Govt urged to begin mandatory repatriation of Pinoys in Bahrain

The government should begin repatriating the Filipinos who are either residing or working in Bahrain before the political situation there worsens, Senate foreign relations committee chairperson Loren Legarda said Thursday. "Why should we wait for things to worsen before we act?" Legarda said during a weekly forum at the Senate on Thursday. As of June last year, the Department of Foreign Affairs said there were around 31,000 Filipinos in Bahrain. On Tuesday, the DFA issued a travel advisory raising the travel alert for Bahrain from level 1 (heightened alertness) to level 2 (restriction of movements and voluntary repatriation). Legarda, however, said the government should think ahead and begin mandatory repatriation now. "Even if it is only level 2, we must anticipate what must happen... there must be a directive (to begin repatriation)," she said. She likewise said that the private sector, specifically the airline companies, should help in the repatriation efforts as part of their corporate responsibility (CSR) programs. "Kung may mga bakanteng upuan, kung maaari naman silang tumulong, base na rin sa CSR dahil ang DFA walang pondo sa present alert level (If there are available seats on their planes, maybe they can help as part of their CSR because the DFA has no funds on the present alert level)," she said. Credit to DFA, PHL posts Senator Manuel Villar had earlier sought the restoration of the budget slashed from the DFA to ensure that proper assistance is given to distressed overseas Filipino Workers (OFW). He said government slashed the DFA's 2011 budget allocation for helping nationals from P156 million to P78 million. Still, Legarda wants to give credit to the DFA and the Philippine posts onsite for their efforts. "In all fairness, the embassy is doing everything it can," she said. She said the Philippine Embassy has asked Filipinos there, through repeated advisories, to stay indoors and limit their movement. On the other hand, Legarda said the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) must arrange a meeting between the labor sector and Philippine posts onsite on the situation of OFWs there. On Wednesday, the DOLE banned the deployment of newly hired OFWs to Bahrain. — RSJ, GMA News