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Tuesday, June 01, 2004
RP not freezing work deployments in Saudi
MANILA -- President Arroyo condemned on Monday the terrorist attacks in Saudi Arabia over the weekend that killed three Oversees Filipino Workers but said it would not freeze deployment of Filipino workers to the kingdom.
The government is coordinating with the Philippine attaché in Saudi Arabia for the immediate repatriation of the remains of the three Filipino workers who were among the casualties in the terror attack.
Arroyo branded the attack that killed 22 people, including three Filipinos, a "direct assault on the civilized world."
"The government condemns the latest terrorist attack in Saudi Arabia in the strongest terms and considers this a direct assault on the civilized world," Arroyo said in a written statement.
She also extended her sympathies to the families of the Filipino victims, who are among nearly a million Filipinos working in the Middle East. She said "all the necessary assistance would be extended to them."
But foreign office spokesman Juli Heidemann said the attack on the oil-rich province of al-Khobar did not specifically target Filipinos and that the government will not ban workers from travelling there.
"This incident is not directed at Filipinos and is an isolated case. There will be no deployment ban," Heidemann said.
The foreign office was also not likely to issue a travel advisory, even as Filipinos in the Middle East are being reminded to be extra-vigilant for possible terror attacks, she said.
Saudi commandos stormed a housing complex, which also hosts the offices of several oil companies in the northeastern city of al-Khobar Sunday to rescue dozens of hostages a day after militants attacked the complex and slit the throats of some of the foreign victims.
Arroyo urged Filipino workers in the region to "continue to work with their employers and host governments to ensure their own safety and security."
Meanwhile, Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) Administrator Virgilio Angelo said they are waiting for the response from the labor post in Saudi regarding the return of the remains of Mariano Cabagsag, Joelly Giray and Feliciano Dizon.
Angelo said they have talked to the families of the victims and has assured them of the immediate release of benefits amounting to P200,000 and other privileges intended for families of OFWs who perish in the line of their duty.
"Realistically speaking, we cannot undo what had happened to our 'kababayans' who figured in this senseless act, but nonetheless, we wish that our message of sincere sympathies is clearly felt by relatives of Filipinos contracted abroad. That the government, more than anybody else, is doing its best, under the circumstances to make them feel that we truly care," Angelo said.
Angelo, together with the Owwa repatriation/airport assistance team, visited the families of Cabasag and Giray in Pasig and Makati City, respectively, last Sunday.
They met with the victims' families who were still shocked upon knowing of the death of their kin.
On the other hand, Angelo sent Owwa supervisor Mamerto Mercado in Region II to visit the family of Dizon.
Angelo said two of the three Filipinos who were injured in the incident in Oasis Residential Compound in Al-Khobar Saturday morning are now being treated in a hospital there.
Marvin is confined at the Saad Specialist Hospital while Jimwel Tarossa is at the Aston Hospital. Another Filipino who sustained minor injuries is Alberto Costales, who was discharged from the hospital after treatment.Marie Neri/AFP
(June 1, 2004 issue)
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