257 Filipinos repatriated from Uzbekistan amid COVID-19 threat—DFA

At least 257 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who were repatriated from Uzbekistan due to the threat of COVID-19 arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport on Saturday evening.

In a statement issued on Saturday, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said the chartered Philippine Airlines flight (PAL 8688) that carried the Filipinos is the first repatriation from a Central Asian country.

According to the DFA, most of the repatriates are documented overseas contract workers employed by different companies.

The OFWs requested for repatriation assistance out of fear of contracting COVID-19 in their workplaces in Uzbekistan, the DFA said.

"To understand the importance of this flight is to be reminded of the difficult conditions under which this special flight was mounted,” DFA Undersecretary Sarah Lou Y. Arriola said.

“The Philippines does not have an embassy, let alone an honorary consulate in Uzbekistan. In addition, there is a total lockdown. This means commercial flights are also prohibited," she noted.

To set the special flight, the DFA’s Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs (OUMWA) and the Philippine Embassy in Tehran coordinated with the Department of Health-Bureau of Quarantine, Philippine Overseas Employment Agency, Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration.

It also partnered with concerned licensed manning agencies.

The DFA acknowledged the efforts of the Philippine Airlines  in conducting  “a milestone flight to Uzbekistan in the spirit of a humanitarian mission.” The Philippine Airlines also brought home the remains of one deceased OFW.

Upon arrival, the Filipinos were subjected to appropriate medical protocols required by the Department of Health (DOH), the DFA said.

The repatriated workers were also required to undergo quarantine procedures in accordance with the Omnibus Guidelines established by the Interagency Task Force (IATF), it added.

"A big part of the success is attributable to our kababayans themselves. Their leaders ensured adherence to the repatriation plan as well as compliance with the Philippine and Uzbek governments' health and quarantine protocols. This includes COVID-19 testing before the flight,” Arriola said.

“We are thankful that all repatriates tested negative for the COVID-19 virus," she added. —Joviland Rita/KG, GMA News