Educating Our OFWs

By Emil Jurado, To The Point
Manila Standard Today
Friday, August 31, 2007

THE brouhaha over the article of Malu Fernandez in People Asia Magazine triggered outrage from migrant workers and organizations.

For a bit of background, Fernandez write a travel piece in June titled “From Boracay to Greece.” Here she recounted her experiences in economy class, where she was seated with overseas workers. That she is said to have denigrated this country’s “new heroes” is a perfect example of making a mountain out of a molehill.

The unfortunate and sad aspect of this issue was that Malu had to resign because of the public’s reaction to her article.

What exactly did she write? According to Malu, she took an Emirates flight with a stopover in Dubai. She said she “wanted to slash [her] wrist at the thought of being trapped in a plane” with Filipino migrant workers and domestics. She added that she was tormented in her sleep with endless yelling of “Hoy, Kamusta ka na? At taga saan ka? Domestic helper ka rin ba?” Malu said further: “I thought I had died and God had sent me to my own private hell.”

On her flight back, she “resigned herself to being trapped like a sardine in a sardine can with all these OFWs smelling like AXE and Charlie cologne while my Jo Malone evaporated into thin air.”

No doubt, Malu offended the sensibilities of our migrant workers. The outrage was natural and forthcoming. But something else bothers me.

I think Malu was simply writing what she thought and sensed. That’s freedom of the press. And what she wrote was just the truth. Everybody knows that.

***

The Fernandez incident brings to fore the need to educate our workers how to behave, not only at work and in relating with their employers, but also when they get together or take transportation, airplanes included.

Malu was not the only one complaining about the uncouth and rowdy behavior of these “new heroes.” I myself have had sad experiences in the economy class. They are not expected to dress up like “sosyals,” the derogatory term they give to people who dress up or take the business class.

But the least we can expect from them is to behave properly and not to give foreigners an impression that all Filipinos conduct themselves the way they do.

Once in a flight back home from Europe, I heard a flight attendant says “I’ll never take this flight again at the rate these animals are behaving.” I tried to take issue with the attendant but my wife prevented me from doing it.

The flight attendant made that remark because when we landed at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport—the plane naturally still taxied until it came to a full stop, all passengers were told to sit until the seatbelt sign was turned off.

However, some migrants at once started to get their heavy hand luggage from the bins. In fact, one big bag almost hit my wife. Of course she complained. And the worker remarked: “Masyado ang mga sosyal!”

I wanted to confront the person who uttered that but again my wife prevailed upon me to just be quiet.

In Singapore, Filipinos are no longer allowed to congregate at the well-known Lucky Mall along Orchard Road because of the noise and the litter they make. Filipino domestics seem to be at their loudest when they are together.

In Hong Kong, during Sundays and holidays, I am embarrassed as a Filipino to see them spreading out mats at public places both in Kowloon and Hong Kong sides and eat with their hands. Some of them go on manicuring and pedicuring their compatriots. In fact, they are now banned from congregating at the Landmark Mall because of complaints.

***

My heart bleeds when I see domestics acting the way they do.

In writing all these, I know I am courting condemnation from the “new heroes,” who leave home and family to earn dollars to shore up our economy.

But in the wake of the Fernandez issue, the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration and the Department of Foreign Affairs should educate our migrant workers how to conduct themselves in public places.

I have nothing about them smelling bad or dressing with their usual uniform of T-shirt and denims with sneakers, because many foreigners, especially Americans, do the same while traveling.

I think that it is the responsibility of the POEA and the foreign affairs department to educate them on correct conduct before they go abroad to work. I don’t mean to look down on our “new heroes,” but really, how foreigners perceive us Filipinos has gone from bad to worse.