Thursday, December 21, 2006 5 Cebuanas to be flown back home; Cebu City to help
FIVE Cebuanas smuggled to Malaysia by an alleged illegal recruiter have been rescued and are undergoing orientation at the Philippine Embassy in Kuala Lumpur.
“They’ve been rescued with the help of our volunteers in the embassy and are now in our custody. Our workers in the embassy are working for their repatriation,” Philippine Ambassador to Malaysia Victoriano Lecaros said in a mobile phone interview yesterday.
An employee at the Philippine Embassy in Malaysia, who requested anonymity, also confirmed in a long-distance interview that they already have the five Filipinas, who are in good condition.
For their safety, the identities of those who helped rescue the women should be kept confidential, Ambassador Lecaros said.
Before the rescue was confirmed, Cebu City Hall offered to assist the five Cebuanas, who escaped from their employer in Malaysia.
In the middle of his press conference yesterday, Mayor Tomas Osmeña called up Ambassador Lecaros to inquire about the condition of the five women, all residents of Cebu City.
Worry
“I’ll worry about bringing them in but he has to find them there. I can always ask Cebu Pacific to help with the tickets, but find them first,” Osmeña told reporters after talking to the ambassador.
He also asked City Administrator Francisco Fernandez to request the women’s welfare advocacy group Lihok Pilipina to look into the plight of the five women, for possible assistance.
The workers are now in Miri City after they escaped from their employer who allegedly forced them to work as guest relations officers in a nightclub.
They left Cebu last month after they were promised jobs as singers in Miri in the island of Sabah, a three-hour flight from Kuala Lumpur.
Meanwhile, Philippine Overseas Employment Administration 7 Director Evelia Durato asked relatives of the five victims to come to her office so she can help them locate and prosecute the recruiter.
“From our end, we can provide legal assistance to the victims if they want to get justice,” she said.
Sun.Star Cebu reported the women’s plight after an aunt of one of the victims sought the help of broadcaster and Sun.Star Cebu columnist Bobby Nalzaro.
Ambassador Lecaros said that as soon as the exit permits for the five victims are ready, they can fly back home. (AIV/LCR)
