Deployment ban to Libya, Afghanistan stays

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) is not inclined, for now, to lift the deployment ban to Libya and Afghanistan, which are still experiencing civil unrest.              

Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz yesterday said the government will not resume deployment to these countries because of security concerns.                   “Unless the Department of Foreign Affairs could come out with a new assessment, DOLE is not inclined to resume the deployment due to security concerns in those countries,” Baldoz said.

She admitted that the department has received numerous requests from overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), particularly those in Libya, to lift the deployment ban so they can go back to work in hospitals there.

The Libyan government as well as private companies in the African nation have also declared their intention to rehire OFWs who have left their jobs because of the prevailing political tension.

Earlier, labor group Migrante warned that more Filipino workers would sneak out of the country to return to Libya if the deployment ban is not lifted.

Political tension and civil unrest, meanwhile, sparked anew in Syria.

The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), however, said returning OFWs may still go back to the Middle East country in keeping with the government policy allowing the deployment of returning workers.