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PGMA's Speech during
Her Meeting with the Filipino Community in Kuwait 09 December 2007 |
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Mga kababayan, magandang gabi.
Maraming salamat na kahit ilang oras na pag-ulat sa inyo nakaabot kayo ngayong gabi. Alam ko naman araw ng trabaho ngayon di ba pero nakapunta kayo at thank you very much at maraming salamat din kay Ambassador Eric Andaya dahil siguro lahat ng inyong staff ay nasa telepono kaninang hapon. Martaming salamat. Nagagalak ako para sa bayan at sa ibinubunga ng biyahe natin. Nagtungo ako sa Kuwait upang isulong ang patakarang panlabas ng Pilipinas sa ating pulong sa kanilang hari at sa kanilang mataas na opisyal na nandoon sila lahat nung nag-tanghalian. Doon nga pinag-usapan na dapat mag-overnight ang aming grupo at maimbita kayo ngayong gabi. Napakahalaga ang seguridad ng bayan sa pag-unlad ng ating bansa. Ang pagpatuloy na pagbuo ng malapit na alyansa sa kuwait ay nagpapalakas ng seguridad natin sa ating bansa. Ang Kuwait ay sumusoporta sa proseso ng kapayapaan sa Mindanao. Isa pang haligi ng ating seguridad ang katatagan ng ekonomiya – sa pag-akit ng investment, paglikha ng trabaho, at paglaganap ng oportunidad sa hanapbuhay sa bawat lalawigan ng ating dakilang kapuluan. Para ditto, masigasig tayong nagsisikap upang kimukin ang mga negosyante na mamuhunan sa ating bansa. Nagagalak tayo na ang Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company ay pumasok sa joint venture sa paghanap ng langis at gaas kasama ng Shell at South China Resources sa isang lugar sa dagat northeast ng Palawan. Malaking halaga ang ibinigibay ng pilipinas sa ating mga responsibilidad sa mundo, mula sa pagsuporta sa pagpataw ng safeguards ng International Atomic Energy Authority tungkol sa nuclear power sa Middle East hanggang sa lahat ng mga pagsisikap ng pangmundong komunidad na palakasin ang pamahalaan ng iraq upang makamit niya ang pangmatagalang kapayapaan at prosperidad. Matibay ang ating paniniwala sa ating compromise bilang tunay na mamamayan ng mundo, upang isulong ang karapatang tao, kaunlaran ng ekonomiya, at seguridad ng mga bansa para sa kapayapaan ng daigdig. Kasama ng ating kasaysayan ng mga kaalyado natin sa mga Islamic countries, at kalahok din ng ating kinabukasan. Dapat tayong patuloy na makipagbalikatan sa kanila, at magbatid sa kanila ng ating malalaking hakbang sa Pilipinas. Kayong mga OFW ang ating mga sugo araw-araw sa kuwait. Maraming salamat sa inyo. Mahalaga ang binibigay natin sa kontribusyon ng ating mga overseas workers sa inyong sakripisyo, sa inyong pagmamalasakit sa inyong trabaho, sa inyong pamilya at sa ating bansa. Ngunit pinagmamalaki rin natin na ang ating mga ambisosyong reporma sa ekonomiya ay tumutulong na you know to break the offshore cycle and tumutulong sa pagsuporta sa ekonomiya na ngayon ay umaangat sa pinakamabilis sa loob ng nakaraang dalawampung taon, 7.5 percent ang ating growth rate itong taong ito, the highest in 20 years. At itong mga ganansiyang nakikita natin ngayon ay hinahanda yung paraan para sa araw na yung mga Pilipino ay hindi na kailangang mag-abroad para sa trabaho. And the day when overseas work is just another career option and not the only choice that you have to earn a living. Nakapagalikha tayo ng 6 na milyong trabaho sa nakaraang anim na taon. At sa pagpapatuloy sa landas na ito, tuluy-tuloy sana that we will be increasing be keeping our best and brightest right in the Philippines malapit sa pamilya, malapit sa kaibigan, tumutulong magpatayo ng ating pamayanan at naghahandog ng susunod na henerasyon ng liderato. Kayo nangunguna kayo sa ating agenda sa Kuwait. Ipnagmamalaki nating ang inyong ambag sa maganda nating pangalan sa daigdig. Nagagalak tayo kanina sa makatagpo ng ating masisipag na OFW doon sa bagong mall ano ba yung pangalan ng bagong mall, yun, na kalian lamang binuksan ng kanilang hari. Sabi nga nila kanina sapat matulog kayo ngayong gabi.magaa-shopping kayo at makipagkita sa mga Pilipino. Doon sa mall, nakikita ko doon kasi nakipag-kwento ako sa mga Pilipino, ang dami-daming mga Pilipino, at nagkaroon ako ng pagkakataon makipagkwento-kwento sa kanila. At nakikita ko na marami sa inyon ang nakakaalam ng aking panguhahing pakay sa pagtungo dito sa Kuwait. Kanina nga sa mall, may isang Pilipinong nagtanong sa akin, “positive ba ang resulta ng pag-uusap n’yo?” Ako’y nasisiyahang sabihin sa inyo positive ang resulta. Nagkaroon tayo ng positibo at napakamabungang pagkikita sa kanilang hari kaninang umaga. Nagpapasalamat tayon sa napakamabait na pag-uunawa at konsiderasyon na ini-abot niya sa ating kababayan. Sinisikap nating pangalagaan ang inyong kapakanan. Kailan lang tayo ay naglunsad ng mga reporma ng patakaran tungkol sa pagpadala ng mga household service workers. Yung mga bagong patakaran kasama dito yung pag-iibayo ng kakayahan ng ating manggagawa, yung nagkakaroon ng kurso ng orientation tungkol sa mga kultura ang lengguahe ng iba’t ibang mga bansa. Yung pagpoproteksyon, yung mga mekanismo kung papaano makaproteksyon ng karapatan sa mga lugar na pinagta-trabahuhan at saka inuobliga yung mga employer na sila ang dapat gumastos para sa deployment ng domestic helpers. At yung tinataas yung minimum salary sa level na karapat-dapat naman sa mga natututunang kakayahan. Itinaguyod ng ating administrasyon ang pagtaas ng minimum wage para sa domestic service workers, mula sa $200 a month at ginawa ng $400a month. Mula nung nagsimula itong patakaran nung disyembre ng 2006, una maraming umalma pero ngayon nakikita natin ang kanyang bunga. Halimbawa sa hongkong, sa umpisa bumaba yung mga Pilipinong kinukuha pero ngayon nakikita natin bumabalik naman ang karamihan kahit mas mataas na ang singil ng sweldo. Dito sa Kuwait, kapansin pansin ang pagdami ng job orders para sa mga engineers, nurses at iba pang skilled workers. Lumiit din ang bilang ng mga naitalang kaso ng maltreatment at runaway workers. In fact, kamakailan lang, ang inyong lingkod ay nagbigay ng atas sa DSWD, sa DFA at saka sa DOLE na dapat repasuhin at ipaiba yung mga mekanismo at paglilingkod para mabilis makaabot, ready access, at mabilis makasagot, rapid response sa mga OFW na malubha ang pinaghihirapan para sa ganito hindi na mapipilitan na gumawa ng mga kilos na desparado yung ating mga OFW. Halimbawa sabi ko dapat pag-isipan nilang maglagay ng mga toll free hotlines at assistance groups, ito meron kayong mga pilipino dito na ang tagal-tagal na ninyong narito, pwede nga kayong mga lider, maging yung assistance groups nga sa mga lugar kung saan marami ang OFW kagaya ng Kuwait. At itong mga repormang ginagawa natin lalo na yung pagtaas ng minimum wage, nakita natin yung ibang labor-exporting countries katulad ng India at Indonesia ay sumusunod na rin sa ating halimbawa, at ngayon ay nagtataas na rin ng hinihinging sahod para sa kanilang mga manggagawa. Alam nating marami sa inyo ang nababahal sa patuloy na pagtaas ng piso. Sa isang banda, ito ay tanda ng malakas na pambansang ekonomiya at nagbibigay din ng maraming benepisyo tulad ng di gaanong tumataas ang gasolina at hindi tumataas ang pasahe bagamat tumataas ng lubha ang presyo ng langis sa mundo. Ngunit nauunawaan din natin ang inyong kalagayan. Dahil dito, ang pamahalaan ay gumagawa ng kaukulang hakbang para mapababa ang remittance fees. At isa pa nagtatayo tayo ng programag tutulong sa mga probinsyang maraming OFW na mababa lamang ang kita. Gumagawa tayo ng survey, saan ba nanggagaling ang ating mga domestic helpers, anung probinsya. At yung mga probinsiyang yon, doon tayo nagdadala ng tulong para sa mga pamilya ng OFW. Yan ang ating programa para mabigyan ng ginhawa yung pagtaas ng piso sa ting mga OFW. Nakikita ko ang ating mga OFW dito ay alam na alam niyo yung balita. Una nga alam na alam ninyo kung bakit ako narito. Tapos alam na alam ninyo yung nangyari nung isang linggo. Tungkol doon sa nagtangkang coup noong isang linggo, klarong-klaro na itong mga kilos ng iilang mga desperadong tao pinapakita na they ar eout of touch with the hopes and dreams of the average Filipino. Di ba, tayong mga karaniwang Pilipino, ang gusto natin ang political stability, a bright economic future, social justice. Kaya itong mga kilos itong mga misguided men ay sinasabotahe ang bawat isa dito sa mga tunay na aspirasyon ngtunay Pilipino. Sa halip na pinagbubuo ang bansa at nagta-trabaho sa loob ng ating prosesong demokratiko, ang ginagawa nilang kilos ay parang gasolina sa makasariling motibo for personal gain. But in the end, nanaig ang rule of law. The transgressors will not hold our nation hostage with impunity. Paparusahin sila ng buong higpit ng batas.justice shall be served and the interests of the people upheld. Ang kailangan natin at alam niyo ito sa Kuwait, ito ang nakita ko sa inyong pamayanan nung nandito ako noong 2003, pagkakaisa, pag-unlad, kapayapaan at kasaganaan para sa lahat -- ito ang mga adhikain natin, at hindi tayo hihinto sa ating pagsulong. At muli gaya nang sabi ko sa inyo nung 2003, maraming-maraming salamat na ginagawa ninyo ating mga Pilipino dito sa Kuwait para sa ating bansa. Maraming salamat sa inyong lahat. Salamat muli sa inyong pagdalo sa short notice. And Merry Christmas to all of you! |
| President underscores importance of RP-Kuwait economic, security ties |
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Brief as it was, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s
visit to Kuwait Sunday further strengthened the economic, diplomatic and
security relations between the Philippines and the oil-rich Middle East
country, host of 100,000 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs). In her message before the Filipino community in Kuwait last night, the President said Kuwait is a true friend of the Philippines as she lauded Kuwait’s vital role in the quest for permanent peace in Mindanao. “I came to Kuwait to strengthen our diplomatic relations with Kuwait, “ she said in Filipino. The President had earlier planned to stay in Kuwait for four hours only to personally plead to Kuwaiti officials led by the Emir Sheik Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah to spare the life of Marilou Ranario, an OFW sentenced to death by hanging for the killing of her Kuwaiti woman employer over maltreatment and salary disputes. She graciously accepted, however, the invitation of the Emir for her and her official delegation to stay overnight in Kuwait City. The Emir has commuted to life imprisonment the death by hanging sentence for Ranario. Underscoring the key role of national security in achieving economic progress, she said the Philippines’ strong diplomatic and security relations “strengthen our national security.” “One pillar of national security is a strong economy---more investments, more new jobs in all the provinces, that is why we are working so hard to lure more investors to pour in their money in the Philippines,” she said. She pointed out that the Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company has entered into a joint venture with Shell and South China Resources in the exploration of oil and gas in northeast Palawan. “We give a lot of importance to our international relations and roles, from supporting the guidelines of the Safeguards on International Atomic Energy Authority on Nuclear Power in the Middle East to the efforts of the international community to allow Iraq to finally achieve lasting peace and economic progress,” the President said. She said that the Philippines’ allies among Islamic nations “are a great part of our history and we aspire to continue this cooperation with them.” |
| Statement of the President |
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I am deeply grateful for the compassion of the
Emir in commuting the sentence of death for Marilou Ranario. I hope it
brings some small comfort to her family that Marilou will no longer have
this fate hanging over her. This act of kindness by the Emir brings our two nations closer and reminds us all of our common humanity. Our nations may be separated by many miles and different religions, but we are bound by a common sense of justice and compassion. On behalf of the Philippine people and our overseas workers who often live lonely lives abroad, we will not forget this act of generosity. |
| President assures OFWs no letup in gov't efforts to improve their lot |
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President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo said Sunday
there will be no letup in her efforts to improve the plight of millions of
Filipino migrant workers, including the 100,000 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs)
in Kuwait. In her message before the Filipino community in Kuwait last night, the President said she fully understood the full range of their plight, their sacrifices and their hard work. She also assured them that her administration appreciates deeply their contribution to the Philippine economy, which has posted a 7.5 percent second quarter growth rate this year, the highest in 20 years. “We value so much your sacrifices, your dedication to your work, your devotion to your family and love for your country and we are equally proud of the ambitious and tough economic reforms we implemented that had somehow helped break the offshore cycle and improved our economy,” the President said in Filipino. “The gains of an improving economy include the day when we see our Filipino workers need not go abroad to look for jobs, and the day when overseas work is just another career option and not the only choice that you have to earn a living,” she added. The President stressed that the government continues to take care of the OFWs through the various reforms it has instituted to protect their welfare. The reforms include skills training for workers, culture and language orientation, mechanisms on the protection of workers rights, the possibility that employers would shoulder the pre-deployment fees of OFWs and the increase in minimum wages based on the skill of the worker. “Our administration negotiated the increase of the minimum wage from $200 a month to $400 a month,” the President said. She noted that the initial reaction of the employers to the call for salary increase was negative, especially in Hong Kong, but eventually their resistance was overcome. Today, the rate of deployment of OFWs in Hong Kong is back to normal, the President said. The President noted the increase in the demand for Filipino engineers, nurses and other skilled workers as well as the decline in the number of maltreatment cases in Kuwait. This came about as a result of her directive to the Departments of Foreign Affairs, Social Welfare and Development, and Labor and Employment to come up with mechanisms that would enable OFWs to gain rapid assistance from Philippine government agencies to overseas Filipinos in distress. The President added that she also ordered the setting up of toll free hotlines and assistance groups in order that OFWs and their families will continue to have contact. She said she recognized the negative impact on the income of OFWs of the continuing upswing of the value of the peso against the US dollar. On the other hand, however, this development must also be viewed for what it is, a manifest sign of the improvement in the Philippine economy. “We understand your plight,” she said, adding that the government has come up with several measures to cushion the effect of the strong peso on OFWs remittances. These measures include livelihood projects for OFWs families. |
| PGMA returning past midnight tonight after successful nine-day mission to four countries |
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President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is set to
arrive at about 1 a.m. Tuesday after her successful nine-day, four-country
mission where she managed on her return trip to get a reprieve for a
convicted overseas Filipino worker (OFW) who would have been hanged in
Kuwait by February next year. President Arroyo – who kicked off her European trip last Dec. 2 with a private visit to the miraculous Lourdes grotto in France – was feted by the Kingdom of Spain to a state visit, the first such state visit by a Philippine President some 45 years after the 1962 state visit of her late father, former Philippine President Diosdado Macapagal. The President then proceeded to London where she had a private audience with Queen Elizabeth to whom she expressed her gratitude for the United Kingdom’s benign treatment of OFWs, most of them working as caregivers in England and Ireland. In London, President Arroyo also had a meeting with England’s former Prime Minister Tony Blair with whom she discussed “our ongoing efforts at peace and reconciliation in the Muslim areas in Mindanao in the far south of the Philippines.” “We are on the cusp of a peace deal, and I am seeking the best advice from Mr. Blair on his success in Northern Ireland and how we can apply these valuable insights to increase our chances for long-term peace and stability in Mindanao,” said the President of the former England PM who came calling on her at her hotel suite. Cutting short her supposed nine-day mission to Spain and England, the President then proceeded Sunday to Kuwait where she had a 25-minute meeting with the Kuwait Emir who acceded to her entreaty for a royal reprieve for Marilou Ranario, the 34-year-old elementary school teacher from Surigao del Norte who was convicted of murder in the rage killing of her lady employer almost two years ago. Press Secretary and Presidential Spokesman Ignacio R. Bunye revealed that the meeting between President Arroyo and Sheik Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah took place at the Bayan Palace from 12:30 p.m. to 12:55 p.m. Kuwait time (5:30-5:55 p.m. in Manila). “Normally, I don’t interfere in the judicial process. We have a separate judicial system. But since you are here to personally appeal for her, I will not sign the decree of execution. That is within my power…” thus the Emir acquiesced to President Arroyo’s intercession for Ranario to whose family the President had earlier promised to do everything in her power to save the Filipino maid from her impending death by hanging. Commuting Ranario’s death sentence to a life sentence, the Emir promised President Arroyo that he would further decrease the penalty meted on Ranario upon the completion of the tanazuls or “letters of forgiveness” from the victim’s six heirs, four of whom have signed their own tanazul. “I will reduce the penalty to life, and when the other parties sign the forgiveness, I will further reduce the penalty,” Bunye quoted the Emir as saying. Earlier scheduled to drop by Kuwait for only four hours, the President stayed on for a day following the Emir’s invitation for the Presidential party – whom he treated to a luncheon – to stay overnight. The additional day in Kuwait gave President Arroyo the chance to meet with the Filipino community in the oil-rich country. Earlier, before proceeding to Kuwait, the President was able to preside over a National Security Council meeting via video-teleconferencing with the NSC Cabinet Cluster members gathered at the Makati Shangri-La Hotel in Makati last Friday (Dec.7). |
| PGMA thanks Kuwait Emir for his kindness, generosity for commuting OFW's death sentence |
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President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo hailed today
the act of kindness and generosity displayed by the Emir of Kuwait in
commuting the death sentence of overseas Filipino worker (OFW) Marilou
Ranario, saying it “brings our two nations closer and reminds us all of our
common humanity.” In a statement, the President, who is now on her way home to the Philippines after her successful four-country mission, said she is “deeply grateful for the compassion of the Emir in commuting the sentence of death for Marilou Ranario.” She said she hopes that her intercession – and the Emir’s instant clemency for Ranario--would bring “some small comfort to her (Ranario’s) family that Marilou will no longer have this fate hanging over her.” Through the President’s personal intercession, Sheik Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah, the Emir of Kuwait, assured that he would not sign the decree of execution for Ranario who was found guilty of murder for the killing of her lady employer almost two years ago. The President and the Emir of Kuwait met for 25 minutes at the Bayan Palace in Kuwait yesterday (Sunday, Dec. 9), according to Press Secretary and Presidential Spokesman Ignacio R. Bunye who added that Sheik Al Sabah also invited the Philippine delegation to lunch and stay overnight. In their meeting at the palace, President Arroyo thanked the Emir for his compassion. She also told the Emir that the Filipino “people and our overseas workers who often live lonely lives abroad, will not forget this act of generosity.” “Our nations may be separated by many miles and different religions, but we are bound by a common sense of justice and compassion,” she said in her statement released by Malacanang. |