DFA chief: Ship being readied to evacuate Pinoys from Libya

(Updated 8:30 p.m.) A ship that can carry up to 1,000 passengers is being readied to evacuate Filipinos from Libya, according to Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Secretary Albert del Rosario as the Philippine government scampers to repatriate its citizens from the strife-torn country.

In a report on "24 Oras" on Wednesday, Del Rosario said the ship, which the DFA will rent, will come from Malta and sail to Benghazi, Sirte and Misrata in Libya.

"We hope that we can get close to a thousand on that ship, because those ships are expensive," Del Rosario said.

There are more or less 13,000 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Libya, according to the DFA.

The government has been urging Filipinos to return from Libya due to the security situation there. On Tuesday, a new batch of Filipino workers from the troubled African nation arrived home, with some of them claiming they were harassed by men who were wearing police uniforms.

No funds for repatriation?

Meanwhile, the "24 Oras" report said some Filipinos in Libya who have expressed interest in returning home are growing impatient about the delay in their repatriation, and also more worried about the worsening security situation there.

"Gabi-gabi hindi ka makatulog kasi baka magulat ka na lang may maligaw na missile sa bubong," said an OFW identified only as Gem, a medical technologist, in the report.

The report said Gem and fellow Filipino medical technologist Genevieve have been waiting to be repatriated since May. It said their employer refuses to release their passports and exit visas.

"Gustong-gusto mo nang umuwi pero wala namang maibigay na assistance [ang gobyerno]," Gem said. "Walang pondo. Yun ang exact word nila."

Del Rosario denied this, according to the report.

Assistance

The DFA said the repatriated OFWs are to be briefed and assisted by DFA and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) representatives at the airport.

The Philippine Embassy in Libya has already started relocating its non-core staff to Tunisia.

"Due to the increasing violence and lawlessness in Tripoli, all non-core staff of the Philippine Embassy there are being relocated to Tunisia. Staff dependents were repatriated last week," it said.

Last July 20, the Philippine government raised the alert level in Libya to "4," citing the "extremely unstable" situation there.

"Under Alert Level 4, the Philippine government undertakes evacuation ofabout 13,000 Filipino nationals there as soon as possible while no Filipino national will be allowed to travel to Libya," the DFA said. —Joel Locsin/KBK, GMA News

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