OFW evacuation in Libya accomplished, says DFA

Amid complaints from overseas Filipino workers (OFW), the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said on Monday it has accomplished its target of repatriating Filipinos from conflict-torn Libya. In a press release Monday, the DFA said it was ab;e repatriate Filipinos from Tripoli, Benghazi and other areas in Libya affected by violent protests. “We have accomplished this, with the pick-up of our Filipino nationals from Misuratha and Brega, as well as the voyage of the MV Ionian Queen from Tripoli," DFA Undersecretary for Administration Rafael Seguis said in the transcript of a press conference department released Monday. “We were able to get around 12,000 Filipinos in Libya out of harm’s way," Seguis said. As of Friday, 11,867 Filipinos have exited Libya. A total of 4,222 people have already in Manila as of March 6. He added that this week the DFA and DOLE will be on “mop-up operations" and get in touch with Filipinos in other areas who wish to be repatriated. Alert level raised to 4 Despite having “accomplished" its target, the DFA has raised its alert level for Libya to alert level 4, saying it will seek out Filipinos who may still want to be repatriated until Saturday next week as part of its “mop-up operations." Seguis, however, clarified that the department will not forcibly repatriate Filipinos who wish to remain in Libya. “It is not mandatory. We cannot force people to get out. We still use the word repatriation," Seguis said in the same press conference. He cited the cases of nurses in some hospitals in the area, who are unable to leave their work sites due to the nature of their jobs. “May pinirmahan sila na provision na in times of emergencies, hindi sila basta-basta makakaalis (The nurses signed a contract with a provision that states they cannot just leave in times of emergencies)," Seguis explained. He added that while the Philippine Embassy in Tripoli will try to appeal to the hospitals' administrations, the hospitals may not be forced to release their Filipino nurses because of the said employment contract. Employers to rehire OFWs For her part, Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) administrator Carmelita Dimzon assured repatriated workers that Libyan companies have signified their interest to take them back as soon as the situation there stabilizes. “The positive side is, the employers in Libya would like to get our OFWs once the situation stabilizes because they are professional and highly skilled," Dimzon said in the same conference. Meanwhile, she said about P300 million has already been spent for the repatriation effort in Libya. She admitted that a “big number" of workers were repatriated by their employers. Dimzon also said more funds will still be made available as the need arises. The government earlier allocated P525 million for repatriation efforts. She added that as of Monday morning, 2,523 beneficiaries have been given the P10,000 financial assistance from the government amounting to over P25 million. More left to be repatriated According to the DFA, there are about 26,000 Filipinos in Libya but the Philippine Red Cross estimates the number to be about 32,000. According to the DFA, more than 200 Filpinos from Brega and nearby areas were picked up Sunday (Manila time) by the DFA- Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) field augmentation team. The group was led by DFA-Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs (DFA-OUMWA) Executive Director Ricardo Endaya, DFA-OUMWA Principal Assistant Maynard Maleon, personnel from the Philippine Embassy in Tripoli. Some of the evacuated Filipinos are now in Benghazi, the DFA said. They will travel by land on Monday (Manila time) to Al Sallum, a border town in Egypt, where officials of the augmentation team stationed at the Al Sallum border are waiting for them. The government-chartered vessel MV Ionian Queen also arrived Sunday midnight (Manila time) in the port city of Crete with 1,038 passengers, including Filipinos, an Algerian family of five and a Myanmar national. A DFA-DOLE reception team in Crete welcomed Filipinos, who will be flown to the Philippines in chartered planes. In Malta, 22 Filipinos arrived from Misuratha and are currently being scheduled for flights to Manila. A total of 1,291 Filipinos meanwhile arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) on Sunday (Manila time) in three chartered flights and 12 commercial flights. Two of the chartered flights came from Dubai and one from Djerba, explained the DFA. In the last five days, the augmentation team in Tunisia evacuated 2,349 Filipinos, while the team in Egypt was able to monitor some 2,222 Filipinos who escaped Libya through the As Sallum border, the DFA said. In various interviews, repatriated OFWs and even those still in Libya lamented they had been unable to reach the Philippine post in Libya for assistance, and scored what they deemed the government’s slow response in taking them out of Libya in light of the escalating violence there. Their relatives in the Philippines likewise criticized the DFA for acting late in evacuating their loved ones, as reports came in of armed protesters storming work sites to steal their food, vehicles, and other valuables— VVP/VS, GMA News