BY GLENDA SOLOGASTOA
ILOILO City – Two hundred six overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) from strife-torn Libya have returned home to Western Visayas.
Of 206, 88 were from Iloilo; 68 from Negros Occidental; 26 from Capiz; 110 from Aklan; 11 from Antique; and two from Guimaras, according to the Philippines News Agency.
They were repatriated on various dates since July 20 when the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) declared Crisis Alert Level 4 in Libya due to the ongoing armed conflict there.
This led to the issuance of a total deployment ban and the implementation of the mandatory repatriation program.
Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) Region 6 records showed that 74 of the OFWs have received financial assistance from the agency at P10,000 each.
Under OWWA’s Financial Released Assistance Program, displaced OFWs are given financial aid.
OWWA urged other displaced OFWs to visit its office for the financial assistance.
DFA reiterated its appeal to all remaining Filipinos in Libya to immediately reach out to the Philippine Embassy in Tripoli to register for repatriation.
Data from DFA showed that the total of repatriated Filipinos from Libya reached 2,727 as of August 18.
Contact details of the Philippine Embassy in Tripoli, Libya are as follows: (00218) 918-244-208 / (00218) 914-370-399 / (00218) 945-348-481 with email addresses: tripoli.pe@gmail.com and tripoli.pe@dfa.gov.ph./PN
