Only 10% of illegal OFWs in Qatar availed of amnesty – DFA

Doha, Qatar (INQUIRER FILE PHOTO)

MANILA — While the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said it has been doing everything to aid undocumented Filipino workers in Qatar, it admitted it could not act on the cases of those who have not availed of the amnesty program.

The DFA learned that only 240 of the estimated 2,000 undocumented overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Qatar have availed of the Qatari government’s amnesty offer in the face of its massive deportation operations against illegal aliens, which started on December 2.

The Qatari government gave illegal aliens three months to avail of the amnesty, which expired on December 1.

DFA spokesperson Charles Jose said the Philippine embassy in Qatar has repeatedly reminded undocumented OFWs to take part in the amnesty program.

Jose said that the embassy, apart from advising undocumented Filipinos of the amnesty offer, also explained the consequences of deportation and inclusion in the immigration blacklist.

The foreign affairs spokesperson said that the Philippine embassy in Qatar helped the 240 Filipinos who availed of the amnesty to secure their exit visas and travel documents for their repatriation.

He pointed out that the embassy in Qatar even stayed open on November 30, a holiday, to process the repatriation requirements of Filipinos who took advantage of the Qatari government’s program.  SFM