KUWAIT: Recent news from Geneva has added another layer of confusion to the controversial topic of the employment of domestic laborers in the Gulf region. This week the 'domestic labor accord' between the International Labor Organization (ILO) and the domestic Labor-Sending Countries (LSCs) which send domestic labor to the GCC was put on hold during a high-level meeting in the Swiss city, a move which one Kuwait-based diplomat called 'unfortunate.'

Aris Triyano, the First Secretary at the Indonesian embassy in Kuwait, who is well-acquainted with the complexities of domestic labor issues in the GCC, explained that the postponement was unavoidable.

News reports from Geneva on Sunday suggested that reaching a final formula on all items of the ILO agreement was "difficult," citing the dearth of consensus among the participating delegations on the formulation of an international agreement to streamline labor affairs "provided that it would be binding to the governments and labor employment bureaus.

The direction of events in Geneva, however, in the words of diplomats here in Kuwait does not affect how countries such as Indonesia, the Philippines and other domestic labor-sending countries provide services to their nationals.

While we do not dispute the necessity of the domestic labor accord in Geneva, we do have the prevailing bilateral agreements for our domestic workers within the GCC region," Triyano said. Expanding on this point, Triyano explained that while there are no grounds for concern stemming from the delay, "we really do need to tackle the domestic labor issues in broader sense or in the international arena.

As a former negotiator on maritime issues between Indonesia and Vietnam, Triyano noted that such high-level issues usually take time to conclude and for all those involved to reach final agreement on. "I've been involved in [negotiating on] the maritime issue between Indonesia and Vietnam; such negotiations are really tedious and take years to reach final agreement on. In fact, 12 long years [in that case], so I don't expect the domestic labor issue to be settled rapidly," he said.

Vivo Vidal, the Philippine Labour Attach? to Kuwait, said that the interests of the country's domestic workers abroad are always in the forefront of any negotiations. "If an accord is signed, it transcends human rights violations far beyond the adequate protection of our workers," he said. Protecting citizens employed as domestic helpers, he observed, is always at the forefront of every domestic labor-sending country's priorities "because it is our duty to protect and uphold the welfare of our own workers
against any form of abuse and harassment, and of course we must insist on their lawful treatment and fair salaries in the receiving countries," he said.

The Director General of the Department for Migration at Kuwait's Ministry of Interior Major General Kamel Al-Awadhi was quoted by the Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) as saying that the postponement of the domestic labor accord could last until next year. Maj. Gen. Al-Awadhi pointed out that the consensus was associated with a deep conviction shared by the majority of countries that it is better to deliberately scrutinize all points of discussion than to swiftly reach an agreement.

He also asserted that the ten days of negotiations to date had clarified the stances of all the countries, businesspeople and representatives of domestic workers involved, as well as illuminating divergent views and shedding light on how to reach compromises that would be acceptable to all parties in this major and complicated issue.

Maj. Gen. Al-Awadhi, who led the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states' working group participating in these negotiations, asserted that the GCC states which were taking part for the first time in such a meeting, benefitted greatly from gaining an understanding of other viewpoints and tabling their own views on the agreement according to their own national laws. On behalf of the GCC states, Kuwait has called for the proposed international agreement on domestic workers to include rules that address the role played by the employment agencies in the countries of origin in educating workers on their future duties. - Kuwait Times