PH Embassy Repatriates 18 Distressed OFWs from Lebanon

Philippine Ambassador to Lebanon Raymond R. Balatbat (center) and Vice Consul Miko D. Cabatingan (left) with Filipino repatriates at Beirut Rafic Hariri International Airport (BRHIA). (Beirut PE photo)

BEIRUT 03 April 2023 — The Philippine Embassy in Lebanon sent home 18 distressed Filipino workers on 29 and 30 March 2023, including seven shelter wards, ten undocumented workers, and one detainee.

In coordination with relevant Lebanese authorities, the Embassy facilitated their clearances from immigration liabilities due to their undocumented status in Lebanon. The Embassy already repatriated a total number of 25 distressed Filipino workers in the first quarter of 2023.

Repatriates expressed their gratitude to the Embassy for facilitating their long-awaited return to the Philippines. Alice (not her real name) added that she has been working for more than thirty years in Lebanon only to end up seeking shelter in the Embassy after she suffered from certain health conditions preventing her from effectively working. Another repatriate expressed the importance of the Embassy’s role in reuniting her with her eight-year old daughter back in the Philippines who she left while only 5 months old.

The Embassy’s Assistance-to-Nationals (ATN) Section continues extending assistance to distressed OFWs in Lebanon given the deteriorating socioeconomic conditions in the country affecting vulnerable migrants and until the Migrant Workers Office (MWO) in Lebanon is fully operational. END

Amb. Balatbat and Vice Consul Cabatingan \with Filipino repatriates sent off the repatriates as they lined up to depart from Beirut. (Beirut PE photo)

Four (4) additional Filipino repatriates with Vice Consul Cabatingan (center). (Beirut PE photo)

For more information, visit https://www.beirutpe.dfa.gov.ph,  https://www.facebook.com/PHinLebanon/.