Villar urges OFWs in Qatar to "keep calm" as diplomatic row continues

Senator Cynthia Villar urged more than two hundred thousand overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Qatar to keep calm and get in touch with the Philippine Embassy in Doha on any concerns arising from the diplomatic row between Qatar and other Gulf states.

Villar noted that Qatar is an oil-producing country with sufficient financial resources to look after its citizens and their workers. Many OFWs are happy in Qatar, Villar said, because of their good rapport with their employers.

Filipino workers make up the fourth biggest migrant population in Qatar and are currently estimated to number around 270,000.

Yesterday, four Arab countries - Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates - announced their decision to cut diplomatic ties with Qatar citing Doha's alleged support for extremist groups. The four countries were followed by Libya and Yemen. The four Gulf countries also announced plans to cut air and sea traffic to Qatar.

Senator Villar advised the Department of Labor and Employment and the Department of Foreign Affairs to put together a contingency plan that would address concerns regarding potential food shortages, limited air, land and sea travel, as well as escalating costs of living that would affect OFWs and their families back home.

"We also need to consider the Filipinos working for Qatari-owned companies in the Philippines and elsewhere such as Qatar Airways, which is the second biggest air carrier in the Gulf region. A prolonged diplomatic crisis would not be favorable to the profitability of these companies," she said.

The senator, known for her advocacy for migrant workers' protection, stressed the need for OFWs to save and invest their money well because there are too many external factors that could affect their jobs overseas.

Through the Villar Social Institute for Poverty Alleviation and Governance (Villar SIPAG), the lady senator recently provided six distressed OFWs with initial capital and products to start a sari-sari store.

"We need to strengthen the government's reintegration program for OFWs so that they can plan ahead because there really is no place like home," she said.

"It has always been my advocacy for the OFW families to consider using their earnings to put up a micro or small business to reduce over-reliance on monthly dollar remittances. This new diplomatic crisis is another example of a surprising development beyond our workers' and the Philippine government's control. Let's hope and pray that things will go back to normal soon," Villar said.