Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
‘Quezon City, Metro Manila

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

House eit no, 3939

Introduced by
HON. ALBERTO D. PACQUIAO of the OFW Family Party-List

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This bill seeks to put into practice three (3) very important provisions of the Constitution to
wit:

1. Section 18, Article I, which states: “The State affirms labor as a primary social
economic force. It shall protect the rights of workers and promote their welfare.”

2. Section 3, (first paragraph), Article Xill, which states: “The State shall afford full
protection to labor, local and overseas, organized and unorganized, and promote full
employment and equality of employment opportunities for all.”

3. Section 14, Article Xill, which states: “The State shall protect working women by
providing safe and healthful working conditions, taking into account their maternal
functions, and such facilities and opportunities that will enhance their welfare and
enable them to realize their full potential in the service of the nation.”

This bill adopts the declaration of basic policy of Republic Act No. 442 otherwise known as the
Labor Code of the Philippines which states: “Article 3. DECLARATION OF BASIC POLICY. -
The State shall afford protection to labor, promote full employment ensure equal work
‘opportunities regardless of sex, race or creed, and regulate the relations between workers and
employers. The State shall assure the rights of workers to self-organization, collective
bargaining, securing of tenure, and just and humane conditions of work.”

The Bill also seeks to particularize the general statement of Section 27 of Republic Act No.
8042, otherwise known as the Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act which states in
part that: “the protection of the Filipino migrant workers and the promotion of their welfare, in
particular, and the protection of the dignity and fundamental rights and freedoms of the Filipino
citizen abroad, in general, shall be the highest priority concems of the Secretary of Foreign
Affairs and the Philippine Foreign Service Posts.”

For a long time now, there is a general sentiment among members of the Filipino communities
overseas as well as among families of OFWs in the home-front, about the gross inadequacy
of the services of Philippine Embassies and Consulates-General, not only in logistics and
financial resources but also in terms of gaping deficits in personal touch and humanitarian
concern and caring from the Heads of Missions themselves to provide genuinely sincere
assistance to distressed Filipinos overseas in violation of the above- cited Constitutional and
statutory provisions.


Lately, this deficit was demonstrated more resoundingly by the accusations emanating from
wards or runaway Filipino domestic helpers who sought shelter in the Embassies in Kuwait,
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Jordan. Filipino community leaders say that no less than
subordinates of the Ambassadors in the said posts, and an Ambassador himself in one post
preyed on their wards instead of protecting them, such as demanding sexual favors from the
wards in exchange for plane tickets for their safe return to their loved ones in the Philippines.

We take off our hats to those who came out openly to make their ordeal known to the public,
but reports persist that this has become widespread and prevalent also in other posts aside
from the three above-mentioned. However, most of the victims chose not to complain for fear
that their husbands may not be able to cope with and/or understand their situation; or of
shaming their families back home.

These irregularities could be averted in the future if the Ambassadors and Heads of Missions
themselves, would, being representatives of the State, assume their Parens Patriae duties
and responsibilities in providing protection not only to the runaways but to all Filipinos working
or residing in their areas of responsibilty. With the Ambassadors and Heads of Missions
themselves personally spearheading all embassy efforts to protect or oversee the welfare of
OFWs they will also be sending strong signals to Head of States or Governments of host
states that the very bedrock and/or comerstone of Philippine Foreign Policy is the protection
and welfare of human beings, the Overseas Filipino Workers. And if foreign governments
value our bilateral and diplomatic relations with them, they should see to it that our people are
all treated fairly and well by all concerned during their sojourn to eam a living in host states.

The late Ambassador and Congressman Roy V. Sefieres led by example in providing care
and assistance to distressed Filipino workers and their families. It was in the 16" congress
that he filed a bill requiring ambassadors, heads of mission and other officials to assume
additional duties and responsibilities in order to enhance the care and protection that the state
should provide for Filipinos working abroad.

This bill therefore seeks to require Ambassadors and Heads of Missions to assume their
Parens Patriae duties and responsibilities.

In view of the foregoing, approval of this bill is most respectfully requested.



Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. ages

Introduced by
HON. ALBERTO D. PACQUIAO of the OFW Family Party-List

AN ACT
REQUIRING AMBASSADORS AND HEADS OF MISSION BEING
REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE TO ASSUME THEIR PARENS PATRIAE
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES IN PROVIDING PROTECTION TO OUR
OVERSEAS FILIPINO WORKERS (OFWs) AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in
Congress assembled:

SECTION 1. Title. — This Act shall be known and cited as the “Protection of
Overseas Filipino Workers by the State as Parents Patriae Act of 2019.”

SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. — This Act is in furtherance of three (3) relevant
provisions of the Constitution, to wit:

1. Section 18, Article II, as State policy: “The State affirms labor as a primary social
economic force. It shall protect the rights of workers and promote their welfare.”

2. Section 3, Article XIll, provides that: “The State shall afford full protection to labor,
local and overseas, organized and unorganized, and promote full employment and
equality of employment opportunities for all.”

3. Section 14, Article XIII, which provides that: the State shall protect working women
by providing safe and healthful working conditions, taking into account their maternal
functions, and such facilities and opportunities that will enhance their welfare and
enable them to realize their full potential in the service of the nation.

This Act further adopts the declaration of basic policy of Presidential Decree No. 442
otherwise known as the Labor Code of the Philippines which states: “Article 3,
DECLARATION OF BASIC POLICY. - The State shall afford protection to labor,
promote full employment, ensure equal work opportunities regardless of sex, race or
creed, and regulate the relations between workers and employers. The State shall
assure the rights of workers to self-organization, collective bargaining, security of
tenure, and just and humane conditions of work.”

Furthermore, this Act takes into cognizance the provision of Section 2, Republic Act
No. 8042, otherwise known as the Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act,


which mandates that the “highest priority concern of the Secretary of Foreign Affairs
and the Philippine Foreign Services shall be the protection and welfare of Filipinos
overseas.”

SEC. 3. Definition of Terms. — As used in this Act, the following terms shall be
defined as:

a). “Overseas Filipino Worker” shall refer to a person who is to be engaged, is
engaged or has been engaged in a remunerated activity in a state of which he or she
is not a citizen, or on board a vessel navigating the foreign seas other than a
government ship used for military or non-commercial purposes, or on an installation
located offshore or on the high seas; to used interchangeably with migrant worker;

b). “Host Country” refers to a country or state where overseas Filipinos are
located or found;

c). “OFW in Distress” is a worker, regardless of membership status, who is in
urgent need of assistance at post;

d). “Legal Resident” means a person who has obtained permanent residency
‘status in accordance with the laws of the host country;

e) "Parens Patriae" refers to the government, or any other authority, regarded
as the legal protector of citizens unable to protect themselves, or the principle that
political authority carries with it the responsibility for protection of citizens.

SEC. 4. Parens Patriae Duties and Responsibilities — every Ambassador or
Chief of Mission, as the case may be, shall assume, being representatives of the
State, his Parens Patriae duties and responsibilities. As such, he shall, in addition to
his existing functions, perform and discharge the following:

a). He shall personally visit jailed OFWs or migrant workers and provide them
with legal and other forms of assistance;

b). He shall personally attend to the problems of runaway housemaids, giving
them words of comfort and assurances of his protection and support;

c). He shall personally visit OFWs or migrant workers who are sick or injured
and confined in hospitals or in their homes and provide them with appropriate
assistance;

d). He shall personally visit stranded seamen, provide them with food, legal
and other forms of assistance;

e). He shall communicate directly with the families of all the above and inform
them of their conditions, furnishing the Department of Foreign Affairs of his reports;

f). In case of a jailed Filipino especially one undergoing trial which might entail
a life or death sentence, he must verify the background of the accused Filipino by
communicating with his parents, school teachers, the Mayor and/or Barangay
Chairman of his place of residence and request from them swom certificates of good

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moral character or clean police records and in the process help facilitate submission
of said certificates and records to the foreign court having jurisdiction over the jailed
Filipino for whatever probative value they may provide

g). He must befriend and pay regular visits to the host country's Secretaries of
Labor, Justice, and Interior, and Foreign Affairs including the Chief Justice, the Court
Administrator, the Chief of Immigration and the Chief of Police;

h). He must communicate with the Department of Social Welfare and
Development (DSWD), the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), and
the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) in order to inquire into the status
of the family of all of the above distressed OFWs and to request food and/or financial
assistance for them while their situations remain unsolved;

i). He may delegate some of the above duties to his consuls or labor attaches
and welfare officers if the cases are too numerous for him to personally handle but
as a gauge of his job performance he should report to his home office his substantial
compliance with the above personally.

SEC. 5. Highest Priority Concem of the Philippine Foreign Service. — All
Ambassadors and Heads of Mission shall remind themselves and comply at all times
with the mandate of Section 27 of Republic Act No. 8042 that the highest priority
concerns of the Secretary of Foreign Affairs and the Philippine Foreign Service Posts
shall be the protection and the promotion of the welfare of Filipinos overseas, in
particular, and the protection of their dignity, fundamental rights and freedom in
general. Being the highest priority concerns, it is veritably the very comerstone or
bedrock of Philippine Foreign Policy. As such there is no better way to convey this to
the host country with the Ambassador and/or Chief of Mission himself personally
discharging the duties as provided in Section 4 hereof. The message that he should
be able to convey should be loud and clear that if the host country values our
bilateral diplomatic relations or would want to strengthen them, it should see to it that
all concemed treat our people justly, humanely, fairly and with respect.

SEC. 6. Penal Clause. — Non-compliance with any of the duties enumerated
under Section 4 hereof, shall cause the recall of the Ambassador or Head of Mission,
as the case may be and after due process, his disqualification to hold any position in
the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and the Foreign Service without prejudice to
any case that may be filed against him for dereliction of duty.

SEC. 8. Repealing Clause. - All laws, decrees, executive orders, issuances,
rules and regulations which may be inconsistent with any of the provisions of this
Act, are hereby deemed repealed, amended or modified accordingly.

SEC. 9. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its
complete publication in two (2) newspapers of general circulation.

Approved,