Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero on Thursday, May 8 criticized United States President Donald Trump’s plan to send Asian immigrants—including Filipinos—facing deportation to Libya, saying it would be “cruel” for his administration to export them to a third country and one known for human rights violations.

“Filipinos are not camels to be dumped on some Libyan desert,” the Senate chief said.

“They are human beings who deserve to be accorded all the rights by a state who claim to cherish and uphold them,” Escudero added.

The Senate leader urged Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Manuel Romualdez to look into the status of all Filipinos scheduled for deportation or transfer to other states and extend legal assistance to them if necessary.

Escudero said it is crucial for the government to ensure that Filipinos facing legal troubles are protected and that they would not be forced to endure possible persecution in countries with a history of human rights violations.

“If the United States wants to deport our citizens, then we are willing to welcome our kababayan back. There is absolutely no need for this cruelty to export them to a third country,” he said.

“Dignified repatriation of our brothers and sisters is all we seek, not some rendition to an offshore penitentiary in a country which does not want them,” he pointed out.

A federal judge has already temporarily stopped the deportation proceedings against Asian migrants bound for Libya citing that such move would violate Trump’s own earlier order allowing them to challenge their removal for a country other than their own.

Part of Trump’s campaign promise to the American people is to expel millions of undocumented immigrants in the US, a move that has generated strong condemnation among human rights groups and foreign governments.