180 distressed OFWs from Kuwait return home Wednesday

FILE: Philippine Airlines (PAL) flight PR 669 and 97 via Gulf Air flight GF 154. (PNA Photo)

MANILA — About 180 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) from Kuwait came home in two batches at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport on Wednesday.

In the morning, around 80 OFWs came on board Philippine Airlines (PAL) flight PR 669. One hundred OFWs have been scheduled to arrive in the afternoon via Emirates flight EK 332.

Based on the estimates of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), more than 2,600 OFWs from Kuwait have been repatriated since February.

These OFWs have received an amnesty from Kuwaiti government. The Philippine government, through the DFA and the Department of Labor and Employment, has been working on the OFWs’ repatriation, because of the abuse and maltreatment that they were experiencing.

One domestic helper in Kuwait, Joanna Demafelis, was murdered and was found inside a freezer. Her employers, who were considered the primary suspects, are currently under the custody of authorities, according to DFA.

Meanwhile, the government would provide the distressed OFWs with financial assistance that they could use as capital for small businesses.

The government would also shoulder the transportation or airfare for them to go back to their provinces.