Migrante-Middle East, an alliance of overseas Filipino workers’ organizations with chapters in different countries in the Middle East, today said the Department of Foreign Affairs’ flow estimate of 3,000 OFWs detained in various jails abroad could have been far less than from the actual numbers of OFWs now languishing on various jails in the Middle East.

John Leonard Monterona, Migrante-Middle East regional coordinator, said the numbers of OFWs in various jails could have been more, not just 3,000 as claimed by the Foreign Affairs department.

“First, on the documentation of OFWs in various jail, the DFA and its RP posts failed to come up a dependable count, thus we have all the reasons to believed there are many who are still unaccounted,” Monterona added.

Monterona said the 70% of the 3,000 cases are not just simply cases involving immigration-related offenses as what the DFA claimed but cases associated to abuses, maltreatment and rampant labor malpractices.

“The DFA failed to include the rising numbers of OFWs temporarily seeking refuge at the Embassy-run Filipino Workers Resource Centers (FWRCs), Bahay Kalingas’, and safe houses maintained by the regional offices of Philippine Overseas Labor Offices and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (POLO-OWWA),” Monterona added.

The Saudi-based OFW leader said he once asked a consular official if each RP post maintains a data-base of all arriving OFWs including their sponsor-employer but he just received an answer on the negative -meaning there is none.

“A data-based of all deployed OFWs including their sponsor-employer maintained by the RP post concerned would be a big help as it will give them an easy and ready reference in tracking the whereabouts of OFW and address of its sponsor-employer,” Monterona averred.

In reference to DFA statement issued yesterday about rising OFWs cases in Saudi Arabia and other Middle-eastern countries, Monterona said this only proved that the Foreign Affairs department could not effectively handle the numerous OFWs cases abroad.

“The DFA and different RP posts abroad especially in the Middle East are observe to be re-active especially when OFWs cases are reported by the media; the numerous and rising cases involving OFWs rendered the different RP posts to be ineffective and in-efficient at all in providing services to distress OFWs,” Monterona averred.

“Never-ending abuses (sexual and physical), maltreatment, and rampant labor malpractices forced OFWs, especially domestic helpers, construction and service workers that comprises 80% of the deployed OFWs in the Middle East, to run away from their erring employers,” the OFW leader added.

Monterona opined it should be a turning point for the Arroyo administration and the next administration to shun from continued wholesale exportation of OFWs abroad without concrete protection mechanism in placed for their well being, rights, and welfare.

“The only guarantee that no Filipinos will be put behind bars abroad is for the RP government to develop the economy through genuine implementation of agrarian reform program with all the support services provided to farmers, and nationalization of basic industries paving the way to a robust economy that is capable of generating local decent jobs; thereby no one will be forced to accept jobs abroad without protection,” Monterona added.

Monterona ended saying Migrante chapters in the Middle East are supporting Migrante Partylist because on its Migrants agenda, among many others, it will work to put a stop to intensified labor exportation without clear protection mechanism put in place for OFWs working abroad that runs counter to continued peddling of OFWs by the Arroyo regime, thus the Arroyo-influenced COMELEC will do everything to prevent Migrante from participating in the May 2010 party-list Elections.

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