The dire plight of eleven Filipino migrants now forced to live in container vans in Auckland exposes the rotten system that exploits migrant workers for profit while governments turn a blind eye. This is not an isolated incident but a glaring indictment of the systemic failures of both the Philippine and New Zealand governments to protect workers from exploitation and abuse.
We demand immediate and thorough investigations into the greedy Philippine recruitment agencies, exploitative New Zealand employers, and the NZ government’s complicity in allowing such predators to operate and recruit migrant workers. These workers were promised jobs and stability, yet they face homelessness, unpaid wages, and dehumanizing living conditions. This betrayal cannot go unpunished!
The Philippine government’s refusal to create decent jobs at home continues to force millions of Filipinos to risk everything for opportunities abroad, only to fall victim to exploitation by heartless recruiters and employers. This government has not only failed to provide sustainable livelihoods but has also abandoned its responsibility to protect its nationals in times of distress. Its inaction has allowed exploitation and abuse to thrive, leaving Filipino workers vulnerable at every stage of migration.
Migrante Aotearoa demands an end to this cycle of exploitation:
• Shut down and prosecute the companies and recruitment agencies involved in the exploitation of these nine workers and countless others
• Hold the NZ government accountable for its failure to enforce laws that protect migrant workers and for allowing abusive employers to operate freely
• Condemn the Philippine government’s criminal neglect of its people, whose desperation to escape poverty fuels this abusive system
We call on our fellow Filipinos and Kiwi allies to rise in solidarity against these systemic injustices. Support the workers, demand justice, and hold governments accountable! Migrant workers are not commodities to be exploited—they are human beings who deserve dignity, respect, and justice.
The systemic failure of Philippine governments to create decent jobs and protect its nationals is the root cause of sufferings of overseas Filipino workers. Migrante Aotearoa will not rest until justice is served. The struggle of these workers living in container vans is the struggle of all migrants against forced migration and all forms of modern slavery.