DFA repatriates 113 Pinoys from Jeddah and Qatar

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) has facilitated the repatriation of 113 distressed Filipinos from Jeddah and Qatar. Philippine Consul General in Jeddah Ezzedin Tago said 76 Filipinos housed at the Hajj Terminal were able to come home in four batches over the Holy Week. "Thirty-six repatriates comprised the first batch, which arrived in Manila on March 31, while the second batch of nine arrived the next day. The third batch of 22 Filipinos arrived on April 2, and another nine arrived the next day," the DFA said in its website (www.dfa.gov.ph). It said these repatriates were housed at the Hajj Terminal, a center run by the Consulate General and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA). The DFA said this is a part of an arrangement with the Saudi government to spare Filipinos from the heat and loitering under the Kandara Bridge. The Kandara Distrcit overpass (often called a bridge) has become "an unofficial international transport terminal" and a "vice den" where illegal immigrants and overstayers congregate, according to a news report posted Tuesday on the Saudi Gazette. Meanwhile, 37 distressed overseas Filipino workers arrived from Qatar on the morning of April 8. They were welcomed and assisted at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport by DFA Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs (DFA-OUMWA) Executive Director Enrico Fos, and a team from the DFA-OUMWA and the OWWA. The repatriation was made possible through the efforts of the Philippine Embassy in Qatar, the OWWA and the Philippine Overseas Labor Office of the Embassy. DFA-OUMWA is working closely with the Philippine Embassies and Consulates General to facilitate the repatriation of other distressed Filipinos overseas.—JV, GMANews.TV