NO PLAN TO EVACUATE PINOYS IN SOUTH KOREA / US-KOREA DRILL WORRIES PHL
MANILA, NOVEMBER 26, 2010 (STAR) By Aurea Calica – Malacañang said measures are in place to ensure the safety of Filipinos in the Korean peninsula but there is no plan yet to evacuate them at the moment.
"There are no plans yet of evacuation but certainly, precautionary measures have been undertaken by the Philippine embassy in Seoul," presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said.
He also voiced President Aquino's appeal to North and South Korea to end their hostilities.
"We are calling for an end to the provocative actions and calling for sobriety on the part of the two Koreas," Lacierda said.
There are currently 60,000 Filipino nationals in South Korea and nine in North Korea.
Lacierda said Philippine Ambassador to Seoul Luis Cruz relayed the information "that all is quiet as of this time."
"We are in touch with most of the Filipino community leaders in the area so through them we are assessing the situation and many of them said they are carrying on with their normal lives in places where they are but we have advised them to keep abreast of developments," Cruz told ANC News.
Lacierda said Special Envoy Roy Cimatu, who had led many evacuation efforts, reviewed the contingency plan and concluded that "this is one of the most prepared plans in all the plans that he had seen, principally because the Korean people as a whole are always on a state of alert."
"They've always prepared themselves in the event of an invasion from North Korea. So, yes, the Philippine embassy in Seoul is well-prepared to undertake any measure required to protect their citizens, our Filipino nationals," Lacierda said.
He also ruled out issuing an advisory against traveling to Korea because everything was okay at present.
"Furthermore, the citizens of (South) Korea have been apprised of the situation there. Right now, if and when the situation would escalate, then they will revisit that decision," Lacierda said.
North Korea shelled a South Korean island last Tuesday, killing two soldiers and setting 19 houses aflame.
Aquino immediately convened the Cabinet's security cluster to discuss the situation and assured the public that the government was "presently working and ensuring the safety of our countrymen there."
Military assistance
The military said it is ready to send a peace-keeping contingent to the Korean peninsula if requested by the United Nations.
"As far as the Armed Forces of the Philippines is concerned, we are ready. That shall be the decision of our policy makers," Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff Gen. Ricardo David Jr. said.
"Your armed forces is prepared to help any nation, particularly under the United Nations flag, to pour troops or any undertaking around, particularly near our shores," he added.
"Even if we have limited tools, kahit na palakol lang pwede nating gawin (even if we only have axes, we can do it). We will defend ourselves (using) the available resources of your Armed Forces of the Philippines," David said.
"We need to modernize. This is being addressed by our Congress and we hope that in the succeeding years, we can acquire ample equipment, ample tools to defend ourselves," David said.
The Philippines deployed more than 7,400 soldiers to Korea to help repulse a North Korean invasion of South Korea in the 1950s. A total of 112 Filipino soldiers were killed in the conflict, which ended in an armistice.
Worried of losing jobs
For many Filipino workers in South Korea, the prospect of losing their jobs as a result of a full-blown war in the Korean peninsula was giving them jitters.
"The people here in Seoul are used to tension. That's why even if there is really tension, the people remain calm and continue with work," Rev. Anselmo Balabo, who is taking up Masters in Theology at the Methodist Theological University in Seoul, told The STAR in Filipino in a phone interview. Balabo is a pastor of the United Methodist Church in Bulacan.
He said foreign workers and students in Seoul have told their families back home not to worry.
But he said Filipino workers were worried about being sent home in the event of a full blown war.
Like most local residents of Seoul, he said Filipinos expect the capital to be targeted by the North Koreans if the conflict escalates because the city is the seat of power and commerce.
He said the Blue House or the presidential palace is just about two kilometers from the Methodist Theological Seminary.
"In case of war, we will be lucky if Seoul will not be targeted first," he said.
He said undocumented Filipino workers feared Korean immigration agents more than getting caught in a full scale war.
Meanwhile, fewer South Korean nationals have arrived in the country through the Ninoy Aquino International Airport since Tuesday's outbreak of hostilities in the Korean peninsula.
Authorities said tourists arriving from South Korea dropped by as much 60 percent after the attacks.
Mostly returning Filipinos disembarked yesterday from Korean Airlines flight KE 621 with some 316 passengers and Asiana Airlines flight OZ 701 with 282 passengers.
In a related development, Philippine Airlines (PAL) announced that there would be no changes in the flight schedule to South Korea despite the rising tension, unless advised to make adjustments by Philippine or Korean authorities.
PAL currently flies to Seoul twice a day, to Busan four times a week, and daily from Cebu to Seoul. With Dino Balabo, Rudy Santos, and Alexis Romero
US-Korea drill worries Phl By Pia Lee-Brago (The Philippine Star) Updated November 26, 2010 12:00 AM Comments (3)
MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines is worried that a joint United States-South Korea military exercise scheduled on Sunday might heighten tensions in the region and stir anxieties among civilians, including Filipino workers in the Korean peninsula.
"The coming exercise is creating anxiety because we have so many OFWs (overseas Filipino workers). This is the uncertain factor in the equation today," Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Esteban Conejos Jr. said yesterday in Filipino in an interview with radio dzRH.
"I hope the exercise will not become another provocative act," he said. A carrier group led by the aircraft carrier USS George Washington is steaming into Korean waters to join the exercise.
Last Tuesday, North Korea shelled a tiny South Korean island, killing four people and burning 19 houses.
"We have a contingency plan that's being prepared by the DFA and the embassy. The plan is detailed and there is a crisis management committee. We have a movement plan in the event of hostilities," Conejos said.
Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz, for her part, said the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) board has initially set aside P25 million as part of contingency measures.
"The fund is being readied for any eventuality and the OWWA board may even provide additional money if the need arises," Baldoz said.
Meanwhile, Philippine Coast Guard commandant Admiral Wilfredo Tamayo said they were ready to help evacuate 60,000 Filipinos in South Korea in the event of a full-blown war.
"If we are asked and if there is a need, we would help," Tamayo said. – With Mayen Jaymalin, Evelyn Macairan
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