Migrante International called on the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) to immediately repatriate all OFWs from war-stricken Lebanon at a picket-dialogue on Thursday.
The migrants group rebuked claims from the DFA that Filipinos in Lebanon “are still adamant” about staying in the conflict-torn country as its basis for maintaining its Alert Level 3 for Lebanon.
Alert Level 3 compels the DFA to repatriate Filipinos on a voluntary basis, while Alert Level 4 mandates the DFA to repatriate all Filipinos.
“Sobrang lapit na ng mga bomba at sundalo ng Israel sa ating mga OFW sa Lebanon. Hihintayin pa ba ng DFA na may mga patayin ng US-Israel bago pa sila magpauwi ng mga kababayan?” said Josie Pingkihan, Migrante International deputy secretary general.
(Israeli bombs and troops are already too close to our OFWs in Lebanon. Will the DFA wait for US-Israel to kill Filipinos before they bring our compatriots home?)
At the picket-dialogue, families of Filipinos in Lebanon were fearful of reported bombings from the US-backed Israeli Occupation Forces in towns where their loved ones work and reside.
The families shared accounts of their migrant relatives receiving flyers from Israeli planes warning them of imminent airstrikes in their host communities.
Following months of airstrikes on civilian communities and resistance targets alike, Israel on October 1 launched its ground invasion into Lebanon, where 11,000 Filipinos work as migrants.
‘Understaffed and ill-equipped’ Philippine government offices in Beirut
Migrante International reported that they received complaints from Filipinos in Lebanon that the Philippine Embassy and Migrant Workers Office (MWO) in Beirut are “understaffed and ill-equipped” to serve Filipinos in crisis.
Filipinos affected by the US-Israeli war also complained that the online pages of the embassy and MWO in Beirut did not provide timely alerts to ensure the safety of migrants.
During a dialogue between Migrante International and the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) on October 1, DMW Undersecretary Bernard Olalia revealed that the MWO in Beirut had no ground vehicles to rescue stranded OFWs.
The DMW also disclosed that the Philippine government has no evacuation centers prepared to shelter migrants in the crisis-hit country.
At a Malacañan press briefing on October 2, the DMW admitted that it was still eyeing chartered flights, months after Zionist forces engaged in hostilities against Lebanon.
“Hindi bago ang mga krisis sa Middle East para sa mga migrante. Pero kahit ipinagyayabang ng gobyerno ng Pilipinas na may malasakit sila sa OFW, nahuli silang hindi handa sa gyera kung saan buhay din ng mga Pilipino ang nakataya,” said Pingkihan.
(Crises in the Middle East are not new to migrants. But even though the Philippine government boasts to care for OFWs, they were caught unprepared for a war where Filipino lives are also at stake.)
“Sa laki ng pondo ni Marcos Jr. para sa DFA at DMW, bakit pa nagkukulang sa tao at rekurso ang mga opisina nila sa Beirut?” added Pingkihan.
(With Marcos Jr’s large funds for the DFA and DMW, why are their offices missing funds and resources for their offices in Beirut?)
Families of Filipinos affected by the conflict called on the Philippine government to engage in urgent talks with the Lebanese government to secure landing permits for chartered flights and open up evacuation centers for migrants.
‘Thoughtless and convoluted’ repatriation process for Filipinos
Migrant families and advocates at the DFA picket-dialogue rebuked the hurdles faced by Filipinos trying to escape the US-Israeli invasion since the Philippine government opened its voluntary repatriation process in October 2023.
During the picket-dialogue, Migrante International shared Lebanon-based OFW grievances with the DFA’s requirements and process for repatriation.
Migrants in Lebanon criticized the Philippine government for waiting on Lebanese immigration services for clearances for all repatriation applications before they can send Filipinos home.
Exit clearance requirements from Lebanese immigration include passports, residence permits (iqama), and other documents that employers are known to confiscate from OFWs before they can work.
The Philippine Embassy in Beirut has the authority to immediately issue temporary travel documents for migrants with withheld or lost passports and other documents.
The Philippine government also requires Filipinos to process their repatriation at the embassy, even if it means traveling through potential warzones to heavily-bombarded Beirut without rescue vehicle support from the embassy and MWO.
Migrante International also criticized the online repatriation process as discriminatory to undocumented migrants and Filipinos without electricity or internet access.
“Walang pakundangan at masalimuot ang proseso ng repatriation ng embahada sa Beirut. Walang gulugod ang gobyerno ni Marcos Jr. para igiit na pabilisin na ang pagbigay ng exit clearances sa mga Pilipino,” said Pingkihan.
(The Beirut embassy’s repatriation process is thoughtless and convoluted. The Marcos Jr. government has no backbone to assert faster exit clearance grants for Filipinos.)
Lebanon migrant families call for immediate repatriation and assistance
At the picket action and dialogue with the DFA, migrant families and advocates presented a ten-point manifesto to call for the immediate and safe rescue of all Filipino nationals from Lebanon.
The demands to the Philippine government in the manifesto included the securing of chartered flights, increases in Philippine government ground personnel in Lebanon, and swift assistance for Filipino migrants rendered stranded by the Lebanese government’s exit clearance requirements, as well as OFWs abandoned or held hostage by their employers.
The ten-point manifesto also included the assertion that the Marcos Jr. government must provide livelihood support and financial assistance to repatriates to allow returning migrants to reintegrate into the national economy.
Migrante International also called on Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to pick up the pace in assisting Filipinos at risk from the US-Israeli invasion.
“Kahapon lamang nakipag-meeting si Marcos Jr. sa DFA tungkol sa Lebanon. Sa ilalim ng pangulong pabaya at walang puso, babagal talaga ang kilos ng gobyerno para mapauwi ang ating mga kababayan,” said Pingkihan.
(Only yesterday did Marcos Jr. have a meeting with the DFA on Lebanon. Under a neglectful and heartless president, the government’s pace in bringing Filipinos home will surely be slow.)
Before engaging in dialogue with the DFA, the protesters concluded the picket by condemning US-Israeli wars in the region, dubbing US-Israeli aggression as the “number one threat” to migrants and peoples of the Middle East.