DUBAI - While Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) in Manila has been privy to complaints regarding affidavit of support being made a requirement for Filipinos travelling to the UAE on visit visas, it cannot assume the role of an enforcement body and pin the blame on the authorities concerned unless it receives written allegations that will form the basis for an investigation, a DFA official told Khaleej Times.
"We, however, are willing to look into it. The DFA can bring the problem to the proper authorities if we have proper documentation to prove it," said Jose Brillantes, DFA Under-Secretary of Migrant Workers Affairs in Manila, in response to allegations that the Bureau of Immigration authorities at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in Manila have been asking UAE-bound Filipino travellers for additional supporting papers and thousands of Philippine pesos before permitting their departure.
Khaleej Times contacted the Philippine Embassy in Abu Dhabi to check whether there has been an increasing number of applications for affidavit of support. An embassy staff said that they had processed some 150 affidavit of support documents at the Philippine Consulate in Dubai on the last three Thursdays, and 80 such documents daily at the embassy. "We had received a number of complaints, some of which were already forwarded by the embassy to the DFA. Last year, Consul-General Jose Ampeso sent a letter regarding the alleged corruption of immigration officials and the requirement for affidavit of support was scrapped and an investigative team was sent to Dubai to hear the cases," she said.
Mr Brillantes, meanwhile, said: "What we have been made aware of is that the affidavit of support from a relative in the country of destination is not a requirement of the UAE authorities, based on the feedback of our case officer, Ella Palma. She had been told that it has been made as a requirement by the Bureau of Immigration authorities at the NAIA."
He pointed out that allegations on the corruption of immigration officials at the NAIA airport should be signed under oath, and that the complainants should be willing to testify. "There have been instances wherein they lose interest in the case and just disappear when they finally land a job abroad. There is a need for proper orientation to encourage the complainants to speak out. They will not be the only ones to benefit from this, but other Filipinos who will be travelling to the UAE in the future," he said.
Commenting on the right of every Filipino to travel, Mr Brillantes stressed: "It is enshrined in our constitution, and it (freedom to travel) can only be curtailed in certain instances whereby one has a pending case which prevents him or her from travelling."
In addition to the imposition of an additional requirement such as an affidavit of support, other concerns such as illegal recruitment, human trafficking as well as prostitution cases involving Filipinas, are among the most pressing issues of the Filipino community in the UAE.
On the issue of prostitution, Mr Brillantes said: "We have to gather as much information as we can and make them formal so we can bring this to the attention of the authorities such as Anti-Illegal Recruitment Task Force headed by retired Police Captain Reynaldo Jaylo, the police authorities, and the Bureau of Immigration. Cases of human trafficking should also be addressed."
He, meanwhile, disclosed that the DFA is currently drawing up procedures and rules and regulations to provide greater security of OFWs in Iraq and the Middle East. "It will involve an inter-agency meeting. We are also looking at the possibility of lifting the temporary ban of workers to Iraq since we were advised that there are around 6,000 workers who have confirmed jobs in Iraq and are waiting to be deployed," he said.
By Ramona Ruiz
© Khaleej Times 2004
