135 Filipinos in Syria seek gov’t help

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Sunday said that 135 of the estimated 17,000 Filipino workers in violence-wracked Syria had inquired about the Philippine voluntary repatriation program.

DFA spokesperson Raul Hernandez said the Philippine Embassy in Damascus was processing travel documents, talking to employers and making arrangements for those who had made a firm decision to return home.

Hernandez said that Foreign Undersecretary Esteban Conejos Jr. was in Syria to assess the security situation and help arrange the repatriation program to be financed by the Philippine government. (See story in The World, Page A28.)

Escalating violence

Last week, the DFA raised the alert level in Syria, citing escalating violence.

Most of the Filipino workers in Syria are women working as domestic helpers, and most of them are undocumented.

Migrante International, an organization promoting the welfare of overseas Filipino workers, has slammed the Aquino administration for playing down the situation in Syria and acting slowly despite the unrest plaguing the country for months.