Bahrain
The Chamber of Deputies has approved a proposal to provide insurance to expatriate workers in Bahrain’s public sector. Under the proposal, foreign workers would be entitled to 15 percent of their basic salaries, calculated by the number of years of service. The service would cover expatriates working for ministries and establishments affiliated to the Pension Fund. Private sector employees are covered by indemnity; the proposal, thus, aims to provide equal benefits to expatriates in the public sector. The proposal will also reduce the money transfers from the kingdom to the workers’ countries; the deductions could then be channeled to development projects.
The Cabinet has approved streamlined visa regulations on 14 August that will benefit thousands of expatriates. Under the new regulations, entry and re-entry visas for expatriates would be issued at the same time as residence permits to save migrant workers’ time and money. At the same time, the Cabinet has also decided to expand the validity of Bahraini passports from five to 10 years.
The Bahrain Recruiters Society said that the Philippine Embassy’s proposal pegging the salaries of Filipino domestic workers at $300 (Dh1,101) is unrealistic and might force Bahraini employers to opt for workers from other countries. According to the Society, the current salary scale for Asian domestic workers in Bahrain is only $120 for first-timers and $150 for the more experienced ones, although as per Philippine Embassy data, the average monthly rate of Filipina domestic workers is $180. The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration in Manila reportedly set the new salary to ensure that Filipino domestic workers would receive a fair deal for their contract.
Mardi Montibon, daughter of missing Filipina worker Gracie Montibon, said that she is filing a formal appeal to the Philippines’ Department of Foreign Affairs to seek a new investigation on the disappearance of her mother. The court has allowed Montibon’s personal belongings to be handed over to her daughter but has not yet issued a similar order for the contents of her three bank accounts and the sale of her car. The police still have no leads on the whereabouts of the Filipina debt collector, who has been missing since 6 November.
Filipino bank cashier Grace Nodalo had been released to the custody of the Philippine Embassy after she posted bail for her temporary liberty while her lawyers appealed her case. On 5 July, Nodalo was sentenced to a six-month jail term and deportation for allegedly giving false information on the circumstances surrounding her 11-day disappearance two months ago. Nodalo claimed that she had been abducted but the court gave more credence to a medical examiner’s report that declared the Filipina’s wounds to be “self-inflicted and simulated." At the time of her disappearance, Nodalo was under investigation by her company, the Bahrain Financing Company, over the disappearance of a large amount of money.
Preparations are underway at the Philippine Embassy in Zinj for the coming registration of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) as absentee voters. According to Philippine Ambassador Eduardo Maglaya, around 4,300 of the estimated 30,000 Filipinos living in Bahrain registered in 2003 and voted in the country’s general elections last year. Maglaya said he hoped that those who were unable to register in 2003 would be able to do so in the coming extended registration period, which will run from October 2005 until August next year.
Two masked men dragged a Sri Lankan domestic worker from her quarters and tried to force her into a car, but she managed to escape and run back to her employer’s house. The two men had shown up at the door of her employer’s house twice before. As a result of the incident, the police promised to monitor the employer’s property more closely for any signs of suspicious activity.
Sources: Jonathan Vicente, “Pinay cashier in DFA custody," The Manila Times, 1 August 2005; “Filipina to press for mother’s search," Bahrain Tribune, 3 August 2005; Tariq Khonji, “Thugs attack maid in third kidnap bid," Gulf Daily News, 4 August 2005; Habib Toumi, “Recruiting agents deem Philippine proposal unrealistic," Gulf News, 5 August 2005; “Expat workers to get indemnity," Khaleej Times, 10 August 2005; Eunice del Rosario, “Filipino voters get their say," Gulf Daily News, 15 August 2005; “Red tape is slashed for expat visas," Gulf Daily News, 15 August 2005