Around 400 workers arrive from Kuwait

February 11, 2018

Around 400 workers from Kuwait arrived on Sunday at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport [NAIA] Terminal 1 a few days after President Rodrigo Duterte voiced his displeasure over the reported deaths of Filipino domestic workers in the Middle East country.

Twenty-four overseas Filipino workers, all domestics arrived at NAIA Terminal 1 via Philippine Airlines flight PR 669 around 6:40 a.m. They were met by representatives from the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) and the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA)-Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs.

Most of the domestics, who have taken shelter at the OFW Resource Center maintained by the Philippine Overseas Labor Office in Kuwait, were undocumented workers. Many claimed they escaped from their abusive employers.

Twenty were asked to fill up immigration papers. All 24 were later taken by bus to the OWWA Halfway Home in Pasay City.

On Sunday, 260 domestics arrived at NAIA via another PAL flight at around 6:30 a.m., followed by 140 more via a Gulf Air flight at around 10 a.m.

The Department of Labor and Employment said around 800 OFWs, mostly domestics, will arrive from Feb. 11 to 18.

Following President Rodrigo Duterte's orders to bring Filipino workers who want to return after reported deaths of domestic helpers, Philippine Airlines and Cebu Pacific said they will be mounting flights to Kuwait.

PAL spokesperson Cielo Villaluna said they are mounting a special flight from Kuwait to Manila within the next few days, using its 363-seater Airbus A330.

PAL has been repatriating OFWs using its four weekly Kuwait - Manila regular flights over the past few months

Cebu Pacific said it was making “special arrangements” with DFA and the Philippine Embassy in Kuwait since the airline does not have regular commercial air service between Manila and Kuwait.

Cebu Pacific communications director Charo Lagamon said the airline will be deploying an Airbus A330 aircraft—the largest in its fleet, for the charter flight. It has a maximum capacity of 436 passengers. DMS