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Things to Avoid Posting in Social Media While Working in the Middle East as OFW

On February 17, the Philippine Embassy, particularly in Riyadh, had issued an advisory to Filipinos working on Saudi Arabia regarding social media usage.

The embassy stated that OFWs should use social media responsibly to avoid possible legal and employment issues.

“Filipinos in the Kingdom must exercise prudence and discretion in their use of various social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter,” a statement from the embassy read. “Inappropriate posts or photographs on social media, intentional or not, may result in a police investigation that may further lead to legal or judicial action against the account owner.”

Image via ofwabroad.com

Accordingly the embassy also provides a checklist of the things should limit to be posted by OFWs in Social Media:

  • Pictures depicting the use of alcohol and gambling
  • Slanderous statements against co-workers or superiors
  • Pictures depicting illicit relations
  • Postings of lewd or sensitive photographs
  • Possession of pornographic photos and videos

The embassy also advised Filipinos “not to engage in debates aimed at criticizing religion, traditions, or political institutions.”

Saudi Arabia is known for its strict Sharia laws, which prohibit nudity, promiscuous acts, and possession of pornographic materials, in whatever form it might be. It is even believed that Saudi continually censors social media sites to prevent leakage of such material into the country, the DailyPedia once mentioned.

According to Interaksyon report, the Middle East remains the largest market for Overseas Filipino Workers, and the biggest population can be found in Saudi Arabia which was at 382,553 as of 2013.

In the fast there were several OFWs had been a subject of a manhunt by Saudi's authorities after posting lewd images on  Facebook and apparently, they were at risk of losing their jobs if proven guilty.

Sources : Interaksyon | TheDailyPedia