Duterte to visit Kuwait amid deployment ban of Filipino workers

February 8, 2018

President Rodrigo Duterte has said he will go to Kuwait amid the Philippines' suspension of deployment of Filipino workers in the Gulf state.

In a speech during his meeting with the former communist rebels in Malacanang on Wednesday night, Duterte said he met with Ambassador of Kuwait to the Philippines Saleh Ahmad Althwaik.

"Any day now, I will go to Kuwait. The ambassdor is here. I'm angry because there were already four Filipinas who were raped," he said.

In a press briefing on Thursday, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said he was initially told that Duterte's plan to go to Kuwait was "confidential."

But since Duterte mentioned it in his speech, he said, "there's a trip in the offing to Kuwait."

He said the Kuwaiti envoy could have made the invitation to Duterte during their meeting.

Asked of Duterte's agenda of his trip to Kuwait, Roque said, "I guess Kuwait wants to assure the President that Philippine nationals are protected in Kuwait and see for himself."

Last month, the Department of Labor and Employment decided to suspend the deployment of Filipino workers to Kuwait after the deaths of seven workers in the Gulf state. The seven Filipina migrant workers were household services workers, and most of them were deployed in 2016.

Duterte had warned if similar death due to abuses by Kuwaiti employer happens, he would order the repatriation of all Filipino workers from Kuwait. Celerina Monte/DMS