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MORE than 300 Filipinos from Beirut, Lebanon have been repatriated to the Philippines due to the 2019 coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic, Malacañang said on Saturday.
The 317 returnees arrived in Manila via a special chartered flight as part of the Philippine government’s twin repatriation and goodwill missions to Lebanon.
“The Office of the President, together with the Department of Foreign Relations, successfully concluded repatriation and goodwill missions to Lebanon today,” the Palace said in a statement.
The two-day mission included a delivery ceremony and food delivery to the Filipino community in Lebanon through the Philippine Embassy in Beirut, a delivery ceremony and delivery of medical supplies to the Lebanese Red Cross, Rafiq University Hospital Hariri, Beirut General Hospital and the Lebanese NGO KAFA from the Philippine private sector, and a meeting with leaders and members of the Philippine community.
“The twin missions demonstrate the continued commitment of the Philippine government to assist Filipinos who wish to return home as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic and other challenges, as well as the solidarity of the Philippine nation with the Lebanese people,” Palace said. .
The inbound and outbound flight mission was carried out on the instructions of President Rodrigo Duterte following his speech at the 75th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on September 22.
Duterte, during the UNGA High Level General Debate, noted that “Filipino migrant workers have been devastated by the pandemic” and yet, “they continue to be on the front line, healing, caring for others in different parts of the world” .
The president also announced that the Philippine government “embarked on an unprecedented repatriation program” to include more than 345,000 Filipino workers abroad.
The mission, led by Presidential Assistant for Foreign Affairs and Chief of Presidential Protocol Robert Borje, is the fifth chartered repatriation flight from Lebanon since June 2020 and the second since the Beirut explosion in August 2020.
Malacañang said that at least 2,596 Filipinos in Lebanon have been repatriated by the government since December 2019.
The Philippine government has repatriated a total of 193,429 Filipinos since February 2020.
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