‘Hot lines’ for OFWs in Mideast set up

A 24-hour communications center has been set up in Manila to monitor the movements of Filipinos in the Middle East amid the threat of a US attack on Iraq.

Operational since Sept. 9, the center is manned by personnel of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and the Overseas Workers’ Welfare Administration (OWWA).

The DFA-OWWA "hot lines" are: 834-3333, 834-4997 and 831-8874.

Acting Foreign Affairs Secretary Franklin Ebdalin said the joint communications center is now keeping track of Filipinos being evacuated from Iraq to Jordan.

"It is an indication that though we expect the problem to eventually find a peaceful resolution, we are also prepared for the worst," he said. "The center is to be manned on a 24-hour basis by personnel from both the DFA and the OWWA."

Ebdalin said the center’s primary goal is to update families of Filipinos in the Middle East on the emerging crisis in that region.

"Contingency plans for each post (in the Middle East) are also in place," he said. "Based on the information from these parts, the DFA will take appropriate actions, including the issuance of alert levels from time to time through the media."

Ebdalin said Philippine embassies and consulates in the Middle East are in "constant communication" with one another and the home office for the latest situation.

"As the events unravel themselves, rest assured that the DFA will be at forefront of efforts to ensure the safety and protection of our nationals in the Middle East," he said.

"In the face of a potential major crisis, I believe that we should remain sober and assume a calibrated stand. We continue to hope that the issue will be resolved peacefully through dialogue and diplomacy," Ebdalin added.

Meanwhile, reports reaching Manila indicated that half of the 121 Filipinos in Iraq do not want to be evacuated.

Acting Labor and Employment Secretary Manuel Imson said the repatriation of Filipinos from Iraq is voluntary and that they can choose to remain in their jobs.

"Buses are now awaiting Filipino workers who would willingly leave Iraq," he said. "They will be transported to a safer place in Jordan where they will stay for a maximum of one week."

Imson said 41 of the 121 Filipinos are employed with the United Nations which has not expressed any intention to move out of Iraq.

"(The) UN has not really ventured into moving out from Iraq and we expect their workers to stay with their employers," he said.

Imson said the government is monitoring events and that the Filipinos would be returned to Iraq if the situation improves.

However, they will be repatriated to the Philippines if the situation worsens, Imson added.

In case of another Middle East oil crisis, Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said the Philippines can buy oil from members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations through the 1986 ASEAN Petroleum Security Agreement.

"On longer term basis, we can rely on the ASEAN Agreement that will allow the Philippines to source its crude from Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei," he said.

Bunye said Energy Secretary Vincent Perez has also assured President Arroyo that the country has adequate oil supply of 69 days stock inventory.

"We have enough oil inventory to enable us to ride out the immediate effect of a war outbreak (in the Middle East)," he said.

Gov’t must be ready for evacuation — Villar

At the Senate, Sen. Manuel Villar Jr. said the government must be ready to evacuate Filipinos not only in Iraq but the rest of the Middle East.

"Our embassies and consulates in countries with proximity to Iraq must have contingency measures and be prepared to evacuate Filipinos if there is an imminent threat to their safety," he said.

Villar said a war between the US and Iraq could spread to other countries in the Middle East, where many Filipinos live and work.

"It is better to be prepared as the safety of our countrymen cannot be compromised," he said.

Villar said "definite measures" should be drawn up to give employment and livelihood to Filipinos returning from the Middle East.

"If the need to evacuate a large number of OFWs in the Middle East arises, livelihood programs should be put in place to make sure they will have a means to support themselves and their families," he said.

The money can be drawn from the P900 million OWWA reserve fund Villar added.

On the other hand, Sen. Edgardo Angara said Malacañang and Congress must come up with an "emergency funding scheme" to help thousands of displaced overseas Filipino workers.

Angara said this year’s national budget and the proposed budget for next year contained no provisions for funds for the "critical needs" of Filipinos who have been deported from Sabah.

The share of Mindanao in the national budget for this year and the proposed 2003 budget would not be enough to fund projects for the deportees, Angara added. — With reports from Mayen Jaymalin, Sammy Santos, Marichu Villanueva