A Filipino domestic worker in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, threatened to kill herself if her employers stopped her returning home to the Philippines.
Gina, not her real name, who has worked in Jeddah for barely more than a week, made a scene in her employer’s home by crying and holding a kitchen knife and threatening to kill herself, GMA News reported.
The employer took Gina to the Philippine Consulate as she requested. While at the consulate, the employer showed officials a video of the domestic worker squatting on the floor and crying with a knife in her hand.
According to the employer, they were scared to leave the domestic worker at home with their children as they were unsure of what she would do when they were away.
Gina said she was homesick and wanted to return to the Philippines. She said the Pre-Departure Orientation Seminar did not help her overcome homesickness.
Labor Attaché Germie Daytoc said the domestic worker’s problem was common in most mothers working overseas. Daytoc advised those leaving the Philippines for work to make sure they were ready to be a migrant worker. Daytoc promised to do what he could to help Gina return home.