DFA: Pinay engineer 1st of OFWs to cross Libyan border

A Filipina engineer based in Libya was among the first overseas Filipino workers to cross the Libyan border to relative safety in Egypt, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Thursday. DFA spokesman Eduardo Malaya said the engineer, identified as Judith Tuvera, was accompanied by her employer in crossing from Tobruk in Libya to Alexandria in Egypt. "Nagkaroon na ng crossing ng isang OFW, Engineer Judith Tuvera. Siya po ay nag-cross ng border from Tobruk, Libya patungo sa Alexandria, Egypt kasama ang employer (We can confirm an OFW, Engineer Judith Tuvera, crossed the border from Tobruk in Libya to Alexandria in Egypt, accompanied by her employer)," Malaya said in an interview on dzRH radio. He also said Philippine reception teams are on hand to assist the expected crossing of another batch of 24 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) within the day. Malaya said they are also verifying reports that another batch of construction workers in Benghazi City is heading for the Egyptian border. Another Philippine Embassy team is expected to start operating at the border of Libya and Tunisia by 5 p.m. (Manila time) to help OFWs leaving Libya via Tripoli, he added. "Nakakuha sila ng landing rights just in case may eroplano tayong makuha. Naka-secure sila ng approval ng visa upon arrival (The team secured landing rights at Tunisia just in case we can get an airplane to evacuate our OFWs. The team will also help the OFWs get visas once they arrive there from Libya)," he said. Philippine teams have also set up at least two relocation sites in Tripoli and Benghazi in Libya for OFWs who want to leave, he said. On the other hand, Malaya said the Philippine teams will help the OFWs get their travel documents even if they do not have their passports. "Sa mga walang passport huwag kayong matakot. Meron tayong embassy reception team sa border. Ifa-facilitate nila ang pag-cross sa border ngayon. Bibigyan ang ating kababayan ng travel documents sa patuloy na pag-uwi sa Pilipinas" he said. (Those without passports need not worry. We have an embassy reception team at the border to facilitate their crossing. They will provide the travel documents so you can return to the Philippines.) Talks with shipowners, airlines In the dzXL interview, Malaya said the Philippine Embassy in Libya is talking with shipowners to see if they can transport OFWs from Tripoli to Malta, where a Philippine honorary consul general will wait for them. Malaya said the DFA is now talking to airline companies including flag carrier Philippine Airlines to help bring home the Filipinos. He indicated the arrangement with PAL may be similar to that of the repatriation plan for Egypt, although the plan for Egypt was not carried out. The plan involves a PAL Airbus going from Manila to Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) then to Cairo (Egypt). "Pero di na ito kinailangan dahil doon sa Cairo nagbalik sa embahada wala pang 100. Kaya ang ating kasamahan ay gumagawa ng arrangement tulad ng ginawa para sa Cairo (We did not implement the plan for Cairo because less than 100 Filipinos elected to return home at the time. But if we will push through with such a plan for our OFWs in Libya, we will likely adopt a similar setup)," he said. Besides, he said the airport at Benghazi in Libya has already been closed. — RSJ, GMA News