Egypt eyed as repatriation point for Pinoys in Libya

Egypt could be a key evacuation point for Filipinos if the security situation in Libya deteriorates to a point that repatriation is needed, a Philippine labor official said Tuesday. Labor Undersecretary Danilo Cruz said Egypt is relatively near Benghazi City in Libya, where many of the protest actions are taking place. “If the airport [in Benghazi] is not operating, and if there is a need to evacuate our workers, we may consider asking them to proceed to Egypt and we may repatriate them from there," Cruz said in Filipino in an interview on dzBB radio. Cruz heads a new Labor Department task force that will help the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) implement contingency plans for Filipinos in at least three troubled Middle East countries. He said the situation in Egypt, which underwent a recent People Power-type revolt some weeks back, has normalized, and planes can land and take off from there. On Monday, the DFA issued travel advisories to Libya, Bahrain and Yemen, asking Filipinos to defer travel to the three countries due to prevailing political tensions there. Communication lines Cruz said that amid reports that communication lines and Internet access have been cut in Libya, the Philippine government is tapping big companies employing Filipinos there to get updates. “May malalaking kontratista sa Libya na may mahuhusay na communication at sila ang nagbibigay sa atin ng information (There are big firms employing Filipinos in Libya that have good communication facilities. They are providing us with updates)," he said. For now, he said they have not received any report of Filipinos being affected or injured by the protests ongoing in Libya. On the other hand, Cruz said it is up to the DFA to decide when to repatriate Filipinos from there. He noted that Benghazi is far from Libya’s capital of Tripoli. He also cited reports that communication lines to Tripoli were unreliable at best. Labor team to Libya Cruz said a team including a new labor attaché, will head for Libya on Saturday, to beef up the Philippine labor team there. He did not immediately identify the new attaché. “The new labor attaché will augment our personnel at the Philippine Overseas Labor Office there," he said. On the other hand, Cruz said they can cope without special envoy to the Middle East Roy Cimatu, after the DFA canceled his mission to Egypt. He said Foreign Affairs Undersecretaries Rafael Seguis and Esteban Conejos Jr. are working to ensure the safety of Filipinos in Libya and the Middle East. Cimatu had been dragged into a mess involving alleged pabaon (sendoff money) for retiring military officials. He denied the allegations. — LBG/RSJ, GMA News