Migrante stages protest at DFA HQ, demands OFW repatriation in Jeddah

By Roy C. Mabasa
 Published: April 29, 2013

Members of a Filipino migrant rights watchdog staged a protest rally in front of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) headquarters in Pasay City Monday to push the Philippine government to attend on the mass repatriation of stranded overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Saudi Arabia.

The members of Migrante  said they plan to stay at the said area until Tuesday. However, Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario personally met with the rallyists to politely ask them to leave because they are  causing inconvenience to visitors and to the day to day work at the DFA. 

Del Rosario promised to meet with them on Tuesday to tackle the issues they are raising related to the Saudi impasse.  

Around 50 protesters were carrying placards one of which called for the resignation of DFA Undersecretary Jesus Yabes who was earlier dispatched to Saudi to talk with the campers. 

In an interview with Manila Bulletin, Migrante chairperson John Leonard Monterona said stranded OFWs encamped beside the Philippine Consulate building in Jeddah has already ballooned to 3,424 . 

According to Monterona the figure was confirmed by Philippine embassy officials during a meeting with the leaders of the stranded OFWs and also with Filipino community leaders held last April 26. 

During the said meeting, the relocation of the stranded OFWs especially old and sick, women and children to a more comfortable shelter was discussed. Monterona said Philippine officials offered the 4th floor of the consulate building and a compound owned by a Saudi national, which will accommodate around 200 people. 

However, he said the leaders of the stranded OFWs rejected the relocation as they said it is not enough and no clear blue print on their relocation and repatriation were presented. 

Also contrary to earlier statements issued by the DFA, Monterona claimed the population of campers outside the Consulate actually increases during the night. 

"It's impossible that the population at the camp increases during the day time because the weather is too hot," said Monterona.