02 January 2011 - Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert F. del Rosario met with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem, Deputy Foreign Minister Ahmad Arnous and other Syrian officials to formally seek the Syrian Government's full assistance in facilitating the repatriation of distressed Filipinos, especially those who are in conflict areas, such as in Homs, Daraa, Idlib and Hama.
Secretary del Rosario expressed the Philippines' gratitude to Foreign Minister al-Moallem for ensuring that all Filipino nationals in Syria are kept safe, despite the ongoing unrest in the country. Foreign Minister al-Moallem provided the Secretary with a first-hand situationer and briefing on the events in Syria.
The Secretary thanked Minister al-Moallem for facilitating the repatriation of 490 Filipinos since the beginning of unrests in March 2011, and for allowing the widespread information dissemination on the Philippine Government's mandatory repatriation program.Secretary del Rosario requested the Ministry's assistance in further updating the Philippine Embassy in Damascus' current database of 5,000 Filipinos. This is in order to supplement the determination of the exact location and other information of other Filipiinos deployed throughout Syria's 13 governorates.
He brought to the Minister's attention the continuing illegal trafficking of OFWs into Syrian territory, despite the current ban on their deployment in view of alert level 4.
The Secretary also expressed the Philippines' hope for a peaceful and orderly end to the current crisis in the country.
Earlier, Secretary del Rosario and the Philippine delegation also met with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Ambassadors in Damascus for an exchange of views on the current political and security situation in Syria, and to coordinate Philippine efforts with that of the embassies of other ASEAN countries in safeguarding the welfare of their nationals across the country.
Upon arrival in Damascus last night, Secretary Del Rosario met with the leaders of the Filipino Community in Syria (FCS), in order to solidify the Philippines' campaign for the mandatory repatriation of Filipinos, as well as to reiterate the call for all OFWs in Syria to leave the country at the soonest possible time.
"We are fully committed to ensuring the safety and welfare of all Filipinos in Syria. It is our objective to undertake the repatriation of our kababayans as quickly as possible," Secretary del Rosario told the leaders of the Filipino community that met him. He added, "We will be repatriating 200 OFWs within the next 2 weeks and another 200 in the following weeks."
Together with the Philippine delegation and Embassy officers and staff, Secretary del Rosario also thoroughly reviewed the Embassy's contingency plans, which resulted in a greater commitment of resources that will help in the urgent implementation of the repatriation program.