Detained undocumented Pinoys in US should be allowed to return to PH – envoy

The Philippine government told U.S. officials that Filipinos facing deportation should be allowed to return to their home country, Manila’s top diplomat to Washington said Friday, amid reported plans by the Trump administration to send a group of illegal migrants to Libya.

Ambassador Jose Manuel Romualdez said the Philippine Embassy has sought clarification from U.S. immigration authorities on said move to transport migrants to a third country and details on the status of Filipinos under their custody and how many of them have deportation orders.

“We have already informed the U.S. Homeland Security Secretary and I.C.E. (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement) that the Philippine government will accept any and all Filipinos into the Philippines regardless of their status,” Romualdez told GMA News Online.

The embassy likewise conveyed to the U.S. that the Philippine government is “prepared to work with them” in addressing the issue, the envoy said.

A federal judge on Wednesday granted a temporary restraining order preventing the transfer of migrants to Libya or any other third country.

Senate President Francis Escudero denounced the planned move to airlift migrants, which reportedly included Filipinos, to Libya, saying “exporting” them to a third country would be “cruel.”

Libya’s provisional Government of National Unity, in a statement, rejected using the country as a destination for deported immigrants from the U.S. without its approval.

With his return to the White House, President Donald Trump is bent on carrying out his immigration agenda, making tough enforcement of immigration law and mass deportation of illegal migrants in the United States one of his priorities.

Romualdez said the embassy is committed to help Filipinos needing assistance on immigration issues, but “within legal parameters.”

He also reiterated his call to those affected to leave voluntarily if there is no legal path, particularly for those who came into the U.S. illegally or overstayed on a tourist visa.

Affected Filipinos, meanwhile, can also seek legal advice and reach out to organizations “that are truly concerned in helping with their plight,” he said.

“But as I have repeatedly stressed on many occasions, the best and most practical advice we can give to undocumented Filipinos is to seek a legal path for their peace of mind.” — BAP, GMA Integrated News