(Eagle News)–The Palace on Thursday, Aug. 15, said it was backing the proposal to transfer online gaming workers to hubs for as long as their rights are respected.
Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said the Palace backed the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation’s proposal to create the communities for operators of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operations as PAGCOR chair Andrea Domingo had already given the assurance their rights would be protected.
“So if their liberties are not restricted and according to them, ginagawa nga nila iyon to protect them, so, kung ganoon naman ang essence noong paglagay sa kanilang lugar, I don’t think that will be a violation,” Panelo said.
Earlier, the Chinese Embassy expressed concern over PAGCOR’S proposal, saying the hubs “may infringe on the basic legal rights of the Chinese citizens concerned.”
The embassy also urged the Philippine government to “effectively protect the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese citizens in the Philippines,” noting that some of them were subjected to “modern slavery.”
also lamented that these workers have been subjected to what it calls were forms of “modern slavery.”
The embassy said the workers’ passports are “taken away or confiscated by the Philippine employers,” and the workers are “confined to live and work in certain designated places.”
“… Some of them have been subjected to extortion, physical abuse, and torture as well as other ill-treatments. At the same time, dozens of kidnappings and torture cases of Chinese citizens who gamble or work illegally in gambling entities in the Philippines have taken place,” the embassy added.
