More than 10,000 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) from Taiwan have
returned to the country angry after their job contracts were not
extended over the incident where members of the Philippine Coast Guard
killed a Taiwanese fisherman off Batanes two months ago, a recruitment
consultant said in a news release.
Most of the OFWs who returned from Taiwan have worked in the island
for the past three years and were due for an extension for another three
years, said Emmanuel Geslani.
“They return to join the four million unemployed Filipinos here,”
Geslani said, calling these OFWs “collateral damage” in the diplomatic
row between the two countries.
Soon after the incident, Taiwan has stopped the issuance of visas to
all visiting Filipinos, including OFWs, effectively stopping the hiring
or extending the employment of OFWs.
Most of the returning OFWs have contracts that expired these in the months of May and June.
In a related development, newly elected party-list Congressman Roy
Seneres Sr. of the OFW Family Club party has asked the government to
disclose the findings of the Department of Justice regarding the May 9
shooting that caused the rift between Taiwan and the Philippines.
DOJ Secretary Leila de Lima previously announced that the Philippine
Coast Guard was at fault in the incident, providing no further details
of the investigation that followed the shooting.
Taiwan has demanded for an official apology from the Philippine
government, the prosecution of those involved in the shooting,
compensation for the family of the victim, and fishing talks with the
Philippines.
Source:
interaksyon.com
