Third gov’t-chartered flight brings home 317 pinoys from Middle East
Authorities have repatriated over 2,000 Filipinos and their dependents since March 5 under the “whole-of-government repatriation effort,” according to the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW).
The latest batch of 317 Filipinos arrived in Manila, aboard a government-chartered flight from Dubai on Thursday, the DMW said, as tensions in the Middle East continued to prompt workers and travelers to return home.
Of the total, 153 were overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), accompanied by 114 dependents, while 50 were stranded Filipino passengers who opted to return due to the ongoing security situation.
They were received by Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac and Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (Owwa) Administrator Patricia Yvonne Caunan.
The latest batch followed two earlier government-chartered flights that arrived days after the start of hostilities in the Middle East.
On March 14, a government-chartered flight from Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates brought 442 Filipinos home, including 200 OFWs, 60 dependents and 182 stranded tourists.
The following day, a second batch of 342 Filipinos arrived from Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, composed of 328 OFWs and their dependents.
Other means
The three flights chartered by the government totaled 1,101 Filipinos, but did not include 998 others who returned home on commercial flights.
Only 11 days after the United States and Israel started their joint military operation against Iran on Feb. 28, nine Filipinos were successfuly evacuated out of Iran, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said in a hearing at the House of Representatives.
The group was evacuated on March 10 and March 11 through joint efforts of the Philippine Embassies in Iran and Turkiye, which facilitated the group’s land crossing and subsequent flight back to the Philippines, DFA Undersecretary Ezzedin Tago said at the hearing.
According to DFA records, there are still about 800 Filipinos living in Iran, most of them married to Iranian nationals.
Singapore also helped fly 24 Filipinos from Saudi Arabia, using a military aircraft, on March 13 from Saudi Arabia.
Still a challenge
The DFA data showed that more than 2.4 million Filipinos are in the Middle East, with the largest concentrations in Saudi Arabia (813,000) and the United Arab Emirates (973,000), but most of them have not sought repatriation assistance from the government.
The DMW said in early March that it had received 1,416 repatriation requests from Filipinos, but immediate mass evacuation remains a challenge because of closed airspace, suspended flights and unsafe travel routes.
The DMW and Philippine embassies provide consular assistance, shelter and food to affected nationals.
The DMW said the effort was carried out through a “whole-of-government” approach involving the DFA, the Philippine Embassy in Abu Dhabi, the Philippine Consulate General and Migrant Workers Office in Dubai and Owwa.
Returning Filipinos received immediate assistance upon arrival, including financial and welfare aid from the DMW and Owwa, medical support from the Department of Health and psychosocial services from the Department of Social Welfare and Development.
Reintegration assistance is also being prepared for returning workers, the DMW added.
