MANILA, MARCH 19, 2011 (TRIBUNE) The response of the government thus far to the collateral damages Filipinos are suffering from the multiple disaster that hit Japan is remarkably appalling and gives a sense of disregard for the welfare of the 300,000 residents of that country.
When the earthquake struck last Friday, it took sometime before Philippine Embassy officials mustered the will to reach out and account for some 4,500 Filipinos in the disaster zones particularly in the city of Sendai that used to be Japan's greenest city but which was virtually stripped bare of its vegetation by the tsunami.
Ambassador to Japan Manolo Lopez issued statements about having received no reports of Filipino casualties from the twin disasters but the real score was likely that nothing is reaching the embassy since Lopez himself had said that communication lines were cut and that they were relying on the Internet for contact and information.
On the second day after the earthquake and the tsunami struck, Lopez organized a team to get in touch with Filipinos by hitching on a bandwagon organized by the more efficiently-moving Asian neighbors like Malaysia and Thailand.
That was the day when the Japanese government reported that the series of natural catastrophes also damaged at least two nuclear plants and that efforts were being made to contain radiation leaks.
The day after, on Tuesday, word came out from the Philippine Embassy that it was preparing the repatriation of non-essential staff likely as part of plans to evacuate the entire Philippine mission in the face of a disaster situation.
Lopez supposedly offered embassy staff the chance to go home which, according to diplomatic officials, was against Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) procedures that stated embassy personnel should be the last to leave their stations after attending to the safety of Filipino citizens.
The order was apparently issued out of fright after the radiation leak admission of Japan, likely without consulting Japanese authorities on the extent of the spreading danger.
Still the next day, on Wednesday, it was Noynoy's turn to baffle and infuriate the nation saying that $14 million will be donated to Japan with Noynoy crowing about his administration being the first to come to the financial aid of the rich country.
On the same day, however, Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario and Lopez were turning away Filipinos who had approached the embassy for help to return to the country including those whose properties, including cash, were swept away by the tsunami.
The arrogant answer to those Filipinos seeking a ticket home was that the government does not have the budget for repatriation and that they should pay for their own fares.
Del Rosario reasoned that there was no mandatory repatriation order, which seems to be more an option to take when it pays back in media mileage rather than protecting the welfare of Filipinos abroad.
The apparent deterrent for Del Rosario to commit repatriation to those who ask for it was the sheer huge number of Filipinos who some believe to reach 500,000 including the undocumented visitors or the tago-ng-tago (TNT) in local parlance living in Japan.
What was contemptuous, however, was that Noynoy can shell out $14 million in a flash but cannot fork out money for airfares of Filipinos wanting to go home.
This is not to say that the Aquino government shouldn't have donated the $14 million to Japan, that declined the offer, probably wondering why the Philippine funds were not instead used for the Filipinos.
What is unconscionable of Noynoy and his government is the fact that he rejects paying for the repatriation of the Filipinos in Japan.
Yesterday, as a face-saving measure, the Palace said it would use the Air Force's only C-130 cargo plane to move out Filipinos from Japan if needed. That would mean 150 Filipinos at a time since that is the capacity of the aircraft to carry passengers, if standing, according to the Palace. Evacuating everybody who wanted to return home would probably take a lifetime with such a lousy plan from the government, that is even if the only cargo plane that it has does not malfunction.
The disconnected moves of the government, from Lopez to Del Rosario to the Palace to Noynoy, speak of the horrors that Filipinos living in Japan face when worse comes to worst.
The impression among many is that when that fateful time comes, Filipinos will be fending for themselves with embassy officials abandoning ship, and Del Rosario and Noynoy appealing to other countries for help as a result of the absence of any credible plan to move Filipino expatriates to safety.
So much for treating the supposed heroes of the economy.
Chief News Editor: Sol Jose Vanzi
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