Future policy directions for governance in migration
In the beginning, the Filipino overseas labor force was dominated by
men. The feminization of migration came about in the 1980s well into the
1990s as more women in Hong Kong, Singapore and other major economies
entered the workforce and needed the services of foreign household
workers for housekeeping and child-rearing. In Japan, the demand for female
entertainers during the mid ‘80s also changed the gender dynamics of
overseas work. Both occupations were susceptible to abuse.
In a 2001 survey by the Asian Migrant Centre for foreign domestic
workers in Hong Kong, 22% of Filipino domestic workers reported
experiencing abuse, the most common being verbal. The figures were
higher for Indonesians and Thais.9
The Human Rights Watch organization
reported even more disturbing cases of abuse in the Middle East. Early this
year, the Philippine government banned the deployment of domestic workers
to Jordan, citing escalating abuse on women workers.