New shelter for Filipino helpers in Hong Kong awaits government green light
Philippine minister says Tai Po villa is bigger and more comfortable than previous shelter, while advocates for domestic helpers welcome facility
A new shelter for distressed Filipino domestic workers in Hong Kong is ready but awaiting official approval to open, with the Philippines’ labour minister describing the Tai Po villa as “bigger, better and more comfortable” than its predecessor.
Hans Leo J. Cacdac, secretary of the Department of Migrant Workers, told the South China Morning Post that the new shelter was ready, while the labour attaché at the Philippine consulate, Cesar L. Chavez Jnr, provided further details.
Cacdac made a brief stopover in Hong Kong over the weekend after a six-day trip to Geneva, Bahrain and Dubai, before returning to Manila on Sunday evening.
He said he would report back to President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr on his discussions with labour counterparts in the Gulf and prepare for a coming Asean committee meeting in Manila on migrant worker protection.
Chavez told the SCMP that the new shelter, located in a gated and well-guarded Tai Po community, was “more beautiful” than the previous facility.
A three-year lease has been signed after the earlier site – a small three-bedroom flat in Kennedy Town – reached the end of its term.