DFA: 43 Pinoy repatriates from Syria due home Wednesday night

Another batch of 43 overseas Filipino workers repatriated from conflict-hit Syria are due home Wednesday night, the Department of Foreign Affairs said.

 

The DFA said 39 OFWs are to arrive aboard a Philippine Airlines flight at 6:20 p.m., while four will arrive aboard Emirates Airlines at 9:45 p.m.

 

"Seven of the repatriates are from Homs, one of the cities worst hit by the ongoing violence, while most of the rest are from Damascus," it said in a news release issued Wednesday.

 

The DFA added the OFWs were taken from their employers by embassy personnel and a Philippine rapid response team, after negotiations and payment of penalties.

 

With the repatriation of the 43, the DFA said the number of repatriates is now 1,206.

 

The DFA said the International Organization for Migration paid for the plane tickets of the 39, while the Philippine government paid for the tickets of the four.

 

IOM has been providing assistance to migrants caught in armed conflicts, disasters, and unrest worldwide as part of its mandate, the DFA said.

 

Philippine Embassy in Damascus Chargé d' Affaires Olivia Palala continues to help Filipinos still in Syria, it added.

 

"We are grateful that IOM is giving us a helping hand in our repatriation efforts. The organization's resources have lent support to our Government's continuing efforts to bring distressed Filipinos in strife-torn Syria home," DFA spokesman Raul Hernandez said.

 

The Philippine government considers Syria to be under Alert level 4, which requires the mandatory evacuation of all Filipinos in Syria.

 

Alert Level 4 was raised in December 2011 amid escalating violence between government and opposition forces.

 

The Philippine government renewed its call to OFWs' next-of-kin of to assist in the repatriation by providing information on the whereabouts of their loved ones and their contact details in Syria.

 

Interested parties may call the Department of Foreign Affairs' Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers' Affairs (DFA-OUMWA) at (02) 834-3245 or (02) 834-3240. — RSJ, GMA News