Secretary Mama-o Calls on the Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs Officials

From left: Philippine Embassy in Iraq Chargè d’Affairès Jomar Sadie, Undersecretary Edwin Bael,  Philippine Embassy in Kuwait Chargè d’Affairès Noordin Lomondot, Assistant Secretary and Rapid Response Team Head Generoso Calonge, Secretary and Presidential Adviser on Overseas Filipino Workers Affairs and Muslim Affairs Abdullah Mama-o, Iraqi Assistant Minister and Head of Asia & Australia Department Abdullah Hassan Salih, Deputy Head Hamid Abbas Lafta, Head of Asian Section Modhafir Zedan Khalaf, and Philippine Desk Officer Rokan Abdulkhaliq Hameed. (Baghdad PE photo)

BAGHDAD 31 January 2020 —Secretary and Presidential Adviser on Overseas Filipino Workers Affairs and Muslim Affairs Abdullah Mama-o, accompanied by Undersecretary Edwin Bael, Assistant Secretary and Rapid Response Team Head Generoso Calonge, Philippine Emassy in Kuwait Chargè d’Affairès Noordin Lomondot and Philippine Embassy in Iraq Chargè d’Affairès Jomar Sadie, paid a courtesy call to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), Baghdad Asia and Australia Division Head Abdullah Hasan Salih on 28 January 2020.

The courtesy call is the first ever high-level talk between Iraq and the Philippines.

Secretary Mama-o capitalized on the strong bilateral relations between the Philippines and Iraq since 1976 and conveyed that he is tasked to deliver a message from the President, reaffirming the Philippines' interest in strengthening bilateral ties and advancing the welfare of Filipinos in Iraq. The Secretary underscored that, out of care and compassion for his nationals, the President of the Philippines tasked no less than a cabinet member to ensure that mechanisms are in place and Filipinos will be taken care of incase a similar untoward incident occurs in the future.

Assistant Minister Salih assured the Secretary that "everything is now under control" and that the Iraqi government, particularly MOFA and the Ministry of Interior (MOl), is ready to assist the Philippines in its repatriation efforts particularly in providing safe passage for distressed OFWs.  The Assistant Secretary added that bilateral relations between the two countries extend far earlier than 1976, possibly 70 years now to date, and he is thankful because the Philippine government is very attentive of its nationals in Iraq.

Assistant Minister Salih discussed that, as an initial step, it is now coordinating with MOl and partner agencies and the Philippine Embassy in Baghdad to combat human trafficking so as to move forward and have formal labor relations with the Philippines.

The Assistant Secretary appealed to the Secretary to send a message to the Philippines to reconsider the ongoing repatriation, emphasizing with an analogy that the Philippines can act as "fire extinguisher" and help Iraq in de-escalating tensions in the region. He opined that public announcements from different countries in the Middle East about repatriation efforts signal that the region is at the brink of trouble. END

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