Introduction: Political Context and Triggering Event

The execution in March 1995 of Filipina domestic worker Flor Contemplacion by the Singapore authorities provoked a national outcry in the Philippines and revived the long-standing debate over the country's two-decades old policy of exporting labour. The execution, which came just weeks before the hotly contested 1995 national elections, threw the spotlight on the plight of Philip- pine overseas contract workers (OCWs) and the inadequate attention given them by successive governments. The furore threatened the ruling coalition's anticipated victory at the polls, forcing President Fidel Ramos to take decisive action to try and defuse the situation. Among others, he set up a fact-finding and policy advisory commission, headed by retired Supreme Court Justice Emilio Gancayco; downgraded diplomatic relations with Singapore; and accepted the resignations of the two officials whose departments had come under particular attack during the period — Roberto Romulo, head of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), and Nieves Confesor, head of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE). A number of DFA and DOLE officials abroad were recalled for consultation, and a temporary ban on domestic helpers destined for Singapore was imposed pending the overall findings and recommendations of the Gancayco Commission.

After the elections, overwhelmingly won by candidates from the ruling coalition, Ramos and his administration set to take the OCW issue beyond the Contemplacion case. Government officials, especially from the DFA, DOLE, and Congress, scrambled to introduce new policies and fast-track measures that they perceived would improve the general welfare of Filipino OCWs (for example, Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act of 1995).

This article seeks to provide an overview of OCWs in the Philippines. Firstly, it describes the relative size and distribution of the phenomenon. This is followed by an evaluation of the relevant economic benefits and social concerns. Finally, the adequacy of past government policies and the overall effectiveness of the new ones (including the Gancayco Commission's recommendations) are examined.