Govt asked to set evacuation plans for Pinoys in Bahrain

With Middle East unrest reaching Bahrain, a migrants’ rights group has called on the Aquino administration to start drawing up evacuation plans for thousands of Filipino residents there should the protests turn violent. In a release, Migrante-Middle East said it has been receiving reports from overseas Filipino workers (OFW) in that oil-rich island-state that Bahrainis have been trooping since Monday to the capital city of Manama by the thousands. The center of protests, according to reports, is at the city’s Pearl Roundabout, with protesters staying in tents – reminiscent of Cairo’s Tahrir Square during the height of demonstrations there – and vowing never to leave until their demands are met. The protestors’ demands include a new constitution, democratic elections, and an end to the anti-Shia, Sunni-dominated governance. Two people have so far died in clashes between police and demonstrators, and Migrante regional coordinator John Leonard Monterona expressed worries that Filipinos may get caught between the two sides. Monterona called on the Philippine government “to prepare contingency plans to secure the safety of our OFWs in Bahrain" and also in other Middle East states, just like what it did in Egypt, should the situation get out of hand. He added it would be difficult for the Philippines to implement a rescue plan if unrest spreads to nearby Saudi Arabia, where some 1.16 million Filipinos are living as of December 2009. The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) has not signified any intention to offer voluntary repatriation just yet for Filipinos in Bahrain. Crisis status lowered in Egypt In a related development, DFA spokesperson Ed Malaya told GMA News in a text message that the Philippine Embassy in Cairo has lowered its crisis status for Egypt following the resignation of its president, Hosni Mubarak, after 18 days of ceaseless protests. “The Philippine Embassy in Cairo has lowered its crisis status from level II or voluntary repatriation, to level I or heightened alertness, in view of the return to normalcy of the situation in Cairo and most of the Egyptian countryside," Malaya said. He added the Philippines is also stopping its voluntary repatriation program, which it started offering Filipinos on February 1. “The voluntary repatriation program of the Embassy has also been concluded, after bringing home a total of 94 Filipinos from said country," said Malaya.—Jerrie M. Abella/JV, GMA News