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MANILA, Philippines—Thirteen of 15 Filipino workers who were allegedly being kept in slave-like conditions in a palm oil plant in Sabah have returned home, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Tuesday.
The 13 decided not to proceed with their work at the See Hoy Chan Plantation in Lahad Datu, Sabah, and their return to the country was negotiated by Philippine Labor Attache Hassan Jumdain, Philippine Ambassador to Malaysia Victoriano Lecaros said in his report to DFA Secretary Alberto Romulo.
In its labor dispute with the workers, the management had stopped talking with parties other than Philippine government representatives to settle the dispute with the Filipino workers, the ambassador said.
All 13 Filipino workers left Sabah for Iloilo last June 26, he added.
The plight of the workers were exposed by Gabriela party list Representative Luz Ilagan, who joined the mission in Sandakan, Sabah and Kota Kinabalu.
She said the OFWs are victims of “bonded slavery” because their situation: They are being held by the employers, they are required to work more hours than legally allowed, they are paid very low wages, and they do not have any social security benefits, among others.
Ilagan also pointed out another complication to the situation of the 15 workers, and those in similar dire straits. She said Sabah, which is claimed by both the Philippines and Malaysia, does not have a Philippine government office which could attend to Filipino workers.
She said most workers in Sabah’s palm oil plantations have stayed there beyond the limit allowed by the Malaysian government because they could not afford the renewal fee of their passport.
