cows to fatten its coffers,” she said.

The rallyists held a program at Harcourt Garden, just below the building that houses the Philippine Consulate General, where protest leaders lambasted the said guidelines while others related concrete experiences of its adverse impacts.

After the program, the protesters submitted a petition, signed by more than 130 organizations, that called for the scrapping of the new rules while also calling for genuine services to overseas Filipinos.

The protesters believed that the new regulations are but mere “ploys for extortion”.

Under the said rules, applying domestic helpers must pass through several weeks of training to obtain the National Certificate for Household Service Workers, as the country-specific Language and Culture Certificate.

“Applicants are made to pay P1,500 (USD30) to P15,000 (USD300) for these so-called trainings. Even current OFWs are not spared as cases  have been reported of them being refused to leave the Philippines if they fail to produce the said certificates,” Balladares relayed.

Additionally, Balladares said that because of the nature of employment of current domestic helpers, “many of us, one way or another, will go back to the Philippines to have our papers processed.” Thus, she said, nobody is spared from the training or the optional assessment for the certificates that are required for every contract processing.

The protesters expressed their fear that the scheme is only implemented to raise funds for the coming national elections.

“The controversy involving Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s use of OFW money for her campaign in the 2004 elections is still unsolved. Are the funds to be collected this time going to be used again by the GMA camp?” Balladares added.

Congresswoman Liza Maza of the Gabriela Women’s Party joined the protest action and urged the groups present to continue and intensify opposition to anti-migrant policies of the GMA administration. She also expressed GWP’s plans for congressional and legal actions to stop the implementation of the POEA guidelines.

“There is no backing out on this fight. We shall be milking cows no more for this government,” Balladares concluded.#