Syria OFWs more afraid of lack of jobs in Phl

MANILA, Philippines - Some Filipino workers in Syria are terrified of the hostilities, but they chose to stay because of the lack of job opportunity in the Philippines, a Filipino community leader said today.

"Iyong iba natatakot sila. Gusto na nila talagang umuwi. Iyong iba gusto nilang umuwi pero nanghihinayang sila sa trabaho nila (They are frightened. They want to go home. Some of them want to go home, but they are thinking of their jobs here)," Jackie Casawat, president of the Filipino community in Syria, said in an interview with radio dzMM.

Casawat, meanwhile, assured that all Filipinos working in Syria, particularly those based in Latakia and other critical areas, are safe.

She said that as of now, no Filipinos have come forward to avail of the repatriation offer of the Philippine government.

"Kapag umuwi sila sa Pilipinas, ano po ang magiging trabaho namin? (If we return to the Philippines, are there jobs waiting for us?)" Casawat added.

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) has raised Alert Level 3 in Syria. Under the alert level, overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) are advised to seek repatriation that will be funded by the Philippine government.

Labor Undersecretary Danilo Cruz said yesterday that only four OFWs have asked to be repatriated from the violence-stricken country.

In a separate radio dzMM interview, Ambassador Wilfredo Cuyugan said that at least 20 OFWs have "inquired" about the repatriation process.

"We answered them. We are just waiting for their final decision," Cuyugan said.

He said the embassy's advance team in Aleppo have talked to about nine to 10 OFWs. He said the team is still convincing them to leave Syria.

Yesterday, Cuyugan said that at least 40 Filipinos are already in the embassy, but clarified that the OFWs are mostly "runaways" and their cases are not related to the current security situation in Syria.

He, however, said that the embassy may also opt to send the 40 Filipinos back to the Philippines.

The Philippine government said there are at least 17,000 Filipinos in Syria, most of them are engaged in domestic services.

Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) chief Carmelita Dimzon had said that majority of OFWs in Syria, including the undocumented ones, work for rich employers and are mostly in areas considered safe.

Dimzon also noted that the situation in Syria is not as alarming as that in Libya, where close to 2,000 OFWs have ignored the government’s mandatory repatriation.

“Unlike in Libya, the prevailing hostilities are not as widespread that we think not many workers would avail of the government’s repatriation,” Dimzon said.

Authorities said that hostilities in Syria are almost concentrated in Latakia, Homs and Daraa.