OFW Party List Representative Marissa “Del Mar” Magsino concluded a 5-day visit to South Korea and met with Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) and various stakeholders to gain a comprehensive understanding of their situation and concerns in the host country.
From June 9 to 13, 2023, the party list legislator had a packed schedule of events and meetings with officials of the Philippine Embassy and Migrant Workers Office, leaders of Filipino Communities, non-government organizations, and a Parliament Member of the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea.
OFW Party List Rep. Marissa “Del Mar” Magsino first attended the Pistang Pinoy sa Korea 2023 to celebrate the 125th Philippine Independence Day and the 28th Migrant Workers Day. The Pistang Pinoy was the first major gathering of Filipinos in South Korea after 3 years. With almost 1,000 Filipinos in attendance, Rep. Marissa “Del Mar” Magsino was able to socialize with our OFWs and Overseas Filipinos (OFs) in South Korea thereby hearing firsthand their experiences while living and working in the country.
“Sa aking talumpati sa Pistang Pinoy sa Korea, ipinabatid natin sa ating mga minamahal na kababayan, kasama na ang mga kawani ng ating Embahada, na sila ang mga bagong bayani ng bayan. Kami ay nagbibigay-pugay sa kanilang galing at sakripisyo. Nagpapasalamat tayo sa kanilang kasipagan at sa husay na siyang nagbibigay karangalan sa ating bayan.”, said Rep. Marissa “Del Mar” Magsino.
The event was followed by a town hall meeting with leaders of the Filipino Communities wherein they discussed the challenges faced by the 59,662 kababayans in South Korea. The discussions revealed various forms of exploitation and abuse against our OFWs, such as contract switching, illegal recruitment and human trafficking, investment scams, violations of labor standards especially among seasonal workers, and the complications arising from undocumented stay.
In response, Representative Marissa “Del Mar” Magsino, together with Philippine Ambassador Ma. Theresa Dizon-De Vega and Labor Attaché Ma. Celeste Valderrama, presented concrete steps that the embassy officials and the OFW Party List will work on to address these issues. Particularly, the OFW Party List will scrutinize the current agreements under the “LGU to LGU” arrangements between the Philippines and South Korea, which is one of the sources of labor violations against Filipinos. The OFW Party List will also look into the repeated violations of recruitment agencies that allow the entertainers they send to South Korea to be victims of prostitution and human trafficking.
OFW Party List Rep. Marissa “Del Mar” Magsino will also coordinate with law enforcement agencies in the Philippines on the alleged extortion by Philippine immigration officials on previously undocumented Filipinos who were given an amnesty by the Korean government as they again depart for South Korea with their valid visas. Most importantly, the OFW Party List will urge the National Bureau of Investigation to identify and prosecute suspected Filipino accomplices in the massive investment scam in South Korea victimizing OFWs. As of to date, a total of Php 150 million has been scammed from Filipinos in South Korea.
Furthermore, the visit provided an opportunity for Filipino Community Leaders to learn about the programs offered by the OFW Party List for their benefit and that of their families. These programs encompass social welfare assistance, education support, medical services, employment opportunities, repatriation aid, and the ongoing efforts to provide affordable housing, in collaboration with government agencies.
Rep. Marissa “Del Mar” Magsino also visited the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea to meet with Representative Cho Jung Hun who introduced a proposed legislation allowing migrants to work as household service workers, but with a different wage system. She was accompanied by Ambassador Ma. Theresa Dizon-De Vega and Labor Attaché Ma. Celeste Valderrama. The high-level meeting focused on how the policy proposal can be fine-tuned to safeguard the rights of foreign household service workers, particularly Filipinos, and to consider the readiness of the South Korean institutions to take in more migrant workers while ensuring their just and fair treatment. The Philippine contingent also stressed that the labor standards to be set for this category should consider the applicable laws and policies of both the host and source countries, as well as their commitments to International Labor Organization (ILO) conventions particularly on remuneration and anti-discrimination.
