Philippine officials considering ban on worker deployment to Hong Kong due to unrest 

The Philippines’ Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) is now considering a ban on deploying workers to Hong Kong amid tensions brought by a string of pro-democracy protests in the city.

DOLE Secretary Silvestre Bello III told radio station Radyo Inquirer today that he plans to consult Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW) organizations regarding the possible ban, which he said is being weighed by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration, an agency under the DOLE. Hong Kong is currently home to nearly 200,000 Filipino workers.

However, he said that before implementing such a ban, the Department of Foreign Affairs would first need to issue an alert regarding the situation in Hong Kong, CNN Philippines reported.

The labor secretary’s statements come just a few days after a Filipino was arrested in Hong Kong’s Mong Kok district for allegedly taking part in the protests. However, the Filipino, who works as a dancer at Hong Kong Disneyland, said that he was simply passing through the rally area on the way to buy food and just happened to be wearing black, the protesters’ preferred color.

He has since posted bail of HK$2,000 and was released from detention, Deputy Philippine Consul General in Hong Kong Germinia Aguilar-Usudan told ANC. She said that investigations are still ongoing and that they will know in a few days if the expat will be permanently released or if charges will be filed against him.

The Philippine Consulate has issued multiple advisories since the Hong Kong protests first kicked off in earnest. It reiterated this in an advisory posted on Sunday warning of yesterday’s protests. Filipinos in Hong Kong were told to avoid seven rally areas and to not wear black or white clothing.

A ban on deployment to Hong Kong would greatly affect not only the livelihood of Filipino workers — for whom Hong Kong is a desirable posting — but also Hong Kong society at large. For instance, domestic workers, the majority of whom are Filipino, contributed some HK$98.9 billion to the economy in 2018, according to a recent report.