POEA bans deployment of OFWs to Iraq except Kurdistan

A total ban on the deployment of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to Iraq except in the autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan Region has been approved by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) last week, according to a Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) press release.

POEA Governing Board Resolution No. 3 series of 2012 imposes a total ban on OFWs to Iraq but allows deployment to Kurdistan subject to POEA rules and regulations, said labor chief Rosalinda Dimapilis-Baldoz.

She explained that the POEA Governing Board issued the resolution after the Office of the President approved the recommendation of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) to raise the Alert Level in Iraq from 2 to 3.

“The recommendation was in view of the expected surge of terrorism and sectarian violence in Iraq following the withdrawal of US military forces last December 2011,” Baldoz added.

The imposition of a total deployment ban is recommended for countries placed under Alert Level 3.

The POEA suspended the processing and deployment of all OFWs bound for Iraq (and Afghanistan) in 2007 because of the unstable peace and order situation in those countries.

Then on September 2, 2011, the POEA, through Governing Board Resolution No. 5 Series of 2011, allowed those with existing contracts in Iraq and Afghanistan and working inside American military camps and facilities to finish their contracts and to extend or renew these contracts onsite. The resolution also allowed covered workers to be redeployed to finish their contracts should they go home to the Philippines before their contracts expired.

“The ban will stay until such time that it has been determined that the security condition has normalized, after due consultation with the DFA,” Baldoz explained.

To carry out the latest Governing Board Resolution on Iraq, POEA Administrator Hans Leo J Cacdac issued an advisory to all concerned, imposing a total ban and the suspension of the processing and deployment of all OFWs bound for that country, except for the Iraqi Kurdistan Region.