C. Part IV of the Convention Article 40 20. Please provide information on the measures taken by the State party, in particular with respect to legislative amendments to sections 269 and 272 (b) of the Labour Code, to guarantee to all migrant workers and members of their families in a regular situation in the State party the right to join, form and to form part of the leadership of, associations and trade unions, in accordance with article 40 of the Convention, as well as with ILO Convention No. 87 (1948) concerning Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organize, and irrespective of reciprocity (CMW/C/PHL/CO/1, para. 34) 58. The State party accords foreign nationals who are residing in its territory the right to self-organization, allowing them to freely form associations, social clubs and related groupings as long as their purposes are not contrary to law. Foreign nationals in business enterprises are allowed to form, join, and assist labour unions of their own choosing provided they have valid working permits issued by the appropriate government agencies and maintains an official employer-employee relationship with their respective managements. 59. Moreover, trade union rights are available to foreign nationals who are lawfully residing and working in the Philippines if they are nationals of a country which grants the same or similar rights to Filipino workers, or a signatory to ILO Convention Nos. 87 or 98. 60. Proposed amendments to Articles 269 and 270 of the Labor Code are being discussed in the State party’s legislature.65 Article 41 21. Please provide information on the measures taken to implement the recommendations contained in paragraph 36 of the Committee’s previous concluding observations, with a view to ensuring the right of Filipino migrant workers to participate in public affairs and to vote and to be elected at elections of the State party 61. The Filipino migrant workers’ right to participate in public affairs and the right to vote and be elected at elections of the State party have been institutionalized through the enactment of the Overseas Absentee Voting Act of 2003 (R.A. No. 9189). Several measures were undertaken to realize the objective of the law, such as intensive information campaign, field registration of voters activities, setting up of dedicated secretariat, introduction of “Voting by Mail” to 57 Foreign Service Posts, and conduct of field voting and drop box/pick up point voting in places with large numbers of OFW voters. The State party also conducted a non-binding test of internet voting in one country. D. Part VI of the Convention Article 64 22. Please provide information on the measures taken to prevent irregular migration, including through international agreements, policies and programmes. Please include information on how such measures have been mainstreamed in overall migration policies and programmes and whether a measurable result on the numbers of irregular migrants has been determined 62. The State party does not encourage irregular migration. The conduct of PEOS, PDOS, and strict enforcement of SEC are some of the preventive measures to discourage irregular migration. In addition, the State party pursues bilateral agreements with countries hosting Filipinos to strengthen the mechanisms of discussion and the settlement of concerns and are focused on the following areas of cooperation: regulation of deployment of labour; preservation, promotion, and development of workers’ welfare in accordance with existing laws; exchange of information and continuing studies in the area of labour, and other technical and human resource development cooperation. 65 A bill is pending before the House of Representatives (House Bill No. 894), entitled An Act Allowing Aliens to Exercise Their Right to Self-Organization and Withdrawing Regulation of Foreign Assistance to Trade Unions, Amending for the Purpose Presidential Decree No. 442, as Amended, Otherwise Known as the Labor Code of the Philippines. The aim is to extend the right to self-organization to aliens in the Philippines and withdraw the prohibition on foreign trade union organizations to engage in trade union activities and the regulation of foreign assistance to Philippine trade unions. 93