Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte warned on Wednesday that he may impose a permanent ban on sending workers to Kuwait and withdraw his countrymen working there if another Filipino domestic helper is raped and killed.
The comments were the second time in less than a week that Mr Duterte expressed anger about alleged abuse in Kuwait, where he said low-paid Filipinos were made to endure rape and starvation.
"Treat my countrymen as human beings with dignity," said the president.
Mr Duterte asked the governments of Kuwait and other Middle East countries, where more than a million Filipinos work, to take steps to end the abuse.
"I hope I am not committing a diplomatic faux pas. But one more incident ... I'm going to ban," he said in a speech before leaving for a regional summit in India.
"And I'm sorry, the Filipinos there, you can all go home," he said. "If you leave, they will also be having a hell of a time adjusting to that."
On Friday, the labour ministry suspended deployment of workers to Kuwait, a day after Mr Duterte said abuse had driven several domestic helpers to commit suicide.
Kuwait initially expressed surprise and said it was in touch with Manila to try to resolve the issue.
More than 250,000 Filipinos work in Kuwait, the Philippine foreign ministry estimates, most of them as domestic helpers. There are also large numbers in the UUA, Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
Remittances by overseas Filipinos amount to more than $2 billion a month, keeping domestic demand robust in one of the world's fastest-growing economies.
Mr Duterte said Kuwait is an ally, but abuse should not be tolerated.
"I hope that you listen to me," he said. "We may need your help, but we will not do it at the expense of the dignity of the Filipino."
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Read more:
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Gulf Under 19s final
Dubai College A 50-12 Dubai College B
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
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Engine 3.0L V6
Transmission Eight-speed automatic
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Torque 450Nm @ 3,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined 9.1L / 100km
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Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone
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Business Insights
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- Larger entities have specific provisions for asset and liability movements, business restructuring, and handling foreign permanent establishments.
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
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THE LIGHT
Director: Tom Tykwer
Starring: Tala Al Deen, Nicolette Krebitz, Lars Eidinger
Rating: 3/5
Company%C2%A0profile
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RESULTS
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,200m
Winner: Shafaf, Sam Hitchcott (jockey), Ahmed Al Mehairbi (trainer)
5,30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 1,200m
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6pm: The President’s Cup Listed (TB) Dh380,000 1,400m
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The alternatives
• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.
• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.
• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.
• 2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.
• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases - but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.
SPECS
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Match info
Arsenal 0
Manchester City 2
Sterling (14'), Bernardo Silva (64')
THE BIO
Bio Box
Role Model: Sheikh Zayed, God bless his soul
Favorite book: Zayed Biography of the leader
Favorite quote: To be or not to be, that is the question, from William Shakespeare's Hamlet
Favorite food: seafood
Favorite place to travel: Lebanon
Favorite movie: Braveheart
In numbers
Number of Chinese tourists coming to UAE in 2017 was... 1.3m
Alibaba’s new ‘Tech Town’ in Dubai is worth... $600m
China’s investment in the MIddle East in 2016 was... $29.5bn
The world’s most valuable start-up in 2018, TikTok, is valued at... $75bn
Boost to the UAE economy of 5G connectivity will be... $269bn
