MANILA, Philippines—The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) has described as “workable” the country’s diplomatic relations with rebellion-torn Libya.
The Philippine government “abides by the United Nations Security Council resolution which authorized the conduct of air strikes” against the regime of Moammar Gadhafi “in order to avert grave humanitarian crisis” in the north African state, according to Foreign Assistant Secretary J. Eduardo Malaya, also DFA spokesperson.
But at the same time the Philippines maintains relations with the Libyan government.
“Maintaining relations with the government in Tripoli has allowed us to better care for our remaining (overseas Filipino workers) in Libya,” Malaya told the Inquirer.
The DFA said less than 2,000 OFWs—mainly nurses and their dependents—have opted to remain in Libya. As of Tuesday, a total of 9,854 OFWs who fled Libya have returned to the country.
Malaya, also the ambassador-designate for Malaysia, noted “the government remains in contact with and continues to engage the Libyan government.”
“The Libyan Embassy (in Makati City) has been very accommodating in our visa requests for the secretary during his travels to Libya.”