Pinoys in strife-torn Libya: Safe but worried

Feeling relatively safe but worried, some 200 Filipinos in Libya have already started evacuating as violence in the North African country continues to intensify. Rodel Hipolito, an overseas Filipino worker (OFW) in Libya, said he and the other Filipinos are currently sheltered in an oil refinery in Marsa Brega City, some eight hours away from Tripoli and three hours from Benghazi, the center of violent protest actions aimed at ending the decades-long rule of President Muammar Gaddafi. “Ngayon po ay papalikas na kami. Inaasahan naming na may dadaong na barko dito sa isang port sa Brega papunta ng Malta," Hipolito told GMA News’ Mel Tiangco in a phone interview on “24 Oras" Tuesday night. (We are now evacuating. We’re just waiting for the ship that will arrive at a port here in Brega and take us to Malta.) Hipolito said the evacuation was arranged by his German bosses who will flee Libya with them. He said the other Filipinos in the oil refinery were from other companies, and that more are expected to join them from Tripoli. Although relatively safe, Hipolito, who hails from Quezon City, said they are “worried" after they were victimized by robbers who were taking advantage of the chaos there. “Medyo na-ransack po 'yung aming kampo at nanakaw po yung lahat ng puwedeng pakinabangan (Our camp was ransacked and all valuable items were stolen)," he said. He said the ship will take them first to Malta, then to Frankfurt, Germany, from where they will fly back to the Philippines. The Philippine government is offering to repatriate some 30,000 Filipinos in Libya. According to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), it has already requested the International Organization for Migration to help arrange flights for Filipinos wishing to go home from Libya. “As long as the airport in Tripoli is open, we will fly them from there. We are ready to process the repatriation now. We will repatriate as much as we could," said DFA Undersecretary Esteban Conejos at a press briefing in Manila earlier in the day. Hipolito said they called the Philippine Embassy in Tripoli but were told to “stay put." “Actually kami po ang tumawag sa ating embassy pero ang sabi po nila ay stay put daw po kami. Tingin po namin medyo kulang sila sa resources kung paano kami ililikas (We called the embassy but we were told to stay put. We think that’s because they lack resources how to evacuate us)," he said. - KBK/VS, GMA News