Pinay maid abused by diplomat doing fine at new job – DOLE

MANILA, Philippines — The Filipina domestic helper who was maltreated by a Saudi diplomat in London is now doing fine and working for another employer, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) reported yesterday.

Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said the Filipina worker filed the case against her diplomat employer more than a year ago.

“Josephine Wong is OK and now working with another employer,” Bello said, quoting a report from the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO).

Bello said the POLO has already contacted and is set to meet the Filipina worker today.

He said the Filipina worker filed the case against the Saudi diplomat with the help of the POLO in London.

“Her case was referred then to Kalayaan, a charity organization providing legal assistance to domestic workers,” Bello said.

Based on the POLO report, the case against the Saudi diplomat prospered despite the latter’s appeal not to pursue the case because of his diplomatic immunity.

The judge ruled that he maltreatment against the Filipina worker was tantamount to slavery and trafficking and therefore not covered by diplomatic immunity.

POLO reported that the Filipina worker has been working with the Saudi diplomat Khalid Basfar and his family since November 2016 and was brought to the United Kingdom when her employer was assigned there.

But since arriving in the UK, the Filipina worker was not paid any wages, was verbally abused and allowed to call her family only twice a year.

A British paper reported that Wong was made to eat the leftovers of Basfar’s family and even had to wear a buzzer so she could be on call 24 hours a day.

Facial reconstruction

A medical breakthrough involving the use of a 3D printer has helped in the facial reconstruction of a 38-year-old Filipina household service worker suffering from an aggressive form of tumor.

Rosalina Grandusa, a worker in Bahrain, was given a new lease in life following the breakthrough medical procedure at the King Hamad University Hospital (KHUH) in May.

For the first time in Bahrain, a 3D printer was used to create a titanium jawbone to match Grandusa’s face.

According to the Philippine embassy in Manama, the Filipina worker underwent a resection surgery of the entire lower right side of her jaw where the large tumor was growing.

The procedure removed the tumor and a section of her jaw, resulting in the need for facial reconstruction.

“Under the traditional method, bone from other parts Ms. Grandusa’s body (leg or ribs) would have to be harvested but this would result in very different and unnatural facial features,” said the embassy.

“In addition, the bone from the other parts of the body could also lead to complications. On the other hand, the 3D printed jaw is a perfect replica, restoring the Filipina’s face to practically its original shape,” it added.

Grandusa expressed gratitude to the medical team, as well as to her employers Ali Al Alawi and Noora Sheereda and the KHUH for shouldering the total cost of the surgery.

“The Filipina’s generous employer was ready to cover the expenses for the treatment in the Philippines but decided to go to KHUH for the landmark surgery,” said the embassy. – With Janvic Mateo