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Filipinos in Bahrain

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Filipinos in Bahrain
Total population
40,000[1]
(2012)
Languages
Filipinoor otherlanguages of the Philippines,EnglishandArabic
Religion
Roman Catholicismor otherChristian denominations,Islam
Related ethnic groups
Filipino people,Overseas Filipinos

Filipinos in Bahrainare either migrants or descendants of thePhilippinesliving inBahrain.As of 2012, there are approximately 40,000 of these Filipinos in Bahrain.[1]

Economy and employment[edit]

Bahrain is the eighth largest destination for Filipinodomestic workershired or rehired from 2006 to 2011, and has 21,254 documented overseas Filipino domestic workers as of July 2012.[2]In addition, Filipinos in Bahrain commonly work as accountants, construction contractors, engineers, sales associates, as well as business and government support staff.[1][3]In March 2011, the Philippine government implemented a "deployment ban" on hiring Filipinos in Bahrain due to theBahraini uprisingas a part of theArab Spring,allowing existing Filipino employees to continue working in Bahrain while preventing new workers from entering the nation, but this ban was lifted several months later that year.[1][4][5]Filipinos working in Bahrain remitted US$151.82 million from January to November 2012, about 7 per cent more than in the same period in 2011. As per November 2012, Filipinos now account for 10 per cent of Bahrain's population, working mostly as hotel, restaurant and mall employees.[6]

Bahrain is a source ofremittancessent back to the Philippines, with roughly US$155 million officially sent back in 2011 and a peak of US$166.2 million sent back in 2009.[7]Six Filipino banks havecorrespondent accountswith banks in Bahrain to allow for remittance transfers.[8]

Society and culture[edit]

In October 1994, the Philippine School Bahrain was established to serve the overseas Filipino community.[9]The school currently has nearly 900 students in three separate schools: a pre-school, an elementary school, and a secondary school all housed in three separate buildings in the Kanoo Gardens district inManama.[1]The school is accredited by thePhilippine Department of Educationand is seeking accreditation by thePhilippine Accrediting Association of Schools, Colleges and Universities.[9]

In 1998, Akmad Sakkam, the previous Filipino Ambassador to Bahrain, said that "Bahrain is the only country in the Middle East where there are no Filipinos in jail",[1][10]attributing this to good diplomatic relations and a sense of understanding between the Philippine and Bahraini governments.[1]However, by 2006, this number later rose 18 Filipinos in prison, the majority of them being women.[11]In 2011, a Filipino man in Bahrain was convicted of "encouraging moral depravation" and jailed aftercross-dressingand was later deported.[12]

Philippine holidays such asIndependence Day,commemorating thePhilippine Declaration of Independence,are celebrated in Bahrain.[13]

References[edit]

  1. ^abcdefgHampton, Maricar (6 July 2012)."Filipinos etching credible mark in Bahrain".FilAm Star.Retrieved6 January2013.[permanent dead link]
  2. ^"DOLE plans to end deployment of maids overseas in 5 years".Global Nation Inquirer. 25 August 2012.Retrieved6 January2013.
  3. ^Cariño, Jorge (17 March 2011)."'Bahrain loves Filipino workers'".ABS-CBN News.Retrieved6 January2013.
  4. ^"Bahrain PM assures PH of Filipinos' safety".Global Nation Inquirer. 20 March 2011. Archived fromthe originalon 27 July 2013.Retrieved6 January2013.
  5. ^Medenilla, Samuel (9 June 2011)."Deployment ban in Bahrain lifted".Manila Bulletin.Retrieved6 January2013.
  6. ^"Philippines and GCC explore investment".Investvine.com. 2013-02-04. Archived fromthe originalon 2017-10-03.Retrieved2013-02-11.
  7. ^"Overseas Filipinos' Cash Remittances".Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.2012.Retrieved6 January2013.
  8. ^"Philippine Banks With Remittance Networks Abroad"(PDF).Scalabrini Migration Center. p. 1. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 9 March 2013.Retrieved6 January2013.
  9. ^ab"Philippine School Bahrain".IACPSO. 2012.Retrieved6 January2013.
  10. ^"Filipinos in Bahrain most law-abiding". Bahrain Tribune. 2 March 1998.
  11. ^del Rosario, Eunice (13 October 2006)."GDN:Embassy call for Filipinos to obey law".Bahrain Center for Human Rights. Archived fromthe originalon 22 July 2018.Retrieved6 January2013.
  12. ^"Filipino cross dresser solicits online, jailed".Gulf News. 26 January 2011.Retrieved6 January2013.
  13. ^"Philippine Embassy in Manama Celebrates 114th Philippine Independence Day".Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs. 14 June 2012.Retrieved6 January2013.
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