PHL repatriates 102 OFWs, children from Jeddah

Over 100 overseas Filipino workers (OFW) and their children were repatriated from Jeddah from February 1 to 3, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs. In a release posted on its website, the DFA’s Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs (OUMWA) said it has repatriated from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia a total of 102 Filipinos, including 29 minors, in the last three days. “Among them were women and children who earlier camped out at the Khandara overpass," the DFA release noted. Migrants’ advocacy group Migrante-Jeddah earlier called the attention of the Philippine Consulate General there to the condition of some 40 OFWs and their children who were camping out under the Khandara overpass hoping to be repatriated. (See: OFWs stranded in Jeddah cry for repatriation) The consulate earlier explained that overstaying nationals usually congregate at the so-called Khandara “Bridge" (actually an overpass) to call the attention of local immigration authorities, in the hope of being arrested and deported. The DFA said the repatriation of the Filipinos and their children came after negotiations between the Consulate and Saudi immigration authorities for the issuance of their exit visas. The repatriated OFWs, mostly women, had complained of maltreatment by their previous employers, or of contractual substitution and non-payment of their salaries, the DFA said. According to the DFA, the repatriates stayed at the Filipino Workers Resource Center (FWRC) where they were provided assistance, such as medical services and provision of food and basic necessities by the Consulate. As this developed, overstaying Filipinos in Saudi Arabia, including runaway workers, have set up a makeshift camp with their families outside the Consulate, according to a report by the news site Arab News on Friday. “This area is our new home for now, as we have been living and sleeping under King Fahd Bridge, but we got tired and the situation got worse after the rains. We decided to come here instead in the hope that setting up camp might expedite our free deportation," said a 33-year-old former Filipino employee in Jeddah as quoted in the report. Col. Hussein Al-Harithy of the Passport Department in Jeddah said in the same report there is close cooperation between his department and foreign consulates to figure out a proper way to accommodate each nationality. Other members of the crowd include many who arrived on Umrah (pilgrimage) visas before opting to stay illegally in the country. According to Al-Harithy, most of the overstayers hold no legal or valid documents to help them process their cases so they can be deported from the country. He said they are also working to process their papers, especially overstaying offenders who are looking for a free exit from the country. As soon as the consulates provide all relevant legal documents, deportation permits will be given to overstayers, Al-Harithy added.—JMA/JV, GMANews.TV