Philippines’ Duterte asks nationals to leave Kuwait

The President of the Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte, asked nationals who work and live in Kuwait to leave the country, citing the rise in cases of alleged mistreatment against them, Gulf News reported. 

In a statement he made earlier this week, the president said: 

"I’m sorry. The Filipinos there, you can all go home. If you all get out of Kuwait, they will also be having a hell of a time adjusting there." 

"One more incident about a woman, a Filipina being raped there, I’m going to stop, I’m going to ban," he added. 

While Duterte made no mention of the specific criminal incidents he was referring to, in recent months, up to seven cases of rape and abuse against Filipino workers were reported in the Gulf state, which hosts over 250,000 nationals of the country. 

"Can I just ask you now to treat my countrymen as human beings with dignity?"

In his address, Duterte also sent a message to Kuwaiti officials: 

“Can I just ask you now to treat my countrymen as human beings with dignity? I don’t want to fight with you. We need your help. You are helping us, but if it [the assistance] ends up with misery, rape, and my countrymen committing suicide [they might as well leave Kuwait]. We are poor, we may need your help, but we will not do it [work] at the expense of the dignity of the Filipino,” he explained.

He added that he views Kuwait as an ally of the Philippines, but also needs its authorities to be vigilant in solving problems encountered by workers living there. 

The statement comes after a suspension of deployment to Kuwait was announced

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