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Kuwaiti influencer defends controversial remarks on Filipino workers

24 июля
14:20 2018
Sondos AlqattanImage copyright Instagram/Sondos Alqattan
Image caption Ms Alqattan is known for her beauty tutorials on Instagram

A Kuwaiti social-media influencer who was criticised over comments she made about Filipino domestic workers has defended her remarks.

Sondos Alqattan had posted an Instagram video condemning new laws that give Filipino workers a day off per week and the right to keep their passports.

However, she has said that the outcry she received was "unjustified", though she has since deleted the video.

Known for her make-up tutorials, Ms Alqattan has 2.3m Instagram followers.

"I have not [in] any circumstances in present or past... degraded or in any way mistreated an employee of mine," she said in an Instagram post on Tuesday.

"I consider all employees as equal human being [sic]."

Skip Instagram post by sondos_aq

Don’t judge a person without full understanding of the situation. Just because you don’t agree, doesn’t mean that you’re right!

A post shared by Sondos Alqattan سندس القطان (@sondos_aq) on

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End of Instagram post by sondos_aq

Instagram post by sondos_aq: Don’t judge a person without full understanding of the situation. Just because you don’t agree, doesn’t mean that you’re right!Image Copyright sondos_aq sondos_aq Report

Several beauty companies who previously had ties with Ms Alqattan have moved to distance themselves.

"We are totally against the principles expressed by Ms Sondos Alqattan which in no way reflect the Micallef brand," a spokesperson from perfume house M. Micallef told the BBC.

Make-up company Chelsea Beautique also posted on Twitter that Ms Alqattan's behaviour did not "represent [their] brand's core beliefs".

'Out of touch with humanity'

In her controversial video posted earlier in July, Ms Alqattan said: "How can you have a servant at home who keeps their own passport with them? And what's worse is they have one day off every week. I don't want a Filipina maid anymore."

The response to her remarks has been fierce.

Skip Twitter post by @jehan_masood

OFW workers aren't anyone’s property. They have their rights to keep their passports and have a day off. I watched many documentaries on Filipino OFW workers that they are being abused and murdered. #StopSlavery #SondosAlQattan

— Jehan Masood (@jehan_masood) July 23, 2018

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End of Twitter post by @jehan_masood

Skip Twitter post by @pamfortheglam

boycotting an influencer. anybody who thinks keeping their employee's passport is their right and anybody who believes a working person does not deserve at least one day off, is out of touch with humanity #SondosAlqattan #slavery

— Pam for the Glam (@pamfortheglam) July 20, 2018

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End of Twitter post by @pamfortheglam

Skip Twitter post by @AganonKris

@sondosalqattan I used to like you because i think u are an amazing woman, but what you said about Filipino domestic helper is below the belt, you are nothing but a pretty face, rotten from the inside..

— Kris Aganon (@AganonKris) July 19, 2018

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End of Twitter post by @AganonKris

Migrante International, an advocacy group for Filipinos working overseas said it "vehemently condemned" Ms Alqattan's statements.

"We strongly demand that she offer public apology [sic] and express remorse for her disgusting statements," it said in an online statement.

"It would be more valuable if she can visit the Philippines to witness the appalling poverty... and find out what hardships [they] had to go through before they can be deployed abroad."

Image copyright Getty Images
Image caption There are thousands of Filipino domestic workers in Kuwait

More than 250,000 Filipinos are working in Kuwait, according to the Philippines foreign ministry. Most are employed as maids or domestic helpers.

The Philippines had earlier this year temporarily banned its citizens from travelling to work in Kuwait, following an incident in which a domestic worker was killed and her body found in a freezer.

The ban was lifted in May after Kuwait and the Philippines signed an agreement on workers' rights.

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