OWWA chief: Mandatory evacuation from Libya may be useless

The Philippine government's order for mandatory evacuation from Libya may turn out to be useless to Filipinos who made up their mind to stay, the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) admitted Tuesday. OWWA Administrator Carmelita Dimzon said the Philippine government does not have the manpower to go to each Filipino's house there and bodily drag them into vehicles heading out of Libya. "No amount of persuasion would get them out of their respective work sites. At nagdesisyon sila mag-stay doon (And they already decided to stay there)," she said in an interview on dwIZ radio. "We're talking of mandatory repatriation. Everybody should leave Libya. But if they refuse we cannot drag them out of Libya bodily," she added. Earlier, Philippine government officials in Libya made a "last call" to Filipinos there to leave, amid sustained attacks by coalition forces against Muammar Kaddafi's forces. Dimzon said there are some 2,000 Filipinos still in Tripoli and Benghazi, most of them nurses and professionals such as engineers. She said those who opted to stay have reasons ranging from personal to work-related. "Maaring mahal nila ang trabaho nila, may pinundar sila roon. Ang iba for personal reasons (It could be that they love their jobs, or they have already settled there. Others opted to stay for personal reasons)," she said. But Dimzon said that once Philippine officials leave after making the last call, the Filipinos who stay behind may have themselves to blame if something happens to them. "Tinatawagan na natin. Even the president nanawagan na na sumama na sa mag-e-evacuate. Kung darating ang pagkakataon kailangan talaga umalis sa lugar na yan, para sa kapakanan ng ibang kailangan i-save wala tayong choice kundi iwanan sila doon," she said. (The government already made calls for them to leave. Even President Benigno Aquino III called on them to evacuate. So what the government can do is save whoever it can save. It has no choice but to leave behind those who insist on staying.) Dimzon said she has advised welfare officers to use satellite phones because of the problems with communications facilities in Libya. "We were advised to bring satellite phones, which we can use when local networks have problems. So I advised our welfare officers there to use satellite phones," she said. Only way out Last Monday, Philippine officials said sustained attacks from western forces have further limited exit options of Libya-based Filipinos who want to leave the country. Department of Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Rafael Seguis said, "May ilan na gusto umalis doon. [But] the only exit route is through the border in Egypt," Seguis said in an interview on dzBB radio. He also said the situation has prompted the DFA to adopt a proactive approach, with embassy personnel going to the hospitals where the Filipinos are working and talking to them. Many Filipino medical workers and nurses had refused to leave Libya, saying they cannot abandon their patients. “This is our last call. In Tripoli for example, DFA Secretary Albert del Rosario ordered embassy officials to approach the workers at their workplace and convince them to leave," Seguis said. He said the embassy estimates some 2,000 Filipinos are still in Tripoli while some 400 are in Benghazi. So far, he said there has been no report of Filipinos among those killed or injured. “So far, di nila tina-target ang hospitals... military installations lang (So far the hospitals are not being targeted, just military facilities)," he said. — LBG, GMA News