DFA: OFWs EVACUATION ACCOMPLISHED / GULF NEWS: 9,000 OFWs EVACUATED
MANILA, MARCH 8, 2011 (GMANEWS TV) JERRIE ABELLA, GMA News - 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
GULF NEWS
More than 9,000 Filipino workers evacuated from restive Libya By Barbara Mae Dacanay, Bureau Chief * Published: 00:00 March 4, 2011 * Gulf News
[PHOTO -Filipino workers from Libya display a donation box. Filipino workers from Libya display a donation box which they used in collecting donations that enabled them to survive the turmoil in Libya. The workers were among those who took a chartered flight that landed at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila. * Image Credit: AP]
Manila denies claims that lack of funds hampered repatriation efforts.
Manila: More than 9,000 Filipino workers have been evacuated from Libya with the help of the Philippine government and their employers, officials said.
Around 4,000 more have yet to be evacuated following the government's target to bring home half of the 26,000 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) based in the restive North African nation, officials said.
The number of OFWs who exited Libya rose to 9,231 after the Philippine government chartered a Greek-flagged ship that brought 1,290 OFWs out of Benghazi. The ship docked in Crete, an island in Greece, said Nicon Fameronag, head of the Philippine labour department's information office.
At the same time, some 3,000 OFWs also left Benghazi airport in five batches and were bound for Egypt, said Fameronag.
"As a result, about 4,900 OFWs are now waiting for chartered planes in Egypt, Tunisia, and Malta, to bring them home to the Philippines."
The Philippine consulate in Frankfurt provided travel documents for 42 OFWS who were brought there by their employer. All of them did not have passports because they were evacuated from their work site in Libya, said Consul General Maria Cleofe Natividad.
In Tripoli, some 4,000 have signed up for evacuation. "Now, we're setting a date for ourselves to get people out of that coastal area [in Libya] by Saturday. That's our target," said Acting Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario. The OFWs in central and western areas of Libya which are safer, should remain there and wait for help from the Philippine foreign affairs department, said del Rosario.
Many OFWs work as labourers at remote oil and gas fields. Some 158 OFWs arrived aboard nine commercial flights at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) at nine Thursday morning; 180 others planed in via Dubai while 15 more took a separate flight, Labour and Employment Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said. Philippine Ambassador to the United Nations Libran Cabactulan appealed that all countries around Libya must "allow access and provide safe passage to citizens of third states who are fleeing Libya.
No funding problem
Meanwhile, Budget Secretary Florencio Abad denied claims that lack of funds was the reason for the slow evacuation of OFWs
"The Philippine government is facing difficulty and uncertainty of operations not [problems of] funding," said Abad.
DFA, DOLE conduct 'mop-up' operations to locate OFWs in Libya By Rainier Allan Ronda (The Philippine Star) Updated March 08, 2011 12:00 AM
MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said they were conducting "mop-up" operations to locate and possibly send home more than 13,000 to 15,000 Filipinos still in Libya, in the face of escalating violence in the North African nation.
"This week and up to Saturday, we will be on mop-up operations. We will get Filipinos in other areas aside from Tripoli and Benghazi who wish to be repatriated home to the Philippines," Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Rafael Seguis said.
"The areas outside Tripoli are very dangerous. Because of the current situation, there's a need for them to leave," he said.
"We can't force people to get out but we're trying our best to convince them to leave," Seguis said.
"For the past two weeks, we have accomplished much, but there remains much to be done. We have had very close coordination and partnership with Labor and Employment Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz and her team, and will continue to do so," he said in a press conference held jointly with Labor officials.
He said they have achieved their "Internal target" of extricating Filipinos from Tripoli, Benghazi and other areas.
"We have accomplished this, with the pick-up of our Filipino nationals from Misurata and Brega, as well as the voyage of the M/V Ionian Queen from Tripoli," Seguis said.
"With the tremendous effort of our personnel from the Philippine embassy in Tripoli, and with the support of people from the respective home offices of DFA and DOLE, we were able to get around 12,000 Filipinos in Libya out of harm's way, with about a third of them already back in Manila," he said.
"The Philippine government allocated P525 million for the repatriation effort, and more funding will be made available for these Filipinos," he pointed out.
"We have chartered planes, ships and other modes of transport to ensure that we have an effective and efficient repatriation. Teams from the DFA and the DOLE are in the border crossings in Egypt and Tunisia, as well as in receiving areas in Djerba, Crete and Malta to receive our nationals, provide them assistance and arrange for their onward transportation to Manila," Seguis added.
DFA-DOLE personnel led by DFA-Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs Executive Director Ricardo Endaya and principal assistant Maynard Maleon picked up more than 200 Filipinos from Brega and nearby areas last Sunday. The Filipinos were set to travel by land yesterday from Benghazi to Al Sallum, a border town in Egypt.
The Philippine government-chartered vessel Ionian Queen arrived Sunday midnight in the port city of Crete with 1,038 passengers, including an Algerian family of five and a Myanmar national. In Malta, there are 22 Filipinos who arrived from Misurata.
In Manila, a total of 1,291 Filipinos arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Sunday in three chartered flights and 12 commercial flights.
There are now 11,867 Filipinos who have exited Libya.
Coordination
Sen. Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said coordinating with countries with nationals still trapped in Libya would help in locating and evacuating Filipinos in the embattled North African state.
"Find some kind of partnerships with other countries who have also nationals working in Libya, that is one suggestion that the DFA can take on board," Marcos said at the weekly Kapihan sa Diamond Hotel media forum.
"Because we have limited resources and these countries have much larger global reach, they have ships… let us stop trying to do it on our own," Marcos added.
He said a Chinese company has already evacuated its 30,000 workers from Libya. The Philippines, on other hand, has evacuated roughly half of its more than 26,000 Filipino workers in Libya.
"Considering the number of workers that we have (in Libya), the DFA could have done a better job," he said.
Sen. Francis Escudero, who was also a guest at the breakfast forum, said there is a pending bill in the Senate that seeks to expand the powers of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC). Based on the proposed measure, the NDRRMC may come up and carry out contingency plans for Filipinos in countries experiencing civil unrest.
Evacuation progress hit
Militant groups and a congressman son of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, meanwhile, criticized the administration for what it considered the slow evacuation process.
"It seems the DFA is not prepared or has adopted a wait-and-see attitude on the crisis," Bagong Alyansang Makabayan secretary-general Renato Reyes Jr. said.
Camarines Sur Rep. Diosdado "Dato" Macapagal-Arroyo said delays in the evacuation showed the Aquino administration's "indecisiveness and lack of focus in running state affairs." Mrs. Arroyo herself is now a member of the House of Representatives.
"It is now very obvious that Mr. Aquino is incapable of handling a crisis. The fact that there are still stranded OFWs in Libya because of the absence of a systematic and quick evacuation system shows that Mr. Aquino's administration has very little competence in crisis management," he said.
"This early, his actions are the exact opposite of his campaign rhetoric. It is clear that he is not really capable of putting words into action," Arroyo said in a statement. – With Mayen Jaymalin, Rudy Santos, Paolo Romero, and Helen Flores
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