Khalid Al Ameri (Facebook/ Khalid Al Ameri); Sondos Alqattan (Instagram/@sondos_aq)
A vlogger based in Abu Dhabi expressed support for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in relation to their right not to surrender their passports to their employers and to have a day off in their work week.
This comes after Kuwaiti social media star Sondos Alqattan publicly complained about the new law, which was enacted to ease the months-long tension between the Philippines and Kuwait.
“How would you feel if you worked for someone that not only didn’t give you the day off, but disagreed with the very ideology that you deserve a day off?” Khalid Al Ameri shot back at Alqattan in a vlog posted on Facebook Saturday.
Al Ameri then went on to respond to the Kuwaiti influencer’s complaint against Filipino domestic workers keeping their passports. “After listening to your rant, if I worked for you, I would run so far away, the CIA won’t be able to find me,” he said. “I would dig a hole so deep, that you won’t be able to smell my scent, you won’t hear me breathe; I’d disappear, I would cease to exist. I would never show my face in this world again, out of fear that you might find me.”
“Believe me, there’s a reason why they keep running away from you, and maybe you are that reason,” Al Ameri told Alqattan. He then thanked domestic workers in Abu Dhabi for helping them and being part of their families.
Alqattan’s remarks sparked outrage among netizens, with the Blas F. Ople Policy Center urging the Philippine Overseas Employment Agency to ban the influencer from getting a Filipino domestic worker.
The Kuwaiti influencer has stood by her words, saying that the negative reactions from people were unjustified. She also took to her Instagram saying: “Don’t judge a person without full understanding of the situation. Just because you don’t agree, doesn’t mean that you’re right!”
As a result of Alqattan’s stand, three international cosmetic brands have cut ties with her amid calls for a boycott against her. /ra
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