On Wednesday, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. instructed all relevant government agencies to prepare resources for the safe and prompt repatriation of Filipinos affected by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, particularly in Lebanon.
“We are now going to evacuate our people by whatever means – by air, or by sea,” Marcos said in a Zoom meeting during the sidelines of the 44th and 45th ASEAN Summit and Related Summits held in Lao PRD.
“And, just make all the preparations so that malapit na lahat ng asset natin. Kung may barko tayong kukunin, nandiyan na malapit na sa Beirut na sandali lang basta’t the Embassy gives us the clearance and they say that our people can go, mailabas na kaagad natin so that hindi sila naghihintay ng matagal in danger areas,” he added.
Present in the said virtual meeting are officials and cabinet secretaries including Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Secretary Enrique Manalo, Department of National Defense (DND) Secretary Gilberto Teodoro, Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) Secretary Hans Cacdac, and National Security Adviser Eduardo Año.
DND Secretary Teodoro stated that they are waiting for the necessary exit clearance from Lebanon before moving forward with the repatriation efforts.
“We’re ready, willing and able [to repatriate Filipinos] at any time. We’re just waiting for the diplomatic clearances of the expatriates to be processed out of Beirut,” Teodoro remarked.
Philippine Ambassador to Lebanon Raymond Balatbat then assured that all possible measures will be taken to expedite the exit clearances, ensuring the swift execution of repatriation efforts.
On October 6, Israeli warplanes executed over 30 overnight airstrikes in the southern suburbs of Beirut. There have been no reported injuries or casualties among Filipinos, as the strikes mainly affected southern Lebanon.
In October 2023, amid escalating tensions, the alert level for Lebanon was raised from Level 2 to Level 3, prompting the initiation of repatriation efforts for Filipino nationals.
The Philippine Embassy in Beirut reported that, as of October 8, there have been 1,721 applications for repatriation, with 511 already completed and 171 individuals lined up for departure.
Repatriated OFWs were provided with PhP 150,000 each in financial aid from the DMW and OWWA, drawn from the DMW AKSYON Fund and the OWWA Emergency Repatriation Fund.
Psychosocial assistance was provided by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), while the Department of Health (DOH) supplied medical aid.
Meanwhile, the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) issued training vouchers to the repatriated Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs).
