KUWAIT CITY, May 11: During his attendance at the celebration of Bangladesh's Independence Day at its embassy, Ambassador Mansour Al-Otaibi, Kuwait's Deputy Foreign Minister, confirmed that the Kuwaiti Ministry of Foreign Affairs has notified the Philippines to cease granting visas to Filipino workers in compliance with the decision of Sheikh Talal Al-Khaled, the First Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Interior, and Acting Minister of Defense.

Earlier, the government of the Philippines announced that it has not received an official notification from Kuwait regarding the suspension of visas for Filipino workers, while informed sources said the meeting of the Kuwaiti-Filipino joint committee on the issue of domestic workers will be held in Kuwait next week over a period of 3 days from May 16 to May 18, indicating that the meeting will discuss a number of issues, foremost of which is the possibility of reaching a solution to the issue of domestic workers in accordance with the bilateral agreements between the two countries, reports Al-Rai daily.

On a related level, the sources indicated that the directives to stop issuing all types of visas to Filipino workers include new and previously issued entry visas as well, and only those who have a valid residence permit are allowed to enter Kuwait, even if they have a previous visa, and the Filipino workers residing in Kuwait can renew their residence as usual, according to the procedures.

Well-informed security sources revealed that the General Administration of Civil Aviation has informed the airlines not to accept any passenger of the Filipino nationality, even if he/she has a entry visa issued earlier, except for those who have a valid residency in Kuwait. The Director of the Airport Passports Department, Brigadier General Badr Al-Shaya, addressed the Civil Aviation Administration to implement these instructions until further notice.

It is noteworthy that the suspension of visas for Filipino workers came under the directives of the First Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Interior and Acting Minister of Defense Sheikh Talal Khaled Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, in his capacity as supervisor of the Public Authority for Manpower, due to Manila’s non-compliance with the bilateral agreement signed with Kuwait regarding employment.