Bu-lat-lat (boo-lat-lat) verb: to search, probe, investigate, inquire; to unearth facts Volume 3, Number 38 October 26 - November 1, 2003 Quezon City, Philippines |
MIGRANT WATCH HK
OFWs Score Philippine Consul’s Martial Rule Migrante
Sectoral Party-Hong Kong (MSP-HK) denounced Oct. 22 the protest ban around the
Philippine Consulate General (PCG) imposed by acting Head of Post Consul Domingo
D. Lucenario 10 days after a migrant workers protest inside the compound. MSP-HK
compared Lucenario to former President Ferdinand Marcos and the ban to martial
rule. By
Bulatlat.com
Filipino workers in Hong Kong storm Philippine consulate Migrante
Sectoral Party-Hong Kong (MSP-HK) denounced Oct. 22 the protest ban around the
Philippine Consulate General (PCG) imposed by acting Head of Post Consul Domingo
D. Lucenario 10 days after a migrant workers protest inside the compound. In a statement, MSP-HK compared Lucenario to former President Ferdinand Marcos and the ban to martial rule. The ban is “a grave violation of migrant’s democratic rights,” such as their right to expression and assembly, the group said. The
group also denied Lucenario’s allegations that the Oct. 12 protest over the
Electronic-card controversy was “rowdy, prone to violence” or that they
“destroyed government property.” These
accusations of “security threat,” MSP-HK said, only aim to “discredit and
slander migrant organizations which have proven their rationality,
professionalism, discipline and organization in the holding of various forms of
mass actions for years.” MSP-HK
also said that the Oct. 12 mass application for Electronic-card only heated up
when the Consulate personnel deceived them through the forced collection of
HK$200 (U.S.$25) Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) fund—which was
made voluntary in Hong Kong after OFWs fought for it in 1996—for the
supposedly free E-card. Incompetence In
the same statement, MSP-HK questioned Lucenario’s competence as a public
official. “In
the face of the mounting opposition to the forced collection for the supposedly
free e-card, Consul Lucenario has shown his true self—a defender of a
deceitful policy on OFWs, a migrant rights violator, and an officer incapable of
handling the post he has been temporarily given.” “Repression
is the last resort of an official incapable of handling grievances of his or her
community,” the statement said. “This was true for Marcos, this is true with
(Labor Secretary Patricia) Sto. Tomas with her attack on the workers, this is
true of Arroyo with her anti-terror hysteria, and this is now true for Consul
Lucenario.” ‘Traditional politician, not a
public servant’
MSP-HK
said that Lucenario “has the making of a traditional politician, not a public
servant.” The group recalled that the acting consul presented himself as “smiling, easy to approach consul” yet he has “never publicly sided with the sentiments of the Filipino community” even before. The
migrant group also believes that this move only means Lucenario’s all-out
support for the imposition of the mandatory collection of OWWA contribution they
have already fought and won. MSP-HK argued that Lucenario is a “dependable advocate for the government’s exaction business on migrants” and not just a “bystander” who implements government policies on E-card as he claimed. “This explains why he chose to ignore four petitions to discuss the anomalous E-card matter since July,” the statement said. Bulatlat.com We want to know what you think of this article.
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