More than 250 Filipinos in Ukraine are now out of danger, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Thursday afternoon, March 10.
A total of 259 Filipinos have been taken out of Ukraine, DFA Undersecretary Sarah Lou Arriola said. Of this, 90 Filipinos were already repatriated while 169 nationals are in various safe borders near Ukraine.
Arriola said of the 169 Filipinos evacuated from the war-stricken country, 60 individuals are expected to arrive in Manila on Thursday.
Meanwhile, of the 90 Filipinos, who have already returned home, 55 are seafarers.
REAL NUMBERS: Repatriation Status of Overseas Filipinos in Ukraine.@teddyboylocsin @DFAPHL #DFAinUkraine pic.twitter.com/K5AEsMz7FP
— Sarah Lou Ysmael Arriola (@slyarriola) March 10, 2022
On Wednesday, March 9, a total of 29 seafarers arrived in the Philippines. They are the crew members of MV Global Aglaia, MV Joseph Schulte, and MV Star Helena.
According to DFA, they exited Ukraine to evacuate to Moldova with the assistance of the Philippine Honorary Consulate in Chisinau and the Philippine Embassy in Budapest. They then left for the Philippines from Bucharest, Romania.
The Foreign Affairs department expects more seafarers to arrive in the country in the next few days through its evacuation and repatriation programs.
Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Sarah Lou Arriola disclosed on Wednesday that they are having a hard time evacuating seafarers, particularly those stranded at the Black Sea.
“Kami, medyo, problemado tayo dito sa (We are facing problems with evacuating) sea-based (workers). POEA (Philippine Overseas Employment Administration) is closely monitoring how many Filipinos are stranded sa kanilang (in their) vessels,” Arriola said.
She added that they could not leave their vessels due to the “heavy fighting” and they can only hunker down and take cover amid the intense firing. However, she assured that the government will keep working with Philippine embassies and consulates in the embattled country and its nearby territories to get them out of danger.
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